Final Fantasy XIII Will Use Almost 100% Of PS3's Power

Final Fantasy XIII producer, Yoshinori Kitase, has told Japanese magazine Dengeki PlayStation 3 on the upcoming Final Fantasy XIII demo stating it uses 50% of the PS3's power and that the final game will use nearly 100% of the machine's power:

"Doesn't the demo use about 50 percent of its power? Of course, I think the retail version will make use of nearly 100 percent."

Source: Kotaku

EA Release Two New Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Screens

EA released two new screenshots of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 earlier today. Yeah that's right, a measly two screenshots. They look nice though.

Source: Joystiq

Snowblind Map Pack Now Available On Xbox Live

Major Nelson has confirmed the Gears of War 2 'Snowblind' downloadable content pack has now gone live and can be yours for 800 Microsoft Points. Official blurb below:

Content: Snowblind Multiplayer Map Pack
Price: 800 Microsoft Points
Availability: Not available in Germany or Japan
Dash Text: [ESRB: M (Mature) BLOOD AND GORE,INTENSE VIOLENCE,STRONG LANGUAGE] This winter-themed pack brings you four Gears of War 2 maps sure to heat up your multiplayer and Horde action. Hunt your enemies down in the snowy day-lit heights or the dark tunnels of Under Hill. The massive industrial complex of Grind Yard gives numerous bunkers for cover, but watch out for snipers high in the flanking buildings. Beware the falling monuments in Courtyard, where wide-open spaces give you plenty of opportunities to gun down your enemies—unless they strike first. And due to fan demand, the popular Gears 1 map Fuel Depot makes its return.

Source: MN

Capcom Announces Okami For Wii And PS2 Only $20.00

Capcom has announced the lovely looking Okami is now only $20.00 at the Capcom store for either Wii or PS2.

Source: Capcom

PS2 Price Cut Confirmed But Not In UK

SCEA’s John Koller has confirmed the much rumoured PS2 price cut to $99.99 in the US and €99.99 in Europe:

“Today I’m excited to talk about another milestone in PlayStation 2’s lifespan. For the first time ever, PlayStation 2 will be offered at a price point under $100 (that’s $99.99 MSRP, to be exact), starting April 1st."

“In the gaming industry, the typical lifecycle for a console is around five years, but because we build each of our platforms for a large and diverse consumer base, we design our platforms differently."

Sony later confirmed the price drop would reach Europe at €99.99 but this would not stretch to the UK:

“The price of PS2 is not being reduced in the UK. For the rest of Europe it has been dropped to €99.99"

Source: Internal

BioWare: "Dragon Age Will Have More Impact Than A Shooter"

BioWare boss Greg Zeschuk has commented on their upcoming RPG title, Dragon Age: Origins stating the game will have more of an impact for the developer than an action shooter:

“It will stand out more so than a shooter will. One of our rules is that we should never do the same thing twice. We always do the opposite and differentiation to us is a strong thing, because there is really nothing like Dragon Age out there.”

BioWare co-head Ray Muzyka commented on how the game was a 'darker' proposition to other titles available on the market:

“We think this is a very exciting game that is very differentiated from anything on the market at this time. It’s great value for fans. It’s a dark heroic fantasy that is gritty and mature and has twists with consequences.”

Dragon Age: Origins is due for release in the later half of this year on PC and hopefully, consoles.

Source: VG247

Wii Games Must Sell A Million Copies To Make A Profit

Nintendo of America boss, Reggie Fils-Aime, has revealed in an article with the New York Times that Wii games must sell a million copies in order to make a profit. From the paper:

Reggie Fils-Aime, chief marketing officer for Nintendo of America, said publishers of games for its Wii console needed to sell one million units of a game to turn a profit. He said that was a lower threshold than for the other consoles. Only 16 out of 486 games for Nintendo Wii game machines have sold more than one million units as of March 1, according to NPD, which tracks the sales of consumer products. (Nine of the best sellers are made by Nintendo.)

Mr. Fils-Aime said Nintendo recognized the economics were changing when it developed the Wii. He said the company deliberately did not add high-definition capability to the Wii so games would be cheaper to make.

Source: New York Times

Kojima May Announce New Metal Gear Solid Title At E3

VG247 is fueling up the rumour train and we thought it made sense so here it is. During a visit to an Apple store in San Francisco last week, to promote Metal Gear Solid Touch on the iPhone, game creator Hideo Kojima may have dropped a hint that a Metal Gear Solid game reveal could be made at E3:

“I can’t really speak specifically right now. All I can say right now is that maybe we can do some announcement during E3.”

There is a new game coming from Kojima Productions, we're just waiting to see what it is. E3 takes place in June.

Source: VG247

Saints Row 2 Getting 3 New DLC Packs

Saints Row 2 producer, James Torbit, has revealed the game will be getting three downloadable content packs with the first arriving April 16th for Xbox 360 and PS3:

“Ultor Exposed is the first of three DLC packages that will be made available for Saints Row 2."

“I’ll get my brake lines cut if I reveal any details [on the other two], but rest assured that we’re hard at work building on the Saints Row 2 experience.”

That'll cheer up fans of the game.

Source: EG

New Battlefield 1943 Screenshots Show Bombing

EA has released some new screenshots for Battlefield 1943 which show some rather cool planes and bombing in the downloadable title coming to Xbox 360, PS3 and PC in the summer.

Source: EvilAvatar

Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Gets New Downloadable Content

London-based publisher System 3 today re-affirmed its PlayStation 3 downloadable content plans for racing simulation gamTre Ferrari Challenge: Trofeo Pirelli. The content will come in the form of five brand new Ferrari models and one new track, and is set to launch in May 2009. Each car also provides gamers with a brand new Trophy to race for. The DLC pack includes:

Cars
430 Scuderia
599 GTB Fiorano
612 Scaglietti Sessanta
330 P4
Enzo Ferrari

Tracks
Track 1: Nürburgring

Source: Internal

New Diablo III Screenshots Show User Interface

Shacknews has posted up some new Diablo III screenshots showing off the user interface for the first time so go have a peek. There's plenty to look at. Check 'em out above or at the source.

Source: Shacknews

Monday's WiiWare And Virtual Console Releases

Newly available on the Virtual Console is Super Punch Out!!, the classic boxing title that pits players against tough pugilist rivals such as Bald Bull. Speaking of baldness, the unique new WiiWare game Bonsai Barber invites players to take off the gloves and work their clippers instead, giving new hairstyles to a colourful cast of fruits and vegetables. Both are yours for the downloading via the Wii Shop Channel.

Nintendo adds new and classic games to the Wii Shop Channel at 9a.m. Pacific time every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets.

Source: Internal

New Screenshots Of Battle Scenes In Final Fantasy XIII

Japanese games site Famitsu has posted up some fresh new screenshots of battle scenes in Final Fantasy XIII, no doubt in preparation for the demo that will arrived with the Blu-ray release of Advent Children next month.

Source: Famitsu

D3Publisher Announces Coraline Game Based On Movie

Based on the new movie Coraline – the first-ever stop-motion animated feature to be made in 3-D – from Focus Features and LAIKA, the Coraline videogame is coming from D3Publisher (D3P).

The game will let players take on the role of the adventurous heroine Coraline and interact with the wondrous characters from the movie while navigating the scheming Other Mother’s web of deceit in a fantastical adventure through two distinct and interactive worlds. Coraline is due for release on the Wii, DS and PS2 in May 2009.

Source: Internal

Koller: "GT5 Platforms Release Depends On Timing"

John Koller, SCEA’s director of hardware marketing, has stated the multi-format platform release of Gran Turismo 5 will depend on timing. By multi-format he does of course mean between PS3 and PSP. Koller was responding to questions at GDC last week regarding GT5's release date:

“Ultimately, they are a developer who makes a lot of their own decisions. But we are looking at GT5 across all platforms, just to see what makes the most sense.”

"There is really nothing we can really say about it, other than it’s a franchise we would like to continue. So, other than that, we don’t really have any announcements regarding the game at this time.”

So no news at all then. Hopefully a release date will be announced at E3.

Source: VG247