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SOCOM Confrontation Beta Launches September 1

With SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation (PS3) slated for a downloadable and retail release on October 14, Sony has announced that the beta for the Slant Six Game-developed multiplayer shooter will run from September 1 to September 30.

Those who have pre-ordered the title from GameStop and obtained a beta voucher will be able to access the beta on September 1, whereas those who purchased the June issue of Sony's downloadable video magazine Qore will have to wait until September 8.

"This information only applies for North America," community manager Seth Luisi wrote on the game's (2008-08-07 07:37:00)

Blast from the Past: Halo 1 PC Patched

A new patch for the PC version of Halo 1 is now available, removing the CD check five years after the game was first released. A patch for Halo: Custom Edition is available as well.

In addition to removing the CD check from the game, the 1.08 patch takes care of server-crashing security bugs. As of tomorrow, this patch is required to continue to play online.

The Nintendo Revolution, and Why Wii Were Wrong

"I don't give a fuck what they call it, I'm calling it the revolution."

The real uprising started the day the Revolution died.

It was April 27, 2006, and gamers were primed for Nintendo's next-gen box, codenamed Revolution. In the all-important console war, the company had ended the previous generation in last place with its GameCube. Thoroughly beaten by Sony's juggernaut PlayStation 2, and even edged out by newcomer Microsoft with its Xbox, Nintendo was sucking wind--or just plain sucking, depending on who you asked.

Despite a healthy business, both publishers and consumers were losing interest in Nintendo's approach. Though the Revolution and its motion controller seemed a radical move, it was also seen as a possible gimmick, a last-ditch effort that wouldn't play with real gamers. One got the sense that the company's next big play in the home console game might be its last.

And then, like an oblivious plumber bending over in a bow, Nintendo...

Ubisoft Sues Disc Replication Company Over Assassin's Creed PC Leak

GameSpot reports that Ubisoft has filed a lawsuit against Optical Experts Manufacturing, a disc replication firm based out of Charlotte, NC.

Optical Experts Manufacturing had been contracted to manufacture game discs for the PC version of Assassin's Creed, which was released this past April. According to Ubisoft, "an extraordinary breach of trust and gross negligence" led to one of the employees leaving the plant with a copy of the game some six weeks before the retail date.

In taking the contract, OEM had to agree to security procedures that would've prevented such a leak. One of these procedures, Ubisoft alleges, is that no copy would ever leave OEM's premises.

NPD indicates that the PC version of Assassin's Creed sold only some 40,000 copies through June, nothing compared to the stellar sales on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. According to Ubisoft the version that ended up ear...

'No Question' Digital Downloads will Surpass Retail, Says Microsoft VP

Amid increasing revenues for digitally distributed games and downloadable content, a Microsoft executive affirmed his belief that digital sales will eventually overtake those of games sold in traditional retail channels in the near future.

"There's no question digital will overtake physical," said Xbox Europe marketing vice president David Gosen, as reported by MCV. "It happened in music and will happen to our industry."

Speaking at Microsoft's UK Gamefest development event, Gosen added that the success of Xbox Live Arcade and downloadable content for games such as Harmonix's Rock Band and Neversoft's Guitar Hero III illustrate a "convergence" in the industry, adding that "digital will be the dominant force in future."

Gosen's re...