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Well it’s about time. The Xbox 360 version of King of Fighters XII has finally been patched to fix its various online troubles and stability issues. Its PS3 counterpart was issued some time ago, as it didn’t have the red tape and nonsensical certification hurdles, and this should bring the 360 version up to speed.

The patch addresses everything from matchmaking and chat restrictions to response time and lag issues, so hopefully whatever was broken before will be kosher from now on. Let’s hope nothing slipped between the cracks, lest we wait through another several months of Microsoft hoop jumping for it to be fixed.

The update is live now, so if you found the game less than playable online before, it might be worth giving another shot. Hit the jump for all the details in the official press release.

SNK PLAYMORE RELEASES ONLINE GAMEPLAY UPDATE
FOR THE KING OF FIGHTERS XII™
Newly Released Online Patch Fully Optimizes Gameplay on Xbox 360® Video Game and Entertainment System from Microsoft
 
October XX, 2009 – Today SNK PLAYMORE released a new online update patch for the award-winning The King of Fighters XII that fully addresses previously known issues to help optimize online gameplay on the Xbox 360® Video Game and Entertainment System from Microsoft.  In addition to the optimization of online matches, this patch also fixes a variety of in-game issues including specifications to the tallying of TrueSkill points in a ranked match, correction to movements of specific character combinations and/or match-ups, and specifications related to in-game chat capability restrictions.
 
This update places greater importance on the game’s response time by changing the way game data is processed and synchronized during online matches.  These changes provide players a stable gameplay environment regardless of specific internet conditions resulting in a smoother more intuitive experience.  The update also prevents players from experiencing slowdown during an online match when connections are less than optimal.
 
“The King of Fighters is one of the most popular fighting game franchises of all time,” said Shinya Morishita, SNK Director of Japan and US Relations.  “SNK PLAYMORE and Ignition Entertainment have worked together very closely to ensure that we have addressed all gameplay concerns.  We are both committed to supporting quality products and are excited to announce the release of this new gameplay update which allows our fans to continue to enjoy The King of Fighters XII.”
 
SNK PLAYMORE would like to apologize for any inconvenience or trouble they might have caused to fans of the The King of Fighters.  SNK PLAYMORE strives to improve the system of quality control for this title and all SNK products.  SNK PLAYMORE asks for your kind understanding and looks forward to continued support from its loyal fans.
 
The King of Fighters XII features four gameplay modes, new gameplay elements such as Critical Counter Attacks, arcade-style online lobbies, a worldwide online ranking system and more.  The 22 hand-drawn characters include favorites from earlier The King of Fighters including Kyo Kusanagi, Athena Asamiya, Terry Bogard and Leona Heidern.  Additional information about the game can be found at the game’s official website: www.kingoffighters12.com, on Twitter: www.twitter.com/KOF12 and on Facebook: www.facebook.com/kingoffighters12.
 
The award-winning The King of Fighters XII was released on July 28, 2009 for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system.

Friday Night Fights is a weekly gathering of Dtoiders to just play games with one another.

Yes, it’s Halloween tomorrow. Scantily clad drunk girls, “fun size” candy that’s not actually fun, and so many kids ringing your doorbell that it breaks (this honestly happened to me); there’s a reason why this is my favorite time of year.

I suppose we ought to be thankful the holiday isn’t today, since there is gaming to be done. With a couple of weeks until the final big releases of the year are out, it’s going to be mostly Uncharted 2 again and possibly the Left 4 Dead 2 demo for those who have it.

Also, don’t forget to try out the meetup+play section while it still has that new page smell. You can win a $1,500 PC by adding games to your profile and sending a request to play. Do eet!

Quick guide to FNF for new players: Each week, a bunch of Destructoid readers and usually an editor or two get together to play some videogames online. Fun times!

The planning for FNF takes place in the forums, where Dtoiders volunteer to host by posting their information (gamertag, time to meet up, game, etc.) in the forum post corresponding to the system they’re interested in playing on.

Then, every Friday, reminder posts for those who don’t read the forums regularly go up in the community blogs section all thanks to a dedicated group of cool individuals. And for everyone who wants their info all in one place, they have got my weekly recap posts which you are currently reading.

Now that you’re here, just scan the list below and find a game you want to play. All that’s left to do after that is to join the match by contacting the host below using any means necessary. For Wii, you might have to be a little creative, but for 360/PS3 a simple “invite plz” message will be fine.

Tonight’s Hosts (more info from Zombutler):
• Blasto – Blastopotamus (Left 4 Dead Versus w/ Crash Course @ 9:00 EDT)
• KamikazeSlowey – SL0WEY (Call of Duty 4 @ 10:30 EDT)

Tonight’s Hosts (more info from Shipero):
• Santanaclaus89 – Moosehole (Marvel vs. Capcom 2 @ 8:00 EDT, Uncharted 2 @ 10:00 EDT, SOCOM: Confrontation @ 12:00 EDT)
• JackofNoTrades – JackofNoTrades85 (Tekken 6 @ 8:00 EDT, BlazBlue @ 9:00 EDT)
• FalconReaper – FalconReaper (Uncharted 2 @ 10:00 EDT)
• BulletTrain – RPGEmperor (Tekken 6 @ 11:00 EDT)

Beyond FNF:
• Saturday Night Shooter

Tonight’s Game:
• Street Fighter IV

Beyond FNF:
• Destructoid’s Steam group

Arkedo is keeping their promise of one game a month on the Xbox Live Indie Games channel with their new game, SWAP! SWAP! is a dual-stick action puzzle game where you have to move one block at a time to create a four block chain either horizontally or vertically. The game features a few different modes and there’s even a story to the game, a first for Arkedo.

The game is available now on the Indie Games section for 240 MS Points. Go check out the demo and let us know what you think! We should expect a couple of more titles from Arkedo in the coming months.

About the Arkedo Series:

The Arkedo Series is a little experiment we are doing: our goal is to release one game a month, for 240 MS points, on the XBOX Live Indie channel.  The idea is to experiment as much as possible, on as many concepts as possible, while trying to build a brand on the marketplace with unexpensive but fun and polished games. Two games are already out: “Arkedo Series – 01 JUMP!” and “Arkedo Series – 02 SWAP!” They seem quite popular so far.

Overview:

Arkedo Series – 02 SWAP! is our first Dual-Stick Action Puzzle. The concept is easy : you just swap pairs of blocks, horizontally or vertically. And have fun. Arkedo Labs has carefully selected the best genes of the dominant “color-match” type, then crossed them with a very rare but powerful “Dual Stick” genotype. The result, after quite some trials and errors, is a very stable and combo-based hybrid, which should easily find its nest on any living room, and stay there forever.

Features:

• Help King Kat get his Castle back! Introducing the first Arkedo game with a story. Honestly, it was worth the wait.  
• 3 modes: Castle Mode (a 5-level story mode which will slowly introduce basic and advanced features), Arcade Mode (high scores and rare combos skills, here you come!) and Challenge Mode (finish the game and think you are good, enter the Challenge Mode and reevaluate your assumption).
• Dual Stick and vertical freedom allow for total eradication of 99,7% of all organic boredom. Traces of awesome may be found.  
• Powered by our heavily-patented “Know why you Score®” technology. Simply put, our “Know why you Score®” feature allows you to be good at the game for a reason, and not just watch random combos explode everywhere for no apparent purpose apart from keeping your reptilian cortex fit.

A little late, but Activision has finally decided to let you hear the mixes you could have downloaded for DJ Hero since yesterday.  

The two mixes – “All Of Me” by 50 Cent featuring Mary J. Blige vs. “Radio Ga Ga” by Queen and “DARE” by Gorillaz vs. “Can’t Truss It” Performed by Public Enemy — will cost you $5.99 for the pack. You can’t buy the songs individually on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3; the Wii will get the DLC as single tracks on November 24 for 300 Wii Points a piece.

Since there’s no in-game music store or preview mode in DJ Hero (yet), it might be hard for some to buy the tracks unheard. What if they’re junk? Well, now you can hear them. As far as how they play, Gus Mastrapa over at Wired’s GameLife did a ridiculously detailed hands-on write up, putting his music journalism chops to the test. Good stuff. 

The other video is after the jump. What do you think of the mixes? Worth the purchase?

I won’t lie, I’ve done my fair share of interviews in strange places, however this one takes the cake. In the basement of the Bright Dawn Treatment Center, I had the opportunity to speak with Aubry Norris, product marketing manager for Dementium II. 

Although we were almost killed by the electrical firestorm shooting out of the elevator lift, we did get a great deal of information about the squeal to Dementium: The Ward, so be sure to check out the video after the jump, as well as CTZ’s preview, to find out more about the game. 

Yes, I know “badical” isn’t technically a word, but that’s the term Nick Chester used to describe the opening cinematic to LEGO Rock Band, and I couldn’t think of a more appropriate or accurate word. So there you have it: badical.

There’s a cute little LEGO band rocking out to “Grace” by Supergrass, which implores you to “save your money for the children” — a subliminal buy this for your kids for Christmas message to parents, perhaps? In any case, you can follow the band as they traverse a number of the game’s outlandish venues in a variety of vehicles, including a pirate ship and a jet. There’s even a goddamn dinosaur from the LEGO City History Museum to spice up the proceedings, and as you all know, dinosaurs make everything better.

You can buy LEGO Rock Band for your kids — or yourself, if you’re just interested in exporting the game’s 45 songs to your hard drive for use in Rock Band 2 — on November 3rd in North America, and November 27th in the UK, for $49.99 on PS3, 360, and Wii ($29.99 on DS). (The export — available on PS3 and 360 only — will cost you an additional $9.99.) Hit up my preview of the game here!

Namco Games announced this morning that Garters & Ghouls had hit Apple’s App Store, so I immediately ran to my iPod Touch to download it. I mean, it promised to feature two of my favorite things, those things being both garters and ghouls. 

The game starts with a debutante, Marie, being brought back from the dead by Megaman’s Dr. Wily to slaughter some zombies. (Note: Dr. Wily does not actually appear in the game, but I’m pretty sure it’s the same actor who plays him.) Gameplay is a relatively simple “twin stick” shooter, with two touch analogs used to move Marie, and to shoot waves of zombies and monsters with various weapons like a crossbow or shotgun.

Garters & Ghouls doesn’t look bad running on the iPhone, with its campy comic book feel that translates pretty well to the touch screen. I’m personally not a huge fan of the “phantom analog stick” thing that a lot of iPhone devs force into games, but they’re serviceable for Garters & Ghouls. My biggest complaint would be the speed in which Marie walks… for someone being attacked by hordes of monsters, she moves like she’s wearing cement shoes.

The game features 25 levels, along with a full set of in-game achievements, if that’s you’re sort of thing. Like most games on the App Store, it’s only $4.99, and that price seems about right. Perhaps you might want to make it your next “on the toilet” impulse buy. I did. 

Academy of Champions: Soccer is coming out next Tuesday and to promote the game, Ubisoft sent over four soccer balls themed after the game. The balls were also signed by soccer star Mia Hamm, making these limited edition balls even more special. In order to win one of the prizes, we wanted you to write a haiku based on videogames and soccer.

Congratulations to Gatorsax2010, Jfbguy, Dexter345 and PreacherMan89! You four have won the soccer balls! I’ll be getting in touch with you all to get your shipping addresses soon. Check out the winning haikus after the break. Honorable mentions go out to King Krunk, Kregy D, Super Drybones and ScottyG for their entries too. Thanks again to Ubisoft for the prizes!

More contests are happening right now! Check them out:

Barf to win Critter Crunch codes, shirts & art! Ends November 2!

Win a new PS3 courtesy of FEARnet! Ends November 2!

Try Dtoid’s new gaming meetup thing, win 1 of 3 sick PCs Ends this week!

Gatorsax2010

Some call it soccer
Others, football. It’s best when
Mega Man plays it.

Jfbguy

Mutant League it be
I’ll rip off the balls from thee 
Hat trick you will see

Dexter345

Soccer or football? 
Do we ask Samit which one? 
No, Joseph Leray.

PreacherMan89

Soccer is stupid. 
Video games are better. 
That is why I’m fat.

While the above could be a sinister joke, one of the most recent tweets blasted by the official Naughty Dog Twitter account has us thinking goblins could be coming to Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. Just look at it. Goblins. In Uncharted 2.

On the other hand, these little creatures could be broken Hobbits, twisted and shattered by the power of the One Ring. Or we suppose, in this case, Marco Polo’s little hidden treasure. Point is, we haven’t the slightest idea what the hell these boney-skeleton thing is. The tweet didn’t have the details.

“Working late tonight,” the tweet reads, “got a ton of things that need to get done …”

We’re checking in Naughty Dog on this one, but we’re still pumped about the possibilities of the image. The last we heard on the DLC front, though (which this would probably have to be delivered as) was that competitive multiplayer was to be the initial focus. If true, how the hell does this image fit into the picture?

[via Joystiq, thanks BS3 Owner!]

[Update: Look. A skeleton goblin thing. Might be a skin or something given at level 60. We're not sure.]