Since the year has now come to an end, I'd like to share some of the best and worst of 2006 with you, including our choice for 2006 GOTY! Let's get underway!

Biggest mistake of 2006: A lot of you think I'm gonna say "the PS3 launch". However, I think someone screwed up this year a lot more than Sony. You see, the PS3 just needs time to get off the ground. My pick for biggest mistake is Kurt angle leaving the WWE for TNA. Since leaving Vince, his story lines have suffered, and he has to job to an overrated wrestler like Samoa Joe.

Biggest surprise of 2006: Britney Spears' crotch shots. I wasn't ever expecting to see hew twank, but there it was for the world to see. Thanks for the memories Britney!

Biggest letdown of 2006: Sony's PS3 launch. Notice I said the launch, and not the system. I feel the PS3 has potential. But there is no denying that Sony fucked up real bad this time around, and has paid dearly for it in sales and popularity. The poor design of their kiosk units doesn't help matters much, as it causes systems to overheat and freeze up in stores. This obviously doesn't leave a good impression with Average Joe and Jane Walk-In who may just be in the market for a new system.

Most underrated item of 2006: Microsoft's Zune player. Definately the iPod killer MS promised it to be, but no one knows what the hell a Zune is yet. MS wanted to obviously keep the focus on their 360 console, which has hurt this amazing little piece of machinery. Hopefully their ad campaign will kick into full gear in 2007. This little movie and music player deserves our attention.

Most viewed Rated-M story of 2006: I have a lot of viewers, and with my stat counter, I have tracked the most viewed story of the entire year. I was surprised that this story got as much attention as it did, but you fans have spoken! You all want to know about the WWE's Mickie James' alleged porn career! So for you fans, here are the links to refress your memory:

Original Story / Follow-up

Most controversial Rated-M story of 2006: Without a doubt, this would have to be the leaking of the Transformers teaser, and the posting of it on Digg.com. The story went to the first page in a matter of hours. Again, I never expected so much attention behind this, but Paramount was genuinely pissed. to this day, I will still not reveal my source, but it matters not anyways. Within 48 hours of me posting the leaked trailer, they went ahead and released it officially via their website, and in much better quality. I guess they figured "if you can't beat em, join em". Below, you'll find the links to our Transformers coverage, as well as the original Digg.com story.

Transformers Coverage at Rated-M / Digg.com post

Console of the Year 2006: XBOX 360. Without a doubt. It had a slow start, but to look at the line-up now is intimidating. What sealed the deal for me was the key release of a few strong titles, titles that cemented the 360 as a mainstay in the console world. 2006 saw the release of Saints Row, Dead Rising, Oblivion, Gears of War, Viva Pinata, and WWE Smackdown VS. Raw 2007 (the 07 was cancelled for the PS3!). Also this year, XBL proved to us all how neat the internet can be when integrated into your gaming lifestyle. DLC for games, downloadable demos, and the great XBL Arcade (yes, I know I hated it, but it has really really grown on me). Nearly flawless and very safe, I feel it's worth the fee. Anyways, after a rough start, this system picked up steam to gain the top spot as out 2006 Console of the Year! Can PS3 pull off the same, and take our 2007 honors? We will see!

Game of the Year 2006: Here it is guys, the one you've been waiting for. Our pick for GOTY 2006. A lot came out this year that I feel is worthy. Dead Rising, Oblivion, Gears of War, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and Final Fantasy XII are my contenders.We have chosen Gears of War as our pick for GOTY 2006. Sure, graphically the game is the best there is at the moment. But the game is much more than that. Great production value, perfect controls, lagless online, fun co-op and SP (though a bit short), and the coming FREE DLC pack are all parts of why we chose this game. Rarely does a game ever live up to the hype. Gears had tremendous hype, and lived up to every single second of it.

So Ken Kutaragi, the "father of the Playstation", was forced to step down. By now, you all have heard the news in some form or another. Some of you (and by some of you I mean the rabid PS3 fanboys sending me hate mail) don't think it's a big deal at all. Just a normal day of operations at Sony. Well not so fast there bucko, this is VERY significant, and I'm about to tell you why.

Ken Kutaragi has been the driving force behind Sony's foray into gaming since the start. Known worldwide as the father of the Paystation, he has had a hand in all of Sony's gaming consoles, including PSP. He has also been the face and mouthpiece of the Playstation, but none moreso than the PS3 and PSP.

In short, he is the man who talked all the shit and couldn't back it up. He is the man that made all the promises that he couldn't keep. Sony finds him responsible not only for the failure of the PSP, but the imminent failure of the PS3.

Now before you go get your panties into a bunch, the PS3 hasn't failed yet, and it still has potential. However, there are some things you need to factor into this equation.

A.) Kutaragi hyped the PSP as the GameBoy killer, when obviously it wasn't. It was pretty, but cost way more than gamers wanted to pay. Even now, the core system itself struggles to sell in the face of Nintendo's juggernaut, the DS.

B.) Again, Kutaragi hyped the PS3 to be Jesus Christ walking on water, there is nothing else. Also pretty and overpriced, the system has failed to live up to the hype created for it.

C.) Then comes the defects. Let's forget that the PS2 laser fiasco never happened. Forget that it took 4 years and a class action lawsuit to fix it. What about the thousands of PS3's beginning to crash worldwide? Well the majority of them are due to the same thing that happened at TGS. The system is overheating in the small space afforded to it in the kiosks. People who walk into GameStop usually walk in to find the PS3 froze up. bad publicity.

This is all the latest in a string of fuck ups from Kutaragi, from the defective PS2's to the millions spent on crappy advertising for the PSP (like the racist ads here in the states calling mexicans dustballs, and the black vs. white ads overseas), to the millions spent on faulty kiosks that are causing false impressions in potential buyers.

3rd Party developers are taking once exclusive titles to the competition, and day by day, things look worse and worse for Sony.

So it's still not a big deal? Well what if Nintendo had fired Miyamoto-san, the father of almost every single popular Nintendo IP? Or what if Microsoft suddenly canned Peter Moore? Well considering that the Playstation is primarily Kutaragi's brainchild, we feel this is a big deal.

Will Sony pull out of this slump and reposition themselves? Or is it simply over for them before it even began? We will just have to wait and see. We here at Rated-M don't have high hopes, though we hope that 1st party games like Lair and Heavenly Sword can restore people's faith in this arrogant company.

Stay tuned for more.

We all know the sad truth behind the PS3. It costs too much to make, and there have been so many technical issues with it even after it's rather unseuccessful launch, that Sony was obviously headed into a downward spiral.

Following the failure of the PSP, and the imminent failure of the overhyped PS3, Sony has shelved Ken Kutaragi, the face of the PS3.

Reputable site Financial Times reports the following:

"Ken Kutaragi, the maverick Sony engineer behind all three generations of PlayStation games consoles, will on Friday become chairman of Sony Computer Entertainment in a management reshuffle that could foreshadow the company’s exit from video games hardware.

The surprise move, though technically a promotion, removes Mr Kutaragi from the day-to-day running of Sony’s games division at a critical moment.

With the PlayStation3 only just past its difficult launches in Japan and the US, Sony is desperate to ensure that its complicated machine triumphs in the holiday shopping season. The company described the changes as “strengthening” its management line-up.

In the longer-term, the PS3 faces stiff competition from Microsoft and Nintnedo and a European launch next March for which some analysts fear it is not fully prepared.

Replacing Mr Kutaragi as Sony Computer Entertainment’s global president and chief operating officer will be Kazuo Hirai, a veteran of SCE’s US division, who prematurely claimed four years ago that the era of console wars was over.

Investors know Mr Hirai as a slicker, more confident presenter than Mr Kutaragi. He is also understood to have stronger working relationships with American, European and Japanese games makers.

Analysts said that Mr Hirai’s promotion to a global role at SCE could mark a critical shift in management thinking, with Sony changing its emphasis so that the current generation of games console will be its last as a hardware manufacturer.

“The appointment of Hirai could be the start of a shift from hardware to software,” said Yuta Sakurai, an analyst at Nomura. “I cannot now imagine a PlayStation4.”"

So in a nutshell, financial advisors are now predicting that Sony will go the way of Sega, and just make software, which has always been their stronger point. I can't say we didn't see this coming. Sony has been in the red for years, hardly ever turning a profit in the videogame industry. Mark our words, this is the end.

For the full report from Financial Times, please visit the source link below!

SOURCE: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/f6728ed8-8095-11db-9096-0000779e2340.html

G4TV made this parody commercial which pits PS3 vs. Wii in the style of the stupid, lame, retarded, misinformed Mac commercials.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9136575504838642038

I laughed out loud at this one. I really, truly did.

Braziliian metal band MegaDriver has based their career on remaking classic video game music in heavy metal. You MUST see this website. Browse the list of free songs, take what you like, and be sure to give these guys props!

http://www.megadriver.com.br/sitev2.html

Sent to us by a viewer, I submit the below for your curiosities. Ok, what happened here? Well some unlucky chap was playing Wii Sports WITHOUT the wrist strap, and WHOOPS! the Wii remote flew right out of his hand, and right into his new HD projection TV.

That's what you get for not following directions!

EDIT: It seems this problem is quite widespread, I have come across a collection of people who this has happened to. Check HERE for those stories.

Enjoy this funny Youtube video of someone making a milkshake with a Wiimote.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IevMrQMp-to

There has been a lot of talk about the PS3 and the Wii recently. Obviously Nintendo is doing something right, because one look at the tally on http://nexgenwars.com/ tells you that Nintendo has twice as many Wii's in homes as Sony has PS3's, and the poll puts Wii heavily in favor to win the "war".

Everyone has their own opinions, and I have mine. So here we go.

Basically the Wii itself is like any other system out there. Sure, the technology inside the box is unique, as well as the GUI interface. But at the core, it's just a console. The one thing that really sets Wii apart is the controller (ok, and the name...there I said it). The Wii remote supports an astonishing degree of motion sensitivity, and it is very precise in the point and click area as well. The controller is light, and comfortable no matter which way you hold it.

The console itself is very small, about the size of the PSOne mini or smaller. It runs quiet, and never gets warm. The auto-feed disc loading is done well, and the console gives you plenty of room to get your finger in the center hole of the disk for safe removal. It is also very easy to hook up, as Nintendo systems always are. I took it out of the box and was playing Wii sports in no time.

The controller applies well to an in-game environment. In Wii Sports, the Wii remote acts as your baseball bat, bowling ball, golf club, tennis racket, etc. For each sport, you hold the remote like you would the real equipment. Unfortunately, the boxing segment of the game is the only part that uses the nunchuck. The two handed gameplay is exactly the right step in the direction of interactive boxing games. A new Punch-Out would work famously with this control scheme.

Wii Sports has been called a demo to some, but it's not really. It is more like the limited gameplay these same titles would have had back on NES. Wii Sports really feels like Classic Nintendo. The game inspires people to get off their lazy ass and actually PLAY with your system, and for that I love it. There are even a training mode and a fitness mode (think Brain Age) to keep you busy. There is stat tracking, and to keep your score, you have to stay consistant in your skill. Yes, you can lose points.

Also I should mention that I played with my mom, sister, and wife. We all had a blast as a family. I think the fact that the Wii can bring people together like that is something that more people should talk about.

As for the Wii online, there isn't much as of yet. I really like the way their marketplace is set up, and I think the pricing of classic games is fair. I like the fact that the Cube controller works well with almost all the classic games, meaning that you won't have to track down one of the elusive classic controllers this holiday. Cube controllers are cheap and abundant. I suggest a Wavebird.

The Wii does support the USB dongle for wireless access, but be cautioned that the dongle won't work for all PC set-ups. For the same price as the USB adapter, you can get a wireless router at Wal-Mart. The Wii was surprisingly easy to set up for online with a router, and I give kudos to Nintendo for making it so simple.

I have two complaints. One, Wii Sports should have came in a clamshell DVD case. I know it's not much of a big deal, but the first time I removed my disk from the package, the staples on the instruction booklet made a small scratch. This pissed me off of course, so I keep my disk in a seperate clamshell right now. Second, they promote ease of hook-up with the USB adapter, yet if you have problems getting hooked up, the website is not a good place to go for help. You are better off calling Nintendo directly. Microsoft definately has the edge with their website, but that really doesn't hamper the Wii system one bit.

Overall, the Wii is an impressive hardware. We all know that it's graphical power isn't as high as the competitors...who cares. Nintendo did one thing that the other guys did not. They give you a new way to play the same old games. Gaming hasn't evolved (graphics aside) in a very long time. I think the last evolutions that were as significant as the Wii's controls would be Super Mario 64 and the SegaNet/XBL online infrastructure. Finally gaming can feel fresh and new again.

If you can find one of these systems this holiday, please do yourself and your whole family a favor. Buy it, and perhaps pick up Red Steel, Zelda, and/or Excite Truck.

Verdict: BUY

Thanks to some crazy Koreans (I love yall!), the PS3 can now live up to the inflated price tag. For $600 the damn thing better cook your lunch! Well that's just what it does! See the below link to find out what I'm talking about! If this doesn't make you laugh, you need the stick surgically removed from your ass.

PS3 Grill

You know, I'm not really sure what people were expecting from this game. The horrible reviews state-side kind of confuse me. The game is not THAT bad. The number one thing I hear people bitching and moaning about is the controls. So let me start there.

Some say this game has a steep learning curve. It is not in the slightest bit steep. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that this game is one of the easiest controlling shooters ever. The point and click shooting is absolutely the coolest thing about this game. If ever the arcade rail shooter genre (Area 51) and the traditional FPS genre (Halo, Half-Life) could blend, this is most certainly the way to do it. The pointer is very acurate if you calibrate it right, and mixed with the strafing and ducking behind cover, you can have a very satisfying shootout...particularly if you know what explosive environmental objects are in your area!

The nunchuck half of the controls work well too. It's basically the left stick from any controller ever made, with two extra buttons. One button jumps, the other ducks. Jumping is used occassionally, but ducking behind cover is a necessity. Perhaps that is the part that people just don't get. If you run into a room full of people with machine guns, expect to get shot. Another great feature of the nunchuck is the ability to interact with the environment by flipping tables for cover, picking up weapons, and opening doors.

The sword fighting. This deserves it's own section. Just like you can't run into a room ful of people with machineguns and expect to not get shot, you can't wildly swing your sword and expect not to get hit. The sword fighting in Red Steel feels more like a mini-game, which is unfortunate because it's so fun. The block/parry style of sword fighting really impressed me, and the fact that the nunchuck is used to the fullest extent also impresses me. You just don't get as many sword fights as you want, as this is primarily a shooter. But one thing kept crossing my mind...the Dynasty Warriors first person sword game from Koei. I can't wait.

Graphically, this game is not bad. Really. We all know the Wii's power, and there is no arguing that other next-gen games look better. But in 480p, this game has it's moments. I think with a little more time to polish this game, it could have truly looked better. I absolutely believe that the Wii can do so much better in this department.

However, graphics aside, I experienced a very unique and fun shooter. Red Steel feels a lot like Golden-Eye 64 in the way that combat is played out. Even the multi-player beckons memories of that classic. The story isn't enthralling, the graphics lack polish...but if you pass this game up for those reasons, you may miss out on one of the better Wii games. If you go into this game with ducking for cover and parrying with your sword in mind, you may really enjoy the deep combat system. This is a very great start for shooters on the Wii, and if anything, Red Steel proves that the Metroid game is going to work very well with these new controlls.

Oh, and for those of you complaining that your arms get tired, not only does Red Steel not require over exertion, it even has a setting in the menu that recognizes small sword strokes instead of large ones. But since most of the complainers probably never read the manual or bothered to adjust settings, they would never have known this.

My verdict: BUY

You know, there are a lot of people I talk to that won't bother with this game because of the kid-toned outer shell. But what they miss is one of the better sim creation games to ever hit a console.

For those of you who don't know much about the game, and want to know what it's like, it basically combines elements of these great games:

Sim City
The Sims
Harvest Moon
Black & White
Animal Crossing

But while it has elements of all those great games, it still manages to stay fresh and unique.
Rare has also done an outstanding job or recreating the feel of the Nintendo-era Rareware. This feels very much like a Nintendo product. The musical score is IMO the third best of the year (Gears Of War and FFXII round out the top 3). Done by the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, it definately creates a feel all it's own. This is great news to those that didn't want to hear "cartoon style" music through the whole game.

While this seems very much like a kids game it is very complex. Maybe I don't give kids enough credit, but I can't imagine the 10 and under crowd being able to handle this. On the flip side, this game's appeal can reach far and wide. Any age can find a way to enjoy this, as long as you have an open mind going into it. Parents, this game IS kid safe, and if your youn ones like it, you can hook up a second controller and help them out through a sort of co-op.

I'm not going to bother giving this game a number. Numbers confuse people and muddle up what is truly good about a game. Instead, I will just say that I am seriously impressed with this game, far more than I ever thought I would be. Take that as you will, but in my eyes this is a keeper.

A new mappack for Perfect Dark Zero has just been released onto the marketplace. Map Pack 2 humourously contains 2 maps, titled Ruins and Facility. If these map names sound somewhat familiar, then they should......as they are from none other than Goldeneye 007 for n64! THAT'S RIGHT RATED M READERS, Rare really does care about fan requests, and let me say that the maps are GORGEOUS. I barely recognized the redesigned levels. My only complaint is that the levels are extremely dark, however I guess that makes sense seeing as how the two areas have been abandoned for ...1o(!?!)years just about.

One other thing, the map pack 2 is free to Gold Members, so what are you waiting for...DOWNLOAD IT NOW!

The BBC is reporting that Sony is set to block attempts to import the PlayStation 3 before the March 2007 European launch. A Sony spokesman quoted in the article says they are "trying to protect consumers from being sold hardware that does not conform to strict EU or UK consumer safety standards."

It's good to know that they're really looking out for your safety, Europe, and not other things. Like your money.

According to recent marketing GameStop received, they will be allowed to sell Gears of War early! I quote:

"Since Gears of War is not street dated, you may begin to sell the game as soon as it hits your stores on 11/8."

We have known for some time now that the game shipped on the 7th. However, this news is new to us, and is great news!

It is no secret that Sony has been losing a lot of money in their gaming department since they decided to enter the market with the PS1. Two class action lawsuits, enourmous production costs, and the failure of the PSP serve to hurt them, not help them.

Today, some new news arises that may mean Sony could file for bankruptcy.

First, let's talk about the raw numbers. If you look at the following picture, you can see a graph of Sony's cumulative losses directly from Sony's investor relations.

http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/av/docs/20061019/sony04.jpg

Basically, this is a work-up of Sony's cumulative losses for the year and into the next year:

PS3 semiconductor production delay loss : $330 million
PS3 Japan price drop loss : $160 million
PS3 HDMI inclusion loss : $140 million
SCEI's present platform loss(namely PSP) : $300 million
-----------------------------------------------------------------
SCEI's total new loss : $930 million
SCEI's already accounted PS3 loss : $1.8 billion
--------------------------------------------------------
Total SCEI loss by March 31st 2007 : $2.73 billion

Next, let's talk about a pending lawsuit between Sony and Microsoft. Sony recently announced that the 360 core unit REQUIRED the HD-DVD drive to even work. Microsoft took offense to this and is taking this matter to court. This defamation and misrepresentation suit could cost Sony millions more. FYI, lawsuits of this kind are common, and usually happen between competing products like automobiles, laundry detergents, and food stuffs.

http://www.engadget.com/2006/10/19/sony-claims-xbox-360-requires-hd-dvd-etc-thus-costs-700/

Finally, let's talk about Sony's confidence in their own product. Today, IGN reports that Sony is unsure if they can even meet the already reduced shipment allocations, touting "obvious production issues" as the reasoning.

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/740/740720p1.html

Now rumors hit the net that Sony may even delay the PS3 until next year so they can have a stronger launch, both with better titles and more systems on the shelves. This would also allow the Nintendo hype to die down a bit. This is as of yet unconfirmed, but at this point would be the smartest move Sony could make.

Stay tuned as we cover this story.

Yes folks, you heard that correctly. CNN reports that actor Wesley Snipes is now a wanted man. He was brought up on federal tax evasion charges today, and a warrant has been issued for his arrest. He could do anywhere between 16-40 years in prison if convicted!

Wesley is nowhere to be found, however it is expected that he will turn himself in tomorrow. Stay tuned for more on this breaking story!

Discuss this in our fourms:

http://s2.excoboard.com/exco/thread.php?forumid=127505&threadid=993861

We have received info that Wii and PS3 kiosks are on their way to stores, some arriving as early as tomorrow! Look for these kiosks at your local Best Buy, Wal-Mart, and GameStop/EB stores, but be sure to call them first to make sure it has arrived. Different locations and chains may receive them on different days, though they are all expected to be in place and running playable demos by the end of next week at the latest!

A local BestBuy in my area says that they expect their PS3 tomorrow when their Sony rep arrives. They did not know about the Wii, but they had heard it was coming very soon.

To see what the kiosks look like, and find out more about them, visit the link below to our previous coverage!

http://rated-m.blogspot.com/2006/09/exclusive-first-look-at-wii-and-ps3.html

For those that don't know, the PSU official sundtrack is FREE! That's right, free! For reserving with GameStop/EBGames, you get the entire 9 track official soundtrack absolutely free. Best part is, you can go pick up the disk now!

Track listing:

1.) Save The World - Orchestra Short Version
2.) Clyez City - Guardians Colony
3.) Holtes City - Parum
4.) Ohtoku City - Neudaiz
5.) Dagora City - Moatoob
6.) Result 01
7.) Result 02
8.) G March - Long Version
9.) Save This World - Vocal

For more on this disk, see your local GameStop or EB store now or click the link below!

Source: http://www.gamestop.com/product.asp?product%5Fid=B200176A

We recently brought you a first look at the Special Edition for the upcoming Smackdown VS. Raw 07 for XB360. Today, we bring you a first look at the official box art for the Special Edition. We warn you, IT'S UGLY!

So I finally got word back from E-Bay this morning concerning PS3/Wii auctions on E-Bay. Why were they getting pulled? Will they continue to get pulled? Is the 90 day deal with Sony true? We finally got the e-mail we've been waiting for, and now we will share it with you all, along with some of the questions we sent along to them.

--------------------------
RM: "What can you tell us, if anything about the PS3/Wii situation on E-Bay?"

E-BAY: "I want to first clear up some confusion surrounding the Playstation 3 auctions, as per your questions via e-mail. There is no "90 day deal" between E-Bay and Sony. I understand that many game store employees were told this during meetings of some sort, but it is not entirely true. There is certainly a deal though, but it is not what you think. Sony asked us to cancel PS3 auctions for the sole protection of the consumer. I am sure you are aware of what happened last year with the Xbox 360 console. We didn't stop any auctions, even ones with reservations mind you, and what happened was a disaster. People bought what they thought was an Xbox 360, and instead received a picture of one.

Neither Sony nor E-Bay wanted this to happen this time around. Therefore we came to the agreement that our terms of service be altered in this case. We will be continuously pulling auctions down until launch."

RM: "How come you have allowed some PS3 auctions to go through, and others are cancelled immediately?"

E-BAY: "Quite simply, we were overwhelmed. I'm sure you noticed that when the auctions first started coming up, we pulled every single one of them. Then about mid-day, we were hit with a flood of auctions. Our staff worked very hard to get through them, and still does to this day. The ratio of completed auctions is far lower than the number you mentioned in the e-mail, and we have cancelled about 65% of all the auctions that have been up so far. This is a rough number.

We have put a block on the accounts of nearly a hundred users, and had about that many fraud claims both with us and PayPal. The bans are due to people reposting the console after it has been pulled, and in most cases is unrelated to the fraud claims."

RM: "Have you been to various internet sites that are talking about this situation to see what the public says?

E-BAY: "I personally have not. I can tell you though that colleagues of mine have been to a few popular forums, and the general public is just as misinformed as you were. This is a special case, and the original TOS does not apply here. Between Sony and ourselves, we decided to do it this specific way. For the safety of our consumers, and nothing more, we will continue to pull down a healthy number of auctions every day. Keep in mind also that just because a few auctions make it through, it does not mean it is ok to post them. Our official stance is that placing the PS3 auctions on E-Bay is considered a violation, and they will be removed if we catch them.

Do not place your Playstation 3 reserve on E-Bay. We require that you actually have the console in your possession, and request that you take an original photo of that console with your E-Bay user name in the photo somewhere. Make sure to list your auctions clearly. Auctions will be allowed once the console has been launched, but we will still be watching them very closely to prevent cases of fraud."

RM: "How will Wii auctions be handled?"

E-BAY: "As of yet we are not removing Wii auctions. Nintendo hasn't spoken with us regarding the matter, and we didn't really see the inflation that the PS3 was getting. If you happen to remember, we allowed reserve auctions for almost every console to date, including the Xbox 360. We also allowed reserve auctions for the Elmo TMX as far away as 6 months from it's launch. I will say it again, the Playstation 3 situation is unique within itself. If you are a seller, DO NOT POST IT. If you are a buyer, DO NOT BUY IT. Sellers run the risk of losing their E-Bay account, and buyers run the risk of fraud. Please wait until November 17th to post or buy the Playstation 3."
-------------------------------

So there you have it. Stay tuned as we bring you the freshest news daily!

So by now everyone knows that the Wii pre-orders begin tomorrow morning. However, what you may not know is that allocation numbers are really low. Nintendo recently announced that 2 million Wii's would be made ready for launch, with the majority hitting the US. However, gameStop/EB managers nationwide are now reporting that stores will actually get as few as 8 per store, and as many as 16. Yeah, you read that right... The same allocation as PS3.

This is puzzling to say the least. We are surprised to see the small allocations on this console, and have to wonder where all the Wii's are going.

Stay tuned as we dig deeper into this story!

We've been following this story since we broke it yesterday, and it has caused much controversy. E-Bay began removing PS3 auctions since they hit yesterday morning, however there has been an uncontrollable flood of auctions in the last few hours. It has absolutely overwhelmed the E-Bay mods. The average going price is around $1500, though we've seen some as high as $10,000 and even one going for $1,000,000. However, the higher prices like that usually don't get the bids.

We are still waiting on E-Bay's official response to the situation. in the meantime, enjoy the circus!

Sega has updated their beta news page yet again, this time promising the beta for this weekend over Live.

"The Phantasy Star Universe Xbox 360 Open Beta will be uploaded to Xbox Live Marketplace this weekend, so get ready to download and play with your friends! In order to give more people the opportunity to enjoy this exclusive free beta, with extended uninterrupted weekend play, the multiplayer open beta will be available for download for two days only, and will be playable through to Oct. 18."

Let's hope that this release sticks. If it does, I will see you all online!

As part of our month long contest bonanza, we are giving away goodies for both The Godfather for XB360 and NWN2 for PC!

To enter, you must be a registered user of the forums, and post your name and e-mail address!

Good luck!

The Godfather (XB360): http://s2.excoboard.com/exco/thread.php?forumid=136533&threadid=984965

NWN2 (PC): http://s2.excoboard.com/exco/thread.php?forumid=136538&threadid=984960

So what the hell happened to that Saints Row patch the devs were working on? Last time we reorted that they were adding 4x AA as well as a toggled V-Synch, but that was over a month ago. It has been far too long with no word...until now.

It seems the fires have been burning on the official forums regarding this matter, to the point that a developer finally told us all what we wanted to hear. The patch is coming out very soon! When? Well he didn't go THAT far. In fact, his posts are kind of vague. But on the flip side, this is more than they've told us so far!

There is no official ETA as of yet. However, rumor is that the patch may be sent to Microsoft for testing as early as this weekend! That could mean the patch will be out within a week!

See the links below to see what has caused all the hoopla on their forums, and stay tuned to us and the official forums for more on this!

Source: http://developer.saintsrow.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8296
Source: http://developer.saintsrow.com/forums/showthread.php?p=126407#post126407
Source: http://developer.saintsrow.com/forums/showthread.php?p=128229#post128229
Source: http://developer.saintsrow.com/forums/showthread.php?p=125777#post125777

Yeah, you read that right. It seems the poor sap has fallen for a glorified hooker. Jenna pussy whipped poor Tito, and now he's thinking with the wrong brain. Tito had this to say:

"I can pretty much say I'm in love with her. I've never met anyone like her. She's an amazing person. Very strong-willed, outgoing person and her attitude is amazing. She's very articulate, smart and cunning.

Her business savvy is amazing. For a girl to go through the career she's done, and to be where she is in life and how much money she's made, and to become the icon she's become, you have to be intelligent to do that."

Normally I'd be inclined to agree, but come on. How "savvy" do you have to be to fuck guys for cash? If she wasn't a porn star (glorified hooker), what would she have? Not shit. No one would care who Jenna Jameson is. She'd just be another piece of ass in a night club you wouldn't bother taking home to mom. Oh wait. That's all she is now!

Hey Tito, next time you fuck that gutter tripe, think of all the strange dick she's had up in there, and continues to have up in there on a daily basis! Better yet, next time you kiss her, think of all the strange loads she's swallowed. You just tongue kissed some guy's spunk!

More proof positive that the dumb jock stereotype is true...

Source: http://www.prowrestling.com/article/news/2087

It's been awhile since I've posted, so let me update you on a few things new with the 360 marketplace:
A) You can get a Tenchu demo on the Japanese marketplace. Just create a japanese account and then dl. (Note: You need to know Japan's zipcode. That's the only hint Im giving you)
B) New Prey Downloadable Content all of which is free.
C) If you dont know this yet, then check out Bringing it Home on the marketplace for a bunch of free demos and trailers. F.E.A.R. demo is up, Lego Star Wars II, and Sonic the Hedgehog to name a few.

That's all I got for right now, however I have not died! I will be posting a BUNCH of DVD reviews soon, as well as a few game reviews.

Were you one of the many that camped out overnight for your PS3? Did you actually get one? Let us know by leaving us a comment. We also will add any pictures of the event that you send us to this thread!

As auctions for the PS3 reach as high as $13,000, E-Bay continues to yank them down one-by-one. We called E-Bay Inc. in hopes of finding out their official stance on this, as well as confirm some of the rumors.

Well, we got through after an hour's wait to a representative, who from the sound of his arabic voice was ousourced to India. He stated that many news organizations, from CNN to IGN were all wanting the same info, and that he could not release it before the official press release. He didn't know when that would be, nor would he say what was in it. He did confirm that any PS3 systems that the site moderators catch on E-Bay will be promptly deleted. If the items is reposted, the seller will be issued a warning. If they persist, they will be banned. Then our conversation ended with a swift "have a nice day".

So as anxious as we are to find the truth behind it all, we have to wait until E-Bay is ready to tell us.

Bad news for anyone looking to burn the midnight oil for the PSU beta. Sega officially announced that the XBL beta for PSU has been delayed.

"We apologize, but the BETA release dates have changed. The release date will no longer be Oct 11th, but should see release very soon after. Please watch this page, as well as our Official Phantasy Star Universe forums for more information. Thank you for your patience, we look forward to seeing everyone online very soon!"

Stay tuned as we follow this dissapointing story.

Source: http://www.phantasystaruniverse.com/news_beta.php

So you THINK you know fanboyism, do you? Well we are happy to tell you that you don't know anything. Forget every single fanboy you'v ever met. They are insignificant next to the guy we are about to show you!

The poor sap who runs http://www.sonydefenseforce.com/ is probably the most extreme, misinformed, and outright RETARDED fanboy sites I have ever seen. One click on the link will show you just how stupid the guy really is. I will admit, some of the photoshopped pictures on the site made me laugh... After you take a gander, come on back, and let us know what you think! oh and manke sure you watch that stupid video he has posted there too!

Back already? Yeah, there isn't much to see. However, you now know the true depths a scared pathetic fanboy will go to, even if misinformed, to protect his beloved...

Yes, the rumors are TRUE! E-Bay and Sony are teaming up to yank all those nifty E-Bay auctions off the net! Already, E-Bay has removed over a dozen since this morning's post, some of which were in the range of $2000 to $4000.

Is this legal? Tell us what YOU think!

Today, GameStops and EBGames nationwide began their PS3 reserves. $100 down and only 8-16 per store. People camped out over night, they sold out immediately.

Just a mere few hours later, PS3's have hit E-Bay, with a $2000 price tag...and this is just the beginning...imagine when it gets closer to Christmas! Oh, come on! You KNEW this was gonna happen!

Check out one of the auctions HERE!

Xbox 360 owners will get a chance to be part of an open beta for PSU starting on 11 October. Head on over to http://www.phantasystaruniverse.com/news_beta.php for the full announcement and all the details.

Sega is allowing gamers to get their Phantasy Star Universe accounts ready ahead of time. You can do this by going to:

http://www.phantasystaruniverse.com/

If you currently subscribe to PSO: Blue Burst for PC, the account name will stay the same! There is no need to alter it in any way. Otherwise, head to the link above, set yourself up, and be ready to go on day one!

It has been a while since Rated-M has showcased anything via Rated-M Recommends. In fact, it was our story on Broken Lizard if I remember correctly. However, there is something I would like to bring to everyone's attention today. By chance, I came across an independant anime called "Ninjai: The Little Ninja". At first glace, I thought "meh, just another internet cartoon..." Then I watched it...

Ninjai simply blew me away! Ninjai is the story of a young Ninja boy with extraordinary skill. He doesn't quite know who he is, but he must be important somehow, as "demons" are after him. His companion, a disney-esque bird, is absolutely great as the light hearted comic relief. However, as the story turns darker, the bird shows a range of emotions that really make you understand what friendship is all about.

Ninjai doesn't shy away from gore and other adult themed things, but does try to stay somewhat civil with younger viewers in mind. That being said, you will see beheadings, severed limbs, and other such great ninja gore. They have even gone as far as releasing multiple versions of certain episodes, each suited for a different age range.

So why Ninjai, when there are plenty other anime delights to be seen? Well when watching the episodes, you get this feeling of progression and growth, both in the main character and in the animation itself. When you first begin the series, you notice the episodes are rather short and to the point. However, as the plot begins to open up, you begin to realize the scope of Ninjai's mission. And that is another thing I love about this series. The story itself seems to grow.



There is a lot I want to tell you all about the series, but perhaps it is best for you to just watch it yourself. All 12 current chapters can be seen for free on their website, or on G4TV's Late Night Peep Show. We are trying to score an interview with the guys behind the series, so check back for that!

Until then, we give our highest recommendation to the Ninjai gang, and their wonderful anime project, "Ninjai: The Little Ninja".

Http://www.ninjai.com

The release date of Guitar Hero II is one month away, but for those who can't stand the wait (like me), there is a quick fix. The new issue of Official PlayStation Magazine has a demo to sate your inner guitar god. Four solidly rockin' songs are on the disc; Mötley Crüe's "Shout at the Devil," Van Halen's "You Really Got Me," "Strutter" by KISS, and "YYZ" from Rush. Rumor has it you can play co-op if you plug a second SG controller into your PS2, but I've yet to test it myself. While the having the full game right now would be nice (not to mention that it would lessen the burden on my poor wallet next month), the demo is fun enough to make the next 30 days bearable.

To make up for the obvious lack of content this month while I work on some of the lacking areas of this site, we have decided to give away some really cool stuff! Today marks the begining of the month long contest bonanza. We kick it all off with our NBA Live 2007 contest!

To enter this contest, visit the following thread:

http://s2.excoboard.com/exco/thread.php?forumid=136533&threadid=977581

Stay tuned for more great contests this month, including The Godfather, Neverwinter Nights 2, Need For Speed Carbon and more!

I know, I know...not enough recent content. I get it. But however, I have been working on the portions of the site that arent yet up, like the Opinions (reviews) section and the Swag Wiki. I also have 3 great contests coming up, so you don't wanna miss that! Bear with the slight delay, for it will be worth it in the end.

We are happy to announce that the Saints Row DLC we previously broke the story on is officially out on the marketplace. You get the entire pack for a mere 100 marketplace points.

To see what is included, please chck the following posts:

http://rated-m.blogspot.com/2006/09/world-exclusive-saints-row-dlc.html

http://rated-m.blogspot.com/2006/09/saints-row-dlc-videos.html

One note, developers say that people who DON'T own the clothes will not see them on you in game. However, at this price, why WOULDN'T people get it?

BTW, you can still get this pack FREE at your local GameStop/EB by taking your MU to the in store kiosk.

Who is "The Jessie Project"? Well, besides being the first Rated-M Indie Band of the Month, they are a very unique band made up of Jessie Lynn, RudeMoody, and F. Xavier Calabrese. A mix-up of rock, techno and 80's hip-hop, their songs are a fresh break away from the norm. The band has a wide range of sounds. From the slow and dramatic to the funky rock to the club bangers, each song sounds unique and different. Jessie does a great job of showcasing her voice over the blend of syles, definately showing how versatile she is. You can't easily compare TJP to another band either, which is another thing I like about them. We forsee good things in the future of this trio!

I had a chance to speak with TJP's RudeMoody about the band.

JT: How long have you guys been on the indie music scene?

RM: The band has been around for about four years, but the current lineup is
less than a year old. The debut album, "Break The Radio", was mostly
RudeMoody doing all the music production and Jessie Lynn singing. The new
stuff will still have that retro/electronic/industrial vibe we began with,
but with our new guitarist, Frank, we're taking it to a higher level. Check
out "Behind These Eyes" to see an example of our more "mature" sound. It's
been described as "70's hard rock mated with modern electronic music".

JT: If you could describe the indie music scene in one word, what would you
choose?

RM: One word? VITAL. The pop music scene is mostly over-produced,
over-calculated "product" to be spoon-fed to people too lazy to look for an
artist or band that they can really connect with. Our song "Break The Radio"
is about that - the decline of mainstream music as an art form. Some of the
indie music scene can truly amaze the uninitiated with it's diversity and
creativity. Check out our website for more of our thoughts on that subject.


JT: How did you guys come up with the name for your band? I know the singer
is Jessie, but how did you arrive at the name you did?

RM: It was the name of the original folder on Rude's hard drive that he was
working out of when he was making a three-track demo for Jessie Lynn. After
a while, we decided to go on the web and share some of our work, and the
positive feedback inspired us to do more. Then, after the enthusiastic
response we got at our first real gig, we were psyched enough to put
together a full album. Now, with our new guitarist, the tunes are much more
musically complex and nuanced; he was the missing-link we needed to advance.
We still keep the name "The Jessie Project" because it's straightforward and
describes us well - the music is a constant learning experience and evolves
into whatever it ultimately becomes.

JT: How would you describe the state of indie music on the net today? What I
mean by this is, with MySpace, CDBaby, MP3.com and many other sites, do you
find it easy to self promote and sell your stuff, or do you think there is
more that could be available?

RM: There's plenty of ways to get your stuff out there. Without the web, indie
bands would still have to sell 45's out of the back of their van. Now, you
have access to people across the world. It's cool to know that there are
radio stations in Europe playing our stuff right now, thanks to exposure on
MySpace and similar sites. Although, we think bands need to spam less and
let people discover their music on their own. MySpace seems to be a
popularity contest with bands these days. A band will have ten-thousand
"friends" and maybe only a couple hundred really like their music. What's
the point in that?

JT: If you could collaborate with one musician, famous or not, who would it
be and why?

RM: Your own music is a collaboration of sorts - just as life experiences shape
your personality and mentality, the music you've been exposed to affects
your style and your own creation, both consciously and subconsciously. So
we'd say that all musicians have already collaborated with the ones they've
admired. Check our bios on our website for our influences and to figure out
a more direct answer.

JT: What are some of the passions that drive you as a band?

RM: True-life experiences in love and relationships, a general anger towards the
current state of the world and the apathetic mentality of the average joe,
and, of course, the drive to artistically express oneself.

JT: What is in the future for TJP?

RM: We've got about four songs done towards the completion of our second record,
and hope to finish it by the end of the year, while doing some shows here
and there to keep sharp. We'll be making some more videos and posting them
on our website, too. After the new album is pressed and done, we'll kick it
into high gear and take it wherever it takes us.

JT: What do you want the world to know about TJP?

RM: Our music is a combination of three people's distinct visions, combined,
evolved, and brought to life to the best of our abilities. It is from our
hearts and our souls. It is not designed to please everyone and rake in a
quick buck. We hope to help open the eyes of some of the people out there
and show them there is more to music than the stuff you can buy at WalMart.
As we say on our website, "An emotional bond cannot be bought, or sold, or
played in rotation. The art of one person will connect only to whom it was meant for."

JT: Thanks for your time!

RM: Thanks, Jason. We appreciate the support!

So head on over to http://www.thejessieproject.com and see for yourself. You can find MP3 downloads, videos, bios and more. I'm fond of DeadEye, Day of Confession, and the Break the Radio video!

Now, according to my moles at blockbuster a few choice games are now 19.99 new and even one is 9.99 new. I'm not sure if this is in every store, but all you have to do is call them up and ask to verify. As far as I know this isn't a sale, but the markdown for these games.
19.99 titles:
Far Cry Instincts Predator
Full Auto
Burnout Revenge
Perfect Dark Zero Col. Ed.
9.99 Titles:
College Hoops 2k6

Also, I was in my local Walmart when I spotted an empty rack for a new demo disk for the 360. It apparently contained demos, music videos, and more. If anybody can get a hold of one, then let us know so we can post what's contained on the disc.

By now, many of you have heard of the shitty pre-order plan that GameStop/EB was launching. Forced to trade $50 worth of stuff for your reserve? WTF? So I did a little digging. I called 15 GameStop and EBGames nationwide this morning (even one in Hawaii, where this was rumored to come from). Most of them had heard of this promotion, but all said it was fake. The marketing never made it to stores, the district managers never mentioned this once.

So where did the above poster come from, if not from GameStop? We think it is a doctored photo. The guy who took the photo made sure to put on it that it wasn't photoshopped. Well if that is so, then why didn't the promotion start today? Why have no stores gotten news or marketing for this "event"? Simple, this is a cut and paste of real marketing made to look like something it's not. A few scans, then a rough photo of the finished product to make it seem believable.

Well being the digger of news that I am, I called corporate, who promptly told me that their pre-order plans had not been finalized as of yet, and in now way were they going to begin on the day mentioned, or in that particular method. They still didn't 100% deny it, but I think that says it all.

Whoever created this hoax gets the 100% bullshitter of the month award!

Thanks to my friend Rameen Yousefi for the heads up on this whole story.

ok, I know you all want the date of the patch. But the thing STILL isn't done. However, the devs are adding some great things to the mix to hopefully quell some of the crybabying going on. The additions include 4xAA (was 2x) and the ability to toggle v-sych. No more tearing!

This is a great start, hopefully it continues to improve.

Source: http://developer.saintsrow.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4375

We have chosen 19 lucky winners in our TDU free car code giveaway! Please check your PM's in our forums, and look out for an e-mail from us (lotusfilms@hotmail.com). Congratulations to the winners!

NOTE: The code must be entered on

http:www.testdriveunlimited.com/presell.

The Oblivion contest is running just a bit longer, then it is gone for good too, so make sure you get on that one too!

Stay tuned for more great contests and giveaways!

We have 19 codes for the pre-order car for Test Drive unlimited, the Lamborghini Gallardo Coupe, and we are ready to give them out!

The codes will be distributed amoung 19 registered users of our forums who post in the appropriate topic.

YOUR ENTRY MUST INCLUDE NAME AND E-MAIL ADDRESS OR IT WILL NOT COUNT!

All entries will stop within 24 hours of this posting and the winners will be chosen.

If you have entered to win the Oblivion Horse Armor, you may still enter this one too! Visit the link below to enter!

http://s2.excoboard.com/exco/thread.php?forumid=136533&threadid=947523

So it seems the Wii is going to be 250 bucks. That's great, as it's way cheaper than both of the next gen systems! Also it's dated for Nov. 19th so...get your wallets ready...November is going to be a BIG BIG month.

Today we give you two different inside looks at the new tin case included in the FFXII Special Edition exclusive to GameStop/EB. The pictures featured here are actual photographs of the real retail case. The link below them will take you to GameStop.com's artist rendering of the same case.

UPDATED: Added the box art for the U.S. version's regular edition as well (by request)!

Front and back seperate.

Outside opened.

Inside opened.

Regular Edition box art.

Artist rendering (via GameStop): http://www.gamestop.com/gs/ffxii/ffxii_casedetail.html

Even though Forza 2 might be delayed, you can still head to your local GameStop/EB and pre-order the game. Securing a reservation gives you a code for an exclusive in-game car, the Nissan Fairlady Z.

The code is picked up at time of purchase, and even GameStop.com reserves can get in on the action. Head to the link at the bottom of the page to reserve it online, or head to your local GameStop today.

Enjoy!

Source: http://www.gamestop.com/product.asp?product%5Fid=200187

Recently, we brought you news of the Wii and PS3 kiosk units, and when you can expect to test them in stores. Today, however, we have something much better for all of you. We have an exclusive first look at the units themselves!

At this time, the demo game set to play in each unit over the holiday season has not yet been determined, but this is what the units will look like in your local game store!

As always, we will continue to bring you the hottest news, so stay tund to Rated-M.com for more great stuff!

With two new consoles coming out in just a few more weeks I do want to remind everyone what happened last year around this time.

Think back to September 05 where every Ebgames, Gamestop, Game Crazy, Babbages, and any other place that is taking your money to ensure that you will have an Xbox 360 on launch day. "Wait! There isn’t enough you will have to wait until next shipment" says an employee of Ebgames. Everyone started pointing the finger at Microsoft even though Microsoft had never stated how many each store would get. Why would the game stores screw us over like this? Well I went in and dug deep and spoke to a few Ebgames employees and found out exactly why they will Pre-order items without having the supply to back it up. Every time you preorder an item that money is put on deposit in that store's bank account, so to sum it up we are giving all these stores free money because of the interest that is building up on our preorder $$$. Ok so for games this isn’t a big deal but when we are talking about system consoles it’s another story. Many of these retailers purposely over pre-ordered the 360 to get more money in the bank.

Now with two system launches coming very soon is this sham going to happen again.

HIGHLY LIKELY WITH THE PS3
Sony has stated many times that the console will be shipping in very small quantities and the rumor around the EB mill is that they are going to take as many pre-orders as they can regardless if it will not have a system for the person. I for one find this to be complete and utter BS. It’s all a scam to screw us into making their pockets that much deeper. Sure a few of you will get your system on launch day and this doesn’t apply to you but for the 100k + it is. Do not let the retailers fool you this time. Hopefully this situation is also repeated with Nintendo. I have not heard too much about their expected launch specs but Nintendo in the past has been known not to disappoint.

So I've been sitting at my computer for weeks trying to decide the right approach for doing this review. I was going to go all IGN and professional on it and highlight key points and what not. But then I realized...this isn't IGN. So I'm just going to give you my straight up opinion on the matter. Dead Rising is the kind of game that you are going to either love or hate. Myself, I adore the game with every fiber of my being. The reason for this is simple. The options. There are so many ways to kill zombies in this game, that you will forget how many you've done. Each weapon feels different in my opinion too. For instance when you smash a Zombie with a sledgehammer, the effect is drastically different then if you sliced them in half with a katana, and this is where the game shines. A lot of people complain about the save system in the game. However, I see it as a herald back to old school gaming where you had to make choices carefully, and didnt have Save points every second. That adds a lot of intensity to the game. Another area where this game shines is the storyline. The fact that you can decide to do the case files to uncover bits and pieces to the mystery was an amazing way to play it out, because you are never really sure what's exactly going on until the very end when it all comes together. The only thing that really bugged me, which I'm sure bugged 9/10ths of the people who played this game, was Otis and his walkie talkie. It wouldn't have been so bad if you could attack while on the walkie talkie, but you can't and when you get mauled by a Zombie while listening to him, you have to pick the phone up all over again and listen to his rambling all over again. Other than that, this game is like a golden prize at the bottom of a crappy cereal (the game being the prize, and the summer slump being the crappy cereal). So in conclusion, I believe that EVERYONE who owns a 360 must at least play this game once.
Final Verdict : BUY IMMEDIATELY. STOP READING THIS AND GET UP AND GO GET IT!

We have obtained information about the special edition of Smackdown Vs. Raw 2007 for the XB360. Apparently, the 360 will be the main version of the game, and thus will be the only version getting the SE.

The SE includes an embossed metal case, bonus disk from a WWE box set, and a limited edition of "The Ultimate WWE Trivia Book". Best part is, it's currently listed as the SAME PRICE as the regular! Below are photos of the pre-order marketing package, with a close-up shot of the SE features.

Before you start flying off the handle, and start calling me an insensitive prick, let me first explain why I feel the way I do. I will say first and foremost that I feel bad for all the families involved in this tragedy. That being said, I am sick of the way 9/11 has gone from national tragedy to media circus.

I am sick of the way TV stations and movie studios exploit 9/11 for their own personal gain. I am sick of the way that politicians use 9/11 as a pedestal on which to place themselves higher. You know, 5 years later, we have half a dozen Hollywood films about 9/11, but for all the millions the films cost to produce, there is still no true memorial. 5 years later, ground zero still isn't fully cleaned and restored. 5 years later, moe and more soldiers are dying, and more and more terrorists are trying to kill us. 5 years later and the governemt is still lying about what happened that day.

At what point do we stop treating this tragedy like a free press event? It's a matter of time before we start seeing the official 9/11 pizza, and the twin towers bobblehead. That is the way this is headed. It's 5 years later, and nothing has changed, and that is a greater tragedy and a greater disrespect to the families of those who died.

On this day of national mourning, I recommend checking out the site http://www.letsroll911.org. It is filled with info about the tragedy that our government has kept hidden from us. It lists documentaries which dig into these facts. I also express my condolences for the families involved, and condemn our government for the despicable way in which these events had traspired over the last 5 years.

I said my piece. You don't have to agree, but I thank you for reading.

We have decided to allow unregistered users to post comments to our articles. We have kept it only registered users until now, but decided that perhaps tha twas too strict. However keep in mind, flames, rude comments, and vulgarity are not allowed. I still hold the switch folks, and I will gladly delete any posts I do not find appropriate to the site.

UPDATE: I have called both the local San Diego post office and the national 1-800 number. I was given two totally different answers. This is leading to a lot of confusion. The San Diego branch confirmed this story, saying not to even bother bringing in items marked "Made in China" or "Made in Korea". The guys at the 1-800 number said there is nothing official in the computer about this, and that normally it depends on what the item is, and where it is going...not where it was made. So what's the deal? Continue to send me any reports of this happening in your neck of the woods!

ORIGINAL STORY: Ok. I have some disturbing news to report to all of you today. I am hearing reports from viewers nationwide that the USPS has banned shipments of any item that is marked "Made in China" or "Made in Korea". As you all know, toys, electronics, gaming consoles/games, music CD's, and so much more are mostly all made in China.

One particular incident happened in San Diego, when a viewer was trying to ship a simple Barbie Doll. The USPS opened the package and told her tha tshe couldn't send it because of the ban. they would not explain why, just that they could no send it at all. The package was going out of state, but not out of Country.

This grows even more disturbing, as I continue to get reports from views across the country about this strange ban. So we ask why? Why right at Christmas time do you ban the shipment of items "Made in China"? Is it because of tensions with N. Korea, and China's support of the country?

So we say to the USPS, thanks for ruining Christmas. Many children will not get their toys this year because you all want to be dicks.

We say to you viewers, please continue to tell us of these happenings, and we will try to get to the bottom of this.

We have been following this story since day one, when we broke the news to you guys. We reported that the content for Saints Row wouldn't show to other people online, and we wanted to find out why. Well today, a developer at Volition finally gave me an official statement:

"It will work when it needs to. I'll say it officially, in bold text: You probably shouldn't use the DLC until it's officially released.

It's not available everywhere, for one (for instance, you can't get it in Illinois) - and it's been released prematurely. We're not mad at people for having it- we just want them to understand that it won't function properly until it's officially released, and it's because it wasn't planned to be released at this time."

Thank you to Volition for finally clearing this issue up.

Over at the developer's forums, Saints Row developer "V-HarlequiN" made a revealing post about the upcoming patch and the DLC. many people want to know WHY the DLC is out before the path, and this guy has the perfect answer.

UPDATED: Added the contents of a second statement from the same dev, going further in depth.

"Some DLC can be created partly before the game even hits the shelves - it gives artists something to do while we wait for Microsoft to accept the game and for duplication to be done, neither of which happens overnight.

Patches on the other hand require the game to be out before they can be started, since until peope actually play it and say "Hey, I have a problem", we won't know what needs to be patched, if anything at all. Patching is also an enormously complex process, since while fixing problem A and B you might inadvertantly break something that was working perfectly well before. This is especially likely in a game the size of Saint's Row, so each step of the patch has to be made as carefully as possible.

Patching and DLC are also made by two seperate teams. DLC is predominantly artists, Patching is predominantly programmers. The creation of one does not appreciably delay the creation of the other.

I believe the patch also has to go through Microsoft for approval before release, and that would take an indeterminate amount of time.

So even we don't currently know exactly when the patch will be released, but I can assure you we're working very hard on it indeed (well, I'm not, but the programmers are), we want it out as soon as possible too."

The following is the most recent response from the same dev (from a different thread, also linked below):

"We've covered this ground before, but I'll cover it again (and probably add it to the FAQ).

The game was tested online, thoroughly before release. Not only by Volition's internal team, but also by THQ, other THQ studios, and Microsoft itself. None of the problems you guys have had were discovered during those tests or it would have been fixed before hitting the shelves.

So, how come all these problems were missed? It's all a question of numbers and probability and that sort of thing.

How many people tested it before it came out? Maybe 500 or so total - and it's doubtful more than 100 were testing it at any given time. That's a lot of testing by the way, more than most games probably get.

So how many people, so far, have checked out Saint's Row's multiplayer? Perhaps a few hundred thousand. Maybe a few tens of thousands at any one time (I don't have the accurate figures, given that it's Sunday night).

So the chances of a couple of hundred thousand people finding the exploit for Clothing is far greater than 500 people testing it. It only takes one of those thousands to find it, and it'll spread like wildfire. Likewise we had no way of knowing we would have such apparent lag until we had thousands of people playing all at once. It's just not something that can be tested "in the lab" as it were.

As for how hard the guys are working to get this fixed, well, you don't know what you're talking about. Nothing that is done in under two weeks could be considered even remotely stable and worthy of release, and that is how long these guys have had to work on the patch - since we didn't know it was needed until SR went live at the end of August. Even when it's finished being written it still needs to have additional testing to ensure it doesn't cause something far worse to occur, and that also takes time. Then it has to go through the channels for approval - if it has an issue at any step along that road then it's back to the beginning and you all have to wait even longer.

So be a little patient. When it's ready it will be released. If we rush it, it will actually mean an even longer delay for you guys."

There you have it. A logical answer to the question you have all wanted to ask.

Source: http://developer.saintsrow.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6157
Source: http://developer.saintsrow.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6383

For those of you 360 owners who haven't yet tried the awesome GOTY material Oblivion, Wal-Mart is running an in-store sale on the popular game. You can pik it up right now at your local Wal-Mart for a mere $49.00.

Great value for a great game. I can confirm this because I saw it with my own eyes as of yesterday, and was told that this is a nationwide sale. They did not know how long it would last, so make sure you pick one up right away!

NOTE: The sale is for the in-store locations ONLY. Their website still reflects the full retail price.

So how many of you out ther have had the situation where you are getting into PC Gaming, and you aren't too sure what games you can or can't play? Sometimes the minimum/recommended requirements can be a bit too vague...like can my graphics card support this? Do I have enough ram really? Well I have your solution. http://www.windowsgaming.com . Basically what this site does is check your system to see what exactly you have, then you can search for a particular game and it will let you know if your system meets the minimum or recommended requirements. It's been a godsend for me. I haven't wasted money wondering if my system can support it or not. So there you go have fun!
http://www.windowsgaming.com

There is an awesome new commercial circulating through movie theaters nationwide. I saw it myself last night during "Tony Jaa's The Protector". It is a Coke ad that parodies GTA. That is really all I can say about it. I think you should watch it, because only seeing it first hand can explain what I felt seeing it mixed in the trailers. Enjoy!

It seems our Saints Row DLC story has made it big. At about 58 minutes into the latest 1up.com podcast, they talk about Rated-M and the DLC stuff, pretty much outlining what THQ told them about the DLC.

So the DLC isn't gonna make it to Live on the 15th, but I have a strong feeling that the release date was pushed due to our leak of this info.

Anyways, check out the podcast for yourself, and tell the guys over at 1up.com that Rated-M.com sent ya!

P.S. Thanks to one of our viewers for the heads up!

Source: http://zdmedia.vo.llnwd.net/o1/Podcasts/090806.mp3

There are 5 new costume keys available right now for Dead Rising. below is a list, and how to access them:

Marketplace:
Cold Hearted Snake

In Store Kiosk:
Accountant
Burgandy Wine (larger file size than the MP version?)
Pure White Suit
Stripe

The keys from the Spetember kiosk disk DO NOT WORK as of yet, and Capcom has not responded my queries. The Snake one is available on Live as we speak, and is a neat snake skinned suit.

I'll have more info on the kiosk keys and why they don't work at a later date.

UPDATE: I can confirm that the Dead Rising Kiosk Keys are ONLY available at EBGames/GameStop kiosks. Wal-Mart and other retailers will have a kiosk disk sans content!

We should call Nintendo "the great mind changer". They have told us that Super Paper Mario is now coming to the Wii as opposed to coming to the Gamecube. So in the essence, what Nintendo is telling us is that the Gamecube is dead and gone, and the Wii is going to take over. More on this story as it develops.

Yeah, you read that title right. The BBC is reporting tha there will be no PS3 for you guys across the pond until March of 07. But hey, don't feel bad. The guys here in the states won't be getting them until then. It is no secret that the PS3 is gonna be in a terribly short supply this holiday season. March is the predicted time period when PS3 will actually BE on the shelves to just walk in and buy.

Add to this isse the fact that Sony cuts PS3 production by 75%, and you can kind of see the PS3 turning from viable console to walking dead. GameStop/EB still tells us that the may not even do pre-orders on the PS3 due to the shortage. According to Their corporate offices, Sony is hinting at as few as 5 systems per store. Then a further 5 systems every two weeks through Christmas.

So you guys in the UK, fear not. Us guys here stateside are getting fudged in the rump by Sony too.

Thanks to my good friend Allen Hudson for the heads up on this!

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5319190.stm

According to G4TV's Attack of the Show earlier today, the PS3 will sport unusually long load times. During their "The Feed" segment, they mentioned that this is one of the major complaints developers are talking about. They also expressed their own dissapointment with this. So is extra space on Blu-Ray worth the extra load times? Hell no, especially when Blu-Ray doesn't equal better graphics.

Chalk this up as another nail in the PS3's coffin...

According to the October 2006 issue of EGM (Electroncs Gaming Monthly issue 208), both gears of War and Crackdown get confirmation of their release dates.

Gears of War will launch on 11/12/06. Microsoft took out a two page ad to showcase the final date of "Emergence Day".

Crackdown will definately keep it's 10/16/06 date, despite some sites that show Q1 07 as the date. On page 76, EGM lists Crackdown as one of the "Games of October". In fact, it got more page space than any other game in the same month, overshadowing Mortal Kombat, Killzone: Liberation and Godhand.

These dates have been public for sme time, and have also been in the EB/GameStop computers as well. However, it is nice to see this confirmation in print.

This issue of EGM arrived today for most subscribers, and should hit newstands shortly after.

So you all know by now that the DLC for Saints Row will hit in-store kiosks this month. In fact, many stores have the disk in the kiosks ALREADY! I have had confirmation from about 15 different states that the disk is out.

However, the great site 1up.com has dug deeper into the story and discovered that the same content will not hit Live on September 15th. The insert in the game says 9/15, but perhaps that only meant the kiosk. Below is the insert in question.



So when exactly WILL it hit Live? Will it even hit Live at all? Time will tell. As for the content itself, it is out in most states on the kiosks, and you'll need an MU to get the content. Beware though, the content WILL NOT show up to other people on Live until the patch hits, according to developers.

Source: http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3153401

Rated-M breaks yet another story, this time concerning the Nintendo Wii and the Sony PS3. According to GameStop/EB Inc., the two systems will have in store kiosks at the end of October. That would place the PS3 on display a few weeks before launch. We also believe that Nintendo will now choose a November launch, so that would put Wii out there for play testing early as well.

There is still no word as to what game or demo will be running on either system, but in marketing materials, the Wii was running Wii Sports. The PS3 looked to be running a generic mock-up.

You can be sure that as soon as we dig deeper into this, we will bring you the skinny. As always, stay tuned to rated-M for the hottest news!

Volition is finally responding to the issues in Saints Row. The game is great, but has some online issues that need serious attention. The game has been overcome by glitchers and cheaters. Then there is the insufferable laaaaag. Well Volition has responded to these issues by announcing a patch. The patch will fix the lag and the glitches/cheating. However, one extra step has been taken. Those who cheated to get free clothes online will have them deleted when the patch hits.

That's right...if you cheated to get your pimp suit, you are gonna lose it all. A source tells me this patch will hit this week, as early as today. We'll see if the patch TRULY helps.

http://developer.saintsrow.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4375

CNN reports this morning that Steve irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, has died from a fatal Stingray barb that went through his chest. We here at Rated-M express our condolences to his friends and family. He will be missed by the world.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/09/04/australia.irwin/index.html

It's been reported that an MP3 Player designed specifically for the NDS is being released soon to Euro markets. It's suppose to be 29.99Euros and be released in Oct. In case you were wondering if it would be put out in 2/4/6 gb packages, it will just be one price however you have to supply an SD card. Apparently it will support up to 2GB cards. Not too bad considering you can get a gb card for 20 bucks at some online retailers....so for 70 bucks or so you can have a 1GB MP3 player. No word if this will come to the States, however that's why they invented Importing. =D

UPDATE: 9/17/07 YouTube has pulled down the videos. I had no back-ups, nor any warnings from YouTube. The videos will no longer be available.

It seems my credibility has been challenged, which doesn't happen often. Some skeptics think my photos were the crafty work of photoshop. Well screw you guys. Just kidding.

Anyways, for the skeptics out there, I present these two videos of the DLC in action. One shows each piece of clothing in the online store, then me wearing them in an online match. BTW, I played that match on my DV cam, which has a tiny 2 inch screen, and I still came out 2nd place. Yeah, I'm shit talkin! Anyways, enjoy. I realized after the videos were made that I forgot the bunny slippers, but oh well. this should be proof enough.

So I met up with some of the viewers of the site to show off this gear. Below is a photo I took to show this meeting. They told me that none of these items are appearing on my guy, instead it shows as default clothing. This screen was to show them what I see on my screen.



So what happened? Why is it on my screen and not the others? Well the following is what I was told by a Volition developer:

"I just got some advice some developers here that there are some bugs with the DLC that are getting fixed with the patch -- bugs people weren't really supposed to see.

I'm going to advise you to delete that content- as cool as it is-

Go to your xbox dashboard, system, memory- and you should be able to delete it. Otherwise, you may experience some weird problems with this currently unsupported content."

So this means that every September XBOX kiosk disk is defective, giving bad content. The Dead Rising content I got from the same disk is also not working. However, I will be vindicated if the content is fixed and stays the same, for you will all see it first hand.

In the meantime, please don't transfer this stuff to your game until you are sure the disks are replaced. Otherwise, you'll see the items on yourself, but they don't show up online. These disks hit XBOX in-store kiosks as ealy as the 28th of August. The devs know of this issue now and are addressing it.

News is in that Microsoft has updated the backwards compatility list again with 48 new titles. Unfortuantely, there isn't many GOOD titles in there like Phantom Dust, Psychonauts, JSRF, and Conker...but hey at least they are still paying attention to the BC list ...right? ......right..?

The list is as follows:

Aggressive Inline
Aquaman: Battle of Atlantis
All Star Baseball 2003
All Star Baseball 2005
Burnout 3: Takedown
Catwoman
Crash Bandicoot: Nitro Kart (UPDATED)
Counter Strike
Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth
Dead to Rights
Digimon Rumble Arena 2 (UPDATED)
ESPN Major League Baseball
Fatal Frame 2
Ford vs. Chevy (UPDATED)
Freaky Flyers
Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows
Tom Clancy´s Ghost Recon - Island Thunder
Half Life 2 (UPDATED)
The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer UPDATED
IndyCar Series 2005
Kabuki Warrior (UPDATED)
Lego Star Wars II
Links 2004
Magatama (UPDATED)
Maximum Chase
Mortal Kombat: Deception (UPDATED)
MTX: Mototrax Featuring Travis Pastrana
Namco Museum 50th Anniversary Arcade Collection
MX vs. ATV Unleashed
Outlaw Tennis
Over the Hedge
Sid Meier's Pirates
Richard Burns Rally
Rogue Trooper
Serious Sam
Shincho Mahjong
Smashing Drive
Sneakers (UPDATED)
Spy Hunter: Nowhere to Run
The Legend of Spyro: A Beginning
TAZ: Wanted
True Crime Streets of LA
The Suffering
Trigger Man
Torino Winter Olympics 2006
Vietcong
Wrath Unleashed
X-Men II: Wolverine's Revenge

So I wonder when we will start seeing GOOD games...I mean Sega pretty much helped get Xbox off the ground....(that and Halo) when will Microsoft share the love?

Bethesda is adding a wealth of new spells on Thursday for Oblivion. The mod called "Spell Tomes" will be priced at 0.99 cents and will include 100 + new spell books. So put on your dungeon dwelling gear, it's time to find those new spells! The information below was taken directly from Bethesda's website.


Spell Tomes - DLC4

This pack adds “Spell Tomes” to the world’s random treasure. These books grant you wondrous and powerful magic spells, just by reading them! Now Mages will also gain instant benefits by treasure hunting. Friend and foe alike will bow in awe before your power.


Features:

* Hundreds of new spell-giving books

* All the most useful basic spells covered

* Low level and high level spells available

* Many new powerful spells with multiple effects added

* Extremely powerful new spells that are balanced with slightly detrimental effects to lower the cost in Magicka

* Find Spell Tomes in dungeons all over Cyrodiil

* Spend less time and money arming yourself with the spells you want and need




Here are just a few of the new spells obtained from Spell Tomes:

Blink: A low-level invisibility spell to get you out of trouble.

Baltham's Insight: a short duration but long range detect life spell.

Shield Wall: Fortify Heavy Armor and Shield effect.

Night Form: Powerful Invisibility and Fortify Sneak, and take Sun damage, which reduces Magicka cost to cast.

Pride of Hirstaang: Fortify Strength, Resist Frost, and Summon a Bear.

Orum’s Aquatic Escape: Invisibility, Night-Eye, and Water-breathing.

Elemental Blast: A powerful offensive spell with: Fire damage, Frost damage, and Shock damage.

Magicka Vortex: Absorb Magicka, Weakness to Magic 25% and Stunted Magicka.

source: http://obliviondownloads.com/Coming_Soon_DLC4.aspx

The trailer for the new Tony Jaa movie is up today on the Apple trailer site; it's even in high def. The story seems pretty much along the same lines of Jaa's first movie, Ong Bak: The Thai Warrior. Jaa's small village is terrorized by a gang of terrorists that destroy their villages sacred ways, so Jaa is put in charge of making the bad guys pay for what they've done. How does he go about doing it? He brings the fight to the terrorists city and battles them all into oblivion on their very own turf. If you saw Ong Bak you know Jaa puts Mr. Chan to shame in every department, except for the whole slapstick comedy stuff. I don't think Jaa is comedic in any way, he's also not a very good actor. Wooden to say the least. But when he steps up to throw down some martial arts voodoo he throws down bigger and better than anyone else in business right now. Jet Li and Jackie Chan don't have anything on this guy, if you think I'm wrong feel free to leave me an angry email, but I've been doing martial arts for 13 years. So I know what I'm talking about. The Protector hits theaters September 8th.

The Protector

Just in time for the game's launch, we bring you the full soundtrack listing for Saints Row. We have seperated them by genre. Enjoy!

Classical
Beethoven - Sym. No. 7 4th movt
Beethoven – Egmont Overture
Beethoven – Für Elise
Beethoven – Sonata No. 14 1st movt
Beethoven – Sonata No. 14 3rd movt
Beethoven – Sonata No. 23 1st movt
Beethoven – Sym. No. 1 – Finale
Beethoven – Sym. No. 5 1st movt
Beethoven – Sym. No. 6 1st movt
Beethoven – Sym. No. 9 4th movt
Chopin – Ballade No. 1
Chopin – Concerto No. 2 1st movt
Chopin – Concerto No. 2 3rd movt
Chopin – Etude No. 11
Chopin – Etude No. 3
Chopin – Impromptu
Chopin – Prelude No. 15
Chopin – Prelude No. 17
Chopin – Prelude No. 3
Chopin – Waltz No. 6
Delibes – Lakme Flower Duet
Handel – Halleluja from Messiah
J. Strauss – Die Fledermaus Overture
J. Strauss – Leichtes Blut Fast
J. Strauss – Tritsch Tristsch
J.S. Bach – Concerto No. 5
J.S. Bach – Fantasy and Fugue
J.S. Bach – Partita No 1. – Gigue
Liszt – Funerailles
Liszt – Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2
Liszt – Liebestraum No. 2
Mendelssohn – Violin Concerto 3rd movt
Mozart – Concerto No. 21 2nd movt
Mozart – Eine Kleine Nachtmusik 2nd movt
Mozart – Turkish March
Mussorgksy – Bare Mountain
Offenbach – Gaiete Parisienne – Can Can
Pachelbel – Canon in D
Paganini – 24 Caprices
Rossini – The Barber of Seville
Rossini – The Thieving Magpie
Rossini – Wilhelm Tell Overture
S. Joplin – Maple Leaf Rag
S. Joplin – The Entertainer
Tschaikovksy – 1812 overture
Tschaikovksy – The Reed Flutes
Tschaikovksy – The Sugar Plum Fairy
Tschaikovksy – Violin Concerto 1st movt
Tschaikovksy – Violin Concerto 3rd movt
Verdi – La TraviataVerdi – Rigoletto
Vivaldi – Four Seasons No. 1
Vivaldi – Four Seasons No. 2
Vivaldi – Four Seasons No. 4
Wagner – Lohengrin Overture
Wagner – Ride of the Valkyries
Wagner – Rienzi Overture
Wagner – Tannhaesuer Overture
Wagner – Twilight of the Gods

Easy Listening
Clemens Schweikhart & Matthias Wittwer – Groovemob
Dick Walter – Playground of the Stars
Didier Heinrich & Jose Le Gall – Hello Jack
Eric Casper & Janko Nilovic – Bossa New Look
Eric Casper & Janko Nilovic – Super Week-End
Eric Casper & Janko Nilovic – Week-End Pop
Fred Marius & Jurgen Jaenner – Adventure in Speed
Gerhard Narholz – Bossa Cubana
Gerhard Narholz – Holiday Road
Hendric Haydegg – Italian Summer
Jan Schneeberg – Looping
Joey Johnson – Alpenrose Memories
Joey Johnson – Emily’s Happy Hop
Jurgen Jaenner – Quicka Negra
Larz Kurz & H.C. Mylla – Bratwurst Polka
Larz Kurz & H.C. Mylla – I und du B
Marc Durst – Cocktail Bossa
Marc Durst - Holiday Bossa Nova
Marc Durst – Nice Swing
Marc Durst – Shopping Girls
Marc Durst – Tutti Flutti Swing
Nicolas Folmer – Running Swing
Otto Sieben – Curley Shirley
Otto Sieben – Western Post
Per Bluitgen Andreasen & Yannick Kalfayan – Peyi La Douce
Peter Sander – Autumn Sun
Peter Sander – Sweetness
Renato Bui & Martha Wild – Yodel of Joy
Ronald Sekura & Otto Sieben – Pepito From Tampico
Stephane Doukhan, Marc Durst & Edouard Miffre – Glamour Bossa Nova
Stephane Hugeunin, C. Padovan & Yves Sanna – Quando Sei Vicinio A Te
Umberto Pagnini – Slapstick Duck Twist
Werner Eraerds – O leichtman das Jodeln

Electronica
Caro – My Little Pony
Dieselboy and Kaos – Barrier Break
Evil Nine – We have the Energy
Freq Nasty - Amped
ILS – Ill Logic
ILS – Tiny Toy
ILS – West Coast
Koma and Bones – Questo Y Sporco
Koma and Bones – Twisted Streets
PsychatronX – Twisted
Rythym Division – Uzi
Skynet – Catherine Wheel
Skynet - Stingray
Stratus – You Must Follow
Styles of Beyond - Subculture

Metal
Bang Tango – Dancin on’ Coals
Bang Tango – Love Injection
Bang Tango – Someone Like You
Great White – Once Bitten Twice Shy
L.A. Guns – Ballad of Jayne
Ratt – Back Fore More
Ratt – Round and Round
Ratt – Way Cool Jr.
Slaugher – Mad About You
Slaughter – Spend my Life
Slaughter – Up all Night
Winger – Easy Come Easy Go
Winger - Seventeen

Reggae
Afrifcan Roots Act 1 – Addis Adaba Dub
Beat Pharmacy – Slow Down
Eek-A-Mouse – Jamaicanese
Horace Andy – Live in the City
Horace Andy – Stop The Fuss
Jah Batta – Informa
Jah Woosh – Riding Melody
Love Joys – All I Can Say
Prince Douglas – Tongue Shall Tell Dub
Scotty –Draw your Brakes
Sugar Minott – International Herb
Tapper Zukie – Man Ah Warrior
The Pioneers – Time Hard
U-Roy – Way Down South
Wayne Jarett – You and I

Rock
Aberdeen City – God is Going to Get Sick Of Me
Afghan Wings – Conjure Me
Alec Empire – Kiss of Death
Art Brut – Bang Bang Rock And Roll
Bad Brains – Banned in DC
Bear vs. Shark – 5,6 Kids
Codeseven – Roped And Tied
Cruiserweight – To Be Quite Honest
Danko Jones – Home to Hell
Editors - Munich
Fall Out Boy – Of All The Gin Joints…
Hockey Night – For Guys’ Eyes Only
Huge – Happiness Everyday
Husker Du – Could You Be The One
Idelwild – Too Long Awake
If I Were King - Cauterise
Iggy Pop – Wild America
Janes Addiction – Mountain Song
Jet By Day – Meet Me In The Dark
Kinski – Hiding Drugs In The Temple
Local H – Bound for the Floor
Mastodon – Blood And Thunder
Men Woman and Children – Friday Night Fist Night
Motion City Soundtrack – Everything is Allright
My Awesome Compilation – Put Up A Fight
New Years Day – Ready, Aim, Misfire
Orange Park – Make up Your Mind
Paint It Black - Panic
Reggie & The Full Effect – Get Well Soon
Rock-N-Roll Soldiers – Anthem
Seemless - Lay My Burden Down
Shelby – The Golden Boy
Stereophonics - Girl
Tempercalm – I Need A Co-Pilot
The Adored – TV Riot
The Aquabats Look At Me, I’m a Winner
The Fall of Troy – F.C.P.R.E.M.I.X.
The Letters Organize – Don’t Move
The Loved Ones – 100K
The Oranges Band – Atmosphere
Vendetta Red – Silhouette Serenade
Young Offenders Institute – We’re the Young Offenders

Hip-Hop
Airborn Audio – Inside the Globe
Aisha – Bounce Like My Checks
Aisha – Leave the Ho
Bathgate – Everything’s A Go
Bisc One - Crumbs
Black Market Militia – Hood Lullabye
Black Market Militia feat. Dead Prez - Audobun Ballroom
Black Milk - Danger
Black Sheep – Flavor of the Month
Camp Lo – Glow
Clipse - Grindin
Copywrite – Beautiful Trainwreck
De La Soul – Rock Co. Kane Flow
Eric B. and Rakim – Paid In Full
Exile feat. Slum Village – Time has Come
Grafh – Get Shot Boy
Jin – Golden
Kenn Starr – What Up
Likwit Junkies – Keep Doin It
Little Brother – Shake it
M.E.D. - Nightlife
Madvillian – Money Folder
Masta Ace – Take a Walk
Masta Ace feat. Jean Grae – Soda Soap
Masta Killa – Digi Warfare
Masta Killa feat. Ghostface and Raekwon – D.T.D.
Masta Killa featuring ODB & RZA – Old Man
Mathematics – Spot Lite ft. Wu Tang Clan
Mathematics – Two Shots of Henny
Mathematics feat. Ghostface and Raekwon – Real Niggaz
Mathematics feat. Method Man – John 3 16
MC Lyte – Paper Thin
MHE Ghostface feat. Trife – Milk ‘Em
Planet Asia feat. Prodigy – Stick and Move
RA the Rugged Man – Black and White
Rich Medina – Holdin’ Up
Sa-Ra feat. Pharoahe Monch – Fish Fillet
The Alchemist feat. Lloyd Banks – Bangers
Three 6 Mafia feat. Trillville & Lil Wyte – Who is I?
Turf Talk – Do The Robot
Twista – Overnight Celebrity
Vordul Mega - Spitamatic
Wordsworth – Gotta Play

Exclusive/Unlockable
Xzhibit featuring Strong Army Steady - Hurry, Hurry
Ghostface Killah And Trife Da God - Man Up
Rhymefest - Shut You Down
David Banner - Saints Row
Daz Dillinger - Git Out My Way
Sy Smith - Leave The Ho
Sy Smith - DFM Like I'm Your Wife
Sy Smith - Bounce Like My Checks