Michael Pachter is at it again, analyzing and giving his thoughts on matters concerning the game industry. This time, he laments how much money could have been made if a timely game tie-in to the blockbuster The Dark Knight was released. He says Warner Bros. and EA may have missed out on US$ 100 million. More after the jump.

Good news, Rock Band fans! We've got some juicy new details related to the upcoming Rock Band 2. Find out the platforms the game will be headed on, the number of tracks, and the general release date of the game after the jump!

Wii owners who have their consoles online have learned that correct, up-to-date content has not existed on the Wii Weather Channel from the beginning. This is in contrast with other services like the Wii News Channel, which has lived up to its billing. A recent check at the Weather Channel, however, revealed that all may not be lost after all. Find out how so after the jump.

Ever questioned how safe your drinking water is? Well, the Associated Press did. In the process of their investigation, they were able to uncover some startling facts on drinking water. They found out that there were still various drugs in the water which everybody had access to. Find out the details in the full article.

Atari just received a warning from NASDAQ stating it may be delisted for low stock market value. Even after patching things up with FUNimation, it seems the video game company is in the red once more. Find the details at the full article.

New contracts for the next-gen space systems have landed at NASA's Michoud Facility in New Orleans which will provide a boost to the state's current economy that's still being rebuilt after hurricane Katrina ravaged the land and its people. The new contracts will bring more jobs and higher wages to New Orleans. Check out the rest of the details at the full article.

It's official: BioShock (Microsoft Xbox 360, PC) is a necessity for gamers. Or at least, 2K Games announced that the genetically enhanced title is proven to be a must-have gift for this holiday season. With plenty of Game of the Year awards under its belt, 2K is confident in BioShock. The biggest honors the game received await at the full article.

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has revealed a new gift-giving feature for the Nintendo Wii home video game console. This new feature further broadens the console's online offerings.

The new feature will let users send a Virtual Console game as a gift to others via the Wii Shopping Channel. Once the recipient accepts the gift, the shopping channel launches automatically and the download for the game commences.

Iwata also once again ruled out a price cut for their Wii home video game console. According to the Associated Press, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said that the company was "still focusing on how to meet booming demand" so a price cut is out of the question.

Finally, Iwata revealed that the company will start selling the Wii in China next year. No sales projections were disclosed, but Iwata said that the company's "future potential there is huge".

 

Looks like the HD-DVD format is being left out in the cold this holiday season. Following Blockbuster's announcement of a Blu-ray exclusivity deal, this new announcement from Target is looking like the format wars' final nail on the coffin.

The Associated Press has just released a statement that Target, second-largest retail outlet in the US, will be bringing the Blu-ray under the spotlight this holiday season. They're going to be pushing up Blu-ray players and discs all the way to the front displays, specifically, the endcaps of the store aisles.

Sony's BDP-S300 Blu-ray player will be sold come October for US$ 499, and flanking it on the shelves would be Blu-ray movies from Sony Pictures and Walt Disney.

It might be worth of note that Target would still continue selling HD-DVD items, like the Xbox 360's HD-DVD add-on. But it seems as if, on the disc player side of things, the retail chain will only carry Blu-ray players from Sony and not HD-DVD players (with an exception to Toshiba's HD-DVD player which is available on the Target website). So, like the deal with Blockbuster, Sony's hand on Target looks like a pretty secure lock-out.

Target is to make its official announcement of the deal with Sony come Thursday.

Who said black cats bring bad luck? In Rhode Island, a two-year old white feline named Oscar joining you in bed means you're going to die a few hours after.

The Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, where patients with Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, and other illnesses are treated, adopted Oscar as a kitten. Six months have passed before they noticed that he does his rounds, sniffing and observing patients, before curling up beside those that will die in less than four hours.

After observing Oscar in 25 cases, the staff came to believe that the cat is very accurate. Since then, family members of patients "chosen" by the furry death bringer are notified on what's about to happen. Even David Dosa, a geriatrician and assistant professor of medicine at Brown University, believes Oscar's ability. He stated in an essay on the New England Journal of Medicine:

He doesn't make too many mistakes. He seems to understand when patients are about to die. Many family members take some solace from it. They appreciate the companionship that the cat provides for their dying loved one.

Another doctor from the nursing house, Dr. Joan Teno, who specializes in treating the terminally ill, said that Oscar is better in predicting death than people who work there.

Oscar is serious about his work, and very moody about it. "This is not a cat that's friendly to people," said Dosa. Once, a family wanted the cat off the dying patient's bed. He was taken out, but his meows were nothing but signs of displeasure.

Up to now, it can't be explained how the feline can "predict" death. Teno suggests that the cat may be using the scents of dying patients, or he can tell by looking at the nurses' behavior. Staff in the nursing center don't mind if Oscar is left shrouded with mystery. A wall plaque was even given to him for his "compassionate hospice care."

Photo from Associated Press