A lot of shooting games claim to be unique, but fans are not convinced especially with those that claim to meld the genre with RPG elements. Developer Obsidian Entertainment, however, is sending a message that their upcoming title Alpha Protocol ( Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation 3, PC) is the real deal. How so? Read the details after the jump.

A lot of us probably know that CD Projekt RED's The Witcher was a surprisingly big international success. Now, its spin-off browser based game The Witcher: DuelMail is out and is ready for testing. We registered for the trial run and we've been taking it for a spin. Does it do its mother title justice so far? Find out in our Beta notes after you hit the jump.

Nothing beats that thirst while driving the mean streets of Burnout Paradise (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360) than downing a can of ice cold Coca-Cola. Expect to see similar advertisements such as this in the near future as Massive, Inc. and Electronic Arts have recently announced that they will be extending their agreement to offer dynamic in-game ads for several EA titles on the PC and the Xbox 360. More details about this in our full article.

With 2007 coming to a close in a few more days, Midway is all set for next year's upcoming releases. But not without some changes to their marketing stance. in a recent interview, Midway CEO David Zucker his game launch strategy for 2008 as "fewer, bigger, better." Find out what he meant via the full article.

It's no secret that we've seen great games from Take-Two Interactive Software, and the company's financial report for fiscal year 2007 stands proof. First-person shooter Bioshock (Microsoft Xbox 360, PC) shipped over two million units since launch, and honored the company with plenty of awards.

Find out Take-Two's fiscal year 2007 results at the full article.

Master Chief ordering take out at Burger King? Solid Snake wearing Speedos? These are just some hypothetical plugs that gamers might be seeing in the near future with the way in-game advertising has grown into a phenomenal industry nowadays.

As far back as the early '90s, we've seen games that have plugged, advertised or even coerced gamers into taking a gander at their real-life sponsors, as well as the products tied-in with them. The full article awaits after the jump!

If you're nowhere near the E For All venue in Los Angeles, you don't have to get bummed out because you still have a chance to know just what went down this crazy Friday. Major titles from the industry's biggest companies have been exhibited much to the crowd's delight.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass for the popular Nintendo DS handheld took center stage at 1:00 PM in the afternoon. It was presented in the middle of a double whammy from Activision's Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock which jammed at 12:00 PM and again at 2:00 PM.

At 3:00 PM L.A. Lakers point guard Derek Fisher and L.A. Clippers shooting guard Corey Magette treated the crowd to some virtual hardcourt action as they went one on one in EA Sports' NBA Live 08 (Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 360).

Speaking of celebrities, Jerry "The King" Lawler and Jim Ross of WWE Raw were right there in the THQ booth from 12:00PM to 2:00 PM to sign autographs for their young fans. They're promoting WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2008 (Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 360) by THQ.

By 4:00 PM, Activision took the spotlight again to show everyone the beauty that is its upcoming shooting title Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PC, Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 360). At 5:00 PM it was Namco Networks' turn to show off what it's got by holding its Ms. Pac-Man Championships using old-school arcade machines. Namco's contest coincided with Tony Hawk's Proving Ground (Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 3) taking the stage.

The evening held the climax for Friday as Video Games Live was featured at the new Nokia Theatre which is very close to the Staples Center and the L.A. Convention Center. Fans were free to visit and enjoy the exhibits held there. We've got more E For All updates coming so keep it with us.

Los Angeles Lakers point guard Derek Fisher and Los Angeles Clippers shooting guard Corey Maggette will grace the inaugural E for All Expo on October 19, 2007 to play some one-on-one off the court. The two NBA stars are also big gaming fans, and they'll show off their skills at one of the industry's newest shindigs.

The game they'll be playing hasn't been disclosed yet, but to spice things up, pro gamer Johnathan "Fatal1ty" Wendel will join them and take part in the action himself. Wendel is considered as one of the very best cyber-athletes in the planet today.

"Getting to compete against Corey and Fatal1ty at E for All is an opportunity I couldn't pass up," said Fisher. "Playing video games has always been a cool way for me to hone my competitive skills off the court. I have fun when I play, but I still play to win. I can't wait to test my skills out against these guys!"

E for All is one of the few game expos that are open to the public. It is viewed as a spiritual successor to E3's old identity which has seen a drastic change with restrictions this year. E for All has been able to bring some major video game companies to its fold and is all set to rock starting October 18 until October 24.

Fisher and Maggette are both known for their distinct styles of play on the court. Maggette is among the better swingmen in the league with his good mix of ball handling and shooting. Fisher, on the other hand, is a stalwart of the Lakers' three-peat, providing more firepower to the Shaquille O'Neal-Kobe Bryant tandem in the earlier part of the decade.

 

Electronic Arts is really trying to outdo itself with NBA Live 08. The developers are taking realism up a notch in the game, making it feel even more like a live broadcast of an NBA game with over 20,000 lines of speech from commenters Marv Albert and Steve Kerr.

To really capture the feel of a live NBA game, the developers had Albert and Kerr record their lines without scripts, ad-libbing their comments just as they would do in a live game. This preserves the spontaneity - not to mention flaws: the commenters will also be stumbling in their speech sometimes - of a live commentary.

To preserve authenticity, Albert and Kerr have also recorded 800 lines of player-specific comments for 130 players in the game. The lines will be played in the game when a specific player does a specific move (even their own signature shots) so players won't be hearing ambiguous lines referring to players who could be anybody. The commenters will really be specifying who is who in the game.

Another move for authenticity is the game's new default camera is no longer the baseline camera but rather a sideline camera, like the ones you see on a live broadcast. The change of default angles is to immerse players more into the game, but the baseline angle is still available.

Watch out for NBA Live 08 as it is released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, PSP and PC on October 2.

As if we need more reasons to look forward to EA Sports' NBA Live 08 (PS3, PS2, PSP, Xbox 360, Wii), the folks behind the long-running NBA franchise just revealed this year's soundtrack to tease us. With 19 songs to choose from, something is sure to satisfy your need for a music fix.

There's a good selection, from Kid Beyond's Mothership to Stephen Marley's Hey Baby. Electronic Arts is quite proud with what it was able to cook up, with worldwide executive of music and marketing Steve Schnur saying that "the NBA Live soundtrack is the music industry's top playmaker."

We're inclined to agree, what with all the popular artists in the roster. "The NBA Live soundtrack is now officially a dynasty," Schnur added. Everyone's entitled to his or her opinion though, so don't be shy to give your piece after checking out what's in store. Here's the list:

• Aasim - Customer
• Cool Kids - 88
• Datarock - Fa-Fa-Fa
• The Dey - Get the Feeling
• DJ Jazzy Jeff ft. CL Smooth - All I Know
• DJ Vadim ft. Emo and Syrus - Fear Feats
• Dub Pistols ft. Terry Hall - Running From the Thoughts
• Eve - Tambourine
• The Hives - Well Alright
• Kid Beyond - Mothership
• KRS-One & Marley Marl - Hip Hop Lives
• LCD Soundsystem - Us v Them
• Stephen Marley - Hey Baby
• Kevin Michael ft. Wyclef Jean - It Don't Make Any Difference
• Mr. J. Medeiros - Silent Earth (Ohmega Watts Remix)
• Mark Ronson ft. Tiggers - Toxic
• Joss Stone - Tell Me 'Bout It
• Timbaland ft. Keri Hilson - The Way I Are
• UnkleJam - Love Ya

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