Ghostbusters is one of those nerdy properties that when reissued, will never please all of its fans. Even in a brief demo with a few other writers, questions — and follow-ups — circled around “crossing the streams” and even geekier topics. I’m not at that level of spirit-stopping enthusiast, but I’m cautious about the new version, probably because it shows so much promise. I hate to get behind something, especially a beloved property, only to see it crumble.

The Ghostbusters animation, graphics, settings, and physics look great. The original cast has reassembled to record for this game. It’s even being written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. But the biggest thing I didn’t see was that story, and that narrative is an important part of Ghostbusters. We’ll find out how well the script and setting hold up with its October, 2008 release.

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Konami and Kojima Productions’ Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is easily one of Sony’s most prized upcoming titles. Though fan anticipation can already be considered at a fever pitch, the console maker said when it announced the game’s June 12 launch date in February that the online portion would benefit from an online beta test, beginning in the latter part of April.

That April launch date turned out to be earlier this week, but the beta didn’t stay up long, thanks in large part to the massive interest surrounding the game. However, after a week of tinkering, Sony said today on its official blog that the Metal Gear Online development team has patched the beta client and servers are now back up for play. To compensate for the delay, Sony has said the beta period will now extend to May 11.

“Initial problems were caused by the extraordinary numbers of customers trying to log in to the site in order to create a Konami ID in order to take part in the beta test,” Konami’s MGO team said in a statement. “In response, we have increased server capacity, as well as created a separate Konami ID registration site specifically for customers wanting to take part in the Metal Gear Online Premiere Beta test.”

To help alleviate server strain, Konami also said that it has instituted a play queue and that players may be forced to wait for an open slot in the servers during peak play times.

via gamespot.com

Grand Theft Auto needs no introduction to anyone remotely familiar with video games. But for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 entry in the series, Rockstar has upped the ante, creating a startlingly realistic reinterpretation of New York City as backdrop to a violent crime epic. In it, damaged goods Serbian war vet Niko Bellic ventures to Liberty City in search of closure, all the while coming to terms with the harsh realities of The American Dream. People die, others find happiness, the dream fails to deliver on its promise, and players join Niko on a journey through a world where everyone is flawed, where it seems everyone is consumed by their own obsessions.

It’s a brutal ride for almost everyone in Niko’s journey from off the boat yokel to mass murderer, but what is the Grand Theft Auto IV experience like for the player?

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Ah, fanboys. What industry can truly call itself an industry without them? Those who prove themselves obsessively loyal to any product or corporation can be found among many communities, and nowhere do they flourish more freely than within gamer culture.

Although it may sound ridiculous to normal people, swearing undying allegiance to a heartless box of electrical components is a perfectly rational act in the mind of the fanboy, even though if he defended something like a particular brand of cheese with such rabid determination, he’d be rightly locked up in a mental hospital. Thanks to the Internet, where any anonymous coward can say what he likes, fanboyism runs rampant, and shows no signs of slowing down.

That said, the term fanboy is thrown around all too casually, and is now on par with the word emo when it comes to having lost all meaning through erroneous overuse. If you want to be a true fanboy — and I know all of you do — then you must, of course, follow ten golden rules. The ten elegant laws that will see you rise above the pretenders and take your place in fanboy Valhalla.

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There’s little we’ve said about our modder buddy Ramon that we haven’t already said back when he made the Zelda, Samus, Rockstar and Clerks Wii mods. This guy is talented AND he has good aesthetic taste—something not commonly found with modders. This time he’s auctioning off this one-of-a-kind Super Mario Galaxy Wii mod that will benefit Child’s Play, the children’s charity started by Penny Arcade. Video hands-on, details and more pics after the jump.

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Sales tracking group NPD has announced the results of a new gaming study, showing that 72 percent of the U.S. say they played games, online play still lagging behind offline, and an overwhelming minority owning more than one next-gen system.

NPD says the number of game-players has grown from its last study, up from 64 percent the year prior. More than half of that 72 percent, says NPD play games online, but relative to “total U.S. population,” online gamers have only risen slightly from 40 percent in 2007 to 42 percent.

90 percent of online gamers said the PC was their platform of choice, compared to 19 percent for console and portable systems, and 3 percent for cell phones. Younger players make up a good percentage of online players, with 40 percent of online gamers between 2 and 17, with 18-24 year olds only making up 10 percent.

As for online console players, 50 percent were Xbox 360 gamers, who spent the most time per week playing online compared to PC and PS3 owners. Finally, NPD says only three percent of respondents said they owned two of the three next-gen consoles, and only 2 percent said they owned all three.

Said NPD analyst Anita Frazier, “Despite the buzz in the industry regarding online gaming, it is still relatively small compared to offline gaming. There is still a large, untapped market for gaming in general and online gaming in particular.”

via Brandon Boyer - LINK

Sometimes being nosey really does pays off. A Peeping Tom was snooping around the Smash Bros. Brawl disc when they came upon 25 tracks that, for some unknown reason, went unused in the game. The list is rather impressive, featuring sound effects from Melee, original titles, and full length remixes of classic tracks. The tunes are available for download over at the link below and await your music player of choice.

EditorArtist
via TheTanooki and Infendo