Business

EA Not Ruling Out Hostile Takeover Of Take-Two

Cash money didn't work, flattery isn't working, maybe it's time for something a little more...drastic. Citing "sources", the New York Post reckon that EA could forget about buying Take-Two the nice way, and instead do what current boss Strauss Zelnick did when he took power: make kissy-faces with Take-Two's largest investors and convince them it's time for a change. When asked whether a hostile takeover was indeed an option for EA, the company's Chief Financial Officer Warren Jenson reiterated what EA's CEO told us on Saturday "We're keeping all options open", while industry analysts keeping tabs on the whole affair reckon that shareholders will vote in favour of the sale, while at the same time voting against Zelnick and co.'s controversial payrise plan.
EA COULD BECOME HOSTILE IN TAKEOVER [New York Post]

7:20 AM ON WED FEB 27 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
2,661 views, 87 comments

Latest by Altima NEO: I really hope they dont get Take Two. Who are these investors anyway and why do they push for EA? Urgh! more »

Clips

Far Cry 2 Trailer Is Not A Friend Of The Trees

Far Cry 2? Very environmentally unfriendly. Just look at that poor tree as it's torn to shreds by a simple pistol! Fortunately, Far Cry 2's environment is a little sturdier than our own, as the tree rebounds in ways environmentalists and the logging industry can only dream of.

6:20 AM ON WED FEB 27 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
4,099 views, 140 comments

Latest by xbulletholes: the gamecube (or maybe wii, i forget) was shown off by having hundreds of marios running around a simple platform. did anyone assume that the next mario game would have that? why is this any different? it's just a in-context more »

Mass Effect

Mass Effect PC Due On May 6

We knew it was May, but sometimes, it's nice to know specifics. Bets may be determined by this date. People's lives may hang in the balance. So it's without further ado that we let you know that Mass Effect's PC adventure will kick off on May 6, giving you a pinch over two months to decide whether faster load times and shiner graphics are worth a second purchase. And if you own a PC but not a 360...well, Mass Effect with faster load times and shinier graphics is worth a first purchase.

5:30 AM ON WED FEB 27 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
1,971 views, 80 comments

Latest by Br00klyn-Grenade: Didn't get it for the 360, so I'm may definitely cop it for PC. more »

wipeout hd

WipeOut HD Features Custom Soundtracks

I know, it's not the first PS3 game to feature custom soundtracks, but this isn't some cheap bowling game we're talking about here. This is WipeOut. A game for whom music played a big, big part in its success back on the PS1. SCEE blog Three Speech sends word that while the game's bundled soundtrack includes appropriate artists such as Kraftwerk, you'll also be able to create custom playlists from any songs you've got stored on your PS3's HDD.
WipEout HD Tracks Announced [Three Speech]

4:30 AM ON WED FEB 27 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
1,701 views, 70 comments

Latest by stussygalore: @TrettOff: Kinda sucks that MS rushed a next gen console to market without any consideration for build quality. Kinda puts the 'limitations' you quote into perspective... more »

Xbox 360

Brits Get Paid Just For Pre-Ordering Lost Odyssey

Sweet deal ahoy, Britain! Mistwalker's Lost Odyssey launches in the UK later this week. It's pretty good. In case you're not sold on its particular merits, however, high street retail giant HMV are offering 1000 Microsoft Points to anyone who preorders the game. You can buy Rez HD for that. With change. Get on it.
Pre-order Lost Odyssey and get MS Points [Eurogamer]

3:30 AM ON WED FEB 27 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
1,376 views, 35 comments

Gallery

New Stages Seen During Japanese SFIV Test Run

Like we said, Street Fighter IV's been playable for a few days in Tokyo. Which means pictures. More pictures of the super-sexy cabinets, yeah, but since this is a newer build than the version on show at AOU and GDC, also glimpses of some of the game's other stages. Which is nice, since so far we've only seen the one.

[Capcom]

2:30 AM ON WED FEB 27 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
3,022 views, 32 comments

Latest by kingofallcosmos: I had heard that Street Fighter IV would be playable at Wondercon, but it was not. The Capcom 2008 games presentation was good, and we saw lots of great footage of the game, but it wasn't playable at all. At more »

Legal

Activision Sued Over Blizzard Merger

Time for more crazy lawsuit news! Why? Because everyone loves crazy lawsuit news. The mighty Wayne County Employees' Retirement System are unhappy with the merger deal Vivendi and Activision signed last year, claiming that as shareholders they copped a bum deal:

The merger, stock purchase and tender offer, working in concert, convey control of Activision to Vivendi but fail to offer the Activision stockholders an opportunity to realize a true control premium for their stock.

And to think, there once was a time people had to work for their money. Cry me a river.
Investors sue Activision over Vivendi merger [GI.biz]

1:30 AM ON WED FEB 27 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
1,739 views, 40 comments

Latest by scoli83: @kennyd1: What exactly is a corporation? A corporation is a legal fiction used to conduct business. It's equity is owned by shareholders, while it's debt is owed by bondholders and other businesses. It's far too simple to say that a duty more »

box art boner

The MGS4 PS3 Bundle That Should Have Been

Above, the Metal Gear Solid 4 PS3 bundle that could have been, should have been, but sadly is not. Snake's old news, Sony. Dude's played out. Time to embrace the future, hand the spotlight over to the real stars of MGS4: drinking monkey and Captain Shits-in-a-barrel.

11:59 PM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
8,157 views, 54 comments

Latest by DrunkRaba: They should have made a special edition PS3 that looks like the barrel. more »

Xbox 360

More Details On The 360's "16%" Failure Rate

360 warranty issuers SquareTrade are still at it. Fresh off claims that they'd "nailed" the 360's failure rate at 16%, and a subsequent "who are you?" from Microsoft, they're now showing off the details of their study into the console's failure rates, and claiming that the final figure is probably even higher. Apparently they got their 16% figure from a sample group of 1040 consoles sold between April and July 2007, of which 171 consoles died. Interestingly, they claim only 102 of those were due to red rings: the other 40% were done over by things like video card failures, HDD freezes and my personal favourite, disc read errors. SquareTrade also say that because their sample numbers don't include customers who returned their consoles to Microsoft, the actual failure rate is probably higher than 16%. Which it probably is! If we ever find out the actual numbers, and they're not in the 30-40% range, then I'll wolf down humble pie til my sides split.
New Info on 360 Death Rate Study [IGN]

10:30 PM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
5,482 views, 196 comments

Latest by uLTraCarL: @Luuey: -_- No that is a Wii more »

Business

The Real Reason Take-Two Rejected EA's Offer?

OK, bear with me. ZelnickMedia are an investment firm who were brought in to run Take-Two. Take-Two's executive chairman is a Mr. Strauss Zelnick, a member of ZelnickMedia's "executive parntership". EA have made two offers to buy Take-Two, one on February 6, one on February 19. Very shortly after receiving the first offer, and before they received the second offer (or told shareholders about it), Take-Two's board of directors and ZelnickMedia approved a "major increase in compensation" (ie a payrise) for Mr. Zelnick, along with CEO Ben Feder and executive VP Karl Slatoff (also ZelnickMedia members). Part of that deal included a hefty stocks payout for Zelnick, who received shares in the company that would either mature in time or - and here's the kicker - half of which would vest (ie pay out) immediately should the company be bought. more »

9:40 PM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
9,032 views, 82 comments

Latest by Kounji: @PownerOfNewbs: There tends not to be so much anti trust on single software. Though I'm wondering really when the SEC is going to stand up and say " whoa whoa whoa" you guys are consolidating way too much. I more »

Rumor

Relic Waging Endless War On Humanity With Dawn Of War 2

VG247 are reporting that Relic are already hard at work on Warhammer: Dawn of War 2. Makes sense. The first - and its legions of expansion packs - are the best Warhammer games since Space Hulk, and really succeeded in bringing the franchise to life. Still, if true, the good news is tinged with a little sadness: I was really hoping Relic would be doing Homeworld 3 instead (though, hey, they might be doing both!)
Relic working on Dawn of War 2 [VG247]

9:20 PM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
2,863 views, 79 comments

Latest by Scorpi: C'mon Relic! Bring back Impossible Creatures! Seriously, though - this was practically fact some years ago in an interview at IGN - they asked why the Tyranid weren't included, and the Relic rep said that they were too unique for more »

Gallery

More Crazy-Ass Chinese Ports (Titanic, Mario, LotR)

Final Fantasy VII on the NES? Tip of the iceberg. This site has a massive catalogue of other bootleg, Chinese homebrew carts, nearly all of them based on existing game series or movie tie-ins. Link to the Past on NES? Got it. A Lord of the Rings 2D fighter? Got it. Super Mario World on Mega Drive? Yup. A Titanic platformer for the NES? Got that too, and it's amazing.

Famicom/Megadrive remakes [insert credit]

8:40 PM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
5,450 views, 67 comments

Latest by Dekabreak: YES, A JAMES CAMERON ROMANCE GAME, THE BEST NES GAME EVER. more »

Business

EA Buyout Talk Has Ubisoft Feeling Clucky

Activision teamed up with Blizzard. EA are trying to buy Take-Two. All this talk of joining, of coupling, of consuming, it's got Ubisoft feeling all warm between the knees. So they're off in search of new things! Ubisoft's tastefully-named boss Yves Guillemot:

The desire of EA to buy Take Two pushes us to go faster, to accelerate internal growth but also to look at acquisition opportunities.

Those acquisitions aren't other companies, though. That's so passé. Instead, Ubisoft will be on the lookout for raw, malleable intellectual property and licenses, most likely because we hear Guillemot has a pathological fear of hyphenated business names, and couldn't bear to see his company take one on.
Ubisoft to bid for game licences rather than major takeover - Guillemot [Forbes]

7:20 AM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
1,546 views, 27 comments

Latest by Ariolander: If anyone that should be considering buying anybody it should be Microsoft buying Ubisoft. Would certainly be a solid play in my book. more »

Business

EA/T2 Rumblings = Cash Money For Other Struggling Publishers

The seemingly inevitable acquisition of Take 2 by Electronic Arts is having an impact on more than just those two. The move, which comes only a few months after Activision teamed up with Blizzard, has set investors hearts aflutter at the prospect of further mergers/acquisitions, with the stocks of three troubled publishers - THQ, Atari & Midway - seeing huge gains (around 10% each) on the back of the EA/T2 news. While Phil Harrison might console himself with the thought it was rumours of his switch that propelled Atari's spike, the more probable explanation is that those are the three publishers most likely to be snapped up if a big buyer enters the gaming market.
THQ, Midway, Atari stocks surge on EA's bid for Take-Two [Variety]

6:20 AM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
1,002 views, 22 comments

Latest by MrSatan: I hope to god this doesn't happen. EA takes all innovation and kills it quick and easy. more »

devil may cry 4

Devil May Cry 4 Promo Swaps Girly Men For Girly Girl [Updated]

Devil May Cry's always been a rather sexy series. Effeminate heroes, long red coats, exposed man-chests, you know how it goes. But a slutty series? No. Not until today, anyway. High-brow British men's lifestyle magazine Front has subbed Dante and Nero from the game's screens and replaced them with the demure, classily-named Vikki Blows. What will those marketing types think of next?
Devil May Cry 4 [TVG]

UPDATE - Courtesy of an anonymous tipster, we've got another pic after the jump. This one's rather unsuitable for work, though, so...bear that in mind.

5:45 AM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
49,364 views, 181 comments

Latest by jx1: we want un-fished pic :D though thanks for the other links mentioned. good stuffs. more »

Gallery

D&D; Insider Is Real D&D;, Only On Your PC

Joel over at BoingBoing Gadgets got his hands on some screens for the upcoming D&D; Insider app, which is not a new D&D-based; video game. Instead, it's a program that lets you create and run real D&D; 4.0 games on a PC. Which, OK, technically makes it a PC game, but whatever. Those worried D&D; would lose its nerdy charms need not worry - just look at those character designs! Truly awful.

Dungeons and Dragons 4.0's "D&D; Insider" Screenshots [Boing-Boing Gadgets]

5:30 AM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
7,031 views, 56 comments

Latest by ssh83: It's funny when self-proclaimed hardcore gamers diss a game whose developers spent decades balancing the game, expanding the game world, taking player feedback and improving the game. DECADES. If that's not worthy of respect of dedication i don't know what more »

Legal

Capcom Sued Over Dead Rising

Two weeks ago, Capcom tried some pre-emptive measures aimed at heading off an impending lawsuit from The MKR Group, who hold the rights to George Romero's Dawn of the Dead film. Didn't work. MKR have since sued Capcom, claiming that Dead Rising is essentially an unlicensed adaptation of Romero's masterpiece:

Both works are dark comedies. In both, the recreational activities of the zombies and absurdly grotesque 'kill scenes' provide unexpected comedic relief.

Both works provided thoughtful social commentary on the 'mall culture' zeitgeist, in addition to serving up a sizable portion of sensationalistic violence.

You hear that, budding game and film makers of the world? You can't pay homage to a classic anymore. It infringes on copyrights.
Producer, game firm in rights battle over zombies [Reuters]

5:15 AM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
5,409 views, 177 comments

Sales Charts

British Sales Charts

360 and PS3 developers, look upon these charts, and despair! Actually, British gamers, you, too, should look upon this list and despair, for were it not for Devil May Cry 4's and UTIII's appearance, this would be a top ten of woefully epic proportions. Unless you're Nintendo. Or making rubbish games for a Nintendo console. If so, you'll be tickled pink. more »

4:30 AM ON TUE FEB 26 2008
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
5,685 views, 77 comments

Luke Plunkett’s Profile

Luke Plunkett is not a fan of status updates

Website: http://www.kotaku.com

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billy_bunter on Feb 26, 2008

Do you HAVE to keep posting up sarcastic images to head the British sales charts? They're really starting to fuck me off.

I don't post a hick picture on my forum every time it's an american story.

And just so you know, Nintendo are strong here, so of course the charts are a bit wacky.

pABSO on Feb 18, 2008

Tis there any reason to play Lost Planet again? To steal a line from Yahtzee, does "one of the levels boost a magical make the game better button?"

dead_red_eyes on Feb 14, 2008

Yeah luke, it really does suck to see Activision voting all republican. Hivemind indeed. Fucking awesome that Steam went all democrat tho ... and the fact that they voted for Obama instead of Hillary ... priceless!!!

TheCleaningGuy: is Maximum Risky! on Feb 12, 2008

Where's your avatar from? It's awesome! I can see the Lambda, so it probably relates to half life... My Japanese isn't good enough to read what it says though... Care to enlighten me?

DarkLuigi on Feb 8, 2008

u got advance wars dais of ruins right, how do i get all the characters, care to help me out.

Blinkstale on Jan 3, 2008

y'know, I still know exactly which posts are yours, even without the ability to see the author's name. :| I don't mean to insult... but that wasn't a very well thought out idea, considering you're the only one who uses King's English, and it drives me bats, so, I can still tell. But whatever. If you guys want me to not know anything other than "Luke or not Luke" then that's fine too...

Witzbold on Jan 1, 2008

Thanks for the support Mr. Plunkett. Hope you had yourself a merry christmas and a happy new year mate!

amzo on Dec 21, 2007

hey! what,s up ! ^_^ just woke up!

Witzbold on Dec 17, 2007

So Mr. Plunkett whens the next time you are comming up to Japan? We must go drinking again if so mate! If I ever get down to Australia Ill be sure to let you know in advance. :)

REDFIELD on Dec 11, 2007

Yay, this King of Komments made me discover this neat feature. A quick word: you're the best writer around here, your posts make me LOL 99% of the time. I pity the fools that complain about your Aussie sense of humor: I get it... and I'm Spanish. Keep up the good work!

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