For Nintendo fans who’ve felt like they’ve been left out in the cold for by the past Nintendo E3 press conferences, this year brings redemption in the form of 73 games. The 3DS’s lineup of games is jam packed with both first party and third party titles. KKid Icarus, Pilot Wings, PAper MArio, Animal Crossing, Star Fox 64, Resident Evil, the Sims, Kingdom Hearts, Metal Gear Solid, Ridge Racer and MANY more.

Hit the jump for the full list!

• Kid Icarus^™: Uprising, the long-awaited franchise follow-up to the NES^™ classic.
• Mario Kart^™, which shows off the potential of driving and tossing bananas in 3D.
• nintendogs^™ + cats, a new version of the best-selling nintendogs franchise that lets players interact even more with their virtual puppies – and kittens!
• PilotWings Resort^™, a flying simulation that lets players soar above Wuhu Island.
• Animal Crossing^™, a new installment of the charming community-building franchise.
• StarFox 64^™ 3D, a game that demonstrates the true distance and depth of outer space using Nintendo’s well-known franchise.
• Steel Diver^™, a new submarine-navigation game from Nintendo.
• Paper Mario^™, which brings paper-based 2D environments to life.

Nintendo 3DS also comes to market with the strongest third-party support of any video game system in Nintendo history. Games on display at the Nintendo booth at the E³ Expo include:

• DJ Hero^® 3D from Activision
• RESIDENT EVIL^® REVELATIONS from Capcom
• The Sims^™ 3 from Electronic Arts
• HIDEO KOJIMA’S METAL GEAR SOLID SNAKE EATER 3D “The Naked Sample” from Konami
• Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracles (name not final) from LEVEL-5
• RIDGE RACER^® (name not final) from Namco Bandai Games
• KINGDOM HEARTS franchise game from Square Enix
• DEAD OR ALIVE^® 3D (name not final) from Tecmo Koei Games
• SAMURAI WARRIORS^® 3D from Tecmo Koei Games
• Battle of Giants^™: Dinosaur Strike from Ubisoft
• Hollywood 61 (name not final) from Ubisoft
• cubic ninja
• Etrian Odyssey
• Shin Megami Tensei
• Shin Megami Tensei: Persona
• Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor
• SUPER STREET FIGHTER IV 3D Edition (name not final)
• FIFA Soccer
• Madden NFL
• The Sims 3
• Asphalt GT
• “Harmonix Music game”
• Bomberman franchise
• DECA SPORTS franchise
• KORORINPA franchise
• Baseball franchise – Konami
• Contra franchise
• Frogger franchise
• PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER franchise / WINNING ELEVEN franchise
• Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle (name not final)
• BloodRayne: The Shroud
• A Boy and His Blob
• Face Racers: Photo Finish
• Lion’s Pride: Adventures on the Serengeti
• Martha Stewart
• WonderWorld Amusement Park
• BOKUJYOUMONOGATARI 3D (name not final)
• Dragon Ball® franchise (name not final)
• Gundam® franchise (name not final)
• PAC-MANTM & GALAGATM (name not final)
• Super Robot franchise (name not final)
• Crash-City GP
• VS-robo
• Sonic (name not final)
• Super Monkey Ball (name not final)
• CODENAME: Chocobo Racing 3D
• DRAGON QUEST  franchise
• FINAL FANTASY franchise
• Carnival Games franchise
• DYNASTY WARRIORS (name not final)
• NINJA GAIDEN® (name not final)
• LOVELY LISA 3D
• NARUTO SHIPPUDEN ACTION
• de Blob 2
• Kung Fu Panda Kaboom of Doom
• Marvel Super Hero Squad Infinity Gauntlet
• The Penguins of Madagascar
• Puss N Boots
• Puss N Boots Saints Row: Drive-By
• Assassin’s Creed Lost Legacy
• Driver® Renegade
• Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon
• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Chaos Theory
• Batman franchise
• LEGO franchise

I don’t work in retail, but I do frequent to stores often during the holiday seasons. As a result, I have developed to hate Christmas Music with a fiery passion that makes me wish for a nuclear holocaust upon department stores across America. Needless to say, when I heard about a 8-bit tribute album to Christmas Music, I was less than thrilled to check it out. But after I listened to it, I can honestly report that it sounds so far removed from traditional Christmas Music that I wouldn’t know it was based off the same crap I’ve grown to hate if you didn’t tell me. It’s worth the download, and hey, might even make decorating the tree a bit more tolerable.

Download here

 Jeff Vrabel is doing it wrong.

One would expect that any list of greatest video game songs would have the usual standards: Nobu, Kondo, old NES Capcom games, etc. And why not? The music has proven to hold up really well outside of their own source material. However, Jeff Vrabel is a mavrick of sorts, and decided to completley toss aside all actual game music, and filled his list up with nothing but licen sed tracks from Rock Band, Tony Hawk, GTA, etc. Kinda defeats the purposeof the whole list, doesn’t it?

[source]

One of our MMO playing stints involved a couple moths of Final Fantasy XI, and God how we loved it. We moved on to World of Warcraft and occasionally had thoughts about going back to playing Final Fantasy XI as if it were our ex lover for that kind of nostalgic pleasure. You know what this is about Elizabeth! Come back, Come Back!! Come baaaaaaack! *Cries* Will this new content be enough to drag you back to your old lover Final Fantasy XI playing days, like it might us? Or, did you never go for that 2 timin’ gal Final Fantasy XI in the first place? Let us know in the comments!

PRESS RELEASE

FINAL FANTASY XI ANNOUNCEMENT OF THREE NEW EXPANSIONS

London (22nd November 2008) – Square Enix Ltd., the publisher of Square Enix® interactive entertainment products in Europe and other PAL territories, today announced their plans for three new expansion scenarios for FINAL FANTASY® XI.

Six years since its initial release, FINAL FANTASY XI currently has 500,000 active users playing in Europe, Japan, and North America.

Today, Square Enix confirmed a series of new scenarios to expand their online game world. Rather than being released as data discs, these expansions will be made available through an online digital distribution service. The expansions will be made available simultaneously worldwide for all FINAL FANTASY XI platforms.

The three new expansions have been created by Masato Kato, one of the minds behind the original FINAL FANTASY XI storyline, spanning from its very beginning through to the Rise of the Zilart® expansion.

[Profile of Mr. Masato Kato]
Served as director and scenario writer on titles including Chrono Trigger®, Radical Dreamers, Xenogears and Chrono Cross® for Square Co., Ltd. (now Square Enix Co., Ltd.). Oversaw the initial plot conception and event direction for the original FINAL FANTASY XI and Rise of the Zilart expansion. Since leaving Square in 2002, Mr. Kato has worked on a number of titles and continues to pursue his unique design vision.

*Available for online purchase only

A Crystalline Prophecy – Ode of Life Bestowing™
One day, a giant crystal appeared in the skies above Jeuno, triggering a series of unexplained happenings across the land. Now, adventurers will set forth to unravel the mysteries of this primordial crystal that holds the secret of Vana’diel®’s past.

A Moogle Kupo d’Etat – Evil in Small Dosesâ„¢
It all started with an innocent drop of rainwater and a rickety, ramshackle Mog House desperately in need of repairs. Little did anyone suspect that this was only the beginning of a harrowing nightmare unheard of in the annals of moogle-kind.

A Shantotto Ascension – The Legend Torn, Her Empire Born™
The eccentric Professor Shantotto returned to Windurst one day after a mysterious, unexplained absence, shocking her colleagues with behavior so outrageous it put her old self to shame! When she goes so far as to proclaim herself ruler of her own empire, adventurers set out to discover the truth behind her alarming shift in personality.

Online Launch Date: The first expansion is set to be released in Spring of 2009, with follow-ups scheduled to be made available every few months thereafter. At present, these are planned to be released chronologically in the order in which they are listed above.

Price: All titles TBA.

Scenarios can be purchased through the PlayOnline® Viewer. It will be possible to begin playing the scenarios immediately after they are purchased.

*Please note that in order to play the additional scenarios, users must have the PlayOnline Viewer, FINAL FANTASY XI, and Rise of the Zilart installed.

For more information, please visit:http://www.playonline.com/ff11eu/addon/

About FINAL FANTASY XI

FINAL FANTASY XI was originally released for the Japanese market in May 2002. In October 2003, the title was released in North America, and the European version then followed in September 2004.

FINAL FANTASY XI is the first MMORPG capable of simultaneous multiplayer action across three different platforms, allowing players worldwide to experience the adventure together on Windows®, PlayStation®2 (North America and Japan only), and Xbox 360®.

FINAL FANTASY XI players from all over the world can immerse themselves in a vast online gaming universe encompassing a community of 500,000 players, and some 1.7 million characters.

March 2007 saw the introduction of the French and German language versions of FINAL FANTASY XI, creating an influx of new players. As players can no doubt attest, this has contributed even further to the game’s vibrant and multi-cultural online community.

FINAL FANTASY XI is the first ever MMORPG released for Microsoft’s Xbox 360.

For more information about FINAL FANTASY XI, please visit www.playonline.com.

 

But there are a hell of a lot of games being sold at cheap prices on that day.

Luckily, blackfriday.info has details of all the offers from GameStop!

And here’s the “current” list after the jump.

All Used Games And Gaming Accessories – B2G1 Free

Animal Crossing City Folk Nintendo Wii Game With Wii Speak – $69.99

Armored Core For Answer Xbox 360 Game – $19.99

Assassins Creed Used Xbox 360 Game – $14.99

Battlefield Bad Company Xbox 360 Game – $49.99

Ben 10 PSP Game – $9.99

Boogie SuperStar Nintendo Wii Bundle – $59.99

Brain Age 2 Nintendo DS Game – $19.99

Brothers In Arms Hell’s Highway Xbox 360 Game – $19.99

Buzz Quiz TV PlayStation 3 Game With 4 Wireless Buzzers – $59.99

Call Of Duty 4 Game Of The Year Edition PlayStation 3 Game – $39.99

Call Of Duty 4 Xbox 360 Game – $39.99

ChronoTrigger Nintendo DS Game – $39.99

Club House Nintendo DS Game – $19.99

Cross Words Nintendo DS Game – $19.99

Crysis PC Game – $19.99

Dance Dance Revolution Hottest Party Nintendo Wii Bundle – $69.99

Dead Space Xbox 360 Game – $59.99

De Blob Nintendo Wii Game – $39.99

Disney Fairies Tinker Bell Nintendo DS Game – $29.99

Dora The Explorer Dora Saves The Snow Princess Nintendo Wii Game – $39.99

Dragon Ball Z Budokai PlayStation 2 Game – $14.99

Dragon Ball Z Shin Budokai Another Road Used PSP Game – $14.99

Dragon Ball Z Shin Budokai Used PSP Game – $14.99

Dragon Ball Z Trilogy PlayStation 2 Game – $19.99

Dynasty Warriors 4 PlayStation 3 Game – $29.99

Dynasty Warriors 6 Xbox 360 Game – $29.99

Fable II Xbox 360 Game – $59.99

Fallout 3 PlayStation 3 Game – $59.99

Fallout 3 Xbox 360 Game – $59.99

FarCry 2 Xbox 360 Game – $59.99

Game Boy Advance SP Preowned System – $49.99

Game Party Used Nintendo Wii Game – $17.99

Gears Of War 2 Xbox 360 Game – $59.99

Grand Theft Auto Used Xbox 360 Game – $29.99

Guild Wars Trilogy With Free Eye Of The North PC Game – $49.99

Guild Wars With Free Eye Of The North PC Game – $19.99

Guinness World Records The Videogame Nintendo Wii Game – $39.99

Guitar Hero Aerosmith PlayStation 2 Game – $19.99

Guitar Hero Aerosmith PlayStation 3 Game – $29.99

Guitar Hero Aerosmith Xbox 360 Game – $29.99

Guitar Hero II Used Xbox 360 Game – $19.99

Guitar Hero Nintendo Wii Game – $19.99

Guitar Hero On Tour Nintendo DS Game Bundle – $29.99

Halo 3 Used Xbox 360 Game – $39.99

Harvest Moon Tree Of Tranquility Nintedo Wii Game – $49.99

High School Music 3 Senior Year Dance Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

Kirby Super Star Ultra Nintedo DS Game – $29.99

Left 4 Dead Xbox 360 Game – $49.99

Legend Of Zelda Twilight Princess Used Nintendo Wii Game – $34.99

Lego Batman Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

Lego Batman PSP Game – $29.99

Limited Edition Ice Blue Nintendo DS With Brain Age Game And Carrying Case – $149.99

Limited Edition Mario Red Nintendo DS With Super Mario Brothers Game – $149.99

LittleBig Planet PlayStation 3 Game – $59.99

Little Mermaid Ariel’s Undersea Adventure Nintendo DS Game – $9.99

Littlest Pet Shop Winter Nintendo DS Game – $29.99

Luxor 3 Nintendo Wii Game – $14.99

Madden Cobalt Blue PSP Entertainment Pack With Free $30 Gift Card – $199.99

Madden NFL 08 Used PlayStation 3 Game – $9.99

Madden NFL 09 Nintedo Wii Game – $49.99

Mario Kart Nintendo Wii Game With Steering Wheel – $49.99

Mario Party DS Nintendo DS Game – $29.99

Mario Super Sluggers Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

Metal Gear Solid 4 PlayStation 3 Game With Bluetooth Headset – $89.99

Metroid Prime 3 Corruption Used Nintendo Wii Game – $29.99

Monopoly PlayStation 3 Game – $39.99

Monster Jam PlayStation 2 Game – $14.99

Monster Jam Xbox 360 Game – $14.99

MotorStorm Pacific Rift PlayStation 3 Game – $59.99

My Baby Girl Nintendo DS Game – $29.99

My Sims Kingdom Nintendo DS Game – $29.99

Mystery Case Files MillionHeir Nintedo DS Game – $19.99

NBA 09 The Inside PlayStation 3 Game – $59.99

NBA 2K8 Xbox 360 Game – $49.99

NBA 2K9 PlayStation 3 Game – $49.99

NBA Live 2009 All Play Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

NCAA Football 09 All Play Nintendo Wii Game – $29.99

Need For Speed Undercover Xbox 360 Game – $59.99

NERF N-Strike With Blaster Nintendo Wii Bundle – $59.99

Nintendo DS Littlest Pet Shop Clutch – $9.99

Nintendo DS Mario Holiday Accessory Bundle – $9.99

Nintendo DS Original Preowned System – $79.99

Nintendo DS Princess Peach Holiday Accessory Bundle – $9.99

Nintendo DS Starter Kit – $24.99

Nintendo DS System – $129.99

Nintendo GameCube Preowned System – $29.99

Nintendogs Dalmation Nintendo DS Game – $29.99

NIntendogs Miniature Dachshund Nintendo DS Game – $29.99

Nintendo Wii Action Pack – $14.99

Nintendo Wii Fit With Balance Board – $89.99

Nintendo Wii NERF Steering Wheel – $14.99

Nintendo Wii Nunchuk – $19.99

Nintendo Wii Remote – $39.99

Nintendo Wii Sports Pack – $14.99

Nintendo Wii System With Wii Sports Game – $249.99

Nintendo Wii Wireless Sensor Bar – $14.99

Overloard PlayStation 3 Game – $24.99

Personal Trainer Cooking Nintedo DS Game – $19.99

PlayStation 2 Preowned System – $49.99

PlayStation 2 System With Free Game And Free $30 Gift Card – $129.99

PlayStation 3 80GB System – $399.99

PlayStation 3 Charge & Command – $14.99

PlayStation 3 Cordless Precision Controller – $19.99

PlayStation 3 Eye Camera – $39.99

PlayStation 3 Wireless Guitar Hero Controller – $44.99

PlayStation 3 Wireless Keypad – $49.99

Pokemon Ranger Shadows of Almia Nintendo DS Game – $29.99

Pony Friends Mini Breeds Edition Nintendo DS Game – $19.99

PSP 4GB Memory Stick – $24.99

PSP UMD Movies – $3.99

Rainbox Six Vegas 2 Xbox 360 – Free

Ratchet & Clank PSP Entertainment Pack – $199.99

Resident Evil 4 Nintendo Wii Game – $19.99

Resistance 2 PlayStation 3 Game – $59.99

Rock Band Track Pack Volume 2 For Xbox 360 With Any $50 Rock Band Purchase – $0.99

Rock University Presents The Naked Brothers Band The Game Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

Samba De Amigo Nintendo Wii Game – $19.99

Sid Meier’s Civilization Nintendo DS Game – $19.99

Sid Meier’s Civilization PlayStation 3 Game – $49.99

Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution Xbox 360 Game – $49.99

SimCity Creator Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

SingStar Country PlayStation 2 Game – $29.99

Six Flags Fun Park Nintendo DS Game – $34.99

SOCOM Confrontation PlayStation 3 Game With Headset – $59.99

Sonic Chronicles Dark Brotherhood Nintendo DS Game – $34.99

Sonic Unleashed Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

Spider-Man Web Of Shadows Xbox 360 Game – $39.99

Star Wars Clone Wars Nintendo Wii Game With Free Sticker Book – $49.99

Super Mario Galaxy Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

Super Smash Brothers Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

Tiger Woods 09 NIntendo Wii Game – $49.99

Tomb Raider Xbox 360 Game With Free Art Book – $59.99

Too Human Xbox 360 Game – $59.99

TouchMaster Nintendo DS Game Bundle – $34.99

Wario Land Shake It Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

Wii Dual Guitar Hero Bundle – $129.99

Wii Music Nintendo Wii Game – $49.99

Wii Play Nintendo Wii Game Wii Remote – $49.99

World Of Warcraft Battle Chest PC Game – $19.99

World Of Warcraft PC Game – $9.99

World Of Warcraft Wrath Of The Lich King Expansion Pack PC Game – $39.99

WWE Smackdown Vs Raw 2007 Used PlayStation 2 Game – $9.99

Xbox 360 Arcade Holiday Bundle With Sega Superstars Tennis – $199.99

Xbox 360 Elite Holiday Bundle WIth Lego Indiana Jones and Kung Fu Panda – $399.99

Xbox 360 Power Kit – $21.99

Xbox 360 Preowned System – $149.99

Xbox 360 Pro Holiday Bundle With Lego Indiana Jones and Kung Fu Panda – $299.99

Xbox 360 Wireless Guitar Hero Controller – $44.99

Xbox Preowned System – $39.99

Yoshi Island DS Nintendo DS Game – $29.99

You’re In The Movies With Camera Xbox 360 Game Bundle – $69.99

Major Nelson posted this on his site and I thought I’d share it.

——————————————————

The New Xbox Experience is in the process of being deployed to all Xbox LIVE members, but it will take a few hours for everyone to get the prompt to update to NXE….be patient! In the meantime I thought I would give my Top 10 list of things to do with NXE when you get it later today:

1) Create (or Customize) your Avatar – You can spend as much (or as little) time as you want in the Avatar Editor to personalize your little guy/girl

Bonus: When you are done with #1, be sure to take a Gamer Picture of your Avatar. In the Avatar editor, choose Gamer Picture. You can use the controls to move your avatar around, zoom in and out or even change the background color (press Y)

2) Explore the all new dashboard. (hint: use the trigger and bumpers to quickly scroll up and down or left and right)

3) PAR-TAY! Check out Xbox LIVE Parties and chat with up to seven of your friends. Go to the Friends channel…choose a friend who is online and press Y to get the party started. You can also hit the Xbox 360 Guide button > Party >Start a Party. Once you do that, send off invites to your party (since one does not make a very good party…does it?)

4) Themes. While any themes you work will NXE, check out some of the new themes via My Xbox and select your profile (second slot) and then change theme. Xbox 360, Spectrum, Day and Night are new themes that available as part of your NXE upgrade…check them out.

5) Marketplace on Xbox.com. This new feature lets you search, browse, and purchase games and videos while you are away from your console. You can also perform account management functions like changing your billing information, viewing your purchase history, and downloading items you already own.

6) Netflix – Xbox LIVE Gold Member and you have Netflix? If you are in the US you can stream thousands of videos (some in HD) directly from Netflix to your Xbox 360. Not a member? Sign up for a free trial at Xbox.com/netflix

7) Install to / Play from Hard Drive. With the game in the tray, return to your dashboard. (pressing the guide button then Y works as always) then go to My Xbox. From here press Y, which will bring up a new menu which will allow, among other things the ability to install a game to your hard drive.
Hint: You can still use the Xbox 360 guide while installing a game to keep in touch with your friends or start a Party.

Bonus: Before you do #7, be sure to set up what happens when you turn on your Xbox 360.  My Xbox->System Settings>Console settings. Then choose Start up to to choose Disc, Xbox Dashboard or Windows Media Center. Once you are done there…check the option right below it: Autostart. This tell your Xbox 360 what to do when you insert a game. The choices are enable or disable. I have mine set to disable so I can easily use install to hard drive.
Delete Zero Gamerscore games. You can remove any games from your games played list that you have earned no achievements or gamerscore. Press the Xbox 360– guide button, navigate left to the games section and choose Achievements. From here choose the game with zero gamerscore you want to remove and press X (Delete Game History.)

9) Press the Xbox 360 button on your controller to see the all new Guide. The team has added more functionality than the old guide, while making it more responsive. It’s a quick way to check your messages, see who is online or start a party.

10) Take a look at Community Games in the Games Marketplace. For the first time in the history of console gaming, thousands of games developed by the creative community will be available to the public.

For those that have the new Xbox Experience, what are your favorite new feature(s)?

 

If you’ve been wondering how Animal Crossing: City Folk compares to the original Animal Crossing on the Game Cube in terms of graphics, the video above shows that although there is a difference, it definitely isn’t something to write home to mom about. Does this turn anyone off the game, or are you still in it for the feng shui and home decor?

Download it here, find it here on iTunes, or listen to it by using the player on the bottom of the post.

Show notes:

Keflings: http://www.joystiq.com/2008/11/06/a-kingdom-for-keflings-first-xbox-avatar-game-on-nov-19-with-n/

DS Over Clocker: http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/283718.html

Quantum of Solace Wii video: http://www.infendo.com/first-person-shooter/quantum-of-solace-looks-good-due-next-week/

Obama in Little Big Planet: http://www.maxconsole.net/?mode=news&newsid=33443

Sony’s Ultrasound errr, Ultrasonic Controller: http://www.joystiq.com/2008/11/04/sony-patents-ultrasonic-controller/

Blu-Ray and PS3 vending machine: http://www.joystiq.com/2008/11/03/uk-getting-ps3-game-blu-ray-movie-vending-machines/