Wanna bet?

The never-ending battle to determine whether or not loot boxes constitute gambling has made a turn for the better. According to a report from the BBC, the UK's "Gambling Commission" has determined that in-game loot boxes are a gateway drug to gambling problems. While not explicitly stated as such in the report, the conclusion made from the data?? essentially states that.

Focusing more on how the number of children gambling has increased, the Commission's study nonetheless states, "The Gambling Commission takes the view that the ability to convert in-game items to cash, or to trade them (for other items of value) means they attain a real-world value and become articles of money or money's worth. Where gambling facilities are offered to British consumers, includin??g with the use of in-game items that can be converted into cash or traded (for items of value), a gambling license is required."

The report also found that 39% of UK children aged 11 to 16 spent their own money gambling and 14% ha?d done?? so within the last week (from when the study was conducted). The average amount spent during that week was around £16. 60% of young people believed their parents wouldn't want them gambling, while only 19% claimed their guardians had strict rules against gambling. Furthermore, 6% had gambled using a parent or guardian's account.

What happens next is still yet to? be determined. The Gambling Commission's director, Tim Miller, told the BBC, "There's no doubt that today's figures on children and gambling should make people sit up and listen...W?hile discussions about children gambling might conjure up images of kids sneaking into bookies or sitting alone on their iPad gambling on an online casino, our latest research paints a more complex picture...We found children preferred to gamble in informal environments, out of sight of regulation."

Number of child gamblers quadruples in ju????st two years [BBC News]

Young People and Gambling 2018 [Gambling Commission]

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Is Vita possible?

An icon for Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition HD has appeared on the UK PlayStation store today. Some eagle-eyed users noticed the icon earlier and decided to check it out. When clicked, the page redirects to an error message, but given how the cut-down version eventua?lly appeared on the Windows store, signs are now pointing to a console port in the future.

What I don't understand is the title. Just because the port was scaled back doesn't mean the game wasn't already in HD. Most smartphone and tablet screens are beyond the resolution capable of last-gen consoles, so the HD moniker seems misplaced. Regardless, if you aren't one to tackle larger scale games on your phone and don't want to deal with Windows 10, this could be your way to try out the decentish Pocket Edition.

Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition HD icon appears on PlayStation Store [Gematsu]

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It flies

One of the most common allegations levied toward No Man's Sky in the weeks following its release ??was that the marketing campaign was misleading. People expected to find vibrant planets full of incredible wildlife. That turned out to be the exception rather than the norm. Instead, people found a lot of emptiness.

The disappointment led 23 people to file complaints to the United Kingdom's?? Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). These complainants asserted that both Valve and Hello Games were guilty of misleading ad??vertising, and that the "game content was not as depicted or described."

 The ASA recently posted its ruling based on its investigation into these concerns. Valve was immediately dismissed because third-party developers post all marketing content to the game's page. As for Hello Games, the ASA outlines issue after issue and consistently found that No Man's Sky is clear from any wrongdoin??????????????????????????g with regard to its pre-release m?arketing.

All of the points raised such as deceptively engaging environments, different interfaces, and lengthy warping times (read the ruling for the full list) were all deflected by Hello Games. The crux of most individual decisions was either that: it's a funct??ionally-infinite game? and the average player will eventually encounter something like the advertising in a normal playthrough; the specific issue wasn't impactful enough to influence a consumer's purchasing decision; or it wasn't materially misleading.

The ASA concluded its findings by stating "We considered that the ?overall impression of the ad was consistent with gameplay and the footage provided, both in terms of that captured by Hello Games and by third parties, and that it did not exaggerate the expected player experience of the game. We therefore concluded that the ad did not breach the Code."

It seems the misplaced trust comes from the personal expectations so many put on No Man's Sky. A vacuum of concrete details led to people imagining infinite possibilities. There's a lesson to be learned here, although we're probably collectively destined to repeat our mistakes. Those mistakes were predicated on what wasn't said rather than what was shown, at?? least according to the regulating committee in the United Kingdom.

ASA ??Ruling on Valve Corporation an?d Hello Games Ltd [Advertising Standards Authority via reddit]

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24 hours early!

Electronics Arts will align its UK release da?tes with the rest of Europe.

This means that rather having to w?ait for the industry-standard of a Friday here on old Blighty, we'll be able to snag our PAL UK copies a whole day earlier. Woot! 

"Until now, players in the UK have had to wait until Friday for new EA games to release, one day after the rest of Europe," said EA.?? "We realised that players wanted to be able to get in the game the same t??ime as their friends across Europe and we're happy to make this change."

Consequently, this means we'll get our grubby paws on Need for Speed, Star Wars Battlefront, Madden and FIFA 16 earlier than originally publicised - here are the revised relea??se dates:

• EA Sports Madden NFL 16 (August 27)
• EA Sports FIFA 16 (September 24)
• Need for Speed (November 5)
• Star Wars Battlefront (November 19)

While? that aligns us with our European cou??sins, our pals in the US still snag most of their games on the Tuesday before we do. Bastards. *shakes fist*

Tell me - is this something that you honestly couldn't give a rat's ass about, or are you delighted to hear that EA are taking st??e??ps to make release dates more equitable in each territory?

For more on EA and all the news coming out of gamescom, hit the link.

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Fourth largest launch ever on PS4

In the weeks leading up to the release of The Last of Us: Remastered, Sony said that "a huge portion" of PS4 owners hadn't previously played the original version on PS3. It seems that's certainly the case in the UK, or at the very least, p?eople don't mind double-dipping.

For the week ending on August 2, Naughty Dog's The Last of Us: Remastered was the best-selling title across all platforms in the UK according to Chart-Track. Not only did it usurp the throne from Watch Dogs, but it was the f?ourth largest PS4 release in the console's history. Not a bad showing for a rema??ke.

In general, videogame sales are up in the UK, a trend that Chart-Track attributes to the summer school break. Although sales figures weren't released, these were the top ten games in order of performance: The Last of Us: Remastered, Watch Dogs, FIFA 14, The Lego Movie Videogame, Minecraft (Xbox 360), Minecraft (PS3), Sniper Elite 3, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Battlefield 4, Grand Theft Auto V.

Remastered Return [Chart-Track via Joystiq]

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The game plus seven downloadable content packs all wrapped in one

You knew this would happen, come on, it's always inevitable. So here it is, Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Jackdaw Edition. Yet interestingly this has only been revealed for the?? UK, and as just an Amazon exclusive too.

So the collection includes three packs (Death Vessel Pack, Kraken Ship Pack, Crusader & Florentine?? Pack) that go to customizing your ship, two multiplayer packs that adds new playable characters and other multiplayer specific things, and the Illustrious Pirates Pack which adds three new islands to explore among other content.

The biggest inclusion here is the Freedom Cry downloadable content, starring Adewale in nine self-contained story missions. All this can be yours on M?arch 28 for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.

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Three games, limited edition Wiimote, and a hat!

Okay all you people in the United Kingdom, if you've been holding off on a Wii U NOW is the time to finally get it. This Mario Mega Bundle from the Nintendo UK Online Store is the ultimate deal for all the Mario lovers out there.

For £299.99 you get the black 32GB Wii U, New Super Mario Bros. U, New Super Luigi U, Super Mario 3D World, a limited edit?ion Mario Wii Remote Plus, and a Mario hat. This is about £50 more than some of the other Wii U bundles from the store, but note that it comes with one of the best games of the year, a rare Wiimote, and most important of all, t?hat hat!

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All by the end of 2013

Today Sony announced at their gamescom conference that the PlayStation 4 will be launching in 32 different countries by the end of the year. Those countries are: United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Aust??ralia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, It??aly, Ireland, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, and Peru.

The PlayStation 4 will be ou?t in North America on November 15 for $399, and in Europe on November 29 for €399, and £349 in the United Kingdom. No exact timing or pricing was given for the other countries, but it's only a matter of time before all that is announced.

Also worth noting that Sony didn't mention a release date for Japan. I suspect they're saving any announcements for their home country at the Tokyo Game Show. In fact, their TGS press conference is slated to be held next month, on September 9.

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And it's just for you in the United Kingdom

So I'm pretty sick of Collector's Editions for the most part, but I have to admit I want this one for Batman: Arkham Origins. Largely b?ecause the Batman and Joker statue looks pretty awesome.

The package also contains an 80-page hardcover artbook, files on the eight assassins plus Black Mask's contract, the first appearance Batman skin, Deathstroke challenge pack that includes two challenge maps and two Death??stroke skins, and a 3D metal pack. That's for the both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions, while the PS3 version will also include the Knightfall pack as an exclusive.

This will be available on October 25, 2013 in the United Kingdom, and will ret?ail for £79.99. The North Amer?ican Collector's Edition will be announced next week.

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'Killed by a videogame'

A 16-year-old boy with Asperger's syndrome and Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome had a heart attack after getting overexcited by Sonic the Hedgehog. The Daily Mail's take on the story? He was, of course,?? kille??d by a videogame. 

Britain's favorite home of right-wing xenophobia and jubilant misogyny had a lot of fun using the death of a boy with a heart condition to make videogames look bad -- part of its long running obsession with taking craven secondhand swipes at the game industry. Writer Kerry McDermott exploits the per??sonal tragedy with surgical precision. 

"Killed by a video game," reports the Mail. "Excitement 'triggered fatal heart attack??? of teenager who died while playing his Xbox'."

The 16-year-old's mother is calling for more measures to be taken in screening young people for heart conditions, something that warrants little more than a footnote in the Mail's story of death-by-Xbox. Rather than a focus on the heart condition, we instead get rent-a-doc Sanjay Sharma saying, "There is a defin?ite risk in predisposed young people playing video games that causes surges of adrenalin in the blood."

Perhaps one day, the Mail will find a new witch to burn. Then again, it still needs to get over its hatred of women, immigrants, and anybody who isn't an upper-middle class bitter white man, so I guess we'll be waiting a wh??ile. 

Derpty Derpy Derp [The Mail]

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Former Argonaut Software staff recount their time with Nintendo

As much as we see Nintendo as a very insular company the??se days, it was much more s?o way back during the NES and SNES eras. If you tried to challenge Nintendo's power, you were met with intense scorn at the very least or litigation at the very worst. That's why the story of small British studio Argonaut Software is so bizarre -- Argonaut broke the copyright protection on Game Boy and was rewarded with a three-game Nintendo-publishing contract.

This past week, Eurogamer posted a write-up about Argonaut's time with Nintendo and the fruits of the team's labor. The first thing Argonaut's technical wizards did was develop a 3D prototype for the NES called "NESglider," a spiritual successor to an Argonaut Amiga / Atari ST game, Starglider. They then ported the demo to SNES and promised the Kyoto higher-ups that they could improve the 3D effect more than ten-fold if they designed a radical new 3D microprocessor. The microprocessor became known as the Super FX chip, and the first game to use it was none other than Star Fox -- renamed Starwing in Europe to avoid a trademark dispute with the German company StarVox.

Argonaut later made Stunt Race FX and Star Fox 2 for Nintendo, although the latter wound up getting canceled despite being essentially finished. Key members from the Argonaut team actually became full-time Nintendo employees: Dylan Cuthbert, today the head of PixelJunk studio Q-Games; Giles Goddard, today the head of Steel Diver studio Vitei; and programmer Krister Wombell. Unfortunately, relations between the two companies ended after Argonaut pitched a 3D platformer starring Yoshi, upsetting Nintendo which had yet to allow an outside studio to use its own IP. So Argonaut retooled and published it through Fox Interactive as Croc: Legend of the Gobbos, the company'?s biggest gam??e in terms of both sales and royalties.

I urge you to give the full article a read. I was especially surprised by Argonaut's idea for a virtual reality system that ??could have beat the pants off the Virtual Boy and then some!

Born slippy: the making of Star Fox [Eurogamer]

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However ... preorders aren't everything

Despite massive negative attention from press and consumer alike, Microsoft's DRM-delivery machine (known to some as the Xbox One) is enjoying healthy preorders on Amazon UK, beatin??g even the PlayStation 4. It's only a slight lead, however. 

The Xbox One apparently has 20% more preorders than the Xbox 360 had in 2005, just prior to the system's launch. It's edging out the PlayStation 4 by a mere 2.3?%, a neck-and-neck situation that could see either syste?m trump the other at any moment. 

"It’s not clear yet which of the two will have the edge when they launch later this year," claimed Amazon EU's Xavier Garambois. "What’s certain, though, is that fans are already excited about how the next generation of consoles will change the world of gaming and home entertainment."

Some of the more zealous gamers among us are already furious at this news, angry at the United Kingdom for caving, and worrying that Microsoft's vile little anti-consumer box will gain more traction than it should. However, if you're among those hoping the Xbox One will get the kicking it almost certainl??y deserves, I wouldn't freak out too much. 

It's worth noting that reports of this nature accompany almost any major new release, and aren't exactly indicative of the system's actual performance. The Wii U, for example, had double the preorder figures of the Wii, according to reports before its release. Give??n the Wii U's famously sluggish performance in the months after launch, it's fair to say it hasn't come close to doing what the Wii did. 

Tales of high preorder numbers, massive launch libraries, and anything else that makes the system sound great before launch, rarely turn out to predict how a console will fare in the real world. Call me cynical, but I've weathered enough launch builds to note that very little really matters un?til the final produ?ct is on store shelves. 

Still, none of this is enough to soothe the worrying thought that people encourage the industry's preorder culture by investing in a system for which we haven't even seen any real games yet. That's the kind of blind brand loyalty that mak?es me think a person's hardly a person.

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Britain's worst newspaper has the best review

British tabloid The Daily Mail has a review for The Last of Us, a game enjoying perhaps the most unanimous critical acclaim in videogame history. The Mail, ever a bastion of wisdom and judicious thinking, feels it doesn't need to add to the praise, instead posting this amazing review:

There are not enough words or pages on the internet to describe just how good The Last of Us is. All I am going to say is this: why waste time reading about The Last Of Us when you could be playing it.

That, by the way, is the entirety of the review. Two whole sentences, the latter of which isn't even relevant since the game's not been officially released yet. However, while it may seem I'm mocking the paper for its terse review, I must stress this is probably the best written, most honest, least irresponsible thing the Daily Mail has ever published. 

Now let us look forward to the Mail blaming this five-star game for violence o?n London's streets ??in a few weeks' time. 

The post The Daily Mail’s review of The Last of Us is incredible appeared first on Destructoid.

Could it be... a trilogy pack!?

After years of waiting, the SNES underdog classic EarthBound is finally coming to the Wii U eShop in America and Europe. EarthBound is the second game in the Mother trilogy, though the other two have ne?ver officially ma?de the journey out West. Perhaps if we're lucky, Nintendo will present us with localized versions of the remaining installments as well.

Are we about to get lucky? A mysterious listing has appeared on Amazon UK for EarthBound on Wii U. You might be thinking, it's probably something dumb like a download card? for the game's ??eventual digital release, but with a tentative price tag of £44.99, it looks more like a boxed retail release to me.

Waitaminute... that can't be right! Nintendo wouldn't charge so much for a single 20-year-old game, especially one that's appearing digitally at a much lesser price. What if -- and I'm just spitballing here -- this is a collection that includes all three Mother games? If that's true, the celebrations woul??d be thunderous.

This is all speculation for now, and this listing could turn out to be an error. But do remember that the boxed version of New Super Luigi U was leaked in exactly the sa?me? manner. Make of that what you will.

Earthbound (Nintendo Wii U) [Amazon UK via NeoGAF]

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Tabloid reverses its '3DS is dangerous' stance

British tabloid The Sun came out strong against the 3DS when it first launched several years ago, going above and beyond the call of sleazy duty to try and prove it was harmful, disorienting, and unpleasant to use. Today? Today, it's the best console ever.

"In the space of a few months, the U’s little brother, the handheld 3DS, has become my favorite gaming console," writes Derek Brown. "Derided for the best part of its first year as a?? gimmicky ?cash-in, it is now emerging as an essential piece of gaming hardware."

The r?ag particularly praises Nintendo's eShop, bigging up the ability to buy full-price retail games as well?? as cheaper titles.

"Full-price titles such as Fire Emblem (my 2013 game of the year), Luigi’s Mansion (excellent) and Monster Hunter sit beside brilliant budget games like Fallblox (best game ever for a fiver), Mario Minis On The Move, VVVVVV and HarmoKnight -- starting at a fiver."

This praise comes with a caveat??, though -- as the Wii U sales flounder, the tabloid's advice is to step away from home consoles and focus on the handheld market a lot more??.

"After fairly pants sales in 2012, ??the 3DS is now a million ahead of the DS at the same point. That’s something ?Sony’s Vita can’t say about its predecessor PSP.

"So for what it’s worth, here’s my advice to Nintendo -- wind down the home conso?le stuff."

I'm sure Nintendo loves the praise, and certainly Derek Brown is a different writer from whoever the Sun paid to assassinate the system? at lau??nch, but it's still quite amusing to see Britain's second scummiest newspaper print such a turnaround after spending several articles outright demonizing the thing.

Over the course of three articles in 2011, the Sun claimed that playing the 3DS for two hours would make you feel dizzy, sick, and raise your blood pressure to dangerous levels. Several months later, when Nintendo slashed the price of the 3DS, the Sun continued its weirdly obsessive campaign, blaming the discount entirely on?? the nausea and headaches the 3DS was giving customers. 

I suppose I'm just confused as to why a newspaper so certain in its responsibility to protect readers from the 3DS is now publishing articles endorsing it. I'm also wondering why Derek Brown says the 3DS was derided for being a "gimmicky cash-in" as opposed to a dangerous artifact. According to his own paper, that's why the 3DS was returned in droves -- it made people sick, like ??some sort of pl?astic Typhoid Mary. 

Either those pulling the strings at the Sun are hypocrites, or they're happy to endanger the public by celebrating harmful things ... oh wait, we're talking about the Sun. 

It's both!

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Supermarket giant ASDA cut the price by another ?50

The Wii U has been reduced in price in the UK for the second time in less than two months. Yesterday, supermarket giant ASDA started selling the Wii U 8GB Basic bundle for £149.99, a reduction of £50. Other online retailers have followed ASDA's lead, such as Play.com and Amazon.co.uk.

The price cuts only seem to be matched by a few retailers this time, instead of the range of price cuts that happened in the UK in March. PC World has the same Wii U Basic bundle for £224.99 and the Wii U ??Premium bundles appear to have retained their price. Nintendo Direct has reported the Premium Bundle was reduced in price too but ASDA's online store shows no listings for that bundle.

Given that it's just the Basic bundle that's been cut in price, I'm assuming this is a way of making the Wii U more appealing to a casual audience that's so far not shown a great interest in the console. That's a fair amount of money knocked off the price of the console since launch, so I'm wondering if we're going to hear retailers change their tune on the Wii U.

Wii U price falls to £149 in UK [Nintendo Direct]

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Here's the story so far

Nintendo UK just announced some new Wii U Virtual Console games, set to hit the system soon with all of the usual GamePad upgrades in tow. In the near future, UK gamers will be getting Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Super Mario Bros., Pac-Man, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Mega Man, Xevious, Balloon Fight, and Street Fighter II.

My ??guess is everything will drop in the next few weeks or so, at which point Nintendo will start to tease more titles. While I wish the rate of distribution could be a lot faster, I guess? this is better than nothing. Keep at it, Nintendo!

Here's everything that's planned so far for the Wii U Virtual C?onsole:

• Super Mario World
• Ice Climber
• Kirby's Adventure
• Donkey Kong Jr.
• Balloon Fight
• Earthbound
• Spelunker
• Excitebike
• Punch Out!!
• F-Zero
• Mega Man X
• Ghosts 'n' Goblins
• Kirby Super Star
• Kirby's Dream Land 3
• Wrecking Crew
• Kirby's Dream Course
• Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts
• Super Mario Bros.
• Pac-Man
• Donkey Kong*
• The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
• Mega Man
• Xevious
• Kirby's Adventure*
• Balloon Fight
• Street Fighter II
• Super Metroid*
• Yoshi*

Here are all the upgrades you get:

• GamePad Remote/Off-TV play
• Customizable controls
• Miiverse support
• Restore points (save/load state)
• 1080p resolution with a 4:3 ratio (black bars)
• Upgraded 60 Hz rate from 50Hz for PAL territories for select games

Here are the prices:

• $4.99 for NES games
• $7.99 for SNES games
• $1.00 upgrade fee for NES games already owned on the Wii
• $1.50 upgrade fee for SNES games already owned on the Wii

* - Will be offered at a promotional $0.30 price for a limited time

The post A rundown of everything on the Wii U Virtua??l Cons??ole appeared first on Destructoid.

UK studio folds after Kickstarter failure

Defence Grid 2 being picked up shows that there can be life after a failed Kickstarter project but it seems that's a rare situation. GamesIndustry International is reporting that is the case with Ambient Studios, developer of Death Inc, who has been forced to close its doors.

Death Inc. was an offbeat and charming-looking strategy game that was announced as being one of the recent titles to graduate from Steam's Greenlight service. When the Kickstarter campaign to fund the title only r??aised just under half its goal, Ambient launched a paid-alp??ha program but it appears that wasn't enough to save the studio.

In a blog post, the folks at Ambient Studios have confirmed that they will be refunding the people who had paid for the alpha program. I was interested in seeing more of the game but with the studio's closure, it seems like Death Inc. may really be six feet under. 

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European branch of publisher 'fesses up

Following an upheld complaint with the UK's Advertising Standards Authority, SEGA Europe has admitted that trailers for Aliens: Colonial Marines do not reflect ??the game's final (shoddy) content. 

The complaint was upheld by a Reddit user, who got a reply back f?rom the ASA. The organization said it spoke with SEGA, and the company confessed its sins once under scrutiny. 

"SEGA Europe acknowledged your objection that the trailers did not accurately reflect the final content of the game," wrote the ASA. "They agreed to add a discl??aimer, both on their website and in all relevant YouTube videos, which explains that the trailers depict footage of the demo versions of the game. The disclaimer will be visible when each online trailer is played."

A small victory, especially since demos aren't supposed to look better than the finished product, but the ASA is satisfied SEGA won't be "materially" misleading anybody with the disclaimer in place. It's pretty sad that, only in April, only in Europe, and only after an upheld complaint, will one wing of the publisher actually take a minor effort to stop selling Colonial Marines under false pretenses. 

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ShopTo reduces price, doesn't see big enough boost

UK retailer ShopTo has claimed that, even after initiating its own price cut for the Wii U, it isn't seeing the kind of sales it hopes for. The company spilled the beans to MCV recently.

The company decided to drop the price of the basic unit to see how well it would perform, but revealed the plan "has resulted in a smaller than desired increase in sales at this stage." The system is currently on sale for  £189.95, as opposed to Nintendo's £249.99 MSRP. 

Other UK retailers are apparently fed up with Nintendo's lack of communication, with stores wanting a price drop across the board but finding that the Wii U maker's silence is "deafening." According to one unnamed store, "They've got to do something otherwise it is GameCube al??l over again."

The Wii U has struggled to find a foothold since it launched late last year, with Nintendo itself admitting it needs to do better with its promotion of the system. Whether a price drop will help remains to be seen, but it ?certainly worked wonders for the 3DS. 

Wi?i U price cut hasn't improved sales enough, says retailer [Videogamer]

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Analyst comes down hard on price cut mayhem

Industry analyst Michael "Glowing Tooth" Pachter has criticized UK ret??ailers for their constant attempts to undermine each other in ??videogame price cuts. The situation is nothing more than a joke at this point, according to the silver fox. 

"The UK games retail market is a joke, with retailers pricing below cost to drive traffic," he told Digital Spy. "That's great for consumers, but retailers can't make any money on games, hence the bankruptcies of Game, HMV and Blockbuster, and the refusal of GameStop to exp?and into the market.

"If all retailers go broke, or if games are dominated by mass merchants like Dixons,?? gamers are ultimately going to get fewer selections. The absence of GameStop and the demise of GAME limits the ability of co??nsumers to trade in used games, depriving many of credits that can be used to purchase new games. Retail needs to make money to exist, and games retail in the UK doesn't make money."

This has been an issue in the UK for a few years, and Pachte??r ain't wrong in his assessment. Big supermarket chains are happy to take a hit by marking down videogames to ludicrous degrees, forcing specialized retailers to match or lose. It's definitely gotten crazy, but like Pachter says, it's pretty great for consumers ... at least for as long as the competition exists. 

HMV, Blockbuster fa?ll: The beginning of the end for games retail? [Digital Spy]

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34,000 games sold in January

The Wii U isn't having the hottest of times right now, and while Nintendo's clearly aware that it needs to demonstrate its value, it looks like it'll have to work hardest in the United Kingdom. According to the data, ??Wii U game??s only make up 1.6% of software sales. 

34,000 Wii U games were sold in the UK last month, compared to the Xbox 360's 810,000 (38.4%) and PS3's 545,000 (25.8%). To really add perspective, t?he console's currently doing worse than the PlayStation Vita, which enjoy??ed a 2.2% share of the market. 

The bad news surrounding the Wii U is a real shame, because it's a great? little system in my estimation. Then again, this wouldn't be the first time Nintendo's had a faltered start before snatching victory from defeat's jaws, so the console could still experience a turnaround in the fu??ture. 

It'll have to do it quickly though -- the console market's more volatile than ever and we're expecting the "Next Xbox" and "PS4" to dominate everybody's attention very soon. I'm thinking Nintendo may need to pull another drastic pri?ce drop sometime soon, much as it may n?ot want to.

3?4??,000 pieces of Wii U software were sold in the UK in January [NeoGAF, via CVG]

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Sawfly Studios formed by ex-Psygnosis devs

It was a sad day for many when Sony closed its Sony Liverpool studio in 2012; more than 100 jobs went at one of the UK's oldest developers, chiefly known as the studio behind the Wipeout franchise. Thankfully, some of the former staff have foun?ded a new company called Sawfly Studios and they're looking to release their first game within the next few months.

Managing director Mike Hu??mphrey is one of four ex-Sony Liverpool employees who are now working on an untitled project for publisher Ripstone which will be released on smartphones and tablets in the next few months. They're also in talks with other publishers and are looking to create their own intellectual properties.

Despite only numbering four people, the studio hopes to recruit more people after its first game launches -- but don't expect another Wipeout-esque title. Writing on the studio website, art director Jon Eggleton says titles like Limbo and Journey have provided inspiration.

Ex-Sony Wipeout veterans create new video gam??e studio [BBC]

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Regulators say Sony could have stopped it, Sony prepares appeal

The infamous PlayStation Network hack may be a fading memory in the minds of games, but authorities have not forgotten, and they've claimed their pound of flesh. Claiming the hack could have been prevented, United Kingdom officials have fined Sony &pou??nd;250,000.

The Information Commissioner's Office (ironically abbreviated to ICO), slapped the $396,000 fee on Sony after declaring there was "no disguising that So?ny is a business that should have known better."

The PS3 platform holder has issued a statement to CVG on the matter, saying it "strongly disagrees" with ICO's ruling and is preparing to appeal. That kind of money is a dro?p in the ocean compared to the value of PSN, but Sony's not just going to take it lying down.

"PlayStation Europe notes that the ICO recognizes Sony was the victim of 'a focused and determin??ed criminal attack' and that 'there is no evidence that encrypted?? payment card details were accessed', and that 'personal data is unlikely to have been used for fraudulent purposes.'"

What do? you reckon? Fair punishment, or is? Sony being treated unfairly?

Sony f?ined over 'preventable' PlayStation data hack [BBC]

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British tabloid does a British tabloid thing again

British tabloid the Mirror has decided to try something a little different. With its peers implicating videogames in school shootings, this particular rag ?has a new approach -- blaming games for giving kids cancer. 

Interestingly, none of the experts cited in the article actually say games give us cancer -- they simply talk about the commonly known problems associated with a sedentary lifestyle. That didn't stop the Mirror from r??unning the headline, "TV & COMPUTER CRAZE IS GIVING ?CHILDREN CANCER." 

The "exclusive" article, penned by real-life journalist Andrew Gregory, goes on to claim, "Children who are hooked on TV, computer games and the web are at a greater? risk of getting cancer in later life." Those people quoted in the rest of the story, however, make no specific mention of such activities. 

In fact, a spokesperson for the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health explicitly told CVG that, despite what the Mirror claimed, it had made no mention of videogames at all, claiming that was a su?bject it was "not commenting on.??"

It's ironic that, as old media continues to get its ass handed to it by new media, all it can think to do is attack and vilify it. You'd think the wiser approach would be to try and appeal to the audience that enjoys this kind of media, rather than alienate o?r insult it.

Inst??ead, it tries to play on the preconceptions and fears of its existing, aging, soon-to-be-dead a??udience. 

Then it wonders why it's fucking dying itself.

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Camp hack n' slash can feed your 'Darkest Thoughts'

As if the circular blame game surrounding violent crime wasn't bad enough, one particular British tabloid has decided to implicate Dynasty Warriors in the Adam Lanza school shooting. Yes, we've moved on from Mass Effect and are onto a game that doesn't even feature guns. 

"Chillingly, his favourite video game was said to be a shockingly violent fantasy war game called Dynasty Warriors," writes The Express, "which is thought to have given ?him inspiration to act on his darkest thoughts."

Yes, that's right -- the camp, kung fu B-movie stylings of Dynasty Warriors has transformed, through the power of journalism, into a "violent fantasy war game" with "chilling" implications and the power to feed one's "darkest thoughts." A game with no blood, that refers to defeated opponents as "KO'd," and isn't even rated 18 -- the series is that friggin' tame. 

I already ranted about the cowardly buck-passing of the violence-friendly news media, so I won't go into it again. I will, however, provide video footage of the game thought to encourage the darkest thoughts of a kille?r, just to? highlight what a fucking ridiculous bunch of shitting idiots they have writing for the Express. Enjoy!

So very, very chilling. 

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eShop taster hits December 13

[Update: North American release date is February 26!]

After beating around the bush for a while, Ubisoft has finally given up a release date for Rayman Legends. The Wii U platformer is slated for March 1 -- at least in the UK. Presumabl??y, the worldwide dates all over around that time too. 

For a while, Rayman Legends' release has been obscure, with only rumors to go on, and a demo that was suppos?ed to accompany the Wii U's launch but never arrived. That demo has been given a brand new date, and is coming?? to the eShop on December 13.

Glad to get somethi??ng more solid on this, as I'm really looking forward to it. Anybody el?se itching to pick this one up?

Rayman Legends UK release date confirmed [ONM]

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Play Borderlands, do good, NOBODY can lose

Last year, Neil Castle and his Scottish buddies did Horde 4 Charity, a 48-hour Insane Mode Gears of War challenge to raise money for the Skylight Miscarriage Organization. Today, they're back again with Horde 4 Charity 2: Borderlands Boogaloo. 

This year, the fellas have decided to try and max out their characters and beat Borderlands 2 twice within the two-day period. They're streaming their endeavors now on Twitch, so maybe have a look and even give them a bag of doubloons to help ??people out? You can do that if you like!

Go have a look of it!

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Things available for money

The ever-wise All Games Beta has discovered an image of the limited edition for DmC: Devil May Cry, known more impressi??vely as the Son of Spar?da Edition. 

As well as flashy packaging, the special edition features the Samurai Pack, a piece of in-game content that turns Dante's weaponry into "Samurai Devastators." You also get an upgrade points boost?? to gain an early edge in the game. 

If you're a fan of physical tat, the offerings a b??it less lavish than other special editions. You may have a replica of Dante's necklace. I hope you like necklaces. 

So far, the Son of Sparda edition has only been revealed for Europe. It's going to be a GameStop exclusive in the United Kingdom, where it'll retail for £59.99.

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