Game News: November 30, 2006

Telltale unveils Sam & Max episode two
   The dog and the rabbit are back in Situation: Comedy - storyline plus first trailer and screens unleashed.
January 5 - that's the date to mark in your diaries if you're leaping up and down in excited anticipation of the next and second episode in Telltale Games' new Sam & Max adventure.



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Study: Violent Video Game Exposure Affects Self-Control (TechWeb)
   TechWeb - The differences were associated with emotional arousal and controlling behavior.

Steam snares Prey
   Human Head's shooter invades Valve's digital distribution service.
Alien-blasting FPS Prey should be available to purchase from Steam today. $49.95 is the price to pay. Anyone who has previously bought retail or download editions of the game can "activate a copy on Steam at no cost by using their existing product key", is the word on the Steam website.

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Only 500,000 PS3s shipped this year
   EA's Larry Probst makes PS3 predictions, expects only 500,000 to 800,000 consoles by year's end.
Sony will ship just 500,000 to 800,000 PlayStation 3s in North America by the year's end - significantly less than its initial forecast of 1 million - EA CEO Larry Probst has told Reuters.

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Kutaragi steps aside for new Sony boss
   Kaz Harai named as new president of Sony Computer Entertainment.
Kutaragi led the team that created PlayStation but the recent issues surrounding the introduction of PlayStation 3 seems to have taken their toll in the boardroom.

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Blue Dragon gets top marks in Japan
   Xbox 360 RPG awarded 9, 9, 9, 10 in latest issue of Famitsu.
Flagship Xbox 360 RPG Blue Dragon has nabbed top marks in the latest issue of highly-respected Japanese mag Famitsu, receiving scores of 9, 9, 9 and 10 from is panel of reviewing editors.

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60 seconds of C&C 3 gameplay
   Mega action and destruction from the RTS veteran in new footage.
"It's f****** awesome!", cried Andy Robinson, the team's resident Command & Conquer fan. Wicked! What's whipped our Andy into a froth of heady delight is a new gameplay trailer from the third instalment in the legendary RTS series, which features 60 seconds of battle goodness as the GDI trades rockets, blasts and bullets with the Nod bad boys.

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The latest from S.T.A.L.K.E.R.
   Still looking good? Judge for yourself as four new screens from the radioactive wasteland materialise.
Here - right here (well, on this page) - we've new screenshots from S.T.A.L.K.E.R., GSC Game World's long-awaited survival-FPS that's finally emerging from the shadows early next year. We've even included the packshot just to prove it DEFINITELY IS COMING.



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New screens: Arise, ye Witch-king
   A final peek at the expansion before it assaults your local games emporium.
On the eve of Rise of the Witch-king launch day, EA is executing one final screenshot charge - can you hear the thunder of the hooves? Look, and the cheeky minxes have only gone and stampeded all over this page. Guess we'd better pass our red-rimmed eyes over them then...



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360 HD-DVD is bigger than Wii
   The 360 HD-DVD add-on is in the office and we've got a tantalising Wii comparison pic to prove it.
The Xbox 360 HD-DVD add-on officially lands in stores tomorrow, but we've managed to nab an early unit from Microsoft.



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Master Chief as you've never seen him before
   Secrets revealed inside...
Hell look, it's Master Chief, recovering after being spewed out a Warthog that's been flipped on its side. Erm yep, anyway the image you can see over yonder right has accompanied new details on the Halo 3 ad that it was recently revealed is to air in December.



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Gamers in Society Seminar Calls for Papers
   

Gamers in Society, Play in Culture, The Third Annual Game Studies Seminar organized by the University of Tampere Game Research Lab to take place April 17-18, 2007 in Tampere, Finland has announced its call for papers.

3Dsolve's Boosman Confirmed For Online Educa Conference
   

Simulation learning company 3Dsolve has announced that its chief operating officer Frank Boosman will present on advances in simulations for training at the Online Educa Conference opening today in Berlin, in a speech entitled "Beyond Forward: The Flight Simulation Model of Task Training."

Nintendo Selling Every Wii It Can Make (PC Magazine)
   PC Magazine - Nintendo Co. Ltd. is on track to meet its target of selling 4 million units of its Wii game console globally by the end of the year, with the potential for exceeding that goal limited only by manufacturing constraints, Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime said on Wednesday.

Sony's Kutaragi to Add Chairman Title (PC Magazine)
   PC Magazine - Sony Corp.'s game unit said on Thursday its president, Ken Kutaragi, known as the "father of the PlayStation", will become chairman on Dec. 1 while keeping his post as chief executive.

EA: Sony PS3 Sales Were Only Half Of Expected (PC Magazine)
   PC Magazine - Electronic Arts Inc. CEO Larry Probst said on Wednesday that initial sales of Sony Corp.'s new PlayStation 3 were half of what the console giant had targeted, due to shortages.

The Curse of Too Many Tech Choices (NewsFactor)
   NewsFactor - Whether it's around the holidays or throughout the year, shopping for high-tech gear can be tough, and it isn't made any easier by the countless configuration options we now have at our disposal. The choices are often confusing, if not completely overwhelming. From computers, PDAs and smartphones to HDTVs, game consoles and digital cameras -- the choices, new models and upgrades just keep coming.

Games take on books (USATODAY.com)
   USATODAY.com - History teacher David McDivitt wanted to find out whether video games could teach. So he asked 64 sophomores at Oak Hill High School in Converse, Ind., last spring to trade in their textbooks for a week and play a World War II simulation game instead. Another 45 stuck with the books.

Think video game jobs are all fun? Think again (Reuters)
   

Reuters - Think a job in the video game business will involve shooting monsters and taking on virtual missions all day, every day? Think again.

'PlayStation father' cedes day-to-day running of Sony game unit (AFP)
   

AFP - Sony Computer Entertainment has said that the "father of the PlayStation", Ken Kutaragi, would give up the day-to-day running of the games unit which is sliding deeper into the red.