The bad news continues to pile on for Toshiba and HD DVD, as Warner Bros.’ sister company, New Line, has decided to make the move to being a Blu-ray exclusive. While details on New Line’s move are scarce, Variety is reporting that New Line confirmed the move alongside the Warner Bros. announcement.

New Line is the company behind recent movies such as Rush Hour 3, The Golden Compass, Austin Powers, and Wedding Crashers. It’s by no means as strong of a catalog as Warner Bros., but HD DVD is no doubt clinging to every last bit of support it has. It’s no wonder that HD DVD’s event at CES has apparently been canceled.

If I were handy with Photoshop, you’d no doubt be seeing a picture of a funeral for HD DVD above. Instead, the only images you’ll see from me (for now) can be seen in the past few HD DVD-related posts.

Seriously, though – when is Blu-ray’s victory parade scheduled for?

With FIFA 08 and missing the top spot by just 1000 sales and Call of Duty 4 slipping to number three on the UK all-formats chart for the week of December 31st; Assassin’s Creed finishes out the year with only a 7% drop in sales.

The Simpsons Game, which has also proved to be very popular with UK gamers, fell by 24% as it dropped to number four, while Need for Speed Pro Street maintained its number 5 position even with a 23% drop in sales. The only game to actually see an increase in sales for this period was FIFA 08 misses top spot by just 1000 sales – see the full list below.

1. Assassin’s Creed
2. FIFA 08
3. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
4. The Simpsons Game
5. Need for Speed Pro Street
6. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008
7. WWE Smack Down vs Raw 2008
8. More Brain Training
9. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
10. The Golden Compass

It surprises me that a WWE game would be so popular over seas – I thought it was strictly a Southern-American thing like NASCAR. Ya know, Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer with Pork Rinds and Camel Non-Filters as party treats while you watch both of these “sports” on split screen in your run-down trailer.

Of course I am joking. No hate mail please – I am southern through and through, I just personally do not like wrastlin’ and car racing.

Thanks for the info: GamesIndustry.biz

Play Digital has a video review of the new Sega game The Golden Compass. This game is out in force showing up on every platform except the Mac. Based on the movie of the same name, this action-adventure game was developed by Shiny Entertainment and published by Sega. Katharine, your video host, is a fan of the His Dark Materials trilogy which is a very precarious position to be in as you naturally tend to compare the game and the movie it’s based on to the book.

Now, as you might expect, I am a big fan of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, of which Northern Lights (mistitled as The Golden Compass in America) is the first book, and I heartily recommend them to children, or lovers of fantastical adventure or metaphysics.

While I wasn’t bowled over by the movie, I didn’t find it dreadful either, but with the dilution of quality that you usually get with each new adaptation for a different medium, can the game possibly be any good?

Join me here in Pullman’s Oxford to take a look at the 360 version before you are seduced by sin and fall into the trap of buying this one for the kiddies this Christmas.

via Play Digital

SEGA has announced that The Golden Compass is now available in stores for the DS, PC, PSP, PS2, PS3, Xbox 360 and the Wii. Based upon the best selling series”His Dark Materials” by Phillip Pullman and the motion picture, The Golden Compass contains a world where witches fly through frozen skies, giant armored bears fight to defend their kingdom and sinister Gobblers kidnap children and carry them to a frozen wasteland. The world is full of intense danger and adventure for the rebellious Lyra Belacqua.

Storyline:

Her uncle, Lord Asriel, has been imprisoned, her best friend Roger kidnapped and now she must leave the safety of Jordan College to rescue both. Joining Lyra in her mission is her animal daemon, Pan, as well as a giant and powerful polar bear, Iorek, and the mysterious Golden Compass – a truth-telling device that will help lead the way. Together they embark on an epic journey of action, exploration, collaboration and discovery.

Game Features:

• Authenticity to the movie. The official video game of The Golden Compass from New Line Cinema – the studio behind The Lord of the Rings trilogy – comes to life this holiday 2007.
• Play as the heroes from the film. Embark on a journey into the frozen North as the rebellious and headstrong heroine Lyra who uses her cunning to evade enemies. Or charge forward as her powerful friend and protector Iorek – a giant armored bear able to overcome any obstacle with his brute strength.
• Explore a parallel universe. Immerse yourself in the world of The Golden Compass movie and discover the majestic grandeur of Jordan College, the hustle and bustle of port town Trollesund, or the dark and foreboding research station at Bolvangar. Go beyond the movie with two areas from the His Dark Materials universe exclusive to the game.
• Discover a powerful bond greater than friendship. Experience the collaborative bond between Lyra and her unique animal-companion Pan who has the ability to morph into a variety of different creatures to help Lyra solve puzzles and navigate obstacles throughout her perilous journey.
• The Golden Compass will lead the way. Use the truth-telling Golden Compass to solve in-game puzzles and unlock bonus content allowing you to explore the worlds as seen in the movie.
• Use quick wit to discover and evade. Participate in a variety of themed embedded mini-games to help Lyra gain further information about her journey and avoid confrontation with those that mean her harm.

Rated “10+” for ages 10 and up, The Golden Compass is creating controversy, mostly due to the Catholic Church stating that it is nothing more than atheist propaganda, due to its “God killing” themes. Whatever. They are always on the bandwagon about something whether it be “The Da Vinci Code”, “Harry Potter”, or homosexuals. You never hear a peep out of them when a game, novel, or movie comes out depicting warriors who worship many gods or are just plain godless barbarians or where the church is “killing in the name of”. For crying out loud, it is FICTION – they need to look up the meaning of the word in the dictionary. More than anything, this makes me want to go see the movie and play the game just to piss off the Vatican.

SEGA of America, Inc. today shipped the video game adaptation of the highly anticipated theatrical release, The Golden Compass. The movie and video game are based on the first book in Philip Pullman’s award-winning trilogy, His Dark Materials. The game will be available for the Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, Wii and PC as well as the DS and PSP handhelds.

The game’s plot lines and environments are taken straight from the movie, allowing fans of the movie and book to take control of the story and drive the action. The vivid characters are modeled after and voiced by the movie’s impressive cast, which includes Academy Award winner Nicole Kidman as Mrs. Coulter, Daniel Craig as Lord Asriel and Dakota Blue Richards as Lyra Belacqua.

“The Golden Compass is one of the most beloved books of all time, and the movie is sure to be the smash hit of the holiday season” said Don Mesa, Marketing Director, SEGA of America. “The video game will stay true to the story while allowing fans of both the book and the movie to actively participate in this fantastic universe for the first time ever.”
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Sega and Valve have announced a lineup of new Sega titles via the Steam distribution platform for PC games. Sega Rally and Sega Rally Revo are available now as well as Worldwide Soccer Manager, and Futbol Manager. Universe at War: Earth Assault and The Golden Compass are targeted for a December release.

In addition, Europe and most of the world will now be able to enjoy Sega titles such as Medieval II: Total War and Rome: Total War,which were previously released on Steam only to customers in North America.

via Press Release

SEGA released a trailer for the Golden Compass featuring new footage from the game. The Golden Compass is based on the popular novels as you control Lyra Belaqua as she journeys through the frozen North in an attempt to rescue her friend who was kidnapped by a strange organization knows as the Gobblers. Think of it as traveling through Canada on foot, only with mysterious creatures and a fantasy backdrop. The game is scheduled for release on the following systems:

Xbox 360:
EU November 30, 2007
NA December 5, 2007

Wii,PS2,DS,PS3,PSP:
EU December 5, 2007
NA December 7, 2007

Nintendo of America have said that by the end of 2007, the Wii library will have 140 titles, and the Nintendo DS library will reach 450 games. Below is a list of 79 Wii titles for the months of October through December. This list does not include the DS titles, or downloadable games (which will total 200 by year’s end) but it is still an impressive list – I never said all of the titles were, just the amount.

October

1st – MLB Power Pros (2K Sports)
1st – Dragon Blade: Wrath of Fire (D3)
2nd – Crash of the Titans (Sierra)
5th – Balls of Fury (DSI)
8th – Donkey Kong: Barrel Blast (Nintendo)
9th – FIFA 08 (Electronic Arts)
9th – Bleach: Shattered Blade (SEGA)
9th – Looney Tunes: Acme Arsenal (WB Games)
10th – Arctic Tale (DSI)
15th – Sea Monsters (DSI)
16th – Thrillville: Off the Rails (LucasArts)
22nd – EA Playground (Electronic Arts)
23rd – Backyard Football (Atari)
23rd – The Sims 2 Castaway (Electronic Arts)
23rd – Rockstar Table Tennis (Rockstar)
23rd – The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night (Sierra)
23rd – Naruto: Clash of Ninja Revolution (TOMY)
25th – M&M’S Kart Racing (DSI)
28th – Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Activision)
29th – Battalion Wars 2 (Nintendo)
30th – Ben 10: Protector of Earth (D3)
30th – Showtime Championship Boxing (DSI)
30th – Need For Speed: ProStreet (Electronic Arts)
30th – The Simpsons (Electronic Arts)
31st – Manhunt 2 (Rockstar)
October – Spider-Man: Friend or Foe (Activision)
October – Bee Movie Game (Activision)
October – Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground (Activision)
October – Ultimate Duck Hunting (Detn8)
October – Mercury Meltdown Revolution (Ignition)
October – Namco Museum Remix (Namco Bandai)
October – Code Lyoko: Quest for Infinity (The Game Factory)
October – Avatar: The Last Airbender – The Burning Earth (THQ)
October – Bratz: The Movie (THQ)
October – Cars: Mater-National (THQ)
October – Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots (THQ)
October – SpongeBob’s Atlantis SquarePantis (THQ)

NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER TITLES LISTED AFTER THE BREAK

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Nintendo is helping you kick off the football season with the sports classic, NES Play Action Football. If you’re not so into sports check out one of the other classics offered in this week’s Wii-kly update. Go for the gold with Sonic the Hedgehog 3. It’s Sonic and Tails vs. Knuckles and Dr. Eggman in a race for the chaos emeralds. If you like action RPGs, explore labyrinths and defeat demons in Neutopia II featuring updated graphics and controls.
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For those of you eagerly awaiting the Golden Compass film and/or video game, some new game screenshots have just surfaced. In the game, you play as young Lyra, travelling through the frozen tundra of the North to rescue your friend, who has been kidnapped by “The Gobblers.” You have a polar bear, a pet demon nicknamed pan and a magical golden compass with which to find your friend. Pretty much another day at the office.

The game is being released Descember of this year to coincide with the release of the film on December 7.