Electronic Arts has been silent about their non-Boom Blox project with director Steven Spielberg, codenamed LMNO. Nothing has been heard about the game in years. A rumor last week suggested the game might be dead.  Not true, according to the publisher, who released a statement to Kotaku.

"LMNO was a code name for a project in development at EALA," said the company. "While the project continues to develop at EALA with Steven, we no longer refer to it as LMNO. We have no further details to reveal at this time."

Very few details had been released about LMNO, other than a single screen shot and whispered comparisons to Ico, one of Spielberg's favorite video games. LMNO might not be dead, but it's definitely under heavy reconstruction, don't you think?

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Capcom revs the press engine for their downloadable version of the classic arcade fighter Marvel vs. Capcom 2 with the iconic Ryu vs. Wolverine matchup. Overtly dramatic in classic Capcom style, expect more in this video series down the line towards launch.

What's your best trio of fighters? Cable players need not reply. =P

Marvel vs. Capcom 2 - Episode 1 Ryu vs. Wolverine Video

Square Enix's Tetsuya Nomura is an extremely busy man. Working on huge project after huge project, it seems like he hasn't been able to take a deep breath since his critically acclaimed work on Final Fantasy VII. Kingdom Hearts fans, while pleased that they'll be getting 358/2 Days for Nintendo DS and Birth by Sleep for Sony PSP, have been clamoring for details on a true sequel. In a recent interview with GoNintendo, Nomura said that he really hasn't thought about it (much):

"Right now I’m busy with Birth by Sleep and FF13: Versus, let’s think about the future plans of Kingdom Hearts slowly. But the next Kingdom Hearts is not restricted to Kingdom Hearts 3. However it won’t be a side story, but an authentic addition. Separate from that, I’m thinking on the things of Kingdom Hearts 3."

Working on two major games is an acceptable excuse...I suppose. Personally, I like that Square Enix is expanding on the Kingdom Hearts' universe and filling in details with prequels and side stories. It helps explain some of the convoluted details that were, perhaps, lost in translation. Speaking of which, Nomura revealed the meaning behind the title 358/2 Days. Hit the break to find out!

Last week, as you know, pop-icon Michael Jackson joined your grandmother, Beethoven and all the pretty angels up in heaven. As I discussed previously, the King of Pop was no stranger to video games. He conceptualized Moonwalker for Sega and was reputedly working on a this-gen game too. But Jackson wasn't just interested in making games. The pop-singer had a huge, enviable collection of arcade machines.

Back in April, Jackson's personal possessions were being auctioned off, and among them were deluxe versions of the following arcade cabinets:

• Sega F1 Exhaust
• Crazy Taxi: High Roller
• Star Trek: The Next Generation Pinball (Perhaps the best pinball cabinet ever made.)
• Tokyo Cop
• The Simpsons
• Virtual Racing
• Guitar Freaks
• Alpine Racer 2
• Need For Speed
• Super Street Fighters 2
• Sega R-360 (Full-motion, 360-degree spinning jet-simulator)
• Many, many more...

The world-famous literary series of witchcraft and wizardry might have ended long ago, yet the feature films and videogame franchises continue the magical adventures in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. To celebrate launch week for the game EA Bright Light releases this half-blood launch trailer with behind-the-scenes featurette in tow after the cut.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Launch Trailer

You’d think that with all its success its had with the PSP, and with all the buzz surrounding its upcoming PSP Go, Sony would be more than satisfied with its position in the handheld gaming market. But it seems that the massive success of Apple’s iPhone, especially on the mobile gaming front, has driven Sony to pursue an all new mobile device of its own.

Reuters reports that Sony is planning to start working on a new cellphone/gaming device sometime next month. Given that the device isn’t even in the drawing board stages, details are nonexistent at this point, but thanks to the iPhone, it’s not hard to imagine what a Sony Ericsson PSP might look like. Unless of course Sony has some outrageously bizarre vision of what a gaming phone should be, but that’s clearly the long-shot bet.

If Sony had been on the top of this whole iPhone-competition business early enough, it would have just added phone capabilities to  the PSP Go, and made that its new phone/gaming device. It’s an appropriate size, it has all the necessary technical features, plus it has a huge catalogue of games. I wouldn't be surprised if Sony used the PSP Go as the basis for its new device, similiar to Apple's iPod Touch/iPhone approach. Then again, I haven't had any coffee yet today, so I could just be rambling.

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Pour some off the top for a dead game project: Sega has announced that the Obsidian-developed Aliens RPG has been officially canceled. The game's death is not exactly a surprise, but it is a bummer. 

"Rumors have circled around a bit regarding the fate of t Aliens role playing game that Obsidian and Sega had been working on," reads a post on Obsidian's official Aliens RPG message board. "Unfortunately, it is true that we are no longer working on the game, and we wanted to finally announce that officially to everyone who has been following its development."

Pay your respects for this dead game at the official board, but do it quick: The board is soon to be dismantled forever. 

This is a big blow to fans of the Alien movies, although, in retrospect, it's hard to see how a series of movies that were strictly in the action/horror genres would really work as role-playing games. I, for one, was anxious to find out, though. How about you? Are you bummed that this game is canceled? Or does the upcoming FPS Aliens: Colonial Marines from Gearbox seem like a better fit? 

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StarCraft II is one of the most anticipated sequels ever. Last week, I got to play the latest multiplayer build of the game at Blizzard's headquarters and have full hands-on impressions for you all.

Head on over and read the preview. Also, be sure to check out my interview with StarCraft II lead designer Dustin Browder. Then, I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have about the game.

Sadly, Blizzard didn't give us a date for the upcoming beta, but it should be kicking off in the next few weeks.

Today's Amazon's Game Deal of the Day is ridiculous today: Full Guitar Hero World Tour bundle, with drums, guitars, mic and game, for only $89.98. That's fully $100 off the list price.

The deal is available for the Wii, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2 and 360, but I imagine it will sell out quick. So get over there and get it. Given the sheer number of Guitar Hero games planned for the next couple of years, you're going to need some fake plastic instruments, quick!

I'm not sure how Amazon chooses which items to discount, but if it comes from the manufacturer, it seems to indicate pretty strongly that Activision is interested in consumers having the instruments so they will be more likely to buy upcoming games, and if it comes from Amazon, it seems to indicated that the company is tired of all that stock littering its warehouse, kind of like I'm tired of those plastic instruments littering my living room!

If you're a Guitar Hero hold-out, is this deal enough to convince you to pick up the instruments?

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If you played PlayStation 3 action game Uncharted: Drake's Fortune and thought, "This is fun, but I wish I wasn't controlling it!" Sony has announced just the piece of entertainment for you: That's right, the big-screen adaptation of Uncharted is officially on its way.

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune will be produced by Avi Arad, Charles Roven, Ari Arad and Alex Gartner. and written Kyle Ward, a name you may recognize. Ward is quickly becoming Hollywood's go-to writer when it comes to video game adaptations. Ward is the writer of the eagerly awaited (?) Kane & Lynch movie and was hired to work on Hitman as well.

No other details of the movie have been released. No one knows who will direct or who will star, but that shouldn't stop us from speculating, right? I'd like to see Nick Jonas from the Jonas Brothers cast in the lead, and I'd like to see German art-house director Werner Herzog tapped to direct: Since all video game movies suck, you might as well make it suck in an interesting way! What do you think? Who would you like to see star in this movie?

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A big reason id Software signed with ZeniMax Media is to bulk up internally. Traditionally, id has worked on a single project, with other franchises exported elsewhere. id won't be able to work with Raven Software again because its owned by Activision, but Splash Damage, who worked with id on Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, is engaged in a longterm publishing contract with Bethesda, also owned by ZeniMax.

I asked id Software co-founder John Carmack on the phone last week about the possibility of id working with Splash Damage again, even though the studio was moving most development in-house.

"It is the expectation that the major id titles will be developed internally with the id teams," he said. "There's potential for things [with Splash Damage], but we haven't really gotten down to that level of detailed involvement."

So…maybe. But as Carmack has pointed out in a number of interviews, the ramifications of the deal with ZeniMax won't be felt by consumers for many years. A partnership with Splash Damage could very well happen, it's just not going to happen for a while.

Welcome to "Morning Hangover" -- an excellent way to start your day with the crew at TheFeed...no matter what you're recovering from. Every morning you'll hear musings from two of TheFeed's editors and have the chance to share  your thoughts on what's going on in the gaming world. So buckle up, grab your coffee, and keep reading!

Raymond Padilla: The sad passings of Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson dominated headlines last week. Selfishly (jerkishly?) I was annoyed that the celebrity tragedies took away from the major announcements in the world of gaming. ZeniMax's acquisition of id Software is huge -- not just from a business standpoint, but also for what it will mean to enthusiast gamers. id is one of the most unique and fiercely independent development houses in gaming, I'm curious to see how being part of a larger company will change it. Of course everyone involved is saying things will stay the same, but change is inevitable. Out of all the things that could change with id, I want to see if its fan-friendly approach will remain. Perhaps there will be a day when some bean counter will decide that Quakecon just isn't worth the time and money.

Patrick Klepek: When I flew to Las Vegas earlier this year for 1UP to cover Red Faction: Guerrilla, it was just a writing gig. The Saints Row series did nothing for me, so I had little-to-no interest in discovering what Volition had up its sleeve for an open-world Red Faction reboot. Six hours into the single-player campaign, however, and I was converted. Red Faction is fantastic; Grand Theft Auto on Mars. What's not to like? I returned to San Francisco singing its praises, telling my colleagues to keep Red Faction on their radar -- this was going to be a destructable game to watch. Luckily, gamers appear to have caught the Mars fever. Will it translate into real-world sales? That remains to be seen -- my fingers are crossed that the June release date will pay dividends -- but THQ has told me the early signs are positive. Phew.

TheFeed gang wants your thoughts on gaming, tech, Megan Fox's thumbs, and more. Let everyone know what you're thinking and chat it up with your fellow readers. The reader with the best comment will get Klepek's secret (and awesome) pancake recipe.

What a week! Has there been any other time with this much celebrity news? Here's what went down on our original web franchises this week:

• Sessler's Soapbox: The one game that took everyone by surprise at E3 2009 was a little Nintendo DS title called Scribblenauts. Adam talks about how he not only can't wait to play the game, but how he thinks Scribblenauts stands as an example of how amazing games have gotten in recent years.
• The MMO Report:  This week Casey has a wide collection of stories; from information about Aion's launch in September, to new Champions Online screenshots, to a Russian porn star getting a web address tattooed on her breasts. Yeah, it's a good week. Oh, and WTF Second Life is back, this time for the hearing impaired. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the triumphant return of the one and only Casey Schreiner.
• Fresh Ink: As we ramp up for Comic-Con ’09 in San Diego, host Blair Butler blasts through a slew of new comics to wet your appetite, including Viking, Berserker, Gotham City Sirens, Northlanders, GI Joe: Cobra, Elektra and Utopia. But is it Runaways or Batwoman’s run in Detective Comics that nabs Pick of the Week? Stay tuned and find out…

And now, the news:

What's the Hot Sheet? It's our new recurring feature wherein your lovely G4tv.com editorial team attempts to be funny and presents interesting (hopefully?) data to you, our lovely readers.

On the weekends we'll feature various snapshots of what games, game products, and pre-orders people are buying on Amazon.com. Why Amazon? Because it's very easy to find and collect! And because you didn't pipe up in the meeting when we talked about this. I don't care if your Outlook reminder didn't pop up, it's your responsibility to be there.

Ahem.  Anyways, on with the Sheet. The sales appetizer:

Amazon.com's Top 10 Wii Bestsellers, As of 4:40PM, 6/26/09

Fitness routines, golf, tennis, go-karts, music camp...Wii owners are definitely on summer vacation. EA’s first two MotionPlus games are setting the table for Wii Sports Resort later in July. Here's hoping Punch-Out and Ghostbusters stick around for a while longer!

1. Wii Fit
2. EA Sports Active
3. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10
4. Mario Kart Wii
5. Wii Music
6. Wii Play
7. EA Sports Grand Slam Tennis
8. The Conduit
9. Punch-Out!!
10. Ghostbusters: The Video Game
 

Ready for the main course?

It's finally Friday and the world is stlil reeling from Michael Jackson's death, but The Feed must go on! Here's what happened today in video games, popular culture and technology.

• Microsoft is offering up some free Ghostbusters sounds for you to enjoy.
• Kucinich Wants The Army To Inject "Consequences" In Recruitment Game.
• Sony CEO Kaz Hirai says that his company is using its PlayStation network as the foundation for a new online service.
• Square Enix is counting down to a new game announcement.
• The death of Michael Jackson has had a huge impact on the world, and we have proof!
• EA has released some new Madden NFL 10 screens featuring a few choice teams.