Short SOCOM Public Beta Delay

Hi folks,

Well, I've got some good and not so good news. The good news is that we are still on track to delivering a kick-ass experience come October. The bad news is that because we are working so hard to ensure the final product is fantastic, we've decided to push back the Public Beta date just a few days in order to bump up the experience even more. So, the new launch date for the Public Beta is now Friday, September 5th (QORE members will start the following Friday, September 12).

The other good news is that we are not cutting down the length of the Public Beta one bit. It will still run for a full month - from 9/5 to 10/5 - so you and your clanmates can still practice as long as you want and then be ready to go for the full game later in October.

Myself, my team and Slant Six are burning the midnight oil to ensure this game is the best it can possibly be for you guys. We completely understand it’s hard to wait when you haven't had a chance to play it yet but, rest assured, the wait will be worth it. If you haven't done it already, you can pre-order the game from GameStop® in the US to get into the Public Beta (EB Games™ for our brethren to the North). Make sure to bring along 2 extra friends once you register and get the email promo code from us; that code will let them in too. You're not going to get another Public Beta out there that will give you and your squad-mates so much access.

Best,
Seth

Credit to http://socom.us.playstation.com/post/2008/08/Public-Beta.aspx#comment

The Penny Arcade Expo 2008 (PAX 2008) is about to begin and will be running all weekend, from August 29th to August 31st.

The PAX expo has really grown by leaps and bounds the past few years and this year promises to be even bigger than last. In some ways the show is on track to become as important an annual convention as E3 was.

And that means that lots and lots of games will be on display and playable to anyone at the show, which is open to the public. And many of those games will be making their first public appearance.

Here is the list of what Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft are showing at PAX 2008.

Microsoft

1. Gears of War 2

2. Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise

3. Project Origin

4. Castle Crashers (XBLA)

5. LEGO Batman

6. Fable 2

7. Infinite Undiscovery

8. Little Gamers (XBLA)

9. JellyCar (XBLA)

Sony

1. LittleBigPlanet (PS3)

2. Resistance 2 (PS3)

3. Resistance: Retribution (PSP)

4. SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation (PS3)

5. MotorStorm: Pacific Rift (PS3)

6. The Last Guy (PSN)

7. Wipeout HD (PSN)

8. Crash Commando (PSN)

9. Savage Moon (PSN)

10. Rag Doll Kungfu: Fists of Plastic (PSN)

Nintendo

1. Kirby Super Star Ultra (DS)

2. Rhythm Heaven (DS)

3. Wii Music (Wii)

4. Shaun White Snowboarding (Wii)

5. Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood(DS)

6. Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir (DS)

7.Star Wars The Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duels (Wii)

8. Star Wars The Clone Wars: Jedi Alliance (DS)

9. Chrono Trigger (DS)

10. Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia (DS)

11. Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen (DS)

12. Skate it (Wii)

13. WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2009

14. The Conduit (Wii)

15. Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World (Wii)

Thirty four titles total. Not bad. Not bad at all. It’s interesting to see Nintendo with the largest line-up of games. Quite surprising if you ask me but definitely kudos to them for taking advantage of Penny Arcade to show their wares.

http://www.videogamesblogger.com/2008/08/30/pax-2008-line-up-from-the-big-3-sony-microsoft-and-nintendo.htm

No Gears Of War 2 For You, PC Gamers

Gears 1 on PC looked cleaner! Now with added Brumak! It was a flagship title for the Games For Windows Live push! So Gears of War 2 will be bigger, more badass, right? Wrong. So wrong. Dude Huge has told IGN that Epic have "decided we're not going to do a PC version this time around". Could mean just that, there won't be a Gears of War 2 on PC. Or it could just mean that when it does come to PC, Epic won't be the team behind it. Who knows, maybe Gearbox will have a spare team lying around, we hear they're open to that kind of wet work.

The Official Vault Dweller's Survival Guide In Pictures

I know I've been going on and on and on about the Fallout 3 presence at Penny Arcade Expo, but seriously, they really deserve it. Take, for instance, this handy-dandy Vault Dweller's Survival Guide they've been handing out to everyone who stops by. Not only does the 47-page book explain how to adapt to the outside world and warn you about radiation: the silent killer, it also explains "The Unappetizing Truth", aka the reality of cannibalism.







http://kotaku.com/5043825/the-official-vault-dwellers-survival-guide-in-pictures

Square Enix Aiming For Majority Stake In Tecmo

The turmoil continues for beleagured Tecmo, which has been rocked by lawsuits from Ninja Gaiden creator Tomonobu Itagaki and the resignation of its president. Now Square Enix is moving in to buy Tecmo in what they're calling a "friendly deal."

Kotaku and Reuters are reporting that SE aims to buy more than half of Tecmo's shares at 920 yen each, 30 percent more than the studio's previous closing price. SE called the it a "friendly deal," and said that they would not pursue the bid if Tecmo didn't respond by September 4 or rejected the proposal outright.

SE will be giving a briefing on the proposal at 1 PM Japan time, so check back for more details around midnight eastern time. Until then, feel free to take bets on a Cloud Strife cameo in the next Dead or Alive game.

Tekken 6 to be delayed to 2009?

It looks like fighting fans may have to wait just a bit longer for Tekken 6 to hit the PS3. Earlier today, the Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion upgrade was announced for the arcade version of Tekken 6. Like Dark Resurrection, Bloodline Rebellion should add new stages, sound tracks, costumes, characters, and bug fixes to the existing version of Tekken 6. Bloodline Rebellion will hit arcades in December of this year.

Originally slated for a 2008 release, the console version of Namco Bandai's fighter was sidelined in order to get its other fighting franchise, Soul Calibur IV, out on the market. The console version of Tekken 6 will be most likely be delayed to incorporate these new updates, possibly even into 2009.

American PSN update for August 28th

This week's update in America is rather unsurprising. In fact, it looks like our European update earlier today: The Last Guy and the Warhawk expansion are what we're sure everyone is eyeing. That free Soulcalibur demo is a nice perk too.

Downloadable Games

* The Last Guy ($9.99)

Add-on Content:

* Rock Band DLC
* Warhawk Fallen Star Pack ($7.99)
* Warhawk Booster Combo ($15.99)

Game Demos

* NHL 09
* Soulcalibur IV


Game Videos:

* LittleBigPlanet Leipzig "Sackzilla" Trailer
* Motorstorm Pacific Rift Leipzig Trailer
* PAIN Trauma Mode Trailer
* GT5 Prologue Play the Pros with Tanner Foust!
* Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway Machine Gun & Bazooka Video
* Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway Squad Gameplay Video
* Facebreaker Audition Video #1
* Facebreaker Audition Video #2
* Facebreaker Audition Video #3
* Madden NFL 09 Gameplay Trailer
* Madden NFL 09 Play Call Trailer
* Top Spin 3 Player Creator Trailer

Movie and Blu-ray Trailers:

* Quantum Of Solace
* Prom Night

PS3 Wallpaper:

* The Last Guy