NCsoft inks two-game Double Fusion deal

As the industry embraces in-game advertising, companies specializing in the sale and placement of those commercial spots are fighting for every spare inch of ground they can get. Today, San Francisco-based Double Fusion added a pair of new titles to its portfolio, announcing a deal with Korean publisher NCsoft to provide in-game ads for a pair of free-to-play massively multiplayer online games.

The NCsoft games in question are the recently released fantasy action-role-playing game Dungeon Runners and the upcoming giant robot fighting game Exteel. While the ad revenue will contribute to NCsoft’s bottom line, both games will be supported primarily by the sale of in-game items and optional player membership programs.

Dungeon Runners came out in May and is available for download now, while Exteel is currently in open beta testing.

Microsoft lifts outlook, shares jumps (Reuters)

Reuters - Microsoft Corp lifted its full-year estimates on Thursday after posting a 23 percent rise in quarterly profit, helped by strong demand for “Halo 3″ and computers running its operating system, sending its shares up 12 percent.

Microsoft 1Q profit beats Street (AP)

AP - Microsoft Corp. said its fiscal first-quarter profit rose 23 percent as brisk sales of the new “Halo 3″ video game, Windows and Office helped the software maker breeze past Wall Street’s expectations.

Mario Galaxy leaked onto web

According to internet reports, Mario Galaxy has been leaked onto the web. The source of the leak is reportedly an EB Games demo of the game with a 10 minute standard restriction, although the restriction is not there when you play the game on a modded Wii.

Animal Crossing MMOG / DS Flash Card Rumored

Though there are no official announcements at the moment, Next Generation is reporting on two interesting possibilities for the future of Nintendo products. In a report filed yesterday, the site hints that Nintendo may be considering a MMOG version of Animal Crossing , to be released on the Wii console. Also exciting: the possibility of a Flash Card for the DS that would allow classic Nintendo games to be (legally) played on their handheld console. “The uncontrollable homebrew and piracy communities that use the DS rely on similar devices … this should, in the long term, allow Nintendo to exercise some control over at least the former through the simple step of offering a path to publisher-supported content. Compared to the slightly vague WiiWare proposition, this has the possibility to revolutionise homebrew development - at least in terms of distribution and the possibility of mainstream success - but how far the notoriously controlling Japanese giant will allow that community the creative freedom it requires to flourish will only be seen in practice.”.

Ratchet and Clank’s Trek Towards Pixar Quality Visuals

MTV’s Multiplayer Gaming site has up a discussion with Brian Allgeier, creative director on the latest iteration of the Ratchet and Clank series. The Ratchet games are made by Insomniac, who released Resistance at the same time the PS3 launched last year. That makes them unique, one of the first teams to have a second PlayStation 3 title out, and it shows in their amazing graphical presentation. The interview covers the team’s trek towards an internal idea of ‘Pixar-quality’ graphics. “The new game is designed to sell itself at a glance. The hook is the image, the approaching-Pixar graphical quality. It’s the product of 125 developers at Insomniac, a surprisingly small increase in team size from the 110 who made the third Ratchet game, Up Your Arsenal, for PS2. Allgeier conveyed some stats to emphasize the boost in graphical quality: 90 joints in Ratchet’s face in the PS3 game compared to 112 joints in his whole body in the PS2 games; ‘tens of thousands’ of particle effects on the screen at any one time on PS3 compared to 3,000 in the PS2 Ratchet games. The game’s action glides at 60 frames per second, double the rate of Insomniac’s Resistance game. But, again, it’s not numbers that count. It’s just supposed to take a glance.” Meanwhile, for more on the development process, the PlayStation blog has up a video post by Brian Hasting, Chief Creative Officer at Insomniac, on clarifying the vision of the game..

Video: COD 4 Gameplay on PS3

Now here is a reassuring site, some COD 4 gameplay directly from the PS3 platform.

Panasonic shows off in-car Blu-ray player

Panasonic’s unveiled what is believed to be the world’s first in-car Blu-ray player at the Tokyo Motor Show. It was also shown with a 7\” High Definition screen. There is currently no information on a possible release date or price.

Memor 32 - Advanced 32MB PS2 USB Memory Card priced at under

Divineo.fr has put up in its catalogue the Memor 32 - an advanced 32MB PS2 memory card which is designed to be used for game saves and complete with an integrated USB port. It\’s currently on sale for

Microsoft quarterly profits rise by a quarter following Halo 3 success

Microsoft has lifted its full year estimates after it posted a 23% increase in quarterly profit thanks largely due to demand for both Windows software and the success of Halo 3 which resulted in its shares rising up by 12 percent.

NFL Tour runs at 60fps on 360 and just 30fps on PS3

Last week at the E for All Expo in L.A., EA demonstrated their new football title NFL Tour and a usual pattern emerged - the Xbox 360 version ran at 60 frames per second with \’vibrant colors\’ and \’solid animations\’ while the PS3 version was held back at 30 fps and was subject to animation issues.

Positive PES 2008 reviews roll in on Xbox 360, no mention of framerate problems

Here we have not one but two positive reviews for Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 on the Xbox 360 platform. Unlike on the PS3, this version seems to be satisfying reviewers with no mention of slow-downs or framerate problems. Gamesmaster has awarded the title 94% stating that the game will send footy fans into ecstasy, while the OXM UK awarded an 8 to the title with their only negative being that there are just not enough new features although it still plays a beautiful game.

Microsoft lifts profit outlook, shares rise (Reuters)

Reuters - Microsoft Corp lifted its full-year estimates on Thursday after posting a 23 percent rise in quarterly profit on strong demand for both computers running its operating system and “Halo 3,” sending its shares up 12 percent.

Microsoft 1Q profit rises (AP)

AP - Microsoft Corp. said its fiscal first-quarter profit rose 23 percent as brisk sales of the new “Halo 3″ video game, Windows and Office helped the software maker breeze past Wall Street’s expectations.

Smash Bros Brawl features replay sharing

Nintendo has confirmed that Smash Bros. Brawl will include a replay sharing function. You can record up three minutes and share replay data with fellow Wii gamers. More info on this and other related features are available to view at smashbros.com.