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Nintendo’s been doing a bit of digging and it turns out it’s already won the console wars. If we’re only talking about the ladies, that is. A whopping 80% of American female primary gamers (the person who primarily uses the console rather than the occasional dabblers) do their thing on the Wii, which we see as a clear indication to the graphics-obsessed Xbox 360 and PS3 developers that women prefer their games to be fun to play, rather than just look at. Maybe if we also stopped dressing female characters in swimsuits, they’d find non-Wii games relatable too — that’s just a guess though, probably wrong.

Nintendo Wii has lion’s share of female console gamers originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Nov 2009 06:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Seems like we just can’t go a week without some corporate power plays or mudslinging making our pages. Back in October, Datel promised it would “remedy” the situation created by Microsoft’s forthcoming (now present) Dashboard update locking out its higher capacity memory modules. The accessory company was the first (and only) third-party supplier of memory cards for the Xbox 360, but it seems that MS took a dislike to the MicroSD-expandable Max Memory units and has since taken the unusual step of downgrading the console to being able to read only chips up to 512MB, essentially taking Datel’s 2GB+ wares out of commission. Yeah, classy. Datel’s retaliation is in the finest Anglo-Saxon legal tradition, namely to assert antitrust concerns and to claim its right to act as a competitor to Microsoft in the memory market for Redmond’s own console. It all sounds rather silly to us too, and could probably have been avoided by a rational compromise, but what’s the fun in that?

Datel sues Microsoft, wants its Xbox 360 market back originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 05:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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To celebrate the release of Forza Motorsport 2, Microsoft made a big deal about its Wireless Racing Wheel, a cable-free force-feedback controller for racers that was only really wireless if you didn’t want force-feedback. It was a reasonable compromise and a reasonably good wheel, but it just didn’t compare to the high-end stuff supported by that other great console racing series: Gran Turismo. In GT5 you can hit the track while gripping things like Logitech’s G25 or G27, either of which make Microsoft’s offering look like a toy. With the release of Forza 3 there’s a new contender available, the Porsche Turbo S from Fanatec. It’s a much more serious offering with more capable feedback, proper shifters with a clutch, and a rather more impressive design. But it also has a rather more impressive price tag: $249 to start and, like a real Porsche, going way up from there with options. Is it worth the entrance price or are you better off putting your money toward race tires? Read on to find out.

Continue reading Fanatec Porsche 911 Turbo Wheel for Xbox 360 review

Filed under: Gaming

Fanatec Porsche 911 Turbo Wheel for Xbox 360 review originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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After that false alarm about an October release date, the Tony Hawk: Ride bandwagon was all set for departure on November 17 and that’s exactly what’s happened. Available for a cent under $120, the new game / peripheral combo will allow players to shimmy, gesture, and ollie their way to (simulated) skateboarding immortality on the PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii. The earliest European availability we can see is offered by Amazon UK, which indicates a December 4 launch for the Queen’s isles and a discounted £89 ($149) price. You can check out our own feets-on with that wireless controller right here or, if you so wish, peruse the full PR at the read link. What’s not optional, however, is missing the bonus “making of” video for that most radical of peripherals, which we’ve lovingly prepared for you just after the break.

Continue reading Tony Hawk Ride ready to rock indoor tricks in the US (video)

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

Tony Hawk Ride ready to rock indoor tricks in the US (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 07:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony’s said to be launching its PS3 motion controllers sometime early next year and, while that company isn’t always the most reliable when it comes to shipping things on time, Microsoft must surely want to get its competition out sooner than later. Last we heard, though, the 360 Natal attachment wouldn’t be ready to compete until next holiday season — but would at least sell for an attractive “impulse buy” price point as low as $50. Now Microsoft’s Neil Thompson (the same guy who told us Xbox2Go was a lie) is shattering your 2010 wish list already, denying last week’s report and saying the company has “a lot of things” left to figure out before its release. Something tells us MS will handle this a little better than the Wireless N launch debacle.

Filed under: Gaming

Microsoft compulsively quashes Natal ‘impulse buy’ rumors originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 07:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Gaming, Wireless

Mad Catz takes aim at Microsoft with its own Wireless-N Gaming Adapter originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 19:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The NPD has released its US video game industry figures for October, which reveal that total monthly revenue from hardware, software and accessories among all manufacturers fell to $1.07 billion, constituting a 19 percent drop from what the American gamer spent over the same period last year. After being toppled from its chart-leading ways in September by a price cut-boosted PS3, the Wii has regained its sales throne by chopping $50 off its own entry fee, making itself buoyant in the US, if not the world. The PS3’s own sales have suffered a slump after the September euphoria, while the 360 is still wearing the dunce cap in third place. Microsoft’s response has been to keep banging that drum about being the only console to show year-to-date growth, but when you’re selling less than half as many consoles as Nintendo, you have to grasp at whatever straws are nearby. Speaking of Nintendo, its DS sales so far this year have continued at such a rate as to threaten its own 2008 hardware sales record — set by the Wii — with ten million units sold. So there you have it: Sony fails to maintain its September lead, Nintendo keeps churning, and Microsoft keeps hoping for better times ahead. Full list of figures after the break.

Continue reading NPD: Wii reclaims lead in US sales, but console gaming market shrinks by a fifth

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds

NPD: Wii reclaims lead in US sales, but console gaming market shrinks by a fifth originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 11:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GameStop has been dropping hints about its digital download plans for a little while now, but it looks to have done its most extensive and official talking about the matter yet at the recent BMO Capital Management Digital Entertainment conference, where it confirmed that it will start testing the program “early next year” with kiosks in an unspecified number of stores. That program will apparently work in conjunction with services “such as Microsoft Corp’s Xbox Live and Sony Corp’s PlayStation Network,” and will focus primarily on add-on content rather than full game downloads. Why’s that, you ask? Well it seems that GameStop thinks “a large market for full game downloads is not imminent, (but) the add-on downloadable market will grow” — a view that some would obviously beg to differ with.

[Via Joystiq]

Filed under: Gaming

GameStop to start testing game downloads early next year originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 02:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember all those fantastic features that Microsoft promised were in the works for its Xbox 360 back at E3? Get ready folks, because they’re all arriving in five days. At an undisclosed time on November 17th, users will be able to login to Xbox LIVE and check out the totally bodacious new portals available to kill time and act social without actually combing your hair. As we’d heard, Facebook, Twitter and Last.fm (US and UK only) modules will all be featured, not to mention on-demand 1080p / 5.1-channel HD video through the Zune Video outlet. In case that’s not enough (and be honest, it’s never enough), users will also see a new “News and More” section in the “Inside Xbox” channel with streams from MSNBC, The New Yorker and Dilbert. Yeah, Dilbert. Hop on past the break for a few video demonstrations, and then get back to your Modern Warfare 2 binge before your teammates see you slacking off.

Continue reading Xbox LIVE gets 1080p Zune Video store, Twitter, Facebook and more on November 17th (video)

Filed under: Gaming, Software

Xbox LIVE gets 1080p Zune Video store, Twitter, Facebook and more on November 17th (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Look what just arrived in the mail. Yes, we are aware of your extreme jealousy.

Filed under: Gaming

Limited edition ‘Modern Warfare 2′ Xbox 360 unboxing originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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