It may be a spin-off of one of the most successful video game franchises of all time, but does that mean DJ Hero will be a sure success? Not right off the bat, Activision says. Speaking to IGN, Red Octane co-founder Kai Huang said they expect DJ Hero sales to start slowly and build momentum over time (via VG247)."We're not expecting a typical videogame curve where you sell the majority of the units in the first month and then it decays quickly," Huang said. "We're expecting this to be the type of game that may come out of the gate a little bit slower, but continue to grow over time."Huang explained that despite the built-in brand recognition, the drastically different gameplay style makes it a case of almost starting from scratch. "We've got a bit of a head start, people have an understanding what music games are, it has the 'Hero' brand on it," he said. "But at the same time, people don't know what a DJ game is. They don't know what you're supposed to do. Our strategy again is to focus on in-store demos.

  According to an AP story, Netflix stocks are riding high after management announced they'll soon be extending their "watch instantly" Internet streaming service to a new "device."Just what is this device? Netflix, as if channeling their inner 12-year-old, isn't telling -- not yet, anyway. As of now, they've only hinted that it's "already owned by a large number of consumers." This, of course, has revivified speculation that the service will soon become available for the PlayStation 3 or Wii.In fact, analysts are already betting the device they're referring to will either be the PS3 or Wii. To be sure, it's hard to think of any other devices the service could easily be extended to that are already owned by a large number of consumers. And it'd almost certainly be good business for Netflix, as they credit their move to the Xbox 360 for spurring the influx of 2.4 million new subscribers since fall of 2008.

  Back when BioWare pushed back Dragon Age Origins' release date one last time, from October 20 to November 3, they also announced the PlayStation 3 version would be following "later in November." Not so anymore. Bioware co-founder Ray Muzyka has confirmed the game will release on the PS3 on November 3 right along with the 360 and PC versions in North America (via GameSpot).The confirmation comes along with the announcement that the game has gone gold and is heading toward mass manufacturing, so stalwart fans who've been looking forward to this game for five frickin' years can rest assured it won't be delayed again. Musyka also confirmed that the PS3 version's PlayStation Trophies will correspond with the previously revealed Achievements for the 360 version.Now, there is one bit of bad news if you're reading this in Europe, as the PS3 version of Dragon Age Origins is still releasing later in November there. "[We're] still working on the EU release timing for PS3," said Muzyka. "We'll have an announcement on that shortly -- [it's] still planned for some time a bit later in November."

  Considering how well The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion sold, it's pretty likely Bethesda will make a new game in the series eventually. But according to a blurb describing author Greg Keyes' "The Infernal City: An Elder Scrolls Novel," the prospects for a sequel have become a lot more likely (via Kotaku).The Waterstone's retail site's listing for the novel originally had a blurb that described its story as "[taking place] forty-five years after the Oblivion Crisis, which is the story of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion game and the expansion pack Shivering Isles. It partly bridges the gap for the next game, which is set 200 years after the Oblivion crisis."Next game, huh? Set 200 years after Oblivion, eh? It sure seems to confirm a sequel, but you probably won't be surprised to learn that this portion of the blurb seemingly confirming The Elder Scrolls V has since been removed from the retail listing. So don't necessarily take this as a confirmation, but if the blurb was indeed accurate, it looks like Bethesda is already setting the pieces for a sequel in place.

  Good lord, Cho Aniki is back. Aksys Games has announced that they are bringing the "manliest" shooter ever to North America, this time as a digital download for the PlayStation Portable. Cho Aniki's history stretches back to the early 90s, where it was originally released for the PC Engine. Americans got their first official taste of the homoerotic shooter last year, when it was released on the Wii's Virtual Console.Cho Aniki Zero is the latest game in the series, having been released in Japan earlier this year. Sporting a 2.5d appearance similiar to what was found in the PlayStation 2's Cho Aniki: Seinaru Protein Densetsu, it features "five man-mazing levels of love" and multiple endings.

  The Ballad of Aya and YokoHow composer Yoko Shimomura became one of gaming's most versatile voices.By Jeremy ParishVideogames have developed into a mature mainstream entertainment medium over the past few years. Few people would feel ashamed for choosing to spend an evening playing Halo or World of Warcraft over watching brainless television reruns. Yet while the medium may have found acceptance, its music inspires much less enthusiasm. Game soundtrack CDs remain a rare creature in the U.S., and far too often the only games whose audio earns widespread critical acclaim are music titles specifically built around popular songs (The Beatles: Rock Band, for instance) or big-budget action games whose publishers have recruited Hollywood talent like Harry Gregson-Williams or Hans Zimmer to lend a little cinematic flair.Perhaps that's why Japanese composer Yoko Shimomura remains fairly unknown among gamers, despite having created the music for some of the most popular games ever. With major blockbusters like Street Fighter II, Kingdom Hearts, Parasite Eve, and Super Mario RPG under her belt, Shimomura's music has entertained tens of millions of gamers. Yet only a fraction of that number knows her name, and fewer still realize that she's arguably the single most versatile composer in the industry.Shimomura's career began at Capcom in the 1980s, where she contributed music and effects to a number of arcade and NES games. Within a few years, she found herself working on two of the biggest arcade games of the era: Final Fight, which galvanized the nascent brawler genre, and Street Fighter II, which practically invented the fighting game.

  Modern Warfare 2 might not support dedicated servers, but it will be shipping with a few other PC-exclusive features. Valve has announced that Steamworks will be supported from launch, allowing players to access their save files remotely, among other things."Steamworks will make it possible for us to have a closer connection to our fans, and enable us to support our community much more than ever before," said Infinity Ward creative strategist Robert Bowling. "Steam is the hands down leader in offering a community focused experience on PC and the inclusion of Steamworks has allowed us to deliver the most feature-rich PC version to ever come from Infinity Ward, which at the end of the day will mean the most to our fans."

  With its first solo outing a success, Disgaea's demonic penguin mascot will soon be coming back for more. Nippon Ichi has just announced that a sequel to the PSP's Prinny: Can I Really Be The Hero.We don't have much information about the sequel, but it's likely to be NIS's track record suggests that the sequel will be quite similar to the original. For Prinny fans, that's not necessarily a bad thing, as the first game rated a 'B' in our review.If you haven't had a chance to play the first game, you can find it on the PlayStation Network. With a budget version having just been announced for Japan, hopefully North America will follow suit. Just be warned that the game is apparently quite hard.

  It seems that Atlus' evil plan has finally run its course. The publisher is releasing Crimson Gem Saga ($29.99), Yggdra Union ($14.99) and others to the PlayStation Network, thus ensuring plenty of Atlus games for all."We've finally reached a point where, according to our physicians, any further laughing at our masterfully executed plan of never making enough copies of our games for everyone poses risks to our health," said Atlus Manager of PR and Sales Aram Jabbari. "In order to prevent illness, and because, hey, sometimes you just want to change things up, we're very pleased to offer PSP system classics via digital download. It may mean that we'll have to shut down our numerous online auction accounts, as we won't be able to hoard large quantities of our hard-to-find games and then slowly trickle them out at obscenely high prices anymore, but the end result will be better for everyone."

  With its fantastic mix of platforming and shooting gameplay, the Ratchet & Clank series has always struck me as a sort of modern day Mega Man. I mean, there are obviously plenty of differences between the two series, but on a fundamental level the two share a perfection and balance of their core mechanics. What attracted us to one series two decades ago still enthralls us today -- though Ratchet & Clank has the benefit of several gameplay lessons developers have learned along the way, from the appeal of item collection to weapon upgrades. But let's be honest, in the Ratchet & Clank series Insomniac found itself a fantastic formula that's remained consistently fun and entertaining, and has been easy to replicate -- we've seen nine Ratchet games in the past eight years (counting the PSP titles). Because of this, if you're burnt out on the series, I'll completely understand if you plan to skip out on this latest installment. I'll understand, sure, but I'll still try to convince you otherwise.