QuickJump QuickPeek 84: Lightning-fast sold outs and warying bewares

It may not have the same hoopla as E3 had, but the GamesCom sure is making the developers and publishers just as busy all the same. With their promised new wares, any event definitely is an opportunity to show what they’ve got — and to impress. And we all know it would do everyone a whole lot of good if we get more impressive games around, especially if we want some positive movement in the charts. Speaking of which, we’ve got both this week: promised new wares and charts. Check out the happenings in the 84th edition of QuickJump QuickPeek at the full article.

It may not have the same hoopla as E3 had, but the GamesCom sure is making the developers and publishers just as busy all the same. With their promised new wares, any event definitely is an opportunity to show what they’ve got — and to impress. And we all know it would do everyone a whole lot of good if we get more impressive games around, especially if we want some positive movement in the charts.

Speaking of which, we’ve got both this week: promised new wares and charts. There’s the occasional settlement in lawsuits as well, and a pending lawsuit on one unlucky college dude busted by the feds for modding consoles. That’s a big red flag right there.

Check up on it right below.

While official firmware 5.55 is presenting concerns for the PSP homebrew community, retailers are likewise being wary of the upcoming PSP Go. This week, more retailers from the UK expressed their doubts about the Go’s download-only model as well as the handheld’s rumored high price tag. We also heard from Dissidia producer Takeshi Arakawa who said “cultural differences” led to some of the changes in the game, most notably the tutorial length.

Link: PSP Weekend Warrior

Official firmware 5.5 started rearing its head recently with reports of new PSP games coming with it and requiring gamers to update in order to play them. It seems the G.I. Joe game is the first US-release title to carry it, although the upcoming Shin Megami Tensei: Persona is reportedly carrying the update as well. So far, we haven’t seen any official announcements from Sony, and neither have we heard anything from the usual firmware-breaking teams. Hopefully this changes soon.

Link: PSP Homebrew Weekend Warrior

GamesCom is coming up later this month, so maybe that’s why the news has been drying up a bit these past few days. It’s still a bit too far away for it to be the real cause though. Nevertheless, we saw some big headlines grace the PS3 blog this week, perhaps most notably the rumored pricing and subsequent online retail listing of the PS3 Slim console. Things were relatively quiet game-side as well, but the PSN did make a big splash thanks to this brand-spanking new service that they just rolled out recently in Japan.

Link: PS3 Weekend Warrior

Movie adaptations of video game franchises aren’t exactly always welcomed warmly by the community, precisely because of the long string of disappointments in the adaptation history. However, buzzer-beating its way into this week’s Weekend Warrior for the Xbox 360 is the report that Steven Spielberg himself wants in on the Halo movie. Sounds promising, for sure.

Link: Xbox 360 Weekend Warrior

With the success of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare on the PS3, Xbox 360, and PC and the kind of anticipation we’re seeing for Modern Warfare 2, it looks like Activision wants to use the profitable name as they bring the glorious FPS into the Nintendo yard. How will Modern Warfare fare in the Wii and DS? Time will tell. It’ll be an interesting subject once more things unfold, so read up and stay up to speed with the goings-on in the industry.

Link: WiiDS Weekend Warrior

2009 is turning out to be a fantastic year for the iPhone, gaming-wise at least. We’ve seen releases big, small, and unexpectedly addictive, and the super phone is not showing signs of slowing down. Mobile game publishers are understandably pushing more games into the App Store, but even console game publishers like Namco Bandai and Activision are also starting their respective iPhone campaigns.

Link: iPhone Weekend Warrior

What are the numbers for the week ending August 2? Thanks to Media Create, we see a clear picture of who’s hot and the followers in the Japanese charts. Thanks to Monster Hunter Tri, the Wii once again settles its buns nicely on the top spot. As for the rest of the platforms, well, they’re still hanging in there.

Link: Monster Hunter 3 drives Wii to top spot in Media Create hardware charts

With all the lawsuits news we’ve been getting the past couple of months, it’s so nice to hear of a settlement every once in a while. Like in what happened with Activision’s case concerning Brutal Legend (PS3, Xbox 360). Word has it that all’s now well in the land of the awesome brutal, and that it will be meeting its October launch.

Link: Brutal Legend lawsuit settled by Activision out of court

Thinking of getting a ticket for BlizzCon? Too bad if you didn’t get your hands on one, cos those 20,000 tickets just got sold. All of it. In eight minutes. And to think that each costs US$ 125. Congrats to those who managed to squeeze in line for the tickets within those few several minutes!

Link: BlizzCon 2009: 20,000 tickets sold out in eight minutes

On the other hand, while the BlizzCon worked their magic in a mere eight minutes, am sure this college student wished they could have worked theirs and be gone in sixty seconds. Cal State Fullerton student was arrested by federal agents early last week for modding game consoles. Uh-oh. He faces up to five years in prison as penalty.

Link: College student arrested for modding game consoles