Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard is looking to further expand the blockbuster series by adding a third development studio to the mix, claims a Los Angeles Times report.

Recent years have seen the company release annual entries by alternating lead development duties between series creator Infinity Ward (Call of Duty, Call of Duty 2, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2) and Treyarch (Call of Duty 3, Call of Duty: World at War), with external studios n-Space and Rebellion having assisted with Nintendo DS and PlayStation 2 editions.

Activision claims that this year's entry, Modern Warfare 2, represents "the biggest launch in history across all forms of entertainment," with indications that the inevitable next one is being handled by Treyarch and could be set in the Vietnam War era.

The publisher has also repeatedly spoken of a possible Call of Duty-branded massively multiplayer game, with CEO Bobby Kotick pondering how to monetize "the natural evolution of a property like Call of Duty into a massively multiplayer environment" and CFO Thomas Tippl noting "you should expect us to test and ultimately launch additional online monetization models of some our biggest franchises like Call of Duty."

Following last week's record-breaking launch of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the iPhone and iPod touch are now home to a Call of Duty game of their very own. Now available via iTunes, Call of Duty: World at War: ZOMBIES recreates the zombie-infested "Nacht der Untoten (Night of the Undead)" map from last year's entry, Treyarch's Call of Duty: World at War, in portable touch- and tilt-controlled form.

The 16MB download sells for $9.99, packing three controls schemes and support for up to four players via Wi-Fi or two via Bluetooth. Development was handled by Ideaworks Game Studio, with more maps slated to arrive as downloadable content.

Not only does this week's batch of Wii and DSi downloadable releases include the usual selection--including more from the Art Style series and yet another version of Street Fighter II--there are also free demos for a handful of earlier WiiWare titles.

WiiWare
• Pokemon Rumble - $15
• BIT.TRIP BEAT Demo - Free
• Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a Darklord Demo - Free
• NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits Demo - Free
• World of Goo Demo - Free
Wii Virtual Console
• Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures(Super NES) - $8... Read more

This is it, folks. The week before Thanksgiving, the last big hurrah of the crowded holiday season. This week rivals the number of releases due before the year's end.

Go ahead and hit up the full list, or, if you're looking for a particular system, skip right to the PC, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Nintendo DS or PSP section. Should you want to check out any past release lists, scope out our handy archive.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii will be on North America store shelves Sunday, November 15, with the rest of this week's retail offerings due by Wednesday. Gyromancer--Square and PopCap's Bejeweled RPG--will be downloadable Wednesday on PC and Xbox 360.

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Sony recorded one of the biggest wins yet for the PS3 with system exclusive Uncharted 2 capturing the top spot for October sales. And it was a resounding victory too, beating out second place Wii Fit Plus by nearly 18%. Basketball fans also made their presence known pushing NBA 2K10 to an overall win with combined sales between the 360 and PS3 version putting it ahead of Uncharted 2, 575,000 to 537,000.

On the hardware side of things Nintendo continued its domination of the raw sales figures selling 506,900 Wiis and another 457,600 DS handhelds. Despite selling a respectable 320,600 pieces to put it in third place, PS3 was unable to maintain the momentum from the September launch of the new Slim model with sales down when compared on an average per week basis. Xbox 360 likewise saw a similar decline but Wii, DS, and PSP all trended up from a month before.

Hardware and Software top ten details follow... Read more

Rebelling against the corporation that brought you to the exotic world of Pandora has to be a tough call, especially when it involves a blue-skinned surrogate body. On the plus side, you get a bow and blades and a flying-dragon thing (and more) and get to use all that to fight the RDA Corporation and smash its various hi-tech assets, like mechs.

Playable from either perspective, Ubisoft's interactive take on James Cameron's anticipated film Avatar is due on PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Nintendo DS and PSP come December 1. The movie itself, meanwhile, hits theaters on December 18.

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It's been a tumultuous day for videogame publishing giant Electronic Arts. This morning we reported on their acquisition of social game developer Playfish in a $300 million deal that could climb to $400 million. This afternoon word comes in their fiscal second quarter results of a $100 million cost-reduction plan that the press release says, "will result in the closure of several facilities and a headcount reduction of approximately 1,500 positions, of which 1,300 are included in a restructuring plan."

More than just an ironic combination, these two moves point directly to the ongoing shift at the publisher to match the modern videogame market. The press release in fact says as much in its comments on the Playfish acquisition immediately above the section on cost-reduction: "The acquisition accelerates EA's growth in social entertainment and strengthens its focus on the transition to digital and social gaming."

Looking at the numbers it's hard to take issue with their approach from a financial standpoint. In the earnings call EA CEO John Riccitiello noted, "Industry packaged goods software sales [e.g., the usual $60 retail game] are down approximately 12% year-to-date." This comes despite their enjoying a slight 4% increase in share for the same in North America and Europe. At the same time EA sees the digital market, in which they include mobile, micro-transactions, subscriptions, and advertising, growing at a rate of 20% or better for the next several years.

Long seen as a bastion of the traditional videogame... Read more

Retro is the dish of the day at Nintendo, with new Frogger, Bomberman and Excitebike games headlining this week's batch of downloadable Wii and DSi releases.

DSiWare
• Bomberman Blitz - $5
• Electroplankton Trapy, Hanenbow, Rec-Rec, Nanocarp, and Beatnes - $2 each.

WiiWare
• Excitebike: World Rally - $10
• Frogger Returns - $5
• Dragon Master Spell Caster - $5
Wii Virtual Console
• Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap - $5
• Cybernoid - $5

All due to arrive at 9am, the titles are detailed in the Nintendo blurb below... Read more

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is almost here. What more needs to be said?

Go ahead and hit up the full list, or, if you're looking for a particular system, skip right to the PC, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Nintendo DS or PSP section. Should you want to check out any past release lists, scope out our handy archive.

Modern Warfare 2 will be on North American store shelves Tuesday, November 10. The rest of this week's retail releases should be available by Wednesday, November 11.

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A new trailer for James Cameron's Avatar: The Game arrived today. It showcases the alien world of Pandora and its colorful, yet aggressive denizens, the Na'vi. Players face them as RDA Corporation Soldiers and giant armored mechs in fights ranging through the jungles. Alien panther-like animals and large red rhinos are thrown into the mix, for good measure.

Players will be able to fight alongside RDA Corp, or side with the indigenous aliens when Avatar arrives on December 1 for the PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS, PSP and Wii. You can check out our previous coverage of Avatar: The Game here.

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Atlus comes through once again for fans of Japanese role-playing games. The publisher announced today it plans to bring Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey for the Nintendo DS to America. The game is due to arrive March 10, 2010. Strange Journey recently came out in Japan. It received scores of 10/9/9/8 (they use a four review system) making it the best reviewed game for the series in Famitsu magazine.

Billed as "the true successor to SMT: Nocturne" the new game boasts over 300 demons to try and influence to join forces with you. This time the game takes a sci-fi twist and with it leaves the usual setting of Tokyo. Taking place in the near future, a black void has started spreading over the South Pole. Your team of adventurers has been sent to investigate the phenomenon and stop its spread before it destroys the earth.

The press release promises "a return to the proud tradition of the all-time dungeon-crawling classic SMT: Nocturne." Classic role-playing games seem to have found a place to thrive on the DS. This could well be yet another success.

Is Activision really getting sued again? No Doubt!

TMZ reports that the band No Doubt is suing Activision for "the unauthorized use of the No Doubt's name and likeness," in Band Hero, released on November 2. The band is suing for an injunction prohibiting the use of the band members' likenesses in songs other than the three No Doubt tracks included in the game, and seeks an undisclosed amount of damages.

The lawsuit, filed in L.A. County Superior Court, claims that the game "transformed No Doubt band members into a virtual karaoke circus act," a statement indicative of being able to play any of the game's more than 60 tracks using No Doubt avatars... Read more

As part of its coverage of Nintendo's recent earnings call IGN's Wii channel reports that company CEO Satoru Iwata said that a test program offering demos of select WiiWare games would roll out later this month. He made no indication which games would be included in the trial other than to say that it would be a select few. Nor did he indicate whether this was something planned exclusively for Japan or if it would be a global initiative.

While exact sales figures remain unknown, Iwata did explain that they needed to take some action to stimulate growth in the small WiiWare and DSi Ware market. Demos are one potential answer because he feels many current buyers come into the online store already knowing what they want and do not take any time to browse other games.

When unique and interesting games like LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias (pictured) go virtually unnoticed there's clearly a need to better spread the word. Demos could go a long way in that regard but it will likely take more than just putting them up and hoping people find them.

Relive a classic Raiders of the Last Ark moment in this new LEGO Indiana Jones 2 trailer, splicing footage from the film and its plasticised video game recreation.

LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues hits PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, DS and PSP on November 17 with revamped versions of the films recreated in the first LEGO Indiana Jones plus Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and now toting a level editor.

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This week sees a large and varied selection of titles being released for download on the DSi and Wii, from a Viking-themed DSi tower defense and WiiWare carnival minigames to the TurboGrafx16 port of the original arcade Street Fighter.

DSiWare
• Battle of Giants: Dragons - Bronze Edition - $8
• Sparkle Snapshots - $5
• Viking Invasion - $8

WiiWare
• "Aha! I Got It!" Escape Game - $5
• Carnival King - $7
• Family Card Games - $5
Wii Virtual Console
• Fighting Street (TurboGrafx16 CD-ROM) - $8
• R-TYPE (Sega Master System) - $5

Nintendo's blurb on the games--all available from 9am PST--follows... Read more

It's been a long time coming, but BioWare's Dragon Age: Origins is almost upon us. And be sure not to overlook this week's other releases. The inevitable showdown between Imagine: Babyz Fashion and Jurassic: The Hunted should prove interesting.

Go ahead and hit up the full list, or, if you're looking for a particular system, skip right to the PC, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Nintendo DS or PSP section. Should you want to check out any past release lists, scope out our handy archive.

Barring any unforseen delays, most of this week's games should hit by Wednesday.

... Read more

Remember when LEGO Rock Band was announced and publisher MTV said the music game would embrace the "imaginative settings that the LEGO world offers?"

May I present to you the intro video for LEGO Rock Band. It's out on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and Nintendo DS in North America next Tuesday, November 3, with console owners able to export the included songs (at a cost) for use in regular Rock Band.

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Update: Nintendo has confirmed that new model will arrive in North America, where it will be known as the Nintendo DSi XL, during the first quarter of 2010.

Confirming earlier reports, Nintendo today unveiled a heftier version of the Nintendo DSi hardware that sports a larger profile, bigger screens and a much thicker stylus.

Dubbed the Nintendo DSi LL in Japan and DSi XL for Europe, the new model sports two 4.2" screens instead of the 3.25" displays of the DSi or the 3" displays of the DS Lite. A number of assets provided by Nintendo compare it to earlier models.

The Nintendo DSi LL will hit Japan on November 21 for 20,000 yen (~$219)--a slight premium over the region's current 18,900 yen (~$207) asking price of the regular Nintendo DSi. European availability will following in early 2010, with Nintendo only noting that the price is "expected to be higher than that of the Nintendo DSi."

As the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 nears, Activision is discounting the zombie-filled DLC for Call of Duty: World at War on the PS3.

The three map packs can all be had for 50% off, or $5 apiece. The sale--which also coincides with a double-XP bonus--runs through next Sunday.

Avatar: The Game doesn't have any bad guys, so apparently you spend the game knitting and/or in a lot of awkward conversations.

You can also play Avatar: The Game as a trooper or as an Avatar. Of course, either way you're playing as an avatar. I'll let you ponder that one.

Avatar arrives November 24 on PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS, PSP and Wii.

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