The European Nintendo Wii Virtual Console service will be getting two Commodore 64 and two Sega Master System this week. To find out more about these games, head on over to the full article for more information.

It was roughly a few weeks ago that Emotiv was able to introduce their EPOC neuroheadset to the whole world.

Now we got wind that the company is looking for candidates to be the beta evaluators for upcoming brain-controlled gadget. Find out the details after the jump!

Curiously enough, Sega Europe's bigwig Mike Hayes has hinted the company's plans to merge with rival publishers and developers in the future. Coinciding with Vivendi Games and Activision's merger on Activision Blizzard, did this recent consolidation of past rival companies spell a trend of more mergers to come? More details on Sega's plans after the jump.

The latest report released by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) reveal that the video game industry grew four times faster than the U.S. economy in 2003 to 2006. After seeing 17% annual growth, gaming left the national economy's 4% in the dust.

More interesting findings await at the full article.

Publisher Rising Star Games announced today that it will handle the distribution duties of No More Heroes in Europe. The title will be exclusively available on the Nintendo Wii platform and is being developed by Grasshopper Manufacture.

It will be released in Japan this coming December. Rising Star Games' counterpart for North America is Ubisoft. No More Heroes, the publisher added, will be released in both North America and Europe in February 2008. Rising Star Games Managing Director Martin Defries had this to say:

Rising Star Games is very excited to be bringing this latest project from Suda 51 to the European market. He is without doubt a legendary creative powerhouse within the gaming industry. No More Heroes is shaping up to be a widely anticipated Q1 title for both the trade and consumers alike.

No More Heroes features the story of Travis Touchdown who grew up in the fictional city of Santa Destroy, California. He then came across a beam katana (light saber) one day and suddenly found himself amidst a deadly organization. To prove himself worthy of respect, he tries to work up to the top of the organization by killing other assassins.

A few features of this game that should excite Nintendo Wii players is the use of the Wiimote as a beam katana as well as the different wrestling moves that can be pulled off using the motion-sensitive controllers.

In an effort to raise fitness awareness in schools, California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger will be hosting a Dance Dance Revolution Governor's Challenge for all K-12 students, a nice change of air considering his stance against violent video games.

Konami's Dance Dance Revolution gaming franchise will be used as a workout facility in Marvin Elementary School's new fitness center located in Los Angeles. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger will also grace the facility's grand opening with his presence in the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Aside from making normally couch-potato kids from 765 West Virginia schools dance and tap their way into fitness as part of the West Virginia Initiative, Dance Dance Revolution is also being used as an instrument in childhood obesity studies.

Will the old guv'nor show his moves as well? Do check this space for updates.

Check out more information about the Governor's challenge in the Read link!

In a staggering contrast with the commercial success of Wii and DS consoles, it seems that Nintendo of America (NoA) is having some problems on the corporate level. All of these began when the company announced its decision to move its headquarters either in San Francisco from Redmond.

A couple of months ago, we learned that NoA is looking for someone to replace VP Perrin Kaplan. Then a suspicious retirement leak for Harrison circulated around the Internet. Well, it turned out that the leak is not at all suspicious because George Harrison has just confirmed that he is indeed leaving the Nintendo family behind.

"I have confirmed to all employees that I will be leaving at the end of December and not making the move to California," Harrison told Reuters via phone. The VP first joined Nintendo back in 1992 as Director of Advertising and Promotions.

And we are sure, that he will be missed by Nintendo and its fans.

As expected, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has filed a notice of appeal to the recent decision of courts that declared California's video game violence law unconstitutional. According to the said bill signed back in 2005, the sale of video games is restricted to anyone below 18 years of age. The Governor explained:

Many studies show the link between plagying ultra-violent video games and violent behavior. We have a responsibility to our kids and our communities to protect against the effects of games that depict ultra-violent actions. We protect our children from buying inappropriate movies and ought to be able to protect them from buying inappropriate video games as well.

In a counter move, the Entertainment Software Association or ESA has filed a motion to Judge Ronald M. Whyte of the Northern District of California for the reimbursement of attorney fees and other expenses during the trial from Schwarzenegger. The amount bring asked by the association totals US$ 324,480. ESA President Michael Gallagher had this to say:

California citizens should be outraged at their elected leaders. Hard-earned tax dollars were spent on defending this law that California's state leaders knew was unconstitutional... From early on, the industry warned Governor Schwarzenegger and Senator Yee that this bill was unconstitutional and would be thrown out by the courts and that California taxpayers would pay the cost.

Both the ESA and the Entertainment Merchants Association (EMA) believe that the governor's appeal is going to be a disappointment as other rulings on prior similar cases are consistent with the decision of the California courts. EMA President Bo Andersen gave this piece of advice to Governor Schwarzenegger:

The court's ruling is consistent with rulings that have barred eight similar laws around the nation, and we fully expect it to be upheld on appeal. Rather than wasting more public funds in trying to defend a patently unconstitutional law, we believe the state should invest in helping parents make informed decisions about the video games brought into their homes.

Common Sense Media, an organization that reviews games for the benefit of parents and guardians, has joined the protests against the ESRB decision to give Manhunt 2 (PSP, Wii) an M rating. Their protests echoes those of Leland Yee, senator of California who recently demanded that ESRB reveal their reasons for giving the game its new rating.

 

Common Sense Media CEO and founder James Steyer gave a statement summarizing the already popular issues surrounding the violence of Manhunt 2, then directly threatens to undermine the ESRB if they don't provide the reasons for overturning the rating. Steyer's demands are the same as Yee's:

It is clear that by lowering the rating, the ESRB has all but ensured that the game will be marketed and sold through channels popular with kids and teens – and, despite industry claims to the contrary, kids under 17 can and do purchase M-rated games. Before Manhunt 2 is released for sale, parents deserve an explanation – they need to know the facts about this grossly violent game before it goes on the market.

By failing to explain their decision and, in turn, provide the transparency that consumers need if they are to trust the ESRB’s ratings, the board threatens to undermine a ratings system that has many positive aspects and that could serve as an important tool for parents.

The statement seems to be directly in contrast to the ESRB's previous statement stating their position on the matter, suggesting that it may indeed be a direct challenge:

Publishers submit game content to the ESRB on a confidential basis. It is simply not our place to reveal specific details about the content we have reviewed, particularly when it involves a product yet to be released...

It is a parent's rightful place to make choices for their own children. The ESRB and console manufacturers provide families with the tools and information to help them do so.

Common Sense Media launched a video game education campaign back in May with Best Buy. The campaign's goal is to inform parents about the games they buy for their kids on Best Buy's website. Will the protests present more problems for Manhunt 2 before its release on October 31? Updates as we get them.

After ESRB president Patricia Vance released her statement standing by ESRB's decision to re-rate the controversial Manhunt 2 to Mature, California senator Leland Yee had this to ask: "What is ESRB trying to hide?"

Yee recently questioned ESRB's move to grant Rockstar's Manhunt 2 (for Wii, PSP and PS2) its much-desired M rating, suspicious about what he apparently deems as a shady dealing between ESRB and Rockstar.

To be more specific, what upset Yee was that the ratings board refused to disclose the details why they changed their minds and took off Manhunt 2's previous Adults Only rating, letting it slip by with M for Mature.

It should be noted at this point that Vance already explained the reason behind ESRB's secrecy: game content is confidential, especially if the game in question is not yet released. Simply put, ESRB does not have the right to disclose such details.

It looks like the Manhunt 2 controversy just won't die down, at least not yet. With the way things are going, Manhunt 2 may just be the tip of the iceberg, and the attention may soon shift to yet another game. What do gamers think? What do you think? Do hit the comments button below to share your thoughts.



Buy: [Manhunt 2 (PSP)]
Buy: [Manhunt 2 (Wii)]