Kotaku

1Up Shows Support for GameSpot Reviewers
Comment by: thereturnoftheufo
Nominated by: captronj

I personally believe that US game reviewers are incompetent at their jobs because some US game reviewers out there in our nation don't have jobs, and I believe our game reviewers such as in South Africa, and in the Iraq, everywhere like such as, and I believe they should, our game reviewers over here in the US should help the US, er help South Africa should help Iraq and the Asian countries so we will be able to build up our future for our game reviewers.

Lawyer Fearmongers Top Ten Violent Games
Comment by: HyperWrench
Nominated by: Titillated Ocelot

Detroit has gone down hill since they got rid of Robocop.

Oh no. Our little throats hurt, and we've got a slight cough. Yep, we're getting sick. Good thing our Sponsors are taking us to the doctor's. Good thing we've got Sponsors! This week Kotaku was kept well by Atari, Canon, Dawdle, Evolve Speakers, Ford Focus, GameStop, Hellgate: London, Godzilla, Helio, Logitech, New York Anime Festival, Register.com, Sonos, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba, TiVo, Verizon and Zune. Next week, we should be back at 100 percent!

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To: Ash & Flynn
From: McWhertor
Re: On Beards & Tacos

Guys, how do you work this thing? I'm new to this whole Day Note business. Someone left the thing in a cozy bundle outside my door, hoping it would find a good home and now I'm stuck with it. Frankly, I'm not the mothering type and find caring for the Day Note to be... well, icky. The Day Note has already spit up on the couch and no matter how hard I shake it, it just won't stop crying. The sooner I'm rid of it the better.

Damn it! I've gotta change another poopy diaper. Here's what you missed while Luke was caring for the Night Note and playing Kyuss to his beard.

Gamespot Staffers Get Weepy About Jeff Gerstmann
A Defense of Our Word Writing Skill Things
Jean Claude Van Damme Is Filmed Not Doing A Split
Another PSP To PS2 Port
Ziff Goes After Site
Ziff Explains Why They Don't Like People Stealing Stuff

Newspaper Les Echoes have, upon being handed the information by Microsoft Europe, announced that the 360 has sold half a million units in France since launch. Jeux France went ahead and filled in the gaps by publishing the total lifetime sales of the Wii and PS3. Between them? Oh yes, we get a straight-up comparison of how the three are doing in one of Europe's biggest markets. Just don't expect to be surprised with the results:

Wii - 1,100,000
360 - 500,000
PS3 - 270,000

[Les Echoes, Jeux France]

Earlier today, we posted about the plight of "tiny Brazilian blog" Blogeek, who, as you may remember, posted a pair of screen shots of Street Fighter IV yesterday. Amazingly, the site scooped 1UP to its own exclusive, claiming it had received the screens and details on the Capcom fighter from an "anonymous source." The site's owner, Douglas Pereira, wrote us this morning, crying out for help. "Ziff Davis is going after me. They're chasing me," he lamented. It was very heart-wrenching.

Sounds like EGM and 1UP were quite justified in their legal "picking on" of Pereira and Blogeek. He's an EGM Brazil freelancer and has now admitted to swiping the pics from Ziff-Davis' own media servers. EGM editor-in-chief Dan Hsu, who says ZD has the IP logs of the transgression to back it up, explains.

With Blizzard adding a cold pack to their Burning Crusade and NCsoft giving Guild Wars players five hours of marketing, what does Lord of the Rings Online have to offer MMO players this Holiday season? Low, low prices! From now until January 31st, new and existing subscribers to LotRO can pay only $9.99 month, $5 off their normal $14.99 rate. You'll have to pay $29.97 for three months at a time in order to take advantage of the special offer, but 33% off is nothing to scoff at. Of course had you known you'd be so addicted you would have just dropped $200 at launch for the lifetime subscription. Hindsight, huh?

LotRO Holiday Promo [Lord Of The Rings Online via FiringSquad]

As your Friday night plans are gelling, don't neglect next week's all-important Wednesday night festivities. While mine will include eating a pound of meat soaked in a to-be-determined Mexican sauce, combined with salty margaritas, those in the greater Denver and New York City areas should be adding one of the Funde Razor events to their to-do lists. The NYC gig throws down at gaming and drinking hotspot Barcade, in the heart of Brooklyn. The Denver flavored equivalent tears it up at the Walnut Room, which just oozes class. Both will be a raucously charitable time, featuring Rock Band and Guitar Hero gameplay, plus boozing, all benefiting Penny Arcade's Child's Play charity.

Donations are taken at the door and many coveted things will be given away to lucky raffle ticket holders. For more details on the event that puts the fun back into fund raiser, hit up the official site. Keep in mind, it's limited to those 21 and over. This may be your only chance to see Brian Crecente in a bird shirt or Joel Johnson in frilly scarf in person.

Funde Razor

Tonight's episode of Game Head features, according to the show's producers, "the best cast in the Universe." A bold claim, indeed, but when that group includes Newsweek's N'Gai Croal, ESPN's Aaron Boulding, the Mega 64 gang, Gizmodo's Adam Frucci, MTV's Stephen Totilo, Michael Pachter and I am 8-Bit Founder Jon Gibson, I find it hard to disagree. Unfortunately, the list also includes me, a weighty anchor who will drag the whole production down. If my performance on the episode requires defending, as I haven't seen it, I was drunk during the taping.

The show will run on Spike TV tonight, at midnight in most markets, giving viewers a primer on Sunday's airing of the 2007 Video Game Awards. Check your local listings and all that.

You? If you've found yourself still wanting following yesterday's release of the Grand Theft Auto IV trailer, "Move Up, Ladies", we have a batch of eighteen stills of Rockstar Games' latest. GTA IV may be gritty, but it seems that its denizens like keeping their cars and bike helmets polished to a high shine. It's so reflectiest Grand Theft Auto yet!

"The content you posted in the site blogeek is property of Ziff Davis, given from Capcom only to Ziff Davis and EGM issues, with embargo for the publications. Your publication of this subject is theft of intellectual property and should have immediate legal consequences. Ziff Davis and Futuro want you to cut off the content form your site immediately."

We'd seen YouTube user egyokeo's videos of his custom MIDI drum pad-Guitar Hero III interface, but had yet to see him drum his way through Dragonforce's "Through The Fire And The Flames" on expert. It's a fairly impressive effort, even for a 20-year veteran of the drums, when someone can register a four-star performance on a song this challenging. For details on how he pulls off held notes and chords plus technical info, check his video description at YouTube.

Through the Fire and Flames - Achievement Unlocked on Drums [YouTube]

I'm not sure if THQ is competing in some sort of Pink Flamingos-style contest with publisher Ubisoft for most deplorable box art behavior, but if so, THQ has taken the lead. The entire concept of Bratz is already offensive, but the collection of tarted-up whorish toddlers on the cover of Bratz Super Babyz is gag-worthy, in a cover art sense. I'm gonna go lie down, as my head is spinning from the unnecessary Zs.

"With two sons of my own, I know about the tough decisions parents face today about the media they allow into their homes," said Lt. Governor Carney. "The simple fact is that there's no substitute for parental involvement, so it's important that parents play an active role in choosing games for their children. The ESRB ratings help parents ensure that they are bringing home suitable games for their families."

Konami may be looking to bring the Climax-developed prequel Silent Hill Origins to a wider audience next year with a PlayStation 2 port of the game. Released for the PSP worldwide this quarter, it now appears that Konami will have a PS2 version of the game ready for March of 2008. A fact sheet for the port was passed on to us this morning, courtesy of one of our tipsters, indicating that Climax would be responsible for the second release of the handheld horror title.

The official Climax site does mention that the group is working on a second unannounced project for Konami, but reps for the publisher have not yet responded to our request for confirmation that Silent Hill Origins for the PlayStation 2 is the unnamed title. If true, I certainly hope that Climax is giving the game a bit of a visual upgrade for those who passed on the on-the-go frightfest.