The creators of the “Grand Theft Auto” franchise are no strangers to controversy but their latest about to be released video game is making things even hotter under the collars of several politicians around the globe.

Rockstar Games will release “Manhunt 2” on the Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation 2 and PSP next month but already two countries have barred sales of the video game within their borders. The United Kingdom and Ireland have blocked sales of the game citing its extreme graphic violence and the American ESRB has given the game a rating of AO for adults only, a ruling that Rockstar will likely appeal. Australia may also follow in line with their European cousins and bar the game from being sold on their shores. An American attorney, Jack Thompson, has launched a lawsuit …

Force feedback joysticks have been around for over a decade but there hasn’t been a stick made that could simulate the three dimensions of an object until Novint made the Falcon. If you think this unit looks like a robot rather than a joystick you would be right.

The joystick element of the controller is raised above the surface of the resting platform so when you grip it with your hand you’re pushing at it in three dimensions. Sensors detect any movement that your hand makes, updating the data to your machine a thousand times a second and producing instant movement on the screen.

Novint claims that the Falcon can simulate realistic “texture, shape, weight, dimension and dynamics” of objects on your screen, like the weight of a basketball or the recoil of your shotgun in a FPS. To prove it they also will …

Namco Bandai is partnering with game controller maker Hori to offer a bundled package for the release of Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation. The bundle will include the game along with an Ace Combat 6 faceplate for the Xbox 360 and the Ace-Edge Flightstick accessory, which is the first flight simulator accessory made for the Xbox 360.

The Ace-Edge Flightstick controller consists of two pieces; a throttle controller and a separate flight stick. Both will be branded with the Ace Combat 6 design. This will be a limited edition bundle planned for this coming holiday season retailing for $149.99. Ace Combat 6 by itself is planned for release later this year for $59.99.

via Kotaku

We’ve seen some pretty cool home-made gaming setups like this 200 inch projection with a PS3, but this VRX Triple Screen racing simulator is going to be pretty tough to beat.

VRX was not messing around when they designed this setup. Among a large number of other things it comes with 4 Xbox 360 Elites, 4 copies of Forza Motosport2, an Xbox HD DVD player, Xbox 360 camera, Xbox wireless headset, a Zune, MS Force Feedback Steering Wheel and 3 Sharp Aquos 37″ HD LCD displays. It also has built-in surround sound and vibration feedback to add to the realistic feel, not to mention a beverage holder.

There’s no pricing posted for the 360-integrated triple-screen setup that launched just last month, but you can certainly send them an email to find out.

via Giz

Every respectable Rock, Paper Scissors player knows that the game is all about strategy and has little to do with luck. With this lazy-mans version of the game for the electronic age the strategy is completely taken out of the equation and your left to complete chance in order to win your day to day conflicts.

By pressing the button on the keychain it will randomly light a display one of three (the product page says four, but I’m not sure what the fourth would be) images to indicate the choice of rock, paper or scissors. they come in pairs for $8.89 since you really need two of them to keep you on the same level. This revolutionary breakthrough in the age old game does bring forth the new possibility of playing the game by yourself, however.

via OhGizmo

Comic book artist Todd McFarlane looks to have gotten into the Halo 3 accessory market by putting his artistic talents towards some limited edition gaming add-ons. These three offerings should be available in early September, though you can preorder them now through Gamestop.

McFarlane’s talents will specifically go towards one of two wireless controllers for the Xbox 360. These controllers – one Spartan, one Covenant – sport original artwork which is integrated onto a scratch and wear resistant surface. Both $60 controllers come packaged with a collectible Halo 3 figurine from McFarlane Toys.

Also showing up on Gamestop’s Web site is a limited edition wireless headset ($60). This headset, sporting a “Halo look”, has “Master Chief armor coloring and Halo 3 branding.” These fine accessories join other products getting the Halo 3 dress up, including this recently …

When do you know that perhaps you have too much money on your hands? When a custom freight delivery truck drops off one of these Heiron & Smith Executive Billiard Tables, that’s how.

The Heiron & Smith Executive Billiard Table, while it would look better with a hot model sprawled across it, does have more than enough features to get by without eye candy. It is structurally made of grade A materials ranging from English table cloth to Italian slate to handmade pocket nets. There’s a ball storage rack and mirror backed bar to help you store the necessities of the billiards life style.

On the techno side you get great features like an LCD TV set, stereo with flat paneled speakers and a DVD player. It’s all quite sparkly and swank, making for an excellent addition to your bachelor pad.

Product Page via …

Nintendo has added three classic old school video games to its Wii Shop Channel this week providing a blast from the past of the 1980s. If you remember what it was like to spend countless hours playing any of these trio of classics now you can show the next generation what it was like to play them all over again (and maybe you can prove your pwnage while you’re at it.)

“Lode Runner”, “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” and “Golden Axe II” have blasted their way onto the service. Each can be played by one or two players and don’t cost much (500 Wii points to download “Lode Runner”, 800 points for the other two.) “Lode Runner” and “Sonic 2” will provide you with plenty of maze chase craziness (there’s also an edit …

Turtle Beach has always been a company at the forefront of gamers audio needs. Their lineup of headphones to bring you your deathmatches, MMORPG late-night sessions and other digital mayhem are well known amongst the annals of gaming but their latest baby may top them all.

The Ear Force AK-R8 sounds a bit like it should be sharing screen time with R2-D2 in a “Star Wars” movie but it’s supposed to be the best multi-directional sound system for your PC gaming needs. There are 8 – let’s say that again, 8 – speakers in this mechanism, a center, a sub, a front and a surround speaker inside each earphone. These deliver the nuances of 5.1 surround sound, from the hissing of an overhead door to the screams of battle as orcs rush at you. You can even listen in on …

Eleven years after the video vixen Lara Croft made her digital debut in the first “Tomb Raider” PC game comes the arrival of “Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary” from Eidos Interactive. The game updates the original game using the “Lara Croft: Legend” engine which gives Lara’s original adventure a pretty face-lift. As well as the cosmetic revamp the original puzzles have been enhanced, environments have been expanded to explore and Lara’s arsenal of weapons have been added to. Right now the game is out for the PlayStation 2 and PC with Nintendo Wii and Sony PSP versions forthcoming.

Also on the Croft news front is a juicy rumor that Eidos has plans to release “Tomb Raider: Anniversary” on Microsoft’s Xbox 360 in an episodic format. Eidos hasn’t commented on the rumors. The ESRB website lists five environments from “Anniversary” suggesting …

Jonesing for some old school pellet munching gameplay? Have you found yourself reminiscing about chasing after flashing blue ghosts? Finally, do you have an Xbox 360? If you’ve answered yes to all these questions then $10 will get you a download of “Pac Man Championship Edition” via Xbox Live. Starting today the new Pac Man game is available from Microsoft’s online game service. It’s the final farewell given to fans by the original game’s creator, Toru Iwatani, who is retiring at the ripe old age of 52 to teach the next generation of game designers at Tokyo’s Polytechnic University.

“Pac Man Championship Edition” was created by Iwatani for the finalists competing at the Xbox 360 Pac Man World Championship in New York City which ended yesterday. The new game updates the original Pac Man but still keeps the action in a …

Activision’s hugely successful “Guitar Hero” games have let gamers experience what it’s like to rock out by playing out popular songs one note at a time on a guitar interface. Now shortly after the second game in the franchise hit retail Activision has announced that it’s aiming for a fall release for “Guitar Hero III”.

The new game will be ready for the PS2 and PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii gaming systems. As well new wireless model guitar controllers will also be coming out fashioned after Gibson Guitar’s Les Paul and Kramer models. The Gibson shredder will have removable faceplates and a new button design to better reproduce the concert playing experience in your rec room. You will also be able to play multiplayer and download new music content after exhausting the new …

I honestly didn’t realize that Pac-Man had teeth so I guess a little paleontology lesson was in order. This skeleton was constructed by Le Gentil Garçon and François Escuilié, modeled after the skeletal structure of real predatory animals, which I guess is what Pac-Man was…er is.

This Pac-Man skeleton is a little on the strange side and quite a bit more frightening than the version in the game but I guess it answers some questions about what’s under that yellow skin. The sculpture is made of plaster and measures 35cm in diameter.

More photos via Geekologie

The eyes of the gaming world were focused on Seoul, South Korea this past Saturday to see what the creators of “World of Warcraft” were about to unveil. At the Olympic Gymnastic Stadium fans and press alike watched the spectacular light show showcasing the accomplishments of Blizzard Entertainment, the makers of the world’s most popular massive multiplayer online role-playing game as well as the “Diablo” and “Starcraft” franchises. To say that “Starcraft” is a popular game for Koreans is an understatement; this is a nation where concerts are held featuring Korean pop stars singing tunes inspired by the 8-year-old real-time strategy (RTS) game. There’s even a league of professional “Starcraft” gamers who make hundreds of thousands of dollars battling each other in televised tournaments.

So when Blizzard dimmed the lights and rolled the animated video showing the world …

Sony isn’t sitting on its haunches watching potential PlayStation 3 customers try to find a Nintendo Wii or open their wallets for a Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite. At a media event held in San Diego yesterday the company drummed up some excitement for its upcoming game lineup for the rest of 2007 and the start of ’08 and showed that there’s plenty of excitement to come for PSP and PS3 owners.

The game that’s attracted some of the biggest buzz is “LittleBigPlanet”, a community based game that lets up to four players solve puzzles by interacting with objects. The game is high on creativity, boasts impressive graphics thanks to the PS3′s Cell processor technology, has a very catchy soundtrack and is stuffed with an immense amount of cuteness that should appeal to a broad audience (and maybe even a jaded “Quake” gamer or two.) …