Messing with childhood icons is one thing, but turning them into ferocious evildoers? That's actually pretty cool….
News Blips:
Junction Studios axes the evil-looking "scrapper" Mickey from its Epic Mickey project. The scowling mouse appears if players perform bad deeds (such as theft or murder) within the game — at least, until Junction yanked the look after it tested poorly in a focus group. Instead, Mickey grows increasingly smudgy after each bad choice. The best part? Director Warren Spector didn't want to mess with a "biker dude" from the focus group who wholeheartedly rejected the notion of a naughty Mickey. [Mainichi Daily]
Sony breathes a sigh of relief with the PlayStation 3's turnaround profits. Speaking to IGN, Sony Worldwide Studios President Shuyei Yoshida confirmed that the electronics giant is finally making money from every sale of its console. "This year is the first time that we are able to cover the cost of the PlayStation 3," he said. "We aren't making huge money from hardware, but we aren't bleeding like we used to." That's funny — I didn't know monolithic corporations could bleed from overzealous spending. Oh, wait….
Microsoft responds to rampant rumors of overheating problems in the new slim edition of the Xbox 360. Oddly enough, the statement wasn't what everyone was expecting: "We couldn't be more proud of the consoles we are building now, as well as the new Xbox 360. This console is the culmination of years of continuous innovation in design, testing, and learning. Today we are confident we are shipping a high quality product." Gee, thanks for the acknowledgment, Microsoft. [NowGamer]
Remember that mysterious Egyptian-themed drawing that hinted at a new Assassin's Creed game? UbiWorkshop released an additional image (showing a steampunk-stylized assassin) along with an explanation — it turns out that an art book is forming with different pieces of AC-themed artwork. This is terrible…I don't have any more space on my walls for even more game posters.
Got any hot news tips? Send 'em over to tips@bitmob.com.