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Editor's note: Sometimes, it's not just a rushed release that hurts a licensed product. Kevin takes a look at all the factors that were working againt Avatar: The Game from the very start. -Shoe

Ubisoft loses money on an Avatar gamble and now says it will reduce its investment in movie licenses because AAA films' stringent release schedules do not mesh with the needs of AAA game titles.

But it wasn't a single factor that saw Avatar: The Game fail. Mismatched media goals, technology, and game identity all had a hand in its demise.

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Editor's note: Although Borderlands was one of my favorite games of last year, I haven't tried any of the DLC yet, partly due to developer Gearbox's sub-par PC support and glacier-inspired approach to bug fixing. According to Michael, I can skip Mad Moxxi. But that General Knoxx trailer looks kind of amazing. I may need to re-up. -Demian

Dear Gearbox Software,

I want to start off by saying congratulations on the release of the latest Borderlands DLC, The Secret Armory of General Knoxx. I’ve been following the coverage, and so far, I’m impressed. From new vehicles and enemy types, to a raised level cap and even more ridiculous guns, General Knoxx looks extremely promising.

However, I should note that I was one of the people who bought Mad Moxxi’s Underdome Riot on day one, and the coverage on that expansion looked compelling as well. It’s a little late to say this, considering General Knoxx is complete, but I wanted you to know how important this DLC is to the fans, and how thin the ice you’re walking on may be.

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Let's hope this General Knoxx thing turns out better than Mad Moxxi....

Video Blips:

• Those Geabox guys sure know how to make a trailer. I have no idea what that narrator lady was even talking about in this Borderlands: The Secret Armory of General Knoxx DLC teaser, but I am in. [GameVideos]

Continue after the break for an iPhone-ified Street Fighter 4, a Metal Gear: Arcade trailer, a peak at some of the more cunning moves in Red Steel 2, and a preview of the new Army of Two: The 40th Day DLC.

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Editor's note: Some developers secretly or not-so-secretly think you better know your B-splines from your framebuffers before you pass judgment on their games. But the history of criticism across multiple artistic mediums says otherwise. Michael weighs in.... -Demian

A few weeks ago, I sat in on the Grubb on Games live stream, hosted by Bitmob's own Jeffrey Michael Grubb. I left for a bit to take a break, and when I came back, Jeff was playing an odd Flash game that I had never seen before. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. The art style consisted mostly of dull greys and blacks, and from what I could tell, the character's movement lacked precision. “What is this?” I asked. “Rocketbirds Revolution,” several people in the chat channel replied.

“This game looks underwhelming,” I declared. Jeff and a few others asked if I was trolling, which confused me at the time. As it turns out, one of the people viewing the stream was an artist for Rocketbirds Revolution, and I had just insulted his game based on a three-minute visual demo.

I felt really raw about it. I know what it's like to have people trash your work, and to have it done to your face is one of the worst feelings a creative type will ever experience. My guilt worked its way past the foot in my mouth, stirring up some deeper issues about the role of critics in the game industry. What gives me -- or anyone else in the enthusiast press, for that matter -- the right to critique the work of others, especially when most of us lack the skill to make our own games? Would I still have said what I said if I knew a member of the development team was in the room? And really, how fair was it for me to form an opinion in such a short time, without having touched the game personally?

I thought about it over the past few days. Eventually, I came to some conclusions.

Flash game, or pathway to catharsis? You decide.

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Maybe saying that Final Fantasy 7 remake is "unrealistic" is Square Enix's way of challenging fans to write them even more letters demanding that they do it. At least, that's how it'll probably be interpreted.

News Blips:

Speaking to TechDigest, Final Fantasy 13 Producer Yoshinori Kitase recently commented that a Final Fantasy 7 remake looks "pretty unrealistic." If conditions were such that Square Enix could make the game within a year -- with graphics akin to the latest release in the series -- then "we'd very much like a go at it!" says Kitase. He estimates, however, that it would take "three or four times longer than the three and a half years it has taken to put this Final Fantasy [13] together." OK, so probably no fancy FF7 remake -- but how about a portable version? Please?

If you didn't get into the Starcraft 2 beta, Kotaku reports that there's still hope! Several hustlers who attended Blizzcon 2008 are currently auctioning off their Starcraft 2 beta key cards (plus a code for a polar bear mount in World of Warcraft) that they obtained from the event for an average of $300 on eBay. Yikes! If you still just have to play, might I suggest collecting donations from around the office/dorm, and then everyone can take turns playing?

The Game Developers Choice Awards at this year's Game Developers Conference in San Francisco is set to present the Lifetime Achievement Award to John Carmack of id Software. The game programmer is most famous his role in popularizing the first-person-shooter genre in the 1990s with titles such as Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, and Quake. Previous winners of the award include Sid Meier, Shigeru Miyamoto, and Will Wright. I would like to personally thank Mr. Carmack and id for playing a hand in desensitizing me to virtual violence early on in my youth. [Destructoid]

Borderlands: The Secret Armory of General Knoxx DLC drops this Tuesday for Xbox Live Arcade (Thursday for PlayStation Network/PC). Fans can expect to find a huge new area (almost two times the size of The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned); new, ultra-rare weapons; and a level cap that now sits at 61. Damn, I remember when back in the day, if you wanted to max out a character to level 99 in your game, it didn't cost you anything extra. Crazy huh? 

GameStop is having their "biggest trade event ever," offering customers an extra whopping 50% on "every trade." Normally I'm not one to encourage trading in video games to GameStop for chump change, but if you must, now would be the best time to do so. At least with this promotion, the return you get on the games you relinquish won't be super depressing but actually almost fair. [Joystiq] 

Got any hot news tips? Send 'em over to tips@bitmob.com.

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We all love Mass Effect 2, right? 

It's considered by many to be one of the greatest role-playing games the western hemisphere has ever produced. Its exhaustive, detailed galaxy, convincing character portrayals, and improved combat system unified to create an absolutely invigorating experience. 

But Bioware's space opera isn't without its flaws. The most commonly mentioned issue is the mining system. If you haven't played the game, Mass Effect 2 forces the player to scan, probe, and mine unexplored planets in the hopes of gathering minerals and discovering anomalies. While the mechanic serves a purpose in the lore and game progression, its tedious as hell. Beyond ironically probing Uranus, there is very little to make the mining more tolerable.

Kabuto the Python sought to liven up the proceedings by writing a song, entitled "Those Minerals." Sonically superior to the in-game track, Kabuto's rap faithfully articulates what it's like to be a space-faring gangsta.

Click here to listen.

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Editor's note: Brian shares with us how he gained confidence as a writer. It's a moving piece, and I hope it inspires those of you who may have doubts about your own writing prowess. It's hard to improve if you don't actually write, after all. -Jason

Nine years ago, when I was 8 inches shorter, I received a paper from an imposing figure. This piece of paper -- my first essay of the year -- was on the transition from nomadic to agrarian societies. Despite my best efforts, I received a D on my 10th grade history paper. At the time, I thought my writing career was over.

I'd grown accustomed to receiving As before that point -- in part because I went to a low-income middle school that didn't value its students. At my school, we didn't receive instruction in elementary grammar; we were left to fend for ourselves in a brutal world of paper and pens. Sadly, my math education wasn't any better.

During the sixth grade, I was one of the four students in prealgebra because I excelled in arithmetic while in elementary school. The teachers didn't have room for us, however, so we were left to study on our own in the hallway. As you can imagine, we got nothing done, but somehow we passed despite not knowing the fundamentals.

Unfortunately, this caused me to miss out on a number of important algebraic techniques, so I didn't understand certain concepts in future classes. I went from being someone who was extremely confident with math to someone who absolutely hated it. The reason I mention this is because my writing experience was similar.

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After this especially shameful death, it would surprise me if "Scorpio2468" ever plays a game of World at War again.

I'll admit it: I have a habit of becoming very upset whenever a burst of enemy fire deprives me of an AC-130 or a care package. Sometimes, I'll even hit my keyboard or mumble something profane. Regardless of all my previous fits of nerd rage, I think that if I suffered the same degree of humiliation as this Call of Duty player, I'd probably take a step back and admire the skill of my enemy, instead of lambasting him.

At any rate, this is one for the books. "TheTrout91" clearly defines the word "pwn" for those of us who haven't been paying attention in class [via Today's Big Thing].

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Square Enix kicks off another decade of repackaging old games with their announcement of Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy 2 for the iPhone. What does this mean for you? 

Touch screen d-pads....

No price or date has been set, but one has to wonder if the games are still worth re-releasing after the stellar 20th Anniversary editions hit the PSP a few years back. Collectively, this marks their 7th release, including their original launches and various compilations. It's time to give up the ghost, Square Enix. I already own both games three times over in varying degrees of playability. [via Square Enix]

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Any French-speaking Bitmobbers care to translate the below quote? 

News Blips:

If you want to contribute to the Haiti relief effort, The Behemoth and SOTA Toys have got you covered. From now until Sunday, The Behemoth will donate all proceeds of online sales of Alien Hominid HD and Castle Crashers DLC to the American Red Cross. Additionally, Behemoth employees have promised to match the amount generated with funds from their own pockets. Likewise, on February 1, SOTA Toys will auction off a slick Lightning Blanka prototype figurine on ebay and will also send those proceeds to benefit the earthquake-ravaged country.

Electronic Arts is showing their support for controversy-laced golfer Tiger Woods with the announcement of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 and Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online. The latter of the two titles is now in open beta and boasts self-promotional Facebook integration. It's nice to see EA take the high road and not put together some sort of Tiger Woods dating-sim game. [TigerWoodsOnline]

The Wall Street Journal Online is reporting that Apple is working with EA to "show off" the gaming capabilities of their (rumored) upcoming tablet device. Furthermore, EA Mobile is reportedly signed up to use the recently announced Kindle Development Kit to start making games for Amazon's ebook reader. It looks like however the market of this new generation of computer devices ends up, EA will be there. [engadget]

An unlucky The Consumerist reader reports that airport security had taken apart his Xbox 360 before flying on US Airways. The traveling gamer had checked his console in with his luggage, reassured by an airline employee that everything would be OK. After returning home, he discovered his Xbox had been taken apart as evident by the included ziplock bag of metal components that were once inside his console. Breaking Xbox 360s in the name of national security -- what's the world coming to? [The Consumerist]

Got any hot news tips? Send 'em over to tips@bitmob.com.

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I've already established that I love a good game intro. Nothing can get you pumped for hours of button mashing better than an assault of high-octane music and flashy video.

Few games did this better than the early CD-based Japanese titles, which started mimicking the over-the-top openings that anime had used for years.

Burning Rangers for the Sega Saturn is a great example. Sure, the multiple images of characters running in front of strobing lines is exciting, but the song sells it:

You can listen to the full song -- both in English and Japanese -- after the break.

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It's not good enough to just get great gear in World of Warcraft. Nope, you have to get it enchanted, which will make it marginally better for way too much gold. Obviously, something our hero can't pass up.

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