About a week or two back, I decided that despite my better judgment, I wanted to give Guitar Hero a try - I mean, with how much everyone races about the game, it had to be something special, right? While researching the title, I found that a lot of people were really liking The Ant Commandos (T.A.C.) Freedom V wireless guitar, so I asked some people in the know if I should pick up the standard RedOctane SG or the wireless T.A.C. guitar. The answer I was given was to go with the SG, because the Freedom V was not going to be compatible with Guitar Hero II. I was a bit relieved at the time, as I had no clue if I was actually going to like the game, and the SG was about $20 - $25 cheaper than the Freedom V.

We'll fast forward to present day now. First off, let me say that while I've never - NEVER been a fan of rhythm games, I'm hopelessly addicted to Guitar Hero. I think it comes down to the fact that at some point, everyone has wanted to be a rock-star. Regardless, it's the addiction that made me both cheer and sigh when I read over at ArsTechnica that T.A.C. has announced that all their guitars made after October 1st, 2006 will be compatible with Guitar Hero II, and that starting November 10th, they will be selling an adapter that will allow guitars made before that date to function with Guitar Hero II as well.

"...any guitar controller from TAC purchased before October 1st, including the Freedom V Wireless, is not compatible with GH II without an adapter. TAC is currently making an adapter for the older version of the guitar controllers that will be available November 10th.  They will sell for $6.99 with free shipping from Guitarmania.com Any TAC guitar controller purchased after October 1 is fully compatible with GH II. I hope this clears up any confusion." - The Ant Commandos

I now wonder just how much more fun I could be having if I could get my groove on wirelessly... though I guess I could always grab another guitar for 2 player battles, right? Actually, if I could get any one accessory, I'd personally love a strap that didn't tear into my neck every time I put it on - you see a shop with that, you let me know. Anyway, the adapter will be sold directly by T.A.C. via their website at a cost of $6.99 with free shipping included.

Guitar Hero II is scheduled to be released for the PlayStation 2 on November 7th, 2006. For more details on the adapter and the situation with T.A.C.'s guitars and Guitar Hero 2, check out the ArsTechnica article at this link.

Posted by nylatenite at 12:39 AM EST

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Bethesda has announced that the latest addition to The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Knights of the Nine, will be available for the Xbox 360 and Windows PCs via digital distribution and at retail stores on November 21st. (The content will already be included with the PlayStation 3 version of the game) Reports indicate the expansion will add approximately 10-20 hours of gameplay to Oblivion, making it more of a true expansion than previous add-on content for the game. From the content description;

"Knights of the Nine- DLC8

The Gods have forsaken Tamriel.

A fallen King has been unchained from the darkness of Oblivion to seek vengeance upon the Gods who banished him. Only a champion pure of heart can vanquish the evil that has been released upon the land. You must heed the call, reclaim the lost relics of the Divine Crusader, and return the Nine to glory. New dungeons, characters, quests, and mysteries await.

• Features:

  • Begin a New Faction - The Knights of the Nine have long been disbanded. Reclaim their former glory as you traverse the far reaches of Cyrodill across an epic quest line.
    
    
  • Battle New Foes - Encounter Umaril, the ancient Ayleid Sorcerer-King, and his minions, the fearsome Aurorans.
    
    
  • Discover Unique Items - An entirely new armor set and weapons, each with unique powers, are within your grasp…if you are worthy." - Oblivion Download store

According to Bethesda, downloading the expansion will cost $9.99 on the PC (via the Oblivion download store) and 800 points ($10) on the Xbox 360 (Via the Xbox Live Marketplace). In addition, a $19.99 retail boxed set will be available for PC users which will not only include Knights of the Nine, but the rest of Oblivion's pay content as well.

While there's some confusion on the issue, the PlayStation 3 version of Oblivion is apparently scheduled to be released on November 17th with the launch of the system.

Posted by nylatenite at 12:38 AM EST

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It's not much more, but Kotaku posted a picture of the Spartan Mjolnir Mark VI Helmet Replica which will come with the Legendary Edition of Halo 3. I've shrunken down the picture and reposted it below for your viewing pleasure. I don't know about you, but I'm tempted to build some kind of hinge that would let me tilt the head back so I can press a red button which opens a door to the game-cave (tm).

Now that you're done ogling the helmetty goodness of the Legendary Edition in a small, easy to load size, why not head over to Kotaku to check out the full sized picture and story that accompanies it - just click here. Oh, and if you just joined us and are wondering what the hell I'm talking about, check out this earlier story on the Legendary Edition of Halo 3 set.

Posted by nylatenite at 1:29 PM EST

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Nintendo has released two videos of The Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess and the folks over at Kotaku were good enough to put them up on YouTube for all to see. Check out the videos of the game below to see what all the fuss regarding Nintendo's take on Ladyhawke is all about. (Kidding - kind of)

For those looking at this in the still not video enabled archives, here are the links... (pun intended!)

Video 1

Video 2

Posted by nylatenite at 2:09 AM EST

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A demo of the Xbox 360 version of Sierra's upcoming movie-based game Eragon is now available in the Xbox Live Marketplace for Xbox Live Gold members only. The demo weighs in at 415.28mb, and if it's anything like the one I tried at Digital Life, it probably isn't worth your time to download. This is now the second bit of content that has hit Live marked as "Xbox Live Gold members only", so it looks like Microsoft is serious about pushing Gold on everyone.

Posted by nylatenite at 2:07 AM EST

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MAME32, the Windows GUI version of MAME, has also been updated to incorporate the u5 changes listed below. As with the regular version of MAME, MAME32 109.5 release centers around fixes to the debugger, so you may want to hold off on upgrading until the next full release - just to be on the safe side.

Check out the official MAME32 page here for more details and the download links.

Posted by nylatenite at 2:06 AM EST

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The fifth interim update for MAME v.109 is now available. Nothing much to note about this update as it's mainly a bunch of fixes to the emulator's debugger code.. Unless you like testing the updates, save yourself any hassles and stick with version .109.

The updated files can be found at the official MAME page at Mamedev.org. You can Click here to see what's new in this update.

Posted by nylatenite at 2:05 AM EST

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If you've been following the Halo 3 news out there, odds are you've heard rumors about the Halo 3: Legendary Edition boxed set. Wait... you haven't heard about it? What do you mean I should have told you about it? Sheesh, some people. Anyway, here's the deal - rumors have been floating around that unlike most "A-List" titles, Halo 3 won't just be coming in a regular and collector's edition, but Microsoft has decided that players who really love Halo 3 should have the option of taking it one step further - and such, are making the "Legendary Edition" available. Adding some credence to that rumor is the fact that Gamestop is now taking preorders for it.

While nothing seems concrete about the Legendary Edition, here's what we know so far;

• Gamestop is taking preorders on it - $25 down, estimated final price of $99.99.
• It includes.... wait for it.... A mini replica of the Master Chief's helmet. (Halo Spartan Mjolnir Mark VI Helmet Replica)
• It will include the game and 3 bonus discs of content.
  • Bonus content
    • Behind-the-scenes at Bungie Studios with new insights into the Halo Universe and the making of Halo 3.
    • A special hi-res collection of all cinematics from Halo 1 and Halo 2 with director commentary from the Bungie Team bonus
    • Community content from Red vs. Blue and This Spartan Life.
• Exclusive Gamer pictures and themes.
• Did I mention the thing comes with a fricken helmet?
• Each unit will have it's own unique serial number.
• Did anyone even read anything else after I mentioned it comes with a helmet?

Now then, here are some things to keep in mind.

1. The price isn't official yet, and I'm thinking that $99.99 is sounding kind of low - unless that helmet looks like crap.
2. It comes with a helmet.
3. You really don't need to know anything more than 1 and 2, do you?

So there you have it, get out to Gamestop or hit their website here and put your twenty-five bones down on it now, because I get the feeling it's going to see a pretty limited run - I know I'll be down there tomorrow reserving my Halo 3 helm....err game.

Posted by nylatenite at 4:59 AM EST

Updated: Thursday, 2 November 2006 5:10 AM EST

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Nintendo has officially released their list of what gamers can expect to see on the Wii during the first 5 weeks of the console's launch - including the titles that will be available for the Virtual Console. Let's get to it;

"Wii’s launch library contains games of all genres, and each one gives gamers a new way to play. While Wii Sports, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and EXCITE TRUCK will be ready to go on launch day, last-minute polishing by third parties means their exact dates will soon be locked down, though most will launch by the end of November. A complete list of launch-day titles will be announced in the near future. Visit www.Wii.com for updates. Third-party publishers have created an impressive list of launch titles for Wii, and their backing will continue steadily into the new year. Before the end of December alone, the following titles will be available:

Activision: Call of Duty 3, Marvel Ultimate Alliance, Rapala Tournament Fishing, Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam, World Series of Poker: Tournament of Champions
Atari: Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2
Atlus: Trauma Center: Second Opinion
EA: Madden NFL ’07, Need for Speed: Carbon
Konami: Elebits
Midway: Happy Feet, Rampage: Total Destruction, The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, The Ant Bully
Sega: Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz
SNK: Metal Slug Anthology
Tecmo: Super Swing Golf
THQ: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Barnyard, Cars, SpongeBob SquarePants: The Creature from the Krusty Krab
Ubisoft: Far Cry: Vengeance, GT Pro Series, Monster 4X4 World Circuit, Open Season, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Red Steel, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Double Agent
Vivendi: Ice Age 2: The Meltdown

In addition to these new titles, Nintendo is making the greatest video game archive in history available for download to its Virtual Console. NES games start at 500 Wii Points, Super NES games start at 800 Wii Points and Nintendo 64 games start at 1,000 Wii Points. Sega Genesis games start at 800 Wii Points and TurboGrafx16 games start at 600 Wii Points. Wii Points can be purchased online or at retail at an MSRP of $20 for 2,000 points. Before the end of December, the following titles will be available:

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
N64: 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
TurboGrafx16: Bonk’s Adventure, Super Star Soldier, Victory Run, Bomberman ’93, Dungeon Explorer " - Nintendo press release

Nintendo has also stated that they should have an official list of launch day titles shortly - for more details, be sure to check out the Nintendo press release at this link. Once Nintendo makes the final cut for launch day, we'll be sure to let you know the deal, so stay tuned!

Posted by nylatenite at 3:35 AM EST

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A report over at IGN (by way of Kotaku) is stating that Namco's Ridge Racer 7 for the PlayStation 3 will make use of 5gig of hard drive space in order to speed up loading time. Now I'm all for faster load times, but when you consider the fact that the $499 PlayStation 3 only has a 20 gig hard drive, you can clearly see how things could get crowded fast if this becomes a standard for PlayStation 3 titles. I've got to hope that the use of the hard drive space will be optional and that we're not talking about PSP type load times if you choose to run off the disc.

For more details, check out the IGN article at this link and the Kotaku post at this link. Riiiiiiidge Racer!

Posted by nylatenite at 3:34 AM EST

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