Valkyrie Profile DS confirmed for spring in Europe

Square Enix has announced that Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume is to be released across PAL territories in spring 2009, exclusively for Nintendo DS.

Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume is the first title in the series to be created for the Nintendo DS and promises to push the handheld to its limits in terms of production and gameplay. Players will take control of a young soldier named Wylfred who seeks retaliation against the valkyries, especially Lenneth Valkyrie who took his father’s life.

“We are delighted to bringing a new instalment to Europe of the critically acclaimed Valkyrie Profile series,” said John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix. “We hope fans will enjoy the captivating story of Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume on their Nintendo DS.”

The DS adventure will feature an in-depth multi-story system in which the outcome and direction of the story can be changed dramatically by the player’s actions and choices in battle. The Valkyrie Profile battle system has also evolved allowing more in-depth attacks and combos combined with dynamic finishing moves and spells.

First Fable II DLC on December 12

Lionhead has announced that starting December 12, 2008, Fable II players will be able to extend their game experience with the release of the Knothole Island downloadable content pack. The remote island of Knothole is dying and only a hero can face the trials of the three shrines to bring back the sunshine.

The Knothole Island DLC will be priced 800 MS Points.

Also on December 12 players everywhere will be able to enhance their Fable II experience with the release of a free Fable II downloadable pack exclusively on Xbox LIVE Marketplace. To engage in co-op gameplay with a player who has already downloaded the Knothole Island content, you will need to download the free pack.

Players will also be showered in gifts during December, including Knight’s Boots, Assassin’s Gloves, a special Weight Loss Potion, collectible silver book and more.

A new set of 50 leaderboards will also go live on Lionhead.com where players will be able to check their standing.

Additionally, a new Albion dashboard theme has been released to celebrate the launch of the New Xbox Experience, available now for 250 MS Points.

Dead Space demo out today

EA has announced that a free downloadable demo for its survival horror action game, Dead Space, will be available today on both Xbox LIVE Marketplace and PlayStation Network.

In the demo players will get to sample the game’s unique combat which sees hero Isaac Clarke taking down the Necromorphs by removing their limbs using a variety of mining tools – a simple bullet to the head won’t cut it.

The demo’s well worth a look, although European PS3 gamers will need to wait until November 27 when the Euro PlayStation Store updates.

Fallout 3 DLC revealed

Bethesda has revealed the first details of three Fallout 3 DLC packs scheduled for next year, and of the PC content editor due for release next month.

The first of the bundles, which will only be coming to Xbox 360 and PC, is entitled Operation Anchorage. Billed as “a military simulation,” the add-on will allow players to fight for the liberation of Anchorage, following an invasion by Chinese Communists. Expect this to be available in January.

A second pack, due the following month, is named “The Pitt,” and will allow players to explore an industrial raider town in the ruins of Pittsburgh. Finally, March will see the release of “Broken Steel” – an add-on that follows the Brotherhood of Steel’s continued fight against The Enclave, following the conclusion of Fallout 3′s storyline.

In the meantime, next month should see the release of a full-set of Fallout 3 modding tools, christened “The G.E.C.K” after the game’s important quest item.

“The release of the G.E.C.K. provides the community with tools that will allow players to expand the game any way they wish,” reads the Bethesda press release. “Users can create, modify, and edit any data for use with Fallout 3, from building landscapes, towns, and locations to writing dialogue, creating characters, weapons, creatures, and more,” explained Bethesda.

Given that people are still making mods and patches for the first two Fallout games, some ten years after their release, it will be interesting to see what people do with the new tools.

Halo 3: Recon now Halo 3: ODST

Bungie has announced that Halo 3: Recon, the upcoming standalone Halo 3 expansion, has been renamed Halo 3: ODST.

According to Bungie the new title “is a more straightforward account of the experience that awaits and the role you will assume as you explore the streets of New Mombasa”.

In Halo 3: ODST players take control of an ODST soldier in the heart of a Covenant occupied New Mombasa. The game will feature a new campaign story, new Halo 3 multiplayer content and “one or two” surprises.

Halo 3: ODST is scheduled for release in the autumn of 2009 exclusively for Xbox 360. Look out for further updates over the coming weeks and months.

Metal Gear Online Rewards Shop Open

Hey

The MGO Rewards shop which was delayed to technical problems, has now been restored.

The shop uses reward points, which are gained from official matches.

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FIFA ’09 Dated

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EA has exclusively revealed to MCV that FIFA ’09 is set for release on October 3rd.

The latest in the ultra-successful FIFA series is scheduled for release on PS3, 360, Wii, PC, PS2, PSP, DS

and mobile platforms, and boasts considerable improvements over last year’s edition.

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Bionic Commando Rearmed set for August 13th on XBLA

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It seems Bionic Commando Rearmed has finally got a date, and should hit XBLA on August 13th.

The news comes direct from Xbox Japan as they’ve let slip the date on the games splash page

on their official site. As of yet it has not been confirmed if the game will hit US and Europe on

the same day, but it is very likely to happen as most big games are usually released on the

same day worldwide.

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EA: No Red Alert PS3 as console is “tough to develop for”

Hey

EALA producer Amer Ajami has told Videogamer that the reason why Red Alert PS3 was put on hold is due to the fact that the console “very exotic and tough to develop for.”

“We actually announced a PS3 version early on but that was when we were still doing a lot of technical exploration of the architecture,” he said.

“PS3 is a very powerful system but as you guys know it’s very exotic and tough to develop for and our engine really at the time wasn’t designed for PS3.”

He however added that the team “might go back and do something with the PS3 later on”.

Some new screens were published this morning, in case you didn’t see them earlier. PC and 360 only though, of course.

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Konami Won’t Sell MGO Expansion in 30 Countries

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Oh, Konami. The problems just keep piling up. Yet another one that could have been easily solved by using the PSN and PlayStation Store. The Gene Expansion pack cannot be sold in 30 countries (the PS3 is sold in these countries and they can purchase from the PlayStation Store).

According to Konami’s website, the following countries cannot puchase anything from their online store:

Andorra, Bahrain, Bosnia Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Gibraltar, Hungary, Iceland, India, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malta & Gozo, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Oman, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Vatican.

That’s a lot of places, some pretty large, that Konami is ostrocizing. The entire country of Russia? Come on now. I really hope Sony takes the initiative to force developers to use the PSN for online portions of titles. We need to avoid this type of thing in the future. The fact that all this is happening with a Game of the Year candidate makes it that much worse.

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