It's time for the US end of the new bulletin system we're trying out around here, so as you probably already figured out - because you all so very, very smart - this is a round-up of all the news out of the Eastern portion of the US. California is still in the middle of the work day, but Brenna covers that end during her shift.

As Johnny mentioned in his wrap post, we have full-time news editors in Europe, the US and Australia. My US shift begins at 8am EST/1pm BST and ends at 5pm EST/10pm BST.

The News Wrap from each writer will be based on the news we’ve written during our shift.

Of course, this by no means replaces Pat's Bulletcast, which not only features his famous Welsh accent, but also keeps viewers guessing as to what his coif or facial hair will consist of on a daily basis. It will be posted every morning as usual.

So, without further ado, here is what happened during the US shift in between my infamous temper tantrums:

  • Microsoft financials: Q4 game division up 30%, full year 48%
  • Microsoft announced its financial result for Q4 and fiscal year 2011. The division which includes Xbox 360 did rather well, so it’s safe to assume MS isn’t going away anytime soon.

  • Thursday Shorts II: Nintendownloads, Zelda concert, Pokemon, more
  • The usual short stuff post, full of links, tags, and the prerequisite eccentric header image. Not today though, it’s Ponyta from Pokemon.

  • SWTOR beta weekends starting worldwide in September
  • Nestled in the lovely press release regarding the Limited Editions and pre-orders for Star Wars: The Old Republic, was news that beta test weekends will start in September. That’s good news for those of you who have yet to be admitted into the beta club.

  • Mega Man Legends 3 Project cancelled due to lack of interest
  • Capcom has stated on Twitter the main reason the Mega Man Legends 3 Project was cancelled, was due to lack of community support. It also nixed rumors Seth Killian was punched and that Mega Man cosplayers were not allowed in the firm’s booth at ComicCon.

  • Namco staying at arm’s length when it comes to Dark Souls development
  • Namco’s Daisuke Uchiyama and Kei Hirono, producers on Dark Souls, are taking a hand-off approach when it come to the game, and allowing lead director Hidetaka Miyazaki complete control of it.

  • Quick Quotes – Pete Hines multiplayer for the sake of multiplayer is “a waste of time”
  • He’s right. No arguing there.

  • Limited Edition Star Wars Kinect Xbox 360 bundle is awesome
  • Xbox and LucasArts announced at Comic-Con today that limited edition Xbox 360 console painted like R2-D2 with C3-PO-gold controller. It comes with a white Kinect, the Star Wars Kinect game, and the disc tray says: Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope.

  • Puzzle Quest 2 canned for PSP
  • Puzzle Quest 2 for PSP has been canceled, according to Infinite Interactive CEO Steve Fawkner.

  • Report – Some Steam keys for EA games redeemable on Origin
  • PC Gamer has tested its Steam keys attached to EA games to see if the games are re-downloadable through EA’s new digital service ,Origin. As you may have already guessed, some of the keys worked.

  • Quintin Smith joins Paradox
  • Rock, Paper Shotgun journalist Quintin Smith is now Paradox Interactive’s Creative Marketing Commissar. Smith said he plans to work for the firm while “continuing to pursue his freelance writing career part time,” which is one of the reasons he departed RPS earlier this month.

  • Poison, Steve Fox and Yoshimitsu confirmed for Street Fighter x Tekken
  • It’s official: Poison, Steve Fox and Yoshimitsu will be playable characters in Street Fighter x Tekken. Capcom revealed the news at Comic-Con this week, and has also released a trailer shows and a fews screenshots. Still no exact date, but it’s next year sometime.

  • Quick shots: DC Universe Online screens get out of Comic-Con
  • There’s quite a few shots for DCUO which were released today, showing Green Lantern and co.

  • NBA 2K12 getting three covers featuring Jordan, Bird and Johnson
  • 2K Sports has announced NBA 2K12 will offer three separate covers featuring Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson.

  • Gotham City Impostors video is full of insanity
  • Monolith has released a video for Gotham City Impostors. It’s a CGI affair, but fun nonetheless.

  • Quick shots: Panic Room screened for PAYDAY: The Heist
  • You’ve seen the trailer, now check out screenshots of the Panic Room in OverKill’s PAYDAY: The Heist.

  • Resistance 3 Survivor Edition trailered
  • Sony has trailered the Survivor Edition for Resistance 3, so you will want nothing more than to hand the store clerk your wallet and be done with it.

  • Super Meat Boy Ultra Rare Edition detailed for UK
  • UK fans of Super Meat Boy are getting treated to special editions of the game at retail. The shirt is so awesome, we had to order one of them ourselves.

  • Quick shots: Two lone screens of Dragon Age II’s Legacy DLC
  • A couple new environmental shots from the Legacy DLC for Dragon Age II popped up on the game’s official site.

  • McMillen releasing Isaac on Steam because “past experiences have been amazing,” likes 3DS
  • Team Meat’s Edmund McMillen has said he went with Steam for distribution of The Binding of Isaac because past experience with the service was “amazing.” He also likes 3DS.

  • Dead Island available for pre-order on Steam with bonuses
  • Deep Silver has announced a pre-order exclusive for Dead Island on Steam, which is available for pre-purchase on the service starting today.

  • Dead Rising 2: Off the Record video is shocking
  • Capcom has released a 42 second video for Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, which shows off a, literally, shocking new weapon Frank West will be wielding against zombie miscreants.

  • Bane featured in latest Arkham City digital comic
  • Rumors of Bane being present in Batman: Arkham City have been making the rounds for a while now, and thanks to the latest issue of the Arkham City comic book series, the possibility is looking more likely.

And that's it for me today. I am off to fix dinner. The natives are getting restless

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