By Candace Holly

Today, World of Warcraft launched their new expansion; Wrath of the Lich King. The expansion features a new hero class for players to experience. It also features new zones, instances, leveling areas, professions and the level cap has been raised to level 80. Blizzard has learned a lot from the launch of World of Warcraft, and from the shaky launch of The Burning Crusade. Wrath of the Lich King is by far the smoothest I have seen in some time.

The Burning Crusade brought us plenty of downtime, server lag, and server restarts. Not to mention the starting zone for all level 60’s was located in one place; Hellfire Peninsula. Wrath of the Lich King changed all of that. Two starting areas are available for the players - the Borean Tundra and the Howling Fjord . Players concerned about server lag, and camped questing spots will breathe a sigh of relief. The new zones being split have allowed for more room, less lag, and less camped areas.

Another smart move with the launch of Wrath of the Lich King was Blizzard adding elements of the game a month in advance. Patch 3.0 gave us some new features to World of Warcraft. Stormwind Harbor was opened which linked all the major Alliance cities. The new zepplin towers near the Undercity also showed up, giving players promised passage to Borean Tundra and Howling Fjord. Barber shops, offering players new hairstyles and better character customization were also offered in the patch.

Read More at Hardcore Christian Gamer right here…

Section: Gaming News, Features, Gift Guide, Lists, Consoles, Wii, Handhelds, iPhone & iPod Touch, Gear, Accessories, Audio, Figures & Toys

If you like to do your shopping early (pre-Black Friday), Target has a printed toys coupon book available in stores with a few tech toys and one game coupon.

The only real game coupon is $5 off Mario Kart for Wii. It includes the Wheel peripheral.

The others, more techie and geek stuff includes:

• $5 off the i-Dog Dance
• $5 off LeapFrof Fridge Toy
• $10 off a ClickStart My First Computer
• $10 off V-Tech Kidizoom Camera
• $10 off Fisher-Price Computer Cool School
• $5 off Star Wars: The Clone Wars Ultimate Lightsaber toy set
• $10 off Transformers Animated Leader figure/toy
• $10 off Lazer Tag 2-Player Battle System
• $10 off iTeddy

The rest are for your more typical play-on-the-floor toys.

These all expire November 26, 2008, the day before Thanksgiving, so these will certainly be superceded by better Black Friday (November 28, 2008) deals. You can grab the book at the Guest Service counter or in the Toys section of the store or head over to the Target web site for printable version of the same coupons.

Photo Gallery [Gamertellt] Site [Target]

Full Story » | Written by PJ Hruschak for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: Gaming News, Features, Rumors, Consoles, PS2, PS3, Wii, Xbox-360, PCs, Windows, Handhelds, DS, PSP, Ads & Media, Print, Genres, 2D, 3D, Action, Adventure, Casual, Children’s, Fighting, FPS, Shooter, MMO, Music, Party, Puzzle, Role-Playing, Sports, Sim

There are two sides to Black Friday ads. There are ones where you can instantly tell they are the real deal and then there are questionable ads which look authentic but are just a hoax.

The Best Buy 2008 Black Friday ad, which has just popped up on the internet falls into the later category.

If it is real, then there are going to be some fantastic video game deals at Best Buy stores this season. We’ve looked through the ad and created a list of what this “possible” Black Friday 2008 Best Buy’s deals are. Please note that, in a few instances, a game’s title or platform may not be accurate due to the bad quality of the ad scan.

Continue Reading This Story

Section: Gaming News, Consoles, Xbox-360, Handhelds, DS, Game-Companies, Publishers, Genres, 3D, Action, Shooter

MTV’s Multiplayer Blog brings us some sad news from BMO Capital Markets Conference today (November 13, 2008). Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick told the people there that GTA: Chinatown Wars would be released by the end of April 2009 and the Xbox exclusive downloadable content for GTA IV would be pushed back until Spring of 2009.

Zelnick did say the DLC portion is almost complete but extra time is needed in order to make it truly special. No specific reason was given for the sudden delay of Chinatown Wars.

As disappointing as that is, we can take solace in remembering all the huge titles that have come out over the past month or so. It was hinted earlier by Variety during an interview with Dan Houser that the release date for the DLC could be pushed back. All is well though because we’ve already have a boatload of games to play before the end of the year anyway. We can wait a few more months to tour more districts of Liberty City’s underbelly.

Read [MTV Multiplayer Blog] Via [Gamespot]

Full Story » | Written by Jeremy Hill for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: Gaming News, Consoles, Xbox-360, Genres, 3D, Action, Adventure, Role-Playing

Did you finish Fable 2 yet? Did you manage to sneak your way passed the game’s life ruining bugs and glitches? I managed to finish it twice with only one character stuck in infinite turmoil thanks to the “Abbot glitch”. But if you did manage to finish it, then a recent tease on the Lionhead blog should tickle your curiosity as it has ours:

Normally, we don’t like to tease too much. You know, all this hype being generated by teasing the announcement that there will be an announcement in X-number of days. Who cares? But in this day and age where a gazillion titles are asking for your attention, I felt it might be the right thing to do on the blog. We’ve got some G o o d [Good] news for all Fable II fans next week, dare I even say it’s quite a big announcement? Yes of course I dare say it’s a big announcement regarding Fable II, next week!

Oh Lionhead, you are such a tease despite your claim. Dammit, now we are anxious to hear what this “big announcement” is.

Could it be a large quest expansion offering up new cities and moral choices? Perhaps some enhancements to the regular game including new clothes, weapons, maybe even the ability to dress your spouse and child? Or perhaps its simply the patch we are all waiting for to free our characters from the clutches of the Abbot and his glitch and maybe free our wives from our castle’s walls. Finally, maybe its the missing limited edition content that we’ve been waiting for.

Whatever it is, we’ll take it because we are rather addicted to the game and any more it is welcome. 

Read [Lionhead blog] Via [Opposable Thumbs] Also [Wired] Also [1UP] Also [GamerTell]

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Section: Gaming News, Consoles, Wii, Handhelds, DS, Ads & Media, Print, Advertisements, Game-Companies, Developers, Publishers, Genres, 3D, Casual, Sports

Sam’s Club, the warehouse-club connected to Wal-Mart, has let slip their Black Friday ad for 2008. Both Black Friday Ads and BlackFriday.info have posted listing and sale circular scans for the Sam’s Club sales. If you have a Nintendo fan in your household, you may want to become a Sam’s Club member before the sale.

There are two fantastic bundle deals this year, and a sale on a popular Wii game. The first deal is a $199.88 Metallic Rose DS bundle that comes with the DS, Nintendogs Lab & Friends, Purr Pals, a Princess Peach game case, a Princess Peach stylus and a decorative Princess Peach sticker set to jazz up the unit. The next is a Wii bundle that includes the Wii, three wiimotes, three nunchuks to go with the wiimotes, Wii Sports (of course), King of Clubs Mini Golf and Mario Super Sluggers. The last sale item is a Wii Fit, which Sam’s Club will be selling for $78.84.

There are some pretty good bundle deals there. The Wii bundle especially, since you’re getting so many extra controllers with it. I also like how they balanced the bundles out - including one good game and one shovelware game. It kind of makes it seem more fair somehow. If you haven’t gotten the systems already, it looks like Sam’s Club is the place to go.

Read [Black Friday Ads] Also Read [BlackFriday.info] Site [Sam’s Club]

Full Story » | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: Gaming News, Consoles, PS3, Game-Companies, Publishers, Updates, Playstation-Store

This Thursday’s (November 13, 2008) Playstation Network update will bring more than just another game or theme, it will bring a whole storefront. The Capcom storefront we previously reported is coming to fruition much sooner than any of us thought. A post on the PlayStation Blog) confirms the news.

The storefront promises to bring all of Capcom’s digital content on PSN together in one easy to find and navigate store. Navigation seems to work exactly like it does on the regular PSN store and, sorry guys, no word yet about special price drops. So yes, Mega Man 9is still $9.99 but, trust me, it’s totally worth it.

To celebrate both the opening of the store and the release of Age of Booty, the Capcom storefront will be outfitted in a special Age of Booty theme that’s sure to please treasure-hunting customers.

This news also comes hot on the heels of Capcom’s announcement of Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix being submitted into Sony’s approval process. While it’s entirely unlikely, here’s to hoping that this Thursday brings us more Capcom goodness than we can imagine.

Read [PlayStation Blog] Via [1UP] Also [GamerTell]

Image courtesy of the PlayStation Blog.

Full Story » | Written by Kris Rosado for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: Gaming News, Handhelds, iPhone & iPod Touch, Cell-Phones, Smartphones, Game-Companies, Distributors, Genres, 3D, Action, Strategy, Updates, Apple App Store

No matter what time of year it is we never get tired of killing zombies. This is an unspoken bond that humans can relate to on all levels. We could consider all these games as training for when the inevitable zombie uprising occurs or just another way to pass the time.

There is a game by IUGO Mobile Entertainment called Zombie Attack on the App Store for $0.99 that takes the form of a tower defense game. These kind of games usually involve strategically placing different weapons types around the map to quickly take down enemies of various strengths and weaknesses. The only difference this time around is hordes of zombies that impede your path when building towers.

Zombie Attack lets you play as a survivor who must protect his shack from the undead. You move the character around by tilting the iPod Touch or iPhone and tower placement is done on the touchscreen. We have to be careful not to run into the zombies while still figuring out the best way to set up towers. It sounds pretty frantic. We can build fire, gun, axe or cannon towers to defend the shack which can only take so much damage before it’s destroyed. The towers can be upgraded by collecting money that will increase fire power.

Zombie Attack is dirt cheap and may be worth a purchase to curb the zombie killing appetite.

Purchase [App Store] Read [Touch Arcade]

Full Story » | Written by Jeremy Hill for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: Gaming News, PCs, Windows, Game-Companies, Developers, Publishers, Genres, 2D, MMO, Role-Playing, Web-Sites, Official-Sites

Ntreev’s Trickster Online Revolution is already two years old, who would have thought? It looks so young. Of course, like all MMOs, Trickster Online Revolution is going to be celebrating the event with in-game events for players and contests. If you want to participate, you’ll want to log in between November 6-19, 2008. When you do, you’ll see the new Loading Art (at right) drawn by Iruru, winner of Ntreev’s Second Year Anniversary Loading Art Contest.

There are four main special events happening during Trickster Online Revolution‘s anniversary. The first is a rare item giveaway in Megalopolis - if you talk to Don Cavalier’s Hologram in that city, he’ll give your avatar something good. Special cards are also available in the game, each with the letters T, R, I, C, K, S, T, E and R on them. These can be redeemed for limited edition vests and glasses for your character. You can also enter to win an iPod or DS by collecting at least 14 attendance sheets and turning them in to Skipper Min. Don’t worry if you don’t manage to get 14, Skipper Min will also be giving players an item for each attendance sheet. The final special event is double experience for players for four hours during the whole anniversary event period.

What I’m most excited about are the gifts for people who haven’t played since September 1, 2008. If you log in again, you’ll get free stuff that you’d normally find in the Cash Shop, like a Spirit of Phoenix VR pet, a Marble Drill and coins. Its enough to make me want to try redownloading the client and running it on my laptop. For some reason, my old XP laptop had no problem with Trickster Online, but my current Vista one just won’t let the game run. Special events like this are the perfect motivation to get involved in the game again.

Read [Multiplayer Online Games Directory] Also Read [Yet Another Review Site] Site [Trickster Online Revolution]

Full Story » | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: Gaming News, Features, Opinions, Consoles, PS3, Game-Companies, Developers, Web-Sites

Ouch - LittleBigPlanet has not had the smoothest of launches. The ambitious and ultra-creative game (which has players creating levels and sharing them with other gamers across the globe) was first slapped with a musical blunder (a track that offended some persons of the Muslim faith, causing a launch delay), and now, player creations are apparently getting axed due to “copyright issues” with no explanation. It would seem that Media Molecule moderators (say that three times fast) are wielding an iron hammer of doom, erasing levels that have copyrighted material in them.

1Up is reporting that many LBP players are none too happy about this turn of events, and it’s understandable. This is a game that’s about sharing and creativity - surely there should be some leniency, since gamers aren’t generally using the material to sell anything or insult companies’ images - they’re making videogame levels (and potential artistic statements).

I can’t say I’m not disappointed to hear this. There’s so much wonderful creativity coming from this game, and it’s a true shame to see some of it go due to copyright BS.

Read [1Up]

Full Story » | Written by Danielle Riendeau for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »

‘Tornado Man’ - MegaMan 9 - Performed by Stage 3-1

Castlevania 3 - Performed by Stage 3-1

‘Flash Man’ - Mega Man 2 - Performed by The Advantage

Section: Gaming News, PCs, Windows, Game-Companies, Distributors, Genres, 3D, Action, Adventure, Game-Genres-Other

On November 6, 2008, the anticipated new installment for the Silent Hill franchise, titled Homecoming, was released for direct download on the STEAM servers.

Silent Hill: Homecoming is the fifth game to take place directly in the Silent Hill lands of the Toluca Lake area where the little foggy vision of hell on earth resides. Taking a strong turn towards Jacob’s Ladder, it follows an injured veteran through his returning home to find that his brother disappeared. Haunted by the real demons of Silent Hill and the demons of his past deeds in war, he stumbles into a sanity stealing problem as his grip on reality slips away.

The game promises to go deeper into the troubled past of Silent Hill and its surrounding area. With the next-gen graphics, things should look even more frightening than the previous chapters.

One of the things shown at various gaming conventions that should intrigue the gamers is the that you will be able to see, in real-time, the real world shift to the Hell-world state. Also, if they actually followed through with the promise for the controls, the game will offer some of the best and most responsive controls the franchise has had to date.

The system requirements are for some of the beefier machines though. This is all according to what is listed on the Homecoming page in the STEAM store. The requirements are XP or Vista for the Operating System, Dual core CPU such as Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 or AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ for the processor, 1 GB RAM (for XP) or 2 GB RAM (for Vista), a DirectX 9.0c compliant video card such as ATI Radeon HD-series graphics card (minimum 256 MB) or NVIDIA GeForce 7800-series graphics card (minimum 256 MB), a DirectX®: 9.0c compatible sound card, and 10 GB free for hard drive space. The supported controllers are keyboard and mouse or Xbox 360 controller.

For those who buy and download before November 10, 2008, there will be a 10 percent discount. This cuts down the original $49.99 price down to $44.99 for these couple of days. Enjoy the horror and madness that is Silent Hill. With the holidays coming up this might be the perfect STEAM gift for that horror junkie and PC gamer in your life.

Site [Silent Hill Homecoming] Read [STEAM] Also Read [Gamertell]

Full Story » | Written by Jonathan Gronli for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article »