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EA applies bracketology to Madden NFL 12 cover athlete
Did Marquette kill your Final Four bracket yesterday? Or maybe it was Florida State. Or maybe, like President Obama, your bracket is still relatively pristine.
Whatever your bracket looks like, EA Sports is giving gamers a second chance to prove their bracket prowess with the Madden NFL 12 Bracket Challenge. EA has selected 32 players (one from each team) to compete in a single elimination tournament to determine the cover athlete of Madden NFL 12. That’s right, the recipient of the curse is on us now.
EA will reveal the full bracket on ESPN’s “SportsNation” today at 4 PM (Eastern Time) today. But they did say that Super Bowl XLV MVP Aaron Rodgers, Madden NFL 11 cover athlete Drew Brees (who won a three-way fan vote), Madden NFL 2004 cover athlete Michael Vick, Maurice Jones-Drew, Adrian Peterson and Julius Peppers are among the finalists.
Madden fans can create their own bracket by using the Madden NFL Bracket application on Facebook. The winners of each matchup will be chosen through daily voting at ESPN.com/maddenvote.
The top two bracketologists will win the Grand Prize of $2,000 and two tickets to Super Bowl XLVI. Eight 1st Place winners will receive four tickets to an NFL game of their choice. “Group Winners” will receive a copy of Madden NFL 12 when it’s released in August.
We’ll be back with the full bracket later today.
WWE All-Stars screens show off game modes
THQ has released a dozen new screenshots showcasing the many modes of WWE All-Stars. The arcade brawler will include classic modes like 1 on 1 and Steel Cage Match along with Triple Threat, Fatal 4 Way, Tornado Tag, Elimination, Extreme Rules and Handicap Matches. You can check out all twelve screens after the break.
WWE All-Stars will be available for the PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii and Xbox 360 on March 29. (more…)
In spite of lockout, Madden NFL 12 will be released as scheduled
The NFL Players Association has voted to decertify their union and the owners have imposed a lockout, effectively placing the fate of the 2011-12 season in the hands of the courts. EA Sports’ Rob Semsey has taken to Twitter to reassure fans that Madden NFL 12 is still in development and that it’ll be released this August as scheduled.
In a series of tweets, Semsey announced that all NFL players will be present and accounted for in Madden NFL 12. He also confirmed that rookies selected in next month’s NFL Draft will be placed on the rosters of their respective teams in the game. Finally, Semsey revealed that the Madden NFL 12 cover athlete would be announced by the end of March. Hmm, not being able to play at all might be the ultimate invocation of the Madden Cover Curse.
You can find the complete text of Semsey’s tweets after the break. (more…)
Call of Duty: Black Ops leads February sales, becomes bestselling game of all-time
After becoming the bestselling PS3 game, Call of Duty: Black Ops can now lay claim to just being the bestselling game, period.
According to the NPD Group, the Treyarch-developed game passed Wii Play in February to become the bestselling game of all-time. Exact sales figures weren’t released, but Wii Play is known to have sold over 13 million copies. So let’s call it 14 million. Of course, Wii Play is a Wii exclusive while the sales of Call of Duty: Black Ops have been split across the DS, PC, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360.
Not surprisingly, Black Ops was also the top-selling game in February, where it was joined by newcomers Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, Killzone 3, Bulletstorm and Mario Sports Mix. The full top ten (which is still littered with dance games), can be seen right here:
1. Call of Duty: Black Ops (Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, DS, PC)
2. Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds Xbox 360, PS3)
3. Just Dance 2 (Wii)
4. NBA 2K11 (Xbox 360, PS3, PSP, Wii, PS2, PC)
5. Dead Space 2 (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
6. Zumba Fitness: Join the Party (Wii, Xbox 360, PS3)
7. Bulletstorm (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
8. Killzone 3 (PS3)
9. Michael Jackson: The Experience (Wii, DS, PSP)
10. Mario Sports Mix (Wii)
Posted in DS, News, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Bulletstorm, Call of Duty: Black Ops, Dead Space 2, Just Dance 2, Killzone 3, Mario Sports Mix, Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, NBA 2K11, NPD
New Releases: Dragon Age II, MLB 11: The Show, MLB 2K11, More
One of 2011’s biggest releases will be hitting stores this week. Players will be able to return to the magical land of Thedas as BioWare is bringing Dragon Age II to the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360.
If you prefer the smell of peanuts and Crackerjack to the smell of sliced and diced dragon meat, you might want to consider this week’s double play combo of baseball games. 2K Sports will release its multiplatform Major League Baseball 2K11 on the DS, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii and Xbox 360 while Sony is bringing its PlayStation-exclusive MLB 11: The Show to the PS2, PS3 and PSP.
Also available this week will be the Dynasty Warriors spinoff Warriors: Legends of Troy (PS3, Xbox 360) and a new Sims 3 expansion, The Sims 3: Barnacle Bay (PC).
The full list of the rest of this week’s new releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in DS, News, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Dragon Age II, Major League Baseball 2K11, MLB 11: The Show
Whatcha gonna do when the complete WWE All-Stars roster runs wild on you?
IGN has completed their two part unveiling of the complete WWE All-Stars roster with an additional seven Legends, eight Superstars and six more DLC wrestlers. These 15 wrestlers join the 15 wrestlers announced last week to give the full roster a grand total of 30 fighters.
As with last week’s reveal, IGN uploaded new screenshots and video of each wrestler, giving us a very in-depth look at the game.
So we know who made the final cut and we know that The Big Bossman, Chris Jericho, Jerry “The King” Lawler, Michael Hayes, Mark Henry and R-Truth will be added to WWE All-Stars at a future date through a DLC expansion pack. We also know that Howard Finkel and Paul Bearer will be included in the game as “non-wrestling talent.”
So with all out of the way, jump off the top rope for a look at the second half of the WWE All-Stars roster. (more…)
A Eulogy For Guitar Hero: The Day the (Plastic) Music Died
A wise man once said that it’s far better to burn out than fade away. Apparently Activision agreed with the sentiment, as after a bit more than five years of rapid-fire releases, the company has shuttered the Guitar Hero franchise. Just 40 months ago the music gaming business was at its absolute peak – Guitar Hero III sold roughly 2.45 bazillion copies across a half-dozen platforms – but now the series is in complete shambles, what with the latest installment releasing with the authority of a farting ant. This legendary tumble from grace is no doubt why the company canceled the forthcoming Guitar Hero 7 and put the entire series on hold, perhaps permanently. Rather than harp on all that went wrong and led to its untimely demise, let’s discuss what went right – and what the future may hold if Activision dares to bring the music back. (more…)
Posted in DS, Features, Mobile, PS2, PS3, PSP, Top Story, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Guitar Hero: World Tour