"There were rumors recently that Microsoft would be releasing a new Xbox bundled with Natal as their new controller. These rumors were quickly quashed, but I think that is rather unfortunate as I believe Natal is unlikely to succeed otherwise. In fact, I am pessimistic about all three of the new motion peripherals."

Oh that analyst Michael Pachter. He makes many many (many) claims about the gaming industry, but what do we know about him? Well here are 57 facts about the man you may not know.

"What can other developers learn from this? How to keep gamers happy. I understand not every game can have added Live Vision Camera support (I have seen enough testicles playing UNO), but something like avatars support should be done without saying on most newer games. It doesn't hurt to be able to put one more line on your list of features.

With older games though, it comes down to .. "Why not?" Just looking at the XBLA games I own, I could easily see 3D Ultra Minigolf and Bomberman LIV..."

"Unigine engine provides photorealistic 3D render, powerful physics module, object-oriented scripting system with a very rich library (more than 3000 methods out-of-the box), full-featured GUI module, sound subsystem, and a set of flexible tools. Efficient and well-architected framework supporting multi-core systems makes Unigine a highly scalable solution, on which multi-platform games with different hardware requirements can be based."

A very interesting episode of The Bender this week. The news on MJ and Allison absent for this week, kind of gives a weird vibe for the show. We cope, but I have to be honest with you, go ahead and fast forward about 15-20 minutes into this episode to get to the gaming news, because it takes that long before we even get into the games. Listen live/stream through iTunes or download the mp3 and take us with you on the go, enjoy!

"

• OFFICIAL MAG Beta Release Window

* PlayStation Home Update
* Ghostbusters 360 vs. PS3 Debate
* New Xbox 360 in 2010
* Microsoft's John Schappert Leaves Microsoft for EA
* Activision Threats to Ditch PlayStation
* Sony Responds to Activision’s Threats To Ditch PlayStation
* Community Poll
* MUCH MUCH More"

"I recently contacted Remedy to conduct an interview with them; the first part of the interview will be posted tomorrow. However, one of the answers that I received was so interesting that I had to post it today. While interviewing Oskari Hakkinen, Head of Franchise Development at Remedy Entertainment, I asked him whether or not Project Natal will be implemented, in some form, in Alan Wake. Surprisingly, his response was the following:"

"Once upon a time you bought your games console with great anticipation, brought it home and excitedly unwrapped your investment in future entertainment. And that was that for many wonderful gaming years.

Unlike with PCs, the console would be the same console that was for sale in the stores several years after you bought it and you could gloat to your mates that you got it earlier than them. Sure, there might be some Limited Edition or different colours or some internal components changed..."

In news I could have never predicted would be happening when I woke up this morning, Microsoft's Steve Ballmer confirmed in Chicago that there will be new Xbox in 2010, hit up the quote to read all we know at the moment. Props to 1UP for posting a pretty way out there rumor that is now ending up to be reality.

"It’s been revealed today, in a not unprecedented move from the High Street and online retailer, that Argos has slashed the retail price of Xbox 360 storage devices, most notably the Xbox 360’s 120GB Hard-Disk Drive (HDD) accessory. Previously retailing for the already competitive price of £87.99, Argos has today lowered their price to only £67.99."

"We all know that Joystiq kept pressing Bungie until they finally decided to submit and confess that Halo Reach will be an FPS title, but this article is not about that. In fact, there is a huge possibility that Bungie’s confession was merely the tip of the iceberg. From what I have discovered so far, this game could be far more than just another FPS. If you would like to know the possible new direction that the Halo franchise might be taking with Halo Reach, then keep reading."

For those who think that Nintendo's Wiimote might be a bit steep at $40 a piece can try out a third-party alternative that is slightly cheaper. Gizmodo reviews the Nyko Wand ($35) and Mad Catz Wireless Remote ($30) and sees how they stack up to Nintendo's original and whether they're worth saving those extra dollars. They reviewed them on the basis of how well they test the infrared and accelerometer along with other minor nuances.

So what was their verdict? Despite the original Wiimote re...

AnalogHype's own hated one, Hated Greatness (A.K.A. Michael A.), gives his impressions of the Evil Controllers booth at E3 2009 will chatting it up with some kings of the gaming realm. What does Evil Controllers bring to the table? Read on to find out.

"We’re seeing a new movement within the gaming industry: motion controlled gaming. Yeah, I know, it’s been here for some years with the Wii and now Microsoft and Sony hop on the bandwagon to try to steal some of Nintendo’s market, and I’m contributing to this hype by writing about it. But there is something that I need to address, something I just want to say to ‘the big three’: dudes, get real…"

"Imagine plain and simply a world where everyone with a laptop, or a television could play the latest games instantly. No matter how demanding the game was, imagine playing Crysis on a MacBook Air, imagine OnLive."

"1. Alan Jackson Good Time*
2. Brad Paisley - Mud on the Tires
3. Brooks & Dunn - Hillbilly Deluxe
4. Cross Canadian Ragweed - Cry Lonely*
5. Dierks Bentley - Free and Easy (Down the Road I Go)
6. Dixie Chicks - Sin Wagon
7. Drive-By Truckers - 3 Dimes Down
8. Jason Aldean - She's Country*
9. Keith Urban - I Told You So*
10. Kenny Chesney - She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy*
11. Kenny Rogers - The Gambler*
12. Lucinda Williams - Can't Let Go
13. Martina McBride - This One's For The Girl..."

More bad news for the fans eagerly awaiting the "Bioshock" film adaptation. It seems as though Gore Verbinski is frustrated with all of the hold-ups of the movies he has been working on latley... It is also quite possible that the Bioshock movie might be dropped completley. If this occurs, then maybe Rapture might finally be built by the P.O'ed fans, and wage war against the Movie Industry.

While it's been said that DJ Hero will allow players to use guitar hero guitars, Activision stated that they might allow reverse compatibility. That is, allowing the turntable peripheral from DJ Hero to be used in Guitar Hero. While it may be too late to implement this feature in Guitar Hero 5, Activision are looking into this for future versions.

"AnalogHype is back from E3 and Underground Hype is back for another episode. Krome, Keem J, Michael A, Marc and Khalid recap the events of E3 and the rise of fanboy attacks. We also talk about our favorite E3 parties and moments and discuss the big 3 conferences. We will continue the E3 discussion on the next episode, so sit back and enjoy."

K- discusses his Birthday fun. The guys also discuss the launch of www.gorillajumpers.com, Prototype, the struggles of developing for the PS3, Valve and boycotts, and much more.

Lunar of The Gaming Dungeon writes about Nintendo's new "Demo Play" feature and how, despite what all the "hardcore" are saying; it probably won't destroy all gaming as we know it.

"

• Dave and Shamarri's Experience At E3

* Microsoft Press Conference Impressions
* Nintendo Press Conference Impressions
* Sony Press Conference Impressions
* Who Won E3 and Why?
* Most Impressive Title
* Biggest Disappointment
* Community Poll
* MUCH MUCH More"

"The new bundle is set to include an 80GB PLAYSTATION 3 console, along with Terminator Salvation, due for release tomorrow, Friday 12th June 2009, and a copy of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines on Blu-ray."

Sorry I can't embed this video. Just click 'Go to source' and see Jimmy acting like a little kid with a new toy going nuts seeing and playing with Natal. They try out a Breakout style game called Ricochet and then jump into Burnout Paradise (to show the controls on a regular game that wouldn't need the Natal controls). The last guy who steps up to the Ricochet game kills it, showing the controls do work if the player is good enough. I am no fan of Fallon, but kudos to him for bringing thi...

It certainly seems that Nintendo might be enjoying taking a trip down memory lane. The DS is reminiscent of the old Donkey Kong Game & Watch, but could Nintendo be pulling a similar trick with the Vitality Sensor? An interesting post by the Game|Life blog suggests that the Vitality Sensor is the spiritual successor of the "Bio Sensor" Nintendo released along with Tetris 64 back in 1998. The "Bio Sensor" was an ill-fated project which never made it out of Japan and was only compatible with Tet...