Little Big Planet was heralded as the PlayStation 3 game that would appeal to all demographics and divert some of the mainstream attention towards the PS3 that’s currently focused squarely on the Wii. It seemed like it was on track to do just that and be a huge seller in October. Then came the controversy surrounding lyrics in the game’s soundtrack that included quotes from the Quran which resulted in a recall and subsequent delay, pushing the game back from its October 21 release date in the U.S. to October 27. While that might have not been a big deal in and of itself, the recall most certainly cost Sony a fair amount of money and also likely hurt the game’s October sales.

Only two PlayStation 3 games made the top ten sales chart for October: SOCOM: Confrontation and Little Big Planet. The two games were neck and neck in sales, with SOCOM getting the edge, 231,000 to 215,000. That’s despite SOCOM coming out nearly two weeks sooner than LBP, but it’s important to keep in mind the fact that SOCOM is also available through the PlayStation Store — sales of which the NPD Group does not track.

For such a big release, selling just over 200,000 units — even for a game releasing at the end of the month — seems like a disappointment. So does Sony have reason to be alarmed?

More than likely not. While the October sales figures aren’t going to blow anyone away, Little Big Planet is a solid candidate to sell in the six digits month after month, much like many of Nintendo’s first party releases on Wii. And, of course, November will be a huge month for games, and the release of Resistance 2 so close to LBP might be enough to motivate gamers who may have been on the fence to finally go out and pick up a PS3 — thereby increasing the pool of people who could potentially buy LBP. As if our review wasn’t clear enough, it’s a game that simply must be played. With LBP, the more players the game has, the better it will become. So if for no other reason than to see what kind of creations the masses can conjure up, we hope sales for the game explode next month.

Activision’s Bobby Kotick may have dumped Ghostbusters: The Videogame from his company’s roster because he felt it lacked potential in the exploitation department, but thankfully that has not stopped Atari from picking the game up. Original Ghostbuster Dan Akroid may have broke the news of the Atari partnership on October 15, but the publisher made it official last night while gamers slept snugly in their beds.

The announcement stated that the company has been working with developer Terminal Reality and Sony Pictures Consumer Products to ensure that the Ghostbuster’s brand would arrive in stores just in time for the movie’s 25th anniversary in 2009. No exact date was mentioned by Atari, but the original Ghostbusters film arrived in theaters on June 8, 1984 so until we get a more concrete statement from the publisher, we should expect the game to arrive sometime during June 2009 when Sony’s releases the anniversary editions of the movie.

Now, before everyone gets worried about Atari being the publisher for the game, just remember that despite the financial woes over the past year and a half that eventually got the publisher along with their parent company Infogrames Entertainment delisted from NASDAQ, don’t write them off as dead in the water just yet. Atari was the Asian, American and European publisher for The Witcher, which was a pretty big hit for a new intellectual property and their moniker is also attached to the upcoming Sacred 2: Fallen Angel which has had some positive buzz surrounding it. So with Ghostbusters being one of the most highly anticipated games since it’s announcement in November 2007, it is safe to assume that Atari now has a golden goose on their hands.

President of Infogrames, Phil Harrison, had this to say about the new addition to Atari’s library:

“Ghostbusters: The Video Game is a fantastic addition to Atari’s global line-up in 2009. The title has built considerable anticipation and excitement among game fans for its high quality action and all-out mayhem. There’s no more thrilling Ghostbusting experience to be had, short of building your own proton pack.”

The game will be made available for all consoles currently on the market, along with the Nintendo DS and PC so it boggles the mind that the only reason Bobby Kotick and Activision passed on this was because they seem only concerned with sequel potential. As far as Ghostbusters not having “the potential to be exploited every year on every platform” like Kotick thinks games should be, why would we want Ghostbusters to have a new game come out every year? Remember how the movie Ghostbusters II failed to bring audiences the same joy as the original? That is what happens when popularity is exploited *cough Guitar Hero*.

If you own a PlayStation 3, there’s a good chance you were ready to buy Little Big Planet this Tuesday. But after the unfortunate delay we learned of earlier today, come next week, you’ll be walking home from the videogame retailer of your choice with one less game than you were planning.

Had the game come out this Tuesday as expected, it would’ve faced some stiff competition — although it seems unlikely that the inevitably huge sales of LBP would have taken much of a hit (and, if anything, these other games should be sighing with relief). With that in mind, here’s what big releases remain for you to come home with next week:

• Far Cry 2 (PC, 360, PS3)
• Fable 2 (360)
• Rock Band 2 (PS3)
• Wii Music (Wii)
• BioShock (PS3)
• Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia (DS)
• Spider-Man: Web of Shadows (PC, 360, PS3, PSP, DS, Wii, PS2)
• Eternal Sonata (PS3)
• Midnight Club: Los Angeles (360, PS3)

If you also happened to come home with a copy of Petz Rescue: Wildlife Vet for Wii, I wouldn’t have judged you. That might not be entirely true, but what is true is that, with Little Big Planet now scheduled for release on October 27 (although with stingy retailers, that likely means Tuesday, October 28), gamers with multiple consoles are looking at another hard week on the wallet. Here’s what you might be picking up along with your copy of LBP:

• Fallout 3 (PC, 360, PS3)
• Guitar Hero World Tour (PC, 360, PS3, Wii, PS2)
• MotorStorm Pacific Rift (PS3)
• Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 (PC)
• SingStar: Vol. 2 (PS3)
• MotoGP 08 (PC, 360, PS3, PSP, Wii, PS2)
• Scene It Box Office Smash (360)

It’s truly going to be one of the most wallet-busting stretches in gaming history over the course of the next several weeks. We should probably be thankful there aren’t any new consoles releasing — unless you plan on picking up the new PSP 3000s or importing a DSi next month.And — tempted as you might be — selling an arm on the black market isn’t as great an idea as it might seem. If nothing else, it’ll make playing that shiny new game of yours much more difficult.

On Monday, Shawn posted a trailer for the Lord of the Rings Online expansion, Mines of Moria. I have not watched it because I do not want it to ruin any more surprises than the screens for the game already have – being that I am a huge fan of both surprises and the game itself. However, the new screens they sent our way today show nothing more than a bloodthirsty troll in Khazad Dum, hellbent on smashing you into a slick spot on the pavement. This is no different that any other troll in the game, save for the more comical looking ones who do not get aggroed as easily as the mindless killing machines depicted here.

If you want to see more shots of the horrible troll, click here, where you will also find a whole library of screens and information for the new expansion which will launch on October 15. If I were not using my vacation time flying to England next week, where I will also be attending the Mines of Moria event, I would have used it for the week of launch. Yes, I am that dedicated.

LucasArts announced today that they will release the official demo of their upcoming action game Fracture on Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Network on Thursday, September 18. The demo will introduce players to the gameplay behind Terrain Deformation, a gameplay mechanic that allows for the creation of on-the-fly cover and geographic manipulation.

Developed in partnership with Chicago-based Day 1 Studios, Fracture takes place in the year 2161 in a United States plagued by disaster. Years of environmental neglect have split the nation in two and resulted in two conflicting ways of life. Survivors of the Atlantic Alliance have turned to cybernetics and technology, while the Pacifican States in the West have turned to stem cell research and genetic engineering for a better way of life. These two conflicting ideologies come to a head in a deadly civil war for not only the fate of the free world, but also the future of mankind itself.

In the demo, utilize the power of Terrain Deformation to create cover, solve puzzles and revolutionize battlefield tactics as you guide Atlantic Alliance soldier Jet Brody in his quest to quell the Pacifican uprising through an exciting single player campaign that begins in the now-dried-out San Francisco bay, and traverses the ravaged country.

When the game ships to retail you will also be able to test your mettle in multiplayer modes where action meets Terrain Deformation for 12-player battles in modes specifically built for Fracture and TD technology.

Fracture releases for Xbox 360 and the PS3 on October 7 in North America and on October 10 in Europe.

Banner day for Take-Two and GTA IV fans. Lots of news so I will just state the facts.

• Eurogamer has reported that exclusive DLC for GTA IV should be hitting the Xbox 360 sometime in November.
• Take-Two is reporting that the DLC will hit during the Q4 of their fiscal year 2009 (Nov 08-Jan 09)- so we will keep you posted on that
• The DLC will consist of two 10-hour episodes
• GTA IV had now sold over 10 million units

All of this comes on the heals of Take-Two’s financial report which was released this morning, full of bragging rights. For example,  Q3 revenues are up from $206.4 million to $433.8 million with net income for Q3 totaling at $51.8 million or $0.67 per share. If you pull up numbers for the same time last year, you will notice that they reported a net loss of $58.5 million or $0.81per share.

For the nine months ended July 31, 2008, net revenues were $1,214.1 million, compared to $689.2 million for the same period a year ago. Net income for the first nine months of fiscal 2008 was $112.1 million or $1.48 per share, compared to a loss of ($131.3) million or ($1.83) for the 2007 period.

No wonder they are not ready to hand the reins over to EA just yet.

For the full press release which includes a slew of boring numbers, hit the jump.

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Ok, so maybe not a GAZILLION videos, but quite a few actually. With a supposed October 14 release date just around the corner, Codemasters is pulling out all the stops with promotion in the way of assets for Rise of the Argonauts.

Besides a bunch of screens, here are some of the videos that were recently released during and pre-GC ‘08:

• Elements: I apologize ahead of time for the Bangkok Dangerous preview. No one should have to listen to Nicholas Cage ever, let alone be forced to watch him.

• Gods Part One and Gods Part Two: Show off some of the cool bits where you will encounter the gods.

• Jason’s Backstory : Basically gives you what it says.

• Leipzig Trailer: Which appears to be a rehash containing bits and pieces from previous trailers. I could be wrong though – I have watched so many trailers for this game they are starting to look alike.

• Argo Trailer: Describing the Argo’s role in the game not just as transport, but as a place where other non-playable Argonauts reside and its use for inventory management.

• Medusa: My personal favorite which gives an in-depth look at the creation of Medusa, and also some of the myth surrounding her. Long live the ill-fated mother of Pegasus and Chrysaor!

For more information on Rise of the Argonauts and plenty of new screenshots, click here and here.

Good news, Fable fans. An official release date for the upcoming Fable 2 has finally been revealed, and that date is (dun dun dun dunnnn) October 21st. Hmm, I doubt I’ll be totally done with Fallout 3 by that point — since it releases two weeks earlier — but that probably won’t stop me from picking this one up as well. In addition to the release date, there are now official details on what to expect in the Collector’s Edition of the game:

• Bonus DVD – Includes new ‘Making-of Feature’ with Peter Molyneux and the team at Lionhead Studios and concept art viewer

• Bonus In-Game Content (Requires LIVE account) – Includes “The Hall of the Dead” Dungeon, “The Wreckager” Legendary Cutlass Weapon and Otherworldly Bonus

• Collectible Hobbe figure with accessories – From the Qee Collection comes this one-of-a-kind Hobbe figure. Nasty, brutish, and short, he roams the countryside, preying on travelers and spiriting away the children of the unwary.

• 48-hour Xbox LIVE Gold Trial Card – With Xbox LIVE Gold, players can show off their individual hero by inviting friends into their unique version of Albion or they can visit their friends’ Albion, and earn additional gold, experience and renown to take back into their own.

• Five printed Fate Cards – These five beautiful cards foretell the Hero’s great destiny to journey across all of Albion, encountering deadly enemies and enigmatic allies. The path leads to a choice that will change the world forever.

Don’t know if all that’s really worth the extra few bucks the Collector’s Edition will cost, but Fable 2 is still on my ever-growing list of games that will keep me broke during the rest of the year.

Via GamerScore Blog

This is a really fun trailer for Ghostbusters: The Videogame. Sierra Entertainment has probably made one of the funnest trailers I have seen in the past two days, mainly because it not only has clips from the movie, but a side-by-side comparison of footage from the game next to the original scene from the movie. The gamplay footage looks top notch, and this is definitely (still) going to be the game to watch for this Fall.

The game is slated for an October 21st release (same day as Dead Space) and while October is “the” month as far as game releases go, I seriously believe it can hold its own because if other gamers out there are anything like I think they are, they will be buying plenty of titles that month. Also, the Activison shindig is tonight, so we might actually hear or see a bit more about the game considering Sierra is under the Activision umbrella, so check back with us.

More E3 screens for the game can be found here.

Square Enix is preparing it’s E3 line up which includes a wide array of titles from CHRONO TRIGGER to the first full-scale role-playing Game created for the iPod, SONG SUMMONER: The Unsung Heroes.

Titles for next-gen gaming consoles include INFINITE UNDISCOVERY, THE LAST REMNANT and STAR OCEAN: THE LAST HOPE. Square Enix is also introducing STAR OCEAN: First Departure, STAR OCEAN: Second Evolution for the PSP. TAITO Corporation will also be represented by EXIT and The Legend of Kage 2 for the DS and SONG SUMMONER: The Unsung Heroes.

“With simultaneous global releases for several platforms on their way, gamers around the world will be able to experience the full grandeur of our games as never before,” said John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix, Inc. and Square Enix, Ltd. “Additionally, Square Enix has offerings at this year’s E3 for every gamer, from fan favorites newly available on portable platforms to casual games accessible to a wide range of users.”

CHRONO TRIGGER, DRAGON QUEST IV: Chapters of the Chosen, FINAL FANTASY IV, INFINITE UNDISCOVERY and SONG SUMMONER: The Unsung Heroes will all be available for play in kiosks at the convention.

Further details on games and platforms follow the break.
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