MLG on ESPN

Now this is a serious breakthrough. ESPN, the worldwide standard in sports coverage, has struck a deal with MLG to begin coverage of professional gaming. No more half-assed G4 specials, no more sporadic USA show times. Now Final Boss will be sandwiched Tiger Woods and Roger Federer on the plays of the week.

And check out their gaming-dedicated site. Thanks to a 1up.com partnership, it looks like it's been around forever.

'mo betta DLC

Yeesh, either we're getting old, winter has slowed our brains, or things are moving quickly in the world of Halo these days. Bungie's recent revelations about their next batch of downloadable maps has us feeling overwhelmed- we're just getting acquainted with Rat's Nest. And haven't even had a chance to play Grif-ball. What it comes down to, we suppose, is that we're just not playing enough Halo.

Advance Wars: Days of Ruin

You're not a real gamer if you don't play strategy games.

If you've never waited for a Starcraft map to load, typed "gl hf" with jittery hands, and then promptly shit yourself when the reply came back as Korean jibberish, then you don't know the meaning of competitive gaming.

Strangely, the most intense genre in gaming has moved away from the PC (at least for now), onto a piece of hardware that couldn't appear more casual: Nintendo's DS.

The Advance Wars franchise has been around forever, so it was no surprise when Dual Strike became a must-have title for last year's "other" touch-screen phenomenon.

A little franchise named Final Fantasy also tried to bolster the DS's strategy cred, but fell flat when released in December. Too much RPG, not enough multiplayer. As in, no multiplayer at all.

But it's for the best, when you consider that this month brings another Advance Wars, the dreary-looking Days of Ruin. In addition to new, drab color schemes, the game has new units, and serious new features. Commanding Officers now take their place on the battlefield, lending abilities and stats to surrounding units, a la the heroes of Warcraft 3. A new emphasis on naval combat allows for more offense from carriers and battleships, which now have the ability to move and fire.

The one feature that will keep me ignoring my Xbox, though, is the game's online multiplayer, which includes voice chat via the DS's mic. Just remember, if The Phantom Hourglass's use of the microphone left you feeling sheepish in public places, then your raving smack-talk probably belongs on your couch. Just because the system is portable, doesn't mean you have to take it outside.

Be sure to read 1up's full preview, linked again here for your convenience.

Major Nelson's website, in a shocking display of sympathy from Microsoft, announced today that they were "disappointed with their performance" in dealing with the holiday boom on Xbox Live. Apparently, a record amount of users have joined the community, testing the servers' might and causing a few service issues here and there.

The previously noted display of sympathy is notable, because it comes in the form of a free full-version Live Arcade game download for each user. Details to follow.

Street Fighter IV

Here's the latest from 1up's ongoing coverage of Street Fighter IV. This week's vid focuses on new gameplay mechanics and Capcom's efforts to balance the game.



Also, be sure to check out last week's 20-minute epic, which featured the first-ever video of SF IV gameplay.

Plagiarism and Memories

This vid was posted with a half-ass Cracked.com article about "impossible" NES games, which blatantly steals from The Angry Video Game nerd, and still manages to puss out by including some very beatable games, such as Tyson's Punch Out, Ninja Gaiden, and Contra.

Battletoads, which I don't remember being too difficult, was number one on the list. I do admit though, this clip does have a certain repressed-memory sort of vibe.

Downloadable Content/Team Hardcore

Bungie announced today the upcoming release of three new downloadable maps, which will be available December 11th for 800 MS Points. Pictured is "Standoff," a nice looking, vehicle-oriented outdoor map. For more details and pics, be sure to read Bungie's official announcement..

Also announced was the return of "Team Hardcore," the competition-oriented playlist favored by the kids at MLG.