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Get your hands on a PS3... easy

You probably won't be able to buy one this November, but it shouldn't be too hard to get some time with a PlayStation 3 - behind glass, anyway. Sony has announced plans to install 15,000 playable demo kiosks of PS3 at retail locations in the US and Canada in time for the system's launch - five times what the company offered for PS2, our sister siteNext Generation reports. It should be pretty simple to figure out if the thing's worth $600 when you see it in person, won't it?

Not getting it

As usual, whenever politics and games collide, all it really proves is that politicians haven't a clue about how anything really works.Next Gen reportsthat Republican Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas has sponsored a bill that will require the game rating agency, ESRB, to play through the entirety of a game before rating it.

You see, right now companies provide tapes of any potentially objectionable content - under the threat of huge fines for hiding anything, bear in mind. Then the ESRB gets regular people, psychologists, whoever - not necessarily gamers - to watch and rate it.

But now an ignorant headline-grabbing politician wants to change things; it's logical on the face of it, but misguided when you consider the facts. Of course, that's never stopped politicians... we're inching ever-closer to governmental control of game ratings, and that just plain sucks. While you're waiting to see how this all shakes out, send a six year old to buy the uncut Silent Hill film on DVD and see if he has any problems.

Japan wants Wii

No shock here: in the country where the DS is by far the best-selling system and home to the best-selling games, interest in the Wii has spiked. Ever since the price and new game info hit a couple of weeks ago, excitement has been building. According to Amazon.co.jp, viaNext Gen, fingers have been clicking ever more frequently on the "show me more" buttons on the website, with the system pulling far ahead of the PS3 (with which it had been neck-and-neck till now.) It will be interesting to see ifTGS, the PS3's big showcase, will help it catch up.

Wolf walls

Whether or not you're playing Okami, you can't resistlooking at it. And that's why this collection ofdownloadable desktop wallpapermakes so much sense. The game is one of the most beautiful ever released. We also think it's one of the most fun - just check out ourreview. If imagery like this doesn't get your juices flowing, well... you may be beyond our help.

You know him, you hate him

Talentless sack of shit Uwe Boll challenged reviewers who hate his movies (i.e. all of them, as he directed such idiocy as Alone in the Dark and Bloodrayne) to boxing matches. That's old news. But footage of the matches has hit the web, now, and you can see them for yourself. AsCNN reports, this whole charade has more or less shown Boll to be as big a bully and a liar as he is completely worthless behind a camera. Just witness hisfightversus Something Awful's Lowtax. Honestly, we don't have much sympathy for anyone who was dumb enough to get into a boxing ring with this guy (who was at least a semi-professional boxer before deciding to destroy things gamers love) in the first place, but the dude fights dirty. To getLowtax's side of the story- which we're too busy to read right now but are positive that it's worth the time anyway - just hitSA. Hit it and pray that these boxing wins haven't encouraged the miserable German auteur to expand his film career.

Post-its are so 20th century

Nintendo Japan has been posting up a series of interviews between company president Satoru Iwata and the designers behind the Wii. Sounds boring, but it's been a semi-constant source of new info about the console - semi-constant because we have to wait for random sites to translate the damn things. This time, it's Aussie-Nintendo that bringsnewsof the console's cool-sounding Message Board function. That's not message board as in forum but more as in bulletin board - like you'd pin notes on for your family, which is the basic concept. It'll track how long you've played games and let you update it with messages from your cell phone - inviting people to play games as well. For the full deets head over toAussie-Nintendo.

New screens

(360)
Halo 2 (PC)
Guitar Hero II (360)
Gears of War (360)
Sonic and the Secret Rings (Wii)
Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin (DS)
Just Cause (PC,PS2)
ATV Offroad Fury 4 (PS2)
ATV Offroad Fury Pro (PSP)
3D Ultra MiniGolf Adventures (360)
Sam & Max (PC)
Assault Heroes (360)
Banjo-Kazooie(360)
Warhammer: Mark of Chaos (PC)
Neverwinter Nights 2 (PC)
Crossfire (PC,360)

Video

Halo Wars (360)
Banjo-Kazooie (360)
Gangs of London (PSP)
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (PSP)
Warhammer: Mark of Chaos (PC)
Age of Empires III: Warchiefs (PC)
Need for Speed Carbon (GC, PC, PS2, PS3, Wii, Xbox, 360)
Splinter Cell Double Agent (GC,PC,PS2,PS3,Wii,Xbox,360)

September 27, 2006