What's more upsetting: that rumored God of War director Brett Ratner thinks the Guitar Hero brand is good movie material or that someone actually pays this guy to consult on their brands? In an interview with the movie mangler, MTV managed to get Ratner to say (ostensibly with a straight face), "I would love to do a Guitar Hero movie, if Activision would ever let me. I'm trying to convince them, but why would you have a movie screw up such a huge franchise? Not that I would make a bad movie." Oh no, what could be bad about a movie based on a video game that tasks players with hitting colored dots in time with rock music? Wait, don't answer that. Joystiq spies report that Ratner is also considering adaptations of video game classics Pong and Tetris.

So there's that. Then there's this: Brett Ratner was paid real money to "come up with a name" for the latest Guitar Hero. Ratner says, "I did, and it became Guitar Hero: World Tour." In other words, the geniuses at Activision couldn't figure out a name on their own, so who better than the guy who directed Rush Hour? In other news, we're apparently in the wrong line of work.

An Activision press release that just landed in our inbox breathlessly details every single promotional tie-in that Guitar Hero World Tour's packing. Really, it's a huge list! Here it is, straight from the release: "Ampeg, Audio-Technica, EMG Pickups, Ernie Ball, Evans Drumheads, Guitar Center, Krank Amplification, Mackie, Marshall, Orange County Drum & Percussion, Pork Pie Percussion, Regal Tip, Sabian cymbals, Vox and Zildjian drumsticks."

Notice anything missing? Considering it's busy trying to sue everyone but Activision, even retailers, it's unsurprising that guitar-maker (and patent-claimer) Gibson is nowhere to be seen. Of course, the total absence of any Gibson branding on Guitar Hero World Tour's Genericasters was our first clue but it would appear that lack of cooperation extends to the in-game experience as well. So, while you trick out your virtual drum kit with gear from the above purveyors, your axe will remain hopelessly generic. Isn't there any game in town besides Gibson and Rock Band BFF's Fender?

Something totally gross is afoot on the intergalactic mining vessel USG Ishimura. The latest issue of the animated Dead Space comic is now available for your viewing pleasure, complete with subtle pans, focus pulls, and just enough squishy sound effects to get the whole thing across.

As far as video game advertising goes, we've gotta say these comics/videos are pretty effective. Watching these chumps try and kill the space-baddies is pretty frustrating when we all know that you need to strategically dismember them. You can't just shoot willy-nilly! And seriously, how do you expect to do any damage without a badass spacesuit and accompanying laser triton? You know what, forget it! We'll just do it ourselves ... drat, advertising!

Perhaps the vagaries of reality have finally taken hold and you've done it. You've canceled the WoW account. Now you're back together with the Mrs., you've re-memorized all your kids' names, and you've got something that approximates steady work. Life, it would seem, is perfect. Then you heard the siren call of Wrath of the Lich King and – what is this? – you shut it out. Fine ... be strong.

But can you shut out the opportunity to drive your Sword of a Thousand Truths deep into the spotted fur of Bambi's mother? Sure, you cried during Bambi like everyone else did, but can you really resist transforming sweet, innocent Bambi(na) – spotted in Wrath's Northrend – into the crazy-eyed "Vengeful Bambina"? Blizzard's hoping you can't. But what if the kids see what you've done? You'll lose it all! Again!

[Via WoW Insider]

Remember when Neversoft's Brian Bright allegedly told G4 that a new peripheral was coming to Guitar Hero World Tour, and G4 speculated it would, in fact, be a keyboard? We had a chance to talk to the very same Brian Bright who told us that "a keyboard controller deserves to be introduced with its own game. This is something we're thinking about." B-b-b-but what about all the keyboard section in the song creator? Bright says, "there are reasons why we haven't included a keyboard controller." He elaborates that not all of the songs have keyboard parts so, "adding a keyboard controller would either have limited our choices, or the players."

... so Keyboard Hero: Billy Joel confirmed? Check out the full interview for more on World Tour's song creation system.

So, you know how this works. Sony releases yet another PS3 SKU and, suddenly, you're tasked with keeping the entire lineup in order. Which one comes with HD compatible cables? (Spoiler alert: none). Which currently shipping model has PS2 backwards compatibility? (Spoiler alert: none). But it's not all bad news. Want to know which models are packing the cooler, quieter 65nm chips? Or which models come with free stuff? It's all in here. If there's anything we've missed or anything we've gotten incorrect, please let us know in the comments. We're quite certain this won't be the last time we update this table.

	160GB	80GB	80GB	40GB	60GB	20GB
Hardware
Model #	CECHP01	CECHK01	CECHE01	CECHG01	CECHA01	CECHB01
Available	Nov 2008	Aug 2008	Aug 2007	Oct 2007	Nov 2006	Nov 2006
Price	$499.99	$399.99	$499.99*	$399.99*	$599.99*	$499.99*
Chrome trim	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
USB 2.0 slots	2	2	4	2	4	4
802.11 b/g	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Flash card reader	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	No
Size (Cell / RSX)	65nm / ?1	65nm / ?1	65nm / 90nm (built 2008) 90nm / 90nm (built 2007)	65nm / 90nm2	90nm / 90nm	90nm / 90nm
Bundled Accessories
Ethernet cable	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
Video cables	Composite	Composite	Composite	Composite	Composite	Composite
Software	Uncharted, PAIN	None	MotorStorm	Spider-Man (Blu-ray)	None	None
Backwards Compatibility
PS2	No	No	Software3	No	Yes (NTSC), Software3 (PAL)	Yes
PS One	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

Notes:
* This model is discontinued. The price on the chart represents the original retail price.
1. PS3 graphics chip going 65nm this Fall; New 80GB PS3 may be sporting 65nm RSX to match 65nm Cell
2. 40GB PS3s have 65nm Cell chips, 90nm GPUs
3. SCEE: No plans to offer PS2 backwards compatibility later as DLC for 40GB PS3

Don't believe the hype: PC gaming, while not the juggernaut of year's past, is doing just fine, thank you. One need look no further than Big Download's roundup of the fall's biggest PC releases. Of course, the list is full of the big AAA releases one would expect – that would be your Wrath of the Lich Kings, your Warhammer Onlines, your Spores, your – but just as interesting is the huge amount of multiplatform games hitting the platform. Silent Hill Homecoming, Saints Row 2, Dead Space, Prince of Persia. In other words, there's something for everyone. So hop in and see what PC gamers have in store this year.

Remember back in February when Gearbox Software big boss Randy Pitchford teased his studio's next project as something "big"? Well, not just "big" but something that was "even bigger" than anything Gearbox is currently working on? Well, the kids at OXM sure remembered and they sent their spies deep undercover into Gearbox territory and came back with one heck of a rumor for their October issue: Gearbox is working on Halo 4 as a launch title for the next Xbox (NextBox?).

With Bungie admittedly uninterested in creating Halo games ad nauseum, and Gearbox one of the industry's top FPS developers, we've certainly heard crazier rumors. And there are few licenses that would get a studio chieftain to inadvertently slam his own games in development. Whatever the project is, Pitchford has said he'll be directing it himself, adding, "When you find out what this is, you'll likely agree that I can't oversell this one." Nope, you probably couldn't Randy. Overselling Halo is Microsoft's job anyway; you guys just make with the shooting of the aliens ... no, the other aliens.

[Thanks for the tip, Jordan!]

Our pals at Big Download hit the phones, tracked down PR people and figured out which companies, exactly, are going to this year's E for All Expo ... and the answers ain't pretty. In fact, the only two major exhibitors will be Microsoft and Electronic Arts! THQ and Konami – familiar faces from last year's expo – won't be in attendance this year while Nintendo and 2K Games – also at last year's Expo – have yet to make a decision (Update: 2K and Activision, previously undecided, let BD know that they won't be attending).

To make sense of the whole messy situation, we did the same thing we always do when we're upset: grabbed the crayons and expressed our feelings artistically ... then we turned those feelings into a chart comparing exhibitors for both this year's and last year's E for All, side-by-side with this year's Penny Arcade Expo. Yes, we know the Penny Arcade kids have been pouring salt into E for All's wounds for awhile now and that this is just another pile of color-coded salt that we're placing at their disposal. But really, that's a lot of salt! Chart after the break or read the full article at Big Download.

[Update: IDG sent us a comment: "We're disappointed that you didn't contact us yesterday before putting up your E for All post, and we hope you'll do so in the future. At this point, we'll just say that the show isn't over until Tiger hits his last hole in one, Microsoft has packed up its last Xbox, Target has sold its last Wii Fit, Fatal1ty has blown away his last opponent, and the World Cyber Games National champions are crowned. Further announcements are forthcoming, and we are confident that E for All 208 will be a great event for everyone in the game community."]

Ziff-Davis Media's annual DigitalLife Expo – held each fall in New York City's Javits Center – is canceled this year thanks to "poor economic conditions." The last two years had a significant gaming presence (2006 and 2007) and, facing a lack of interest in the show in 2007, Ziff's "apparent strategy was to put more of a focus on gaming for the 2008 edition" according to CNET. DigitalLife Vice President Paul O'Reilly said in an e-mailed statement, "Hopefully, a bigger and stronger DigitalLife will return in 2009."

So, if you had September 25-28 circled in your 2008 Hot Men of Ziff-Davis calendar, we'd recommend you spend that time with some of this fall's bigger games. Seriously, what were you thinking anyway? September has Rock Band 2, Spore, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, and Mercenaries 2 (on August 31). You'll be quite busy.

We'll be honest: most of the staff at Joystiq has a serious medical condition that makes us physically unable to resist good co-op gameplay. We can't do it. It's a serious condition. There's only two known treatments: 1) massive amounts of mind-altering pharmaceuticals or 2) co-op video games. Sometimes, we're forced to seek out the former when there aren't any co-op games on the ol' release calendar while other times there are games like Mercenaries 2: World in Flames that would appear to provide enough co-op gameplay to keep us drug-free for a long time.

Above you've got another Mercenaries 2 developer walkthrough, this time sharing the wonders of the game's co-op functionality. Don't mean to brag, but we've already played it. That means you'll want to pay attention, lest you miss things like "drop-in," "drop-out," "campaign," and "explosion." Say, does anyone have an early copy of Castle Crashers, we're really hurting over here ...

There's a war going on. No, we're not talking about the one between the Armies of Order and the Armies of Destruction depicted in the recently released cinematic trailer for EA's upcoming MMO Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. Nope, we're talking about the war being waged on blogs and in forums over which fantasy MMO-themed video is better: this one or the Wrath of the Lich King opening. Since it's a war, you all have to watch both and pick a side. Apathy is not a choice!

We've long offered a mobile version of Joystiq at m.joystiq.com, for those of you with a Blackberry, Windows Mobile, or what have you. But looking at the data, the iPhone slash iPod Touch platform represents a commanding 79.5% of all mobile pages served (some stats after the break).

So with that in mind, we're unveiling i.joystiq.com, a specially formatted page that delivers the entire Joystiq experience (including comments this time!) with none of the cruft of a full-sized web page. We know there are still some kinks to be ironed out, so consider this service in beta until, well ... there are no more kinks. In the meantime, let us know what you think in the comments (maybe try leaving a comment from your fancy iPhone, Mr. Millionaire).

G4 claims to have gotten "the hot word" on a new Guitar Hero World Tour peripheral from Neversoft's Brian Bright who "wouldn't go into detail about what it will be," though he apparently said the new peripheral was "specifically for the game's Studio mode."

We've reached out to Activision for some kind of comment or confirmation; however, until then, speculation seems to be the name of the game. G4 is guessing keyboard, which is all well and good. And who knows, it may well be a keyboard. We're not oracles here. But as long as we're just guessing, why not guess a little bigger, y'know? That's why we're happy to announce Joystiq's official guess for the rumored new Guitar Hero World Tour peripherpal: keytar.

Ubisoft took the opportunity afforded by the Leipzig Games Convention to announce ANNO 1404, the publisher's first ANNO offering after acquiring the popular PC "building-strategy" property and its German publisher in 2007. In ANNO 1404 – scheduled for release worldwide in March 2009 anno domini – "players will get to know the culture and technology of the ancient Orient while learning the tricks of local trade, diplomacy and economy in order to build their own metropolis." We'll see if Ubisoft's international marketing muscle can help the ANNO titles find an audience outside of ol' Europe.