From Major Nelson :

“I have mentioned this a couple of times on my podcasts, but I want to make sure those that don’t listen to the show get the message. Specifically, don’t share your account information.  If you run into that person in Halo 3 who claims if they could have your LIVE ID name and password to recover your Xbox LIVE account to their Xbox and they’ll rank you up or find you all the hidden skulls in Halo 3, I urge you not to fall to temptation. While it may be appealing, in addition to violating the Xbox LIVE Terms of Use it can also result in you permanently losing your account. If that ‘friend’ of yours decides not return your account and buys a bunch of Arcade titles and movies on your account, there is nothing we can do except cancel the account since you willingly shared your information. “

1UP :

“[We’re] not planning any new content for Skate 1 … We didn’t want to go back and ask [people] for more money to get more shoes and shirts,” said EA Black Box Executive Producer Scott Blackwood in an Afterthoughts interview featured in latest issue of EGM. “That’s not how we wanted to enter this market.”

Mutan Storm Empire - 800 MS Points

• The art of blasting: Practice the way of “Blastikkidoo” or the art of blasting, as you plow through the different worlds in Mutant Storm Empire. This all-new sequel to Mutant Storm Reloaded ratchets up the competitive challenge!
• Numerous levels: The four different worlds feature sixteen challenging levels, all in gorgeous high-def 3-D graphics.
• Multiplayer modes: Play co-op offline with a friend, or head into Xbox LIVE® territory and go multiplayer for up to 2 people.
• Achievements: Twelve new achievements to master ranging from easy, such as getting a single combo of beasties, to difficult, such as completing the game on the Black Belt level.

Castlevania: Dracula X Chronicles just hit stores this past week. It let most Americans play one of the greatest entires in the series after 14 years. This was my first time to play Rondo of Blood, with my closest shot being Dracula X on the SNES, which was a very much slimmed down port.

To celebrate the release of the DXC, I want to talk about one of the most important aspects of the series. The music. Most gamers can point out various Castlevania tunes upon hearing them. They are memorable, and they kick ass. Starting from 1994’s Castlevania: Bloodlines on the Genesis, Michiru Yamane became the series’ main composer. She took the songs from the original games and gave them an epic sound, as well as adding her own that blended in with Castlevania’s atmosphere. The fans love this stuff, and most of us love the underlying ‘metal’-ness. The songs do great on guitar. Here are a few examples.

Bloodlines:

Bloody Tears(from a Cradle of Filth cover of the original):

The original Vampire Killer:

And Dracula’s Castle from Symphony of the Night:

Battlestar Galactica- 800 MS Points

•  
  • Single-player campaign: Pilot various ships and complete memorable missions from the TV series.
  • Multiplayer game mode: Play online with up to eight players in this relentless space-based action shooter in Firefight, Skirmish, and Domination modes.
  • Spaceships: Pilot four human and four Cylon ships, from the Viper II to the Heavy Raider, each with unique weapon capabilities.
  • Special weapons: Coordinate attacks with an arsenal of destructive weapons including missiles, guns, and more.
  • Defensive maneuvers: Avoid annihilation with the barrel roll, quick turnabouts, and other aerial moves.

Exit- 800 MS Points

•  
  • Frantic rescue action: As Mr. ESC, take control and rescue people from dangers like fires and earthquakes. Turn them into Companions and lead them to safety.
  • Puzzle-solving skills required: Use your Companions by commanding them to use items, solve puzzles, and reach the exit within the time limit.
  • Companion abilities: The different Companions you save have different abilities. Young Companions have average abilities, Adults are strong, and Kids can make it through tight passages. Be sure to save the injured Patients as well.
  • Multiple stages: There are over 120 challenging stages to escape, and even more stages will be available for download.
  • Twelve new achievements and leaderboard: Master twelve new achievements, and compete for the best stage times on the leaderboards to prove you are the greatest escape artist in the world!

Gamespot:

“Battlestar Galactica fans eager for a refresher before the new season launches on the Sci-Fi Channel will be pleased to know the game includes 10 single-player missions based on popular episodes from the TV series. The flight-combat shooter also features multiplayer domination, deathmatch, and team deathmatch modes, accommodating eight players in the XBL game and 16 pilots in the PC version. Gamers can align themselves with either the human or Cylon factions and have a selection of four ships from each contingent. ”

It will cost you 800 MS Points($10).

Capcom has just released the trailer for Bionic Commando, coming out for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.

… 5.5!

1up:

“The first few hours of Proving Ground are particularly sloppy. Skating around an ugly, unimaginative city in the midst of trying to keep up with a confusing career structure isn’t exactly the most convincing argument to stick with it. Why is Tony Hawk hanging out in grimy downtown Philly, giving tasks to my obnoxious character? Why aren’t these subobjectives scattered everywhere explained more clearly? Wait, you mean I can build a ramp in the street? And why the hell can’t I activate the Nail-the-Trick mode, the sole redeeming innovation of last year’s Project 8? That last one was an especially annoying sticky point, since you have to talk to a specific character and learn how to do it, even if you know full well it’s only a matter of clicking both analog sticks in. Same goes with the Nail-the-Manual and Nail-the-Grab features, which aren’t too difficult to wrap your head around; if you figure out how to do them ahead of time, there shouldn’t be anything stopping you from enjoying the fruits of your experimentation.”

WOW.

Street Fighter 4
Development has just begun and the release of the game is more than a year away. No platforms are yet confirmed - a highly stylised animated concept trailer of Ryu and Ken fighting was shown, but no game footage. View Here

Ace Attorney: Apollo Justice
A new character and new series starring a rookie lawyer. Phoenix Wright makes an appearance but is not the lead character. Made specifically for DS.

Lost Planet (PS3)
Available early next year and will include all bonus characters from the PC version and extra downloadable content from the 360 version making it the complete package. Made possible with Blu-ray. 16 player online over the PSN.

Dark Void
A new sci-fi action-adventure IP. Trailer showed third-person and air-vehicle gameplay with a character wearing a steam punk jetpack, skydiving and landing in the cockpit of a gyroscopic aircraft, and then jumping and climbing through airbase fortesses.

Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD (Xbox Live Arcade)
The game will feature a spectator mode and is scheduled for a 2008 while the team try and get zero lag for the online mode. Also features stat tracking and widescreen. Original music from Street Fighter 2 will be used, plus remixed versions of all those tunes.

Wii Love Golf
From the Everybody’s Golf team comes a cutesy golf sim, that looks slightly more technical than the PlayStation versions. Players can fade or draw the ball by twisting the Wii-mote when taking a swing.

No Dead Rising 2????