We can't wait until Strong Bad crashes into WiiWare and PCs via Telltale Games' Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People. But there's hope for PS3 and Xbox 360 owners to get some burninating love: Telltale Games just announced that its open to the idea of publishing the game for Sony and Microsoft's respective consoles. More in the full article.

Depending on gamer feedback, Half-Life 2: Episode Three's release may be the last episodic update for the Half-Life franchise, or so Valve's Gabe Newell said.

"OK, so what do you want?" is the question that Newell wants to pose to Half-Life fans regarding the continuation of it's current episodic method of updating the franchise.

Newell said that doling out episodic releases lets Valve update their games much faster than building full-scale game sequels. However, they're going to have a chat with gamers once the third episode is out, and letting them decide to either keep or junk the episodic scheme based on how they liked the three Half Life 2 episodes. Newell asked:

Do you want us to do more episodes? Do you want us to really tighten down the time frames and look at the scope of what we're doing so that that's possible, for us to go back to the large monolithic projects?

Valve is also working on their episodic approach, and that they would want to get some tips from Telltale Games (creator of Sam and Max) as well as World of Warcraft's Blizzard.

Ubisoft announces today that Xbox 360 and Wii owners, as well as those with a Nintendo DS and PlayStation 2, will be able to enjoy a new CSI video game this coming Fall 2007. The new game will be known as CSI: Hard Evidence and is being developed by Telltale Games. The PC version ships with the console versions.

Staying true to the CSI franchise, Hard Evidence continues on the crime-solving brand of experience the public has first come to love on TV. The game itself follows the story of Gil Grissom, Catherine Willows, and the rest of the Las Vegas crew in solving crimes with the help of sophisticated lab equipments and realistic techniques. Other features are:

• More Crime-Solving Action: Break down the evidence and bring suspects to justice in five all-new, bizarre crimes. Unravel longer cases, search bigger crime scenes, and uncover hidden evidence in unique locations like never before.
• Go Deeper into the Evidence: Master new forensic tools and find more evidence than ever. Use the new Garage Lab to examine large pieces of evidence like cars and trucks. Recreate gunfights with ballistic lasers, uncover shocking secrets with video analysis, and much more.
• The Ultimate CSI Experience: Experience your very own CSI episodes as you piece together clues with the real CSI actors. Take part in dramatic interrogations, create grisly crime reenactments, and explore atmospheric crime scenes inspired by the show.

There is still no mention how Wii players will be able to use the motion-sensing controllers but Ubisoft has mentioned that CSI: Hard Evidence has been made compatible to the Wiimote and Nunchuk. What we have below are screenshots from the Xbox 360 build and the trailer video for all versions.

See the game's video after the jump!

The last time we heard from Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga, we were promised that we'll actually be able to play through the entire space opera in cute Lego form - from Anakin's beginnings as a Padawan to the destruction of the Empire (and Ewok-related festivities). We've seen the screenshots, we've busted our sides laughing at the trailer, and now, from E3, is a gameplay video of the multiplatform title Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga that shows clips from all the chapters in Star Wars.

One thing's for sure - despite the cuteness of Lego, the scale of the game is amazing. The lightsaber action is fast and furious, the animations smooth and crisp - and the environments convincing and spectacular. There's some very fun-looking ship-piloting action on the side, too. Greatest point of the video: playing as Darth Vader and force-choking that accursed Jar Jar Binks into submission. OH YEAH!

Enough spoilers from us, enjoy the video!

 

Telltale Games, developers who revived the scruffy duo Sam and Max, have recently announced that they have received US$ 6 million in Series B finances, which include contributions from Granite Ventures and IDG Ventures SF. Telltale plans to make use of the funds for refining new business models for their games and efficient avenues for digital distribution. And included in their list of improvements is their investment in multi-platform development.

"Digital distribution is changing entertainment, and Telltale is helping define the new landscape," said Telltale CEO Dan Connors. Having independently distributed the conclusion of Sam & Max: Season 1 online, Telltale is also looking forward to give other licenses the "episodic treatment."

Granite Ventures and IDG Ventures are investment firms that have been looking for pioneering development teams and business models in the industry. "Telltale has it all—a great group of people who are changing an industry while doing what they love. We look forward to helping them build the next major player in the gaming industry," concluded Granite Ventures managing director Chris Hollenbeck.

As of press time, there have been no details divulged on the Season 2 episodes of Sam & Max.

You've seen the trailer, and now here's some sweet screenshots coming for you that's distinctlyLego Star Wars: The Complete Saga flavored. Yes, it's the game no one thought would actually work. So far, it's shaping up to be a complete laugh riot, perfect for gamers looking for a breath of fresh air from all the drama and trauma.

Not much on the quantity department, but quality's the name of the game and things are looking pretty nice. The Lego characters look cute and chunky - have you ever seen Jabba look THAT adorable? The lightsaber effects are great, and while the stages look flat, it does its job of giving players the feeling that they're actually playing in the movie's environments - barring the fact that the characters and vehicles ARE indeed made up of Lego blocks.

In any case, updates about this highly-anticipated multiplatform game as we get them. In the meantime, why not enjoy the screenshots?

The rest of the screens await after the jump!

Lucas Arts gives us a breath of fresh air - as well as some much-needed hilarity in an industry saturated with mature, story-driven titles - with the latest trailer of Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga, slated for a Fall release. Offering players the chance to rebuild the adventure of the timeless space opera, the latest entry in the surprisingly-popular series encompasses all six chapters of Star Wars, from the Phantom Menace to the Return of the Jedi. It's also to note that no one will be left out in the experience, with the game being published on all next-gen consoles, along with the Nintendo DS.

Check out the video, as it's just too funny to pass up on. Oh, and watch for the game's rendition of the infamous 'Who's your Daddy' scene - comedy gold!

LucasArts and Telltale Games announced today that they are collaborating once more to come up with a new installment to the LEGO Star Wars video game franchise. The new game will be called LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga and will be released Fall 2007 on platforms PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, and DS.

Well, the game is not new in the traditional sense. The movie series' Episode 1 to 6 used to be divided into LEGO Star Wars I and II. LucasArts mentioned that this is not a simple re-compilation as it also includes new characters and features as well as revamped levels. TT Games Director Tom Stone commented,

LucasArts was an amazing partner on LEGO Star Wars II, and working with them on The Complete Saga continues to be a great experience. We're also thrilled to be focusing on next-generation consoles and creating content that plays to the strength of each system.

Speaking of which, the 360 and PS3 versions will both have online capabilities that will allow cooperative two-player, drop-in and drop-out gameplay. The DS and Wii versions, on the other hand, will be focused on the platforms' unique control schemes. All versions will feature 36 Story Mode levels.

Lastly, Telltale mentioned that the Prequel Trilogy characters can now be mixed and matched with those from the Original Trilogy. That means we will finally be seeing the ultimate chick from the mother-daughter tandem of Princess Leia and Amidala, albeit in Lego form.

In league with Blast! Entertainment's Sean Brennan's views on steep development costs, even TellTale Games, makers of the hilarious Sam & Max episodes, agrees that game development just got too big for itself. Sean Brennan, CEO of Blast!, spoke at the Northern Exposure 07 conference and said the high costs were just due to "ego tripping and copycat mentality."

 

Kevin Bruner, executive of TellTale Games, also shares this view with Brennan. "We believe that games are too expensive right now. A lot of not only episodic games but games in general are not priced appropriately. We also think that games are too big," Bruner said.

In his speech entitled "Why Episodic Gaming is Good for Developers," Bruner explained at the Nordic Game Conference the advantages of diving into the episodic business model, much like what Valve Software adapted for the Half-Life franchise. For developing a single title each month, TellTale requires a smaller budget, short term goals, smaller overhead, and gains the ability to interact with customers regularly.

"I think the industry is creating one type of content, which is the thousand-page novel. If you went into a bookstore and every book was a thousand-page novel - not everybody wants that," he explained. He also added that if a game company takes two years to create a game and "screws up," there's no way to correct the mistakes - developers just move on.

To him, it is becoming apparent that the game industry is steering toward one type of game: "the 50-hour first person shooter type thing." Games have become too restrictive and too costly, giving a narrow selection of games for customers to choose.

Bruner believes the Nintendo Wii and casual gaming is cluing the game industry that gamers are looking for something different. TellTale Games focuses on telling stories than marketing action, and he thinks if customers were offered games of similar caliber, they would respond more favorably to such games.

Just a little reminder to all you PAX-goers out there who happened to "have a life" and forgot all about the registration: early-birds must sign up for a three-day pass on or before Saturday, March 31, 2007 before they hike the registration fee back to US$ 45, while those who register at the event itself will have to pay US$ 30 per ticket per day. So it's better to have saved some bucks to ensure you've got a great deal for a wicked time at the 2007 Penny Arcade Expo.

The three day affair will begin at August 24, and should be situated down at the Washington State Trade and Convention Center in Seattle, Washington. That's over 200,000 square feet of leg room! Just about enough space for gaming related tournaments, concerts, contests, booth demonstrations of coming games and a swimming pool. To qualify for the Omegathon tourneys, you've got to be a pre-registrant.

Straight from a press release, Penny Arcade claims that tickets are selling twice as fast than last year (which had over 20,000 gamers attend), so you'd better use four hands for typing and two for mousing around at the Penny Arcade Expo site. And nerds can bob their heads to the music from The OneUps, MC Frontalot, Jonathan Coulton, Freezepop, The Neskimos and Optimus Rhyme.

Remember, every type of gamer is invited, even if you just rap on tables and play musical beat games. So even if you can't relate to the more than 50 companies slated to appear on the floor at PAX 2007, you're still welcome, unless you've come to balk at Penny Arcade like one soul we-could-probably-name-but-we-aren't-going-to.

Expect Microsoft, Sony, Ubisoft, Electronic Arts/Mythic, Sabertooth Games, Telltale Games, the Behemoth, Namco-Bandai, Upper Deck, Wizkids, ArenaNet, Harmonix, and Rockstar Games to show up. And if you miss out on the March 31 deadline, make sure you do pre-register from April 1 to August 1, or else Tyco and Gabe will draw silly caricatures of you and make weird faces...and deny you access to the three-day long Omegathon tournament!