According to UK site, DigitalSpy, the PSP version of 'Gran Turismo' is likely taking a back seat to the PS3 version of 'GT' in 2008.

The mega-delayed portable game is becoming the 'Duke Nukem' of the PSP. It was originally promised in 2005 and now looks like a 2009 release.

Read the sad news here.

OK. I'm pretty much convinced that 'Grand Theft Auto IV' is going to be an amazing game when it finally gets released on April 29th.

When the first trailer hit last year (the one with the amazing roller coaster drive-by scene), I was a little skeptical. I just kept thinking, "there is no way the game is gonna look this good."

As each additional trailer was released, I lost the awe of original clip... right up to the release most recent trailer, which has worried me the most.

Is it just me, or has the game really been scaled-back in the looks department? I just don't think the same level of graphic next-gen-ness, that we saw last year, is in this latest trailer.

It's the TV marketing campaign for 'GTA IV' (and GameStop) that starting to reverse my trepidation. I love the style of ads and the ridiculously varied set pieces that are shown in the 60 second spots.

Here it is:

But something over the weekend pushed me into the same giddiness that I felt last year when I saw the first footage from the game: an interview with someone that's already finished the game on gamesradar.com. This is enough to make me wish April 29th was here now.

I'm easy, huh? But let's see how this goes...

Here's my column in the paper today, looking at whether a slow economy might cool casual gamers' interest in the Wii.

I also explain why I think the latest rumors of a Blu-ray equipped Xbox 360 are hogwash.

If you're at all a fan of roleplaying games and own a PSP, then Crisis Core should be on your short list.

The fact that it's a prequel to FFVII is just icing on the cake.

I do think a full FFVII remake is probably inevitable, and I'd bet the only reason Square Enix hasn't given us one yet is because it wants to milk us for all the prequels, sequels and spin-offs that it can before finally putting FFVII to bed for good.

But Crisis Core really is a great game, shameless franchise whoring or not.

Here's a video from Square Enix that I've posted that shows how the real time combat system works.

It's like it's vibrating at me through the packaging!

You can get yours in a couple days for the outrageous price of $54.99, or buy the the Metal Gear Solid 4 limited edition PS3 console with DS3 controller in June for $499.

Either way, this puppy is gonna cost ya'.

UPDATE: Brian Crecente stole my headline! Just check the time stamp!

Yesterday (March 30th), I was headed into Best Buy to waste a little time; and I was greeted at the front door by a line of nearly 300 people.

Apparently it was "Wii for Women" day at the store. I haven't heard of this concept. I thought Wii was for everyone. But, on March 30th, Wii was for women.

Here's the flyer for the event.

So what was the draw? Besides the event "focusing on women and... Wii," there also seemed to be a few dozen Wii's for sale beginning at 1:00 PM... which explains the large number of men in the "Wii for Women" line outside the store. Oh, and there were also prizes including spa packages and GPS units.

This brings up numerous questions in my mind, such as:

• When the #$%&! will Nintendo make enough Wii's for everyone? C'mon, it has been nearly a year and a half.
• Why do women LOVE Garmin GPS units so much (I know this from personal experience)?
• When is "Wii for Men" day?
• Why were Hawaii and Alaska excluded from this event... would they both not benefit from Wii, women, GPS's and spas?

Just wondering.

DOUG UPDATE: I guess I should have read Victor's article Saturday... that would have given me a clue!

MTV.com has a brief interview with one of the cheaters that was busted in Microsoft's new cheat-tastic crackdown.

It's a pretty pitiful confession and I have no sympathy for him, other cheaters, pirates or haxors. Especially haxors.

Read the sob story here.

Well, not really, but I wrote a follow-up column on the Wii shortage, and I highlighted some comments from an interview I did with game industry analyst Michael Pachter where he argued that the Wii shortage in the U.S. is due to the weak dollar and strong Euro.

Basically, Nintendo is shipping extra Wiis to Europe, because the strong Euro results in a bigger profit.

So at the bottom of the column, I made a joke about how you can blame the French for the Wii shortage.

Well, I got about half a dozen e-mails about that comment, including two from readers in Holland and one from a guy whose cousin in France sent him a copy of the column, and another from a reader in Canada, whose hackles were all in full OUTRAGE mode about my insult.

Hey, I'm just happy I've got an international fan club (well, a hate club, anyway).

UPDATE: Woot! I earned a Kotaku post! Where's the love for punchbutton, though?

This is good for a chuckle.

Crave, part of CNET UK, put together a list of the 30 dumbest video game titles ever.

Some had me crying laughing; and I swear I own a few of these.

Check 'em out here.

A few local (D/FW area) music stores are hosting yet another opportunity to show you 'Guitar Hero' skills and win some nifty prizes.

Being good at 'GH' could become a career for some peeps!!

Here are the dates, times and locations for the (take a breath) Camp Jam and NAMM Present the “Ready-Set-ROCK! Tour,” a Free, Interactive Event Featuring Music Clinic with Rock Legend Jeff Carlisi, NAMM's Wanna Play Guitar? Program Featuring Guitar Hero™ III - Legends of Rock and Rock Solo Contest

Saturday the 29th:
• 3:00 p.m. at Murphy Music located at 940 Airport Fwy Irving

Sunday the 30th:
• 12:00 p.m. at Sky Guitars located at 531 N. Elm St. in Denton
• 3:00 p.m. at Guitar Center located at 2333 North Central Expressway #101 in Plano

I posted the press release with more info after the jump...

Continue reading "Another 'Guitar Hero' contest... this weekend!" »