It’s that time of week again when we take a fond look back at the top five news stories from the week. Welcome to the Weekly Wrap-Up. Below is a brief summary, but for the full stories simply click on the hyperlink. Let us know if you agree with our top five. If you have suggestions for future Weekly Wrap-Ups, feel free to email me at jeremy.tyler@bagogames.com.
Enjoy!
Number 5
White PS3 Instant Games Collection Bundle Coming Later This Month
As if you needed yet another bundle in your life, a new Classic White PS3 Instant Games Collection Bundle is set to release on Jan. 27th, for the price of $299.99. The bundle comes with a huge 500GB PS3 system and one year of PlayStation Plus; meaning that you’ll get access to the PlayStation Store’s Instant Games Collection and more games than you have time to play (probably). Should you want to replace your current PS3 with this white super slim, the PlayStation Plus subscription contained within can be added to an existing subscription, giving you ample time to download these games and not spend anything on new releases. Your wallet will probably appreciate it
Number 4
Nintendo is Joining it’s Handheld and Console Development Teams
Nintendo is joining together its handheld and console development divisions to one big team in a new headquarters location. It is reported that this will be the first large-scale development structural change in nine years, just as Nintendo has released its new home console. Specific information includes the move taking place on February 16th with the new building being completed next year right next to its current headquarters in Kyoto.
Number 3
Skyrim DLC Hits PSN in February, To Be 50% Off
Skyrim players on the PlayStation 3 will finally be able to expand their 100+ hour game, as the game’s three DLC add-ons are set to release next month; as is the 1.8 title update. Final release dates haven’t been detailed yet, but when they are, Dragonborn, Hearthfire and Dawnguard will all be dropped by 50% during their first launch week. Presumably as an apology for taking so long. Or just because.
Number 2
Kevin Butler Actor and Sony Make Nice, Come to an Agreement
After Jerry Lambert, the actual actor that plays the Kevin Butler character for Sony, appeared in a Bridgestone ad and played a Nintendo Wii system, Sony went on the offensive and sued both Bridgestone and Lambert; claiming a breach of contract by the actor. Now, however, it seems that the two parties –well, Lambert and Sony, at least– have ended their fight, reports MediaPost; Sony and Bridgestone are still going at it. Lambert, under the terms of the settlement, cannot appear in any kind of ad or promotion tied to “any other video game or computer entertainment system or video game company” for two years. After that time has passed, Lambert can go back to doing video game ads, but he has also agreed to contact Sony and provide enough information so that the company can determine whether or not his performances resemble the Kevin Butler persona
Number 1
Next PlayStation and Xbox Are Expected to Launch at $400
The next-gen systems from Microsoft and Sony still have a little ways to go before being officially announced, but thanks to their time spent at CES this year, Baird Equity Research has made a few predictions about the systems. Specifically about their price, launch windows and what will make up the guts of the hardware, as reported by GamesIndustry International. For the information we always seem to to have to wait on, like release dates and pricing, Baird Equity Research believes that both systems will launch between $350 and $400, with the next PlayStation launching in October and the Xbox in November. It should be noted that Baird’s Colin Sebastian warned of early production problems for the PlayStation console, but specific reasons why this would happen weren’t given. Meanwhile, high end PC components will be utilized in both systems, a mix between physical and digital distribution models will be present and voice controls, motion controls and multi-media will be enhanced
Honorable Mentions
This week had a lot of big news and the news staff and I found it hard to narrow it down to the usual five stories. Here are some of the articles for the honorable mention section. Fire Emblem Awakening 3DS Bundle Coming February 4th, Disney Infinity Gets an Announcement Trailer, Release date and Price Revealed for The Cave
If you missed out on the big news items this week, you can check out our weekly podcast and get an audio update of this week’s madness from our podcasting team. Listen to us as we talk about some things seriously and a few other things not so much. We guarantee this episode will make you shake your fist at times and nod your head at others. And finally, check out The Interview with Q, hosted by Matthew Quinlan.
