The latest NPD sales figures are out, and while it certainly looks like there's going to be a major change in its regularly Nintendo-dominated scenery soon, there's a lot of questions that need to be answered. Thankfully, NPD's own Anita Frazier is here to give us an in-depth view of just what the figures mean. All the details in the full article.

Interested in knowing just how your favorite games are doing in terms of sales in the UK? Then read on as we give you all the highlights from Chart Track's findings, which includes Sega's Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games getting the top spot. Who'd have thought? Check out the full article for the entire scoop.

The Nintendo DS rules the charts in Japan once again, and Final Fantasy Tactics A2: The Sealed Grimoire leads the charge on its first week out, with five more DS games trailing. The Xbox 360 and the PSP have no top ten entries for the latest numbers from Japan.

Though it doesn't even come close to the other smash success from Square Enix (do you remember that little game called Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII?), Final Fantasy Tactics A2 still did pretty well for itself with 142,000 units sold on its first week, almost double that of the game in second place.

The first PSP game to enter the game is Gundam Battle Chronicles in 15th place and the fist Xbox 360 game, Bladestorm: The Hundred Years' War is in 33rd place. The charts have done considerably better this week than than last. Sales are generally on the up and up. Here are the top ten games in Japan for the week of October 28:

1. Final Fantasy Tactics A2 (DS) - 142,000 units
   
2. Ar Tonelico (PS2) - 72,500 units
   
3. World Soccer Winning Eleven DS: Goal to Goal (DS) - 29,000 units
   
4. Imabikisou (PS3) - 22,500 units
   
5. DS Literature Collection (DS) - 21,000 units
   
6. Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion (DS) - 20,000 units
   
7. Ghost Squad (Wii) - 19,500 units
   
8. God of War II (PS2) - 17,000 units
   
9. DS Nishimura Kyotarou Suspense Detective Series: Deadly Intent (DS) - 17,000 units
   
10. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Time Expedition Party (DS) - 16,000 units
    

Geometry Wars: Galaxies (DS, Wii) might feature the addition of stages and bosses to the popular Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved gameplay, but apparently, the bottom line is not about progression. It's still all about the high scores.

That's what Roger Carpenter, Sierra Entertainment's producer for Geometry Wars: Galaxies, revealed in a recent interview with Modojo. "It's all about score still," said Carpenter. "With the different battles we're just introducing a huge variety into how the game delivers fun."

Carpenter also talked a bit about how the team behind Geometry Wars: Galaxies handled the addition of saving and the game's currency system without lessening the difficulty. Here's Carpenter's explanation:

It's quite well publicized now but we've created a Galaxy, full of solar systems and planets. Each planet is an infinitely playable battle, equivalent to the original Retro Evolved if you like. Saving happens every time a game state changes, usually at the end of a battle or when you get a high score.

The currency system in the game determines how the game unlocks before you, so difficulty is handled through that. You can replay any battle as many times as you like, thats part of the Geometry Wars formula.

If you're worried about save points on a short journey or such like with the DS, typical games last minutes or 10's of minutes rather than hours. Of course we hope that some players will last hours on battles but we'd be honestly impressed if they did that on tram ride.

For the full interview, click on the Read Link below. Geometry Wars: Galaxies is currently slated for release in the fall.

 

For those who have been waiting for the newest releases in Australia, wait no longer. Mortal Kombat: Armageddon for the Wii is joined by DS titles Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and Pet Alien as they all hit retail stores this week. So what do these games have to offer?

Mortal Kombat: Armageddon has been delayed before, and it's pretty cool that Australian gamers will finally get a chance to experience it. For the first time, players will actually be able to use real motions to control their characters and pull off some of the amazing moves (fatalities included).

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer on the DS is based on the upcoming movie of the same title. While most gamers have become wary of movies turned into video games and vice-versa, this game is said to offer a few new things such as a free-roaming mode that may change your minds.

Pet Alien is based on the cartoon series of the same name. Tommy and his pet alien Grumpers are abducted by the Robotix, a group of creatures who are trying to build the largest Zoo in the galaxy. Gumpers along with his four friends, now, must rescue Tommy and get back to Earth.

If you're residing in Australia, it might be worthwhile to drop by your local game shop to see if any of these games tickle your fancy. Be sure to keep checking back here for the latest gaming news.

Coming straight from the Games Convention, we have a bunch of new assets for Spectrobes, Buena Vista Games' new...shall we say Pokemon clone? Let's call it a "monster collecting game" for now. You have the preliminary packshot to the left, a trailer is downloadable below and last but not least, a new fact sheet with some new info, translated from German.

The Story
Spectrobes is Buena Vista Games' newest, exciting franchise, a futuristic sci-fi story wrapped into addicting and fascinating gameplay. The protagonists of the game are two young officers of the Interplanetary Patrol, Rallen and Jeena.

Upon discovering the mysterious, prehistoric species Spectrobes, they find out that these creatures are the key to fighting a mischievous and cruel force that attempts to destroy the galaxy, called the Krawl. Our heroes embark on a mission, to save the galaxy by excavating, reanimating and training as many Spectrobes as they can find. Only the Spectrobes can defeat the Krawl.

Developed in Japan, Spectrobes is a dynamic, Anime-inspired Action RPG with an unique blend of remarkable characters, exciting story and innovative gameplay. It's suitable to players of every game and takes advantage of every interactive feature of the Nintendo DS.

Important Features

• Real-Time Combat: Rallen and two allied Spectrobes fight together in exhilarating battles against the Krawl. Each Spectrobe possesses unique skills, which can be combined with the power of another Spectrobe.
• Excavation: The players need to discover and collect new Spectrobes and elements by finding fossils. As soon as a fossil is found, the DS stylus is used to dig out the Spectrobe. Dust is swept away by blowing into the microphone.
• Training and customization: The player reawakens the Spectrobe with his voice. Different virtual environments will be available to train the newly excavated Spectrobes, and the choice of the environment influences the creature's skill development.
• Wireless community and multiplayer modes: Players can exchange Spectrobes and elements via WiFi, and battles can be fought via Ad Hoc. Additional downloadable collectibles are planned as well.
  

Download: [Spectrobes Trailer]

A lover's promise is rarely trusted. Is it because more people are cynical about promises these days? What if a company like Nintendo makes a promise, will you believe and trust that they'll go through anything to fulfill it? We're summarizing a blow by blow account we read a few hours ago regarding the live coverage of Nintendo's Presentation "Wii Prove Our Promise" from the GC in Leipzig, Germany.

First off, some facts and figures to show how they're changing the gaming landscape:

They've attracted 18% non-gamers, 24% pc gamers, and whopping 42% of console gamers. This means that the innovation and new gameplay feature in Nintendo DS has not only piqued the curiosity of long-time gamers, but also those who has never even touched a controller in their lives! Welcome to the Nintendo gaming world!

They've also noticed that the female gamers out there are growing: 44% of the total sales for the Nintendo DS were from the ladies. 600,000 Nintendogs sales are further proof of this. With the inclusion of the cute and cuddly pink Nintendo DS Lite, expect more than 44% sales this year. More power to the lady gamers out there!

The full article awaits after the jump!

In a galaxy far, far away LucasArts reveals the box art for LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy game for the Nintendo DS. A comic take on the original Star Wars Trilogy - A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi - it takes you on an adventure as you follow the Rebel Alliance's battle against the Galactic Empire, to the infamous Dark Vader's pursuit of Princess Leia to a Death Star showdown all in classic LEGO style.

This time around in Free Play mode, players can awaken their inner Frankenstein, as they can customize more than 50 new playable characters by mixing and matching body parts. This feature plus by using a game save from the first LEGO Star Wars, gamers have access to more than 100 characters. Other additions include character-specific attacks and maneuvers, Power Brick power-up items, playable mini-kits, an improved two-player camera, tougher puzzles, increased difficulty levels and more.