We get it: times are tight. Gas prices have soared, and the unemployment rate is at an all time high. But surely you can scrounge up twenty bucks for a Wii game, right? Majesco has announced that the price of Budcat CreationsBlast Works: Build, Trade, Destroyhas been dropped to $19.99. Majesco was even smart enough to refer to theDestructoid reviewof the title (the only review that matters) in which Jonathan Holmes called it “fantastic” and “a fine example of execllence in the genre....

Throughout this extended holiday Steam sale, I have managed to not spend a single dime on the freakishly inexpensive wares. Unless you countTorchlightfor $10, but that was before the true madness ofTorchlightfor $5. What a fool I was to cave in so prematurely. Today’s fresh batch of deals includes: I highly suggest you avoidclicking this linkif you wish to pay for your utilities in January.

A few days before E3, I posted afeaturein which I visited a real-life psychic named Madame Christine of the Ether here in Los Angeles and asked her to make some real life psychic predictions about what would happen during last week’s huge industry gaming event. The psychic didn’t just give me a list of predictions — she also gave me a full breakdown of what would happen to the big three companies (Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony) during E3 and into the rest of 2009....

The latest title in the popular line ofBattlefieldgames is a major overhaul — both physically and economically — from the traditional look and feel of the series.Battlefield Heroesis looking a little (well, a lot) likeTeam Fortress 2, but that’s definitely not a bad thing. Set for a summer 08 release via download,Battlefield Heroesis one game that we can all afford without skimping out on other areas of our personal lives. At the low, low price of free, you’ll finally be able to pay your electric billandplay a shiny new shooter with your online buddies — all without resorting to piracy....

We love you guys; really, we do. And even more so, we love hearing from you. Even better, we love it when you have something relevant, interesting, or even funny to say. With that in mind, we’d like to introduce a new, weekly occurrence here on Destructoid: Comment of the Week. Each Friday, we’ll choose one comment from the past week — it could be funny, clever, or particularly insightful — and we’ll highlight it on the front page for all to see....

The jaws of karma continue to clamp ever tighter around Jack Thompson’s jugular as the prospect of disbarment becomes more and more real. Today, the silver-haired crusaderwalked outon his disciplinary hearing, in which the court recommended an “enhanced disbarment” for no less than ten years, basically appealing for the end of Thompson’s career. Jack disagreed with Tunis’ presence and stormed out in a blaze of harrumphs, but not before submitting a lengthy written objection (viewable after the jump)....

A Japanese arm wrestling arcade machine calledArm Spiritis being pulled from Japan’s arcades by its distributor after three players broke their arm in a match with the cabinet’s fake arm. “The machine isn’t that strong, much less so than a muscular man. Even women should be able to beat it,” said Atlus spokeswoman Ayano Sakiyama, calling the recall “a precaution.” “We think that maybe some players get overexcited and twist their arms in an unnatural way....

NBA Jamis a revival of a classic game, so it stands to reason that the Wii-exclusive title will feature classic players. MTV Multiplayer confirmed this when they spoke to the game’s creative director, Trey Smith, about the main gameplay mode inNBA Jam, Classic Campaign. Just like in the old days, the campaign is a “worst-to-first ladder tournament”; the 2010 NBA champion will be the penultimate opponent, and in the final battle, you’ll face off against the legendary duo of Magic Johnson and Larry Bird....

A game calledTHEYwas teasing me for the entirety of the GC. It was one of the first games I made an appointment to see having recieved a press release weeks earlier about it, the last one I got to see over the course of the week, and the one most wrapped up secrecy —hidden Super Mario Galaxy levelsnotwithstanding. I knew virtually nothing about the plot, nothing about who was even making it, — the press release had details only of a media consulting company — and I had the promise of a brand new gamplay mechanic which would make you “love your weapons” dangling in front of me....

Studio Ghibli is a funny name, but what’snotfunny is the fact that it is working with Level-5 to create a brand new DS game calledNinokuni, roughly translated asThe Another World. Actually, that might be funny as well, but we can’t confirm that right now. What wecanconfirm is that this is to be Level-5’s tenth anniversary product and it’s due out next year in HWAPAN! Here are even more details, as found inFamitsu:...

As a proud native, I can say with all surety that the state of Louisiana has a lot more to offer than just Mardi Gras and Bourbon Street (although those two things are kind of awesome in their own right). For instance,Gamepoliticsreports that 24 students in the Zachary Community School District, along with another group in the Lafayette area, participated in a project to learn about video game design. The bill for the program was footed by3D Squared, a non-profit with a focus on the “digital workforce”....

It’s hard to say if I’ll want anotherMadWorldbefore I’ve even gotten in any time with the original game, but that’s never stopped the ambitious types that plan ahead. Atsushi Inaba, the producer behindMadWorld, had a few choice words about the possibilities in a recent interview withThat Videogame Blog: “Platinum Games has several rights so we’ll be developing something new after this, but if there is a lot of interest inMadWorldthen maybe we will make another one....

As you may (should) know by now, MAGfest 8 is this weekend. The 8th annual Music and Gaming festival starts rocking Alexandria, Virginia on January 1st, with 4 days of non-stop gaming and live music, and the festivities start early on New Year’s Eve with a massive pre-show party. On hand for the event will beDouble Ice Backfire,Brentalfloss,VIRT, andRenardamong others. The crew has secured the entire hotel for the evening, and have decided to throw aGoldeneye-themedbash to get everyone primed for MAGfest the next day....