David Jaffe, the God of War creator who will quit Twisted Metal dev Eat Sleep Play after its development, has discussed his his plans following the move.

“I will be with Eat Sleep Play until we finish what’s called the ‘maintenance contract’ we have and have been working on with Sony,” Jaffe has told Joystiq.

“That will allow us, post-launch, to stay and address issues that there’s no way we can know of. Cleaning things up in terms of balance, bugs, tuning, tweaks.”

From there, Jaffe will build up a team to pursue multiple new projects. “There’s four games I would love to do, the one I do really depends on the team I can put together and the money that I can find to make it,” he said.

“There’s a survival-horror genre in there, a real low-budget survival horror, kinda guerilla film making style. Not in terms of the look, but in terms of that kind of financing and that kind of production.”

Jaffe has also said there are currently no plans for DLC or a sequel to Twisted Metal, but he’d love to return to the series “some day”.

It’s almost a bit… sad. Sniff…

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The Australian interactive games industry netted $ 1.5 billion in 2011 according to a report by the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association.

Sony will offer digital-only versions of games cheaper than their on-shelf counterparts $ 1.5 billion may seem like a healthy figure, but according to research conducted by NPD Group Australia the total revenue from video games in 2011 actually “contracted” by 12.8 percent compared to the 2010 figure.

According to the release the $ 1.5 billion figure includes revenue generated from “console hardware, games software and gaming peripherals sold through retail”. The figure excludes revenue from “online retail, downloadable content, online games subscriptions, in-game transactions and mobile games.”

As Australian gamers increasingly turn to online retail to combat exorbitant bricks-and-mortar prices, it’s no surprise the figure has contracted. One analyst at Telsyte predicts that Australians will spend over $ 450 million on games online in 2012. This is set to increase at a time when the industry is preparing to offer digital-only games for cheaper than their on-shelf counterparts, as Sony has done with the PS Vita.

Do you think the market research should include digital revenue? Did you spend less on games in 2011 than in 2010? Let us know in the comments section.

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Huffington Post UK:

The Dutch Supreme Court has determined that online video game theft is just as much of a crime as real life theft.

Two thieves who stole from a RuneScape gamer have been convicted and ordered to perform 144 hours of community service, after stealing another boy’s online possessions.

The Telegraph reports that the un-named offender who was born in 1992, beat and kicked the 13-year-old victim and threatened him with a knife in 2007. He then made the boy log into the game and ‘drop’ the amulet and mask used by his character.

The Supreme Court determined that while the objects had no tangible value, they had intrinsic value to the 13-year-old gamer because of “the time and energy he invested” in winning them during the game.

The two thieves were both initially convicted in 2009, but one appealed to the Supreme Court.

While the successful prosecution may give hope to those fighting cybercrime or online intellectual property theft in the UK, a lawyer contacted by the Huffington Post says don’t get your hopes up.

Therese Wallin of find a solicitor service Contact Law, said no English court would prosecute a similar case.

“The question of whether someone in the UK could be prosecuted for a similar crime, centres around how the victim acquired the amulet and mask during the playing of the RuneScape game.

In this case the boy spent “time and energy” winning them while playing and no English court would prosecute anyone and award damages to someone for a waste of time, that is, the time wasted by the person acquiring the goods in the first place, only for them to then be taken.

The case would be different if the virtual goods were paid for with cash.

“If the amulet and mask were bought for cash during the game and then someone took them from the purchaser without their permission, for example by impersonating that owner in the online game, then this is theft and they could be prosecuted.

The fact that intangible goods were purchased doesn’t matter. For example, if someone owns the copyright of a game they’ve developed, and someone copies that game and starts using it, then there has been an infringement or theft of that copyright.

“Saying that, even if a virtual theft had taken place, and a criminal case could be brought, it is unlikely the police would proceed with such a case.”

RuneScape bills itself as the number one free online multi-player game.

It was released over ten years ago in 2001 and has around 10 million active gamers.

RuneScape recommends that players never reveal their personal details to other players,

Read the whole story: Huffington Post UK

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GAME Swinging – the gamer’s “speed-dating” event hosted by the retail giant in Sydney, Australia – didn’t quite take off as the next big thing, with the scheduled Melbourne and Brisbane events cancelled due to complaints.

GAME hosted the inaugural event in Sydney last November for gamers to meet, play games and trade. The idea was simple: it was a way for gamers to meet other gamers, partner up for a quick gaming session, and then maybe trade games. Unfortunately, the way the event was executed meant it only survived one night in Sydney, with the Melbourne and Brisbane events now cancelled.

The name GAME Swinging definitely sounds suggestive, but no one was quite prepared for what GAME had in store. Hiring strippers and escorts along to the night definitely seems to have gone too far. Paul Yardley, managing director of GAME Australia says that despite the many complaints the retailer received following the Sydney event he still considers it “a great success, but not everyone appreciated it.”

If the event was put together with a little more dignity GAME Swinging probably could have been more than just a one night stand.

If you attended the GAME Swinging event, what did you think? Or if you just have an opinion on the matter, share it with us in the comment section below.

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Thanks to Frankie Goes To Hollywood, we all know what happens when two tribes go to war, but the friendly collision between Disney and Square Enix has been the consistent bearer of strange fruit.

Who would have thought we’d see Mickey Mouse in a hooded trenchcoat, wielding a ruddy giant key? Or Donald Duck and Goofy squaring off against the emo prince of darkness, Sephiroth? Kingdom Hearts is like chocolate and cheese: it shouldn’t work, and it often doesn’t work, but it’s a taste you’ll remember for the rest of your life.

And it’s a taste that now encompasses The Hunchback Of Notre Dame, one of Disney’s ‘lesser’ classics, and perhaps a sign that Square are running out of films on which to base Heartless-infested RPG worlds. It hasn’t happened yet though, so as part of their quest to destroy series big bad Xehanort, Sora and his bezzy mate/rival Riku will visit Paris to help the Hunchback save the city and get the girl. (Oh, he doesn’t get the girl? Man, what a downer.)

Since Sora hasn’t parked the Gummi ship in Notre Dame before, it seems likely that Square Enix will be recapping events from the film – albeit with Heartless shoved into them – rather than inventing something new for the cast to do there, as happened a lot during Kingdom Hearts 2. This is a good thing. The series is at its best when it’s retelling an entire movie in a couple of hours, Lego Star Wars style: the narrative feels more satisfying and ultimately fun.

Of course, one Disney film isn’t enough substance for a whole Kingdom Hearts, so Sora will also set foot in Pinocchio’s fairytale world to experience the surprisingly dark story of the little puppet boy and his extendible nose. While Jiminy Cricket’s been a staple of the series, this is the first time we’ll see him in his natural habitat.

Other worlds haven’t been revealed yet, but we do have fresh info on Sora’s new companions. Replacing dumpy Donald and toothy Goofy are the Dream Eaters, weird monsters that bestow Sora and Riku with various abilities. You appear to ‘collect’ these much as you acquired the lost Dalmatians in the original, albeit with more tangible rewards.

After years of running on the spot with spin-offs and remakes, Square finally seem ready and able to give Kingdom Hearts fans what they want: a proper, substantial entry in the series. And we have a Hunch it’s going to be pretty good, too.

Order Nintendo Gamer here and have it delivered straight to your door

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UK gamers eager to sample PS Vita before its release will be able to try out the new handheld at any one of GAME and Gamestation’s 600 specialist retail stores nationwide.

Sony says every store manager has been sent a Vita unit “to enable them and their staff to demonstrate first hand just what makes the new PlayStation handheld so special”.

In-store demos include WipEout 2048, Uncharted: Golden Abyss, ModNation Racers: Road Trip, Reality Fighters, Little Deviants and Everybody’s Golf.

Sony Computer Entertainment UK boss Fergal Gara said: “PlayStation Vita is an amazing piece of technology – but the very best way to make people realise this, is by putting it in their hands. The beauty and clarity of the 5 inch OLED screen, the ergonomic design with the dual analogue joysticks, the interaction of the rear touch panel, all come emphatically to life.”

Are you picking up a Vita at launch and if so, which model are you going to plump for? Cast your eyes over our PS Vita review, if you haven’t already, and don’t forget the PS Vita release date is less than a month away now.

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Puddle reminds us of Mercury on PSP – with similar liquid blob survival themes, but this one taking on a side-on view.

Puddle is a physics-based platform puzzler that has you tilt 2D levels to guide a blob of liquid through tricky obstacle courses.

The PSN version also uses the tilt functionality of the Sixaxis or Move controllers, for a more visceral experience.

It looks pretty cool, and is out on the UK PSN and XBLA now. It’s also on the US XBLA, but won’t arrive on the US PSN until next week.

Here’s the trailer:

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Since the original, back in 1996, Dead or Alive has increasingly moved from being a hardcore fighter to a showcase of Adonis-like men and disproportionate (yet beautiful) women sparring in wonderfully colourful environments.

It even spawned three, barely interactive, volleyball games. From this early look, it seems Team Ninja are doing little to arrest that trend of form over function – but that’s no bad thing.

Why? Dead or Alive has always been accessible, through a combination of good-looks and well-balanced fighting. The hardcore sniff at the emphasis on flowing animation over complete, twitch-sensitive control, but this is the very thing that lends DOA its appeal. With the new game Team Ninja are focusing on this sense of spectacle.

Fighting arenas are designed to work with combos, letting you not only smash opponents in the guts, but fling them into suspended girders, or knock them off roof-tops into the street. There’s a new charge move too (performed by holding down RB), which lets you hurl yourself at your opponent with a spectacular, pre-animated sequence of strikes, before smashing them away at the angle of your choice, sending them face-first into a passing car or a carelessly placed electric fence.

Team Ninja continue to roll out confirmed characters too, with Hitomi and Ayane the most recent additions. Both are series staples, so hardly a surprise, but they look better than ever with super-slick animations and new visual tricks that cake them in dirt and sweat as the fight goes on.

Given the fighting genre’s penchant for sharing, expect characters from Ninja Gaiden 3 to appear in DOA5, along with Rachel from NG Sigma and maybe − just maybe − Bayonetta. We think she’d fit right in to this beautiful fighter.

Order Xbox World magazine here and have it delivered straight to your door

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The world’s largest video game controller was wheeled out in London this week, weighing in at a hefty 18 stone (265 pounds) and costing £4,000.

The 12ft long NES controller was unveiled at London’s Liverpool St station to celebrate the release of Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition 2012 today.

The record-breaking device measures 30 times the size of a standard NES controller, says GWR, and what’s more it actually works – commuters worked together by jumping on the buttons to play NES titles.

Creator of the device, British Engineering student Ben Allen, said: “This is really a labour of love. We’re passionate about gaming and wanted to honour its most iconic device; the NES (Nintendo Entertainment System) joypad.

“We put our heads together in the pub and decided to create this absurdly large working version! It’s such a rush to know we’ve made history and are being included in the Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition.”

Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition 2012 is on sale from today.

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Early 2012 gaming releases are thin on the ground, and to entice you to get off the couch and buy more games, come in-depth trailers like this one from Bioshock.

The idea is that Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged has come to life, so not your average first person war/zombie shooter.

No, the shooting, and the creeps in this game stem from a literary philosophy usually found in the pockets of young, idealistic university undergrads.

The cinematic vision in the trailer for Bioshock Infinite gives one the impression the game’s makers are trying to appeal to a female audience, or at least one that might be new to gaming and looking for filmic values. Kind of an anti-Duke Nukem gamer.

Will the backstory get you to shell out £39.99 for Bioshock Infinite on pre-order now?

Check out the trailer below, with a sweet voiced cover of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s song Will The Circle Be Unbroken.

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