General Discussion

The beautiful Hikari Yamaguchi who started her career as a bikini model and turned into a Japanese spokesperson for Xbox has been paralyzed in an accident at her home. The 19 year old from Japan slipped on a balcony at her residence and suffered a cervical spine fracture that has left her paralyzed. At the tender age of 12, Hikari began her career as a model and since then has appeared in DVD’s, photobooks, and television shows. She was offered a host for Japan Inside Xbox in 2009 and has been there since. via Feed the Gamer Tweet This Post View the full article

Play.com is reporting on the specifications of the Kinect, and that "this information is based on specifications supplied by manufacturers...". So yeah, it's probably real. Here is the kicker though. In the specifications is says that the Kinect can recognize and track up to 6 people, including 2 active players. WHAAA!?!? Really? So all those videos of families dancing around stupidly in front of their television are bogus because ALL of them aren't playing the games? Only two of them at a time? And the Kinect also only has the ability to map those two active players to Live Avatars? Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaame! http://www.gamespot.com/news/6267556.html?tag=latestheadlines…

http://www.q13fox.com/news/kcpq-xbox-labels-autistic-child-01252011,0,5767271.story FUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hate sensationalist stories like this. The kid cheated. Even Stepto had to get involved and confirm that there were illegally obtained achievements, but the above news story makes it seem like Microsoft is TEH DEVIL!

Incase you missed what was added to the Xbox Live Marketplace for the week of October 10, you can find it all here in one little nifty recap. Deal of the Week – Mass Effect 2 (All deals are good for Gold members until October 18) Overlord - 400 MS points Kasumi Stolen Memory – 400 MS points Suit – 160 MS points Helmet – 80 MS points Demo Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II Dragon Ball: Raging Blast 2 Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 Game Add Ons Alan Wake: The Writer -560 MS points Dead Rising 2: The Psycho Skills Pack – 160 MS points XBLA Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 - 1200 MS points Dead Space Ignition – 400 MS points (If you preordered Dead Space 2 from certain retailers lik…

Xbox Live Arcade is throwing a party and you are invited! The Xbox Live Arcade House Party begins on February 16th with the release of the prequel to Contra: Hard Corps, Hard Corps: Uprising and ends on March 16th with Full House Poker that is replacing fan favorite, 1 vs. 100. Other games being released during this XBLA shindig are: February 16 Hard Corps: Uprising, 1200 Microsoft Points February 23 Bejeweled Blitz, 800 Microsoft PointsMarch 2, Beyond Good & Evil HD, 800 Microsoft PointsMarch 9 Torchlight, 1200 Microsoft PointsMarch 16 Full House Poker, 800 Microsoft Pointsvia Major Nelson View the full article

Xbox Live’s countdown to 2011 continues with Deal Day 4. Today you can find Mass Effect 2′s Lair of the Shadow Broker, Kasumi: Stolen Memory, and Overlord reduced to 200 MS points each. Also discounted is the Police Office outfit for your avatar at 120 MS points. via Major Nelson View the full article

“Predator”, an Xbox Live hacker who claims he has had over 35 console bans and hacked his way into Trixie360′s account last year, has released a new video on Youtube showcasing his latest hacking victim, Xbox Live’s Policy Enforcement Lead, Stephen “Stepto” Toulouse and in his video states that Toulouse had it coming. “Predator” who spoke to Joystiq about hacking into Toulouse’s account claims that this proves that everybody’s account is open for hacking and that he only wants to help. “I’m simply letting them know I’m willing to help them secure accounts from future hackers. All accounts are open for hacking.” Besides hacking into Toulouse’s and Trixie360′s accounts he …

During GDC 2011, Gamasutra Editor in Chief, Brandon Sheffield and Game Developer Magazine held a discussion with some of the most successful Xbox Live Indie Game developers including James Silva, Robert Boyd, Nathan Fouts, and Ian Stoker. They all provided insight and a little bit of ranting about the games that they create for the indie lineup. According to James Silva who created the 2009 successful indie title, I MAED A GAM3 W1TH ZOMBIES 1N IT!!!1 which has sold 308,000 copies since it’s release in 2009, the developers are not allowed to create games involving killing things like Nazi’s and hunting people. “That’s like an inherent human right that’s been taken away…

Tis the season for discounts on the Xbox Live Marketplace. Beginning on December 21st and lasting until December 31, some titles available in the XBLA will be discounted as well as a some Game Add Ons. Super Meat Boy – 800 MS points (33% off) Comic Jumper – 800 MS points (33% off) Toy Soldiers – 800 MS points (33% off) Banjo Tooie – 600 MS points (50% off) Castle Crashers – 600 MS points (50% off) The UnderGarden – 400 MS points (50% off) Risk Factions – 400 MS points (50% off) After Burner Climax – 400 MS points (50% off) Carcassonne – 400 MS points (50% off) Borderland’s Claptrap New Revolution – 400 MS points (50% off) via Major Nelson View the full article

Xbox Live Arcade Full House Poker ~ March 16, 800 MS Points Ghostbusters ~ March 23, 800 MS Points Swarm ~ March 23, 1200 MS Points Islands of Wafku ~ March 30, 800 MS Points Seisou Kouki Strania ~ March 30, 800 MS Points Rush ‘N’ Attack Ex-Patriot ~ March 30, 800 MS Points Deal of the Week Sonic 4: Episode 1 ~ March 22-March 27, 800 MS Points A World of Keflings ~ March 29-April 3, 400 MS Points Worms 2 : Armageddon ~March 29-April 3, 200 MS Points Worms 2 Battle Pack ~ March 29-April 3, 400 MS Points Raskulls ~ March 29-April 3, 400 MS Points Games on Demand Call of Juarez ~ March 22 Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs ~ March 22 Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. 2 ~ March 29 Split S…

Here is your Xbox Live Marketplace Roundup for the week of March 27. Current Deal of the Week A World of Keflings – 400 MS Points Raskulls – 400 MS Points Worms 2: Armaeddon – 400 MS Points Worms 2: Battle Pack – 200 MS Points Deal of the Week Beginning on April 5th Battlefield Bad Company 2 Vietnam – 600 MS Points Onslaught Mode – 200 MS Points Kit Shortcut Bundle Pack – 600 MS Points Specact Upgrade Bundle – 240 MS Points Battlefield 1943 – 600 MS Points Xbox Live Arcade Islands of Wakfu – 800 MS Points Rush N Attack Ex-Patriot – 800 MS Points Strania – 800 MS Points Coming to the XBLA on April 6th Dishwasher: Vampire Smile – 800 MS Points Add Ons You Don’t Know Jack…

Gamertags that are in use and have been considered abandoned are now being resurrected so that gamers who want a gamertag change can now use them. According to Major Nelson the process will take some time and that gamers should check back regularly to see if a name that they would like is now available, because they are adding newly revived gamertags daily. via Major Nelson Tweet This Post View the full article

Let's talk about it in here. What do we know so far? Feel free to add what you may know. SONY PLAYSTATION NEO: Supposedly using same CPU as original PS4, except overlocking the 8 core chips from 1.6ghz to 2.1 ghz. Improved GPU from 800mhz to 911mhz and more cores to use Increased memory from 8G at 176GB/s to 218GB/s Releasing sometime late 2016 (October, most likely to run alongside the PSVR) Launch "Multi Bundle" is set for $499, includes headset, "processor unit", PS camera, Move system, and games. Probably a whole new console SKU, but also an "add-on" device that can plug into original PS4 that comes packaged with the …

http://uk.gamespot.com/news/6312481.html?tag=updates%3Beditor%3Ball%3Btitle%3B4

Not sure if people have seen this, head over to Major Nelson to sign up. http://majornelson.com/ Xbox 360 System Update Preview I am happy to announce that we’re doing an Xbox 360 System Update Preview program for our next release, and the opportunity to sign up is now available. We are conducting an open call for US based participants* for a public preview to help us prepare for an updated Xbox 360 disc format. This is an important update as we continually strive to improve our products and we could not do so without the help of our great Xbox community. As part of the preview program, you will receive a copy of Halo: Reach along with other possible rewards. Much like…

This is the new Gamercard, via Major Nelson.com As announced previously on Major Nelson’s blog, today is the day that a mandatory dashboard update will roll out. Upon turning on your Xbox 360, you will prompted to download the update which will re-enable the “boot to disc option” on the dashboard. Another update will be coming to Xbox.com on January 20 that will change the way your gamercard looks and included in this update is the removal of “gamerzone”. via Major Nelson View the full article

Earlier today, A group of savvy Internet users discovered an exploit loop in Sony's password reset system for PSN, thus forcing Sony to shut down PSN for a little while. Read the rest, here.

3D PORN! http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/film-news/7946572/Race-is-on-to-make-the-first-3D-porn-movie.html (just an article, don't get too excited.)

http://m.theatlantic.com/life/archive/2011/10/you-are-not-so-smart-why-we-cant-tell-good-wine-from-bad/247240/

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Pick a gift for the person above your post. I'll start off with a gift for Santa: A new Rudolf

Was reading Gizmodo this morning and came across some mighty interesting stuff. I'll try to summarize a bit, but you may want to check out the original article over here. Tracking cookies and URL requests are pretty common these days, but tracking an incredible amount of your personal medical history, status and other factors should be extremely concerning. It's come to light that embedded within Healthcare.gov are a large amount of tracking URLs and requests that are sending this information to sites like Doubleclick, Yahoo, Chartbeat, and even Twitter and Youtube!! (There is a chart in the original article showing a partial list of these external sites Health…

Many things can be created with a 3D printer. What will the government say we can and cannot print out for ourselves? Medicine? prosthetic limbs? Guns? This is a technology that is already present and will only get better and cheaper to own. Heck, you could even have a 3D printer, printed out for you by someone who already owns one. http://youtu.be/rO54gzfite4 http://www.defcad.com/ Let's discuss this.

What are yours? Mine are: 1. Legend of zelda: Majoras Mask (N64) 2. Tales of Symphonia (GC) 3. TES IV: Oblivion (360) 4. Resident Evil 4 (GC) 5. Batman: Arkham City (360) 6. Banjo Tooie (N64) 7. LoZ: Ocarina of Time (N64) 8. Dragonball Z: Legacy of Goku 2 (GBA) 9. LoZ: Twilight Princess 10. Sonic Adventure 2:Battle (GC)

Wow. In the cosmic scale of things, this friggin' asteroid is coming REALLY close to the earth. It's about a quarter of a mile wide so colliding with us would do some serious damage.