If you happen to sign into Xbox Live at some point today you might have noticed that there are issues with Xbox Live Marketplace. Those problems are not your imagination and are widespread.

Microsoft released a small statement regarding the Marketplace outage on their support page and said that Xbox Live users are experiencing issues when browsing the Games Marketplace, checking out Indie Games from a 360 or Xbox.com, and issues are being reported with the Games for Windows on a PC.

Now we can all await the rumor mill to start saying that hackers have broke Xbox Live Marketplace.

via Microsoft Support

Update: Major Nelson tweeted this last night:

"The Marketplace on the console is back online. The Xbox.com version is on it's way soon."

At this point, it looks like everything is back up and going. Go forth and spend your Microsoft Space Bucks.

According to the Playstation Blog, Asura's Wrath, Capcom's upcoming game that puts hack and slash gameplay in an Asian mythological settings, is planned for a 2012 release on both Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.

It’s not your typical action game where you start out with a small sword and work up to a huge weapon; it doesn’t have that style of progression. However there are various stages where Asura can power up – you have already seen here that he started out with two arms and then he has six, and there will be quite a few transformations along those lines. The character you see here is not all there is.

You can see the epic reveal trailer here, via IGN's Youtube channel: Asura's Wrath: Official Reveal Trailer

That’s just about all we know about Asura’s Wrath right now, other than that it satisfies a common request from modern games fans – the option to choose between Japanese and English voiceover. It’s coming to PlayStation 3 in 2012.

I can just hear the otaku in me screaming out "zomg Asian God of War!". This game looks like it will be incredibly badass.

via the official Playstation Blog

http://youtu.be/xwqMaTxgoCY

via

http://youtu.be/RwyoaSA-0wg

via

Starbreeze CEO, Mikael Nermark made that statement to CVG as the studio who developed the first game of Jackie Estacado's adventure in The Darkness, opened up about not making the sequel, The Darkness II.

2K Games instead chose Digital Extremes who has worked on BioShock, BioShock 2, and various Unreal Tournament games.

The Darkness II is set for release on October 4, 2011 and the story will pick up two years after the events in first game and finds that Jackie used his powers to become the head of the Franchetti crime family.

via CVG

• 1.29 million people participated in the beta
  
• 145 different countries participated in the beta
  
• 249 years worth of matches played
  
• More than 11 million matches completed
  
• More than 927 million kills recorded
  
• More than 131 million executions performed
  
• More than 23 million deaths by chainsaw
  
• Nearly 23 BILLION bullets fired
  
• 4.9 billion ribbons and 291 million medals earned
  
• 435,000 people earned the beta-exclusive Thrashball Cole skin to use in the retail game when it launches in September
  
• 234,000 people earned the beta-exclusive Gold Retro Lancer to use in the retail game when it launches in September
  

Microsoft and Epic Games released those impressive stats in a press release along with another little nugget of information. Gears of War 3 is the new record holder for having the fastest number of Xbox pre-orders in the history of the Xbox's release.

via Joystiq

The new mandatory update has not been compatible with some older models of the Xbox 360 when it comes to the new disc format and Microsoft has announced that they will be replacing those consoles for free with a new Xbox 360 Model S and a 250 GB hard drive.

If you are finding yourself having an issue with reading retail copies of your games after applying the update, Microsoft has said to get in contact with support immediately. If you are planning on scheming Microsoft and just trying to get a new console, do not bother. Microsoft will be verifying your console to ensure that is one of the models that has been affected. Microsoft has also said that they "we are also able to detect this issue over Xbox Live and are proactively reaching out to customers that may be impacted to replace their console."

via Eurogamer

http://youtu.be/EasuwXCp-aQ

via Joystiq and

According to the Gamasutra who posted a link to the FCC document, this service will be a pay to watch television service and is rumored to be either "a cable, FIOS, or satellite company in the US."

Hulu and Netflix are already offered on the current generation of consoles leading many to wonder how this rumor would impact the use of those services as well as what consoles would get this rumored pay to watch television service.

via Gamasutra

In Honest Hearts, you will find yourself going on an adventure that will ultimately lead you to Zion and the "Burned Man". New missions have been added, along with new perks, characters, and achievements that will boost your gamerscore up by 140 points.

Honest Hearts will cost you 800 Microsoft Points.

via Fallout: New Vegas wikia and Xbox Live Marketplace

The Lenticular Special Edition - "with a powershot of extra digital content including the Electrocution Grenade power, Golden Amp and an exclusive Cole MacGrath skin from inFamous 1"

The Luxury Hero Edition - "complete with Lightning Hook downloadable power, Kessler skin, a Cole MacGrath figurine and inFamous comic from graphic novel legends DC Comics, a replica Cole MacGrath messenger bag and the inFamous 2 digital soundtrack"

The "Good" DUALSHOCK 3 Bundle - "your copy of the game will come with a limited edition ‘cosmic blue’ wireless controller. And for the more morally ambiguous out there, take home the ‘evil’ bundle which comes with an exclusive ‘crimson red’ wireless controller"

The Infamous 2 PS3 Bundle - "comes with a copy of the game, 320GB PS3 console and standard black DUALSHOCK 3 Wireless Controller"

The Playstation Blog also announced that these bundles will only be available in certain regions.

via Playstation Blog

Gearbox President Randy Pitchford made the announcement in a "Special Message from Gearbox" video.

http://youtu.be/wsoNz-7xtg0

via VG247

Confirmed today via Mass Effect 3's Executive Producer Casey Hudson's Twitter is the same-sex friendly option meaning that Commander Shepard can engage in relationship acts with anybody regardless of sex.

"Happy to confirm #ME3 supports wider options for love interests incl. same-sex for m&f chars, reactive to how you interact w/them in-game." - Casey Hudson, ME3 Executive Producer

Mass Effect 3 is slated for a quarter one 2012 launch and EA will have the game at this year's E3.

via Twitter

The taped interviews which you can find on Game Informer, shows Amancio talking about the gameplay, historical elements, how Revelations will relate to Assassin's Creed III, and why Revelations didn't get a number.

"We are setting all of the records straight. We are sort of closing all of the loops that have been started that have been left in suspense, and we're going to reveal not only alot of stuff about the first civilization plot line, but we are actually going to conclude the Ezio/Altair storylines and we are going to sort of explain why first of all Ezio is such an important character for the franchise, what his actual role is in all of that plot line, what role Altair plays in that destiny, and ultimately what role Desmond plays..." - Alexandre Amancio, Creative Director Assassin's Creed: Revelations

It was recently revealed through a unique advertising campaign on Facebook that involved fans who "liked" the page, that "master assassin Ezio Auditore walks in the footsteps of his legendary mentor, Altaïr, on a journey of discovery and revelation. It is a perilous path – one that will take Ezio to Constantinople, the heart of the Ottoman Empire, where a growing army of Templars threatens to destabilize the region."

via Game Informer

In an interview with CNN regarding Civ World, Meier opened about what the social version of the game can do that playing over the PC cannot.

"We really weren't looking to make a quote-unquote 'Facebook game'. We were looking at what does Facebook bring us that is unique, that we can leverage and take advantage of with 'Civilization'-style game play.

What was really intriguing to us was being able to emphasize cooperative game play, which was something that really hadn't been a major part of 'Civilization' up to now. A lot of our design in 'Civ World' was taking advantage and using these opportunities for players to work together -- teamwork, communication, planning. Those are all the things that become really important to 'Civ World." - Sid Meier, Civilization series creator

We will have to wait and see whether or not long time fans of the popular PC series will support the social, Facebook version of Civilization.

via CNN

"Betrayed by those he trusted and hunted by the police, he finds himself at the centre of a dark conspiracy and must embark on a personal journey through a corrupt and twisted world, in his search for the truth." - Tore Blystad, Director, Hitman: Absolution

According to Square Enix and IO, a more darker and serious side of Agent 47 will be unleashed in the new game that begins with 47 being chased down by the police and both the movie that has a budget of $100 million and the new game will hopefully in some way tie in together. The movie will feature original story, characters, and will be along the lines of Hitman video games.

"The hope is that the movie will be going in a similar direction, and then when they both come out they will speak the same language. They won't follow the old Hitman games, but rather go with this newer direction." - Tore Blystad, Director, Hitman: Absolution

Also announced is that brother to the late Kung Fu actor David Carradine will be in Hitman: Absolution. Keith Carradine known for his roles in Dexter, Kung Fu, and appeared in numerous other television shows and movie will voice the villian that Agent 47 must rise up against. Agent 47's go to girl will not be voiced by Vivienne McKee this time, but instead actress of White Collar fame, Marsha Thomason will be doing the voice over work and says that 47 and Diana have a "very close relationship".

"Diana is 47's only true human contact. They've known each other an extremely long time, and in the Hitman world, she is what Q is to James Bond. So she sets the assignments, tells him where to go and who to kill." - Marsha Thomason, actress playing Diana Burnwood

Hitman: Absolution is being developed from the ground up and Square and IO are using a dozen Hollywood actors in the game. Hitman: Absolution is due out sometime next year.

via RockPaperShotgun and Eurogamer

http://youtu.be/N3MUAJ_Xv2A

via Joystiq

The new story will take place 17 years after the events in Soul Calibur IV and the main character will be Patroclus who happens to be Sophitia's son.

http://youtu.be/kHmLtgY3S6c

via VG247

After Microsoft made the announcement, many were left wondering why Microsoft would take a gamble on Skype who has a long term debt of $686 million and the company suffered a loss last year of around $7 million according to Wired. Microsoft would also be paying an average $1,000 per customer and only receiving $30 back in profit which is another reason many are left scratching their heads at this decision.

Microsoft has not offered any concrete details as to why they made the purchase, however one has to wonder if Microsoft plans on bringing Skype to the Xbox 360 via Kinect or even merging Windows Live Messenger with the Skype capabilities. There are many possibilites, but until Microsoft announces their exact plans for their purchase of Skype, we will just have to keep guessing.

via Wired

ZEN Pinball THD promises to set a "new standard for realistic ball physics and graphical detail in pinball video games employing cutting-edge visuals, challenging tables, true-to-life ball and table physics and combines them with innovative features not found in any other pinball game."

"We’re really impressed with the never-before-seen experiences that Tegra brings to mobile devices. ZEN Pinball THD really takes advantage of Tegra’s graphics power for out-of-this-world detail and realism. It looks absolutely stunning. Pinball fans are going to love it.” - Zsolt Kigyossy, Managing Director: Zen Studios

There is no set release date for the pinball game, however it will be on hand at the Google I/O Developer Conference in San Fransico on May 10 - 11.

via Zen Studios

via Siliconera

Lobster monsters, UFO's and "cartoony" vehicles? Until more details are made known, this sounds like one Burnout game that might get the pass.

via ESRB

Dr. Gene Spafford, a professor at Purdue Universtity and a security expert took to the stand yesterday and made claims that Sony knew that their servers were at risk for months, because of out of date Apache software.

"....some news reports indicate that Sony was running software that was badly out of date, and had been warned about that risk....

Nonetheless, the increase in sophistication of attackers, and the growth in data do not totally explain all the incidents. My personal conclusion from reviews of reports in the pressand discussions at professional meetings is that operators of these systems — both in government and the private sector — continue to run outmoded, flawed software, fail to follow some basic good practices of security and privacy, and often have insufficient training or support. The most commonly cited reason for these failings is cost. The cost of providing better security and privacy protection is viewed as overhead that is not recovered in increased revenue, and it is usually one of the first things trimmed in budget cuts. Running outdated software and unpatched operating systems exposes citizens to risks and consequences whose cost a company does not bear. Therefore a company does not have an immediate economic incentive to make the investment needed to prevent breaches." - Dr. Gene Shappord via Committee of Energy and Commerce

If this revelation proves to be true, Jeff Fox a Consumer Reports Techonology Editor told The Consumerist that Sony needs to blame Sony.

"If Dr. Spafford's assessment is accurate, it's inexcusable that Sony not only ran obsolete software on servers containing confidential data, but also that the company continued to do so after this information was publicly disclosed..." - Jeff Fox, Consumer Reports Technology Editor

Sony did not directly respond to the latest allegations, however Sony President Sir Howard Stringer released another apology on behalf of Sony. During the apology Stringer still blamed the hackers for the main reason for the security breach.

"I know some believe we should have notified our customers earlier than we did. It’s a fair question. As soon as we discovered the potential scope of the intrusion, we shut down the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services and hired some of the best technical experts in the field to determine what happened. I wish we could have gotten the answers we needed sooner, but forensic analysis is a complex, time-consuming process. Hackers, after all, do their best to cover their tracks, and it took some time for our experts to find those tracks and begin to identify what personal information had — or had not — been taken." - Sir Howard Stringer, Sony President

While the hackers may have caused the security intrusion that left millions of users wondering if their credit card and personal information had been comprimised, Sony needs to start thinking about if the recent allegations of known outdated server software can hold up in court and what this means for the future of Sony in the video game industry if it can be proven.

via Playstation Blog

• Cyber monitoring and surveillance of the Internet to detect exposure of an AllClear ID Plus customer’s personal information, including monitoring of criminal web sites and data recovered by law enforcement. If his/her personal information is found, the customer will be alerted by phone and/or email and will be provided advice and support regarding protective steps to take. The customer will also receive monthly identity status reports. Debix works with an alliance of cyber-crime experts from the government, academia and industry to provide these services.
  
• Priority access to licensed private investigators and identity restoration specialists. If an AllClear ID Plus customer receives an alert, or otherwise suspects that he/she may be the victim of identity theft, the customer can speak directly, on a priority basis, with an on-staff licensed private investigator, who will conduct a comprehensive inquiry. In the case of an identity theft, the customer can work with an identity restoration specialist to contact creditors and others, and take necessary steps to restore the customer’s identity.
  
• A $1 million identity theft insurance policy per user to provide additional protection in the event that an AllClear ID Plus customer becomes a victim of identity theft. This insurance would provide financial relief of up to $1 million for covered identity restoration costs, legal defense expenses, and lost wages that occur within 12 months after the stolen identity event.
  

To get the full post, head over to Sony's blog here: http://blog.us.playstation.com

Yesterday, Sony called out Anonymous and said that they are to blame for the reason that the security breach happened, because Son'y defenses were down while dealing with previous attacks from Anonymous. Anonymous fired back at Sony in a press release for Congress stating that they had nothing to do with the credit card theft.

"While we are a distributed and decentralized group, our ‘leadership’ does not condone credit card theft, We are concerned with the erosion of privacy and fair use, the spread of corporate feudalism, the abuse of power and the justifications of executives and leaders who believe themselves immune personally and financially for the actions they undertake in the name of corporations and public office..." - Anonymous, Hacktivist Group

The security breach that has launched an investigation by the FBI and angered not only users, but members of government, has left the PSN down for weeks and Sony is trying to get service back up and running for it's users by the end of the month.

via Games Beat