Xbox 360 Fanboy

Believe it or not, the New Xbox Experience isn't the only thing that happened in the land of 360 this week. Oh no, we also have ... other things like ... um ... you know, stuff. Ooh, like A Kingdom for Keflings came out. It's a really cool XBLA game because ... it lets you use your Avatar as a playable character. Okay fine, it's all about the NXE this week.

Community

• Xbox 360 Fancast 092 -- Total Immersion
  Like radio ... on the internet!
• X3F TV -- XBLA in Brief: A Kingdom for Keflings
  Really addictive ... but why?
• Ask X3F: Splitting screens edition
  Bring a guest!
• The New Xbox Experience: What do you think?
  It's out. You've got it. How is it?

News

• Video: Winning a chainsaw duel in Gears 2
  Hit that B button
• Halo MMO received green light approval before managment canceled
  So, would Recon have been an epic armor set?
• New 360 bundles hit Europe November 21
  Now for only slightly less than retail!
• Kim: 360's lifespan 1 day longer than PS3
  Apart from the whole Red Ring of Death thing, anyway
• The Xbox Live Marketplace on Xbox.com is alive!
  Now you can spend real money on fake money at work!

[Thanks, ZaaM IT]

Hey karaoke fans or, more specifically, video game karaoke fans, the first batch of Lips DLC songs are set to arrive tomorrow, November 21. In addition to the the first set of songs, another set is scheduled for next Friday, November 28 and another set is scheduled for Friday, December 5. Starting to see a pattern? The set to be released on December 5 will all holiday songs by such artists as Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley, Gene Autry, and others. Every downloadable song will include its official music videoHere's the kicker, Microsoft has not specified a price for each track, saying instead that songs will "start at" 160 Microsoft Points. Find the upcoming DLC below.

Friday, Nov. 21

• Adele – Chasing Pavements
• Estelle – No Substitute Love
• Jason Mraz – The Remedy (I Won't Worry)
• Coldplay – Violet Hill

Friday, Nov. 28

• Supertramp – Give A Little Bit
• Smash Mouth – All Star
• Vanessa Carlton – A Thousand Miles

Go ahead, take a browse for yourself. You'll spot Xbox celebs like Major Nelson and the entire GSB crew as well as N'Gai, Godfree, CheapyD, FourZeroTwo and many more. Also, please excuse the numerous Joystiq and X3F blogger pics, because we're neither rich or famous. But we have to fuel our own personal egos somehow ... right?

Okay, so yes, the video above is not of an actual game. It's also not a video created by devoted fans. No, it's a video created by an ad agency -- and paid for by Activision -- designed to hock Guitar Hero. But does that make it less awesome? We're inclined to say that it does not. Furthermore, we're hopeful that the video will inspire creative people to discover what other games are best represented via bicycle. Might we suggest Bikes of War and Bike 4 Dead? Get to it, internet.

[Via Joystiq]

Microsoft has already happily announced that they'll be reaching the 25 million worldwide Xbox 360 install base sometime this month and now we know exactly how many of those consoles come from Europe: 7 million!

MCV reports that Microsoft's European Xbox 360 sales have reached 7 million consoles, 2 million of them have been generated since June of this year. Probably thanks to a rather large European price cut. Microsoft Europe is also pegging this Holiday to be its 'best ever Christmas" for 360 sales. We recommend buying at minimum three Xbox 360 consoles. One for the living room, one for the bedroom and one (preferably an Arcade model) for the restroom.

[Via Joystiq]

NECA is reporting that some toy Lancers were manufactured incorrectly, not allowing the batteries to make proper contact which results in a less than functioning Lancer. NECA is offering a fix (a small metal plate and installation instructions), all you have to do is shoot them an email with your name and address, then they'll send you a fix kit. Lancers without lights or sound are just not acceptable.

[Thanks, Timeridert]

We're sure it happened to many of you out there who had preview access to the New Xbox Experience. You configured Netflix to run on your 360 and (naturally) the first thing you added was the anime film Paprika to your streaming queue. Who wouldn't, right? Let's say you watched most of the film and, for one reason or another, decided to finish it the next day only to find that it had been unceremoniously yanked from your queue. Early speculation held that the reason films were yanked was because they were owned by Sony which, as perhaps you've heard, is in direct competition with Microsoft.

Sony has spoken to MTV's Multiplayer and, according to them, competition has nothing to do with the films being pulled. According to a spokesperson, "This issue is not specific to Xbox or any other individual platform." The spokesperson added, "Sony Pictures is currently in discussions with the relevant parties to resolve certain licensing matters related to the distribution of its motion pictures. Given the ongoing nature of these discussions, we don't think it is appropriate to comment further at this time." So, licensing problems it is then. Let's just hope these problems are resolved soon because we you really need to finish watching Paprika.

[Via Joystiq]

Here's the important info: Planet Fallout has created a Google map of the Capital Wasteland in Fallout 3. It includes a rather exhaustive account of the game's various quests, important locations, and various other miscellanea (even the locations of NPCs). The site is also accepting user submitted locations, so be sure to drop your favorite spots and Easter eggs (don't expect it to show up too soon though, as the map is currently flooded with submissions). Be warned that it contains many a spoiler, and you may want to avoid it if you haven't finished Fallout 3 yet. Given the nature of the game, we'd say that's a distinct possibility for plenty of gamers out there.

[Via Joystiq]

In a recent interview with IGN UK, Codemasters' Gavin Raeburn spilled some of the first detaiils on Colin McRae: DiRT 2. First, Raeburn spoke to the decision to keep McRae's name in the title -- McRae died tragically in 2007. According to Raeburn, the decision was made by Codemasters in conjunction with the McRae family. He added that Colin McRae's "ventures into events such as the X-Games, Dakar Rally and the Race of Champions have inspired [Codemasters] to look at events covering the extremes of off-road motorsport. Raeburn says DiRT 2 will move in that direction and that "Colin will play a part in that." Raeburn concluded that "DiRT 2 will be a great tribute."

The game will be running on an improved version of the EGO engine, which powered the previous DiRT as well as the more recent GRiD. Among some of the improvements are "more physical modelling of the environment, improving lighting and shadowing" as well as greater use of a streaming system "to allow much higher texture detail." Raeburn adds that Codemasters is "pushing the boundaries of what is possible with the hardware as much as possible, and we're confident in our ability to lift the quality bar again." Given that DiRT is still considered one of the best looking games available, these are some hefty statements to make.

Players can also expect revamped single-player and multiplayer experiences, with Raeburn promising "progressive reward system and community features" for online multiplayer. DiRT 2 is scheduled to launch in 2009.

[Via Joystiq]

According to USA Today, the GTAIV "Lost and Damned" episodic DLC will release on February 17th, 2009 and feature main character Johnny Klebitz who's a member of the Liberty City biker gang "The Lost". Rockstar VP Dan Houser describes Johnny as "a very different character than Niko, with a very different background" and promises that "the story will show you a different side of Liberty City." No other story information was revealed and pricing is still up in the air. Just be happy we have a release date.

[Via Joystiq]

After a week with no XBLA games, we were ready to sink our teeth into something new. This week, we not only get A Kingdom for Keflings, but it also happens to be the first Xbox 360 game that lets players use their Avatar as a playable character. We take the game and our Avatar for a spin in the latest episode of XBLA in Brief. Check it out in the video above.

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That's it folks. Show's over. Move along. US Magistrate Judge Richard Seeborg has dismissed the case of MKR Group -- the company that owns George Romero's Dawn of the Dead film -- versus Capcom -- the publisher behind Dead Rising. MKR Group tried to make the case that Dead Rising is too similar to the film Dawn of the Dead, but Seeborg chose to grant Capcom's motion for dismissal, which stated that the MKR had "not identified any similarity between Dead Rising and any protected element of Dawn of the Dead." The motion elaborated that the noted similarities were "driven by the wholly unprotectable concept of humans battling zombies in a mall during a zombie outbreak."

Several claims were made by MKR noting similarities between the game and the film, including the use of photojournalists as main characters and the fact that "Many of the zombies wear plaid shirts" (no, seriously). One interesting note in Capcom's favor, the judge completely dismissed MKR's claim that both works are a "parody of rampant consumerism." He stated, "To the extent that Dead Rising may be deemed to posses a theme, it is confined to the killing of zombies" and discovering the cause of the outbreak. He concluded that the "social commentary" drawn by MKR from he film "appears totally absent from the combat focus found in Dead Rising."

That's all well and good for Capcom, apart from the fact that Dead Rising totally is about consumerism. So, we're guessing that either Seeborg didn't actually finish Dead Rising or, perhaps, he wasn't paying attention. Judges these days. Sheesh.