BitSnark

According to a number of reports and ‘sources’ cited by UK industry trade journal MCV, Microsoft’s entry into the motion controller arena appears to have some solid details at last.

Costing no more than £50 and being released in November 2010 with a launch line-up of 14 titles comprising a mixture of first and third party titles, MCV also goes on to say that the highly anticipated add-on will also be featured prominently in various hardware bundles.

Obviously, none of this has been confirmed by Microsoft, but if true it does all sound very promising; the sub £50 price point especially.

The link to the original MCV article can be found below:

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/36466/Natal-launch-details-leak-from-secret-Microsoft-tour

Later this year, Square Enix shall be re-releasing 2000 cult PSOne hit Vagrant Story onto the Playstation Network, allowing those unlucky masses who didn’t get a chance to play it the first time to do so now on their PSP and PS3.

Directed by and produced Yasumi Matsuno, the chap who made Final Fantasy XII (Quiet gambit haters!) and Final Fantasy Tactics, Vagrant Story actually shares the same setting as these titles, being set in the kingdom of Ivalice. That however, is where the similarities end, as Vagrant Story is more of a traditional dungeon crawl boasting an extensive crafting system, very unique combat mechanics and a very dark, pervading atmosphere throughout.

Trust me, this is one game you shouldn’t pass up.

No pricing or release details have been announced, but I would be shocked if it cost any more or any less than the £7.99 pricepoint that previous Square alumni FFVII enjoyed.

To let folks know that they aren’t resting on their yearly laurels, EA Games Label President Frank Gibeau has been discussing the need to revitalise many of EA’s core franchises.

To this end, a new Need For Speed title has been confirmed for next year with Burnout developer Criterion at the helm and a new Medal Of Honor title by an unspecified developer, which would mark a nearly three year hiatus for the once dominant WWII FPS franchise.

With Criterion handing the reins for the next Need For Speed title, it seems inevitable that the franchise will continue it’s trend of trying a different approach to the racing genre. A giddy prospect no doubt with Criterion at the helm, but also a somewhat sad one as the most recent title in the franchise, Need For Speed: Shift, was released to a decent amount of critical praise and seemed to indicate that EA had at last created a racing title that not only had found it’s groove at last, but could also compete with its contemporary peers.

As far as a new Medal Of Honor title goes, no details whatsoever have been released outside of a confirmation that the title IS coming. As far as potential settings go, I wouldn’t be too surprised to see the WWII scenario hashed out again, given that the whole modern warfare schtick is already pretty hotly contested by a little title called Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare series and even by EA’s own Battlefield: Bad Company franchise. Personally, I would like to see a new Medal Of Honor title combining the best of Call of Duty and Brothers In Arms franchises; giving us a heady mixture of realistic jaw dropping set pieces and emotional situations, characters and dialog.

Surely its not too much to ask is it?

After the furore which followed the controversial announcement that developers Infinity Ward would be ditching dedicated servers on the PC version, comes this little tidbit that is sure to raise the ire of PC owners once again.

The PC version of Modern Warfare 2 will have the maximum number of players reduced to eighteen; which is directly in line with the cap imposed on the console version and echo’s the decision to get rid of the dedicated server infrastructure that PC FPS players have enjoyed for years.

Infinity Ward have commented on the matter, saying that the harmonised player cap has helped the team hone map sizes, perks, classes, challenges and more effectively.

Regardless, PC owners will not be happy about receiving the shaft once more on this year’s biggest FPS.

Jealous of those pre-ordery types who got their mitts on the Left 4 Dead 2 demo before anybody else? Well, now its everyone else’s turn to get their hands on the melee happy demo of Valve’s zombie mashing FPS sequel, Left 4 Dead 2.

Weighing in at 1.8GB, the demo contains the ‘parish’ level which can be tackled in single and multiplayer modes.

Stop reading this. Put it in your download queue.

Now.

Following on from news that Gamestop is offering PS3 owners who pre-order Bad Company 2 access to the Bad Company 2 open beta, comes a story run by Eurogamer, suggesting that EA would be announcing further beta information later this week.

Tomorrow, EA/DICE are scheduled to run an event in good ol’ London.

Coincidence?

Wondered what else that big lump of elongated coloured plastic can be used for besides Guitar Hero and Rock Band? Well,in what is quite an interesting first, Swedish developer Pieces Interactive is developing a platformer for release on XBLA and PSN which fully utilises existing guitar controllers.

Fret Nice is a 2D platformer with a unique cardboard cut-out esque visual style in which players guide the main character, armed with a guitar no less, through various worlds by using their existing guitar controller.

An interesting premise for sure, but as always, the proof of the conceptual pudding will be when we actually get our hands on it to see how it all comes together.

Or not.

Fret Nice is to due to be release on Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network platforms in early 2010.

Japanese console giant and white knight to the hearts of casual gamers everywhere Nintendo, have today unveiled the newest incremental update to their Nintendo DS/DSi console.

Dubbed the DSi LL the unit will be identical in specification to the existing DSi with the exception being that the screens are now a fair bit larger at 4.2 inches in size the only other hardware change is a slight alteration of the placement of the speaker holes. In keeping with the ‘Go large’ theme, the console also sports a king-sized stylus.

There are no firm American or European release dates yet outside of 2010, but the console is tentatively scheduled to land in our oversized giant hands sometime early next year with a different name: DSi XL. Additionally, the console is expected to retail for more than the current DSi model too.

And no, they didn’t clarify what LL means.

In a nasty little bit of news, 1UP.com is reporting that a number of players from all three formats are reporting a bug which resets all skill points earned when it is played in mulitplayer. Given the size of the game and the sheer amount of time investment needed, this appears to be quite the game-crippler.

Fortunately, Gearbox seem to be at least aware of the issue if this post on the official forums is anything to go by:

“Your report has been heard and we’re working on it. Unfortunately there isn’t a fix just yet, but when one is available we hope to be able to repair as much of your character data as possible.”

So the basic gist is hang back from online until they issue the fix and only play multiplayer at your own risk.

Ouch.

Running the mill ‘o’ rumour as of late has been the tidbit that Sega’s 1993’s Daytona USA would be remade in HD and relaunched in the arcades. Well, the rumour is true as Sega have now confirmed that the previously titled ‘Sega Racing Classic’ is in fact a HD remake of the beloved arcade racer and will hit Japanese arcades shortly.

Running off of Sega’s ‘Ringwide’ arcade hardware, the title currently runs in 720p and supports four player link up, a billboard leader display and all of the tracks from the original re-rendered in shiny HD vision.

No news on a 360 or PS3 conversion as of yet, but given the fact that the visual output of the ‘Ringwide’ hardware powering the title could be easily reproduced on those home formats, one would hope it’s only a matter of time.

ROLLING START!!!