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Posted by Joystiq Oct 01 2009 10:35 GMT
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For a couple days now, we've been attempting to obtain an official list of the 200+ Game Crazy locations closing down this month. As we continue requesting that list from corporate, we're going to try and organize a list from you fine folks out there. Many have already been sending us locations that are closing and we appreciate it. We're going to try and make the process a tiny bit more streamlined: Go to the Game Crazy store locator. Copy the address of the closing store. (example: 7841 MALL RD, FLORENCE, KY 41042) Send it to our tips line with the subject "Game Crazy list" (using hyperlink will autofill). We'll begin organizing a list and post it after the break as soon as we can.

Posted by Joystiq Oct 01 2009 04:50 GMT
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The 200+ Game Crazy stores expected to close by the end of October will begin a liquidation sale, starting this weekend. Locations expected to shutter have received boxes and a list of items that are to be sent back for redistribution, which allegedly includes "all systems, major first party accessories (controllers, memory, etc)." The "majority" of games released within the last year will be also be sent out, "both new and used." Several employees have commented that closing stores will likely be "pretty bare" by the time the sale starts.The timetable for the liquidation, corroborated by several sources: 10/3-10/11: 30% off everything in the store 10/12-10/18: 50% off everything in the store 10/19-Closing: 80% off everything in the store There doesn't seem to be a consistent date for when the stores will close, but we haven't heard of any location staying open beyond October 27. We continue to work on getting a master list of which stores are closing, as well as a list of items sent back for redistribution. Request for official comment from Game Crazy corporate on several issues, including what customers with pre-orders at closing stores should do, have gone unanswered. If you're a Game Crazy employee with more details, please feel free to contact us*. *Tips will remain confidential, please leave a valid email address in case we have further questions. Thank you!Update 2: If you know of specific locations closing, click here.Update: Adjusted liquidation dates slightly following new information.[Thank you to everyone who contributed to this story!]

Posted by Joystiq Oct 01 2009 04:35 GMT
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If a PSN Update could be a classified as a zombie invasion, consider this humble paragraph the red door keeping the horde at bay. Once you click past the break, be prepared for an update the likes of which you've never seen. It's big, it's scary and it's going to eat your brains ... in a good way. Choose your platform to view the corresponding release list: (Note: Continue past the break to view both release lists.)

Posted by Joystiq Oct 01 2009 03:45 GMT
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The SensMe adding, PSP Go tethering enabling version 6.10 of Sony's handheld's firmware announced earlier this evening is now ready for download. Hit the System Update option from the Settings section of your XMB, download, install and let us know what you think of the "mood music" SensMe whips up from your song library. We'll have a look at PSP Go tethering via Bluetooth in video form soon.

Posted by Joystiq Oct 01 2009 00:45 GMT
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PlayStation Network's Eric Lempel has just announced via the PlayStation Blog that PSP firmware version 6.10 -- which he dubs "a big update" -- will be available soon. The update will add a new feature, SensMe, to the system's XMB. This music player, announced at E3, can be used to generate playlists from songs stored on the system based on pre-defined "moods."The most substantial addition, however, will only work with the PSP Go. Using the Go's built-in Bluetooth networking, owners of the new system will be able to tether the device to their Bluetooth-capable mobile phones and use them as wireless modems for internet access beyond WiFi hotspots -- essentially wherever a cellular data network is available.An update to the free MediaGo software -- designed for transferring PS Store items and media to and from the PSP using a PC -- will be available for download tomorrow, October 1, according to Lempel. We'll update once PSP firmware v6.10 goes live. In the meantime, you can watch SensMe in action after the break.

Posted by Joystiq Sep 30 2009 20:50 GMT
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One of the most attractive promised features of PlayStation Home was the ability to meet up with friends in Sony's virtual space, pick a PS3 title, and join in the multiplayer offerings of said title as a group. Sony's delivered on that promise by adding this functionality for a few select titles, such as MotorStorm and Street Fighter IV. However, these capabilities are going "universal" with the release of Home Patch 1.3, which will add "simplified game launching" to the service. No, this form of launching won't allow you to group up with friends in Home and jump into a game of your choosing as a single, conglomerated entity. Rather, it lets you ... well, launch your games without having to return to the XMB. It was a wise choice to cut the middle man out of the game-booting equation, but it seems for the "full" game launching experience, Sony's going to have to add that functionality one title at a time. Also added in the update is an in-game camera, in-store item previewing, new categories of clothing, new emotes, new spaces and whole lot more. Check out PlayStation.Blog for the full scoop on the update.

Posted by Joystiq Sep 30 2009 16:55 GMT
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Despite word from a few European retailers that Sony's download-only handheld, the PSP Go, won't be sold in their stores, the company's UK product manager isn't afraid of poor sales. Even with no ability to read physical media (read as: nothing for retail to sell other than the console), and a £224.99 price point ($362.07 -- seriously), Sony's Claire Blackhouse says retailers are happy to have the new console in their stores. "We were very aware of concerns when we went into it and I actually expected a lot more negative responses than we actually got," Blackhouse told GamesIndustry.biz. "[The retailers] were really quite fine with it." Furthermore, she says that retailers see the console launch this week as a "way of getting people into the store," that those not able to afford the new hardware will "aspire to it" and "might buy the PSP 3000 instead." She even riffs on a PSP-ified family, where "dad might buy the PSP Go but the kids might get PSP 3000s." Sony's 180° marketing shift we've seen recently for the PSP 3000 certainly helps to serve as proof of the company's belief in this strategy. Only time will tell if it'll work.

Posted by Joystiq Sep 30 2009 16:25 GMT
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LinkedIn continues to provide our only link to the status of a true sequel to Dead Space. A recent job posting on the professional networking site, created by EA senior recruiter Jeff Ballard, reports, "The previous installment in the Dead Space franchise received numerous awards ... and the same core team is in place to create an even better follow up." The posting adds, "The game is in the later stages of pre-production, ready for production in the next few months, with many of the navigational and combat mechanics in place."With the point-n-shoot spin-off, Dead Space Extraction, releasing this week for Wii, confirmation that the core-series sequel (expected for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC) will soon roll into production phase comes as welcome news to fans looking for the franchise to stay the traditional course. Hopefully, EA and developer Visceral Games' transmissions will continue to pick up from here on out.[Via superannuation]

Posted by Joystiq Sep 30 2009 14:55 GMT
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From the day Atari first announced it would be doing a new video game installment in the Ghostbusters franchise to the day said installment was released, we had to maintain a careful linguistic balancing act. We had to ration out quotes and references to the Ghostbusters films in our posts, working tirelessly not to exhaust our resources. We made it to the game's release by the skin of our teeth -- but earlier today, Atari did us the great discourtesy of announcing that the title is coming to PSP. We've just ... we've got nothing left. The debut trailer for the title is posted above. It looks like a fairly faithful recreation of the console versions, only, y'know, tinier. It's got a launch window of November, meaning you can look forward to a month of uncreative, reference-free posts from our end. Just make sure you don't ... cross the ... oh, forget it.

Posted by Joystiq Sep 30 2009 12:40 GMT
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The 200+ Game Crazy stores expected to close by the end of October will begin a liquidation sale, starting this weekend. Locations expected to shutter have received boxes and a list of items that are to be sent back for redistribution, which allegedly includes "all systems, major first party accessories (controllers, memory, etc). The "majority" of games released within the last year will be also be sent out, "both new and used." Several employees have commented that closing stores will likely be "pretty bare" by the time the sale starts.The timetable for the liquidation, corroborated by several sources: 10/3-10/9: 30% off everything in the store 10/10-10/16: 50% off everything in the store 10/17-Closing: 80% off everything in the store There doesn't seem to be a consistent date for when the stores will close, but we haven't heard of any location staying open beyond October 27. We continue to work on getting a master list of which stores are closing, as well as a list of items sent back for redistribution. Request for official comment from Game Crazy corporate on several issues, including what customers with pre-orders at closing stores should do, have gone unanswered. If you're a Game Crazy employee with more details, please feel free to contact us*. *Tips will remain confidential, please leave a valid email address in case we have further questions. Thank you![Thank you to everyone who contributed to this story!]

Posted by Joystiq Sep 30 2009 03:35 GMT
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If you didn't pre-order, reserve or otherwise "guarantee" your day-one copy of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (we hear the game's pretty good!), your waiting to try out the game's life-eating multiplayer modes has come to an end. As promised by Naughty Dog, the multiplayer demo for Nate Drake's latest adventure is now available (albeit a bit behind schedule) via the PSN's PlayStation store for everyone. If you own a PS3, it's pretty much your honor-bound duty to download it. You should also track down your pre-orderin' friends and prove that the head-start they got on you isn't going to help them in the slightest. (Insert diabolical laughter)[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Posted by Joystiq Sep 29 2009 21:15 GMT
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Sony Pictures is trying something different -- and extremely PlayStation-centric -- with its upcoming movie releases on Blu-ray. Home Media Magazine reports that select titles from the label will include a digital copy of the film on the disc that can only be played on a PSP -- in fact, the only way to transfer the movie to a PSP will be via a PlayStation 3.The first release to incorporate a PSP-only digital copy -- the utterly amazing American Godzilla -- storms streets on November 3. The Ugly Truth, which hits on Blu-ray the following Tuesday, will also feature a PSP version of the film, but will bundle a separate DVD-ROM containing a traditional digital copy that will work on a variety of devices.It'll be interesting to see what (if any) effect this new strategy will have on PlayStation Store downloads of movies for PSP, especially if Sony Pictures ends up taking this route with most of its releases -- or even if other studios follow suit.[Via Blu-ray.com]

Posted by Joystiq Sep 29 2009 21:05 GMT
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Opening up an ongoing dev diary and announcing its new game Joe Danger, nascent developer Hello Games has officially entered the gaming industry. Edge recenrtly spoke with the four gents behind the fledgling company and previewed its new game, drawing comparisons to Trials HD and Road Rash in the process (what, no love for Motocross Maniacs?).Aimed at digital distribution channels (specifically: XBLA, PSN and PC), Joe Danger has got a tentative release window of Spring 2010. Hello Games isn't rushing things though, as the game's already been in-development for over a year. It'll be done "as soon as it feels right," says Hello Games' Sean Murray on the first dev diary. With any luck, it'll "feel right" next Spring -- but at very least, we'll have more screens and info for you on Joe Danger tomorrow.

Posted by Joystiq Sep 29 2009 20:35 GMT
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Here we go again: A Chilean advertisement for PS3, created by major ad firm BBDO, has become the source of a great deal of controversy for showing a modern day gamer giving a blood transfusion ... to a Nazi! The National Socialist in question is intended to be Erwin Rommel, a German field marshal whose humane treatment of captive soldiers and refusal to kill Jewish civilians made him a fairly respected military figure -- but we doubt the casual observer's initial reaction to the ad goes much further than, "Oh gawd, is that a ... swastika!" Then again, after being accused of promoting racism and endorsing, nay, providing instructions on suicide, accusations of harboring Nazi sympathies is kind of par for the course for Sony's PlayStation advertising. Check out the full advertisement -- as well as a similar, equally perplexing ad depicting a gamer giving his still-beating heart to Joan of Arc -- after the jump. (By the way, we'll be patrolling comments on this post for any invocation of Godwin's Law. Keep it civil, gang.) [Via Engadget]

Posted by Joystiq Sep 29 2009 19:05 GMT
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Right from its vertigo-inducing "training stage" (it seems crass to even describe it like that) you'll know Uncharted 2 is something really special. Sure, you're being taught the basics of leaping, climbing and crawling through the rough terrain that hero Nathan Drake must overcome in his latest adventure, but you're doing so as you cling with all your might to a train car dangling off a cliff, knowing always that one wrong move will mean a certain, gooey death in the chasm below. As I emerged breathless from the part where they teach you the controls, the thought that kept running through my head was, "How long can they keep this up?"

Posted by Joystiq Sep 29 2009 18:45 GMT
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Click to enlarge After teasing the partnership a little over a month ago at Germany's Gamescom, publisher Namco Bandai and UK-based developer Ninja Theory are ready to finally reveal some details of their upcoming "original, new IP" for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3: Enslaved. The game takes place in a "perilous, post-apocalyptic America" and centers on protagonists Monkey and Trip. That's right, protagonists, plural. You'll control the musclebound Monkey, while Trip -- a "technologically savvy but sheltered young woman" -- remains AI-controlled. Think: Half-Life 2's Alyx ... except considerably more manipulative. Recognizing her need for Monkey's "raw strength and power," Trip has linked their slave headbands so "if she dies, he dies." Uh, thanks partner? Helping Ninja Theory along its quest is Andy "Gollum" Serkis who is lending his considerable motion-capture acting abilities to the developer once more, following his work on the PS3-exclusive Heavenly Sword. Also joining the project is novelist, screenwriter, and video game newcomer Alex Garland, who you may recognize from his work on the novel The Beach and the screenplay for 28 Days Later. Enslaved is "planned for release in 2010," which we'll unofficially translate as "late 2010."Since you've got some waiting to do, why not take a peek at the first screenshots from the game?

Posted by Joystiq Sep 29 2009 05:20 GMT
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For some people, the sight of a gaming console broken open, exposing its parts to the world, can be something of utter agony. Not for the Museum of Game Science in Tokyo, where you can find the entire line of PlayStation and Xbox consoles disassembled and dissected for all to see.Seen in Engadget's video above, one thin layer of glass is all that prevents the intrepid cameraman from reaching into the displays and pulling bits from here, bobs from there to assemble the world's first supermega-gen console: XStation 720. Knowing better, he chooses instead to give us a piece-by-piece visual rundown of what the museum offered for display at this year's Tokyo Game Show. We appreciate your self-control, kind sir.

Posted by Joystiq Sep 29 2009 02:20 GMT
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We've had our very own PSP Go for a little over a week now in preparation for the review of the system we posted earlier today. When we first got it in, we were limited to showing you a video of the unboxing -- accompanied by some upbeat jazz -- but today it's all fair game. We wanted to make a video to compliment our review by showing the system in action, sizing it up against other handhelds, taking a look at loading times and demoing some of its exclusive features. We believe the above video is that video. In fact, we know it is, because we've watched it about a dozen times. We hope you'll want to watch it just as many, but we'll understand if you want to keep it to, say, two or four viewings. (If only to appreciate the Garrison Keillor-esque cadence and model-caliber hands of its narrator.)

Posted by Joystiq Sep 28 2009 17:05 GMT
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Click for even bigger PSP, larger hand Announced just over four months ago, the PSP Go will hit store shelves worldwide this Thursday, October 1. By its very nature as a flash memory-based device -- and its incompatibility with already-owned UMD titles -- Sony's latest incarnation of the PlayStation Portable is leaping out of the gate with a considerable handicap. Early adopters, the devoted Sony and PSP fans, are going to find themselves wowed by the hardware, but a little unsure of what to do next.The Go is a wonderful gadget -- it's beautiful to look at, feels great to hold in your hands and certainly has the air of a high-end, tech lust-worthy device. There's just that aforementioned inability to play your existing games and a only-$50-less-than-a-PS3 price tag serving as Exhibit A; and B is the little angel on your shoulder who's saying you don't need to spend $250 on another PSP.

Posted by Joystiq Sep 28 2009 16:50 GMT
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Maybe not playing per se, but we are "now gazing" at the PSP Go ... and doing our darnedest to forget about that stack of old, worthless UMDs in the other room. Choose your platform to jump to a specific release list:Last updated: Monday, 12:42 PM