The Netflix software “upgrade” that comes with this August’s NXE update is “neat.” I know this because I said it 1,000 times in the walkthrough video you can see after the jump. But really, “neat” is the perfect word for it. Because while it’s a step beyond what was previously offered, it’s certainly not going to blow any minds. It adds the ability to browse movies available in the “Watch it Now” library, including the options to add it to your queue or play them instantly....

Technology Liberation Front spokesman Adam Thiererhas criticizedthe wannabe censors who have wasted American tax dollars in their fight against videogames. This follows the revelation that Minnesota will pay the games industry $65,000 for trying to pass an unconstitutional law. Thierer suggests other things that could have been done with the amount of money wasted in trying to push these silly pet causes: … these cases make it clear that there is a significant opportunity cost associated with censorship efforts....

Koei has commissioned an incredibly limited run of high-class Giclee anvas prints to promoteWarriors Orochi 2‘s arrival on the PSP. It’s very high quality stuff, using a print process usually reserved for fine art, with canvas stretched across a 16.25″x27.75.” wooden frame. Fewer thantwenty-fiveof these prints have been made, making this one of the rarest bits of swag we’ve ever talked about. I have one of these. You can have one as well....

Unless you are a techno viking, you’ll want to go ahead and turn down the volume before starting up this video. In it, RyanWin runs us through his vision ofWorld of StarCraft. As the name would imply, it’sWorld of Warcraftapplied to a different subset of Blizzard fiction. I knewStarCraft II‘s map editor was versatile, but I wasn’t expecting anyone to take the tools this far. As far as these things go, I doubt we’ll see a public build anytime soon....

The downloadable games scene for Xbox 360 is heating up this March. As announced at X10,Game Room, the virtual hub for old-school arcade titles, will be launching. Additionally, March will see the release of a number of Xbox LIVE Arcade games:Toy Soldiers,Scrap Metal, and yes,Perfect Dark. Microsoft is dubbing this promotion of sorts the “XBLA Block Party.” I wish they wouldn’t hold off on releasing quality games for the sake of marketing, but what are you going to do....

Every week, PC Editor Jordan Devore and I play through the demos of the latest Xbox Live Indie Games releases as part of our live streaming show,Saturday Morning Hangover. But what if you missed the show? How will you benefit from our deep well of insight and startling wit as we show you the good, bad and ugly? Here’s one way: a quick look at the games which turned our head and deserve your attention....

Game developers cannot allowXbox 360 Avatars to bedecapitated, have sex, or shout vulgar things, but turning their heads into a giant, playable ball with a gun? Totally acceptable. While we had previously been told that Avatars would be included in the Xbox LIVE Arcade gameMadballs in…Babo: Invasion, this is the first we have seen of them in action.Thanks to GamerBytes, we’ve actually got a short video of the insanity after the break, and it’s almost too strange to pass up....

“Zensational?”Really? 505 Gamesand California-basedPronto Gameswill be publishing and developing, respectively,The Destiny of Zorro, a Wii exclusive due out at the end of 2007. Players will make an action-packed journey through the sun-scorched coast and desert landscape of early 1800s Spanish California playing as the infamous Zorro – the swashbuckling defender of the oppressed whose secret identity is the fictional wealthy caballero Don Diego de la Vega. Using the unique properties of the Wii controller, players can whip, slice and of course perform Zorro’s signature ‘Z’ slash move to bring his foes to justice....

Golf games have never managed to hold my attention — that’s why we have Dale North — but tennis? Now there’s a sport I can enjoy in videogame form and otherwise. Hot Shots Tennis: Get a Gripfor the PSP looks charming, and I’m not just saying that because of the cutesy Helghast character shown above. Although, to be completely realistic, roughly 90 percent of my interest stemmed from the cameo — at least initially....

EA has released theSkate 3TV ad and it barely shows the game off! A majority of the commercial is of people going bat sh*t crazy as others are skateboarding on the ramp. The commercial ends with a few seconds of actualSkate 3gameplay, which I guess is just enough to get the TV viewing audience interested in the game. Skate 3is out on May 11 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360....

Activision’s Dave Oxford asks: “What could be more fun than using the Wii Remote to swing on a vine over bloodthirsty crocodiles as retro-cool Pitfall Harry?” Well gee, Dave, I don’t know! But it looks like we’ll have a chance to find out this fall, when Activision plans to releasePitfall: The Big Adventurefor the Wii. The game will feature 60 levels, spanning jungles and glacial mountains, as Pitfall Harry attempts tostealfind ancient treasures and outwit creatures who are just trying to mind their own business when some dude in cargo pants comes in and terrorizes their home....

Eidos’Batman: Arkham Asylumis looking like it could wipe the taste of all the badBatmanvideogames from our mouths. The above trailer is included in the standard-definition version ofThe Dark KnightDVD that goes on sale at most major retailers on December 9. It is a delightful teaser that shows little gameplay, but a lot of great art decisions. Notice the seriously dark and gloomy conditions of Arkham Asylum. It is something that the developers have seemingly homed in on....

In 2009, Zombie Cow Games brought us the tongue-in-cheekiest adventure game in quite some time,Ben There, Dan That!, for the low, low price of free. Since then we’ve gotten a not-so-free sequel,Time Gentleman, Please!,and a $4.99 double-pack of the two games. However the developer now known as Size Five always felt thatBen There, Dan That!deserved a bit more. The studio hasannounced the releaseof a Special Edition of the title with improved visuals and a jazzy new soundtrack for a minimum donation of $3....