Halo 3′s one-day sale figures shatter any US movie release, video game

$170 million.
$170,000,000.
One hundred seventy million dollars.
…in one day.
INSANE. I mean, with inflation, and the fact that movies only cost like $15, the figures may seem a tad off, but probably not too far. Not only did it shatter Halo 2′s mark of $125,000,000 on opening day, but also a few threequels: Pirates 3, Star Wars Episode III, Shrek the Third, Spider-Man 3 (the highest grossing movie), X-Men 3, Harry Potter 3, Pirates 2 (c-c-combo breaker!)… Not to mention those figures are opening weekend.
In addition to shattering sales records (oh, that’s $2000 a second), it killed part of Xbox Live yesterday (and is still partly down). Which sucks. No Call of Duty 4 beta for me…

Halo 3 or "that game where you shoot stuff" comes out tonight!

Halo 3 or the ending of that game where you play as that guy who shoots up aliens or that other series by Bungie. Whatever you call it, it’s coming out tonight and people are flocking to the nearest stores to pick up a copy for themselves. For the smart people, they won’t have to wait in line, as they pre-ordered a copy for themselves (nice work soldiers). The forgetful people should take a hint and next time pre-order a copy so you can show up and not have to wait. Maybe camping out will teach you a lesson.

I know some people won’t be able to experience the full juicy-ness of Halo 3. Why do I say that? It’s likely that they don’t have Xbox Live (shame on you). We at GameSpotting! hate the fact that you won’t be able to experience the other “best game of 2007″ (which the first was supposed to be BioShock, but now people can’t make up their minds and some are saying Halo 3 is the best game).

Happy Fragging.

Wii Virtual Console Update

This week, Kirby’s Avalanche, Streets of Rage 3 and LEGEND OF HERO TONMA are featured on the Wii Virtual Console. Normally, these kind of news stories would be longer, but I have been (and still am) feeling sick for the last week.

So here are the descriptions of the new games. Hopefully, I will feel better soon and the site will be updated more frequently.

Kirby’s Avalanche (Super NES, 1-2 players, rated E for Everyone, 800 Wii Points): Everyone’s favorite round, pink hero takes a break from swallowing his enemies to put your brain to work in this fast-paced puzzle game. Players take control of Kirby and match wits with well-known enemies from the Kirby series (including his archrival, King Dedede) in an effort to win the First Annual Dream Land Avalanche Competition. The simple-but-addictive game play revolves around brightly colored blobs and boulders. When the right amount of matching blobs are stacked, they explode and rain down on your opponent’s field of play. Repeat this until your screen is clear to move on to the next round. But be careful—the farther you advance, the faster the blobs fall and the smarter the opponents get. Are you good enough to help Kirby become the avalanche king?

Streets of Rage 3 (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, rated E 10+ for Everyone 10 and Older – Violence, 800 Wii Points): Just when you thought the world was safe from the Syndicate and its shady leader, Mr. X, they have returned to torment the city once again. Mr. X has developed lifelike robots to take the place of various city officials so he can be in complete control. Now it’s up to our old heroes Axel, Skate and Blaze to stop the threat with their amazing fighting skills. With more weapons and combat moves, as well as secret characters and various endings, this return to the streets is one you won’t want to miss.

LEGEND OF HERO TONMA (TurboGrafx16, 1-2 players, rated E for Everyone – Mild Cartoon Violence, 600 Wii Points): LEGEND OF HERO TONMA is an action game that puts players in control of the magic-user Tonma, whose role – as was typical for game heroes of the day – is to travel to another world and save the princess. Fight your way through seven stages using Tonma’s jump ability and shot power. Collect power-ups and barriers to grow in strength and pummel your enemies. Bring that strength to the end of each stage to face off against and defeat the menacing bosses that aim to keep you from the princess. This well-detailed game’s comic visuals and feel will have players wanting to come back for more frantic and exciting action.

Yoshi’s Story one of the 3 new Wii virtual console games

Yoshi’s Story has made it’s way to the Wii Virtual Console. Yep, that’s right. Today.

Here are the descriptions of the games:

Yoshi’s Story (Nintendo 64, 1 player, rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): The evil Baby Bowser has cast a spell turning Yoshi’s Island into a picture book. Worse yet, the Super Happy Tree has been stolen, making the island dark and gloomy. Players must take control of six Yoshis, each a different color, and travel through six pages (worlds) of platforming adventure to recover the tree and return the island to normal. Featuring huge character models and bright, vibrant colors, the game’s various environments (such as woods, caves, mountains and oceans) come alive in a uniquely gorgeous 2½-D look. Eat fruit, avoid enemies and obstacles, and throw eggs from the Yoshis’ never-ending supply in your quest to stop Baby Bowser’s plan from succeeding. If you’re good enough, you can aim for higher scores by being picky about the fruit you eat. And who knows, you might even find the mysterious black and white Yoshis.

Super Thunder Blade (Sega Genesis, 1 player, rated E for Everyone – Mild Violence, 800 Wii Points): In this follow-up to Thunder Blade, you’ll fly a new and improved attack helicopter in a series of attacks against guerilla armies that are bent on taking over the world. Although your aircraft is formidable, your enemies are vast and varied. You’ll have to take on submarines, tanks, fighter planes and more. Your command of this state-of-the-art battle copter must be top notch, as you’ll have to dodge oncoming fire and use your various weapons to eliminate all enemy targets so you can reach the guerilla base and end their nefarious plans once and for all. Put on your flight suit and step into the thrilling action of Super Thunder Blade.

World Class Baseball (TurboGrafx16, 1-2 players, rated E for Everyone, 600 Wii Points): Acclaimed for its steady game play, World Class Baseball is the definitive baseball game on the TurboGrafx16. Battle the computer in OPEN MODE or play a friend in VERSUS MODE. Customize your team in EDIT MODE or even watch a game between two computer opponents in WATCH MODE. World Class Baseball offers the complete baseball gaming experience. Of course there’s also plenty of single-player action. The main feature is PENNANT MODE, where the player chooses a team from one of the world’s leagues and strives to win their team’s league. Beat league rivals and save your progress with passwords on your way to becoming league champions. After winning your league, get ready to the face the other league’s champion in the heated series for the world championship.

EA Mobile launches skate

I hate ports of good video games to phones. They never ever come out any good then the consoles. But then that’s a given due to it’s screen and poor graphics. Anyways, back onto the topic of EA. EA Mobile has released skate, their anti-Tony Hawk series that has been dominated by Activision since 1996. EA calls mobile skate “extreme” but that has yet to really be determined by anyone really.

According to EA, skate lets anyone with a cell phone hit the half-pipe to perform ollies, grinds and many more tricks. There are 2 different play modes, freestyle or story. In story you play as a skateboarder in the city of San Vanelona (which doesn’t exist FYI) on the not at all original quest to be a skateboarding superstar by “pulling off enough slick moves to capture the cameras and land on the cover of Thrasher magazine”. Slick? Why not sick? Skate features professional skaters such as Danny Way, Chris Cole, Mike Carroll, Rob Dyrdek and many more.

Skate is now on most major cell phone providers download networks, so you can download the game and play right away.

Good @ txting? Nintendo has a contst 4 u

To get hype up about Phantom Hourglass (which releases on October 1st), Nintendo is featuring a contest. To enter you must grab your mobile phone and type Zelda to 20769 and you will be entered for a chance to win a trip for 2 to NYC, with a $1,000 Shopping Spree at Nintendo World (no one else will be at the store, you get it all to yourself). Plus, $500 cash. And the Zelda part, Special Edition Nintendo DSs with a free copy of Phantom Hourglass. 

Awesome stuff. And because Nintendo is cool, they will give 9 runner up winners a Gold DS with a copy of Phantom Hourglass.

Get your TXTs fingers blazing, and enter that contest.

Very very very late Wii Virtual Console update

I am so sorry about the delay, I meant to do this eariler but I have been so busy with work.

To make it quick here are the descriptions:

NES Play Action Football (NES, 1-4 players, rated E for Everyone, 500 Wii Points): “Ready! Hut hut hut…” Nintendo takes to the gridiron with the classic football powerhouse NES Play Action Football. Featuring a distinct overhead viewpoint that creates an almost 3-D field, the action is more simulation-based than many of the more arcade-based games of the time. Play through four 15-minute quarters (in accelerated time) and even substitute players when your first-stringers get tired. Want more options? Each of the eight available teams has multiple running/passing plays to choose from while on offense, as well as a wide selection of defensive schemes that can be run when you’re on the other side of the ball. And in addition to viewing two full teams on the screen at once without any slowdown, you’ll hear voice snippets at key points of the game. Line up, and see if you have what it takes to win the Power Bowl.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, rated E for Everyone – Comic Mischief, 800 Wii Points): Sonic and Tails are back for another adventure as they again battle the evil Dr. Eggman (aka Dr. Robotnik), who is desperately trying to collect all the Chaos Emeralds to rebuild his Death Egg. Our heroes must again find the Chaos Emeralds before Dr. Eggman does, but winning the race won’t be easy this time – a new adversary, Knuckles the Echidna, has arrived on the scene and will do whatever he can to keep Sonic and Tails from reaching their goal. Grab all the golden rings, find various bonus zones and overcome Knuckles and Dr. Eggman as you rocket through the third chapter in Sonic’s adventures.

Neutopia II (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, rated E for Everyone – Mild Fantasy Violence, 600 Wii Points): Experience improved graphics and controls in this exciting sequel to the action role-playing game Neutopia. Take on the role of the main hero’s son and watch as the story begins with the apparent revival of Dirth, the evil demon. Once again you’ll need to rely on your magic compass and the information you’ve gathered to find entrances to labyrinths and defeat the bosses in them. Make your way through the field, which can be tricky at times, to search for and find hidden information and items, or move blocks and destroy walls to uncover secret rooms. Like the original, this game has a save function, a finely tuned difficulty level and a fast-paced story, making it truly an RPG that everyone can enjoy.

skate. delayed two days

EA’s upcoming skating game, aptly named “skate.”, looks to finally put up a good fight against Activision’s Tony Hawk series- and from the gameplay that’s been shown and the demo, they’ve done a pretty good job!
Anyway, the game was scheduled for release on September 12 (on the 360), but was pushed back until Friday, September 14 for…well, whatever reason. They didn’t give one.
skate. is scheduled for release on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 on September 14 and 24, respectively.

Crysis Demo Live on September 25

Sorry about the lack of news the past few days. Some things came up, and I wasn’t able to write- sorry!


Yup! I’ve written about Crysis before, and it looks insane! The demo will include one level from single-player (“Contact”), and will be a good example of what to expect in the final release (“nanosuit” technology, amazing visuals, etc.) The demo is also said to include a “surprise” from Crytek…oh, what could it be?

Xbox Live gets hit by Hurricane Maintenance on September 10

Boo. Xbox Live will be going down on September 10 (next…Monday) for four entire hours, lasting from 2:01PDT (5:01EDT) through 6:01PDT (9:01EDT). What horrible monstrosity could cause such a horrible act of terror?
Standard maintenance, of course. Maybe we’ll get something extra, but…maintenance is all they’re saying. Now, what can we all do without our Halo, Call of Duty, or Gears of War?
Oh, right. Those games have single-player…

Gears of War Hidden Fronts map pack now free

The Gears of War Hidden Fronts map pack that was released about 4 months ago for 800 Microsoft points is now featured for free on the Xbox Live Marketplace. The map pack contains Bullet Marsh, Garden, Process, and Subway maps. These maps can be used in the Multiplayer mode. For people that waited for the pack to be free, you don’t have to wait much longer, just hop on Live and download the pack for yourself.