Bizarre Bazaar–BioWare Apologizes And Loves Us All

After all my whining about BioWare and EA’s apparent snub of allowing only Americans (except those in Florida and New York) to participate in a birthday party for the Mass Effect developer, we have an official apology, reason, and reparations.

Not surprisingly, it seems that a last-minute check of international contest regulations revealed that the rules aren’t the same in every country. So, rather than wait to launch the big BioWare celebration for all countries in unison, the company made the faux pas of singling out just one market for all the fun. It left the BioWare fan community steamed and the company on its heels forced to make good… and fast.

With today’s announcement, BioWare is making good by showing remorse and promising to bring the 15th anniversary celebration to all its fans in the very near future. No more details beyond that, but, in this case, a fast fess-up was exactly the right thing to do. BioWare’s statement appears after the break:

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No Internet Browser For Xbox 360

Bad news, Xbox fans. You’re never going to be able to surf the ‘Net with your Xbox. You’ll have to buy a Wii or a PS3 to satisfy that urge.

In an interview with Edge magazine, Xbox Product Director Aaron Greenberg confirmed the Xbox will never have internet browsing functionality.

“We really believe that the web browsing experience on TV is a poor one, and the real magic is to take those web experiences and optimise them for the living room,” said Greenberg. “That’s what we did with Netflix. So, sure, you can go on the PS3 and go to Facebook and and try to navigate, but it’s an absolute nightmare.”

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Rogers Announces MiFi For Canada

Canadians will soon be able to take their internet hotspots with them where ever they go. Rogers has just announced the Rocket Mobile Hot Spot (aka MiFi) for the Great White North.

The MiFi is a portable WiFi router and 3G modem, small enough to fit into the palm of your hand. Slightly larger than a deck of playing cards, the modem allows up to 5 wireless devices to connect to the internet via Rogers 3.5 G wireless network. The MiFi is completely portable as it doesn’t need to be plugged in. A rechargeable battery let’s you take the device with you on the go.

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Apple to Charge for iPad OS Upgrades?

Many of us are used to downloading the latest iPhone OS upgrades for free. Heck, even iTunes is free to upgrade. Just don’t expect it to be the same for your iPad. It appears Apple will be charging users to update the software on the upcoming device.

According to Apple’s licensing agreement, a clause states customers will be given one OS update free of charge. After that, it will cost you.

Apple will provide you any iPad OS software updates that it may release from time to time, up to and including the next major iPad OS software release following the version of iPad OS software that originally shipped from Apple on your iPad, for free. For example, if your iPad originally shipped with iPad 3.x software, Apple would provide you with any iPad OS software updates it might release up to and including the iPad 4.x software release. Such updates and releases may not necessarily include all of the new software features that Apple releases for newer iPad models.

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CNN Reveals Japan’s Obsession With Rape Games

Gamers know the Japanese play some strange video games. Heck, even JRPGs are considered a bit weird by some. But CNN is startling many this morning with a story about Japan’s obsession with rape games. The games, typically played on the PC, allow you to grope, fondle and force sex upon young Japanese women.

Games like Rapelay, which is the focus in CNN’s story, are not a big secret amongst gamers themselves, but they appear to be ruffling the feathers of women’s groups around the world.

You can check out the full story below:

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First Look at Metroid: Other M Trailer

Nintendo showed us a quick video of Metroid: Other M at last years E3. Since then, only a few screenshots have been leaked. Now the company has unveiled an actual trailer for the game. Of course it wasn’t released here in North America, rather overseas in Japan. But, thanks to the wonderful thing we know as the internet, we tracked it down and posted it above.

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3D Books ‘Cause Reading’s Boring

With 3D TVs, games, and movies, books are getting a raw deal. No one wants to sit and read anymore–especially kids–so publishers need to step up their game if their going to survive, right? One brainstorm later and we’ve got the next big thing: 3D children’s books!

More than just 3D illustrations–we’re talking fully-animated augmented reality. In the prototype in the video above, a Korean picture book comes complete with 3D audio and graphics of dragons, heroes, and warships! I might have been cynical about the death of reading when I started watching, but now I just want one for myself.

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No Need To Cry Over Spoiled Milk

I’ve never had to deal with the horror of spoiled milk. My mom taught me never to waste anything so any milk in my fridge is usually finished by the time the expiry date rolls around.

But there are some that aren’t so conscious about their milk consumption. And when it’s close to that expiry date, they don’t know if their moo juice is good to drink. Thank goodness for Cravendale’s new milk jug. Its easy-to-read LCD screen can tell you if that stuff is still good to drink or if you should flush it down the sink.

How does this magical jug work? Basic chemistry.

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Bizarre Vending Machines

Let’s face it, the Crane Game is so lame. You throw in dollar after dollar hoping to win a prize, only to end up with a cheap toy stuffed with human hair and floor sweepings. Is it really worth it? Nope, but here’s a game that is! For only two dollars you can catch your own live lobster! Now there’s a deal! The only problem is, there’s no guarantee you’ll walk away with a crustacean.

If you think that’s bizarre you should check out the Gold vending machine, or maybe the bicycle parts vending machine. Take a look at some of the other weird and wacky vending machines spotted around the globe below:

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Suspected Code Thief Ditches Court to Play Xbox 360

Normally when a punk ass kid attempts to steal something from a trade show floor, he doesn’t get his picture plastered all over the internet. However, it’s an entirely different story when that punk ass kid allegedly tries to steal the code for a yet to be released game.

An arrest warrant is now out for 20 year-old Justin D. May of Delaware after he allegedly tried to make it off the show floor of PAX East with code from the upcoming shooter Breach. According to police reports, May downloaded some code for Breach, then tried to run away, only to be stopped by a couple of quality assurance testers. When authorities checked his laptop, 14 MB of the roughly 2 GB game file was found on the system.

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