Speaking to CVG, MotoGP lead designer Greg Bryant discussed the future of the series on both the Xbox 360 and PS3. Bryant said the development team plans to incorporate Natal support into MotoGP 10/11 in order to implement head tracking. According to Bryant, "the future for [Natal] is through head tracking in racing games." As for future iterations on the PS3, he noted that the team plans to use stereoscopic 3D and "theoretically" enable head tracking with the Playstation Eye.

Honestly, if it turns out anything like this, consider us stoked.

MotoGP dev keen on Natal head tracking, 3DTV originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OK, there seems to be some confusion out there. Gamers have taken a microscope to the code in the PC version of Mass Effect 2, which they claim hints at an inevitable PS3 release. Well, we hate to break it to you, but it looks like that's not gonna happen.

Bioware's Chris Priestly hopped onto the forums to bring some balance to the Matrix. "The Unreal Engine is cross platform, hence the PS3 code," he said. "This was brought up back in Mass Effect 1 days as well."

So, there you have it. Priestly also added one last quote, to help drive the point home: "Mass Effect is for the PC and Xbox 360."

[Via GameWire]

Bioware: 'Mass Effect is for the PC and Xbox 360' originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony made us wait a few years for a North American release of White Knight Chronicles, but it's not waiting at all to give us a chance to spend more money on the game -- the official Sony blog has news that the first DLC for the game will be out ASAP, offering up microtransactions for items to fill out the in-game "Georama" space, as well as a $4.99 "key" that will allow you to completely re-customize your character without having to start the game all over again. Of course, Sony guarantees that "there is PLENTY for you to work with in the game itself," but just in case you want to pay a little more of your hard-earned paycheck, Sony will be happy to take it.

And finally, just in time for launch day, it's offered up a brand new trailer. That won't cost you anything but a click on the link below, as it's available to watch after the break.

[Via VG247]

Continue reading White Knight Chronicles launch DLC ready to go

White Knight Chronicles launch DLC ready to go originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There's a stuffy business piece over on Yahoo! News about how gaming accessory makers are rolling in teh moneyz -- at least $5 billion last year, according to EEDAR analyst Jessie Divnich. Rather than offer up a bunch of boring figures on which plastic guitar sold best, or who had the most popular Wiimote charging solution, we figured we'd introduce you to some of the very items that have made accessories such a big business over the past few years.

Firstly, there's the Trauma Center Kit, a favorite of home surgeons and people who like to look ridiculous while playing games. Next up, the gun. Or, more specifically, just "gun." We'd be remiss to neglect one of our favorite faux firearms styled after an aquatic predator. For those who prefer reptiles, this sensor bar holder was hit or misss. And finally, we leave you with actual video footage of some of the fine products that make up this staggeringly lucrative industry in action. We hope you've had a ball.

Accessory makers had a big 2009, to the tune of $5 billion originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 21:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The latest carrot to be dangled before the teeming mass of The Legend of Zelda fans comes from a recent interview in Famitsu magazine, via Andriasang. There, director Eiji Aonuma says he hopes that Nintendo will be able to "show something playable" at E3. What? That's, like, four years ahead of schedule! We jest, but it's not like Nintendo really needs to rush anything. It's The Legend of Zelda. You want it, even if it's supposed to be different this time around.

Aonuma wouldn't provide much in terms of how far along the game has come, other than talking up the MotionPlus support and stating the team has "progressed in development since last year" and that the "core areas have come into clear view." We take that to mean the team has finished rendering Hyrule Field.

Aonuma hopes to show 'playable' build of new Zelda at E3 originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 21:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Although reports indicate that Best Buy America's used games trade-in operations will come to an abrupt end, Best Buy Canada continues to offer the used and trade programs in its own stores. On February 1, Industry Gamers reported E-Play, the company that distributed used game and trade kiosks to Best Buy and Walmart, suspended operations. Currently, neither major retailer appears to be pursuing replacement programs in stores.

In Canada, Best Buy and Future Shop both operate under the umbrella of Best Buy Canada Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of its American parent. The company currently runs used game and trade programs within stores of both brands, where customers are given a store credit toward other purchases in the store at each location's customer service desk. The process appears to be modeled closely after GameStop's approach, and the companies even offer similar multiple trade-in promotions (such as drastically slashing the value of games immediately following release).

Joystiq has contacted Best Buy Canada Ltd. for comment on the recent news affecting its American counterparts, and whether its own operations will change as a result, but has yet to hear back as of this publishing.

[Thanks, Nathan]

US citizens: want to trade at Best Buy? Head north originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If the "Madden Curse" is the unflapping revenge exacted by the fowl spirit of the Great Turducken, its devoured body unceremoniously carved up by the bare hands of John Madden on national television those many years ago (seriously, go wikipedia that joint), then the annual "Madden NFL Super Bowl Simulation" is just ... plain math.

In the latest case of crunching the numbers, Madden 10 has predicted the New Orleans Saints to be winners of this Sunday's Super Bowl XLIV over the Indianapolis Colts. It was a real nail biter, EA recalls: "with minutes left in the game the duo of Joseph Addai and Peyton Manning put the Colts back on top with a go-ahead touchdown pass. With the game hanging in the balance, Drew Brees hits David Thomas for an 11-yard touchdown and the game winning score." The final: 35-31.

But more intriguing than the projected outcome of a mere sporting event is EA Sports' coveted simulation formula, which has become scary good. Not only did it correctly predict the winners of the conference championship games a few Sundays ago within a three-point margin of error, according to EA Sports, the formula accurately played out last year's Super Bowl down to the final score and individual player stats, which begs the question: What can't it predict?

We'd like to put a request in to EA to simulate next week's retail showdown: BioShock 2 vs. Dante's Inferno. Place your bets now!

Madden predicts Saints win Super Bowl XLIV originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There's really no need to explain why we're presenting this Hello Kitty chainsaw as today's Actual Great Moments in De-Evolution. I mean, look at it! It's Hello Kitty...ON A CHAINSAW.

Okay, we just wanted to share the awesomeness of this creation. Enjoy.

We've seen plenty of retrogaming celebration in 3D Dot Game Heroes, but we just haven't seen enough ... juvenile humor. Atlus recognized this humiliating deficiency, and sent out this trailer featuring a series of innuendos that would put an even bigger smile on Smilin' Bob's face.

The real gameplay info buried within all the embarrassing jokery is that the in-game blacksmith enables players to upgrade their swords to (admittedly) Freudian proportions, allowing them to mow down enemies from a comfortable distance. While chuckling to themselves like Butt-head, of course.

3D Dot Game Heroes' long swords remind Atlus of something originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Released as a free download for owners of its Symbian^1 based phones (including the N97 and Nokia 5800 Navigation Edition), Nokia's Ovi Maps Racing uses GPS and satellite map data to let players create courses based on nearby streets. The game, developed by RedLynx (Trials HD), is a top-down racer reminiscent of, well, the company's own DrawRace.

We've seen games that utilize satellite maps for their levels before -- most notably (and recently) Sony's The Last Guy -- but the user-focused creation element of this title is certainly an intriguing one. Check out a video of Ovi Maps Racing after the break, and, if you have the game, let us know how it is in comments.

[Via Engadget]

Continue reading Nokia's new mobile racer turns your neighborhood into a speedway

Nokia's new mobile racer turns your neighborhood into a speedway originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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