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Angry Birds, that game everyone won’t shut up about and I only just saw in motion for the first time five minutes ago, is coming to new gaming systems. We knew that already — kind of. It was previously made clear that the game will release on PlayStation 3, PSP, and DS.

The new word on the street is that Angry Birds will also get Wii and Xbox 360 versions (presumably via download), as revealed by Rovio CEO Peter Vesterbacka at London’s Social Gaming Summit. Purportedly, multiplayer will be a major emphasis and feel like classic Worms.

I’m super interested to see how well Angry Birds does on non-mobile platforms. You can’t really compare any of those marketplaces to what’s happening on the AppStore, which continues to blow my mind on a daily basis and makes me long for programming skills. It’ll be neat to see how that success translates.

Angry Birds coming to Wii, Xbox, PSN. Multiplayer to resemble ‘old school Worms’ [Pocket Gamer via MTV Multiplayer]

THQ has been getting out of its comfort zone lately, by turning some of its franchises into movie and television properties, and now, by experimenting with lower-priced games. CEO Brian Farrell talked with Gamasutra about some of these new strategies.

“We spent a lot of time in Asia watching that freemium model. I think our markets are migrating that way, but you see it more in iPhone and iPad games right now,” he said. As such, the next MX vs. ATV title will launch at $40, and this cheaper price will be supplemented by downloadable content.

An interesting concept, for sure. I could see it working quite well in the right hands. Of course, Farrell was quick to point out games with bigger budgets, like Homefront, would remain at the normal $60. He also mentioned that the Saints Row movie is still in the works. Yeah — it’s really happening.

The full announcement will be made next month. THQ is hoping to align this release with the launch of Saints Row 3, but Farrell mentioned that’s subject to change.

Interview: CEO Farrell On THQ’s Path Through The Changing Game Landscape [Gamasutra]

Today, Ubisoft has revealed the details of the Assassin’s Creed: Ascendance project it teased just yesterday. As suspected, it’s a short animated film, and its release will coincide with the November 16 launch of the game, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood.

Ascendance is said to bridge the gap between Assassin’s Creed II and the upcoming Brotherhood, with Ezio Auditore in the lead role. The film will be available on Xbox Live Marketplace, PlayStation Network, and “other digital channels” for $1.99.

At the EA San Francisco Showcase last night, I got to play around with The Sims Medieval. Now, because I don’t pay attention to things, I was unaware that a Sims game set in the middle ages was in the works. However, upon hearing about said game, I forgot that my mouth was full and immediately shouted “I WAMMA FEE,” and blasted Ben PerLee with taco particles. 

Initially, I assumed the game was going to be The Sims, but you know. With knights and thatched roofs and leprosy and stuff. This isn’t entirely the case. While it does feature a number of familiar (read: girly and dollhousey) features from regular, modern-day Sims – like picking out charming furniture and dressing up your Sims in the majestic petticoats — The Sims Medieval introduces some fantasy RPG elements. 

You start out by designing a monarch (and picking out his/her majestic petticoats) living in a meager throne room and monarch’s quarters (which you can then decorate with charming furniture.) From there, the traditional Sims gameplay stops. In order to expand your kingdom and unlock new Sims, you have to complete quests. For instance, if you go out and fight goblins, you’ll earn enough kingdom points to build a wizard’s tower, and then you’ve got a sorcerer who can learn spells and shoot lightning bolts at people, etc. 

There are ten different playable classes, like blacksmith, knight, bard, or morbidly obese albino drunkard priest. (Actually, that last one was just a character I created. I made him look like he was about to barf, and gave him a genuinely ridiculous-looking hat.) In the past, the audience for The Sims has been casual gamers, little girls, cruel amateur sociologists, and my ex. Meanwhile, games with medieval stuff like swords, wizards, and thatched roofs are more successful with the exact opposite demographic. I’m very curious to see how The Sims Medieval goes over. 

The Sims Medieval will be out next March. I’m sure we’ll have more coverage before then, because let’s face it… Resistance is FEUDAL. (Sorry, couldn’t resist.)

In Space no one can hear you vomit. However, in Dead Space 2 multiplayer not only can you hear vomit, you can taste it! In the new multiplayer you can take charge, or to be more precise, be overtaken as a Necromorph. In my interview with Dead Space 2 Producer Scott Probst, we dive limb-first in Dead Space’s multiplayer and get a talk’n about gore and body part dismemberment.

If you want more Dead Space’N you should also check out Ben PerLee’s article. Its filled so with so many more words than my video.

Super Meat Boy will eventually find its way to Xbox 360, Wii and PC, excluding as it will a PS3 release. Now, because you start stamping your feet and shouting “BIAS” while tears start to cloud your vision, make sure you direct your anger at the right people — Sony itself. 

“Why wont this question die? We have answered it publicly at least 15 times but it just never ends,” says Team Meat. “We can’t EVER do a PS3 version of Super Meat Boy because when we were going into negotiations with publishers, Sony was the only one that didn’t express much interest in the game. We assumed this meant they didn’t want the game, and [we] decided to sign with Nintendo and Microsoft.

“Our contracts excluded any release on PS3. We would have loved to do a PS3 version, but its not at all possible whatsoever now, so please stop asking about it.”

That legitimately surprises me. Sony has often demonstrated itself as welcoming of unique indie titles, leading to a PSN full of rich, varied and unique games. The fact it snubbed Team Meat is disappointing to say the least. Ah well, Sony’s loss is everybody else’s gain, apparently.

Team Meat “can’t EVER do a PS3 version” [Eurogamer]

Seriously, it’s out of control. And, technically, it’s not even a controller per se — more of an add-on for your existing controller. The Avenger, as it has been dubbed, is specifically designed for people who aren’t happy with their competitive online game performances, and want to obliterate the equal playing field.

This contraption has been the talk of the morning between Nick and I, mostly because of how absurd it looked initially. But then we found the testimonial video and the user review page, and everything just grew from there. I’ll leave you with this bit of insight from reviewer Johan:

“Strongly recommend. Unless you’re a bitch.”

The latest downloadable content pack for Dead Rising 2 was released this past week and to celebrate, Capcom has given us a total of 20 codes to give away for the PlayStation 3 version of Dead Rising 2! We have five “Ninja Pack” codes, five “Sports Fan Pack” codes, five “Soldier Pack” codes and five “Psycho Pack” codes to give out, all of which will give you new clothes and weapons against the zombie horde.

In order to win a code, you’re just going to need to Like us on Facebook! Yes, it’s that easy! Like Destructoid on Facebook AND like this post right here promoting this Dead Rising 2 contest on Facebook. See? Super easy. We’ll be picking 20 random people that Like this post on Facebook to give out the codes to once the contest closes on Saturday at 11:59AM PST.

Despite being a massive fan of Killzone 2, I have to confess that the game’s story has always disappointed me, not least because of how much wasted potential there is. The universe of Killzone, and the tragic villainy of the Helghast, can be quite fascinating, but the best stuff is out-of-game fluff. Senior producer Steven Ter Heide, however, promises that Killzone 3 will ramp things up.

“The thing about Killzone’s storyline is that while it always takes a backseat to the action, you can learn a lot about its universe by carefully reading between the lines,” says Ter Heide. “When you listen to all the bits of Helghast dialogue in the previous game, for instance, it’s clear that they don’t consider themselves villains at all. From their perspective it’s the ISA pursuing the aggressive imperialist policy; they’re just defending Helghast interests.

“That said, we’ve considerably ramped up the pace of the story for Killzone 3. We will show more of the Helghast side, their motivations and background. With Visari out of the picture, several potential successors are vying for control of the Helghast Council. Meanwhile, the remnants of the ISA invasion force want to get off the planet before their window of opportunity closes. These story arcs converge for an explosive finale. On top of that we have secured some great talent to play pivotal roles in the game, and through their delivery they really elevate the dialogue and story.”

I must say I dig the idea of a Helghast civil war and can’t wait to see what kind of political snakes come out of the woodwork. I’m crossing my fingers for a narrative that does justice to the game’s universe. Nail the plot, and Killzone 3 will easily be superior to the already excellent Killzone 2.