After the faux pas on Microsoft’s part yesterday, when some clown accidentally made available some of the content ready for today, half the surprise was gone. However we now have new information on several of the titles, including when we can expect to see them hit retail stores.

From the press release:

• Fable 2: The wait is almost over for the sequel to THE biggest action role-playing game in Xbox history. Swords, guns and now the newly unveiled magical power round out the combat in this action RPG from acclaimed developer Peter Molyneux and Lionhead Studios. Players will have even more choices to continuously shape who their characters become in a world 10 times the size of the iconic Xbox game. “Fable 2” introduces a host of exciting new features for gamers, including a first-of-its-kind Xbox LIVE Arcade experience, and a genre-stretching multiplayer experience, allowing gamers easily play “Fable 2” with friends and family side-by-side from the comfort of a living room couch. Players can immerse themselves in this vibrant world that only Lionhead and Molyneux could create, beginning this holiday.
• Too Human: Today, MGS and Silicon Knights will confirm that the wait is almost over - “Too Human” will be available on August 19 in North America and August 29 in Europe. “Too Human” is an epic, highly anticipated action game with integrated RPG elements and features a rich storyline with deep character development, both hallmarks of Silicon Knights’ legendary tradition of video game development. Additionally, Silicon Knights is showcasing for the first time, the title’s online cooperative play via Xbox LIVE; allowing gamers to experience “Too Human” with friends in a multiplayer setting.
• Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode One on Xbox LIVE Arcade provides a first-of-its-kind RPG-Adventure experience based on the popular Web comic. The creative collaboration between Penny Arcade creators Mike ‘Gabe’ Krahulik and Jerry ‘Tycho’ Holkins, legendary game designer Ron Gilbert and producers at Hothead Games results in a 100-percent authentic Penny Arcade experience that pushes bizarre characters, outrageous combat and adult humor to the precipice of darkness. “Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode One” will be available on Xbox LIVE Arcade May 21, 2008.

As embargoes are lifted on various bigmouths, more and more details are slowly coming out, particularly over at NeoGAF. New details have emerged on several new games, so read on below for the round up of all the information currently dotted around:

Banjo Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts

• RARE says they didn’t want to make a hi res version of the old Banjo platformer.
• You create vehicles with parts you find around the levels.
• Game Informer says their first vehicles was a 4 wheeled kart with a spring attached to the bottom that allowed them to jump things. They later found a helicopter blade that allowed their kart to fly. Later they added balloons to the vehicle and put the blade on the back and created a hovercraft.
• RARE showed them a vehicle that was a monster truck that was able to detach its chasis to become a mini bike. When the bike ramped off a cliff it revealed collapsible glider wings and started flying.
• There will be 1,600 parts including weapons that you’ll be able to attach to the vehicles.
• The town is called Showdown Town.
• Game Informer says that despite the large focus on vehicles it still features platform elements from the previous games like traditional platforming, tight rope walking and jiggy piece collecting.
• Showdown Town is 16 times larger than anything RARE has created before.
• Every level has a different intro. Nutty Acres begins with a credits spoof of 80’s soap opera’s like Dallas.
• Note collecting is back and will act as currency that will allow you to buy vehicle blueprints.
• RARE says there are 15 different challenges spread across 6 different levels. There will also be side missions.
• Building vehicles is basically like playing with LEGO. You can always jump in and out of the vehicle editor and come right back to the game with the new design.
• Parts are easily placed and moved around. You don’t have to worry about connecting the motor with the wheels for example. Just place everything so they stick together and don’t get in the way.
• Vehicle designs can play a large role in missions. We saw one where you had to collect coconuts from a field and got a small truck that could suck them up. Unfortunately you couldn’t fit all the coconuts in the truck and had to back and deliver them in a large barrel. We were then shown how you could create a helicopter with a hook, that could pick up this large barrel, fly to the coconut field and fly low to scoop the coconuts in the barrel.
• Multiplayer is great fun with the ability to either chose from pre-fabricated or own vehicle designs. It still needs some polish here and there, but showed great promise.

There’s also a post detailing with the construction of vehicles, which some of you will definitely find interesting, as well as the debut video below.

Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise

• Improved interactivity between the pinata’s and the environments.
• Pinata’s will mimic each others action and follow the leader around the garden.
• They’ll be adding toys for the pinatas to play with like musical instruments, spaced themed toys, and trains that the pinata’s will ride around the garden.
• 30 new pinatas.
• 2 new sub areas called Pinarctic and Dessert that will allow you to travel to new locations and lay traps for the pinatas.
• A photo mode will allow you to upload pictures to the website.
• A drop in and drop out co op mode.
• Improved User Interface.
• The game uses the Vision Camera in combination with physical cards similar to Eye of Judgement [a PS3 card-reading game]. It basically scans a small code on the card, when it’s being held up in front of the camera, and this can both insert custom designed pinatas, unlock buildings or abilities, change the weather and many other things. Rare told how they had designed a moose that got a big, red nose only around Christmas time… and this could be passed around with these cards.
• This photo mode is able to interpret the pictures and create the above-mentioned code based on the picture. Basically, you will have a card generator available on the internet. Imagine this: you have created this really cool pinata and instead of the tiresome task of sending it only to selected friends on Live, you can take a picture of it, get the code/card generated and share it on a forum. Instantly everyone will be able to get the pinata in their game and since the camera can also read from LCD screens, iPods, Zunes and so on, there is little to no hassle.


Some new content hit the Xbox Live Marketplace for Ninja Gaiden II today. Courtesy of Major Nelson:

• Content: Ninja Gaiden II Launch Trailer HD
• Price: Free
• Availability: Canada and United States
• Size: 55.31 MB
• Dash Text: [ESRB: M (Mature) BLOOD AND GORE,INTENSE VIOLENCE,PARTIAL NUDITY,SUGGESTIVE THEMES] Experience exhilarating ninja combat as Ryu Hayabusa returns to avenge his clan in the true sequel to Ninja Gaiden. Explore in-game cinematics and beautifully gory, high intensity gameplay
• Content: Ninja Gaiden II: Hayabusa Clan Theme
• Price: 150 Microsoft Points
• Availability: Not available in Germany
• Dash Text: Ryu Hayabusa is joined by his father Joe, trusted shopkeeper Muramasa, and beautiful CIA agent Sonia in this exclusive Ninja Gaiden II theme pack. There are no refunds for this item. For more information, see www.xbox.com/live/accounts.
• Content: Ninja Gaiden II: Hayabusa Clan Gamer Pics
• Price: 100 Microsoft Points
• Availability: Not available in Germany
• Dash Text: Ryu Hayabusa is joined by his father Joe, trusted shopkeeper Muramasa, and beautiful CIA agent Sonia in this exclusive set of Ninja Gaiden II gamer pics. There are no refunds for this item. For more information, see www.xbox.com/live/accounts.


New Fable 2 details spilled also, with lucky folks being showed the game on the 7th May. Here’s the para-phrased low-down:

• The game is content complete and about 5000 bugs from completion.
• Shown the magic system, a major plot point when you are a kid, some adult parts and hands on with the co-op part (local only, so far. Online announcement could come soon).
• Mini map is dead. Peter hates it. So he made a “bread crump trail”. Which is a golden line on the ground that will tell you which direction to go. It works similar a GPS system, so it will change if you go another direction, and will guide you in the right direction.
• Magic system: You can either do a focused on one person attack, or a ranged attack. You can build up your attack in five levels. These five levels can be combined, so you can have level 1 be a fire spell, and then it builds up and adds level 2, which can be a slow spell, and so on.
• There will be 8 different spells in the game.
• You can buy every single house in the game. Each house will unlock something new. Either a sidequest, item or a skill
• The game is 20-30 times larger then Fable 1.
• The weather is completely dynamic, and will change as time progress. There will be different seasons.
• Cutscenes are somewhat interactive. You can use the d-pad to do different gestures, and they can change the outcome of conversations. It’s not on the scale of Mass Effect, but it can be done so you have some interactivity with the game world.
• Peter wanted a sex minigame in there, but they had to drop it, due to the nature of the content. Now the screen just goes black, and your hear some moaning. And yes, you can have unprotected sex.
• The female character also came close to being cut. But the female designers on the game wanted her in, so they made it happen.
• There is three more Fable games planned. Lionhead is currently working on Fable 2 and a new project. The Black & White studio is no more.
• Peter talked about how he was flirting with a girl, and her husband came by. And the husband became so pissed, he began kicking your dog. And Peter actually felt bad for flirting with the girl. He wants gamers to feel like he did.

News also spread that Alan Wake would not make a 2008 release. It is not being showcased today and everything has gone quiet on the highly-anticipated game’s front. Hopefully a statement will be made soon.

Nothing has been mentioned about the rumoured-peripheral “Lips” or Scene It? 2 which is a little surprising, and although there is still time, it seems surprising that nothing yet has been mentioned. Stay tuned, there might be more soon.