GameShout has a story about a woman who bought a photo for $600 on eBay. This unlucky woman who was bidding for the good, which she thought it was an Xbox 360, finally won the auction, has found there is only a photo of a Xbox 360 in the package she received.

Well, just be careful with the online purchase nowadays. It can really screw you sometimes. =/

Source: Xboxusersgroup

ESPN has teamed up with Electronic Arts and its EA SPORTS brand to take viewers inside the world of Madden NFL 06—the nation’s top-selling sports video game—and its best players for the first video game reality series Madden Nation. Starting Tuesday, Dec. 6 at 11 and 11:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2, the eight-episode series (Tuesdays at 11 and 11:30 p.m.) will pit the nation’s 13 best Madden NFL 06 gamers—along with their real-life NFL player sponsors—against each other in elimination-style tournaments on a 17-day national bus tour. NFL players Shaun Alexander, Ben Roethlisberger, Dwight Freeney and others will be featured with their corresponding player representatives during each stop of the tour. The finale, which will be aired Tuesday, Dec. 27, was shot in New York’s Times Square on the ABC Super Sign. The winner claimed a $100,000 prize.

“Madden Nation will give ESPN viewers the best of both worlds: exciting, top-level competition and some of football’s best known players in the biggest game on the market,” said John Skipper, ESPN executive vice president, content.

With scenarios designed to test the players’ skills, each tournament will make the gamers compete against each other and “free agents” they meet along the way. Tour stops include: Los Angeles; San Diego; Phoenix; Albuquerque, N.M.; Denver; Kansas City, Mo.; Minneapolis; Green Bay, Wis.; Chicago; Indianapolis; Canton, Ohio; Baltimore; Washington; Philadelphia and New York, and will take place, in part, in the NFL players’ homes. In all, the tour bus logged 4,646 miles.

“Madden Nation showcases the EA SPORTS lifestyle, giving viewers an inside look into the daily life of the biggest Madden NFL football gamers and NFL players,” said Todd Sitrin, vice president of marketing, EA-Tiburon and EA SPORTS. “ESPN is the perfect outlet to show this unique pairing of the top Madden NFL football players.”

Each gamer is matched with an NFL player and meets him along the tour. 

Gamers/Hometowns                                                    NFL Sponsors/Teams

Dan “PackWolf” Bertholomey (Portland, Ore.)                   Ashley Lelie (Denver Broncos)

Justin “Chow” Chow (Great Falls, Va.)                              Tony Gonzalez (Kansas City Chiefs)

Raymond “Shopmaster” Goode (Waldorf, Md.)                  Shaun Alexander (Seattle Seahawks)

David “Dred” Grant (St. Petersburg, Fla.)              Michael Vick (Atlanta Falcons)

Daniel “Clark Kent” Grundei (Cincinnati)                           Ben Roethlisberger (Pittsburgh Steelers)

Kyle “The Gift” Hustek (Detroit)                                        Roy Williams (Detroit Lions)

Christopher “Action” Jackson (Atlanta)                             Byron Leftwich (Jacksonville Jaguars)

Sherman “Sherman Sticky” Jameson (Midland, Texas)      Chad Johnson (Cincinnati Bengals)

Rodney “NJMaddenBaller” Lane   (Dover, N.J.)                 Jevon Kearse (Philadelphia Eagles)

Charles “Solution” Smith (San Diego)                               Donnie Edwards (San Diego Chargers)

Rob “Duka” Taylor (Youngstown, Ohio)                             Ed Reed (Baltimore Ravens)

Antoin “Pretty Boy” Williams (San Antonio)                      Larry Fitzgerald (Arizona Cardinals)

Rod “Reality” Wynn (Inglewood, Calif.)                             Dwight Freeney (Indianapolis Colts)

Source: Darkhorizons

Peter Jackson was interviewed about the facts about the Halo movie. His answers were short…

Question: You're still producing Halo?

Jackson: Yeah.

Question: What attracted you to Halo?

Jackson: I'm a fan of the game.

Question: But video game movies suck.

Jackson: They do.

Question: So what will be different?

Jackson: Hopefully it won't suck.

Question: But why not direct?

Jackson: I want a break. I want to have the fun but not the hard work. I just want to be part of the creative team but not actually have the pain.

Question: Is there a director?

Jackson: Not yet, no. We're talking to some people but we're going to be shooting that next year.

Question: Should we plan an Oscar party?

Jackson: I don't think so. I don't think these are the types of films that get Oscar attention. That was never the intention with Kong. I don't necessarily think that will be the case.

Read the full interview [here].

On the day of the launch of the Next Generation of game consoles, two of the UK's most innovative independent developers, Stainless Games and Pompom Software, today announce the release of their new Next Generation titles, Crystal Quest and Mutant Storm Reloaded on Xbox 360TM Live Arcade.

Both titles are premier examples of the 'Modern Retro', being high-end remixes of classic styles of gameplay. Xbox 360 Live Arcade is part of Microsoft's Xbox 360 Marketplace which enables any Xbox 360TM video game and entertainment system from Microsoft owner connected to the Internet to download and purchase selected Xbox 360 titles.

Said Miles Visman of Pompom Software, "Never before has a small development company like ours had the opportunity to make a launch title for such a major hardware release. Live Arcade has proved to be the perfect vehicle for a title as intense as Mutant Storm Reloaded and Xbox 360 at launch offers us an audience of the console gaming elite who will now have a chance to play our games for the first time."

Added Patrick Buckland of Stainless Games, "We're investing heavily in Live Arcade, as we see this as a completely new channel to reach what has always been our core audience – hardcore gaming fanatics who know a good game when they see one. Crystal Quest is only the first of a number of titles we'll be releasing on Live Arcade."

Buckland's Crystal Quest is one of the genuine classic arcade titles, originally premiering as one of the first ever games on the colour Macintosh. The millions who played it then now have the chance to play a totally revamped Xbox 360 version –or they can experience authentic 80's flashbacks by playing in Retro mode.

Both companies acknowledge the contribution of Microsoft's Live Arcade team who have provided, "incredible support" for the teams during development.

Said Ross Erickson, Xbox Live Arcade Games Portfolio Manager for Microsoft, " We're thrilled to have both PomPom and Stainless Games onboard for Xbox Live Arcade on Xbox 360. Mutant Storm Reloaded is an incredible game with fantastic Xbox 360-class visuals but combined with simple pick-up-and-play game mechanics. It hearkens back to the classic arcade model of gaming, but with a next-gen gloss of production and graphics. Crystal Quest will be immediately recognizable to anybody who's played the classic that began on the Mac and it has that same addictive quality that the original had. But now, you get the best of both worlds – old school classic, proven gameplay with next generation Xbox 360-quality graphics in high-definition. "
Bad Management - who act for both Pompom and Stainless - see Live Arcade as a potential saviour for both gaming originality and smaller developers. Senior Partner, John Cook, remarked, "Live Arcade could have a massive impact on the console market. There is potential there for smaller developers to make games which provide a valid parallel experience to the $10 million epics. Mutant Storm and Crystal Quest are excellent examples of that."

Limelight Networks announced today that it is the Content Delivery Network for Microsoft's just-launched Xbox 360 video game system and Xbox Live, the online gaming service for the Xbox video game system from Microsoft now included with every system. Microsoft is leveraging Limelight Networks for delivery of trailers and game demos during one of the most important product launches in its history to ensure that Xbox Live audiences receive the best performance with any downloaded content.

Xbox Live is now available with two membership levels, Silver and Gold. Silver is standard with every system at no extra cost, while Gold is available via a variety of subscription plans. Both plans feature Xbox Live Marketplace, which has over 400 selections of downloadable content, including Xbox Live Arcade games, game demos and trailers.

With full implementation of Xbox Live on Limelight Networks' powerful delivery network, the synergy of Xbox Live and the Limelight Networks platform continues to provide millions of gamers unprecedented online access to games, content and downloads from both Microsoft and leading game developers, directly via Xbox Live.

"With the launch of Xbox 360 we're taking Xbox Live to new heights. Now that our customers can download game demos, high-definition movie trailers, and more, we need to be prepared for dramatic increases in traffic," said Xbox Live Operations Manager Eric Neustadter. "Working with Limelight Networks allows us to easily scale to any level of demand."

"The expanded Xbox Live online service is sure to be a big hit for all Xbox 360 users," said Erik Gabler, senior vice president business development for Limelight Networks. "Our technology, distributed infrastructure and proven delivery performance continue to make Limelight the clear choice for delivery of high-speed downloads of Xbox Live content to audiences of any size."

The eagerly anticipated Xbox 360 was launched in the United States on November 22, 2005 to sellout crowds, with many retailers opening their doors at midnight in conjunction with the Zero Hour launch event in the Mojave Desert. Gaming enthusiasts are not only receiving the latest in high performance gaming technology, but a system that promises integrated interaction and delivery of all forms of digital entertainment.

We have a few screens from the upcoming RPG for the Xbox360 from Hudson Soft, Far East Of Eden.

Frankly the game does not even look as pretty as Dragon Quest VIII, let's hope this is an early build. Click on the news title for the screens.

In an open letter to Best Buy customers, Best Buy President of Retail in North America Brian Dunn has apologized to customers who were taken advantage of on launch day by certain Best Buy franchises.

TO: Open Letter to Customers

FROM: Brian Dunn, President – Retail, North America

RE: Launch of Xbox 360

CC: Best Buy Store, District and Territory Employees; All Officers and Directors

DATE: December 6, 2005

I’m writing to apologize.

While all of us at Best Buy were thrilled to be part of the recent launch of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 video game system – one of the most anticipated events in the history of electronic gaming – the launch did not go as we had hoped. We sold out of Xbox 360s nationwide in less than two hours, and most of our stores did an outstanding job of serving our gaming customers. I’d like to thank the majority of our employees, who provided a terrific experience for customers at the launch date. However, our promotional activities in certain cases failed to follow company guidelines. As a result, some of our valued gaming customers had an experience in our stores that was inconsistent with what you’ve come to expect from us, as a leader in the consumer electronics industry.

Specifically, customers in some Best Buy stores were told that they were required to buy additional Xbox accessories or services if they wanted one of the sought-after Xbox 360 consoles, even though we advertised the Xbox 360 console alone. I want to be very clear that Best Buy does not condone pressuring customers to purchase items they may not want or that may not fit their lifestyle. In fact, these behaviors are in direct conflict with our desire to serve customers’ needs better than anyone else, and our values of honesty and integrity.

We are currently investigating all leads about promotional practices that may have violated the company’s guidelines, and we will take disciplinary actions as appropriate. We also have reminded all of our stores about our policies with respect to launches of hot products. Meanwhile, on behalf of Best Buy, I’d like to offer a sincere apology to any customers who felt pressured to buy items they did not want.

Customers who are unhappy with Xbox 360-related purchases made in November 2005 may return unwanted items for a full refund at any Best Buy store. In addition, if your Xbox 360 purchasing experience did not meet your expectations for any reason, please email us at [email address will be inserted when the letter is posted to the website]. (Employees with information pertinent to our investigation are encouraged to call our Ethics Hot Line instead.)

Last, I would like to invite you back to our stores, particularly later this month, when Best Buy will receive more shipments of Xbox 360s. While supplies continue to be very limited, we are truly excited about this new gaming platform, and we’d like to deliver the best of that experience to you. We promise an in-store experience that is focused on your needs and the needs of everyone on your holiday gift list.

Brian Dunn