Larger, higher quality scans of the new Final Fantasy XIII images have been uploaded at NeoGAF, showing that Carbuncle has apparently sold himself out to Cirque du Soleil.

I once wrote this as part of a feature elsewhere that ended up not being used:

Thus each iteration of Bahamut has gotten successively more elaborate and ornate and looking more at home on the cover of a Norwegian speed metal album. It's estimated that by Final Fantasy XIV, Bahamut will be so laden with scales, rings, metal plating, spikes, and assorted jewelry that he won't actually be able to fly anymore. When you summon him, he'll be carted onto the battlefield in the scoop of a Caterpillar tractor like those fat people on Maury Povich who can't get out of their bedrooms.

And I was reminded of it when I saw that image. I guess they've decided it's high time the other summons looked just as gaudy and goofy. Or maybe Carbuncle is just cosplaying as Edea.

Industry and multi-console news

New media: Penny Arcade Adventures gameplay footage, Sega Superstars Tennis debut trailer

• Researchers have taught AI agents to play Ms. Pac-Man, demonstrating that "AI agents can successfully be taught how to strategize through reinforcement learning."
• Next Generation has a look back at Stubbs the Zombie, which they may be just a tad overeager to praise. "...Stubbs might even be one of the most daring, if not the most influential, games of its decade."
• Jack Thompson says that two UK newspapers recently ran quotes attributed to him that he didn't say.
• MTV has a preview of Lost: Via Domus.
• The release dates for Bully: Scholarship Edition have been confirmed as March 4 in North America and March 7 in the UK.
• Silent Hill: Sinner's Reward is a five-issue comic mini-series coming in February from IDW Publishing.
• Baroque has been delayed until March.
• Capcom’s Hiroyuki Kobayashi says there are no plans for Devil May Cry 4 downloadable content on either the PS3 or the 360.
• CRIPPLE FIGHT! Gamecock's Mike Wilson responds to John Romero's disparaging comments about him. "Your unparalleled work ethic and strong character has ... left only a bloody trail of ex-wives, fatherless kids, and ill advised breast implants strewn across this fair nation." Classy!
• Hardcore Gamer magazine is switching from a monthly to a quarterly schedule.
• I've seen this damn day in the life of a Portal turret video linked so many places I feel obligated to add it here, despite the fact that it's not actually very good.
• By contrast, GameSetWatch's list of the top 12 covers of Still Alive starts off with a man in a fursuit playing it on a piano, and that is much funnier (and more terrifying).
• In a Reuters report on Rock Band and Guitar Hero song sales, an Electronic Arts exec was asked about the possibility of downloadable songs for other games like Madden or Skate, to which he responded "That's certainly something we're interested in." Hahahahaha screw you guys.
• For your daily dose of crazy, we have a Times Online column entitled "Xbox is crack for kids."

PC and mobile news

New content: Depths of Peril 1.007 patch (non-beta)
New media: Requiem: Bloodymare trailer

• The New York Times reports that a new Battlefield game called Battlefield Heroes will be distrubted online for free and supported by advertising and microtransactions.
• Stonehenge Chronicles, the first content update for Hellgate: London, has been announced for January 21. Gamespot has a Q&A with Flagship CEO Bill Roper about it and the game as a whole.
• Perpetual, former developers of Star Trek Online and now officially known as P2, will remain in business as an engine-only company.
• ScummVM version 0.11.0 has been released, with support for several new games, such as I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream.
• The government of Brazil has banned Counter-Strike and Everquest for being "an attack against the democratic state and the law and against public security."
• World 2 of Fancy Pants Adventure has been released. It's a (free) Sonic-esque platformer in Flash that it seems many people are very fond of.

Nintendo news

• Next Generation has a short interview with designer Takeshi Iizuka about NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams. If nothing else, he confirms the old story about a prototype motion controller for the Saturn that was going to work with a NiGHTS sequel.
• Two Mistwalker DS games have been delayed in Japan: Away: Shuffle Dungeon and Blue Dragon DS will now come sometime in the summer.
• The Wii version of Baroque will support 16:9, progressive scan, and the classic controller.
• Nintendo president Satoru Iwata responds to the continuing issue of Wii shortages, and accusations that the shortages were intentional. "[When I see those types of articles], I honestly feel sad. Game machine production amounts are set about half a year in advance, so they cannot be easily changed. The concept of the Wii is 'a machine that makes people who play it smile.' We wouldn't use a strategy that is at odds with smiling."
• Wal-Mart is trying to make it up to the people who went for their recent erroneous $20 Brawl pre-order by offering a $10 gift card to everyone who placed an order.
• Mysterious screenshots of a supposed new Castlevania DS game appeared briefly on the GameFAQs forums, but who knows if they're real.
• While you're being skeptical, also consider the rumor that Factor 5 is working on a Kid Icarus game.
• Demonstrating the same awesome understanding of technology that led to the botched discs in the first place, Activision put the e-mail addresses of 860 people in the "To:" field of their recent support e-mail announcing that replacement discs for the Wii version of Guitar Hero III were on the way.

Sony news

• Unreal Tournament 3 on the PS3 sold 113,000 units in December, a little higher than its sales of 86,633 units on the PC in November.
• Next Generation has an editorial on how the PS3's fortunes are turning.
• SNK Playmore USA has announced it is releasing SNK Arcade Classics: Volume 1 in America. for the PS2 and PSP.
• The PS2 edition of Destroy All Humans! Big Willy Unleashed has been cancelled.
• Hori is selling dust guard kits for the PS3 which include filters and caps for unused USB and controller connector ports.
• According to people within Gamestop, Frontlines: Fuel of War has been cancelled for the PS3.

Microsoft news

• A supposed inside source has explained what causes the red ring of death. "The main design flaw was the excessive heat on the GPU warping the mother board around it. This would stress the solder joints on the GPU and any bad joints would then fail in early life." He says it was mainly the rush to beat Sony that put a bunch of unreliable systems on shelves.
• N+ has passed certification, and thus should arrive on Live Arcade soon.
• Koei is releasing the Xtreme Legends expansion for Samurai Warriors 2 as downloadable content in Japan.
• The NerfHaven forums demonstrate how to turn a couple Nerf toys into the Gears of War lancer.
• NECA has released another preview image, this time of their Augustus Cole action figure.