Kotaku

Blackshot FPS Enters Closed Beta - Screens Ahoy!

Outspark has launched a closed PC Beta of its free-to-play online FPS Blackshot.

The beta is open from September 30th until October 5th and features 4 selectable characters, 7 maps and 17 different weapons.

Outspark have sent us a load of screenshots showing off the mercenary-based online antics. It does, it has to be said, look fairly generic - but it is free and as ever with shooters the proof of the pudding is in the gameplay.

Global Agenda - The Georgia-Grown Action MMO

Living in Georgia, getting some hands-on time with a game still at a relatively early point in development generally means packing my bags, finding someone to watch the cats, assigning a backup person to check on that person, and plenty of time eating bad airport food. Not so for Global Agenda, a fast-paced action MMO being developed by the Atlanta-based Hi-Rez Studios. All that took was a quick shower, an application of some mostly clean clothing, and a fifteen-minute drive north. That kind of convenience is addictive. We need more developers in Georgia if only to keep me from running down the street every afternoon to stare into Hi-Rez's windows to see what they're doing - most likely testing out the gameplay in Global Agenda, which is exactly what they were doing when I showed up at their offices last week. See? Convenient.

'Pokémon Platinum' Transforms Into 1.2 Million Copies

Pokémon Platinum has gone well past platinum now, with another 300K being snapped up by Nintendo DS owners in Japan according to this week's Media Create sales chart. The top spots are dominated by DS software, with new debut Dragon Ball DS settling for second place.

The PlayStation 3 version of Eternal Sonata enters the charts with just 34,000 copies sold. Not bad for a year-old Xbox 360 port, but not quite as good as the game's original debut. Hey, hardware bundles help!

01. Pokémon Platinum (DS) - 315,000 / 1,278,000
02. Dragon Ball DS (DS) - 72,000 / NEW
03. Rhythm Tengoku Gold (DS) - 63,000 / 787,000
04. Eternal Sonata (PS3) - 34,000 / NEW
05. Quiz Magic Academy DS (DS) - 29,000 / 148,000
06. Wii Fit (Wii) - 28,000 / 2,663,000
07. Katekyoo Hitman Reborn! Battle Arena (PSP) - 25,000 / NEW
08. Samurai Dou Portable (PSP) - 17,000 / NEW
09. One Piece Unlimited Cruise: Episode 1 - Nami ni Yureru Hihou (Wii) - 15,000 / 76,000
10. Mario Kart Wii (Wii) - 14,000 / 1,776,000

Pro Evolution Soccer Gets 'Ultra-Real'

With all the grim inevitability of the encroaching winter, Konami have announced the yearly roster of new 'n' improved reasons you should buy Pro Evolution Soccer again.

This year, they are touting full UEFA Champions League support, with "all the elements and attributes of the competition" - presumably this means more teams, stadiums and a drunken man pounding a Bass drum while flares rain down from the terraces.

Graphics are almost always better over time but this year they will be 'Ultra Real'. Going by the screenshot above, this would imply that Liverpool & Manchester Utd. have started handing out jars of thick foundation make-up at half time and insisting that all games take place under artificial light.

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City Of Heroes Mission Creator Somewhat Delayed

The City of Heroes Issue 13: Architect was too big for one update, so they've split it up! This is really just a pleasant way of saying the the Mission Creator mode isn't showing up in the next update, but I appreciate their attempt and making it seem all happy. Now the next update is titled Issue 13: Power and Responsibility, and will feature all the updates promised in Architect aside from that big one, plus a few newly announced features, the most intriguing of which is the Leveling Pact, a feature that lets to players buddy up so that their levels always stay the same, no matter how much the other plays. An amazingly brilliant feature that not only supports MMO friendships, but also makes things a whole lot more convenient for the dual-boxers out there. Also new is Dual-Builds, a feature that will allow characters to maintain two separate power builds, useful for roleplayers who want a quirky, split personality character.

Issue 13 will be released this fall, with Issue 14: Architect bringing the Mission Creator to the game in early 2009. Hit the jump for full details on the new updates and changes!

Gaming And Bus Driving Can Kill A Career

Look, I know that Hawaii is a very laid-back sort of place. Bright sunshine, sandy beaches, news reporters who wear Hawaiian shirts on broadcast television even when not covering a luau, but it can be taken too far. For instance, if you are driving a city bus filled with passengers on a busy street in Honolulu, it's probably not a good idea to break out the PSP and play a couple rounds of Hot Shots Golf.

"With two hands… at times, while he was driving in traffic, yes,” (bus passenger Denita) Waltz said. "And also at the stoplights, and at that point I was very scared."

The driver, an 18-year veteran with The Bus, has been suspended without pay pending further investigation. Not sure what further investigating they need to do here, really. What game he was playing? His high score? Does that affect putting people's lives in danger?

Hell yes it does.

Bus Driver Suspended For Playing Games While Driving [KITV Honolulu]

Thompson Responds To Disbarment

Today's stunning news that controversial attorney and anti-gaming zealot Jack Thompson will be disbarred for life from practicing law by the Supreme Court of Florida seems to have done little to faze the attorney himself.

In response to our request for comment Thompson sent Kotaku a copy of an emergency motion he filed with the court, this despite the ruling which states that only another attorney in good standing with the Florida Bar could file a motion for rehearing on Thompson's behalf.

In the motion Thompson outlines what he hints at as a perversion of justice, one that won't allow him, for instance, to meet with a potential client who he says is an inmate in a state prison.

Thompson also sent over a press release saying that the disbarment is in retaliation for, among other things, Thompson's Tyndale House book Out of Harm's Way which he says blew the whistle on what he describes as the Florida Supreme Court's attack on his activism against the American entertainment industry.

The timing of this disbarment transparently reveals its motivation: This past Friday Thompson filed a federal civil rights action against The Bar, the Supreme Court, and all seven of its Justices. This rush to disbarment is in retribution for the filing of that federal suit. With enemies this foolish, Thompson needs only the loyal friends he has.

The emails from Thompson wrap up with: "...this should be fun, starting now" Full press release and motion are on the jump for your perusal.