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

While the entirety of Sgt. Pepper's one and only Lonely Hearts Club Band march out to The Beatles: Rock Band next Tuesday, developer Harmonix will be releasing six downloadable tunes for its regular Rock Band entries.

The below tunes hit Xbox 360 and Wii on Tuesday, November 17, with a PlayStation 3 release following Thursday, November 19. Each track will sell by itself for $2 (160 Microsoft Points / 200 Wii Points), with the five-track AFI bundle going for $8.50 (680 Microsoft Points) on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

AFI Pack 01
• AFI - "Beautiful Thieves
• AFI - "End Transmission"
• AFI - "Love Like Winter"
• AFI - "Medicate"
• AFI - "The Leaving Song, Pt II"
• The Bangles - "Walk Like an Egyptian" +

  Tracks marked "+" will also hit the family-friendly LEGO Rock Band Music Store.

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

Having already made his Rock Band debut in with another band, Jack White returns to Harmonix's music game franchise with a selection of tracks from The White Stripes as The Damned and Kasabian toss songs of their own on the downloadable wagon.

Due on Xbox 360 and Wii Tuesday, November 10 and PlayStation 3 on Thursday, November 12, each of the following tunes will go for the usual asking price of $2 / 160 Microsoft Points, with three-pack offering a slight savings at $5.50 / 440 MS Points.

The White Stripes Pack 01
• The White Stripes - "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground"*
• The White Stripes - "Girl, You Have No Faith in Medicine"*
• The White Stripes - "Icky Thump"
• The Damned - "Smash It Up (Part II)"*
• Kasabian - "Club Foot"*

*Also available in the family-friendly LEGO Rock Band Music Store.

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

Developer Harmonix has issued details on next week's batch of downloadable add-ons for Rock Band and Rock Band 2, which will deliver eight new tracks to the franchise.

The following will hit the online marketplaces of the Xbox 360 and Wii on Tuesday, November 3, and then PlayStation 3 on November 5. Each track will be $2 / 160 MS Points, with the Foo Fighters Pack at $7 / 560 MSP and Nirvana at $5.50 / 440 MSP.

Foo Fighters Pack 03
• Foo Fighters - "Best of You"
• Foo Fighters - "The Pretender"... Read more

With Halloween just around the corner, Nintendo is breaking out emergency supplies of ghosts and ghoulies as no less than two thirds of this week's batch of North American Wii and DSi downloadable releases feature the undead in some form.

DSiWare
• PictureBook Games: The Royal Bluff - $5
• SUDOKU - $2

Wii Virtual Console
• Golden Axe (Arcade) - $9
• Zombies Ate My Neighbors - $8
WiiWare
• Ghost Mansion Party - $10
• Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter 3 - $10

Read on for full details on all titles, which are available from 9am PST... Read more

As Halloween draws ever closer, Harmonix has proclaimed that next week's Rock Band downloadable content will be "the spookiest DLC packs yet." Which artists could warrant this blood-curdling title? Why, it's none other than family-friendly shock rocker Rob Zombie, wailin' Wolfmother, lurid Liz Phair, and the macabre Morningwood.

Rob Zombie Track Pack
• Rob Zombie - "Burn"
• Rob Zombie - "Dragula"
• Rob Zombie - "Superbeast"
Wolfmother Track Pack
• Wolfmother - "New Moon Rising"... Read more

Television mascot and Internet icon Domo-kun is the star of this week's batch of Wii and DSi downloadable releases, with a grand five DSiWare games seeing our fuzzy friend engaged in everything from white-water kayaking to becoming a rock star.

WiiWare
• LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias
• Shootanto: Evolutionary Mayhem
Wii Virtual Console
• RYGAR

DSiWare
• Crash-Course Domo
• Hard-Hat Domo
• Pro-Putt Domo
• Rock-n-Roll Domo
• White-Water Domo

The titles will arrive at 9am PST, while further details follow below... Read more

Frontier has announced that its puzzle-platformer sequel LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias will arrive in North America as a WiiWare download next Monday, October 19.

The game, which hit Europe earlier this month, will sell for 1000 Wii Points ($10).

As with the first LostWinds, the side-scroller has players using Wii Remote gestures to jump further, defeat enemies and solve puzzles. This time, players can also "transform Mistralis between Summer and Winter" for additional puzzle solving prowess.

It looks like next week will be a costly one for some Rock Band owners, as developer Harmonix is slated to unleash some rather anticipated downloadable add-ons.

Those with plain old Rock Band or Rock Band 2 will be tempted by the addition of ten Queen tunes, all of which are original master recordings. Each tune will go for $2 / 160 MS Points / 200 Wii Points, with the entire ten-pack going for $16 / 1280 MS Points.

Meanwhile, owners of The Beatles: Rock Band will be able to expand their song libraries with the remaining tracks from "Abbey Road," including the 16-minute B-side medley. Songs will be available individually at $2 / 160 MS Points / 200 Wii Points or collectively through a $17 /1360 MS Point bundle, with more albums on the way.

Expect both sets of downloadable content to hit Xbox 360 and Wii on Tuesday, October 20, with PlayStation 3 availability coming Thursday, October 22. Should you desire a full list of the various tunes soon to be on offer, look no further... Read more

Quality trumps quantity in this week's batch of Wii and DSi downloadable titles with the release of splendid side-scrolling SNES beat 'em up Final Fight 2. You'll also find some attractive mythological DSi pinball and multiplayer WiiWare blaster Gravitronix.

DSiWare
• Pinball Pulse: The Ancients Beckon

WiiWare
• Gravitronix
Wii Virtual Console
• Final Fight 2

Click on for Nintendo's rundown of the games, which arrive at 9am PST.... Read more

A face-rocking triple-pack from the Brutal Legend soundtrack is headlining next week's batch of Rock Band downloadable content to celebrate the release of Double Fine's heavy metal action adventure, with support acts including Kansas, L7 and Joe Satriani.

"These are three great songs that totally capture the feeling of Brutal Legend. I can't wait to play them in Rock Band," said Double Fine head honcho Tim Schafer in a statement. "I've air-drummed to all of them so many times, I'm sure I'll be able to beat them on hard mode, no problem. Or at least on medium. Like medium plus. That's a setting, right?"

Brutal Legend Pack
• Motorhead - "(We Are) The Road Crew '08"
• Tenacious D - "The Metal"
• Testament - "More Than Meets the Eye"
• Black Tide - "Show Me the Way"... Read more

This week's regularly scheduled update to the North American Wii and Nintendo DSi Shop Channels may not be as loaded as weeks past, but ...Final Fantasy! It's a classic!

Wii Shop Channel
• Final Fantasy (Virtual Console - NES) / 500 Wii Points ($5)
• Word Searcher (WiiWare) / 500 Wii Points ($5)
Ninendo DSiWare
• Thorium Wars - 1,000 DSi Points ($10)

Per usual, expect all of this week's downloadable wares to be available here in just a few minutes, circa 9 AM PST / 12 PM EST. Details on all of the titles follow below... Read more

Alanis Morissette's oft-debated misrepresentation of the meaning behind "irony" comes to Rock Band in the form of downloadable content next week, joined by tracks from hip-hoppers Flobot, rockers The Raconteurs, and disco punks Electric Six.

The below tunes hit Xbox 360 and Wii on Tuesday, October 6, with PlayStation 3 availability following Thursday, October 8. Per usual, each song will sell for $2 / 200 Wii Points / 160 Microsoft Points, with the two packs going for $5.50 / 440 MS Points each.

Electric Six Pack 01
• Electric Six - "Dance Epidemic"
• Electric Six - "Gay Bar"... Read more

With September drawing to a close, Activision has unveiled the five downloadable track packs that will be coming to Guitar Hero 5 across the month of October, including a contribution from the legendary liquid-flinging costumed rockers Gwar.

Per usual, each pack will be available on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii for $5.50 (440 MS Points / 550 Wii Points), with individual tunes at $2 (160 MS Points / 200 Wii Points).

In addition, a ten select songs will be available to Xbox Live Gold members until October 5 at 120 Microsoft Points ($1.50) each instead of the usual 160 MS Points ($2).

Queens Of The Stone Age Track Pack - October 1
• "Mexicola"
• "Avon"
• "How to Handle a Rope"
Billy Squier Track Pack - October 8
• "The Stroke"
• "Everybody Wants You"... Read more

This week's North American batch of Wii and DSi downloadable releases sets its sights on mature gamers--people old enough to be excited by the prospect of Altered Beast, an updated Arkanoid or a strategy board game with Dragon Quest beasties.

Nintendo DSiWare
• Art Academy: Second Semester - $8
• Dragon Quest Wars - $5

WiiWare
• ARKANOID Plus! - $6
• DRiiFT Mania - $8
Wii Virtual Console
• Altered Beast (Arcade) - $10

Jump on in for Nintendo's blurb on the titles, which are all available now... Read more

A five-pack of Alice in Chains tracks both new and old headline will next week's batch of Rock Band downloadable content releases, supported by three Breaking Benjamin tracks, two by Britpop rockers Kula Shaker, and just a single song from Just Kait.

Alice in Chains Track Pack
• Alice in Chains - "A Looking in View"
• Alice in Chains - "Check My Brain"
• Alice in Chains - "No Excuses"
• Alice in Chains - "Rooster"... Read more

Another weekly batch of downloadable Wii and DSi releases, another WiiWare tennis. Thankfully MySims Camera, Last Ninja 2 and Nintendo's You, Me and the Cubes also arrive to shake up the routine of reality as we know it with a good jolt of weirdness.

Nintendo DSiWare
• Clubhouse Games Express: Strategy Pack - $5
• MySims Camera - $2

WiiWare
• You, Me, and the Cubes - $10
• Family Tennis - $5
Wii Virtual Console
• Last Ninja 2 (C64) - $5

Click on through for the skinny on the titles, all of which are available now... Read more

The whole of alt-rockers Pearl Jam's new album 'Backspacer' will arrive in Rock Band as downloadable content on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii next week.

Harmonix has also confirmed that a special edition of the album on sale in Target stores in the US will include a download code for the DLC on Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3.

Released for Xbox 360 alongside the album on September 20, then September 22 on Wii and the 24th for PS3, the tracks cost $2 a pop (160 Microsoft Points, 200 Wii Points) or $18 (1440 MS Points) for the whole album, hailing from original master recordings.

Pearl Jam - Backspacer

1. "Gonna See My Friend"
2. "Got Some"
3. "The Fixer"... Read more