First Images of Perfect Dark on XBLA

One of Microsoft's quieter E3 announcements was confirmation that Perfect Dark would be released over Xbox Live Arcade later this year. Now they've quietly released the first images of what it'll look like, with a few pictures popping up on the Xbox Live Marketplace website.

As you can see, it looks like Perfect Dark, but now lacking that trademark Nintendo 64 blurriness. That would be because this XBLA port will have the added benefit of running in as high as 1080p resolution, and at 60 frames-per-second. If a Nintendo 64 so much as tried to imagine what a game running in 1080p and 60fps would look like, it would burst into flames while its death shrieks cut through the dead air.

Unfortunately, we're all going to have to wait a little while longer to revisit Joanna Dark's first adventure (which will now also come with Xbox Live multiplayer), as the game isn't set to launch until winter. Check out a couple of other pictures below.

*Original report from 1up.com*

Full Guitar Hero 5 Artists List Revealed

We know Guitar Hero 5 is coming this year, and now Activision has revealed the full list of artists that'll be included in the latest installment of the music game franchise. The enormous list comes by way of their official Guitar Hero 5 website (via VG247), and although it doesn't offer any specific songs from each artist, it does offer an idea of the amount of variety to expect.

A lot of the names will be familiar to anyone who has played any kind of version of Guitar Hero or Rock Band before, but there's also a pleasantly large inclusion of fresh artists who've never been featured in a Guitar Hero game. A couple of these have been revealed before, but Elton John, Gorrilaz, Iggy Pop, Johnny Cash, Public Enemy, Stevie Wonder, The White Stripes (along with Jack White's other group, The Raconteurs), and Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers all particularly stand out. (But what, still no Eric Clapton?)

Check out the full list of all 84 artists below (85 were previously promised, so we suppose they count Zakk Wylde being featured with Public Enemy as two?).

* 3 Doors Down
* A Perfect Circle
* AFI
* Arctic Monkeys
* Attack! Attack!
* Band Of Horses
* Beastie Boys
* Beck
* Billy Idol
* Billy Squier
* Blink-182
* Blur
* Bob Dylan
* Bon Jovi
* Brand New
* Bush
* Children Of Bodom
* Coldplay
* Darker My Love
* Darkest Hour
* David Bowie
* Deep Purple
* Dire Straits
* Duran Duran
* Eagles Of Death Metal
* Elliott Smith
* Elton John
* Face To Face
* Garbage
* Gorillaz
* Gov't Mule
* Grand Funk Railroad
* Iggy Pop
* Iron Maiden
* Jeff Beck
* Jimmy Eat World
* John Mellencamp
* Johnny Cash
* Kaiser Chiefs
* King Crimson
* Kings Of Leon
* Kiss
* Love and Rockets
* Megadeth
* Mötley Crüe
* Muse
* My Morning Jacket
* Nirvana
* No Doubt
* Peter Frampton
* Public Enemy Featuring Zakk Wylde
* Queen & David Bowie
* Queens Of The Stone Age
* Rammstein
* Rose Hill Drive
* Rush
* Santana
* Scars On Broadway
* Screaming Trees
* Smashing Pumpkins
* Sonic Youth
* Spacehog
* Stevie Wonder
* Sublime
* Sunny Day Real Estate
* T. Rex
* The Bronx
* The Derek Trucks Band
* The Duke Spirit
* The Killers
* The Police
* The Raconteurs
* The Rolling Stones
* The Sword
* The White Stripes
* Thin Lizzy
* Thrice
* Tom Petty
* Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
* TV On The Radio
* Vampire Weekend
* Weezer
* Wild Cherry
* Wolfmother

*Original report from 1up.com*

How to Use the Spy's Dead Ringer

Sniper's "Jarate" is Last Team Fortress 2 Unlock

Valve has revealed the final weapon unlock for the Sniper vs Spy update coming to Team Fortress 2. Using the ancient art of "Jarate," the jar of urine that the Sniper keeps while he stakes out a position can be thrown like a grenade. Enemies take 35% more damage while splashed (due to losing the will to live), and enemy Spies can't cloak while covered. But the splash effect wears off naturally, or can be washed off by jumping into water. If you'd rather help your team, you can throw it at a teammate on fire to put them out.

Team Fortress 2 Sniper to Gets a Bow in the Next Update

One of Valve's goals with the Sniper update for Team Fortress 2 was to give Snipers the freedom to move in for some closer-ranged combat. Without knowing the full details, it's unclear if the first revealed unlockable will accomplish that. The Huntsman is a bow and arrow that lets you pin enemies against walls, with an instant crit for all headshots. Full power shots only take a single second to charge up, which is much quicker than the traditional sniper rifle and could be what Snipers needed to get involved with close range combat.

The description on the Sniper update website squashes any fears that a bow and arrow has no place in a deathmatch scenario by pointing out that bows and arrows are the sole cause for the extinction of the dinosaurs. You can't argue with that logic.

Expect more details on the other unlockables, Achievements, and new maps over the next week. No release date for the update has been announced, but if things hold true to the time frame of previous updates, we can expect this one to hit around the middle of next week.

**Original report from www.1up.com**

First Details of Bioshock 2’s Multiplayer Revealed

2K Games are finally starting to talk about Bioshock 2’s multiplayer, and so far it’s all good news. In order to live up to the demands and expectations of fans of the first game, 2K Games have hired Digital Extremes to develop the multiplayer component of Bioshock 2. If the name Digital Extremes isn’t ringing any bells, they’re the development team behind the first three Unreal Tournament titles, which were lauded by critics as providing some of the best FPS multiplayer gameplay on the market. Digital Extremes have also been praised for packing their games with a ton of content, which will hopefully erase one of our biggest complaints of recent multiplayer-oriented shooters: games like Left 4 Dead and Team Fortress 2 have done a lot to evolve the FPS multiplayer formula, but both were downright puny in terms of the number of maps they offered. Hopefully Digital Extreme will ensure Bioshock 2’s multiplayer will be both innovative and plentiful.

Then again, judging from 2K Games’ press release, we’re not even sure yet if Bioshock 2 will have conventional multiplayer maps—the company claims the multiplayer component will “enhances the lore and fiction of the BioShock universe,” by acting as a prequel to the events of the single player game, taking place during the fall of Rapture. Players will also level up during multiplayer, gaining access to new weapons and abilities. It sounds much more ambitious than the usual, “Here’s a chunk of map from single player—first to 10 kills wins!”

Here are the key features the press release highlights:

· Evolution of the genetically enhanced shooter – Earn experience points during gameplay to earn access to new Weapons, Plasmids and Tonics that can be used to create hundreds of different combinations, allowing players to develop a unique character that caters to their playing style.

· Extend the Rapture fiction – Players will step into the shoes of Rapture citizens and learn more about the fall of Rapture as they progress through the experience.

· See Rapture before the fall – Experience Rapture before it was reclaimed by the ocean and engage in combat over iconic environments in locations such as Kashmir Restaurant and Mercury Suites, all of which have been reworked from the ground up to deliver a fast-paced multiplayer experience.

*Original report from www.gameinformer.com

Fitzgerald and Polamalu to Appear on Madden NFL '10 Cover

EA Sports recently announced that the cover of Madden 10 will feature Arizona Cardinals Wide Receiver Larry Fitzgerald and Pittsburgh Steelers Safety Troy Polamalu. EA made a few comments. "Larry Fitzgerald and Troy Polamalu are exemplary examples of the epic battle between offense and defense in the NFL," said senior product Manager Anthony Stevenson. "Madden NFL 10 showcases the "fight for every yard", and nobody fights harder than Troy and Larry, making them the perfect athletes to grace the cover."