Host: Larry Hryb, Xbox LIVE’s Major Nelson (Xbox LIVE ) (Twitter)  
Co-host : e (Xbox LIVE ) (Twitter)  
Co-Host: Stepto (Xbox LIVE) (Twitter)

Xbox 101

Happy Halloween! Not only do I bring you this week’s new releases on your favorite PlayStation console, but I bring you a collection of last minute Halloween costume ideas. Zeus! Ares! Athena! Oh my. Your favorite mythological Greek God-killer, Kratos, returns on the PSP this week with God of War: Ghost of Sparta. Stayed tuned this week when we debut my latest video feature when I visit the set of “God of War: Game Director’s Live,” where the game directors of God of War reunite and dissect the making of their epic saga. David Jaffe’s and Cory Barlog’s PlayStation 2 classics God of War and God of War II are remastered in high definition and bring the Blades of Chaos to the PlayStation Network this week.

It’s not often that we have reason (or desire) to talk politics here, but Tuesday is shaping up to be an important day for gamers in California and around the country. This week’s Supreme Court decision could have major repercussions on not just the gaming industry, but many other forms of protected speech, including movies, TV shows, music, comics, and just about any form of entertainment you probably enjoy now. We’ve had a couple of guest posters on the topic and we’ll have another update for you later this week.

In news from this past week, 2 major themes emerged. 1 – Gamers from around the world shared their favorite PlayStation 2 games on the 10th anniversary of the PS2 in North America, and 2 – God of War: Ghost of Sparta is pretty damn awesome.

Can’t talk — playing way too many video games. So many games, in fact, that I dropped the ball on the most slam-dunk Halloween costume idea I’ve ever had: Swamp Thing using a ghillie suit. I was this close to ordering the costume, but the last thing I remember is inserting the Fallout: New Vegas disc and picking up the controller and oh god where am I what time is it…

Needless to say, I’ll be dressing up as a “social media blogger guy” yet again this year. Anyone dressing up as a PlayStation character?

The author of Grand Theft Childhood offers an intelligent, thoughtful rebuttal to the arguments (and the research data) being used by the State of California in the U.S. Supreme Court's review of Schwarzenegger v. EMA.

Cheryl K. Olson (Sc.D., Asst. Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School) offers an update that takes on the evidence that California is using in the case, and the conclusions drawn by politicians in their arguments. She also says that the law may very well backfire should the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling be overturned.

Video games are the focus of a murder involving two teen boys from British Columbia. In March 2010 two teenage boys from British Columbia (18 and 16 years old) raped and killed an 18-year-old girl named Kimberly Proctor. The description of the crime is horrific: after the crime, the two boys mutilated and burned the body under a bridge.

Later the younger of the two alleged murderers bragged about the murder in World of Warcraft to a friend. He bragged about the crime to his friend and sent him newspaper clips detailing the crime. Naturally, the media wants a reason, and World of Warcraft has become a target.

The headline from CTV News gives you an idea where this is all heading: "Teens moved from online violence to real-life murder." Read More

The Entertainment Merchants Association passed us a quick note to let us know that the AirTalk program on KPCC ((National Public Radio in Pasadena, CA) will run a segment on (Monday, November 1 at 11:00 am PT) about the Schwarzenegger v. EMA case. Arguments for and against the California video game law will be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, November 2. The ECA will be holding a rally on the steps of the court in support of the game industry and gamers.

The AirTalk Segment will feature Dr. Chris Ferguson of Texas A&M and Dr. L. Rowell Huesmann of the University of Michigan discussing the pros and cons of both sides of the issue. AirTalk is streamed live at www.scpr.org/programs/airtalk. Read More

North Carolina-based Triangle Game Initiative is urging voters of the state to back candidates that back the game industry. Triangle Game Initiative is the trade association for the Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina interactive entertainment industry.

Its members include such game development studios as Themis Group, Epic Games, Atomic Games, CDV Software, Vicious Cycle Software, and more. Academic members include NC State University, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, and Wake Tech Community College.

A list of State and National candidates that support the Triangle Game Initiative are listed below:

A recent research report from Futuresource Consulting suggests that the mobile games market will be worth $10 billion worldwide by 2014. According to Futuresource Lead Mobile Analyst Patrik Pfandler, paid gaming apps will account for more than 95 percent of total mobile gaming revenues by 2014. This number is in spite of free gaming apps.

The report also suggests that smartphone ownership will increase by 50 percent to 270 million worldwide by the end of 2010. While the majority of app sales are related to Apple iOS devices, Futuresource says that Android app sales represent about 10 percent of the market.