Most people in America have probably heard Drop it Like it’s Hot about a dozen times now, and the titular lyric is part of popular culture. Hot Pockets has stepped up to capitalize on this with a surprisingly self-serious (for a rap music video) advertisement with Snoop, DeStorm Power, Andy Milonakis, WWE Superstar Brodus Clay and “Herbie Hot Pockets”.
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Apple announced that head of store operations John Browett is resigning from the company after just a half year on the job. The over 360 stores that Apple runs will report to CEO Tim Cook while the company looks for a replacement.
Meanwhile, senior vice president of iOS software Scott Forstall is also leaving, reportedly over the Maps fiasco. He joined Apple in 1997 with its purchase of Steve Jobs’ NeXT startup and is credited as one of the original architects of Mac OS X; Mac OS head Craig Federighi will add iOS development to his responsibilities.
Source: AP {link no longer active}
Assassin’s Creed III is finally releasing after months of hype and huge anticipation. This trailer, unlike the European version that looks more like a music video, drills down hard to the reason why Connor becomes an assassin.
The official Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 live action trailer, part of the “There’s a Soldier in All of Us” series, was directed by Guy Ritchie and features a blistering amount of cameos (FPS Russia!) in the span of a minute. Also included is the regular launch trailer showing off the game, which many have probably seen as a TV spot.
Google announced their holiday lineup of Nexus devices this year and all will come pre-installed with Android 4.2, the latest version of Google’s mobile operating system. This will include a refreshed Google Nexus 7 with 16GB version as the new entry-level at $199, the 32GB Nexus 7 at $249 and a mobile data compatible version of the Nexus 7 releasing for $299 on November 13.
The Nexus 10 is Google’s first 10-inch tablet and has a 2560×1600 resolution screen, Samsung’s dual-core 2GB of RAM, a Samsung Exynos 5250 and 16 or 32 GB of storage; there is only support for Wi-Fi at this moment, however. The Google Nexus 10 will cost $399 for the 16 GB unit and $499 for the 32 GB unit, with a release date of November 13, 2012.
Nexus 4 will replace the Samsung Galaxy Nexus with a 4.7-inch screen with a resolution of 1280×768 powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon S4 Pro processor and 2GB of RAM; there will not be support for LTE. The Nexus 4 will be available in 8GB and 16GB units for $299 and $349 respectively and will come out on November 13, 2012.
Source: GoogleBlog.com
Microsoft Studios head Phil Spencer says that Halo 4 is the most important entertainment product in the company’s history. When asked if it was also the most expensive product, Spencer said, “Absolutely. Nothing’s even close.”
While Spencer didn’t give an exact amount, this total also includes the total media spend on the game. Halo: Reach in 2010 was Microsoft’s previous high to be spent on marketing, bigger than Halo 3 which saw $6.5 million in its total media spend according to Kantar Media (the actual amount is likely far higher).
Source: Polygon
While Corbulo Academy is being destroyed by the Covenant invasion, the surviving cadets fight bravely alongside their only hope: The Master Chief.
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Production I.G. has made an impressive recreation of the Mass Effect universe with all of the trappings of an anime. Check out nine mintues of this feature-length animated prequel.
Sony has revealed that Benedict Arnold will be the focal point of a free DLC pack that is coming to Assassin’s Creed III. The PS3 exclusive will see Connor foiling a plan to betray West Point to the British, exposing Arnold.
“Benedict Arnold is a name that transcended the Revolution and became a synonym for the word ‘traitor’,” said Matt Turner, Scriptwriter for Assassin’s Creed III. “Given some of the themes in the main story thread, it flowed really well with some of the later beats… but I won’t be specific as they are spoilers! It was also a great opportunity for us to tell a story that people know but don’t really know, you know ”
“We have some scenes that have the actual words spoken by key players in the events at West Point, according to the records from the court proceedings following what happened,” said Turner. “On the other side of things, we needed to inject it with some gameplay so there are some liberties in terms of the action. But who was there, what they did, and what happened to them is as precise as the history books would allow.”
“Our interpretation of Arnold actually weaves into the overall fiction and to divulge that would be to spoil a portion of the story,” he added. “That being said, we don’t like having ‘bad guys’ in Assassin’s Creed and this is no different in terms to Arnold and these missions. He has his reasons, and from a certain perspective they make complete sense.”
To put the event in historical context, Arnold’s betrayal could have cost the Colonists the war. “A simple fact is that the Hudson River was the single most strategic body of water during the American Revolution. It essentially split the colonies in two, so whoever controlled the river controlled the supply lines. And West Point was by far the most heavily fortified area during the war for this very reason. Where the fort was built, the river narrowed and made a small ‘S’, allowing enough room for only one tall ship to pass through at a time. The Patriots built a massive chain on rafts floating across the water stopping any ship from making its way up because they were so outmatched in terms of the navy. It was the only way they could hope to hold it – and it worked,” said Turner. “A large portion of Revolutionary historians contend that if West Point had been captured by the British, and the chain destroyed, the Patriots would have lost the war.”Source: Blog.Playstation.com
Irrational games announced that BioShock Infinite will have a Premium Edition for $79.99. It will include a 3-inch keyring based on the “Murder of Crows” special power, a lithograph, a figurine for the new BioShock Infinite board game, an art book and various downloadables, including wallpaper images and in-game bonuses.
There will also be the Ultimate Songbird Edition for $149.99. The extra money nets you a 9 ½ inch statue of Songbird, BioShock Infinite’s primary antagonist, designed by concept artist Robb Waters.
