Now with blocky LEGO goodness

With the recent release of LEGO Rock Band, Harmonix introduces some new methods of keeping your children's virgin ears pure.  Now while searching for downloadable content for LEGO Rock Band, songs considered "inappropriate" will not appear at all in the Music Store.

A rather small update this time as it is domineered by the debut of The White Stripes in the Rock Band series.  Their songs each come from three different albums: "White Blood Cells", "Elephant", and "Icky Thump".  If you'd like an English flair with your songs, rock group Kasabian adds a headbanger to their catalog while The Damned debut with some punk rock.

Here are the five tunes that will be available for download.  Those colored in red will not be available in LEGO Rock Band:

• The Damned - "Smash It Up (Part II)"
• Kasabian - "Club Foot"
• The White Stripes - "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground"
• The White Stripes - "Girl, You Have No Faith in Medicine"
• The White Stripes - "Icky Thump"
  

"The White Stripes Pack 01" lets you bundle their three songs for 440 Microsoft Points, or $5.49 / £2.49 / €3.99 from the PlayStation Store.  All individual downloads go for 160 MS Points, $1.99 / £.99 / €1.49 from the PlayStation Store, or 200 Nintendo Points from the Wii.

Rock Band Unplugged fans continue on from their milestone 55 songs as No Doubt and Dropkick Murphys join the Unplugged catalog:

• Dropkick Murphys - "I'm Shipping Up to Boston"
• No Doubt - "Excuse Me Mr."

Downloads cost $1.99, or £.99 / €1.49 for European players.

Xbox 360 and Wii players get their content November 10 while PlayStation 3 and PSP owners get theirs on November 12.

Raw footage for Larian's upcoming PC and Xbox 360 RPG

Video game trailers, something like demos, can be at times not accurate to how a game plays and feels. That's not the case with this Divinity II: Ego Draconis compilation we've put together though, made up of five gameplay segments recorded by developer Larian Studios.

Divinity II, if you're still in the dark, is a PC and Xbox 360 RPG set for release this winter. The game is a sequel to the highly acclaimed isometric RPG Divine Divinity (just re-released), developed by the same studio, albeit with a different writer (Larian has stated they are quite confident in the result, so don't worry your pretty little heads, Divinity fans).

The new installment takes the series into a third person perspective, a la Elder Scrolls, Gothic, etc., and adds in the ability to read minds (with an experience penalty), as well as transform into a dragon roughly halfway through the plot.

Gamers should note the mind reading system appears to work quite well and be a genuinely innovative feature: you lose experience every time you perform it, however this can be alleviated somewhat by increasing your mind reading skill; replay value can be increased highly based on who you choose to read or not read. We're assuming a player that spends a lot of his time doing so will acquire experience through otherwise unattainable quests, so in the end it should all balance out.

As for the dragon transformation, we were particularly concerned about this -- if you're spending half your time levelling up, it wouldn't be very satisfying to spend the other half flying around as a dragon, would it? As you can see from the footage, though, it turns out your dragon self gets his own armor and abilities; whether or not experience is shared between your human and dragon character is not known, however. Flying and battling as a dragon looks very much like what you'd expect in the beloved Panzer Dragoon series albeit with RPG elements, which is quite a honour to hold, though we're still not convinced this will mesh well with the human gameplay.

In any case, judge for yourself with with video below. Note the resolution is fairly low, so certainly expect higher quality graphics at release.

Divinity II: Ego Draconis is set to launch January 5; look out for our review, and in the meantime, check out the official site for background and neat items like podcasts.

President Reggie Fils-Aime claims early victory over MW2 on one platform

Well, big shots in the industry tend to talk crap to each other indirectly, mostly using the media.  In most situations, we only hear about the slap fighting between Sony and Microsoft, but Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Aime wants in on the action.

Seems Fils-Aime was recently quoted during a video interview saying that New Super Mario Bros.Wii will outsell Modern Warfare 2 on one system by January 2010.  "On a single platform...absolutely," said Fils-Aime. "I say that unequivocally." 

Now fanboys are getting all flustered over the statement, claiming the man's full of himself -- among other things.  But Reggie said one platform, not all; with the way Modern Warfare 2 currently looks for PC, it's entirely possible NSMB Wii might outsell MW2 PC before January.

"It's going to be close," said Fils-Aime, expressing his own anticipation for NSMB. "Of course I'll play it...I play all the content out there."

There's no doubt NSMB Wii will do well.  Famed analyst Michael Pachter has already predicted the sales will "shock" most of the industry and community, while GameStop executive Tony Bartel noted it should be a top-seller this holiday.
 

Guitar Hero 5 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 help give the company a major boost

In spite of a "challenging overall software market", Activision Blizzard still manages to beat projections to achieve profitability and a slight growth to its U.S. marketshare for its third fiscal quarter ending September 30th.

The company's revenues during the third quarter slid slightly year-on-year to $703 million USD, but beat its own projection of $680 million USD.  Activision Blizzard has also managed to score profit of $15 million USD for the third quarter, a huge improvement from the $108 million USD quarterly loss posted last year.  Spurred by such results, Activision believes it remains on track for revenue of $4.05 billion USD by the end of the 2009 calendar year.

CEO Bobby Kotick attributes this turnaround in profit to the performance of its Guitar Hero, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, and Call of Duty franchises.  Blizzard's World of Warcraft also managed to deliver the goods during the third quarter.

Activision is certainly not unaware of the concerns raised elsewhere regarding the sustainability of its music game business, especially after the lukewarm reception to DJ Hero at launch.  Sales for music peripheral bundles in North America are also stabilizing, as fans who already have the relevant instrument controllers increasingly opt for software-only packages.  CFO Thomas Tippl not only believes things will be just fine, but in fact predicts even better holiday season sales for its lineup of music games than last year.  The company continues to count on an engaged fanbase on the PS3 and Xbox 360 to help carry its music games through.

Master of Magnetism trailer and screens

Okay, it's not like no one saw this coming: Magneto has been revealed for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2.  Granted the list was leaked some time ago, but at least now we've got a trailer and some screenshots of the Master of Magnetism in action.

The character model looks a bit odd in combination with his bucket helmet (a bit purple and red gorilla) but at least we've still got the classic costume.  For the most part, Magneto just floats around in the trailer, lifting things in the air around him with the same flare as Jean Grey.  Could have similar attacks, with the exception of fire.

As mentioned before, the DLC is out today and will cost gamers 800 Microsoft Points or $9.99 on PSN.  Juggernaut is also available, sold separately for 160 MS Points or $1.99 USD.  In addition to the new characters, the DLC introduces new challenge missions and boss encounters, as well as new upgrades for your superhuman team.  Now fork over the money -- Activision is waiting.

PS3 players can get started this month, PC gamers in December

Shooter fans hankering for some hands-on time with DICE's upcoming single and multiplayer game Battefield: Bad Company 2, you'll be able to get in on the action with a multiplayer beta in a couple weeks, provided you have a PS3. PC owners will have to wait until December, while Xbox 360 owners will have to wait for the demo (set for each platform) come early next year.

So, how do you get a key? A limited amount will be sent out to Best Buy and GameStop outlets for North Americans. Pre-ordering will nab you one, if you make it in time -- the PS3 beta begins November 19 (PC doesn't have an exact date at the moment). For Europe and Asia, nothing has been announced yet, but check the Battlefield blog (link below) in the coming weeks for an announcement.

As for what you can expect: 24-player battles on the Arica Harbor map in one of the four multiplayer modes, called Rush. Arica should have a healthy balance of vehicle and infantry combat between the American assault unit and Russian army base, all spread out between a desert town and an industrial area.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 will be released March 2 and 5 in NA and Europe, respectively, on all platforms.

Madden NFL 2010 is the best-selling North American-produced title, and makes the global list

Industry sales trackers NPD Group, GfK Chart-Track and Enterbrain collaborate once more to deliver their latest Top Global Markets report covering software sales across three major regions; North America, the United Kingdom, and Japan. According to their findings, all software markets suffered a 6 percent decline in unit sales combined for the three month period from July to September.

Of the three global markets, Japan proved to be the healthiest thanks to a 15 percent year-on-year increase in third quarter software unit sales. Year-to-date sales however dropped around 9 percent compared to the first three quarters of 2008.

North America and the UK suffered year-on-year declines in both quarterly and year-to-date software unit sales. The UK in particular faced the greatest drops, with third quarter sales down 19 percent and year-to-date sales declining 13 percent.

While North America and the UK still enjoyed great software unit sales from high profile releases like Madden NFL 2010 and Halo 3: ODST, it was Japan that produced the single best-selling title across all three regions, Dragon Quest IX. The DS RPG racked up lifetime sales of just under 4 million units since launch at the start of the calendar quarter, further underlining the series' popularity in Japan.

Art book, DVD, in-game goodies, and more...

BioWare and EA have finally released details for the Mass Effect 2 Collectors' Edition perks.  Looks like the pricier version will come with both physical collectibles and in-game gear.

To start, the ME2 CE will be shipped in a special case (assuming tin) and include Art of Mass Effect 2 in hardcover, the first issue of Mass Effect Redemption (comic), and a bonus making-of DVD.  There aren't any specific details announced for the in-game weapons and armor, but we do have an illustration of it -- and it looks badass.  The whole package will cost ten bucks more at $69.99 USD.

Oh, and don't forget your retail pre-order bonuses, announced last month and valid worldwide.  Just in case you'd like a spare suit of armor and all.

Shadowrun: The Awakening, a game that never happened

Why does it seem sometimes that games that should have been axed, ended up being released, while promising projects, end up getting thrown in the can? That might have been the case with the now-deceased FASA Studios.

There last project, Shadowrun, a multiplayer FPS set in the long-running cyberpunk-fantasy IP, did not do as well as the company hoped -- or Microsoft, who bought out FASA in 1999. The commercial failure of the game meant the death of the dev studio. But as it turns out, the FPS that came to be Shadowrun was started after an earlier aborted attempt at a single-player possibly-RPG Shadowrun game, called Shadowrun: The Awakening (for the PC and Xbox 360).

Some screenshots and early video of Shadowrun: The Awakening popped up today, on the Net-Inters. The graphics look pretty good, considering this 2007, and the game was in an early state. 

Shadowrun: The Awakening was supposed to be a full single player game, and we can hypothesize that the entire Shadowrun game that was published might have just been the MP component of the more ambitious earlier project. Hearing about this late cancellation and complete change of plan for the game makes a lot of sense -- many people who played Shadowrun commented on how little content it seemed to have for a full game, as it was only MP, only a handful of maps, and not too many models (many reviewers knocked the game for not even having character ladder-climbing animations).

Furthermore, with Shadowrun's strong RPG legacy, in both early video games and of course the pen-and-paper source material, many fans were disgruntled to hear that the last Shadowrun game wasn't going to be a RPG at all. We would like to think that if Shadowrun: The Awakening was a single-player RPG it would have resonated much more with gamers than did the last (and maybe final) game.

If you are a fan of the Shadowrun world you will be happy to hear that there is a chance that a new Shadowrun game will be made some day though. FASA founder Weisman recently re-licensed his bought-out rights (that Microsoft now owns) to the Shadowrun I.P. Perhaps if Weisman's Smith & Tinker venture is a success, which is now finishing up a Mechwarrior game, maybe there will be a chance for something like Shadowrun: The Awakening to be made again. 

Featuring the explosions, helicopters, and Eminem

'Cause sometimes you feel tired, feel weak,
and when you feel weak, you feel like you wanna just give up.
But you gotta search within you, you gotta find that inner strength
and just pull that shit out of you and get that motivation to not give up
and not be a quitter, no matter how bad you wanna just fall flat on your face and collapse.

Who wants more Modern Warfare 2, eh?  Just about everyone, it seems (who doesn't game on PC), and gamers are already planning to ditch work / school / church following November 10. 

As noted earlier today, the launch trailer debuted on Spike TV tonight.  If you don't have cable or TV, or just avoid television as I do, we've got the launch trailer right here.

We're seeing more scenes of the suburbs turned into war zones, and even a sequence in... space?  So anyway, that's Eminem's "Till I Collapse" in the background, and the trailer has drawn some old fans out of the woodworks.  Just browse the song on YouTube, and you'll find a buncha' MW2-related comments.

No doubt this game will be topping the charts for weeks to come following its release -- well, for consoles at least.

President: "American characters tend to be much more shallow..."

We've got the third Dark Void developer diary from Capcom and developer Airtight games.  The third episode discusses Will, the hero of Dark Void, and the importance of character depth in video games.

Of course, the developers gush over Capcom's wide cast of video game leads, like Ryu and Mega Man, while taking numerous jabs at stereotypical Western games.  Airtight president Jim Deal notes, "I think the American characters tend to be much more shallow.  You know, a big guy who runs out and shoots everything."

He and his team then go on to say that they were striving to emulate Japanese games in creating a very capable but "not somebody who just looked like an impossible caricature."

Now Deal, sir, we think Dark Void looks fantastic, and it was a real pleasure to play at E3 this year, but that was totally uncalled for.  I mean, those giant men with guns are as iconic to Western gaming as girly men with giant swords (and underage female leads) are to Japanese games! 

On top of that, senior producer Morgan Gray seems to imply in a very matter-of-fact manner that "blank slate" characters, commonly found in Western story-driven games, are somehow inferior to actual characters, with established personalities and background stories of their own.  Seriously, isn't it possible to promote games without insulting the competition?  We're gamers, not haters...

So anyway, Will is a pilot who gets stuck in the Void, a pocket universe within the Bermuda Triangle.  According to art director Matt Brunner, the guy might come off as a jerk to start, though that's pretty understandable considering his problems: alone and lost in another dimension, surrounded by hostile robots.  Poor Will; maybe if he'd be less douchey if he were a big dude who runs out and shoots everything.  Then again, the protagonists of Silent Hill are pretty normal yet capable people, and they seem to take the whole "trapped in another dimension" problem very well!

First episode "Weapons & Combinations"

Previously, SEGA and Platinum Games kicked off their episodic developer diaries with "Revelations," which went over the idea of fighting the forces of good as a witch.

This week, they start their little gameplay video series, and we've got episode one, "Weapons & Combinations."  With that same sexy British narrator returning to talk us through the video, we check out some of Bayonetta's kick-ass moves.  Well, what else would you expect from a witch who wears guns on her feet?  It seems our classy beauty never leaves home with less than four guns in hand (and feet).

Not that she relies on them.  She's strong enough to send enemies flying with a well-placed kick.  Still, she's got blades and firepower at her disposal, so there's little chance of enemies getting too close for comfort.  Seriously, look at those legs.

“[We] don’t think any developer should not have control of how their game is presented or marketed or communicated"

At the beginning of the week we'd touched on Remedy Entertainment's relationship with the publisher for its game Alan Wake: Microsoft. According to the developer, there's quite a bit of leniency for them in deciding exactly how their game is presented to the media, which was surprising and pleasing to hear.

Developer Infinity Ward (Modern Warfare) is apparently in on this approach, too; designer Robert Bowling says it's "essential" creators take matters into their own hands:

“I don’t think any developer should not have control of how their game is presented or marketed or communicated,” he said, “and they should take control of that a lot, lot more. It is why I started my Twitter account in the first place. I have direct line to our audience and the press."

Bowling doesn't stop there though, going so far as to say one of the benefits of this directness is being able to "call bullshit on the really lame shit", giving an example with IW's publisher Activision:

“Recently we launched our new Infinity Ward website, and we were going to send a mass newsletter out to everybody. And it was suggested that we should send in the newsletter a note to pre-order the strategy guide for Modern Warfare 2. And I said no.

Yeah it would probably sell a few more strategy guides, but we don’t use our newsletter to market to our gamers. We will only e-mail our gamers if it is worth their while. So if a new trailer comes out, they might want to know and we’ll send them that. If they want the strategy guide, it is an awesome guide, and they’ll buy it because they want it. Not because we’re advertising it to them. So we draw lines.”

In another part to the interview, Bowling notes IW rejected Activision's proposal for what he calls a ridiculously high budget for the upcoming shooter, saying they "didn't need that" and "we would only put stuff in the game that is right for the game, and not because we can.”

Though drawing much ire from PC gamers for dropping dedicated server support on Modern Warfare 2, the developer has definitely retained some respect with us following these comments.

Open to PC users and Xbox Live Gold members

Were you miffed at those silly people who went out and pre-ordered Left 4 Dead 2 just to brag about getting early access?  Think "patience is a virtue" is just for squares?  For the patient or lazy, your day has come, as the Left 4 Dead 2 demo has finally been released to all Steam users and Xbox LIVE Gold subscribers.  Xbox LIVE Silver members can download the demo next week, on November 10.

The L4D2 demo features two parts from "The Parish" campaign, set in the urban New Orleans French Quarter. Here you can play with three other friends over the internet or have a co-op buddy next to you if you're using an Xbox 360 to mow down the Infected hordes, including the three new Special Infected and the Uncommon Common Infected.

To aid you on your way, you can try out new melee weapons such as chainsaws, frying pans, axes, baseball bats, and others.  A new set of guns and items will also be available to deal with the Infected hordes and help support teammates to increase their chances of survival.

Those who have yet to experience Left 4 Dead will also be able to witness the AI Director at work, which will dynamically control the game with your performance.  Weapons, enemies, objects, and pathways will change depending on how you're playing.  Each game session will never be played the same way.

The Left 4 Dead 2 demo clocks in at over 2GB for Xbox 360 players and just over 3.6GB for Steam players so be prepared to set aside a few hours towards your bandwidth.

This is what you see, and this is what Australia sees...

Last we heard, it seemed Left 4 Dead 2 would be seeing a censored release in Australia, the land apparently free of gore, sex, and other such pleasantries. Based on some comparison footage one earnest gamer put together from the region's PC demo, that is certainly the case.

Fans of the first game will notice this version has been edited to all hell and is even less violent than its predecessor. To our friends in the Australian government: a zombie(ish) game without gore just isn't a zombie(ish) game.

Thankfully, if you do live in Australia, you do have options: gamers have already figured out how to hack it, although you'll be restricted to playing online with your fellow countrymen only and to those who have applied the fix -- note it may not be permanent or work at all on the final release, and your achievements may not be tracked. The other option is to further depreciate the Australian economy and order the uncensored version from the nearby UK, as the tradition goes.

Spend more, get more MS Points each month for the next six months

Microsoft makes good on its bid to further leverage the lucrative prospects of the Xbox Live community, officially pushing its Xbox Live Rewards pilot program.  For the next six months, Xbox Live Gold and Silver level members who stay active and are willing to part with some Microsoft Points can earn some of those Points back as a bonus for their patronange.

The more MS Points you spend on Xbox Live as a Gold level member, the more you can get back, up to a maximum of 5 percent of your total monthly Marketplace purchase bill during the final month of the program.  Gold level members can also score 10-30 MS Points for renewing to a one- or three-month subscription, all the way up to 200 MS Points for renewing to a 12-month subscription.  Another 200 points are up for Gold level grabs by subscribing to the Netflix digital video rental service on the Xbox Live Video Marketplace.

Both Gold and Silver level members can earn another 100 points for participating in program surveys and making their first XBL Marketplace purchase.

Improving international sales is the next big step for Japanese publisher

Capcom is basking in the 24.5 percent increase in sales and 58.4 percent boost in profit scored during the first six months of its current financial year.  The publisher's revenue of ¥38.9 billion ($426.5 million USD) and profit of  ¥2.97 billion ($32.6 million USD) were attributed to strong Japanese sales of titles like Monster Hunter Tri, Resident Evil 5 and Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth.  On the other hand, Capcom's performance outside of Japan wasn't as telling as it had hoped despite recent efforts.  The publisher pledges to change that, and its game plan for the remaining half of the business year is threefold.

Increasing its hold in markets outside of Japan remains one of Capcom's most important goals.  In fact, the publisher pledges to have "overseas titles" account for up to 75 percent of its upcoming lineup.

The next step to global domination involves expanding its presence in online gaming.  In addition to targetting PC users in the rest of Asia with Monster Hunter Frontier Online, Capcom will also push online multiplayer for upcoming console titles like Monster Hunter Tri and Lost Planet 2.

Finally, Capcom will further leverage digital distrubtion for targeted console software and DLC.

In laying the groundwork for the second half of its financial year, Capcom also forecasts the performance for its biggest releases.  The publisher expects Lost Planet 2 to be its next most important title, predicting sales of 3.7 million units.  Dark Void is next on Capcom's list at 1.3 million units.  Capcom lamented not being able to release the Airtight Games-developed title earlier this year, and even attributed its delay as a key factor for its "soft" overseas sales thus far.

Interestingly, Capcom is playing it safer with its mainstay franchises, namely Street Fighter and Resident Evil.  The publisher is predicting Super Street Fighter IV to score potential sales of 1.1 million units, while Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles for the Wii could reach 800,000 units.

Fire-fights under the sea

A new trailer came out today showing off some multi-player action from the upcoming new chapter of Bioshock, due to arrive February 9th.

The trailer concerns the new 'Capture the Sister' MP mode. You and your team has to go about the maps, snatching Little Sisters protected by Big Daddies. Once you snag a Little Sister, you can deposit her into conveniently located shafts in the walls.

The sequel to the hit Bioshock will be set 10 years after the events of the first game. Behind much of the troubles in Bioshock 2 is [small spoiler here] one Little Sister who happened to mechanize herself, transforming into a Big Sister, who became a terrible menace, going around abducting children and stuff, and causing grief. 

And since we are on the topic of Bioshock 2 videos, here is another recent one -- this one came out last week. Entitled the "Alone Among The Dead" trailer, this one deals with a bit of the back-story of the upcoming game, and shows many combat scenes taken from the single player mode.

Developer wants to keep the mystery alive

Remedy Entertainment, developers of the long-awaited mystery game Alan Wake are aiming to keep their work just that: a mystery.

As we've spoken about before, Internet culture has encouraged rabidness in previewing upcoming video games. Typically many months before release, practically every bit of information on a title is out there for viewing -- just view Assassin's Creed II's GameGrep page for a shining example. While some find this to be a good thing, we argue it spoils the mystery and full enjoyment of a game come release time. It seems Remedy feel the same, and as such are hoping to fight it with Alan Wake, possibly by leaving the ending off of review discs:

"I think we're going to be insanely careful about how much of the story we reveal," said Remedy Entertainment managing director Matias Myllyrinne. "We'll clearly discuss with some of our friends at Microsoft whether we even give the ending of the game for anybody's preview. I'd like to hold it back, [I] don't want anybody to spoil it for the audience. That's just my personal feeling."

It says something about Microsoft that Remedy sees room for agreement on a matter like this; we would've expected all promotional decisions are up to the publisher, and that's all there is to it. Myllyrinne continued:

"An analogy -- maybe I use it too much -- is it's kind of like, if you go to see The Sixth Sense and I whisper in your ear 'Bruce Willis is dead. I don't want to do that. I think there's more to it than that, but people can piece these things together. They start to gather the puzzle and then all of a sudden [the whole story is] online..."

Could be a sequel to the 2008 reboot, or Sands of Time

Our sneak peek at the upcoming Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time movie saw one particularly interesting bit of news slip from the team behind it: a new game in the series will be announced this spring.

We have no official details (it was noted it's "not their place" to say anything else), but a trademark filed earlier this month by series creator Jordan Mechner (who is overseeing the adaptation) for Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands suggested this would be a sequel to last year's fantastic entry, if not to Sands of Time itself (the film and/or game), what with the "Sands" in the title and all.

We'll have more in the coming months.

More song importing and downloads coming

When Activision released the full list of songs that could be imported from Guitar Hero World Tour into Guitar Hero 5, players were less than thrilled to find out that only 35 of the 85-song tracklist were going to be available for Guitar Hero 5.  Unfortunately, there that hasn't changed; World Tour is keeping most of its songs exclusive.  Enter Band Hero, which will fill that gap.

To celebrate the release of the upcoming Band Hero game, Activision will allow Guitar Hero 5 players to import 61 songs from Band Hero into Guitar Hero 5.  You will also be able to import 69 tracks from from Guitar Hero 5 into Band Hero.

Of course, importing isn't free.  The Band Hero-to-Guitar Hero 5 import costs 420 Microsoft Points, $4.99 USD for PlayStation 3 owners, and 500 Nintendo Points for Wii owners.  The import fee for Guitar Hero 5 to Band Hero is a bit higher at 480 MS Points, $5.99, or 600 Nintendo Points.  Songs eligible for transfer from Band Hero are available here, but there's currently no list for Guitar Hero 5 songs.  You won't to wait long to check out this new feature anyway, with November 5 right around the corner.

Moving on, we have the complete list of November DLC.  Next month's downloadable content features artists Lenny Kravitz, KISS, Metallica, and... the Neversoft team!  Wii owners will be getting content from the highly-requested Death Magnetic album by Metallica that 360 and PS3 players got some time ago; unfortunately, the free Neversoft track pack is exclusive to HD consoles.

The first batch of DLC starts on November 12 with three Lenny Kravitz classics:

• Let Love Rule
• Lady
• Fly Away

November 19 features two old KISS tunes and a new one from their latest Sonic Boom album:

• Modern Day Delilah
• I Was Made for Loving You
• Lick it Up

November 24 updates trade off between the console systems.  Wii owners can catch up on Metallica's Death Magnetic with the following update:

• All Nightmare Long
• That Was Just Your Life
• The Day That Never Comes
• The Judas Kiss
• The End Of The Line
• The Unforgiven III
• Suicide & Redemption J.H.
• Suicide & Redemption K.H.

Additionally, Xbox 360 and PS3 owners get the following freebies from Neversoft in the "Neversoft Thanks the Fans" track pack.  Granted these are a bit more obscure, but hey, it's free!  Who knows, you might like what you hear.

• Lemon Frosting - Bunny Knutson
• RockNRola - Nancy Fullforce
• From the Blue/Point of No Return/T.T.R.T.S - An Endless Sporadic
• Love Holds It Down - Dom Liberati
• You Really Like Me - Davidicus
• Guilty Pleasures - Tony Solis

Packs bundling the Lenny Kravitz and KISS content will be available to Xbox 360 and PS3 owners for 440 MS Points or $5.49 from the PlayStation Store.  All individual tracks run for the usual 160 MS Points, $1.99, or 200 Nintendo Points.

Trailers showing off new mixes

Okay, who saw this coming?  Yeah, if you haven't already heard about it, DJ Hero gets its first downloadable content today.  PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 gamers lookin' for new tunes can purchase the "Extended Mix Pack 01" for $5.00 USD or 480 Microsoft Points.

The pack comes with two mixes:

• "All of Me" by 50 Cent featuring Mary J. Blige vs. "Radio Ga Ga" by Queen
• "DARE" by Gorillaz vs. "Can't Truss It" Performed by Public Enemy

Oh, but it doesn't stop there.  On November 24, three more songs will be added as DLC in second Mix Pack, feautring David Guetta.  The upcoming "David Guetta Mix Pack 01" will conta, "On the Dance Floor" featuring will.i.am. and al.de.ap, and "Sexy Chick" featuring Akon.

The Wii will be getting both Mix Packs on November 24 as downloadable singles for 300 Nintendo Points.  For now, check out these gameplay trailers highlighting each new mix from the pack released today, played on "Expert."

Join the Foo Fighters to reach Nirvana

Next week's Rock Band 2 updates feature three tracks to celebrate the 20th anniversary release of Nirvana's debut album "Bleach", which will be re-released; this special edition release includes an previously unreleased live concert recording from 1990.  

Foo Fighters will do likewise by releasing a "Greatest Hits" album on the same day and give RB2 players a shot at four songs, two of which are new and exclusive to the album.

Rounding up the updates is a song from Joan Jett & The Blackhearts' 1984 album "Fake Friends".  Here's the list:

• Foo Fighters – “Best of You”
• Foo Fighters – “The Pretender”
• Foo Fighters – “Wheels”
• Foo Fighters – “Word Forward”
• Nirvana – “About a Girl”
• Nirvana – “Blew”
• Nirvana – “School”
• Joan Jett & The Blackhearts – “Fake Friends”

Date, pricing, and new trailer featuring Storm's hubby

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 fans have long been speculating who the new characters will be.  The rumors surrounding that screenshot of an updated character roster has so far been accurate too.

Today Activision officially announces Black Panther, real name T'Challa.  Ruler of Wakanda and leader of the Panther Clan, T'Challa also snagged Storm and put a ring on her finger -- or however they signify marriage in his nation.  Either way, the husband and wife duo are in open opposition of the Registration Act at this point, but you can probably play Black Panther no matter which side you choose in MUA2.  Too bad Vicarious never included special dialogue for him and Storm in the game. 

Based on the character vignette, it appears T'Challa might play like Deadpool, with daggers instead of guns.

In addition to a new trailer and screenshots, which you will find below, Activision has also announced that the DLC will be out November 5, on Xbox LIVE and PlayStation Network.  The paid update will add new upgrades, missions, and cast of characters: Cable, Carnage, Psylocke, Black Panther, and a mystery character.  Yeah, real mystery; that screenshot has been accurate before, so we've got our money on Magneto.

If you want the DLC, prepare to dish out 800 Microsoft Points, or $9.99 USD if you've got a PlayStation 3.  Juggernaut, formerly a GameStop exclusive, will also be added for a separate price of 160 MS Points / $1.99 USD.

Apparently the PC version has no problems

Gearbox Software has put out the first patch for their new titles, Borderlands. You can find the change log below.

The patch is only for the Xbox and PS3 versions of the game though -- in the community forums, a spokesperson stated that they are "continuing [to] work on support updates for all platforms, and will deploy fixes for every version as soon as possible."

Unfortunately for PC gamers, Gearbox certainly seems to have prioritized the console version of this ARPG. The PC version was not very tailored to the PC -- the version seems like an afterthought:  the menus and GUI were not altered in the PC version at all,  and are much better suited to console gamers. Furthermore, the PC version has poor voice chat implementation, weak matchmaking services, and it's super-easy to cheat by altering save files -- all stuff that is also somewhat some what disappointing for a PC game. Not that we can blame Gearbox too much though for focusing on the Xbox 360 and PS3; after all, the console version of the game will undoubtedly sell far more copies than the oft-pirated PC version. And as far as bugs go, while the PC version has some bugs here and there, for the the most part, as PC games go, the game is arguably in pretty good shape. 

If you somehow missed hearing about it this week, Borderlands is a stylish MP-friendly FPS-ARPG hybrid, set in a post-apocalyptic world, and featuring a randomized Diablo-style loot system. The game seemed to have come in below many gamers' radar, and is currently enjoying a good buzz, and (we presume) great sales.

Here is the stuff fixed by the first patch:

Xbox 360 Fixes
• Fixed a bug which caused players and other things in the world to appear incorrectly on clients in networked games
• fixed a bug in which players gibbed in arena combat disappeared
• fixed a bug which caused the dollars counter to spin continuously
• fixed a bug that caused the digger elevator to be unusable after completing the Find Tannis mission
• Weapon mapping to the D-pad should no longer reverse left and right
• various localization and other text and tooltip corrections
• The introductory quests with CL4P-TP should now always progress properly all the time
• Lilith's Phase Strike ability now works as intended
• Load times have been improved

PlayStation 3 Fixes
• Load times have been improved
• Lilith's Phase Strike ability now works as intended
• The introductory quests with CL4P-TP should now always progress properly
• fixed a bug that caused the digger elevator to be unusable after completing the Find Tannis mission
• Weapon mapping to the D-pad should no longer reverse left and right
• fixed a crash when ejecting the disc during the autosave warning splash screen
• Players in a lobby should no longer experience long loading when starting a game after one player leaves
• A bug which caused players and other things in the world to appear incorrectly on clients in networked games has been fixed
• fixed a bug in which players gibbed in arena combat disappeared
• Changed how space required for saves is calculated
• fixed a bug which caused the dollars counter to spin continuously
• various localization and other text and tooltip corrections