noooooo
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First gameplay footage makes us doubt our Readiness 2 Rumble
We're not sure we understand what has happened with Ready 2 Rumble Revolution. The last Ready 2 Rumble game featured some exaggerated celebrity characters as well, and we found it kind of funny. But there is nothing funny about the caricatures in Ready 2 Rumble Revolution. That Hasselhoff-esque boxer is, in fact, kind of upsetting. The good news is that, aside from the substitution of these abominations for Ready 2 Rumble's cast of wacky stereotypes, this looks a lot like the classic boxing game we know and kind of like. After the break, a video featuring what looks like custom characters -- a possible escape from the offensive appearance of Dewie Strudel.%Gallery-38364%
Castlevania, Lost in Blue out next year in Europe
We're not sure whether this counts as a delay, as we don't recall either of these titles being given a release date in the first place, but Konami has now confirmed that Europe won't see Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia or Lost in Blue 3 until 2009. With any luck, we'll still be getting Time Hollow when promised.We Euro folk can probably all agree to bide our time for Lost in Blue 3 -- especially after the reception it got -- but no Castlevania for at least another 70 days? Noooooo! Considering we have vampires for real here in Europe, we must question the wisdom of not letting us getting some Dracula-whupping practice in at the earliest possible date.%Gallery-22992% Like Castlevania? We do -- to an embarrassing degree. Check out our impressions of Order of Ecclesia from E3, settle in for a trailer, or go Behind the Boxart with a Konami graphic designer. But enough talk -- have at you!
Nintendo: DSi is region-locked
Those of you who intend to import a DSi from Japan next month may wish to revise your plans, as Nintendo has now confirmed that all DSi software will be region-locked. "DSi software (software that is only compatible with DSi) is region-locked, e.g: European DSi software can only be played on European DSi consoles," stated Nintendo's spokesperson to CVG, brutally driving a stake through our dreams of ever playing Japanese DSWare.There are elements of the DSi that are region-free -- you'll be able to surf the 'net wherever you are in the world, exchange photos with friends in other regions, and still play non-local DS games on the DSi -- but it looks like we can forget about importing Japanese DSi software. It simply won't work.Nintendo's messenger says this is because the DSi "embeds net communication functionality within itself" and provides "net services specifically tailored for each region." The fact that each region has unique age limits is also mentioned. What a thoroughly depressing start to the week! We're off for coffee and extra donuts.%Gallery-33263%
Banjo won't be straying to Virtual Console
Oh, woe is us. Microsoft just dispatched (and then pulled) a press release boasting about the imminent arrival of Banjo-Kazooie on Xbox Live Arcade, describing the game as an XBLA "exclusive." We can safely assume this means the bird and bear won't be made available on the Virtual Console, news that conclusively crushes whatever slim hopes we had for the game appearing on Nintendo's service. We suppose $540 million buys you these kind of perks, eh?To rub salt in our open wounds, Microsoft also disclosed that sequel Banjo-Tooie would be made available on XBLA early next year, "making Xbox 360 the new home of the beloved Banjo-Kazooie franchise." We think we're going to sigh sadly now, reader. Feel free to join us.* sigh *[Via Joystiq]
E308: Atari and irritating celebrity chef combine for cooking game
It was, we suppose, inevitable. Nintendo's Cooking Guide released in Japan two years ago (as Cooking Navi), where it shifted a decent number of units. It recently emerged in Europe, and did pretty well there, too (it'll be coming to the U.S. this November). And what happens each time Nintendo releases a successful non-game? Answer: as sure as night follows day, (usually inferior) third-party alternatives appear.That's what has happened here, with Atari following Nintendo into the cooking-with-your-DS arena. What's Cooking? with Jamie Oliver will feature 100 recipes (Cooking Guide has 245), space for 100 of your own, a shopping list mode, and competitive cooking games. It's very similar to Nintendo's game then (though apparently you can share recipes via WiFi), except you get to look at Jamie Oliver and his smug, squishy, Mockney face a whole lot more.If, like this blogger, you regard Oliver as an affront to all that is decent about humankind, it might not be your thing. But it might be okay as a game.%Gallery-27845%[Via press release]
Bon Jovi and others confirmed for Rock Band 2
Soft rock god and midget Bon Jovi is amongst the latest group of artists confirmed to appear in Rock Band 2. Game Informer magazine identified seven new tracks from the instrument fest, finally confirming what we all suspected: that the "leaked" video from earlier in the week was a fake. One piece of speculation that doesn't look fake is an earlier list of rumored tracks, many of which match up to the latest official batch. And here they are, along with their YouTube links: "Livin' on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi "Rock 'n Me" by Steve Miller Band "Testify" by Rage Against The Machine "White Wedding Pt. 1" by Billy Idol "Bad Reputation" by Joan Jett "Almost Easy" by Avenged Sevenfold "I Was Wrong" by Social Distortion Game Informer also reveals that the drum kit has been tweaked (to incorporate expansion slots for cymbals, velocity-sensitive pads, and a sturdier, reinforced drum pedal), and that Harmonix will release a deluxe drum kit which can double up as real electronic drums when you're not playing the game. There will also be quieter buttons on the guitar, a "less squishy" strum bar, and a mode that lets players listen to their performances. Hopefully all of this applies to the Wii version!Hold your lighter aloft and sway past the break for a full list of Rock Band 2's confirmed (and rumored) tracklist to date.
Carnival Games DS apparently features freaks
Carnival Games on the DS apparently features a "sideshow" feature not found in the Wii version! That is, if the title screen is any indication. Look at that guy! He's about ten million times creepier than the jack-o-lantern-like barker found on the cover of the Wii game. That guy's not a barker -- he's a warning. "Step right away! Don't come in!"Carnival Games' carnival also features a "game" in which you're swarmed by giant bees. They may present it as a game, but we usually don't find the presence of bees in our amusement parks at all amusing. Maybe after that, you'll have to play a game about cleaning the spilled ice cream off of the ground so the park doesn't attract so many bees.%Gallery-23715%
Hello Misleading Boxart!
Man, the boxart for this Japanese baby-care game (or whatever you call that kind of thing) is totally cute. We didn't think there was a way to get jaded non-little-girl gamers like us interested in seeing screens of a baby game, but publisher Brain Toys has done just that for Konnichiwa Akachan (Hello Baby). If the whole game were to look like this, it would be a confirmed Cute Overload.We have got to see screenshots right -- oh, no, it's Baby Pals. Oh, man, they got us to look at Baby Pals again. That's like the baby-game equivalent of the Rickroll. There hasn't been this much of a mismatch between boxart and a game's real appearance since Dragon Power.
It's official: No paddle for Arkanoid and Space Invaders
Here's a depressing start to our day. Noting the awesome paddle controller's absence from the North American Space Invaders Extreme/Arkanoid DS press release, as well as its eventual absence from the European press release, Spencer Yip put the question to Square Enix directly. Their response was heart-rending."We are not bringing over the paddle controller for the NA version." What are we supposed to do now, play Arkanoid without a paddle controller? Arkanoid without its controller is -- well, it's Break 'em All, which already exists. We were thrilled when we found out SE was going to release these games, but our enthusiasm is tempered by the fact that they're only halfway releasing them. Oh, well, off we go to import a paddle.%Gallery-19376%%Gallery-14613%
Friday Video: To the floor with you!
This kid is undeniably excited about receiving a DS and games for Christmas -- you can tell by the frantic gyrations and leaping about -- which is why we can't understand why they are all flung to the floor after a moment of celebration. We can only guess that's what happens when you give a child a "senior edition" DS Lite. Oh well. The mysterious dichotomy of excitement and flinging makes for a fun moment in our weekly video spotlight.[Update: Aww, the video has been removed. What a way to spoil our fun!]
Gotta deck the halls
Looking for some cute Christmas music to play in the car during a family trip, Kotaku's Brian Crecente happened upon this horror: Pokémon Christmas Bash, a Pokémon-themed album of Christmas music from 2001. If you're curious, check out the samples on iTunes. If you like what you hear (for some reason), or want to give a last-minute gift of lulz, the album is available both on CD and in MP3 format from Amazon for the low, low price of $6.98. Featuring sure-fire holiday classics like "I'm Giving Santa a Pikachu This Christmas" and, uh, "Pokémon Christmas Medley," Pokémon Christmas Bash is destined to become part of every family's holiday collection, joining favorites like Ren & Stimpy's Crock O' Christmas. [Via Kotaku]
Kohler unleashes MySims Idol on an unsuspecting world
Celebrity Miis have competition now, from Celebrity MySims caricatures. Game|Life's Chris Kohler got a chance to mess with the character creation utility, and, rather than creating a lil' Chris Kohler, he decided to test the game's Sanjaya Malakar-creating capabilities. Sanjaya, for those of you not hooked on the longform game show American Idol, is a very popular contestant who makes it really hard to watch the show with the sound on.On the one hand, the likeness is incredible, indicating a very intuitive and feature-rich character creation system. On the other hand, noooooo.
