Earlier this year, Electronic Arts LA brought its PC real-time strategy title The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II to Xbox 360. Now, the same team is taking EALA's upcoming Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars, initially announced only for PC, to Xbox 360 as well. Similar methods and control schemes used in Battle for Middle-earth II will be used in this PC-to-console translation of the latest in the long running Westwood-created strategy franchise. - Xbox 360 screenshots.

Command & Conquer 3 will contain both a single-player campaign as well as multiplayer over Xbox Live. It also retains the C&C traditional of live-action cinematic cutscenes. EA promises "a steady stream of downloadable content" to be available for the game.

Electronic Arts plans to ship EALA's Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars for Xbox 360 and PC in 2007.

Nintendo today send out a press release detailing the gradual rollout of the various features that comprise its upcoming system's Wii Channels. The specifically game-related channels, including the basic Disc Channel that plays Wii and GameCube games as well as the Wii Ship Channel that allows downloading of Virtual Console titles, will be up on launch day. The avatar creation tool the Mii Channel will also be up at launch, as will the Photo Channel, which allows users to view digital photographs and transfer them to the console for use in messages.

Two channels, the Forecast Channel and News Channel, will be coming in the following weeks. The Weathernews-supplied Forecast Channel, which allows users to find local and wordwide weather forecasts via a spinning 3D globe, will be made available on December 20, 2006. The News Channel, whose material will be contributed by the Associated Press, will follow on January 27, 2007. Previously, CNN was rumored to be Wii's news provider, based on an interview published in EDGE Magazine. Apparently, the Wii's web browser from Opera will be available soon after launch, but Nintendo did not announce a specific date.

Nintendo also indicated what kind of schedule users can expect for Virtual Console releases. The initial release will consist of "at least 12" of the 30 VC titles announced for the launch period, with new games added each Monday until the full 30 have been made available by the end of 2006. It is not clear whether Nintendo plans to continue the same pace of releases, which would be three to four games a week.

Japanese publication Famitsu has details on a new crime action/adventure game called Shinjuku Wolf (or The Wolf of Shinjuku, depending on who you ask), game that, apart from its cel-shaded graphical style, apparently shares many similarities with Sega/Amusement Vision's Yakuza. The game's protagonist is detective named Eiji Mikami, who solves cases in gritty areas of the city of Shinjuku. In addition to action, the game features crime investigation, questioning, and an open world environment.

Shinjuku Wolf is being produced by Shinji Waseki, who previously worked on dating simulations. It is expected to ship in Japan next spring. Capcom has not made any mention of a North American release.

PlayStation 3 will be released soon, but it seems that two Elk Grove, California men just couldn't wait. The Sacramento Bee reports that at least four PS3s and an unspecified number of Xbox 360s were stolen from a GameStop store in an armed robbery. Elk Grove police recommend that console campers line up in groups rather than alone and do not carry cash.

Nintendo announced this week that it plans to ship 400,000 Wii consoles to Japan for the system's launch, more than quadrupling the approximately 90,000 PlayStation 3 units that were available at that console's release this weekend. The company has not given specific launch numbers for other territories, though it has stated that the largest shipment will go to North America.

Following the announcement, Nintendo's stock hit an all-time high of 26,770 yen ($227).

This one managed to slip through the cracks during the news onslaught this week. Microsoft announced on Tuesday that this Wednesday's Xbox Live Arcade release would be Midway's classic Defender. It turns out the game ended up being delayed in certification, but was eventually released for 400 Microsoft Points ($5).

Konami sends word that its PSP first person shooter Coded Arms has joined Sony's Greatest Hits program, and now carries a suggested retail price of $19.99.

Two more Coded Arms games are currently in the works, Coded Arms Contagion for PSP and Coded Arms Assault for PlayStation 3, both expected in 2007.

Business Week has an interview with Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto, who coincidentally turned 54 today, in which the designer speaks on the motivations behind and goals for the Wii. Interestingly, Miyamoto notes that the machine's low price relative to its competitors is actually the result of an initial desire to build a console that would sell for $100, but the cost of various components put that price point out of reach.

Earlier today in our Unpacking the PS3 feature, we reported that while Sony's PlayStation Network and PlayStation Store had already been active in Japan, they had not yet gone live in North America. Now, just hours later, we can report that both services are up and running in other parts of the world. If you reside in the United States, Canada, Hong Kong, or Taiwan, and you are one of the few to currently own a PS3, you may now register a PlayStation Network account. This will allow you to play online games as well as make downloads and purchases from the PlayStation Store. Subscription to the service is free.

Currently, the PlayStation Store is stocked with the following items:

Demos (free):
- Blast Factor
- Formula One Championship Edition
- NBA 07
- Resistance: Fall of Man
- MotorStorm
- Cash Guns Chaos
Downloadable games (prices current for United States):
- Blast Factor ($7.99)
- Cash Guns Chaos ($9.99)

There are also numerous trailers for games such as David Jaffe's upcoming title Calling All Cars (PS3), Incognito's Warhawk (PS3), Factor 5's Lair (PS3), and others, as well as several trailers for films available on Blu-ray Disc.

Unlike Microsoft's Microsoft Points system for Xbox Live Marketplace and Nintendo's upcoming Wii Points system for its Virtual Console, Sony's online store simply represents purchases in terms of local currency. Money used to buy games can be added to a virtual wallet at any time, including right at the time of purchase.

There are currently no sections of the store dedicated to microtransactions or any type of downloadable in-game content, but those are sure to come in the near future.

Undoubtedly living up to any expectations fans may have had after being promised new Halo 3 news this week, developer Bungie Studios and parent company Microsoft announced today that an open beta of the upcoming Xbox 360 shooter will be released in spring 2007.

For the many gamers still playing Halo 2 via Xbox Live, there will also be new multiplayer maps available for download in spring 2007. These maps will be available only to those playing Halo 2 with the backwards compatibility feature of the Xbox 360.

Fans of both football and Halo can look forward to December 4, as during ESPN's Monday Night Football on that date a CG Halo 3 ad featuring "a unique and compelling look at Master Chief" will be broadcast. Today's announcement notes that the ad will run "one time only" (read: will be on YouTube within minutes) but will also be downloadable through the Xbox Live Marketplace. On its own official site, Bungie has posted an explanation regarding the decision to go with a CG ad rather than one featuring gameplay footage. "We all agreed that a cooler thing to do would be to move as far away from gameplay-style footage as possible, and make something more movie-like," reads the post. "Let our fans see what the Halo universe looks like in a photo-realistic fashion."

Microsoft also released a single screenshot from Halo 3 (prior Halo 3 screenshots can be found here) containing an in-game image of Master Chief.

With numerous display standards falling under the high definition umbrella--mainly 720p, 1080i, and 1080p--many gamers have expressed confusion as to which is the most appropriate for their games. Now, it seems that with certain HD PS3 games on certain HD television sets, there might not be the option for HD at all. Earlier today, posters at the NeoGAF forums, among other internet gaming hangouts, realized that PlayStation 3 does not seem to have an internal mechanism for upscaling 720p to 1080i. Meanwhile, many 1080i-capable HDTVs also lack such an upscaler. This means that a 720p-only PS3 game simply will not sync with a non-upscaling 1080i HDTV, forcing users to play the game in 480p enhanced definition or 480i standard definition.

For reference, all PS3 games support 720p, while support for 1080i and 1080p is optional. In the NeoGAF thread, a developer from Insomniac Games, which produced the 720p-only Resistance: Fall of Man, stated that the problem is "not a software issue," implying that it is the hardware that lacks an upscaler. By contrast, Microsoft's Xbox 360 will upscale 720p games to 1080i for TVs that require it.

For users with a standard or enhanced definition television, PS3 games should pose no problem, even if they will not be displayed in full resolution. Though apparently lacking an upscaler, the machine does have a functional downscaler.

Shacknews cannot confirm these reports firsthand, lacking a 1080i-only TV with which to test a 720p claim, but multiple firsthand accounts along with the suggestive developer comment point to this one being true. Hopefully the company issues a software update remedying the situation.

Sony Computer Entertainment America had not reponded to requests for comments at time of publishing.

In 2004, Sid Meier's studio Firaxis released Sid Meier's Pirates! for PC, reimagining the classic PC title Sid Meier's Pirates! first designed by gaming legend Sid Meier in 1987. This was followed up by Sid Meier's Pirates! for Xbox, a port of the 2004 version of Sid Meier's Pirates! for PC. Now, Firaxis and publisher 2K Games have announced their intention to take Sid Meier's Pirates! to yet another platform with Sid Meier's Pirates! for PSP. "Sid Meier’s Pirates! is already a proven success," said 2K president Christoph Hartmann. "The universal appeal and compelling gameplay in [Sid Meier's] Pirates! makes it a perfect match for the PSP system." Sid Meier's Pirates! designer Sid Meier added, "[Sid Meier's] Pirates! for the PSP system allows players to shape the heroic life of a pirate while embracing the pirate’s way of life – always on the go!"

2K plans to release Firaxis' Sid Meier's Pirates! for PSP in January 2007.

Following Halo 2's incredibly well publicized "I Love Bees" promotion, so-called "alternate reality games" became all the rage in video game marketing. The craze has died down a bit since then, but new ARGs still pop up from time to time. Case in point: this seemingly innocuous corporate website for a company called NeoVenus Construction, which purports to deal in space travel and extraterrestrial colonization and terraforming. A poster on the NeoGAF found the site by following a URL flashed for just a couple of frames in a trailer for Capcom's upcoming Lost Planet: Extreme Condition (X360). A Whois search on the domain confirms that it is owned by Capcom.

The site undoubtedly goes deeper than its easily accessible product and services description pages and job postings, as some pages contain fields for a username and password. Internet detectives, go for it.

Capcom plans to release Lost Planet in January 2007.

It is anyone's guess as to why component cables have always been such an elusive item when it comes to Nintendo home consoles, but it looks like the Big N is finally starting to understand that gamers just plain prefer sending their moving pictures through cables that separate a video signal into one luminance channel and two chrominance channels. Also, they enable progressive scan, which is a plus.

Anyway, if you feel the completely understandable need to have component video all ready for when you pick up your system this Sunday, Nintendo is currently offering them for sale via its online store or by phone, with the option for one-day shipping. The store states that the cables are already backordered, but Shacker mikefr24, who placed an order earlier today, was told by a Nintendo representative that the website is out of sync with actual inventory and that Nintendo has enough stock "to cover ever Wii on launch day." Of course, if you plan on ordering them yourself, it wouldn't hurt to call and confirm.

A demo of the Xbox 360 version of EA Tiburon's Superman Returns: The Videogame was released today via Xbox Live Marketplace. The free download weighs in at 905MB and has a sample of the single-player game, which ships next week. Interestingly, only paid Xbox Live Gold members currently have access to the demo, while Xbox Live Silver members will have to wait until November 22, after the game has been released.

Pick up an Xbox 360 HD-DVD drive? UNEASYsilence shows you how you can get it working with your PC.

Sony's PlayStation 3 won't be out for three more days, and Nintendo's Wii for five, but games for both systems are starting to hit retail shelves. Numerous publishers sent out shipping announcements for their PS3 and Wii launch lineups yesterday and today, so while you'll have to wait a bit longer to actually play Zelda or Resistance, you can at least impatiently paw at their cover art in the comfort of your own home.

Many Wii preorder holders have also reported receiving email notifications that their Wii accessories have been shipping early, so expect to see extra controllers as well as potentially things like Virtual Console point cards and different video cables show up before Sunday as well.

In September, Sony announced its intention to launch PlayStation 3 in North America with 400,000 units. The company has reiterated that figure several times since the initial announcement. Today, Lazard Capital Markets released a report by analyst Colin Sebastian estimating the system's launch numbers at more along the lines of 150,000-200,000 units.

While Sony's number refers to North America and Sebastion's specifically to the United States, the US will be receiving the bulk of the shipment and, if correct, the report would indicate a significant reduction in shipped units from what was previously expected. Sebastian expects the company to follow up with a year end total of 750,000 units shipped to the US; Sony announced an expectation of about 1.2 million units in North America by the end of 2006. By comparison, predecessor PlayStation 2 sold 1.1 million units in the US by the end of its 2000 launch year, while current competitor Xbox 360 sold only 600,000 Xbox 360 units during its 2005 launch year.

Various online reports tracking back to German site Cynamite.de claim that two Activision-published titles, Treyarch's Call of Duty 3 and Neversoft's Tony Hawk's Project 8, are not being rendered on Xbox 360 at the 720p (1280x720) resolution ostensibly required by Microsoft for all games on the system. According to Cynamite.de, Call of Duty 3 is rendered at a pixel resolution of 1040x624, while Tony Hawk's Project 8 is rendered at 1040x584, with both games scaling up in a proportionally appropriate fashion. Presumably, the reason for a developer using such a technique would be to lessen the load on the system to boost performance, but the site claims that Project 8 still suffers from framerate issues.

Similar reports arose last year in regards to Bizarre Creations' Project Gotham Racing 3, which appears to be interally rendered at 1024x600 and upscaled to 720p for performance reasons.

Activision had not responded to Shacknews' requests for comment at the time of publication.

Independent developer Foundation 9--whose studios include Backbone Entertainment, The Collective, Shiny, Digital Eclipse, and others--today announced that it plans to absorb developer Amaze Entertainment into its ranks. According to Foundation 9, this would result in the company becoming the world's largest independent video game developer.

Amaze is mainly known as a veteran handheld developer, though it has developed on all current generation handheld and home consoles. Recently, the company was responsible for the portable versions of the Eragon game adaptation, and is currently working on numerous titles including the Call of Duty: Roads to Victory (PSP) for Activision. It is comprised of subsidiary studios KnowWonder, Griptonite, Monsoon, and Fizz Factor.

Financial terms of the deal, which is expected to be completed in the Q4 2006, were not disclosed.

With the PlayStation 3 launch imminent, Sony Computer Entertainment America has revamped its official PlayStation site for the Americas, consisting of news and information regarding PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, and PSP.

Physics middleware provider Havok announced today that Neversoft's Tony Hawk's Project 8 uses both Havok Physics as well as the less frequently mentioned Havok Animation solution. The two Havok systems work in conjunction to blend physics interactions with dynamic animation. already released for PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Xbox 360, and heading to PlayStation 3 and PSP,

Sony Online Entertainment sends word that its Smash TV-esque PSP shooter Cash Money Chaos has been renamed Cash Guns Chaos. The game is still on track for release in Q1 2007. - Screenshots.

Sony's PlayStation 3 has officially gone on sale in Japan, making it the first territory where the machine is available. Sony Computer Entertainment chief and "father of the PlayStation" Ken Kutaragi was present at the 7:00am opening of Bic Camera's Yarakucho location in Tokyo. "I'm grateful that so many people are waiting for the PS3," said Kutaragi. "I hope you will enjoy the next-generation entertainment to your heart's content." The 20GB hard drive variant of the machine is selling for 49,980 yen ($423.70). Sony put an open price on the 60GB model, allowing retailers to choose their own price points. It is most commonly selling for 59,980 ($508.48). This 60GB price is actually lower than the original 62,790 yen price for the 20GB model Sony announced during this year's pre-E3 conference, before lowering it this September.

It is unclear how many units were available on Japanese shelves when stores opened. Sony's original announced shipment allocation for Japan was 100,000 units, though recent reports claimed an 80,000 unit figure. This week, SCEA CEO Kaz Hirai claimed that Sony still plans to hit its original calendar and fiscal year targets, though he did not specifically mention the Japanese launch day quantity. When the system goes on sale in North America on November 17, Sony has announced it will have 400,000 units available.

Much like this week's earlier news about PlayStation 3 requiring a new firmware update at launch, media outlets receiving pre-release Wii units have today reported that Wii will also be treated to a system update when it is officially available in stores. The update will allow the console to connect to its CNN-fuelled News and Weather Channels, as well as the Shop Channel that allows Virtual Console downloads. Users who cannot download the update due to not connecting their consoles to the internet are unlikely to miss anything useful, as all three of those channels require internet access to function at all.

Each year, Popular Science magazine publishes a series of lists called Best of What's New, spanning several categories including Gadgets, Computing, Aviation & Space, Automoting, and more. In its Home Entertainment category, Popular Science gave the Grand Award to the soon to be released Nintendo Wii, beating out seven other nominees including a Samsung 56" DLP HDTV and a Blu-ray Disc player. Popular Science noted the machine's modest horsepower compared to rival Xbox 360, but praised its motion-sensing controller. There was also a bizarre (and erroneous) reference to "[Nintendo's] iconic talking mushrooms."

Publisher Sega today announced that Pseudo Interactive's destructive racer Full Auto 2: Battlelines, previously announced only for PlayStation 3, will be making its way to PSP courtesy of developer Deep Fried Entertainment. The Vancouver-based Deep Fried was founded by several industry veterans last year, and is currently also known to be working on an unidentified Nintendo DS project.

Full Auto 2 for PSP will contain 15 different PSP-unique vehicles, a full single-player campaign and other single-player modes, local wireless multiplayer modes, licensed music from bands such as Sum 41, Stone Sour, and Wolfmother.

Sega plans to ship Deep Fried Entertainment's Full Auto 2: Battlelines for PSP in March 2007.

Based on Excite Truck screenshots apparently displaying an option to read music from SD cards, many gamers speculated that Monster Games' Wii launch racer would support custom soundtracks. Today, IGN has confirmed these rumors using a final copy of the game and a retail Wii unit. To play your own music in the game, simply load it onto a standard SD card, put the card in the console's SD port, and and choose "SD Card" in the game's music options menu. Excite Truck supports up to 100 tracks, with the option to randomize tracks and skip tracks in the middle of a race.

Excite Truck is currently the only known Wii game to support custom soundtracks. It is unlikely to be a common feature in story-driven games, but it may be more common on games whose default soundtracks consist of licensed music.

Coinciding with the release of Rare's Viva Pinata (X360) this week, Microsoft has made available on the Xbox Live Marketplace the first piece of downloadable content for the game. Players can now purchase the Viva Pinata Accessory Pack 1 for 90 Microsoft Points ($1.125--yes, one dollar, twelve and a half cents). This first of multiple packs contains two presumably jaunty chapeaux for your pinatas: the Vela Wig and the Juno Helmet. Hooray for hats!

Remember yesterday's story about the ten-day-early PlayStation 3 campers? According to a characteristically snarky Kotaku report, they aren't camping anymore. Apparently, Best Buy staff--at least at the electronics chain's Burbank location--is forbidding any overnight lines for PlayStation 3 or Wii until the day before the respective consoles go on sale. If you yourself decide to take a particularly zealous approach to pre-release line-forming, be sure to check with store employees before setting up camp.

1UP's Sam Kennedy takes a look at why Sony may repeat PS2 history with PS3, or why it may not.

Business publication Red Herring spoke this week to Atari founder and video game industry pioneer Nolan Bushnell about his current work on a high-tech restaurant venture. The interviewer was also sure to get Bushnell's opinion on the state of the games industry. Asked about what he is following, Bushnell commented on both Nintendo's and Microsoft's efforts. "I'm very curious and interested in the Nintendo Wii. I think it may expand the market beyond the hardcore [18- to 24-year old]," he said. "Xbox Live is interesting because it potentially becomes the platform for the living room." When asked specifically about his former company Atari, however, Bushnell was dismissive. "Atari really isn't a part of today's gaming world in any meaningful way. They lost the cachet of being a leading technology company in the games space," he said.

Asked about Sony, his reaction was also negative. "I think Sony shot themselves in the foot... there is a high probability [they] will fail," he answered. "The price point is probably unsustainable. For years and years Sony has been a very difficult company to deal with from a developer standpoint. They could get away with their arrogance and capriciousness because they had an installed base." Bushnell went on to unfavorable contrast Sony's development tools and strategy to Microsoft's development tools, which are frequently praised, and the revenue streams offered by Xbox Live Arcade and Xbox Live Marketplace. As for Sony's past and current success, Bushnell claimed it was largely an issue of being in the right place at the right time, and that the company was "almost the accidental winner."

Fans of Team17's long running Worms franchise have expressed frequent wishes that a 2D iteration of the series would one day make it to Xbox Live Arcade, and it looks like those wishes are soon to be granted. According to a Team17 employee on the official Team17 forums, Worms for Live Arcade is actually already in "final certification stages" and next the company will be discussing announcement plans with Microsoft. Given the long road that Live Arcade games seem to need to travel before release, it may be unrealistic the expect the game this year (the employee also mentioned that it will be delivering Lemmings 2 for PS3's download service first), but it's coming for sure.

Online retailer GameStop.com has revealed the full list of games and accessories included in its Wii preorder mandatory bundle. The whole package weighs in at $694.88 and includes the system and its included Wii Sports game, a 1GB SD card to augment the system's internal flash memory for game saves and downloadable content such as Virtual Console games, an additional remote controller, a 12 month GameStop warranty, a subscription to Game Informer, and six games: Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Atlus' Trauma Center: Second Opinion, Ubisoft Paris' Red Steel, Raven Software and Vicarious Visions' Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, Sega Studios' Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz, and EA Tiburon and EA Canada's Madden NFL 2007.

Using the price points of each component as listed on the GameStop.com website, the bundle's total value comes to $669.89 without factoring in the year-long warranty. The difference between that combined price and the bundle price is $24.99, so if you consider that a reasonable price for a warranty and you want the six included games, you're all set.

The deal will be available for preorder only online from GameStop.com and EBGames.com starting tomorrow, November 9. The company has still not released details on its PlayStation 3 preorder bundle.

According to Electronic Arts representatives speaking to IGN, EA Canada's NBA Live 07, already released for PS2, Xbox, Xbox 360, PSP, and PC, has been cancelled for PlayStation 3. EA released one screenshot, explicitly labeled "Work in Progress," but has made few mentions of the game. PS3-owning NBA fans will still be able to pick up SCE Studios San Diego's NBA Live as well as Visual Concepts' NBA 2K7 at launch. The EA rep mentioned that EA Canada's NBA Street Homecourt will be coming to the system, as well as to Xbox 360, in 2007.

Despite reports last month that component video cables for Wii would be sold only through online retailers, IGN today reported that Nintendo has confirmed they will be sold in brick and mortar stores as well from launch day. Game Informer also published an interview with the same information, making it fairly likely that it is correct. Component cables are capable of transmitting a progressive scan signal, allowing the system to output in 480p.

A multiplayer demo of Capcom's Lost Planet (X360) has been expected for some time now, but has yet to show up on Xbox Live Marketplace. Judging by the presence of an ad insert in Epic's fellow Xbox 360 third person sci-fi shooter Gears of War, released this week, that demo should be here any day now. "Check Out Xbox Live Marketplace For New Multiplayer Demo!" the ad reads. While it's not there yet, expect it soon.

GamersReports has an interview with Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg, speaking briefly on the company's recently announced video content coming to Xbox Live Marketplace. As the company has still yet to announce a larger hard drive, Greenberg has a suggestion for users looking for more space for those hefty videos: put your Xbox Live account on a memory unit, then you can swap between multiple 20GB Xbox 360 hard drives.

Following yesterday's announcements by Microsoft that Xbox 360 owners will be able to buy and rent HD television episodes and movies via Xbox Live Marketplace, Sony Computer Entertainment America PR chief Dave Karraker has slammed the service. "I think they are doing a disservice to their consumer base because they are ignoring all those people who bought the Core system," said Karraker. "We would never segregate or shut out any of our consumers from our entertainment experience because they didn't buy the top of the line system." He pointed out that while both PlayStation 3 models, priced at $499 and $599, include a hard drive, while Microsoft's $299 Xbox 360 Core unit does not.

Meanwhile, Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios head Phil Harrison spoke to Sony-sanctioned blog ThreeSpeech about PS3's own HD capabilities, such as its included Blu-ray Disc drive and HDMI output. Harrison admitted that Blu-ray has caused production problems for Sony, but is a necessary obstacle to overcome. "Today, it looks like a very difficult situation--but in the weeks, months and years to come, this will pale into zero," said Harrison. "Yes, we have overreached in production of the Blu-Ray component--I can't deny that. But that's the price you pay for adopting brand new, leading-edge technologies that will be future proof. We will resolve those issues--we are already catching up." Harrison restated Sony's goal to ship 6 million PS3 units by the end of its fiscal year in March 2007.

Though Stainless Games' Novadrome was mentioned in yesterday's announcement of upcoming Xbox Live Arcade games, publisher Buena Vista Games today officially announced the game as coming to Xbox 360 this holiday season. Novadrome is a sci-fi vehicle combat game featuring exaggerated physics and over the top weapons in a demolition derby setting.

As the Isle of Wight, England-based team behind the infamous combat racers Carmageddon and Carmageddon 2: Carpocalypse Now, Stainless has some experience in the genre. "We took our renowned experience of making intense vehicle combat games and put it into an extremely addictive game--'Novadrome'," said managing director Patrick Buckland. The game features two dozen vehicles and fifteen arenas, as well as online and offline gameplay modes.

Novadrome is expected to be released for Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade by the end of 2006.

As the organization that rates content in all major game releases in North America, the ESRB can be a prime source for determining upcoming unannounced games. In September, the ESRB's website divulged several Sega Genesis games eventually confirmed to be Wii Virtual Console launch titles, and now the site has what appears to be titles from the second wave of planned VC games. The following NES and SNES titles have been designated "E for Everyone:"

- Hogan's Alley (NES)
- Ice Hockey (NES)
- Kid Icarus (NES)
- Kirby's Adventure (NES)
- PilotWings (SNES)
- Pro Wrestling (NES)
- Punch-Out (NES)
- Wild Gunman (NES)

No release dates were given for the game. Nintendo has stated its intention to provide at least ten Virtual Console games per month after the system's initial VC launch lineup of 30 titles.

Publisher Buena Vista Games has rapidly been raising its profile in the video game industry in recent months. The Disney subsidiary recently picked up Climax's racing dev studio, signed a publishing deal with Tetsuya Mizuguchi's studio Q Entertainment, picked up the rights to the Turok franchise, and recently picked up Propaganda Games and Avalanche Software. Now, BVG has announced that it has formed Fall Line Studio, dedicated entirely to developing games for Nintendo DS and Wii. It will create both new intellectual properties as well as games based on established Disney-owned franchises.

Fall Line is headed up by Scott Novis, former general manager of Rainbow Studios (Cars, ATV Offroad Fury, Motocross Madness). It will specialize in "small-team, creative projects," acting as a sister studio to Avalanche Software. Both companies are based in Salt Lake City, Utah.

No specific projects were announced in today's press release.

Online retailer GameStop.com has put up a preliminary information page regarding Wii preorders, its brick and mortar counterpart already having filled its quotas. GameStop.com and sister company EBGames.com will apparently be selling preorders for Nintendo's upcoming system only in a single mandatory bundle at an unspecified price "under $699." As far as what that "under $699" will net you, the company has not yet shared any details beyond the basic Wii unit, but presumably it will include several games and accessories such as extra controllers. They better figure it out soon, as the site lists the start date for preorders as this Thursday, November 9. Keep checking back until then for further details.

GameStop.com's PS3 preorder page has even less information, lacking both a date and potential price range.

This week, Microsoft released a significant dashboard update for its Xbox 360 console via Xbox Live. After doing so, however, some users begain claiming that the update had apparently permanently crashed their consoles, rendering the systems useless. Today, Microsoft acknowledged the problem via its employee-written Gamerscore Blog. According to Microsoft marketing employee John Porcaro, the issue affects "less than 1%" of users. He noted that a new version of the update should be available within 24 hours of the time of his post, made at 1:39PM Pacific time.

Microsoft has not stated the conditions under which a console would fall victim to the bug, or whether specific conditions have been determined. Initially, users speculated that it only affected illegally modified Xbox 360s, while more recent claims suggest that it has affected Xbox 360s which had not been patched with the spring 2006 dashboard update.

Update: According to Microsoft's Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb, the new update is now available via Xbox Live. Users with continued issues should contact Xbox support.

Nintendo announced today that it has committed to shipping some 4 million Wii systems from the machine's North American launch on November 19 until the end of calendar year 2006. The launch will follow in Japan on December 2, Australia and New Zealand on December 7, and Europe on December 8. Of the 4 million planned units, Nintendo claimed that the bulk will be shipped to the Americas, though specific breakdowns were not provided. The company claims that Wii's launch will be the largest console launch in over ten years.

Despite the high targets and the company's plans of "maximizing all its resources for a rapid replenishment program designed to consistently pump Wii consoles into the supply pipeline and keep retailers' shelves as filled as possible," Nintendo still expects demand to outstrip supply. This expectation was reinforced as retailer Wal-Mart opened up online preorders for the system this morning and within hours sold out its allotted stock, including its $533.56 four-game Customer's Choice Bundle.

Yesterday, Nintendo released the most recent launch lineup information for Wii and its Virtual Console service.

According to statements made by Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios' Phil Harrison speaking to the Sony-sanctioned Three Speech blog, Sony is currently developing about 40 games to be distributed via PlayStation 3's downloadable game service. His comments seem to indicate that these games are being funded and published by Sony; it is possible that third party publishers have their own games in the works. Three Speech claims that some studios are currently dedicated entirely to creating downloadable PS3 games.

"My strategy was to encourage developers to push the machine technically, creatively, artistically--to innovate in lots of different ways," said Harrison. "But don't be restricted by ghettoising games into a particular genre, or a particular display mechanic, because what we've seen on other systems tend to be retro 2D games, and we're pushing the 3D capabilities of the PlayStation 3. Plus, the fact that every PS3 has a hard disc drive means that we're not restricted by the size of the download, and that has a huge impact on the kind of game design that you can do."

Despite its eventual plans for PS3 to download and play games first published on the original PlayStation, Sony has made it clear that its downloadable game service is strongly oriented towards newly developed titles rather than retro games.

Today, Electronic Arts made available a bevy of purchasable vehicles and upgrades for the Xbox 360 version of EA Black Box's Need for Speed Carbon. Available via Xbox Live Marketplace, today's eleven various additions are valued at a combined 3940 Microsoft Points ($49.25), with a bit of overlap as one of the packs contains content included in three others.

The biggest bundle of content on sale for Carbon is the Collector's Edition Upgrade, consisting of 12 tracks, 6 Challenge missions, and 10 cars, such as the '92 Nissan 240 SX, '07 Jaguar XK, '06 Camaro concept, and '06 Koenigsegg CCX. Apparently, these cars cannot be modified or used in Career mode. The Collector's Edition Upgrade goes for 800 Microsoft Points ($10). Its content is exclusive to the downloadable pack and cannot be obtained in the game through other means.

There are three performance bundles, the Performance Drivetrain Bundle, Performance Engine Boost Bundle, and Performance Handling Bundle, which contain different in-game upgrades that can be applied to your vehicles. Each runs 400 Microsoft Points ($5). The Ultimate Performance Bundle consists of all the content from the three performance bundles and runs 800 Microsoft Points ($10). Some of the content in the performance bundles can be acquired in-game through other means.

Next up are three body modification kits, the Muscle Car Autosculpt Body Kit, Autosculpt Tuner Body Kit, and Autosculpt Exotic Body Kit, each of which includes new Autosculpt features for its respective vehicle class. Each runs 300 Microsoft Points ($3.75). Some of the content in the autosculpt bundles can be acquired in-game through other means.

Finally, there are three standalone cars available for 80 Microsoft Points ($1) each: the '99 Nissan Skyline GR-R R34, '04 Lamborghini Murcielago, and '06 Dodge Viper SRT-10. These cars can also be unlocked in the game's Career mode.

Sierra Entertainment sends word that a demo of the Xbox 360 version of Stormfront Studios' Eragon is being added to Xbox Live. At time of writing, it is not yet available. When it is, it will include a sample of the single-player game's dragon-riding gameplay. The full version of Eragon includes a cooperative mode.

Stormfront Studios' Eragon ships November 14, 2006.

Nintendo has released a list of launch period games for Wii, consisting of 32 titles to be released in North America from the machine's November 19 launch until the end of calendar year 2006. As with PlayStation 3's recent launch lineup announcement, it is unclear which games will be available when the machine goes on sale, and which will come during the remainder of the year. The full list is as follows:

Activision:
- Treyarch's Call of Duty 3
- Raven Software's Marvel Ultimate Alliance
- Rapala Tournament Fishing
- Toys for Bob's Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam
- Left Field Productions' World Series of Poker: Tournament of Champions
Atari:
- Spike's Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi(TM) 2
Atlus:
- Atlus R&D 1's Trauma Center: Second Opinion
Electronic Arts:
- EA Canada/EA Tiburon's Madden NFL '07
- EA Canada/EA Black Box's Need for Speed Carbon
Konami:
- Konami's Elebits
Midway:
- Midway Games' Happy Feet
- Midway Games' Rampage: Total Destruction
- Midway Games' The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy
- A2M's The Ant Bully
Nintendo:
- Monster Games' Excite Truck
- Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
- Nintendo's Wii Sports (pack-in title)
Sega:
- Sega Studios' Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz
SNK:
- SNK/Terminal Reality's Metal Slug Anthology
Tecmo:
- Tecmo's Super Swing Golf
THQ:
- THQ Studio Australia's Avatar: The Last Airbender
- Blue Tongue's Barnyard(R)
- Incinerator Games/Rainbow Studios' Cars
- Blitz Games' SpongeBob SquarePants: The Creature from the Krusty Krab
Ubisoft:
- Ubisoft Montreal's Far Cry: Vengeance
- MTO's GT Pro Series
- Monster 4X4 World Circuit
- Ubisoft Montreal's Open Season
- Ubisoft Montpellier's Rayman Raving Rabbids
- Ubisoft Paris' Red Steel
- Ubisoft Montreal's Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Double Agent
Vivendi:
- Ice Age 2: The Meltdown

Ubisoft's list of offerings, the biggest of any publisher at launch, was slightly reduced from eight to seven. Ubisoft Romania's Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII was previously announced but is not present on the list, suggesting it has been delayed.

Foundation 9 studio The Collective today announced that it is developing Harker, a new survival horror title based on Bram Stoker's classic novel Dracula. The game features the titular protagonist Jonathan Harker, who has sworn vengeance on all vampires after Dracula claims his wife Mina. In the game, players will hunt down and kill vampires via exploration, tracking, and close combat. "Harker's goal is to bring an in-your-face, visceral, and personal style of combat to the survival horror genre," said producer Nigel Cook. "None of these vampires are going to die with one shot. They’re going to fight for their survival, which will give the player a huge level of satisfaction when they successfully execute one."

No publisher has been announced for the game. The Collective did not specify for which platforms Harker is in development, but the company sent over several screenshots labeled "360," indicating that the game is coming at least to Xbox 360. It is likely headed to PlayStation 3 as well.

Harker is planned for release some time in 2008.

In early 2005, 2K Sports gained the exclusive rights to create third party console games based on the Major League Baseball license. Now, to complement its MLB 2K series of baseball sims, the company has announced The BIGS, an "over-the-top baseball action title" featuring power-ups, a more exaggerated graphical style, and an online four-player multiplayer mode. The BIGS is heading to PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, and PSP courtesy of Blue Castle Games, under the direction of EA Sports MVP Baseball creator Dan Brady. 2K released a single screenshot of the game.

2K plans to release Blue Castle Games' The BIGS in summer 2007.

Today, Nintendo as well as Sega and Hudson Soft announced their launch plans for Wii's Virtual Console service, which will feature titles from classic consoles and, later, newly developed games. The service will go live when Wii is released on November 19, 2006. In total, the system will start off with 30 titles from NES, Super NES, N64, Sega Genesis, and TurboGrafx-16. NES and Sega Genesis have the largest initial lineups, with twelve and ten respectively. As many expected, most of the launch titles are fairly well known among their platforms, as opposed to being lesser known cult favorites. The lineup is as follows:

NES:
- Mario Bros.
- The Legend of Zelda
- Donkey Kong
- Donkey Kong Jr.
- Ice Hockey
- Pinball
- Soccer
- Tennis
- Urban Champion
- Wario's Woods
- Baseball
- Solomon's Key
SNES:
- F-Zero
- SimCity
Nintendo 64:
- Super Mario 64
Sega Genesis:
- Sonic the Hedgehog
- Altered Beast
- Golden Axe
- Columns
- Ecco the Dolphin
- Gunstar Heroes
- Space Harrier II
- Toe Jam & Earl
- Ristar
- Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine
TurboGrafx-16:
- Bonk's Adventure
- Super Star Soldier
- Victory Run
- Bomberman '93
- Dungeon Explorer

Sega and Hudson also announced pricing details for their games. Sega Genesis titles will start out at 800 Wii Points ($8) and TurboGrafx-16 at 600 Wii Points ($6). Nintendo revealed its own pricing scheme last month, with NES games going for 500 Wii Points ($5), SNES games for 800 ($8), and N64 games for 1000 ($10).

Publisher Majesco has announced that it will be publishing a Wii version of the well received Nintendo DS cooking simulator Cooking Mama. Cooking Mama: Cook Off, as the home console game is titled, will be developed by OfficeCreate, the developer behind the original game. The game will include a versus multiplayer mode, cuisine from over 10 different countries, and a total of over 300 real world recipes.

Cooking Mama: Cook Off is set to ship in early 2007.

According to posts on the official Volition forums, the company's Xbox 360 action game Saint's Row has received a title update via Xbox Live. Users have complained about various issues, including crash bugs, plaguing the game since its release, and today's update addresses those glitches as well as adds various features. In addition to improvements to general issues such as inconsistent widescreen support and sound problems, the game's multiplayer mode has been significantly overhauled. Check out the patch notes on the forums for a full list of changes.

Sega sends word that Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz from Sega Studios (formerly Amusement Vision) has gone gold, making it the first Wii title to have been publically revealed as complete and ready for duplication. The game will manage to make it to store shelves before its console does, with a ship date of November 14. Wii goes on sale November 19, 2006.

Capcom sends word that it has set up a survey for players or owners of Monster Hunter Freedom (PSP). The company is hoping to gather useful information on the game's infrastructure multiplayer mode, which will potentially help Capcom in the development of future titles. If you've played the game, check out the survey.

Microsoft has revealed this week's Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday release: an UNO deck themed around Rare's Kameo Elements of Power. Similarly, in September Microsoft released an UNO deck styled after Bizarre Creations' Project Gotham Racing 3. Like that release, the Kameo deck will run 100 Microsoft Points ($1.25). It will be available as of 1 a.m. Pacific Time via Xbox Live Marketplace.

Publisher Rockstar Games today announced that it has signed an agreement with Australian studio Team Bondi to publisher Team Bondi's film noir-inspired crime thriller, the oddly spelled L.A. Noire. No new information about the game was revealed, though Rockstar did release a brief teaser trailer with the promise that a more substantial trailer is coming October 5.

L.A. Noire was first announced last year as a PlayStation 3 exclusive, with Team Bondi signed to produce two additional PS3-exclusive games. However, the developer's website has now been changed to state that the company makes games for the more general "next-generation consoles." Team Bondi itself was founded in 2003 by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe studio Team SOHO's Brendan McNamara, who had worked on The Getaway (PS2) while at Team SOHO.

No specific platforms nor a release date were given for L.A. Noire.

Speaking to the Canadian Press, Nintendo of Canada VP and general manager Ron Bertram revealed that, of the 4 million Wii consoles Nintendo has announced it will be shipping worldwide in 2006, 1 million of them will be made available on launch day in North America. He did not indicate how many more units would follow for North America by the end of the year. "If we get what we're supposed to get, this will be our most plentiful launch in the 15 years I've been at Nintendo," stated Bertram, adding, "All signs are actually extremely positive." Previously, Nintendo had stated that North America would see the largest allocation of the worldwide shipment, but did not pin down specific launch day numbers. Bertram also seemed to indicate that, despite Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime's recent poo-pooing of the "Wii60" Wii/Xbox 360 combo, some within Nintendo are still on board. "We're hoping if you're already an Xbox 360 owner and you want a new experience, that you'll pick up a Wii this Christmas or maybe next year," he said. "And if you've never played before, we think that this may get you hooked on video games."

Wii launches in North America on November 19, 2006 for $249.99 and $279.95 in Canada.

The Wall Street Journal has published an article taking a look at the prospects of the PlayStation 3 (subscription req'd), particularly in light of the company's recently announced price drop for the 20GB PS3 model in Japan. Interestingly, many Japanese analysts have criticized the move, noting that Sony already plans to take a significant loss on the machine and such a move will only prolong the amount of time before the company will recoup the expenses associated with launching the console.

One of the more curious quotes regarding the console's future success comes courtesy of Square Enix senior VP Michihiro Sasaki. "We don't want the PlayStation 3 to be the overwhelming loser, so we want to support them," said Sasaki. "But we don't want them to be the overwhelming winner either, so we can't support them too much." Since the original PlayStation, Square Enix (and, formerly, Square and Enix) has been a heavy supporter of PlayStation home consoles, with its Dragon Quest series a perennial bestseller in Japan and its Final Fantasy series a perennial bestseller worldwide. However, with the changing landscape of the industry, many have questioned whether the company still holds the same level of influence over PlayStation's success as it has in the past. Some have also speculated that Sasaki's statement lends credence to past rumors that the Dragon Quest series may be migrating from the PlayStation family to Wii, while Final Fantasy stays with PlayStation. The company has already announced projects for both Wii and Xbox 360, though none are of the same potential sales magnitude as its two core RPG franchises.

Sony has clarified that, prior to initial reports, PlayStation 3 is in fact not currently set to have Sega Genesis or TurboGrafx games downloadable from its online service. Apparently, news outlets may have misinterpreted the translation of Ken Kutaragi's address during last week's Tokyo Game Show, resulting in the erroneous claims. Rather than stating that PS3 will feature games from those legacy systems, Kutaragi stated that offering such titles is something Sony would like to do, and is considering possibilities relating to such a service. During this year's Game Developers Conference, Nintendo announced that its upcoming Virtual Console for Wii will offer Genesis and TurboGrafx games.

As part of its "Bringing it Home" program over Xbox Live, Microsoft has released a demo of Day 1 Studios' Xbox 360 version of Monolith's F.E.A.R. via Xbox Live Marketplace. The demo weighs in at 542MB and includes a taste of the game's single-player mode.

Bungie has launched its own podcast. The first episode features news that the Vista version of Halo 2 will be playable at the upcoming X06 event, and hints that some big news may be presented at the show as well.

Sony Computer Entertainment head Ken Kutaragi delivered his Tokyo Game Show keynote today. Kutaragi spent much of his time speaking about various developments in the communications and tech industries and how PlayStation 3 may tie into them at some point. He also indicated that PS3 will feature a Global Mapping System, allowing users to share pictures and other materials, and that this GMS may some day allow developers to share ideas of works in progress and get feedback from consumers. As far as more concrete PS3 details, Kutaragi announced that PS3 will be able to download (or stream, depending on which report you read) PlayStation and PlayStation 2 games. Similarly, PS3 will play titles from Mega Drive (Sega Genesis) and PC Engine (TurboGrafx) consoles; these two systems are also part of Nintendo's Virtual Console plans. No specific games were announced.

In a post-keynote question and answer session, Kutaragi made some more surprising announcements. After asking the audience if it wished the lower-end 20GB PS3 model would include HDMI, Kutaragi revealed that it in fact will. In Japan, the 20GB model will be getting a price drop from its original 59,800 yen ($509.72) price; the system will now be priced for an unspecified amount under 50,000 yen ($426.15). Sony did not announce any such change for other territories.

Yesterday, posts started occurring on forums such as those on Xbox.com indicating that Microsoft plans to offer some kind of free warranty for Xbox 360 units manufactured in 2005. Throughout the day, calls to Microsoft support employees only confused the matter, as some denied the program, some confirmed it, and some seemed just as confused as those inquiring. Eventually, company representatives indicated that Microsoft is indeed launching a program along those lines. The company later issued an official statement clarifying the situation and perhaps admitting that Xbox 360 error rates have been higher than previously acknowledged.

As part of our standard and ongoing process of analyzing repair data, we recently noticed a higher than usual number of units coming in for repair. Upon further investigation, it was further discovered that the bulk of the units were isolated to a group that was part of the initial manufacturing run of the console. Returns for repair are coming in for a variety reasons and it's a higher rate than we are satisfied with. We've made the decision to comp repairs for consoles manufactured before January 1, 2006, and provide refunds to the small group of customers who have already paid for repairs.

It is unclear how long owners of such systems will be able to take advantage of the offer. More details are likely to be forthcoming. Microsoft's Xbox support line is 1-800-4MY-XBOX.

Peripheral manufacturer The Ant Commandos, which was recently sued by Guitar Hero publisher RedOctane and parent company Activision for infringing upon Guitar Hero copyrights with its alternative guitar controller, today announced that it has filed a counter claim against the two companies. Not only does The Ant Commandos deny infringing upon RedOctane's copyrights, it states that RedOctane's Guitar Hero SG controller is in fact based on a controller created in 1999 by Topway Electrical Appliance, a partial owner of The Ant Commandos.

Shacknews contacted The Ant Commandos for clarification. In 1999, Topway patented the Magical Guitar controller, intended for use with Konami's Guitar Freaks (PS1) game. In 2001 and 2004, according to a The Ant Commandos representative, the CEO of RedOctane visited Topway's China-based factory and inspected various aspects of the controller's design, allegedly commenting on its five-button neck design. Between 2002 and 2004, RedOctane apparently purchased several hundred of Topway's Magical Guitar controllers. Last year, RedOctane released its own SG controller for Harmonix's Guitar Hero (PS2), which it also published. "It has an almost identical neck to the Magical Guitar controller," said the TAC rep, "in terms of the number of fret buttons, button colors, and layout." Shacknews was also provided with a photograph of the Magical Guitar, which indeed bears a strong resemblance to RedOctane's controller. Konami's own Guitar Freaks controller released the same year uses only three fret buttons; Topway's uses five, as does RedOctane's newer controller. The Ant Commandos stated that Konami has never taken any sort of legal action against it or Topway.

The Ant Commandos has filed for a preliminary injunction against Activision and RedOctane demanding that the companies cease the sale of their Guitar Hero bundle, and instead sell the Guitar Hero game and controller separately, so that consumers "may purchase the game and have their choice on which controller to buy."

Microsoft has clarified some confusion regarding its upcoming HD-DVD attachment and 1080p support. Yesterday, the company announced that its HD-DVD drive would output HD-DVD movies in 1080p, and also revealed that an upcoming patch for Xbox 360 will allow the machine to output 1080p movie and game content. Today, it was confirmed that the HD-DVD drive will indeed support 1080p, but only via VGA and not via component cables. As previously known, neither the attachment nor the Xbox 360 console supports HDMI. 1080i resolution will be supported via component. The Xbox 360 console itself will display 1080p game content, either upscaled from 720p or rendered natively in 1080p, via component or VGA cables. DVD content from Xbox 360 will continue to be limited to 480p with component. Microsoft also indicated that it does not plan on creating games in 1080p, though it is an option for third party developers.

Following Microsoft's recent announcements regarding its HD-DVD drive and support for 1080p video, Sony Computer Entertainment America PR head Dave Karraker issued a statement regarding Microsoft's approach to high-definition video:

It's unfortunate that Microsoft's external HD-DVD drive will not enhance the experience at all for the gamer. Sony realizes that to truly take gaming into the next generation requires a larger data format for both games and movies. PS3 uses the Blu-ray format for gaming, giving developers 50 GB of high-definition storage on a single disc, while Microsoft's 9 GB DVD gaming format is an obstacle for storing HD content. Furthermore, Microsoft's announced HD games patch is really just a compatibility feature--upscaling lower-resolution content does not make it Full HD (1080p), something that PS3 can do out of the box.

Microsoft today announced that Rare's Viva Pinata (X360) will have a Special Edition version available for a limited time upon the game's release this November. The double disc set will include an episode from the Viva Pinata animated television series, a demo of Traveller's Tales' LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy, and demos of several Xbox Live Arcade titles: Frogger, Cloning Clyde, Time Pilot, and Marble Blast (presumably Ultra). The set will be available for $49.99.

Tokyo Game Show coverage continues from GameSpot, IGN, and 1UP.

1UP chats with Konami's Koji Igarashi about the Castlevania producer's plans for the series' future.

IGN has an interview with Ubisoft designer Fabrice Cuny on the recently announced Far Cry Vengeance (Wii).

Nintendo today revealed launch date and pricing information for the remaining major gaming territories, following this week's earlier announcements of the system's North and South American and Japanese launch details. After launching in the Americas on November 19 and Japan on December 2, the system will reach Australia on December 7 for a retail price of AU$399.95 (US$301.32). Europe will follow on December 8 for GBP 179 (US$336.73) and 249 Euros (US$316.33). Nintendo also revealed the system's Canadian launch price of CA$279.95 (US$250.40). Interestingly, this actually puts the machine at an initial price of CA$20 less than its predecessor GameCube, which launched in Canada at CA$299.95 (US$268.29).

Shacknews has also received official comment from Nintendo in regards to certain Wii details that have seen various conflicting reports in recent days, thanks to inconsistent statements by Nintendo executives. A Nintendo representative stated that, contrary to a report from CNet, Wii will not be bundled with component video cables but rather will include composite cables.