Clearly intimidated by Acclaim's recent pair of marketing stunts, Nintendo has announced their plans to create a 2700 pound bowl of pasta at the Italian restaurant chain Buca di Beppo in San Francisco, and give fans the chance to be "human meatballs." Yes, human meatballs. This of course will all happen on August 22nd, tied to promote the release of Super Mario Sunshine. What exactly being a "human meatball" entails is beyond me, although my guess is that it involves diving into a really big bowl of pasta. Hopefully it's something light, like angelhair pasta, because gnocchi that size could kill someone on contact.

	Xbox Live Announced At long last, Microsoft has announced that their Xbox Live network will go, well...live, on the system's one year anniversary, November 15th. For $49.95 you get the Xbox Communicator headset, a demo CD and a one-year subscription to the network (unlike the Japanese kit, it would appear that Sega's Phantasy Star Online will not be included).
	TimeSplitters 2 Offline One game you won't be able to play on Microsoft's network is Eidos' TimeSplitters 2, as the company confirmed today that the PS2 version (which was the only one planned for online gaming) will not be compatible with Sony's network. The reason given is that, "the infrastructure is not yet in place that will enable us to incorporate an online element and still make the game's proposed release date."
	PS2 EQ Shots Some new screenshots from EverQuest Online Adventures, the original EQ game for the PS2 can be found at Computer and Video Games tonight.
	Linux Kernel on Xbox Getting a full Xbox Linux port inched closer to reality this week, as it was confirmed that developers have succeeded in getting the Linux kernel to run on a modded console. There's still a loooong way to go, but it's certainly encouraging news for those involved.
	More Final Fantasy XI Woes Japanese Final Fantasy XI gamers suffered from some serious problems today when Square disconnected the primary DNS server that connects players of the game. While there is a secondary server, it's been overwhelmed by the load. Still more proof that Square should have spent more time before taking this game live. If it ever comes out here, American gamers will certainly benefit from these blunders.
	Black Label Games Formed Despite rampant rumors that Vivendi Universal is looking to offload their gaming division, the company announced today the formation of Black Label Games, a new publishing and development studio which will handle their edgier games, like the recently released title Enclave and the soon-to-be-released The Thing.
	Hut! Hut! Yes, both Madden 2003 and NFL 2k3 hit stores today...for those curious, GameSpot posted reviews of the PS2 (9.0) and Xbox (8.6) versions of Madden, as well as the PS2 version of NFL 2k3 (9.6). Also, PlanetXbox has a review of Madden up, giving the game a 91, and EA has shipped the GBA version of the game.
	More Rare Rumors In what some are saying is a hint that Rare is moving toward cross-platform development, the official Rare site has removed links to Donkey Kong Racing and Coconut Crackers (although apparently there's still a DKR link if you look hard enough). This doesn't prove anything, but I've decided to buy into the rumors and my guess is that Rare is doing cross platform development already. Just wish they'd announce something either way.
	Halo 2 Trailer Transcript Gamers.com has posted a transcript from the recently screened Halo 2 trailer.
	Worms a comin' Activision has announced that they have signed an agreement to bring Worms 3 to multiple console systems sometime next year. While not much is known about the game, they have said that this installment will feature "a fully deformable 3D landscape." Coool.