According to Kotaku, Microsoft has banned users who have obtained early, unauthorized versions of Halo 3: ODST on Xbox Live. As Xbox Live Chief, Stephen Toulouse, was quoted in the news article:

"I can be clear that this applies to illegimate copies only, the ban covers the Xbox LIVE account and could possibly include their console depending on the results of our investigations (which are ongoing)."

Microsoft has not disclosed how they are able to differentiate legal copies from illegitimate ones on Xbox Live at this time.

Despite the fact it was questioned whether or not the Locusts eat Imulsion in Gears of War 2, that hasn't stopped a company from releasing "Imulsion" energy drinks with the Gears logo.

The cans are priced at $4 each and can be purchased online at Amazon.

Sony has officially announced the PlayStation 3 Slim will be available on September 1 in North America. The lighter system features a 120GB hard drive and will carry a price tag of $299.

The current 80GB PS3 model has received a price cut and will be effectively priced at $299 in retail stores.

Following the reported rumors, Sony will release the LittleBigPlanet: Game of the Year edition to North American retailers on September 8.

The game will feature the original game and extra costume packs in addition to the top 18-custom designed levels by avid users that are chosen specifically by Media Molecule.

LittleBigPlanet: Game of the Year will carry a price tag of $59.99

Square Enix has launched a teaser website that reads "VII Days" with a countdown timer clock. At the time of this news story, the teaser site displays "IV Days".

Exactly what the countdown is for or its relation with the original "VII" roman numeral is unknown at this time.

Those that wish to visit the site can do so here. 

MCV has reported that a "Game of the Year" version of LittleBigPlanet is in development for the PlayStation 3. This new version is expected to include all of the downloadable content available on the PlayStation Network this past year.

Sony has not offered a comment about the report at this time.

Last year we quietly launched E3Feed just before E3 2008 to mild fanfare.

This year we've completely revamped the site. It's better, faster, stronger.

Besides a slick new design, some new features we've added include a more twitter-like automatic updating system, the ability to customize rss feeds, trending topics, and automatically populated preview images for most stories and videos.

For the uninitiated, E3Feed is a kind of automatic E3 news aggregator that pulls stories from dozens of popular news sources, swirls them around in a dusty cauldron, and pulls out only the E3-related stories. Everything is sortable, searchable, and subscribeable.

So stop wasting time refreshing 46 different tabs with different game news sites looking for E3 info, just leave your browser pointed at E3Feed.com

An early trailer showing Team Ico's third project is available due to an exclusive video posted by the PlayStation Lifestyle website.  The video shows a young boy who bears a striking resemblance to the lead protagonist from the game, Ico.

Sony has offered no comment on the video at this time. Those that wish to visit the site can do so here.

Echoes of Time is a fun hack n’ slash multiplayer game. The game improves upon its Ring of Fates predecessor with a greater emphasis on multiplayer combat and teamwork. Though the Wii version leaves much to be desired, the game is still a solid title on the DS to be enjoyed with friends. Square Enix’s efforts to allow both DS and Wii players to connect and play together are admirable, but one that definitely needs to be tweaked concerning the Wii’s control scheme. Echoes of Time should keep fans happy for some time until the arrival of the upcoming Wii title, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers.

Click here for an explanation of our review and scoring format.

Ring of Fates was Square Enix’s follow-up to their Gamecube title: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles. After receiving fairly positive reviews, Square has returned to tweak the multiplayer features with a greater emphasis on combat in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time. Though the gameplay is similar, the ability to play with your friends over a Wi-Fi connection on both the DS and Wii versions is a welcome addition to the series. Echoes of Time combines the best of Ring of Fates and its Crystal Chronicles Gamecube brethren into a fun, light-hearted RPG for both casual and experienced players.

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