GEN
EA Confirms New Dragon Age, Mass Effect in 2011, Dates Numerous Titles
by Eric Jones | 02/09/10 | 1:13 PM PST

Electronic Arts held their Q3 earnings call yesterday, and pretty much felt it necessary to announce everything coming from the company over the next year, and beyond. Here's the choice details.

- EA offically confirmed a new Dragon Age title, set for release in early 2011. It'll be released for consoles, PC, and handhelds. A developer was not announced, but Bioware is likely behind it.

- EA also officially confirmed something "Far reaching" for the Mass Effect franchise, coming in early 2011. Could it be a large DLC? Or maybe even Mass Effect 3?

- EA confirmed 2011 releases for Dead Space 2, as well as a game we haven't heard about in some time: the unnamed shooter EA is working on alongside Gears of War developer Epic Games.

- For this year, EA confirmed summer releases for the reboot of Medal of Honor, as well as Holiday 2010 releases of Crysis 2, EA Sports MMA, and the new NBA Jam for Wii. Also coming will be two new EA Sports Active games (not just for Wii, so expect some "Arc" and Natal love), a console port of The Sims 3, a new Need for Speed (by Criterion), and a new Harry Potter game.

- Oh yeah, and FIFA, NBA Live, NHL, and Madden sequels are all in the works. Whew!

GEN
It May Be The End for Nippon Ichi Software
by Cory Dickson | 02/09/10 | 12:21 PM PST



Nippon Ichi Software may not be with us much longer. This past Friday, the company released its financial earnings for 2009. And it is safe to say that things have taken a turn for the worse. The company was down in profit 97.5 percent for the first nine months. On Friday, the company's price was ¥36,200 (JASDAQ), but then the stock plummeted that morning to ¥7,000 (US$78) before it was frozen.

2009 was a rough year (to say the least) on Nippon Ichi. Hopefully the company can bounce back this year; I would hate to see Prinny & the rest of the Disgaea crew go.

Wii
Aussie Hit with $1.5m Fine for Pirating New SMB Wii, Possibly Screws Over Whole Country
by David Oxford | 02/09/10 | 12:07 PM PST

It's just like they say, crime doesn't pay. Unless, of course, you're Nintendo and the crime in question was committed against you. Then it can pay a nice dividend of $1.5 million.

That's how much one Australian was fined for being the first in the world to upload the company's big holiday title, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, to the internet for people to freely obtain and download. The act was committed on November 6th, a week before the game's official release in Australia, which also predated the rest of the world-- even Japan.

Wii
Media: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Super Bowl Movie Ad
by Kombo Staff | 02/09/10 | 11:43 AM PST

Just in case you for some reason missed the "big game" on Sunday (or, like me, could get the game but not the commercials), here is the 30-second ad for the upcoming film "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time:"



For this reason or that, I've just never really played a Prince of Persia game, but this does look neat. Maybe I'll go see the movie first, then play the games and tell people I'm doing so because of the movie. Maybe I'll even say "they should make a game on this, it would be great," just to rile all the purists and such types up.

Wii
Fans Petitioning for Oldschool Sonic in Sonic 4
by David Oxford | 02/09/10 | 10:48 AM PST

In all likelihood, SEGA probably thought they nailed it when they released the first teasers, production art and trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog 4.

They had the logo. They had the sounds. They had the music. They had the enemies. They had 2D, side-scrolling gameplay. The story picks up right where Sonic & Knuckles left off. And they had reduced the cast to its core fundamentals. What more could a fan of the oldschool Genesis Sonic the Hedgehog titles possibly want?

The answer, it turns out, is the oldschool Sonic.

There tends to be something of a divide among Sonic fans when it comes to the character, his design specifically. For some, the leaner, more modern hedgehog is their preference, but for others, it's when his eyes went green that everything went south for the franchise.

GEN
HDTV vs. SNES
by Lucas DeWoody | 02/09/10 | 5:56 AM PST

I lost my HDTV virginity in 2006. It came at a time when I was starting the process of breaking ties with Nintendo console exclusivity, something I should have done far sooner. Considering the fact that I was a recovering Nintendo fanboy coming off the slow and agonizing death of GameCube in 2005, and the bone dry Nintendo console game drought in 2006, I was more than happy to "Jump In" with the Xbox 360 and spend the next year enjoying the awesomeness of Perfect Dark Zero, Kameo, Oblivion, and Gears of War in glorious HD. Immediately upon nabbing my 360, I swooped out the door and picked up a brand new 27" Samsung starter HDTV. Joyous with anticipation of the entrancing moment of liquid crystal ecstasy I was about to immerse myself in; I immediately placed that beautiful display in the middle of my entertainment shelf and hooked up all of my consoles to it. I spent the next week playing my new purchase like a mad man. At the end of the next week I decided it was time to mix things up and give the 360 a little break. I wanted to fire up the SNES (my favorite console of all time) and see how she looked on my new 720p beauty. Hoo boy, was I was in for a rotten surprise.

GEN
Kombo's Game a Day Giveaway! Win a New Game EVERYDAY in February!
by Ken Cauley | 02/08/10 | 11:00 PM PST



CLICK THE ABOVE IMAGE FOR THE OFFICIAL CONTEST PAGE

WINNERS:

February 2: John Riemer, Virgina

February 3: Jonathan Dowell, Pennsylvania

February 4: Chris Ryan, Florida

February 5: Chris Foster, Michigan

February 6: Adam Cuevas, Florida

February 7: Josh Minar, Kentucky

February 8: Bradley Mosbacher, Missouri

GEN
Kombo Breaker #60: Garth Chateau Talks Addiction and PopCap Games
by Joey Davidson | 02/08/10 | 8:08 PM PST



Number 60 is all up ons us! This week's episode of Kombo Breaker features a previous guest on talking about the recent adventures of PopCap Games.

From Facebook domination to future plans for the Wii, Garth Chateau of PopCap came on to tell us everything he could. Not only that, but Garth also takes time to rattle of a few absolutely absurd stats about Bejeweled Blitz. You'll have to tune in to find out more.

Make sure you do the usual and email us with questions and comments at kombobreaker@kombo.com. Be sure to subscribe on iTunes and leave us a review!

Download | Subscribe on iTunes | Episode 60 | 45m

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Kombo Breaker Special Edition - BioShock 2 Developer Conference
by Joey Davidson | 02/08/10 | 7:59 PM PST



Our own Matt Green got word from up on high of a little conference call with the developers of BioShock 2. He dialed in, of course.

But he went above and beyond the call of duty and recorded over an hour of tasty BioShock 2 tidbits. Story decisions, character investigation, game elements and more are all discussed within.

So, BioShock fans, strap in and enjoy.

The regular, weekly episode of Kombo Breaker will be up soon after this one.

Download | Subscribe on iTunes | 1h 15m

Wii
Media: THQ Announces Development of All Star Karate for Wii
by David Oxford | 02/08/10 | 5:22 PM PST

Those who rolled their eyes and groaned at THQ's release of All Star Cheer Squad may actually find something more to their liking in their second offering under the "All Star" banner:



I have to admit, it looks... interesting. It might even be worth taking a look at this Spring. Check out more details from the press release after the cut.

GEN
Electronic Gaming Monthly Now Accepting Subscriptions
by David Oxford | 02/08/10 | 5:02 PM PST

Attention, Electronic Gaming Monthly faithful: your ship has just come in.

BigDownload reveals that the new version of the magazine, revived by original founder Steve Harris, is now taking subscribers. In addition to 6- and 12-month subscriptions to the print magazine, subscribers will also get "premium" weekly access to EGM[I]: The Digital Magazine.

Wii
Lara Croft Fans May Need to Raid a Tomb of Their Own for This Art Book
by Kombo Staff | 02/08/10 | 4:31 PM PST



Fans of Tomb Raider, get ready-- this isn't going to be cheap.

Wii
Do U Wii - December 09 & January 2010 Video Game Release Montage
by David Oxford | 02/08/10 | 3:37 PM PST

It has been a little while since we last heard from TheWon's "Do U Wii," which was last seen in a two-part Christmas Shopping Showcase last month just before the holidays. But now he's back, to wrap up not only the rest of December 2009, but give us the lowdown on January 2010's Wii offerings as well.

Part of the reason for the delay is that TheWon was upgrading his computer and editing tools; as a result, you can now view the following edition of Do U Wii in 360p, 480p, or 720p. And now, without further ado:



I believe it was our own Daniel Sims who recommended The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces to me not that long ago, but I've not had the chance (nor the money) to check that (or anything else) out yet. Seems like it definitely fills a niche in the Wii lineup that people have been asking for, though I think they expected Pilotwings or Star Fox to get there first.

And of course, No More Heroes 2 and Tatsunoko vs. Capcom just had to round things off.

Wii
A Hamster's Influence on Super Mario Galaxy
by David Oxford | 02/08/10 | 2:06 PM PST

Nintendo is working on new hardware. And EAD General Manager Shigeru Miyamoto is working on a new game (or possibly games) which utilize the Wii MotionPlus, and are not Zelda.

Neither of these statements, which came from Miyamoto's own mouth at the 13th Annual Japan Media Arts Festival on Saturday, really come as any surprise. Nor does the fact that he was there to be awarded a "Special Achievement Prize" from the Agency of Cultural Affairs.

The biggest surprise, naturally, came through some of the developer's anecdotes, which include the influence a hamster had on his creation, the Nintendo icon we call "Mario."

GEN
Console Wars "A Bit Silly," Says 2K Marin
by David Oxford | 02/08/10 | 12:03 PM PST

During an interview with 2K Marin's BioShock 2 Creative Director Jordan Thomas, Destructoid brought up the issue of "fanboyism" and the "console wars," which they say had PlayStation 3 owners calling BioShock rubbish-- that is, until it appeared on their chosen platform. They went on to ask Thomas of what he thought of the ongoing war of attrition.

"There's a cognitive effect known as 'confirmation bias' which leads people to latch onto conclusions that support their preferences and ignore data which doesn't," he explained. "This leads to wild, unreasoning loyalty to a chosen platform, sports team, or brand of soda."