The official announcement isn’t planned until 2009 however and while that seems like an odd time frame for an announcement with the holiday season right around the corner, does Nintendo want to frustrate customers by having two hard-to-find products on the shelves? It’s also likely that given the continued success of the DS they’ll want to wait for a point where the sales begin to fall off before introducing a new handheld.

A representative of the company told GameSpot that the game actually shifted studios “quite a long time ago”, though they don’t disclose the new studio’s name.

He added that Transmission is now working on Heroes Over Europe, which is “an important title” for them.

The Unreal Engine 3-powered title is expected Christmas 2009.

“There are several hours of fairly polished game to play,” he said, adding that they are currently getting feedback from play testers. “It’s fun, it’s in focus, we know what bits are fun and which are not, and it’s just a matter of time now. I’ve probably never been as happy or excited about the game as I am these days.”

It has been a decade since the game entered development. Hopefully it will be released sometime soon… maybe in the next five years or so.

“I don’t want to give an exclusive character for any particular console,” he said. “And that applies to downloadable characters as well … because it’s not very fair.”

The game’s roster of fighters sees Cammy as a confirmed addition, with Dan, Fei Long and Sheng Long candidates to most likely be added, though details are yet to be set in stone.

Ono promised to show more of the game at this year’s Tokyo Game Show. The game is expected to hit PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 sometime next year.

The company had promised Microsoft $15 million in the event that Immersion settled with Sony. In 2007 they did settle with the PlayStation maker, prompting Microsoft to ask for its $15 million. However, Immersion had refused to pay and a lawsuit ensued.

Immersion happens to be the loser this time around, ponying up a cool $20.75 million to Microsoft and enrolling in the company’s Certified Partner Program, which effectively makes it a customer of the Xbox manufacturer.

The Max Payne franchise was created by Remedy Entertainment, with the first game debuting in 2001. The second game followed in 2003, with the teaser of a third game at the end of the sequel’s credits. However, Remedy has denied making Max Payne 3 and is currently hard at work on Alan Wake.

There was also another rumor of a PS3 exclusive from Rockstar North, the one behind the well-received Grand Theft Auto IV. No details were given.

The site also reports that the game will include the camera functionality of the console versions, allowing you to take pictures with any USB webcam and use it for the in-game license and online takedowns. There is also word that the single-player progression may be changed slightly, though no details were given.

“We have never neglected our core gamers,” said Nintendo in the October edition of Edge magazine. “We still have developers working on popular core gaming franchises but we need longer to complete these games, approximately two to three years.”

The games are not ready to launch early next year, but the company said that they are being worked on by all development teams.

“There is a technical difficulty that is being worked out,” wrote community manager Sean Baptiste on the game’s forum. “I’ll alert you when it is all clear.”

No release date is being offered for the album, which will retail for $11 on Xbox Live and PlayStation Network.

The rumor originated from a video acceptance speech for an EDGE Magazine award that the studio had created.

Denying the rumors, community manager Luke Smith plainly stated that there will be “not ‘bots’ added to the game,” adding that the issue is now a “closed one.” He also blasted members of Bungie’s devout community, describing them as “overly zealous, froth-filled fans bathed in excitement.”

It was loved for its attention to detail as much as its humor and quality gameplay: when assembling a team of mercenaries you had to take into account their feelings towards each other. Some of the soldiers wouldn’t get a long and could cause problems on a mission. Get too many of your mercs killed and you’ll get a reputation as a careless employer and find your pool of applicants limited to the dangerously unbalanced. This classic title will be re-released on the DS in 2009.

The Paragon -15g
Reach 100% Good or Evil.

The New Hero -50g
Defeat your first great opponent.

The Whippersnapper -25g
Collect 5 gold pieces during the Hero’s childhood

the Pooch Pamperer -5g
Play fetch with your dog.

The Archaeologist -5g
Dig up something your dog has discovered

The Dog trainer -5g
teach your dog a trick.

The persuader -5g
Convince a villager to give you a present

The Show-off -5g
Impress a villager with a perfect expression

The Romantic -10g
take a villager on a perfect date.You will need the right location and expression.

The spouse -10g
Marry a villager.

The Parent -10g
have a child.

The hunter -5g
Kill a sweet,innocent,fluffy bunny rabbit(remember,safety’s off!)

The Gargoyle -25g
Find the gargoyles Legendary Treasure.

The Chicken kicker -5g
kick a chicken a respectable distance. As if kicking chickens was remotely respectable.

The Cliff Diver -5g
Cliff dive 500 feet.

The Workhorse -10g
Get a high enough chain while performing a job.

The Hero of Many names -5g
Change your heros title

The Teaser -5g
Get bandits to respond to expressions with fear,anger,mirth,and confusion. During combat!

The property magnate -10g
Sell a property for twice the price you paid for it.

The Rogue -5g
something undetected from a building while there are people nearby.

The Illustrated hero -5g
Tattoo every part of your hero’s body.

The Executioner -10g
Sacrifice 10 people in the Temple of Shadows.

The Gambler -10g
Win 500 gold at a pub game in one sitting, having tried each game type at least once.

The Bigamist -10g
get married a second time, whilst still married to your first spouse.

The Swinger -5g
Take part in a orgy, responsibly

The Pied Piper -10g
Start a party where at least 5 villagers are dancing.

The Party Animal -10g
Get 15 villagers drunk in under three minutes

The menace to Society -5g
Commit an act of public indecency

The Black Knight -10g
Shoot the weapons from a hollow man’s hands, blow off his head and then kill him for good!

The Duelist -10g
String together a full-speed chain attack

The highwayman -10g
hit 3 enemies with one shot.

The Archmage -10g
Kill 5 human enemies with one spell.

The Ruler of Albion -100g
Increase the value of your real estate holdings to over 2.5 million gold!

The Hoarder -25g
Collect every silver key.

The Goth -5g
Dye your hair black, wear an outfit made entirely out of black clothes, and wear some black makeup.

The Completionist -50g
Get all expressions, pet tricks, titles and abilities.

The Extremist -15g
Reach 100% purity or corruption.

The celebrity -50g
Reach 50,000 Renown.

The Artisan -10g
Succeed at one job to Level 5

The Dollcatcher -10g
Collect all the hero dolls.

The Muse -5g
Inspire the Bard to compose songs celebrating your great deeds.

The Companions -10g
Perform a perfect co-op expression.

The blood brother -10g
get a co-op combat bonus.

The Philanthropist -10g
Send a gift to an xbox live friend.

The Hero of strength -100g
Complete the Hero of Strength

The hero of Will -100g
Complete the Hero Of will.

The hero of Skill -100g
Complete the hero of Skill

The Sacrifice -25g
Choose “The needs of the many”

The Family -25g
Choose “The needs of the few”

The Egomaniac -25g
Choose “The needs of the one”

Sony has been constantly reminding the public that their strategy for the PS3 is one of long-term goals. With the PS3 still picking up steam and the PS2 still going strong, it seems to be an effective strategy for them. Rumors are already flying about Microsoft’s plans for their next-gen console, but some are saying that Nintendo will beat everyone to the punch. I tend to be a bit scornful of analysts that discuss the video game industry, as usually whatever they say that’s considered important enough to be reported is high on the “duh” scale, but for once there’s one who’s saying something actually worthy of thought.

While most people in the industry agree that it’s going to be three or four years before we see a new generation of consoles, Nintendo might jump the gun by releasing a new home console. While the Wii is incredibly popular the console lags behind the others in terms of storage space, DVD capability and processing power. All are very simple to fix, especially given that the unit is capable of playing DVDs with the aid of a homebrew application. The storage issue is definitely something that will be addressed in the near future with the ever-growing number of Virtual Console and Wiiware titles. The big question though is will the crowd that the Wii appeals to– the laid back, ‘casual’ gamer– run out to buy a new console?

As with all things the rising complexity of video games means there’s a higher level of qualification needed to create them. A six year old isn’t likely to paint a Monet in art class and someone with a basic knowledge of programming can’t create classics like God of War or Metal Gear Solid. Of course the growing population of gamers there are many kids hoping to create what they love. Some colleges have begun to offer degree programs intended to prepare young people to work in the video game development industry.

Unfortunately as with many college degrees, the video game degree programs are leaving hopeful dreams broken and shattered. According to industry bosses across the UK, the gaming degree programs are complete junk. Some have even called them ‘Mickey Mouse Degrees’ with very little relevance to the actual demands of the job. Industry bigwigs have gone on to say that they were shocked at how little the graduates knew, or that they couldn’t recall hiring someone who had emerged from one of these programs. Sound terrible? Not especially when one considers that most college degrees leave you with little tangible experience. Especially with the industry going as strong as it is now, how many successful game developers are going to be leaving their companies to teach?