Source: A thread on the popular NeoGAF Forums.

What we heard: Sometimes, even wafer-thin rumors hold a kernel of truth. Take today's prime cut of speculation du jour, which stems from a NeoGAF poster who claims to have obtained an advance copy of next month's Game Informer. According to the author, who didn't post any art or screens to back up his claim, the forthcoming issue is jam-packed with details about Guitar Hero IV, the next installment in Activision's billion-dollar franchise.

According to the poster, the next issue of GI allegedly confirms that, yes, Guitar Hero IV will introduce drums and vocals a la Rock Band. (Get ready, Drum Villains!) More interestingly, the game will allow players to create their own songs--sans vocals, apparently due to copyright issues--and upload them along with customizable album art to a "Guitar Hero Tunes" store from which others can download them. Regular players will have a five-song cap, whereas those who pen popular ditties will be able to upload up to 10 power ballads.

Though licensed Guitar Hero III downloads are limited to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, Guitar Hero IV song sharing will, according to the post, also be available for the PlayStation 2 and Wii editions of the game. Guitar Hero IV will also reportedly feature all master tracks, including original selections from The Eagles, Linkin Park, Sublime, and--as rumored--Van Halen.

The official story: Activision didn't respond to e-mail inquiries about the NeoGAF post. However, statements made from the highest levels of the multibillion publisher have already all but confirmed the details in the post. Speaking to Conde Nast Portfolio last month, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick explicitly confirmed that both vocals and instrumentals were coming to the Guitar Hero franchise.

As for song sharing, Activision outlined an online initiative for an unnamed title last week which sounds like it could well be song sharing for Guitar Hero. Specifically, the company said in its earnings announcement last week that "online functionality for certain key titles to be released in the December quarter of fiscal year 2009 and thereafter is expected to become a significant component of gameplay for certain platforms." Then, Activision went on to say the cost of the online functionality over six months could be as much as $350 million--hardly a small investment, even for a company with nearly $3 billion in annual revenue.

Then, in an earnings report after the call, Activision publishing president Mike Griffiths said that his company was readying something big for its billion-dollar rhythm-game franchise. "For the holiday, we'll provide a significant leap forward in innovation for Guitar Hero worldwide on all platforms including the PS3, PS2, Xbox 360, Wii, and again on the DS," he boasted.

Later, Griffith repeated his assertion that the next Guitar Hero would have a cutting-edge trick up its sleeve--a trick Activision was investing heavily in. "We've put a lot of additional development resources, a lot of additional music licenses resources, a lot of additional hardware supplier resources against the title to fuel growth over next year," he told an analyst in a conference call. "We're excited by the increased musical content and innovation we're bringing. We do expect a leap forward in innovation with our holiday launch, and we're about two weeks away from providing very specific details on that." (Emphasis added.)

Bogus or not bogus?: Uh, doesn't the new issue of Game Informer hit newsstands next week? Not bogus.

Source: Gaming industry news site GameDaily.

What we heard: It used to be that Madden NFL cover duties would be a simple affair. A gridiron grunt would perform well, EA Sports would offer that player a pile of cash to appear on the cover of its game, and then the superstar would sit out the following season with a debilitating injury. Clean, simple, easy.

This year, however, EA Sports has thrown a monkey wrench in its well-oiled machine for all its football franchises. Rather than selecting a single cover star for NCAA Football 09, EA has opted to cover individual editions with a different athlete, with Darren McFadden gracing the Xbox 360, Ryan on the PS3 edition, Michigan State's mascot Sparty for the Wii, and others to come.

Confusion has also arisen over NFL Head Coach 09. When the game was initially announced in February, EA said that Colts skipper Tony Dungy would be featured front and center. However, Dungy's cover was called into question when EA said that Head Coach would be available only as part of the $90 collector's edition of Madden NFL 09, and the muddled scenario wasn't resolved until earlier this week, when EA caved to fan outcry and said that Head Coach would see a stand-alone release.

Now, rumors are being bandied about concerning who will cover the flagship edition of EA's football franchises, Madden NFL 09. According to a report on GameDaily, cover duties will go to Green Bay Packers maestro Brett Favre. How did the gaming site arrive at this conclusion? EA has said on the game's official Facebook page that the cover athlete will be officially announced tomorrow, and Brett Favre is expected to appear on the Late Show With David Letterman tonight. GameDaily appears to be assuming that EA will unveil the game's cover athlete in much the same way it attempted to announce on Jimmy Kimmel Live that Tennessee Titans QB Vince Young would cover Madden NFL 08.

As one of the most widely recognized players in the league and orchestrator of the Packers' Cinderella run to the NFC Championship game last year, Favre is a natural choice for the cover. However, there's just one problem: Brett Favre is no longer a professional football player. In March, the iron man QB said he would be retiring from the game, and handed the reins over to Berkeley alum Aaron Rodgers after a 15-year run.

That's not to say that EA might not consider Favre. This year being the 20th anniversary for EA's perennial best-seller, the publishing house may choose to honor one of football's greatest living players with the milestone cover. Plus, there are worse ways to avoid the whole Madden Cover Curse controversy than electing a man who won't be near a pro pigskin on Sundays this fall.

The official story: EA Sports had not responded to requests for comment as of press time. However, suave EA Sports president Peter Moore posted on his company blog earlier today that he is in New York "in line for tonight's taping of The Late Show With David Letterman."

Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus.

[UPDATE] Well, that didn't take long. It's true.

Source: An online job requisition posted on Stray Bullet Games' Web site.

What we heard: When Stray Bullet Games announced last year that its first game after breaking away from Wolfpack Studios would be a new, original massively multiplayer online game, most assumed it would be a PC project in the vein of Shadowbane. Some may have thought it would explore the Xbox 360's or PlayStation 3's online networks, as Square Enix's Final Fantasy XI has done and Sony Online's The Agency will do. However, it's likely that no one thought it would be a project for Nintendo's Wii.

Be that as it may, it appears as if that's just what Austin, Texas-based Stray Bullet Games intends to do with its as-yet-untitled project. According to a recently posted job requisition, the professed MMOG development outfit is looking for a senior programmer with "experience developing and shipping title(s) on Wii and/or GameCube platform." Stray Bullet's job req also leaves open the possibility of the game appearing on other systems, noting that experience on other platforms is a plus.

Aside from a few pieces of concept art, details on Stray Bullet's upcoming project are slim. The developer has stated that it is looking to meld high fantasy with science fiction, and promises "a fully-realized, ongoing online conflict that combines furious action with tactical and strategic game play." Stray Bullet has also said that it plans to license the bulk of its middleware.

Though a Wii MMOG is technically feasible from a middleware perspective--Warhammer Online's Gamebryo Engine is compatible with the console--the console's online capabilities have been the subject of criticism. Most recently, Harmonix faulted the Wii's less-than-spectacular online functionality as one of the reasons why Rock Band on the Wii won't support online play or downloadable content, two of the defining features of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 editions of the game.

The official story: Stray Bullet Games had not responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Seems like a stretch, but looking not bogus.

Source: Trademark sleuths Trademork, spotting a filing with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

What we heard: In October, the secretive industry mole known as Surfer Girl landed what she claimed to be early-in-development screens of the next installment in Ubisoft Montreal's Prince of Persia franchise. Surfer Girl claimed that the game--subtitled Ghosts of the Past--would operate as a prequel trilogy to Sands of Time, have a family-friendly focus, and launch in the second half of 2008 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, and PC.

Despite the convincing screenshots, Ubisoft was mum on the details of a new POP game, though the publisher did say in January that it plans to ship a game from Jordan Mechner's venerable franchise in its 2008-09 fiscal year. Today, a few more details on the project may have emerged, thanks to all-things-trademark site Trademork. Rifling through the United States Patent and Trademark Office's online database, Trademork unearthed an application for trademark filing by Prince of Persia creator and rights holder Jordan Mechner for Prince of Persia Prodigy.

The application, filed on April 15, carries a number of game-related descriptors, including "game software and electronic game programs, namely software games recorded on CD-ROM and digital video discs for computers; software games recorded on CD-ROMs, digital video discs, and cartridges for console and individual, portable gaming systems; software games that are downloadable from a remote computer site and electronic game software for mobile phones, personal digital assistants, and handheld computers."

Whether or not the newly filed application is related to Surfer Girl's leak is open to question. The most immediate problem is the name, which Surfer Girl pegged as Ghosts of the Past last year. Given that her information came while the game was far from a final state, it seems highly plausible that a title swap could have occurred in the between time. However, the application could also be an indication of a new downloadable game in the franchise, similar to Prince of Persia Classic, released on Microsoft's Xbox Live service last year.

What's not at question is whether the application is in relation to the upcoming Jerry Bruckheimer-produced blockbuster loosely based on Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, slated to hit theaters in 2009. Most obviously, the recently filed application carries no descriptors for motion-picture films. Further, as noted by Mechner in an interview with gaming industry news site Gamasutra, Ubisoft has the rights only for games based on Prince of Persia, whereas Disney holds the movie-making license. Seeing as how the attorney on file for the application is on Ubisoft's payroll, this leaves little question as to whether this filing has anything to do with the upcoming film.

Regardless of how the application falls out, it seems likely that Prince of Persia Prodigy will turn up as the title for a game sometime in the future. Judging from past filings bearing the Prince of Persia moniker, Mechner hasn't shown a proclivity toward squatting on likely or possible titles for projects.

The official story: Ubisoft had not responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Bogus that Prince of Persia Prodigy is movie-related. Tentatively not bogus that the title will grace the cover of Ubisoft's next acrobatic action adventure.

Source: Edinburgh daily news stalwart The Scotsman.

What we heard: As first revealed on the last day of March, Crackdown creators Realtime Worlds have secured a $50 million loan to fund its ambitious contemporary massively multiplayer online game APB. First announced in 2005, APB springs from the mind of Grand Theft Auto creator Dave Jones, and pits players on both sides of the law in a kill-or-be-killed urban warfare environment. As shown during a presentation during the 2008 Game Developers Conference, the game eschews many of the traditional precepts of the MMOG space, banking on gamers desire to earn street cred in lieu of monotonous leveling and questing.

While the news of the cash infusion was less than new, the Dundee, Scotland-based developer officially announced that it had secured the additional funding yesterday, triggering a fresh wave of mainstream media reports. One such outlet, Edinburgh daily The Scotsman, landed an interview with Realtime Worlds creative director and president Dave Jones, and from it sprung a font of thus far unannounced details on the title.

Some information from the report seems unquestionably legitimate. Whereas APB had previously been slated for 2008, the report quotes Jones as saying the game has now been bumped to next year. "We want to launch APB in 2009, which will be pretty much worldwide--including the Asian markets," said Jones. The article also notes that a beta for the game is expected to begin at the end of this year.

Other information, however, seems to stand on less firm ground. Paraphrasing Jones, the article says, "He said Realtime would also be likely to create a boxed version of the online game and would also look to adapt it for games consoles such as Xbox [360] and PlayStation [3] in the future."

This statement is both loaded and problematic. APB has thus far been announced for the PC and Xbox 360, two platforms which studios often develop for simultaneously using Microsoft common XNA toolset. Porting the game to the PS3 would be an additional expense for a platform where massively multiplayer games remain an untested commodity.

The official story: "The situation is that yes, all the consoles are an option for us, and we'll be looking at them, but there's nothing decided, nothing to report at the moment I'm afraid," studio manager Colin MacDonald told UK-based GI.biz. "Yes, we'll be looking seriously at it, but that doesn't mean it's going ahead, and it doesn't mean it's not going ahead." GameSpot had not received comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Given this year's increasingly crowded release schedule, a 2009 APB launch with a late-2008 beta sounds plausible. As for a PS3 edition, MacDonald's statement indicates one is eventually possible--but far from officially confirmed.

Source: A report on Kotaku, citing a report on Spanish-language site Akihabara Blues, which cites an original article on the similarly Spanish Metodologic, which just says it heard the info from a source it won't reveal.

What we heard: Last week, Electronic Arts announced the long-awaited European release date for Harmonix's Rock Band. While the news might have been met happily by a group of gamers eager to play the game that has been on US store shelves since November, this news was instead met with more than a modicum of anger and resentment over the game's new European pricing structure. A full set of Rock Band's instrument peripherals will cost €169 ($267), with the game itself requiring a separate €70 ($110) purchase.

As could be seen in the hundreds of comments to GameSpot's article, reaction to the pricing was swift and largely negative. It actually prompted a response from Harmonix vice president of product development Greg LoPiccolo, who noted on the official Rock Band forums that it was costing the company more to sell those products in Europe due to shipping fees and taxes.

"We're not gouging you primarily because doing so doesn't serve our interests," LoPiccolo said. "We can only build our franchise if you buy our games. You may conclude that Rock Band isn't worth the price charged, and that is your prerogative. But it's not magically going to get cheaper because you wish it to be so."

That isn't stopping people from wishing for that magic change regardless. According to Metodologic, a "little bird" let slip the possibility that Electronic Arts would reveal new pricing details for Rock Band with a midweek announcement. According to the site, the new price of Rock Band will no longer be €240, but instead will be €169.

This is curious for a number of reasons. First of all, the article is written as if there were a Rock Band bundle that costs €240. There isn't; that's simply what it costs when you combine the instrument bundle with the game itself, which is sold separately. So perhaps the site's source is just saying that the €169 instrument bundle will now come with the game packed in at no extra charge. That too would be strange, considering that LoPiccolo's forum post explained at length why it's simply impractical for the game to be bundled with the hardware.

With LoPiccolo defending the game's pricing and packaging options so emphatically, it would be nothing less than bizarre for Electronic Arts and Harmonix to turn around and announce a price cut so soon. It would also undermine a loyal fan base's faith in Harmonix, whose a la carte downloadable song strategy and support for rival Activision's Guitar Hero controllers has engendered itself to many. An about-face on the pricing strategy not only would make it seem as though LoPiccolo were lying, but would also invalidate his defense of the pricing and make it appear as if the company really were trying to gouge its customers.

So the price cut doesn't seem likely. That said, it might be possible for retailers to offer a promotion that would give customers a free copy of the game with the purchase of the instrument pack. As LoPiccolo noted in his post, suggested retail prices are generally higher in Europe, but retailers discount them with more frequency. Since Metodologic's source is anonymous, it could very well be an employee of a major retail chain looking to capitalize on the furor over the pricing with a high-profile promotion.

The official story: "This is just a rumor."--a Rock Band PR representative.

Bogus or not bogus?: One little bird isn't much to go on. We'll say bogus, though stranger things have happened.

Source: A story on the Bloomberg Japan financial news service.

What we heard: Three and a half years ago, Nintendo launched its DS handheld in North America. Just over two years ago, Nintendo released a streamlined version of the handheld, the DS Lite. Combined, both models of the handheld have sold over 18 million units in the US alone, according to the latest figures from the NPD Group. According to Enterbrain, the publisher of Famitsu magazine, the handheld has sold a whopping 27 million units in Japan.

The handheld has also spawned yet another order in the cult of Nintendo hardware fetishists. True DS fanatics will often own multiple handhelds, either to color-coordinate their portables with their daily wardrobe or hoard unopened collector's editions so they can later sell them for nearly $300.

Given the DS's widespread and rabid fan base, it's unsurprising that news of a new model would be gobbled up like a rump roast tossed into a tank of piranhas. And that's exactly what happened today when Bloomberg Japan ran a story bearing the headline, "New version of Nintendo DS a possibly at US trade fair - Enterbrain president."

The piece covered a Tokyo press conference given by Enterbrain president Hirokazu Hamamura, who did indeed say "I think there is the possibility" of a new DS being unveiled at Nintendo's press conference at the E3 Media and Business Summit. Traditionally, Nintendo holds its conference the morning before the start of the expo, which runs from July 15 this year.

Unfortunately, that's about all Hamamura said, other than lamenting how a new model wouldn't solve an ongoing DS shortage in the US and Europe. The Japanese game-industry consigliere didn't declare he felt a new DS was a lock for E3 or that it was even likely to be at the event--just that it might be.

The official story: Nintendo Japan told Bloomberg they "had nothing to announce" and Nintendo of America reps were unavailable for comment.

Bogus or not bogus?: Many companies wouldn't feel a product as successful as DS would need any refinement. Nintendo, however, loves tinkering with and repeatedly reissuing its hardware, as evidenced by the three versions of the DS's predecessor--the Game Boy Advance (2001), the Game Boy Advance SP (2003), and the ill-conceived Game Boy Micro (2005). So it's 100 percent not bogus that eventually there will be a new model of the DS. Will it happen at E3 '08? That's unclear. However, given the two-year lapse between the DS and the DS Lite, the time will definitely be definitely ripe.

Source: World of Warcraft fan site WOW Insider.

What we heard: In 2006, Blizzard Entertainment made the somewhat audacious statement that the developer was targeting annual expansions for its massively popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game World of Warcraft. The news was smirk-inducing, considering it came nearly a year after the game's first expansion--The Burning Crusade--was announced and just a few weeks after the add-on had just entered alpha testing. However, thanks in large part to ample and substantive in-game content updates, Blizzard has had no problem growing its rabid fan base past 10 million subscribers.

Needless to say, WOW's second expansion--Wrath of the Lich King--breezed through The Burning Crusade's one-year anniversary in January on a wind as frigid as the add-on's fictional locale, Northrend. However, as the summer approaches, Lich King may be ready to emerge from Blizzard's cooker. Enthusiast fan site WOW Insider reports today that "anonymous sources" claim the game has entered alpha, and "various players are being invited to check it out, under a strict [non-disclosure agreement]."

According to WOW Insider, "Wrath's content is in a playable and mostly completed form--quests, game mechanics, and items are in, even if specific flavor text, names, and even textures are not." Considering WOW Insiders status with the game's community, it stands to reason that its sources would be the alleged "various players," who are apparently unfazed with breaking Blizzard's NDA.

As Wrath of the Lich King was first unveiled during BlizzCon in August 2007, the timing is well past ripe for it to be moving into a playable state. Blizzard, though, is notorious for taking its sweet time getting a game to retail: Assuming the development team began work on Wrath of the Lich King immediately after shipping Burning Crusade, it has already been nearly 15 months in development. (Though, in fairness, the impending $19 billion Vivendi-Activision merger could present a minor distraction for the soon-to-be-consumed developer-publisher.)

Blizzard itself has begun to drop hints that Wrath of the Lich King may be on the verge of public consumption. In announcing its first-ever Worldwide Invitational in Europe last month, the developer proclaimed that attendees would find a beta key for "an upcoming Blizzard Entertainment game" in their swag bags. The Lich King seems to be the most likely candidate for this tester pass, considering Starcraft II was still in a highly malleable state when GameSpot last saw the game in March and the still-unconfirmed Diablo III remains a mere blip on the radar.

Retailers also appear to gearing up for Wrath of the Lich King's launch. The online databases for retailers GameStop and Best Buy reflect a tenuous November 3 release date for the expansion, while Amazon anticipates the game will ship November 30. Retailers are often privilege to unannounced release date information, and have on more than a few occasions given gamers an early heads-up on when they can rip the shrink wrap from their new game.

The official story: Unfortunately, an update on Lich King's status was a no go. "We haven't made any recent announcements regarding what development stage Wrath of the Lich King is in," said a Blizzard representative. "We're hard at work on the game and are looking forward to releasing more information to the community in the future, but we don't have any further news to share at the moment. As for the release date, no date has been announced yet, but we'll keep you updated when we have new information."

Bogus or not bogus?: Tentatively not bogus for both counts.

Source: UK-based game news mecca Computer & Video Games.

What we heard: When God of War: Chains of Olympus shipped last month, many industry watchers believed it the title could be a system-seller for the PlayStation Portable. Now comes an unconfirmed report which, if true, would likely send Sony's portable flying off store shelves.

Today, C&VG says that LittleBigPlanet, the adorable, highly customizable casual game from Rag Doll Kung Fu creators Media Molecule, is PSP-bound. The British site cites an unnamed source claiming that the port is "definitely" in the works at Sony Studio Liverpool, developers of Wipeout Pure for the PSP. Unfortunately, the article offered no other details about PSP LBP, including a release window or how it may differ from the PS3 version, which is due out later this year.

If true, the release of Little Big Planet could prove a major shot in the arm for the PSP, which has seen itself routinely eclipsed in terms of sales by Nintendo's ever-popular DS. The game, which encourages players to create intricate side-scrolling obstacle courses via an easy-to-use level-creator, was a sensation when it was unveiled alongside PlayStation Home at the 2007 Game Developers Conference. Since then, interest has only increased in LBP, thanks to its adorable, customizable "sack boy" characters and robust toolset.

The official story: Sony had not returned requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Too little to go on. However, LBP is likely small enough to be ported to the PSP without too much trouble. And if ever Sony had a game with as much endearing family appeal as Nintendo's Pokemon series, this is it.

Source: Eidos Montreal hinted that the title for its next "AAA" project after the recently announced Deus Ex 3 will begin with a "T" on its official Web site (check the blurb on the bottom-right of the screen). That led to widespread speculation that the studio would be bringing back another Eidos-owned PC franchise with a cult following, Thief.

What we heard: "T" is for "tease." As in, Eidos Montreal is a horrible tease for toying with true Thief fans' emotions like this.

When one thinks of Eidos franchises beginning with the letter "T," Tomb Raider is probably the first thing that comes to mind. But the next Tomb Raider game--Underworld--has already been unveiled, and is being developed by Crystal Dynamics. Underworld is also far enough out on the release schedule (fourth quarter of 200 that it seems unlikely Eidos Montreal would already be gearing up for the follow-up.

That leaves Thief as the natural next choice, considering other Eidos-published "T" games like TimeSplitters and Thuderstrike: Operation Phoenix are either owned by other studios, or would be bizarre choices to bring back. Add into this that elsewhere on the Eidos Montreal site the studio says its first two games "will revive successful franchises" and the studio's next project seems certain.

The official story: An Eidos representative said the company had no comment on the matter.

Bogus or not bogus?: Unless Eidos is full of sadists who enjoy dashing their customers' hopes, this one is not bogus.

Source: A schizophrenic posting on notorious rumor blog Surfer Girl Reviews Star Wars, reportedly confirmed through anonymous sources by trade site Next Gen.

What we heard: When Toronto-based Pseudo Interactive's closure surfaced, the developer was said to have gone under due in part to having Eidos cancel a major project it had been working on. Trade site Next Gen today is reporting that the doomed project in the works was a new installment of Carmageddon, the controversial combative racing game that rewards players for running over pedestrians.

As is becoming increasingly common for reports on recently deceased developers, the source of the information is ultimately anonymous. Next Gen cites "a senior games industry executive" for the info, admitting the source isn't actually related to Eidos or Pseudo Interactive, but saying he or she is familiar with the situation regardless.

Given the assertion in the article that Pseudo Interactive developers were desperately looking to find a new project during this year's Game Developers Conference, it seems likely any such executive would be from one of the publishers who heard a pitch of the studio's, and decided to pass on it.

The Next Gen article isn't the only report to finger Carmageddon as the project in question. Last week, a bizarre entry on the rumor-rific Surfer Girl blog (one supposedly not penned or put up with the primary author's knowledge), purported to tell the twisting tale of Pseudo Interactive using familial terms.

"Nine years ago in a far, far north metropolitan area known as The 416, there was a woman named Pseudo Interactive who was in a marriage with infamous polygamist Microsoft that resulted in a child of the Xbox gender named Cartoon Mayhem," the mystery writer penned, before explaining how Cartoon Mayhem became Cel Damage.

Over the course of the blog post, Pseudo Interactive's connections with Electronic Arts and Sega are explained, and another unannounced but canceled project is referenced. After hooking up Sega (eventual publisher of the Full Auto games), Pseudo Interactive began work on a Vectorman game, which was "uninspired" and "died in the womb," to use the blog's strained familial metaphor.

"However, Pseudo Interactive split up with Sega and moved on to an unfaithful British hunk named SCi who impregnated Pseudo Interactive with Carmageddon and agreed to pay child support for 'a smutfest' called Crude Awakening, unfortunately Carmageddon was never born and Crude Awakening smutted its way to heaven," the post reads.

Aside from those titles, the post claims the studio was working on two more vehicular combat games. They were Prodigal, in which the player was a priest driving around blowing away demons, and Divided City, which involved a plot of "political unrest."

As for the likelihood of a Carmageddon sequel, SCi has been wanting to do one for years, and even announced one that was originally planned to release in 2005. Given the company's successful resuscitation of the Tomb Raider brand, executives no doubt were considering dusting off past successes like Carmageddon and Legacy of Kain in order to bolster a flagging bottom line.

However, whatever plans SCi had were subject to change once investors called for a change in upper management. Longtime CEO Jane Cavanagh resigned shortly thereafter, and the following month the new regime announced some drastic changes, including layoffs of 200 workers and the cancellation of more than a dozen games.

The official story: "No comment. Corporately we do not comment on rumor or speculation."--an Eidos representative.
Inquiries to Pseudo Interactive were not returned as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Both reports are perfectly plausible. A desperate studio in search of projects is likely to tell enough potential publishing partners what's happened to them. The bizarre Surfer Girl post would be perhaps even more bizarre if someone had gone to the length to fabricate it.

Source: An MTV News article reports that Microsoft has been working on a motion-sensing Xbox 360 controller.

The official story: "Microsoft does not comment on rumors and speculation" --A Microsoft representative.

What we heard: The MTV News article brings back a rumor that has surfaced from time to time in connection with both Microsoft and Sony ever since Nintendo unveiled the Wii's motion-sensing controller. Citing a developer who wishes to remain anonymous, MTV reports that Microsoft has been working on a motion-sensing controller since last August, with an eye for releasing it by the end of the year. It also notes that Banjo Kazooie developer Rare has been busy creating "a unified interface and look for the controller." Rare is also working on a Mii-like avatar system for games using the controller, but the source says that the company has been missing its deadlines.

The controller itself, as illustrated by the source's crude sketch (pictured) is laid out much like a Wii Remote, albeit with an analog stick instead of a D pad and no Nunchuk attachment. It also adds a built-in microphone to the basics of Nintendo's pad.

However, the report seems to contradict itself when it comes to what sort of Xbox 360 games would use a motion-sensing controller. Microsoft reportedly wants more of the same Gears of War, Halo, and Forza Motorsport titles that are already popular on the system. But in referencing marketing materials that were shown to the developer, the source told MTV that one of the biggest selling points was how easy it would be to port Wii games to the Xbox 360 using the controller.

"The whole thing is a colossal clusterf***," the unimpressed source told MTV. "[Microsoft] marketing just wants it so they can match the Wii point for point."

It's no secret that Microsoft has its eye on motion-sensing game controllers. The company patented new motion-sensing technology two years ago and was among the first to toy with the idea in a gaming context when it launched the Sidewinder Freestyle Pro gaming pad nearly a decade ago. Add to that the fact that the Xbox 360 is the only system with no motion-sensing functionality whatsoever and Microsoft's system has a conspicuously absent feature.

However, today's news of 360 motion-sensing tech is no more concrete than it was last week or last year. Game companies spend a considerable chunk of money on research and development, and there's no shortage of interesting technology that was toyed with and then abandoned by console makers because it just didn't work for them. Add in the developer's assertion that "the whole thing is a colossal clusterf***" and Rare's reported difficulty getting traction on the project, and you have a proposed peripheral that could easily get delayed or canned entirely.

Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus that Microsoft has done research on motion-sensing tech for the 360. Bogus that this is the motion-sensing we'll eventually see the Xbox 360 adopt. Also bogus that we can expect Gears of Waggle for the holidays.

Source: The Age's Screenplay blog.

What we heard: Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto series has long had a patchy relationship with Australian censors, with previous games in the series falling afoul of the nation's peak ratings body, the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC). Both Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, for example, had to be pulled off shelves for a brief period after public complaints, the latter to do with the infamous Hot Coffee mod. After some content changes, both games eventually made it back onto Australian stores.

Now some media outlets are reporting that Rockstar has taken the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV through some preemptive content changes in order to successfully guide it past the OFLC. The Screenplay blog is reporting that Rockstar reps have confirmed that the version of Grand Theft Auto IV submitted to the OFLC for classification was a "special" modified version to ensure it received an MA15+ rating, the highest available for a game in Australia. Other forms of media, such as film, have the higher R18+ rating which can be applied to content suitable only for adults.

Grand Theft Auto IV received its MA15+ rating from the OFLC back in December 2007. It's due to hit Australian shores April 29.

The official story: Rockstar Australia reps had not responded to GameSpot AU's request for comments as of time of publication.

Bogus or not bogus?: Considering the series' history down under, probably not bogus that Rockstar has taken an extremely cautious approach in making sure this game makes it past Australian censors. We'll update this story with more details as it comes to hand. For more on Australia's classification regime, check out part one of GameSpot AU's Censory Overload feature.

Source: A listing in the online database for the Australian Classification Board.

What we heard: Arguably one of the most enjoyable Xbox Live Arcade launch games in late 2005 was Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved. The $5 downloadable revamp of a hidden minigame in Bizarre Creations' 2003 street racer Project Gotham Racing 2 proved popular enough to warrant a PC port and an expanded remake, Geometry Wars: Galaxies, for Nintendo's Wii and DS.

While the PC, Wii, and DS editions failed to live up to the Xbox Live original, Bizarre Creations may be returning to the well for a Retro Evolved sequel, if a listing in the online database for the Australian Classification Board is to be believed. According to the listing, Activision will be developing and publishing Geometry Wars Retro Evolved 2 on multiple platforms, and the game has been given a G for General rating--the Aussie equivalent of the Entertainment Software Rating Board's E for Everyone.

The listing looks plausible for a couple of reasons. First, Activision as publisher and developer makes sense, considering the megapublisher warmed up its corporate comingling machine with the buyout of Bizarre in September 2007. Further, it is unlikely that a rating for Retro Evolved 2 would be for any of Bizarre's previously released installments in the franchise, as both the original Geometry Wars and Geometry Wars: Galaxies have received ratings of their own in the Aussie database. The classification date of April 3 also seems to be a clear indication that the rating is for an upcoming product, and classification boards typically abstain from rating nonexistent games.

What casts a glimmer of doubt on this listing is the economic viability of the title. As both the Xbox Live and PC port of the original game were downloadable titles, sales data isn't readily available. However, the Vivendi-published redux Wii and DS versions fared less than spectacularly at retail, combined selling just over 61,000 units in the US, according to the latest available figures from the NPD Group. That could be due to the games' pricing schemes, though, which at $30 and $40 for the respective DS and Wii versions and $8 for the inferior PC port were a far cry from the original game's $5 price tag.

The official story: Activision had not responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Looking not bogus.

Source: Taiwanese IT trade site Digitimes.

What we heard: In the wake of Toshiba's exit from the high-definition video playback format wars, Microsoft was quick to assume an aloof attitude toward the demise of its chosen HD standard, saying that it would ultimately be games that would determine the winner in the console arena. Following conflicting reports from Microsoft execs saying it was both unwilling to remove options of a BD-equipped Xbox 360 from the table and that no discussions of such an eventuality with the Blu-ray Association were occurring, the hardware maker further distanced itself from the external HD-player spectrum altogether, saying that HD video distributed through the Xbox Live Marketplace was its primary focus.

With the above conversation playing out over the course of February and March, speculation of a Blu-ray-equipped Xbox 360 returns today like a sour April Fools' Day prank. Taiwanese IT news outlet Digitimes reports industry sources as saying that Taiwan-based Lite-On has begun manufacturing Blu-ray Disc drives for use in the Xbox 360. According to Digitimes, the addition of a Blu-ray player to Microsoft's console may be part of a larger redesign slated to be rolled out later this year.

"Lite-On's shipments of the BD ROMs to Microsoft will start in the second half of 2008, the sources added," reads the report. "Power-supply makers also revealed that while the present Xbox 360 uses a 210-watt power supply, the next-generation game console will use a 170-watt power supply in order to reduce production cost and the size of the device, according to the sources." Digitimes also notes that Lite-On is one of several suppliers of the Xbox 360's internal DVD drive.

Digitimes' track record in predicting Microsoft's next hardware move isn't flawless. The all-things semiconductor, electronics, computer, and communications trade site claimed in 2006 that Microsoft was seeking out Taiwanese manufacturing partners to begin building an HD DVD-equipped Xbox 360, with the new SKU expected to begin shipping as early as the first half of 2007. Obviously, for myriad reasons, that didn't come to pass. However, today's report does stand on more solid ground than the news outlet's previous claim. Specifically, the claim says that Microsoft has already found a partner in Lite-On, and the Taiwanese manufacturer is already in the business of making Blu-ray drives and burners.

Microsoft appears to be at an HD crossroads of sorts for the Xbox 360, with one path leading to the traditional distribution model of tangible discs and the other charting the still largely unproven territory of digital distribution. However, unlike Sony, Microsoft's expertise lies in software and not electronics, and the company has thus far signaled its intent to continue to forgo integration of a new device into its already-troubled hardware. Microsoft opted not to include the failed HD DVD drive in its original SKU and has on numerous occasions said that it has no plans to divide its user base by releasing game content on an expanded-capacity disc.

Further, speculation abounds that the console maker is in discussions with online movie-rental kingpin Netflix to further subsidize its already substantial film and TV offerings available through the Xbox Live Marketplace. The most recent reports supporting such a move come from Netflix's query to its members as to whether they would be interested in streaming movies from an Xbox 360.

The official story: [UPDATE] While the Xbox 360 maker often falls back on its tried-and-true "Microsoft does not comment on rumors or speculation" mantra, the hardware giant will, on occasion, blow certain rumors out of the water when it sees fit. Today's rumor gristle apparently warrants such a response, as the publisher today told GameSpot, "Light-On is not manufacturing Blu-ray drives for Xbox 360. As we have stated, games are what are driving consumers to purchase game consoles and we remain focused on providing the largest library of blockbuster games available. For our customers who want a premium movie experience we offer the largest library of on-demand HD content available and the ability to play back DVDs in high definition."

Bogus or not bogus?: Bogus that Light-On is making Blu-ray drives for the Xbox 360. Still, Microsoft's carefully worded response leaves the door open for some other manufacturer to be involved in the project. However it turns out, it seems clear that a Blu-ray drive won't be a big selling point for the system, and it won't be used for gaming.

Source: GuitarHeroNews.com, reporting on a tip it received concerning Def Leppard's appearance on the Rockline Radio show.

What we heard: The gaming industry seems to be quickly discovering that asking a rock star to keep a secret is like asking a child not to eat paste. Recent months have seen real-world rockers tripping over themselves to spill their participation in the latest rhythm games. In September, Aerosmith fretter Joe Perry tipped Activision's hand on a Guitar Hero installment devoted exclusively to the band's extensive catalog, with Brit rockers the Answer signaling a 2008 release for Guitar Hero IV. Most recently, former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach may have spoiled EA's big reveal of a Road Rash revival.

The latest act to take the stage before the spotlight comes up may be glam-metal kings Def Leppard. As per a tip sent in to GuitarHeroNews, Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen reportedly said during the band's appearance on the Rockline Radio show yesterday that three of the band's songs--"Photograph," "Animal," and "Rock of Ages"--will appear in Guitar Hero IV. The comment reportedly came after a caller queried the band on why none of their songs had made it into any installments of Guitar Hero or Rock Band.

Verifying GuitarHeroNews' claim, and consequently Collen's statement, has proven to be a prickly undertaking. While Rockline is in the practice of rebroadcasting its live shows, the Def Leppard show won't be aired again until April 29 due to the fact that it contains as yet unreleased music from the band's newest studio album. Further, requests for confirmation made to Rockline and Def Leppard's publicist had gone unanswered as of press time.

[UPDATE] Last night, Rockline updated its Web site with an extracted audio clip from the Def Leppard interview in which Collen definitively states the band will be included in the next installment in Activision's Guitar Hero series. "We do!" Collen says, continuing, "It's on Guitar Hero IV. We just had to clear a few things like publishing, record company, and all that stuff. But we're going to have, like, three songs, I think, on Guitar Hero IV."

There's also little wiggle room on which edition of the game the band was referring to. Responding to the host's question, "So it is coming out? [GH3] is already out," Collen says, "No, it is coming out, it would have been out earlier, but we didn't get around to it." Collen then reaffirmed which songs would be included in the game, saying, "Yeah, I think Photograph, Animal, and Rock of Ages...something like that, yeah."

In retrospect, it's slightly shocking that Def Leppard has yet to appear in a single installment of Guitar Hero, or Rock Band, for that matter. The band certainly fits the bill of a likely candidate. The group achieved certifiable rock royalty status during the '80s, having released two diamond-selling (10 million-plus) records, Hysteria and Pyromania, and spawning a slew of memorable hits in the process. As such, it stands to reason that Collen's reveal came in good faith and is a clear indication of what is to come. Factor in rock artists' recent display of loose lips, and this possibility creeps ever closer to highly likely.

The official story: "No comment."--An Activision representative.

Bogus or not bogus?: [UPDATE] In light of a verifiable audio clip, this one's looking not bogus.

Source: Reuters reports that Netflix is asking customers if they would want to stream their movies off of the Xbox Live Marketplace.

What we heard: Rumors have been floating around for months that movies-through-the-mail rental service Netflix would be teaming up with Sony or Microsoft to distribute its catalog of films over the console makers' online services, but the latest twist pointing to the company's interest in the sector came from a Reuters report this week.

The news service reports that Netflix has sent out a survey asking customers if they are interested in streaming movies off of the Xbox 360. A representative with Netflix wouldn't tell Reuters if the survey indicated a deal with Microsoft had been struck, but did say the company wanted to get its films on customers' TVs "in as many ways as possible."

That quote, in combination with the previous rumors about the deal, certainly make it seem as if Netflix would be eager to have its wares offered through Xbox Live. Considering that Netflix founder, chairman, and CEO Reed Hasting also occupies a spot on Microsoft's board of directors, there's a very real opportunity for the two companies to leverage their core competencies in a veritable orgy of corporate synergy.

That said, Netflix already offers a catalog of streaming movies to PC-bound subscribers. The company has also enlisted the help of LG Electronics to create a set-top box that will stream films in high definition, a function that would essentially be duplicated by the rumored Xbox Live deal.

On top of that, Microsoft already streams HD films over Xbox Live, and the feature lets users start to watch rented flicks before they've finished downloading. Netflix is in many ways a competitor in the streaming rental market, given that it offers subscribers a selection of 7,000 films to stream to PCs. A partnership with Netflix could let Microsoft offer a much broader array of films than it does at the moment, but that approach might not mesh with the Xbox maker's managed-portfolio approach to Live Marketplace content.

There are also logistical issues. Would customers need to be Netflix subscribers to use the service? Would nonsubscribers be able to pay to rent single movies? What happens to the existing Live Marketplace movie service? Does Netflix have the rights to distribute its catalog of streaming films to consoles as well as PCs?

Finally, this is an emerging market. Netflix clearly wants to offer users downloadable films to watch on their TV sets, but it's unclear if the idea has passed the early-adopter phase and become a technology that customers are ready to embrace in large numbers. The Netflix survey could well be looking to simply establish how comfortable consumers currently are with the idea of HD-to-TV movie downloads, or if it's something they even think about.

The official story: "It is our policy to not comment on speculation."--A Microsoft representative.

Bogus or not bogus?: Netflix was already known to be looking at the notion, but the survey doesn't make it any more a done deal. Bogus for now.

Source: A daisy chain of Internet reports playing out like a game of Telephone, all leading back to Sonic Team MIDI collection site ESPIOKaos.com.

What we heard: It's no secret that Sonic the Hedgehog has been a bit off from his heydays of running the 40-meter dash in .7 seconds flat. Recent years have seen the blue streak headline in sequels or one-off installments that for one reason or another fail to live up to Sonic's side-scrolling adventures on the Genesis. However, even though its little blue mascot is down, Sega hasn't shown any signs of counting him out. Not content with just breaking bread with former archrival Nintendo with Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games and Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Sega commissioned preeminent role-playing game aficionados BioWare to create a Sonic-themed RPG for the Nintendo DS.

With Sonic once again rising to prominence, Sega's Team Sonic may be readying its iconic hedgehog for a comeback tour. Following a trademark filing for Sonic Unleashed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, forumites who frequent ESPIOKaos discovered a plethora of screenshots on Sega's press site, which were subsequently plastered all over myriad sites before Sega realized its gaffe. The leaked screenshots quickly found company with a video containing what appears to be in-game footage taken from the actual game. In it, Sonic appears to be running on rails through a variety of colorful 3D environments.

And then the Internet happened. Sega enthusiasts The Sonic Stadium kicked off the rumor mongering, saying "Sonic Unleashed will be the next Sonic 'canon' game, if you will, intending to follow on from Sonic 06's Iblis disaster (in more ways than one), hence the weird unimaginitive [sic] dark creature git in the screenshots this morning. You see Super Sonic attempting to stop Eggman once more, but a new trick up his sleeve results in Sonic having to deal with a rather unnatural curse. A werewolf. Sonic has to fight a werewolf alter-ego of himself." The Sonic Stadium also said that a brand-new face will be added to the franchise's roster.

The Sonic Stadium then passed off the rumor torch to German Web site Sega On. There, a mysterious Sega employee known only as "Dennis" apparently "confirmed" that Sonic Unleashed would see a multiplatform release on, at least, the Xbox 360 and Wii. Game On then extrapolated on this info thanks to an inside source, saying that Sega would make its big reveal during a Gamers' Day in May, and the game would be added to the holiday free-for-all this November. According to Game On's sources, "SEGA is launching SONIC UNLEASHED with A HUGE production budget." The site noted that development teams from Japan, the US, and Europe will be assisting Team Sonic with the allegedly massive undertaking.

Although a lot of information is floating around about the project, it is important to note that absolutely none of it--save for the screenshots pulled from its press site--are from Sega. All other information is attributed to nebulous "sources" or lack attribution outright. Some information, such as Sega Unleashed having some kind of "werewolf" mechanic, appears to ring true based solely off of the released images, but the game remains unannounced and therefore any info is far from set in stone.

The official story: Sega had not responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus that Sega has donned its warmers for Sonic Unleashed, as evidenced by the patent filing coupled with the leaked screenshots and video. As for specific details about the game, all else runs the gamut of utterly fabricated to plausibly speculative.

Source: International news service Reuters.

What we heard: Last week, Sony dropped details on the latest feature update to the PlayStation 3's internal system software. In addition to further synergizing the PS3 and the PlayStation Portable and implementing a myriad of other tweaks, firmware version 2.20 will upgrade the PS3's Blu-ray Disc Profile to 2.0. Significantly, the update, known as BD-Live, will turn the PS3 into the first and only Blu-ray player capable of accessing the Internet for additional content, a feature that is expected to be implemented in other devices later this year.

As part of last week's announcement, Sony said that it was expecting to implement the firmware update by the end of March. However, it appears the project has hit a minor snag. Reuters is reporting today that Sony "is targeting" April 8 as the release date for the PS3's BD-Live update. The news outlet reports that the update will debut alongside Sony Pictures Home Entertainment's first two Blu-Ray Disc offerings slated to support the feature: the John C. Reilly-led Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story and Arnold Schwarzenegger's The 6th Day.

While Walk Hard and The 6th Day won't be the first films to include support for the BD-Live update--Lionsgate's War and Saw IV supported the feature when they were released in January--the movies will be Sony's own maiden effort with the alternative content delivery method. It seems likely, then, that Sony would want to match up the two releases from a promotional and marketing perspective. It also makes sense that the BD-Live update's release would be the more malleable of the two, considering the amount of coordination with retailers required to get Walk Hard and The 6th Day on store shelves.

The reputability of the reporting outlet also lends credence to the April 8 release date. While not infallible, Reuters isn't exactly the type of news service that is prone to running as fact unconfirmed or speculative information. As such, it stands to reason that the publication has a hard source for the date.

The official story: [UPDATE] Late on Monday, Sony responded to GameSpot's request for comment, saying, "We announced late March for the firmware and April 8 for the two Sony Pictures titles in our release last week, and haven't made any updates to that timing. I read the article and think it may just be the way it was written that's confusing."

Bogus or not bogus?: In light of Sony's most recent word on the matter, and the fact that the update is now available, bogus.

Source: Hollywood trade magazine Variety's game blog Cut Scene.

What we heard: Played out in near-picturesque after-school-special fashion, two of the most popular kids in gaming--Activision and Vivendi Games--emerged from behind closed doors holding hands last December to announce a union worth nearly $19 billion. Analysts were quick to embrace the new Activision Blizzard conglomerate, given that Activision has dominated the console sales charts with games such as Guitar Hero III and Call of Duty 4, and Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft franchise on the PC continues to infuse Vivendi with roughly $1 billion each year.

With Vivendi having locked down financing for the deal in January, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick said recently that the merger was on course to close by the end of June. Unfortunately, that may spell bad news for Blizzard's little brother, Sierra Entertainment. Variety's gaming blog editor Ben Fritz today claims that with the massive merger in its throes, Activision is taking a long, hard look at all Vivendi-published games, with Sierra-branded games receiving especial scrutiny.

"I've had numerous sources tell me that development teams on all of Vivendi's games now have to essentially pitch their projects to Activision executives," said Fritz. "Until the merger is technically complete, work proceeds as usual, but once it's over, Activision will start making some decisions. And it seems very unlikely that everything at Sierra will keep going as it has been. Just like when a new executive team takes over at a film studio, some projects in development get killed and others get changed as the new folks in charge start establishing their own tastes and corporate priorities."

Reiterating Activision's professed motivation in the merger, Fritz also cast doubt on the future of some of Vivendi's more high-profile, non-Blizzard games. "Activision obviously made the deal to get its hands on the biggest MMO, and really the biggest game, in the industry. Everything else is basically an afterthought," argued Fritz. "Which leaves all of those making the afterthoughts in an uncertain position. Titles set to come out this year, like The Bourne Conspiracy, Prototype, Brütal Legend, and Ghostbusters, are probably fine since they're so far along. But those in development for 2009 and later? They'll all TBD."

After Vivendi reorganized its games division to more prominently leverage its Blizzard and Sierra labels in early 2006, Sierra's efforts have found modest-to-poor consumer reception in the US. Running through a list of some of the publisher's more high-profile releases, Joint Task Force for the PC sold 36,000 units and TimeShift shifted 194,000 across three platforms. Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning sold reasonably well with 693,000 units across five platforms, but its follow-up, The Eternal Night, managed only 241,000 across five SKUs. The publisher's most critically acclaimed project in some time--World in Conflict, developed by Massive for the PC--managed only 134,000 in US sales. (All sales numbers come courtesy of the industry-tracking NPD Group's January 2008 report.)

The prospect that Vivendi's future games will be sent to Activision execs to be green-lit is a certainty. Even though Vivendi will have a 52 percent controlling stake in Activision Blizzard as per the original terms of the merger, it will be Activision brass Bobby Kotick and Mike Griffith lording over Activision Publishing, which will include Sierra once the merger goes through. It also stands to reason that given Sierra's lackluster performance in light of the hit-driven industry climate, Activision execs may institute a number of changes within the publisher to get it back on track.

The official story: Nearly all of the studios working under Vivendi Games contacted by GameSpot opted to keep mum on Fritz's claim, citing the necessity of a quiet period leading up to the Activision Blizzard merger finalizing. That is, save for Brütal Legend creators Double Fine. "I'm sure Activision is reviewing all the games--that only makes sense," said Double Fine boss Tim Schafer. "But I haven't been asked to go anywhere or pitch anything special. Anyway, like you said, Brütal Legend speaks for itself! Anyone messes with our game, Ronnie James Dio will put a hex on them."

As for the publishing houses themselves, neither Sierra Entertainment nor Activision had responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus that Activision execs will oversee Vivendi and Sierra's projects once the Activision Blizzard merger goes through. Looking bogus that any of Sierra or Vivendi's projects are on the chopping block or have already been lopped off.