Another one for the economy is stanky catagorey, this time with THQ. It was recently announced that, while originally only slashing 250 jobs, 100 more positions in the mobile department will be terminated.
THQ exec Brian Farrell speaks of the decliming economy and it’s effects on the company:
Given today’s market environment, we believe our focus on the high-end handheld market is critical to strengthening our market position and achieving profitability. As a result, we will be downsizing our wireless group and will be closing our San Diego, UK and Germany wireless offices. Approximately 100 employees will be affected.
Read (VideoGaming247)
If you still haven’t bought Grand Theft Auto IV, now’s your chance. Steam has recently announced that for this weekend only they will offer 30% off the entire Rockstar catalog.
Other than GTA IV, Manhunt, GTA: Vice City, Max Payne 2, and Bully: Scholarship Edition make the cut. That’s not all though, if you want to get the full list of Rockstar games offered on Steam head here.
Sure this is great for those of you who haven’t played these games before, but me? I prefer a physical copy of the game when I make my purchases.
Read (Steam)
As if the Crysis games didn’t require a beefy enough computer as it is, Crytek has added another variable into the equation.
They have recently released a patch that, just in case your computer is godly enough, adds 64-bit support for Windows XP x64 and Windows Vista 64-bit version to Crysis Warhead. You can download the patch via the read link.
Full log below:
Windows Vista: Mouse cursor should no longer have an offset in the menu.
Windows Vista: Unrequested launches in windowed mode should occur less often now.
Timedemo can now be started from the command line.
Better dynamic texture support for enthusiast mode.
New Features
Added 64-bit executables for Windows XP x64 and Windows Vista 64-bit version. In Windows XP x64 a new shortcut will be placed under the Crysis Warhead program group. In Windows Vista right-click the Crysis Warhead icon in Game Explorer and choose to run the game in 64-bit mode.
Known Issues
Games saved in 32-bit won’t work properly when running the 64-bit version and vice-versa.
Read (FilePlanet)
Here is a product you will most likely never see in your entire life; the Gate Game VU. Recently revealed at the American Trade Exhibition International, the Gate Game VU is pretty much your run of the mill arcade station with an Xbox 360 or PS3 on the inside, and a slot for accepting coins.
Complete with a 32″ LCD, 2 controllers, another LCD screen seemingly to pick games on, and built in subwoofer, the Gate Game VU is a great idea, but will it deliver?
The cool thing about the old school arcades was for the most part, you couldn’t get those titles for your home system. Now, with an Xbox 360 or PS3 built in, you’re just paying to play games you most likely already have.
Although, I could see this being put to proper use if a bar or similar establishment had the latest titles up for play. Hell, you can even get one of these with a PC kiosk attachement.
Read
Midway hasn’t been doing so hot for some time now, and the tough economical times don’t exactly help that. But that doesn’t stop them from making haste to fill their executive positions.
They have recently announced that Mathew Booty, current President and CEO of the company, will take up the position of Chairman of the Board.
Booty had recently secured the position of President and CEO of Midway when David F. Zucker resigned, now he’s the Chairman after Peter C. Brown resigned. Pretty soon it will be called Midbooty instead of Midway (insert chuckle here).
Read (Kotaku)
Previously it was pretty much a mystery as to what Nintendo had instore for us in 2009, but no more. Joystiq has recently gotten their hands on Nintendo’s official release list for 2009.
Unfortunately a new Zelda title is not to be seen, but that could all change soon enough:
DS
Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir (Feb 2 Europe)
Walk with me! Do you know your walking routine? (Feb 20 Europe, 2009 US as Personal Trainer: Walk with Me!)
Pokemon Platinum (2009 Europe, March 22 US)
Rhythm Paradise / Heaven (2009, Europe and US)
Mario and Luigi RPG 3 (2009, Europe and US)
Kirby Super Star Ultra (2009 Europe)
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (Feb 16 US)
Wii
New Play Control! Pikmin (Feb. 6 Europe, March US)
New Play Control! Mario Power Tennis (March 3 Europe, March US)
Punch Out!! (First half 2009, Europe and US)
Wii Sports Resort (2009 Europe, first half 2009 US)
Sin & Punishment 2 (2009, Europe and US)
Another Code R and Endless Ocean 2 (2009 Europe)
New Play Control! Pikmin 2 (First half 2009, Europe)
Capcom’s Street Fighter IV is about 2 weeks from it’s release date and the achievements for Xbox Live are now just starting to pour out.
Below is the full list of achievements thanks to Associated Content:
Street Fighter IV achievements are listed in the format of Achievement Name – Gamerpoints – Achievement Details:
10 Years Too Early – 20 – Win 50 Xbox LIVE battles.
10 Years Too Late – 50 – Win 100 Xbox LIVE battles.
All Dolled Up – 10 – Set your Title and Icon.
Arcade Rat – 20 – Clear Arcade Mode with one character on medium or higher difficulty.
Challenge Expert – 30 – Clear all challenges in Challenge Mode.
Challenger – 10 – Clear a challenge in Challenge Mode.
Color Guard – 10 – Unlock all colors.
Crowd Pleasing Master – 10 – Perform 10 Personal Actions (Taunts).
READ ON »
Although the Flight Simulator team has been shut down by Microsoft, Mamba Games, a new videogame publisher founded by former THQ executive Robert Neilson, today announced that it has acquired rights to distribute six add-ons for Flight Simulator X.
Developed by RealFlight, the new add-ons will be released over the course of the next two years. The first of this content will be a Grumman F6F Hellcat expansion, which will be available on March 27 for 19.99 Euros (roughly $25). It can already be bought as a digital download directly from RealFlight.
Microsoft recently closed the ACES development team, raising questions about the future of the Flight Simulator series. The company, however, has assured fans that it is still fully committed to the franchise.
The recession has officially hit publisher Disney Interactive, who confirmed today that just under 30 employees have been let go from Propaganda Games, the studio behind Turok.
The company added that Fall Line Studio – the developer of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian – will be rolled into Avalanche Studio. This consolidation will reportedly be responsible for less than 20 layoffs.
Meanwhile, Kotaku reports that the Propaganda layoffs coincided with the cancellation of a sequel to Turok, which wasn’t received well by critics.
Disney Interactive spokesperson Angela Emery would not comment on the rumor, however, but asserted that Propaganda is still a two-team studio with two unannounced projects in the works.
Bracing itself for the large Unreal Tournament 3 patch that is due out soon, Valve today enabled free Steam registration for the game.
The registration is a simple matter of entering the CD key in Steam’s activation menu. Any CD key should be eligible for activation, including versions of the game purchased from other digital distribution services. However, the activation will require a new installation of the game, so if you don’t want hard drive bloat, be sure to uninstall your old version first.
The update will bring over 50 Steamworks Achievements, as well as new features and enhancements in AI, mod support, server browsing and more.
