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I Am Alive trailer brings a gun to a machete fight


The latest trailer from Ubisoft's upcoming survival title, I Am Alive, focuses on the interesting combat system. With the game's emphasis on realism, fights are often tense and brutal, with the threat of a gun often the only thing between a peaceful situation and a gruesome machete attack.

As you can see, I Am Alive's fights are more often about using your sparse resources wisely under pressure than simply lining up the right shot, or having a bigger weapon than your opponents. We think it's a good hook, and you'll be able to play it for yourself when the game comes out during Microsoft's XBLA House Party, starting February 15.

Plants vs. Zombies looks just as fun on the Vita

Different menus? Nope, same options as always, same touchscreen choices as iOS. Wall-nuts and peashooters? Still there. Zombie handwriting and spelling? Still really, really poor. ... continue reading.

Custom Mass Effect turian figurines say hi with sass

Sculptor Kerry Dyer seems to be a purveyor of adorable sculptures and 3D art, and her latest conquest is the turian race from Mass Effect. Kerry created a few super-cute, sassy turian figurines like a pro, with a full rundown of the process on her blog. ... continue reading.

VideoGamesPlus.ca investigating 'security issue,' recommends password change

Earlier today it was reported that VideoGamesPlus.ca had been hacked and 21,000 customers' account details were posted for all to see. Eurogamer obtained an email from the company to customers saying the site is "currently investigating a security issue" and is recommending folks to change their passwords.

The problems started when a hacker claimed he had the account details and posted them (since removed) on a file-sharing site. The details included customer names, dates of birth, email addresses, phone numbers and encrypted passwords.

Short version: If you're a VGP customer, change the password for any accounts that shared the same password.

[Pavel Ignatov via Shutterstock]

Skullgirls' Painwheel is kind of mean

Seriously, girl has some issues (and some nasty combos). ... continue reading.

New Zynga titles struggle, analysts call for increase in daily active users

Zynga's two latest games, Hidden Chronicles and the iOS-only Scramble With Friends, have failed to accumulate the same daily active user (DAU) totals as two of the social giant's previous releases, Castleville or Empires and Allies. This spells big trouble for the company's trading value and future growth, at least according to a report released by financial analysis group Cowen and Company.

Hidden Chronicles' 12 day post-launch DAU total of 710,000 is well below the over 5 million DAU figure reached by Empires and Allies and Castleville during their first 12 days of existence; similarly, Scramble With Friends has failed to penetrate the Top 20 barrier on the App Store. Historically, Zynga's DAU totals peak 3 months after a game has been released (according to the report), and while it's possible that both Hidden Chronicles and Scramble With Friends could slowly acquire a larger user base, there's nothing in Zynga's statistical history to make that extremely plausible.

Now, 710,000 daily users sounds like a ton of people, but Zynga has set the bar so high that it's not enough to keep the company's overall growth even: "The quarterly rate of DAU decline for Zynga's titles that are at least three months old has averaged 18.4 percent per quarter for the last two years," explained Doug Creutz of Cowen and Company. "Assuming Zynga averages a 20 percent quarterly rate of decline for titles beyond their launch windows in 2012, the company must add 9-10 million DAUs per quarter from new games just to keep total DAUs constant."

So basically, any game Zynga releases in 2012 has to achieve at least 5 million daily users in order for the company's user base to break even. In other news, Zynga has constructed a super-sonic ultra-high-altitude aircraft to recover the bar it's accidentally set for itself in the exosphere.

Explore menus and giant crystals in this Final Fantasy XIII-2 Time Travel trailer

We're pretty dubious of any time-travel methods that don't involve police boxes from the 1960s, but Final Fantasy XIII-2's horcrux Historia Crux and time gates look like a fairly stable, albeit significantly less British, way to traverse the annals of history. ... continue reading.

Rumor: Kilik and Elysium added to Soulcalibur 5

SoulCalibur 5's character roster has, historically, been chock-full of leaks. Clandestine screenshots were responsible for revealing Ezio and Raphael, and now it looks as though three new fighters may have been uncovered in an extremely similar fashion.

Two images, culled from NeoGAF's depths, show the most hated man in the world fan-favorite Kilik (sporting a shiny new bird hat), as well as newcomer Elysium, an angelic female of some kind who sports very little of anything. Speculation suggests that both characters will be "mimic characters" who are able to emulate the fighting styles of any other character, but at this point that appears to be unfounded.

Considering SC5's track record with character selection screenshots, however, we're cautiously optimistic regarding the validity of these photos. Check out the gallery below for high-resolution versions.

Dungeon Fighter Online for XBLA gets much longer name, new trailer


We haven't really heard anything about the Xbox Live Arcade version of Dungeon Fighter Online since it was announced last year. Today we have the first trailer and news that the game has received a new (and much longer) title. Henceforth, it shall be known as Dungeon Fighter Live: Fall of Hendon Myre.

Also of note -- especially after missing the original 2011 launch window -- Nexon has revealed that Dungeon Fighter Live will now be released "later this year."

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Indie Game: The Movie premieres tomorrow at Sundance, here's a Fish

Indie Game: The Movie is preparing for its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, which begins tomorrow in Park City, Utah, and runs through the 29th. Indie Game: The Movie has five screenings at Sundance, and it's offering a glimpse at developer Phil Fish's own premiere of Fez right ... continue reading.

Rocksmith DLC: Don't Fear the Barracuda swimming through the Space Oddity


Rocksmith
DLC takes a trip through time this week, with a trio of songs from the 60s and 70s. David Bowie's "Space Oddity," Heart's "Barracuda," and Blue Oyster Cult's "(Don't Fear) the Reaper" have all been released as new downloadable content. The songs can be had for $3 apiece on either PSN or Xbox Live.

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Puzzlejuice summoned to App Store tomorrow

Greg Wohlwend, part of the team behind the amazing iOS version of Solipskier and the upcoming Ridiculous Fishing, has a new game coming to the App Store tomorrow. Puzzlejuice, a collaboration with Asher Vollmer, retains the neon color scheme of Solipskier, with a combination of falling-block and word gameplay.

We don't really understand it, but it appears that you direct Tetris-like blocks into a pile, then tap them to reveal letters, then select words within those groupings of letters. We look forward to figuring it out tomorrow, when the game will be released for $3.

Zumba Fitness Rush sweats Kinect Feb. 13


The hit Zumba Fitness franchise is working out another installment next month with Zumba Fitness Rush. The game is exclusively for Xbox 360's Kinect and features "the most content of any Zumba Fitness game to date."

"This high-quality experience built for Kinect for Xbox 360 offers a wealth of exclusive content to fans, and then delivers even more post launch with multiple game add-on packs," Majesco CEO Jesse Sutton said. "The February 13 launch of Rush is the company's largest integrated marketing program to date, and we are thrilled to have Microsoft's support around the world to bring this exceptional product to market."

Rush already has two DLC packs slated, with a three-song Bollywood pack for May and another triple-pack of hip-hop songs for September. The packs will be 400 MSP ($5) apiece.

The Zumba Fitness franchise has surpassed 6 million units to date and is currently the backbone of Majesco's financial scoliosis.

Take a look at the gorgeous and gory roster of Soulcalibur V

SoulCalibur V is similar to previous entries in one crucial aspect: There are some very pretty fighters on the roster who are more than happy to slice each other up. Even gory ol' Nightmare seems to have received some tips directly from Tim Gunn. Major wow factor, people! ... continue reading.

Zumba Fitness franchise sells 6M units, Majesco profits

Majesco continues to stave off oblivion, getting lucky with Cooking Mama a couple years back and now living off the sweat equity of Zumba Fitness. The company announced the Zumba Fitness franchise has sold more than 6 million units worldwide, with Zumba Fitness 2 surpassing 1 million sales.

"In 2011, we experienced the successful launch of a brand new franchise for Majesco; Zumba Fitness has quickly become the fastest selling title in the company's history and the world's number one fitness title of 2011," Majesco CEO Jesse Sutton said. "We grew revenues over 65 percent in 2011 ... Zumba Fitness has taken the fitness category by storm, selling over four million units worldwide in its first 12 months, and topping the charts as the number one fitness title of the year in the US and UK."

For the fourth quarter, ending October 31, 2011, Majesco experienced a net loss of $3.9 million, versus a loss of $1.5 million in 2010. For the year, however, Majesco's revenue increased 66 percent to $125.3 million, ending with an operating income of $11.4 million, compared to the $2.1 million loss the prior year.

Majesco could always combine its top franchises for mega profits: Cooking Mama's Zumba Fitness: Work Out & Eat Well.

Sonic the Hedgehog store offers one-stop Jet the Hawk memorabilia shopping

Sega of Europe just opened a new online Sonic the Hedgehog shop, allowing you to get all the backpacks, school supplies, figurines and other hedgehog-bearing material you could possibly want. Need a figure of one of the robot bug enemies, or Jet the Hawk on a hoverboard? You got it! Need Sonic the Headhog? No problem!

Right now, the shop is only available in Europe -- and offering 15 percent off almost everything -- but Sega plans to open an American version later, for those of you stateside looking to get a ring binder (for paper, not rings).

Growlanser: Wayfarer of Time is Atlus's next PSP game that starts with 'G'

Last time Atlus teased a new game whose name started with "G," some fans assumed it would be a game in the Growlanser series. It was Gungnir that particular time, but now Atlus has revealed a second G game, and it's totally Growlanser.

Growlanser: Wayfarer of Time, coming to PSP this summer, is a localized version of Growlanser IV: Over Reloaded, the tactical RPG sequel released on PS2 in 2003 and then remade on PSP last year. The PSP update has improved loading times, a message-skip option, and lots of new in-game content.

Because of a combination of licensing restrictions and the scope of the game's script, only the "many anime cutscenes" will be voiced. We're sure the people sitting next to you on the subway won't mind.

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Four videos from GoW3 DLC Fenix Rising show maps, Locusts, booms

Fenix Rising, the third DLC installment of four in the Gears of War 3 $30 Season Pass, is available now for 800 MS Points ($10). Fenix Rising adds five new maps, three of which you can fly through in the videos below. The above video just shows some exploding Locusts and stuff. ... continue reading.

Caverns of Minos offers minotaurs, Mothersheep through App Store



Jeff Minter's latest iOS installment doesn't directly involve goats, but it does bring back the illustrious minotaurs and disco-psychedelic flavor of classic Llamasoft style. Caverns of Minos has players grab minotaurs from the depths of vertical caverns to return them to the Mothersheep (yes, it's a giant, floating sheep), all in brilliant neon, old-school graphics.

Caverns of Minos is available now in the App Store for $1.99 from Minter's Llamasoft, which self-supposedly offers "the finest minotaur-rescuing games on the entire App Store."

Capcom behind 'No Hope Left' viral ads (or widespread graffiti, depending on your perspective)

The "No Hope Left" ad campaign spotted in a variety of locations across Europe has been pinned to Capcom. At least that's according to The Sixth Axis, whose intrepid reporter schlepped down to the Vauxhall station in London after seeing an image pop up on the viral ad campaign's website. He spotted an ad company (Primesight) credited for the faux graffiti and emailed them to confirm who had bought said ad. He was told, "Panel number is 2375 03 Parry Street. The company advertising on it is CAPCOM."

This makes a lot of sense, given the "O" in "No" looks like a stylized biohazard symbol (the name of the Resident Evil series in Japan). It would also not be surprising at all for a video-game company to post adverts marauding as graffiti, though we doubt this will draw as much ire as previous attempts. Either way, it looks like we'll find out more tomorrow, as the ads all point to a reveal on January 19, 2012. Here's hoping tomorrow doesn't accidentally coincide with the real zombie apocalypse. Boy would that be a lot of egg on Capcom's face, eh?

[Image credit: NoHopeLeft.com]

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