Seems like 2010 is the year of the leaks. iPhones, Nintendo handhelds and today – upcoming Xbox Live Arcade titles. Thanks to a poster over at the Digiex forums we have an early look at a slew of unannounced Live titles. These include the Dreamcast classics Crazy Taxi and Sonic Adventures, Metal Slug XX, Doom II, Quake Arcade Arena and more. Some of them, including Sonic and Metal Slug, have already leaked onto the net in their entirety, while the others have been confirmed through screenshots. Obviously no official announcements have been made from Microsoft. So we have no idea when these will be released or for how much. Frankly the sooner Quake Arena hits Live, the better. Screenshots after the break.

Digiex via Destructoid

With no Justin Bieber to stop him this time, Cliff “Don’t Call Me Cliffy B, or Dude Huge for that matter” Blezinski unveiled Gears of War 3 on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon not more than an hour ago. Late Night has already posted the interview and subsequent teaser (dubbed ‘Ashes to Ashes’) on their blog – head on over there to check it out.

Last night was supposed to be Cliff “Don’t call me Cliffy B” Bleszinski’s big appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, where he would announce Gears of War 3. However, due to an apparent scheduling conflict with Justin Bieber, the announcement was postponed until Monday.

Unfortunately, someone forgot to give that information to whoever runs the dashboard ads on Xbox Live. This morning gamers woke up to the above image, confirming that Gears of War 3 is coming and in April of 2011 to boot. Whoops.

Seems like 2010 is shaping up to be the year of poorly planned surprises.

via Kotaku

As promised, the Pokemon Company has announced two more Pokemon Nintendo DS titles for this year. Dubbed Pokemon Black and White, these titles will usher in the fifth-generation of the franchise when they launch in Japan this fall. And, that’s about all we know right now.

Actually, that’s not true. One new Pokemon named Zoroark was revealed back in February. He/she’s some sort of Monster Fox Pokemon. Although, if you ask me, it looks a lot like the Firefox logo. Lawsuit?

The Pokemon Company site is teasing more information on April 15th. So check back then for the full scoop.

via Joystiq

This fall will see a big screen adaptation of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s popular indie comic series Scott Pilgrim. To capitalize on that release, a slew of tie-ins are also in the works – including a video game. Interestingly, and true to the tone of the comic, the game will employ both pixel art visuals and 8-bit inspired music.

The title was revealed the other day at PAX East 2010. Little is know about the game, aptly titled Scott Pilgrim: The Video Game. It’s being developed by UbiSoft, looks to be some sort of hyper-realistic brawler and the music is being done by indie punk band Anamanaguchi – who according to their website “makes loud, fast music with a hacked NES from 1985.”

The theme to Scott Pilgrim was revealed during Anamanaguchi’s live show at PAX. We got video of that performance AND screen-grabbed visuals after the break.

via Attract Mode and SuperHero Hype!

How is this for a surprise, today Nintendo announced its official successor to the ultra-popular DS platform, entitled the Nintendo 3DS. As you’ve already figured the hardware will feature 3D visuals, however, without the aid of glasses. No other details were given, besides a promise for a full unveiling at E3 (god only know what promoted them to ruin that surprise announcement with today’s news) and a tentative release window between April 2010 and March 2011.

Already the rumor mill is spinning into overdrive. Engadget is citing reports of 3D control sticks, built-in vibration and pixel barrier LCD’s from Sharp. Whatever any of that means is anyone’s guess.

Lest we forget that Nintendo has already dabbled with 3D portable gaming in the past. Perhaps you’ve heard of a little sucess story called the Virtual Boy? Stay tuned for more info.

Joystiq has learned that an upcoming Xbox 360 update will give gamers the option to use a USB-based mass storage devices as a means to save their content. The update is expected to land this Spring and will negate the need for Microsoft’s own 512 meg Memory Units – which they’ve been slowly phasing out over the last year. With this update, gamers will be able to download any Xbox Live Arcade titles, Games on Demand, DLC and system updates directly to a USB portable device. And unlike the Wii’s SD backup solution, you’ll be able to access your content from there as well. Hear that Nintendo? There are several caveats, however. Firstly, the USB storage device must have a capacity greater than 1 gig. Likewise, the 360 will only configure a device to store up to 16 gigs of data – meaning, there is no reason to throw out your official Xbox 120 gig HDD yet. Either way, this is a solid addition to the Xbox 360. Head on over to Joystiq for full details and screenshots.

via Joystiq

March 30th sees the Xbox Live debut of the Modern Warfare 2’s “Stimulus Pack” – a collection of five “new” multiplayer maps. Although, it should be stressed that two of the five maps are remakes from Modern Warfare 1, so I use the term “new” quite loosely. Until now, we haven’t known the price point for this DLC pack. Previous map packs for the original Modern Warfare cost around 800 points for 4 maps – so you’d figure the price point would stay the same.

Wrong.

According to Major Nelson’s recent podcast, the upcoming “Stimulus Pack” will run MW2 fans a staggering 1200 Microsoft points!!! Or 15 US dollars. That’s more than the Special Edition of Monkey Island. Or the upcoming Perfect Dark. Both FULL games. Then again, should we really except anything less from Activision?

Fan outrage in 5… 4… 3… 2…

Telltale Games has released a trailer for the upcoming third season of Sam & Max today. What’s more, it’s been revealed that the series will debut on the Playstation Network – then later on the PC and Mac. No word if previous seasons will be made available on PSN, or when season three will grace the Xbox or Wii. The premiere episode, entitled “The Penal Zone” will release April 15th. Stay tuned for more info.

LucasArts (via original series creators Ron Gilbert and Tim Schafer) has just announced the release of Monkey Island 2: LeChuck’s Revenge for XBLA, PSN, iPhone and PC this summer. Like the previous installment which was released last year, Monkey Island 2 will get the full “Special Edition” treatment; Meaning newly created high-definition graphics and audio, all the while retaining the original 1991 version through a single button click. What’s that you say? You want more? Well, thankfully LucasArts likes you ungrateful bastards and will also be including a brand new (and thankfully very optional) control scheme, new art from Peter Chan and Steve Purcell, and an audio commentary.

Finally, for inquiring minds, Monkey Island 2 is arguably one of the finest adventure games ever crafted. So everyone will be in for quite a treat this summer. Screen-shots and comparisons to the original after the break.

via Joystiq