Sometimes the very best gaming deals for consoles are the “Greatest hits” series; when a great game gets long in the tooth and doesn’t command retailer shelf space and the hearts and minds of the gaming populace any longer, publishers will often reinvigorate it by making it a “greatest hits” title.

Microsoft calls them “Platinum Hits”, and today added five titles to the “Greatness is Earned” banner: “Grand Theft Auto IV” (Rockstar Games); “Street Fighter IV” (Capcom); “Left 4 Dead” (Valve); “Saint’s Row 2” (THQ); and “Star Wars–The Force Unleashed” (LucasArts).

That means a couple of things for you. Most important, of course, is that these games are now $19.99.  However, many retailers are offering “Buy 2, get the third free” right now on the Platinum Hits series, meaning you can pick up three great games for about $40. That deal is going on through October 31st.

This is a good chance to pick up on any of these titles that you may have missed the first time around. Good things come to those who wait.

Atlus today announced that ACE Team’s acclaimed melee-action FPS Zeno Clash is coming to Xbox Live Arcade in a newly remastered “Definitive” Ultimate Edition.

The original Zeno Clash was developed by ACE Team, a Santiago, Chile-based indie developer. Originally made for PC, it was a cult hit and contained many unique elements and won several Indie gaming awards. It is still available on Steam, but it sounds like the remastered edition will be the way to go, if you happen to have an Xbox 360. The press releases announces “new modes, new features, and added content” as well as a “series of improvements based on fan feedback.”

The Ultimate Edition will hit Xbox Live Arcade in Spring of 2010.

Xbox Live recently released a ‘do not do’ list for indie developers who would like to include Live avatars in their games. Some might call these restrictions stifling or censoring, but this doesn’t seem to be the case. Live avatars are Xbox IP, and they do not belong to the players or the community. I’m surprised that Xbox Live even allows this type of partially moderated use of their IP as it is. Also note that this is not “here are the few things that you are allowed to do”, it is instead “here are the few things that you cannot do”. With that in mind, all of the rules really boil down to three basic tenets of avatar use. I’ve categorized the rules below. You can check out the original post to the developers community here. (more…)

You'll rot your brain, Jackie!

My hands are slightly clammy right now and my heart is practically beating out of my chest. I just discovered that the Frag Dolls, the girl gaming team for Ubisoft, are looking for two new girls to join their team. This is a moment that I’ve been waiting for since I first heard about them two years ago; the job that I’ve been hoping to find when I graduate this coming May. I never thought in my wildest dreams that my possible career would line itself up so nicely—there’s almost no job that I can think of right now that I’d want more than this one—but there’s just one tiny hitch: Getting the job.

I haven’t been playing video games for a long time. I asked for a video game console when I was about twelve years old. My mother refused to get me one because she said, “You’ll get addicted.” When I did finally get my fingers on some games at the late age of nineteen, I found that she was right. I also found that there was a fantastic, wide world full of games and gamers out there that I wanted to explore.

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The Gamerscore Blog has been a steady source of information regarding the Xbox and Microsoft LIVE service since October of 2005. Today Microsoft’s Global Games Online Community Manager Tony Hynes posted that the blog has been retired permanently.

According to today’s post, there are many places to find important Microsoft gaming information, and this is part of an effort to consolidate those sources.

…we’ve created a variety of vehicles to communicate directly with you and keep you informed of everything new for Xbox. … we’re doing a little housekeeping.  We made the decision to retire Gamerscore blog, and focus our community outreach through Xbox.com and through the Xbox dashboard.

Hi Felicia. I'm kind of a big deal. You busy this weekend? Love, @primesuspect

Felicia Day always struck me as something of the perfect girlfriend type of girl. She’s cute, funny, talented, smart, a gamer, and if I am reading the cards correctly – soon to be makin’ it rain. Microsoft has picked up an exclusive lock on the long-anticipated second season of the runaway web comedy hit “The Guild“, which is created by, written by, and stars Miss Day. Her hair is amazing.

The first season of The Guild was financed mostly by viewer donations. It stands at over nine million views, and the success probably had no small part to play in Felicia’s appearance in the Joss Whedon web short “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-a-long Blog” opposite Neil Patrick Harris. I’m better looking than him.

While Microsoft has secured broadcast rights for Season 2, Felicia retains exclusive IP rights to the property, while securing an up front licensing fee. Yes, she’s leasing The Guild to Microsoft. Felicia, I give amazing backrubs.

Microsoft will be showing season two of The Guild, along with other independent webshows such as “Red Vs. Blue”, “The Jace Hall Show” and the first season of The Guild. They plan simultaneous release on the Xbox Independent Video channel, Zune marketplace, and MSN video. After four weeks, each episode will also be available on Watchtheguild.com, which is where the originals aired. I am super affectionate, too. I’m cuddly and I make a great boyfriend!

This continues the trend of media being available on many platforms, and once again solidifies the internet as the platform of choice for independent, high quality media. The barrier to entry for independent artists gets lower and lower every day. Congratulations, Felicia Day. I am an amazing and thoughtful gift giver and if you want to go out on a date, shoot me an email.

The 360 is getting a much needed transformation from Netflix this Wednesday at Midnight.  All Xbox owners will be required to update their consoles to receive a major new update. With it, they will be able to watchhigh definition movies, and stream content from the enormous Netflix library.  Xbox 360 owners can also navigate categories like games, photos, and videos through a dashboard populated with new “avatars”. With the new perks also comes a new name; the update is referred to as the “New Xbox Experience” or NxE. (more…)

Okay so I admit that this showed up a little late today, but that’s okay. So what if it’s my first gaming roundup for the new gaming channel on Icrontic? So what? You’ll read it anyway, right? 

Alright fine. I fail. Here’s the jazz:

• OH HAY. THEY FIXED THE HALF LIFE 1 ENGINE. I mean seriously? But hey, it’s news.
• Sweepstakes of the day! Xbox.com is giving away a million MS points (probably not all to the same person). Just register, do the stuff, and win. You know the drill.
• Europe Wii owners rejoice! Mega Man 3 and Phantasy Star IV are now available on Virtual Console for European gamers.
• Release date for the hotly anticipated Street Fighter IV? February 17, 2009 on PS3 and Xbox 360 according to Capcom.
• We love Left 4 Dead around here, that much is clear. A cool blog post on the tech behind the “filmic” effects.
• Casual of the day is Popcap’s Alchemy. Thank me later.