The winners for the PAX 10 Independent Games have been announced by The Penny Arcade Expo organizers, and these 10 winners just might see their games picked up by publishers. The PAX 10 is known for supporting the indie development game scene by giving them publicity to generate that interest from the bigwigs. See who's strutting their wares on this year's showroom after the jump.

LucasArts has released more details for the upcoming Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Republic Heroes game which is currently being developed by Krome Studios for PC, PS3, PSP, Wii, and Xbox 360. LucasArts Singapore is taking care of the DS version. More after the jump.

While other publishers are sacking people left and right, Koei is apparently in good spirits and is in gear to move forward. Edge reports that Koei is gonna double the manpower in their Singapore studio to strengthen the Koei titles. More Dynasty titles perhaps?

The organizers of the Games Convention Asia (GCA) and Games Convention Asia Conference (GCAC) must be very happy about the success of last year's events. This year's show has already been dated so  those who plan on attending might want to start clearing their schedules. For the venue and dates, head on over to the full article.

The Games Convention Asia Conference is currently underway and has attracted respected delegates from over 20 countries. Industry bigwigs from North America, Asia and Europe were all at hand to share their thoughts on the state of the business.

 

The inaugural GCAC started on September 6 and wraps up on Sunday with an opener courtesy of  Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, and Second Minister for Information, Communication, and the Arts.

Managing Director for the Conference & Exhibition Management Services  Edward Liu and Leipzig Trade Fair President Wolfgang Marzin were also in attendance to welcome everyone. The two are the main organizers of the Games Convention events.

Marzin commended the host nation at the opening ceremonies and said, "Singapore is the gateway to the booming Asian-Pacific market, and opens up exciting new opportunities for the global games industry." Bob Wallace of Strategic Alternatives agrees:

The games business is a fast-growing entertainment market with participants from all nations. Asia, however, is the fastest growing part of this market, and many new world-class games companies are expected to emerge from Asia. GCA promises to be the first truly pan-Asian games conference showcasing game products and companies, and it is not to be missed by those who look toward the future.

The GCAC is happening alongside the GC Asia exhibit, which shows off the latest in the gaming industry, encompassing all platforms from consoles, PCs, handhelds and mobile phones.

The GCAC is expected to go off with a bang when Electronic Arts Worldwide executive of Music and Marketing Steve Schnur takes on the podium and offers his thoughts. Schnur says he is proud to be a part of GCAC and is excited about his turn to speak.

During the first ever Games Convention Asia Conference (GC Asia Conference) held in Singapore, many countries proved how the industry is also strong in Asia outside Japan. Singapore, known as a big market for MMORPGs, even took a step forward to announce that they're ready to become a games industry center of excellence.

Minister for community development, Vivian Balakrishnan, revealed that around US$ 330 million (SG$ 500 million) of government funds went to research and development in the digital interactive sector.

A student exchange program called "GAMBIT" is also under way for Singapore and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to share their expertise.

Other parts of South East Asia expressed interest in the industry. A memorandum that "signifies the recognition of each other as ideal counterparts for future collaboration and co-operation in this region for the benefit of the games industry" was signed by ten Asian game developers associations from various countries like Japan, Korea, Australia, Thailand and Vietnam.

The Asia-Pacific is expected to contribute 40% of gaming industry's US$ 39.8 billion annual revenue by the end of 2008, and Singapore wants a piece of the cake. "Singapore intends to be part of the action," said Balakrishnan.

US attorney Jack Thompson has commended the UK for banning Take-Two Interactive's Manhunt 2 from sale, adding that he "would absolutely like to see the US and other countries following the UK’s lead."

Thompson said in an article published in MCV UK that the British have a working model where a law has a functional sanction that prevents people from purchasing the concerned material. "I think you all have it right and I think the ruling on Manhunt 2 was spot on – and I see also that Take 2’s The Darkness was banned in Singapore," he says to the UK ratings body BBFC.

Thompson also took a swipe at nemesis publisher and developer tandem Take-Two Interactive and Rockstar Games, saying that the fact that they made Manhunt 2 made it all the more likely for a ban to be imposed. The high visibility of Take 2 and Rockstar – the poster child for what’s wrong in the industry – made it more likely that it would get a ban," comments the activist lawyer.

"In a way the BBFC rating is redundant because the industry itself, the format holders, have banned it," Thompson says in reference to what he says is a sensible act by Sony and Nintendo to not allow an Adults Only-rated game to be sold in their platforms.

And if you think gamers are the only people excited about Grand Theft Auto IV's launch, you're in for a shock. Thompson says "the next big thing that’s going to hit is Grand Theft Auto 4 and we’ll have to wait and see whether or not that deserves a very restricted rating or doesn’t get rated at all."

The US attorney then concluded with optimism that Americans will adopt a similar rating system to that of the UK, especially Thompson says, if Hillary Clinton becomes the next President. "This has been one of her issues for many years, so I think if she’s elected you’ll see a real push from the White House to have a national sanction hooking into the Government’s rating system."

Gaming in Asia is often associated with Japan, South Korea and China, but the region as a whole is catching up to the growing industry as evidenced by more events being organized to forge cooperation and spread new knowledge on the field.

Games Convention Asia Conference (GCAC) is among the first of such large scale events outside the three aforementioned nations. It's the equivalent of Europe's GCDC and this year, Singapore is hosting it.

The event is none-business in nature and more oriented on talks which seek to impart insights on the state of the industry. However, such conferences have been known to be venues where parties interested in starting commercial ties get acquainted and start partnerships in the long run.

Speakers from Europe, North America and Asia are in the roster of those who will be taking the stage as facilitators of discussions. Bob Bates, story writer behind Unreal Tournament II, will be there, as well as Steve Schnur, EA's Worldwide Executive for Music and Audio.

Local stalwart Chris Natsuume will also be among the first to speak in the events. He was largely responsible for the creation of the game Far Cry. Frank Sliwka, GCDC Project Manager, commented on the new event, stating:

We are confident that the GC Asia Conference will establish itself as the leading platform for the game development community in Asia. The program we put forward will provide attendees with the kind of practical knowledge and numerous networking opportunities for which GC development conferences are well known.

The Games Convention Asia Conference will commence September 6 and last for two days, although no particular venue in Singapore has been named as of press time.

For days now, Nintendo has been promising to increase its production capacity to be able to meet the ever increasing demand for Wii units. Even Nintendo president Satoru Iwata himself gave word earlier today that more consoles will be delivered throughout the world.

Well, this next one serves as proof to that promised commitment. The much-coveted Wii will finally be available in Singapore. Since the marker is relatively small distribution will be handled by distributor MaxSoft and not by Nintendo.

The console will be bundled with video game title Wii Sports - the same strategy employed by Nintendo when Wiis were first shipped to different markets. Anyway, the consoles will be set loose any time this week and we listed down some of the important launch details below. All prices are with an additional local tax known as GST (Good Service Tax).

• The Nintendo Wii console alone is priced at S$ 499 (US$ 328.64).
• The console will still remain at S$ 499 come this July, when the GST is increased from 5% to 7%.
• The Wii will be sold as a bundle at retail, which comes with one game and one additional Wiimote controller for S$ 649 (US$ 428.15).
• It'll come with an officially approved 220v adapter.
• Wii titles will be priced at S$ 79.90 (US$ 52.66).
• The Wiimote controller will be priced at S$ 69.90 (US$ 46.01).
• The Nunchuk attachment controller will be priced at S$ 39.90 (US$ 26.29).
  
• The Wii Classic controller will be priced at S$ 39.90

If you're itching to dance and party to some cool music (like this writer right here), then we suggest you head off to Singapore to catch the famous Sega music machine Yuzo Koshiro. Yep, he'll be spinning some tables, but not until June, that is.

Oh, but we're sure you can practice your dance moves while waiting for that. Koshiro will be playing at the PLAY! concert (A Video Game Symphony) at the Esplanade Concert Hall, Singapore, dishing out his classic videogame jams. He is noted for his works on the background tunes for Streets of Rage, Revenge of Shinobi, ActRaiser, and more recently, for the DS title Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin.

If you aren't aware of just how much of a big name Yuzo Koshiro is, then it's time to get your head out of the sand and get to know him. Included in this post is a sample of his remixes from Pink Sweets. Yes, press on that play button, we strongly suggest. Oh, and for more info on the PLAY! concert, check out their official site via our Read link below.