I guess last week's debate was a Super Smash Bros. battle on stock mode set for 82 lives each -- truly a debate to the death. The result was not pretty, and reminiscent to those times when you were so drunk you could only lift your head high enough to see the stock score at the bottom of the screen plummet further each time your corpse fell off the map next to it. I had expected equally memorable drunken party moments to boost Mario Party's overall score, but the series aspect of the debate really did it in for good.

• Mario Party series (7 votes) -- Sad toadstool mushroom man noise!
• Super Smash Bros. series (82 votes) -- Watch Luigi fall on his face!

This week we return to one of our most notorious debates over the past few years. However, this time we will not just be comparing two games, but instead debating their entire series against one another. Neither series needs any introduction, but I do want to stress that this is a series debate, and all games from both sides should be taken into consideration.

Bonus Question: What are you hoping to see in the future from the series you voted for?

The videogame industry is known as one of the most innovative and creative art mediums in recent memory, so it's quite ironic that hardcore videogame fans consistently lament the lack of innovation and creativity found in the most popular games. I always say that if a game's good, it doesn't matter if there's no innovation, and that's something I still believe.

That said, there are a number of overused scenarios and settings that are getting incredibly boring. While not gameplay elements, these tropes have appeared in so many titles recently that I am officially over them. A number of them were cool or cute to begin with, but as more and more videogames chose to exploit them, I grew more and more tired to the point where their inclusion in a videogame no longer elicits a reaction. 

Characters, enemies, settings and plot points that need to be put out to pasture. That's the focus of today's article, a discussion of videogame tropes that I am officially over. 

Splash Damage is bringing its new shooter Brink to both PC and Xbox 360, but the game's creative director knows which version is best. Stating that console controls can't match PC input, Richard 'Rahdo' Ham has explained that analog sticks are just a poor man's mouse and that the PC will always rule first-person-shooters.

"No matter how hard we work on it to make the perfect analogue stick controls -- and as an aside we have got really good analogue stick controls -- it is a poor man's mouse at the end of the day," he states. "Obviously it goes without saying that on consoles it is going to be pegged to the maximum resolution that the consoles can handle. Whereas on PC, the sky's the limit, depending on what your rig is. There is no choice about it. 

"I would be laughed out the room if I were to sit here and say 'yes of course the console games will look just as good as the PC version'. The PC version will always be king because it can always adapt and keep on building if you have got the money.

"All PC gamers know that's where the best experience is going to be if you have got the money. But I am a console player first and foremost and so we are also ensuring it will be a fantastic and beautiful experience on consoles as well."

Harsh, harsh words for consoles. Of course, I am in the tiny minority that actually prefers controllers to mice. A console trigger just feels better, and I've never been a fan of the mollycoddling "point-and-click" approach to shooting. Sure, it's more accurate, but where's the sense of skill? Anyone can point and click at a head. I know most people find the PC superior for their shooters, and that's cool, but it's definitely not for me, nor will it ever be. 

Microsoft runs a tight ship and demands a certain level of quality in its 360 games. Considering the quality of the 360 itself, that's quite ironic, but nevertheless there are standards that software developers must adhere to. One of those standards have always been a minimum resolution of 1280x720 (720p). However, that is no longer the case.

Black Rock Studio's David Jefferies has confirmed that Microsoft recently dropped the requirement, meaning that future Xbox 360 games no longer need to be in high definition. Previously, the only studio allowed to do this was Bungie, for which the requirement was apparently "waived" for Halo 3. 

"Now we are free to make the trade-off between resolution and image quality as we see fit," says Jefferies, explaining how this is a good thing and how anti-aliasing can now be a more primary concern for developers. 

It's interesting that Microsoft has dropped the requirement, especially with so many developers acting like HDTVs are in every single American home, which simply isn't the case. Things like Dead Rising's notoriously tiny text are perfect examples of how bullheaded the industry's been over HD, despite the fact that many gamers still have standard-definition televisions. This downgrade at first sounds strange, but is quite logical when you think about it.

Besides which, Halo 3 still looked pretty damn good.

Crytek president and co-founder Cevat Yerli has issued a very substantial threat to his home country, stating that Germany's biggest PC developer will be forced to relocated if the country's authorities ban action games. Germany's war on videogames has reached ridiculous levels, and Crytek isn't going to stick around for the genocide. 

"A ban on action games in Germany is concerning us because it is essentially like banning the German artists that create them," he explains. "If the German creative community can’t effectively participate in one of the most important cultural mediums of our future, we will be forced to relocate to other countries.

"The current political discussion will deprive German talent of its place on the global game development stage, and deprive German consumers of entertainment that is considered safe and fun around the world."

This is a brilliant move by Crytek and I hope it's a threat they sincerely pursue. Germany's authorities are going too far, planning a nationwide ban on any game that it deems too violent. Such social control is outright disturbing, and it's my sincere hope that the games industry withdraws all support from the country until its economy is damaged by a lack of creative studios and videogame purchases. 

The German government needs to know that it can't get away with such obnoxious trampling of freedom. I hope many more artists and consumers follow Crytek's lead and tell Germany to STFUAJPG.

You can mow down roman soldiers with an assault rifle in Darkest of Days. If that doesn't grab your attention, what will? Last time, we talked about the game's box art, which has a volcano on it. It's hard to say if its inclusion on the cover is due to Pompeii being a destination in Darkest of Days or because "it looked cool."

The latest news on Darkest of Days comes in the form of a video, which puts the game's weird assortment of weapons on display. As you can see in the header image, this information is truly vital to your survival.

Above all, I am happy to see the game not taking itself too seriously. Quite frankly, Darkest of Days looks like total bargain bin fodder, but I don't mean it as an insult, at least not yet. Earth Defense Force 2017. Need I say more?

Fable II, Fallout 3 and even Grand Theft Auto IV have toyed with the idea of moral choices and branching paths that have an affect on the game world. It would seem, however, that nobody thought to claim sole rights to the idea, and if this patent application is approved, future games may owe Elliot McGucken a hefty stipend.

McGucken has filed a patent for a "system and method for creating exalted videogames and virtual realities wherein ideas have consequences." The patent includes all manner of ridiculous flowcharts providing examples of McGucken's idea. Perhaps my favorite list of potential consequences is this one:

PLAYER -> Serve Ideal and speak truth to power? -> YES -> Spiritual victory -> Player is killed but is resurrected and the 45 revolver glows gold -> Apotheosis & showdown: Exalted consequences and ideals are rendered real. 

Uuuhhh ... yeah. The patent pertains to something a bit more complex than what videogames have shown before ("exalted subtleties of mythology" is actually said in the patent, giving you a clue as to how artsy fartsy it is) but the principal appears to be nothing new. Furthermore, will this guy actually do something with his "invention," or will will he just sit on it and hope to make money when somebody does?

Sounds like this guy could be another patent troll, which means that if this patent passes, you can expect to hear of it again five years from now when someone actually provides gaming with a complex moral choice system. Bloody patents are the bane of all creativity. 

[Thanks, Kittwalkerphoto]

In November of last year (that's last year, not today as some outlets might lead you to believe), the Federal Trade Commission took a worrying interest in online media, singling out game bloggers in particular as outlets that need to disclose whenever they receive free items pertaining to reviews published by their site. The New York Times, (late to the party as most newspapers are), has agreed with the assessment, basically insinuating that bloggers are far less trustworthy than real journalists.

"The readers of his blog are unlikely to expect that he has received the video game system free of charge in exchange for his review of the product, and given the value of the video game system, this fact would likely materially affect the credibility they attach to his endorsement," states the FTC in one of its examples. "Accordingly, the blogger should clearly and conspicuously disclose that he received the gaming system free of charge."

The FTC seems to believe that this is only necessary for bloggers and not other forms of media, indicating that a site like Destructoid is somehow far less trustworthy than your average print rag. The New York Times goes even further, implying heavily that blogs work to please sponsors: "But unlike postings in most journalism outlets or independent review sites, most companies can be assured that there will not be a negative review: if [blogger Colleen Padilla] does not like a product, she simply does not post anything about it."

Hit the jump for my thoughts. 

They've had all they can stands, they can't stands no more. German officials have been having a field day in targeting the games industry over the past few years, banning products at whim like capricious Gods. It would seem, however, that Germany is finally starting to go too far, and the seeds of rebellion have been sewn among the country's gaming population.

Things begun with a protest march, where an estimated 400 indignant Germans patrolled Karlsruhe to make their distaste for the government's actions known. This small demonstration is only the beginning, however, with a further three protests scheduled to launch simultaneously on July 25 in Cologne, Karlsruhe and Berlin.

In addition to this, a petition has been formed in the official forum of the Bundestag. Destructoid reader Christian wanted us to spread the word about the petition, and we're more than happy to oblige. If the petition reaches 50000 signatures, the authorities are bound by law to review the situation and discuss it with the people. The petition can be signed right here. If you're a German Destructoid member, we highly recommend that you do this thing. 

Anything, videogames included, can be harmful in the wrong hands. However, the world should not be governed based upon what could happen to the minority, but to the majority. Germany has forgotten this and is currently oppressing the rights of gamers to choose what they can and can't play. It's great to see that German gamers are finally doing something about this, and we wish them all the best.

You have to love the dedication of old school Nintendo fans. They'll patiently wait years and years for Nintendo to finally throw them a bone, and have been diligently keeping a candle aflame in anticipation of Kid Icarus' long overdue return. According to game developer and cheeky imp Shigeru Miyamoto, however, the wait will have to continue.

"Wait, please. I'm really surprised how popular that is," said Miyamoto when asked about a series revival last month. "But you are the first person to ask at this E3!"

With Nintendo focusing its efforts on a handful of new Mario and Zelda games, it could be quite a while before Pit makes his long-awaited return. Asking fans to "wait" is certainly better than denying there are plans, which is a good sign. It just all depends on when Nintendo will ever get around to announcing the bloody thing.

Still, the Nintendo faithful wll hold their ground, and who knows? Perhaps in fifteen years, their patience will be well rewarded.

If there's one criticism I hear a lot from gamers, it's that there are never any original or unique games out there, and that publishers spend too much time on sequels and rehashes. I would have agreed with such notions before Marvel vs. Capcom 2 was announced for XBLA and PSN. As I saw pretty much the majority of the gaming community flip its lid with glee and delight over playing a ten-year-old game that they probably already own, I began to pay attention to what gamers themselves pay attention to.

I came to conclusion that the lack of original games is entirely our fault. 

Sequels and remakes are what capture our imaginations, not imagination itself. We want to be fed the same thing over and over again. That's why we're going nuts over what is essentially Capcom's exploitation of our mindless nostalgia, and why fresh IP is left by the wayside in order to pursue a quick rehash. 

Don't believe me? Look no further than Destructoid itself for evidence. 

For every great DS game we actually get, you can bet there are a dozen cool ideas that probably never saw the light of day. Case in point: the picture above is from a discarded Nintendo patent which actually credits Miyamoto himself as one of the inventors. It's a basic RPG in which monsters randomly attack you, but the difference from your average grind comes in how you interact with the monster. To attack, you poke it!

Of course, if you have shaky hands and you aim poorly, you miss (and you really do miss!) You can also do more damage by hitting the head than the body, and do less damage if you hit the shield ... you get the idea. According to Siliconera (see more concept pics there), the game would have drawn inspiration from FPS or light gun games and adapted them to an RPG. Neat!

I wonder how this would have worked had it been fleshed out until a retail release, as I know a lot of people who game on their iPhones complain having to use their finger to touch the screen can obstruct too much of the action. Would you have enjoyed a game like this?

Fight Night Round 4 smacks retailers in the mouth June 30, this year. And it’s packing more than just upgraded visuals. Electronic Arts released a new trailer for the game today, briefly addressing a laundry list of additions.

The upcoming iteration of the super realistic boxing series will feature a new physics engine, actual inside gut clubbing, block-shearing punches, and dynamic tearing.

Yeah, that’s right -- Fight Night Round 4 will have dynamic tears.

The video doesn’t do the tearing justice, but EA has already earned my sixty bucks on the promise alone. I can’t wait to watch an opponent’s skin split in slow motion after a nasty blow. You know what the next step is on the gross scale EA? It’s an MRSA infection. Make it happen.

The latest issue of Edge magazine reveals a brand new game from the developers of Just Cause, described as an open world fantasy title. It's called AionGuard, and it looks very promising indeed.

AionGuard is being described as a giant battlefield full of thousands-strong armies, dragons that can be piloted, and magical monsters the size of houses. It's been in development for two years already and is currently looking for a publisher. I doubt it will struggle for long in that regard.

The AionGuard of the title are a race of powerful warriors who have merged with symbiotic armor to gain magical power. A bit like Venom then, although the studio prefers to describe them as more a cocktail of "WWI dogfighter pilots, Samurai and medieval knights."

These guys want to recapture the world after their civilization was devastated, and are currently invading realms occupied by the Nazurbaal, who are "harvesting" the land for presumably nefarious ends. Since it's open-world, you can explore the battlefield to disrupt supply lines, befriend local tribes or capture "Geo nodes" to make the enemy strongholds easier to attack. 

There's no talk of online yet (boo), but developer Avalanche is promising it will contain things that match the "finest set-pieces videogaming has to offer." A bold claim indeed, but you have to love a studio with ambition.

Dr. Henry Jenkins of M.I.T is probably a very clever man and he has a great beard. I consider this enough of a qualification for me to take everything he says as gospel, and his message on this day is that piracy is an "equalizer" between consumers and videogame publishers.

Jenkins... noted that piracy is a contentious issue but defends it as a necessity for consumers who have no access to many materials that would have been otherwise made available to them...

He sees piracy in two ways: that it is the only way for developing markets to get access to materials and another is that it is a rebellious method for consumers against high prices of original material. To balance, this, Jenkins said that both producers and consumers would have to reach a "moral economy" where the system of belief is that transactions are fair... Jenkins believed that users, if given the proper access point for content they want, will buy original instead of resorting to piracy...

"The younger generation of executives understands the digital age more than their older counterparts. The question now is: how much influence do these younger guys have over the older guys so they could change their strategy? Once they solve that, the rest will be easier."

Piracy is an incredibly thorny issue, especially lately with all the lawsuits and DRM controversies flying around. It's certainly not as black-and-white as either side of the argument would have you believe, and while I am not a professor with a really nice beard, I might be able to offer my own educated opinion on the matter ...

Both sides are full of c*nts.

SOUTH AFRICA: Former Haitian President Aristide spoke in front of a rally of dozens today, criticizing the US government for not dispatching Bad Dudes to come to his rescue in his hour of need.  "I mean really -- how long is the waiting list? My people are willing to arrange hamburgers like any American president." The democratically elected leader was forced out of power years ago due to with "some political stuff", said Foxtoid social studies 7th grader and CEO.

Senator Colon Powder from the Ministry of D-FENS addressed a live studio audience today issuing this canned response, upsetting homeless children nearby:

The president was actually kidnapped by us, but we don't remember where we put him. Once Homeland Security bombs a nearby nation we will drop the brothers off by chopper on top of a heavily armed freight train headed in the opposite direction as usual.

"I'm right here, bitches!", said the elected leader whose whereabouts are a mystery. The former dictator threatened to crush their heads with his fingers if immediate action was not taken.  He added: "There is simply no excuse.  I want to hear tokens go into the machine and 2p buttons pressed." 

Data East made various terrible games following Bad Dudes and thus was not available for comment.

Steve Wiebe emerged from last summer's docu-flick The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters looking like the quintessential geek hero after defeating bizarro-prince Billy Mitchell for his high score at Donkey Kong. Since then Mitchell has stepped up to the plate and reclaimed his place at number one, although Mitchell's honesty about the scores past and present has been subject to a great deal of speculation, especially since the documentary portrayed him as a shifty character.

Mitchell and Wiebe went head-to-head in a match last week set up in Las Vegas by arcade scorekeeping kings Twin Galaxies, but Wiebe couldn't defeat the prince of darkness. The actual high scores are maddeningly close -- Mitchell's is 1,050,200 and Wiebe's 1,049,100 -- but knowing Wiebe's calm demeanor, it seems likely he's a "if at first you don't succeed, try try again" kind of dude. I sure hope so, because as much as I know that King of Kong purposely set up a good vs evil dynamic in their portrayal of the two competitors for dramatic effect, I just don't like Billy Mitchell anyway. Who in their right mind can like a guy that wears American flag ties?

[Via MTV Multiplayer]

Reportedly from the same esteemed programmers who brought you the Arwing and Dark Link hacks in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time comes what might be the magnum opus of N64 cart mods. I won't believe it until I play it myself, but we apparently have reason to believe that some insane Four Swords-style action will be coming to Ocarina in the near future. 

This is the kind of modification Nintendo should be making themselves, preferably to their Virtual Console releases on the Wii. Between this and the Mother 3 translation hack, it seems like everywhere you look, Nintendo fans are working on Nintendo games in ways that Nintendo themselves just won't do. 

You can thank me for not doing a tired "Ninten-don't" joke later.

[Via GoNintendo] 

Saints Row 2 producer Greg Donavan has expressed confidence in his game going up against Rockstar's flagship title, the anticipated and sure-to-be controversial Grand Theft Auto IV. The two games are very similar, both being sandbox crime spree titles, with the original Saints Row sometimes coming off as a cack-handed and even desperate attempt at capturing GTA's feel, though admittedly adding a few refinements along the way and improving the combat.

Similarity and the GTA series' headstart do not worry Donavan, however. "Frankly we wouldn't be releasing this year if we didn't think we could be competitive," stated the Saints Row producer. "I think co-op is a huge distinguishing factor. Unless they're really holding something - I don't think they are - I think that's a big plus for us."

Co-op has become a bigger selling point of late, so it's true that Saints Row 2 has a chance to compete if its co-op system is superior. However, until they change the awful Respect system (I don't want to engage in childish pimp missions constantly to get to real ones) and hire script writers that weren't turned down by Rockstar for trying too hard to be edgy, then I'll remain suspicious of the game becoming a GTA beater. 

That said, plenty of others still see Saints Row as a superior improvement over Rockstar's titan franchise, so who knows? We can only wait until both games are on the shelf before measuring which is the greater.

During GDC last week, Taylor threw his support behind the idea of curbing piracy by having gamers sign into a secured server, where they can be authenticated as paying customers -- before being able to play:

"It's all got to be secure, we can't afford to make this stuff and give it away for free. I don't think we should be sending the message to anybody that PC gaming is dead. We're going to secure it and our customers have to know why we are securing it. They have to appreciate why we're protecting it. It inconveniences a little but now they know why. And then we can get the economics back in line and maybe we can actually start offering it up at a lower price point in the future. So it will come around full circle,"

Seems fair enough to me, as long as they make sure that the authentication process is smooth, and it doesn't force us to jump through a bunch of hoops while they perfect the model. Since developers devote valuable time and money into their projects (which are risky enough as it is), they undeniably deserve the right to protect their own interests. How does our own PC crowd feel about this? Cheaper games are certainly attractive to us all.

[ Via Gamesindustry.biz -- Thanks, Justin!]

With all the hype around Street Fighter IV: Giant Dragon Penis Edition you might have missed another up and coming fighting game from the makers of the Guilty Gear / Accent Core folks called BlazBlue - a PS3 network exclusive that made its official debut this year at AOU in Japan. The game is set in the same Guilty Gear universe ten years after XX and will bring some solace to those whose panties are not dripping for SF IV, including yours truly. The game is also set to hit arcades on the Taito Type X2 board, presuming your city still has one of those.

Check out the round-up of videos, scans, and screen shots we've found on the ps3 forums and our community blogs.  Three more videos after the jump. 

Thanks, Y0j1mb0!

Yeah, funny things happen sometimes. Like when you think that you've done 31 awesome shows, but you've only done 30, but you still think that the latest show is number 32 -- sort of. At least I find it funny when these things happen, and they seem to happen quite often here at RetroforceGO! Mostly because we're so continuously dazzled and amaaaaazed by the shining light that is Chad Concelmo, that mere numerals and their inherent meaning become insignificant squiggles and scratches on paper when confronted with the gaze of his unyielding optimism.

Or maybe we're just getting old.

Highlights!

• THIS EPISODE CONTAINS SPOILERS

• Chad and Dyson sing a DLC duet, sparks fly

• Goodwill rocks extra hard this week

• Emulators don't come with instruction manuals
  

• Topher sends awesome  text messages

• The Rev Rant returns!

• Is that a Colette I hear?

• It is! But she's sick, and in a bucket, in a well
  

• Bubble Bobble has a story?

• Chad wins Colette by default

• Quackshot rules

• Conglaturations!

This is the time of year where game news outlets run their top games of 2007 list. GameTap's official list will come early next year, but for now their editors have all listed their personal choices.

Games like Portal, BioShock, Rock Band, and Super Mario Galaxy all made strong showings among their lists, but it was nice to see that lesser listed titles like Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles, God of War II, and even Peggle got some loving. I'd hang out with these guys!

Head to GameTap to pick through the editor's lists.

My thing this year is to peruse the "top 2007" lists for the inclusion of my personal choices, but it seems that games like Odin Sphere or Persona 3 aren't hip enough (or too hip) to make this year's lists. 

Will you join me in my nonconformism or will you line up with the norm with your Halo 3's and whatnot? 

Please allow me to interrupt a slow news day with tales of piracy from the True Caribbean, as locals call it.  I was recently in Scarborough, Tobago with some friends and noticed this haunting sign plastered on a sign post.  It reads "Three PlayStation 2 games for $120".  It sounds about right in US dollars but this is Trini currency, which exchanges at roughly 1/6 of American dollars.  If you do the math ($120 divided $6 then divided by 3 games) those PS2 games would run you about $6.50 US a pop.  I don't think Sony is being generous to developing countries! 

Sure enough, small strip malls largely carry burned games and there's little or no sign of Wii, 360, and PS3 systems.  Are the locals aware that newer games are available, and do they care?  One prominent shop keeper near the airport barely understood my question. "Games aren't that popular here -- maybe in 5-7 years." 

Aside from their daily training regimen, the UK team currently training for the Olympic men's hockey qualifying tournament in Chile have been told to practice on Nintendo Wii sports games to improve the hockey abilities.

EADT tells us that England hockey uses the Wii improve hand-eye coordination, peripheral vision and awareness. 

“As well as being fun and providing some time off the pitch, the training on the Wii has really improved my performance during games," says goalkeeper George Pinner. “We are made to play games like tennis and boxing with eye patches on to concentrate on working each eye individually."

David Faulker, a spokesperson for England Hockey, said: “Nintendo Wii is one of the many resources we are looking at to improve reaction and speed for goalkeepers.”

If they do make it to the 2008 Beijing games next year, they could further improve on their skills by picking up a Vii console.

[Thanks, Mr. Ross] 

It's no secret that non-gaming parents need help with videogame purchases for their children. Hell, some parents don't even like games! There are media groups that offer up their over-opinionated guidance, but most experts prefer to focus on game violence, which often scares non-gaming parents away from the gifts their kids really want. These parents are probably better off making game purchase decisions for themselves.

We like to see that at least one expert has their head on straight. Samantha Blackmon, a Purdue University associate professor of English who studies representations of race and gender in video games, doesn't go the "videogames kill" route. Instead, she offers up solid, sensible advice for parents looking at holiday gaming gifts, and encourages parents to take an interest in the games their kids play. 

"In a perfect world, video games would be rated in terms of content and complexity," says Blackmon, who is also a gamer who owns a dozen video-game systems and hundreds of games. "But the content of video games can be surprising. The way video games are drawn can remind us of cartoons and feel safe for children, but sometimes the language and innuendo that accompanies the images is anything but child-friendly."

Hit the jump for Blackmon's holiday buying tips. 

The news that Activision and Vivendi had teamed up to form the almighty Activision Blizzard came as quite a headspinner this weekend, but Activision's chief rival Electronic Arts is keeping its collective cranium level. The publishing giant told Eurogamer that it was looking forward to the competition that ActiBlizzard will bring.

EA's UK boss Keith Ramsdale wished Activision Blizzard good luck and shared his belief that EA still had "the industry's strongest portfolio of game franchises," before adding that EA was at its best when facing competition. While the claim about the portfolio can be debated, there's no denying that a healthy competition is one of the greatest catalysts of quality production. 

Here's hoping that Electronic Arts, a company that slowly seems to be improving itself, really takes this as a call to produce some great games. Ultimately, the only thing that truly matters to we humble gamers is the software, and if an ActiBlizzard/EA power struggle leads to top-notch games, we're the true winners in the end.

Viva la capitalism!

Thanks to the lads at Official Xbox Magazine we've got word of three upcoming packs of DLC for Guitar Hero III. The OXM kids make buckets of cash for doing this sort of thing, so let's let them tell it:

Expect a Foo Fighters pack with All My Life, The Pretender and This Is A Call, a Velvet Revolver pack with Slither, She Builds Quick Machines and Messages and the final pack for the boss battle music. 

That all sounds pretty in line with what we've come to expect from the series as far as DLC, but following that logic these packs will also be exorbitantly priced. I suppose we have gamers' natural tendency towards a sedentary lifestyle to blame, but would it really have killed anyone to not buy those 500 point rehashes out of protest? This isn't Selma, Alabama and people aren't going to be sending dogs after you or training fire hoses on your ass if you stand up for what you believe in -- or more importantly, what I believe in: not spending all of my lunch money on Incubus songs.

Activision, you have one chance to prove yourself. If you blow it, we will take this to the streets. I left a message with Chuck D this morning, and we've already got like 60 "Free Mumia" signs, so we're one Danny Aiello away from a riot.