Electronic Arts is not backing down from its $2 billion hostile bid for the publisher of "Grand Theft Auto" even as Take-Two Interactive does what it can to buy more time.  Take Two has delayed its shareholder meeting because they won't to focus on their release of Grand Theft Auto.  It is the newly anticipated Grand Theft Auto IV.  Even though no one is mentioning it, Take Two has to be hoping that the release can breathe some more life into their stock.

The company will not be able to resist the buyout, as EA is the juggernaut of video game companies.  They are claiming that the $26 a share buyout is too low and they want to renegotiate for a higher price.  Take Two has delayed the meetings till after the deadlines set by EA, which is frustrating the company. 

Eric Brown is the new chief financial officer who is brokering the deal.  He used to be an executive but he left to go help run MacAfee securities.  Many analysts are saying that this is a very lucrative addition to the EA team, while McAfee has yet another problem to deal with.

Source: Kristin Lee, Chrono.com  

Bioware has shed some light into dialog production with a PowerPoint slide at one of their recent GDC pannels, expecially in regards to how far away an actor should be from the mic.

Apparently 18 inches. Or Penis length, which ever is longer. No really, slide attached below. With this information Joystiq has also managed to shed some light on why Ron Jeremy never voice acts for video games.

Source : Joystiq
Picture (Shamelessly right-clicked and saved for amusement) 

With cyber terrorism on the rise as more and more terrorists gain intricate computer knowledge and the level of advanced computer users with too much free time increases, the field of cyber crime is falling behind way to fast.  President Bush is calling for a major increase in spending up to 7.3 billion dollars. 

"The president's put a lot of emphasis on this recently," says Robert Jamison, undersecretary for national protection and programs at the Department of Homeland Security. "We're concerned that the threats are real and growing. ... We're more vulnerable as a nation."   In 31% of the infiltrations, Tom Carper says, "agencies do not know who took the information or how much information was taken."

A big focus right now isn't the middle east, but China.  Several of homeland security offices still say they are deficient in cyber protection.  The pentagon has been able to link several of the cyber attacks to China, even though reports out of Beijing deny any involvement.  The Chinese have an exhaustive amount of money and resources and much of it is dedicated to technology, unlike the US.

To test security against about 100 possible attacks, the Department of Homeland Security today is completing a week-long series of simulations called "Cyber Storm II." The event presumed a coordinated cyber attack on information technology, communication, chemical and transportation systems. Participants from five countries, nine states, 18 federal agencies and more than 40 private companies participated.

This weekend, I had the good fortune to attend Sakura-Con with my nephew Hyouketsu at the convention center in downtown Seattle.  Sponsored by the Asia Northwest Cultural and Education Association , it proved to be very diverse, educational and fun.  There were tons of people (13-15K) that Saturday but the convention center was laid out well and the staff was well represented to keep things running smooth.  Walking around, I would guess that 50-70% of the people there were in costume and I must admit to wearing my headcrab hat to help blend in.  Unfortunately the headcrab hat was well recognized and I got a lot of shout outs by lots of people around me who questioned if they could buy one at the event or where to get it.

There was so much to see and so much to do.  Live concerts,  anime viewing rooms, game rooms, exhibition hall, autograph signing, cosplay, workshops, people watching and much more.  Good times, High 5 Hyouketsu! 

If you want to see some of the photos I took from the event, click the "Read More" button below.

Many are left wondering whether one of the most popular first person shooter games will ever have its sequel.  Valve has been very quiet about any developments in the project allowing their time to be spent on their current project Team Fortress 2.  With the release of TF2 many believe that the new counter strike could resemble TF2 in artwork and design.

"... do we go start over from scratch and build this whole new game, do we do something that looks more like Team Fortress 2" was the question posed by Doug Lombardi.  Valve really hasn't decided whether the look or feel would resemble TF2 but they seem to be leaning towards something different.  They also hint that the new game would lean more to a radical departure from the original game.  They don't plan on revamping a couple details and reskinning and calling it a day.

 With the hinting that Counterstrike 2 may be a radical departure from its original part, the very core that makes Counter-Strike one of the major reasons college gpa's are dropping due to low study time, shouldn't change so much that the game isn't recognized as a Counter Strike game.  Even if the game is very different, the community is filled with ingenious players to mod the game as they see fit.  Until then we must enjoy our time with TF2 until that fateful day arrives.

Source: Jimmy Thang, IGN