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Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia recently visited EA to check in on the progress of the company's upcoming, cutscene-driven MMO, Star Wars: The Old Republic. He reported that "earnings are somewhat depressed" due to the development costs for the game, but EA management is hopeful that they'll recoup this cash when the title brings in over two million subscribers. He added that, at the very least, the game needs over one million players in order for EA to break even.

We think they might be setting the bar a little too high for themselves. Why not make the monthly subscription fee cost $20,000, and then just hope that 500 outrageously wealthy, rabid Star Wars fans hop on board? There have got to be at least 500 successful venture capitalists out there who own a baker's dozen of collectible Millennium Falcon models.

LucasArts and BioWare have thus far released information for their upcoming MMO, Star Wars: The Old Republic, at a painfully slow pace -- the same goes for the hands-on opportunities they've offered us over the past year. When we finished our demo of the game at GDC, we were still left with a number of the same questions we had when we checked out the game back in December: Will there be space combat? What community features will be available? Can we build our own sentient, wise-cracking droids which secretly possess hearts of gold (and tin)?

Alas, these questions remain unanswered. However, our GDC demo did clarify one hang-up we've been concerned about since the game was announced: Why would anyone play as a non-Force user? The answer is now clear. It's because the Galactic Republic's Trooper class is awesome.

If InstantAction.com's CEO Lou Castle is to be believed, we're apparently going to be playing games pretty much wherever we want in the not-so-distant future. He's just revealed plans (via IndustryGamers) to relaunch his site with a new business/distribution model and a partnership with game streaming service Gaikai. In addition to the already existing model of a quick download (a claimed 4 - 5 minutes) that still somewhat relies on your computer power to process the game's graphics, IA will now offer a streaming option for those who'd prefer a quicker, less hardware reliant gaming experience. "It's the perfect implementation of a thin client solution because when it's available it's brilliant and when it's not available it's ok ... you only have to wait a couple minutes."

The aforementioned streaming option (employing Gaikai) will also be embedabble on the web, as demonstrated with Assassin's Creed (not to mention to us earlier today) "Now if people are reading a review of a game, they don't have to go find it ... they can play it right then and there in the browser."

And that's just the beginning -- Castle clearly has an eye on digital distribution services when he talks about employing Facebook as "InstantAction's Xbox Live." IA's new distribution model essentially promises to developers/publishers the ability to release games with a variety of payment methods (pay as you go, free-to-play, one-time charge, etc.) while incorporating the aforementioned embed and streaming functionalities.

So far, the company has inked one deal for distribution (with LucasArts for The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition) and Castle claims to be pursuing others right now. And apparently it won't be too long before we get to check out the new system ourselves, as the revamped digital platform is said to be "launching soon."

Does your dead-eyed Home avatar lack a bit of that buccaneering spirit? LucasArts has a sure-fire way to fix your lack of nautical flair: During its pirate-themed party at GDC, the company announced that Monkey Island costumes (pictured above) would soon make their way to PlayStation Home.

Now, we rarely get excited over virtual duds for our virtual manifestations -- but Stan's coat could really add a certain savoir-faire to our terrifying craft.

At a GDC 2010 event, LucasArts announced that The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition is headed to a plethora of new platforms and services. First and foremost, it's been ported for both the PlayStation Network and Mac OS. Furthermore, the game is also making the jump to the Telltale games store as well as InstantAction.com. There are currently no details as to when the game will hit the services mentioned above, but rest assured we're following up with LucasArts right now.

It's worth noting that InstantAction.com is currently down for "maintenance," with the site's blog mentioning some "exciting announcements" in the near future. Regardless of when the game does show up, it's definitely good news for adventure fans that have been deprived of the remake thus far.

At a pirate-themed party in San Francisco tonight (with special guests Ron Gilbert and Tim Schafer!) LucasArts announced The Secret of Monkey Island 2: Special Edition, coming "this summer" on Xbox Live Arcade, PSN, PC, iPhone and iPod Touch. This isn't simply the same "special edition" treatment applied to last year's edition; instead, fans can expect a new control mechanism. "In addition to the point-and-click interface, we've added the ability to move Guybrush around, so you feel more connected to him," said LucasArts' Craig Derrick, project lead on all Monkey Island products. They've also added never-before-seen art from Peter Chan and Steve Purcell and developer commentary (!) for you Monkey Island fanboys out there (that's you).

Of course, that's in addition to all the stuff you'd expect from the special edition treatment, including high-definition art, remastered music, full voiceover track, and the ability to swap between original and "special edition" modes. Derrick even said they've "reimagined" each character, citing fan displeasure with Guybrush's hair in the first special edition. Really? We liked his hair ...

Comm scan has detected that new Star Wars: The Force Unleashed Avatar items are now available on Xbox Live Marketplace. Yes, even more Star Wars stuff for your digital self. Normally, we would scoff at things like this, but hey ... there's a Stormtrooper outfit. Oh sure, you could get a clone trooper outfit before, but why waste money on that when the obviously superior Stormtrooper armor is available?

Check out the full collection of gear, including the Starkiller lightsaber, on Xbox Live Marketplace.

Here's the thing about being trapped inside of a suit all day: you crave connections. The tender embrace of another carbon-based life-form becomes a precious commodity -- a feeling we're far too familiar with, being the encased blogging machines that we are. But we digress.

This video (available past the break) from Austin-based Adam Grumbo shows us that both Spartans and Stormtroopers should periodically take a pause from their respective Covenant and Jedi murderin' to enjoy the finer things in life -- like fist-bumping and repping the cul de sac on a bitching BMX bike or a pair of sweet rollerblades. It's one of those things that just brings a tear to your eye, you know?

[Via The Escapist]

Well, this is nice to hear. LucasArts' big gamble – moving development of its signature properties back to its internal teams – continues to pay off with Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. The latest figure out of the House That Luke Built for what's already been billed as the "fastest-selling Star Wars game ever" is that Force Unleashed has "sold seven million units worldwide" since its September 2008 release. Seven million!

While strong sales figures are hardly rare for the Star Wars franchise, good games are. Lucky for all of us, LucasArts is busy continuing its wild experiment with a (get this!) sequel, due for release later this year, as well as "other unannounced products." Perhaps another stab at that next-gen Indiana Jones game?

Looking to get a little more mileage out of your copy of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed before the sequel arrives? As we knew from yesterday's PSN update, PS3 owners can now download the Hoth mission which came bundled with the "Ultimate Sith Edition" re-release of the game -- however, 360 owners will be able to follow suit on Tuesday, February 23. The DLC is going for $9.99 on the PSN, leading us to assume it'll cost Xbox Live Marketplace browsers a cool 800.

The mission on Hoth follows the events of the Tatooine sidequest, and tasks the Secret Apprentice with shutting down the Rebellion and squaring off against Luke Skywalker. Remember, these extra missions are non-canonical -- meaning the fate of the aforementioned frostbitten Force-wielder is up in the air.

LucasArts has invaded PlayStation Home today with a bunch of new virtual goods and a space to hang out in. Without all of the crime and sudden de-limbing that goes on in the Mos Eisley Cantina, the LucasArts storefront will offer patrons a safe environment to purchase virtual goods -- sorry, no power converters available.

Here's the list of goodies:

• Yoda shirt (for male avatars)
• Obi-Wan Kenobi shirt (for male and female avatars)
• Jedi Order shirt (for male and female avatars)
• Indiana Jones costume – torso, pants, shoes
• Indiana Jones costume – hat, hair
• Stormtrooper costume (for male and female avatars)
• Imperial Officer costume (for male and female avatars)
• Blue Lightsaber (for male and female avatars)
• Jedi banner (for avatar personal space)
• Sith banner (for avatar personal space)
• Star Wars The Force Unleashed poster (for avatar personal space)

LucasArts promises more updates to come. In the meanwhile, feel free to peruse select avatar items in our gallery below, but there may be a slight chance these aren't the images you're looking for.

The development of Star Wars Battlefront III has been rocky, to say the least. Work began at Free Radical before Crytek snapped up the company, then the game was rumored to be in Rebellion's care before it eventually dropped from the face of the earth. Meanwhile Pandemic, the recently shuttered studio behind the first two games, apparently had nothing to do with the title at all.

The latest rumor, courtesy of Kotaku, puts development of a brand new Battlefront project, entitled Star Wars Battlefront: Online, in the hands of Slant Six Games and LucasArts. Slant Six is the studio behind several games in the SOCOM tactical-shooter series, making it a reasonable candidate for a Battlefront developer. The game will reportedly arrive in 2011 on PS3 and Xbox 360. It will focus on online play and, presumably, Star Wars. According to Kotaku, Star Wars Battlefront: Online is also the source of the Star Wars Battlefront III casting rumors that popped up last December.

Ghoul Patrol is the sequel to Zombies Ate My Neighbors, built on the same engine and very much feeling the same. This time around, the game plays a little slower: the controls seem a little clunkier (I have to shoot my gun before I can start dashing?) and the environments are bigger and present far too many dead-ends ... literally. Still, it's a potent formula and on the whole, the game is great fun, even if it's not as endearing as Neighbors. Check it out in the latest VC in Brief episode above!

• Ghoul Patrol (SNES, 1 -2 players, 800 Wii Points)

You know, when Zombies Ate My Neighbors showed up on the Virtual Console, we were plum surprised. Save for a whisper here and there years earlier, we had no idea to expect the classic (and beloved) SNES title. Today, Nintendo has unleashed that game's sequel on the Virtual Console, accompanied by a bunch of other titles -- including Gameloft's WiiWare release, Uno, and Nintendo's feng-shui board game, Number Battle.

We're delighted to report that the iPhone version of The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition has been discounted 50% for the holidays. It's available for just $3.99 from now through January 4. If you didn't get it at half-price on Xbox (or even if you did), now you can enjoy savings on this version!

Our delight comes only partially from being able to tell you about a great price for a wonderful portable adventure game, but mostly from what we learned when we went to verify the price on the App Store: There's been a free, official Monkey Island soundboard app (iTunes link) available since September! We would never have known had the game not gone on sale.
The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition ($3.99):