If mixing RPG and Spy Shooter in a modern day setting is enough to pique your interest, you’ll no doubt be excited to see this full walkthrough video all about Alpha Protocol. This new walkthrough style video gives you a chance at seeing how a level may go down, depending on how you choose to approach it, and who you choose to side with.

Also present is a great introduction to the Dynamic Dialogue System, which acts as a timed decision system that plays a pivotal role in how you shape the world of Alpha Protocol. If this sounds intriguing, then head on over to GameTrailers to check out the newest walkthrough and be on the look out for more of these type of videos in the months to come.

A bit of satire to help jump start the week – angered by the recent news about Gamestop’s policy regarding ‘new’ games, one guy is selling his ‘new’ copy of Valkyria Chronicles for $4,995 US Dollars – what sounds like a fairly steep price – but he explains his reasons for the price in detail:

I am selling a “Gamestop NEW” (also known as gutted) PS3 game entitled Valkria Chronicles. This is extremely rare to find in this state considering most other “new” / “sealed” games don’t have the scratches on the disc nor the fingerprint smudges nor the somehow missing instruction manual that this version has.

Oh-ho, we see what you did there. The posting explains further:

Honestly, your sealed copy of Final Fantasy VII or Contra Force pales in comparison to this game as a Gamestop employee has already tested it out to make sure it works. Are you sure your Y-fold FFVII will even work?

The Q&A section also dives into the satire, including:

Q: I’m really interested in buying this games right now. Can you ship to Canada with USPS please?
A: Possibly, let me see if the pony express is still in business.

Q: Is this the rare bearded Selvaria cover variant? It’s difficult to tell from the picture.
A: I’m asking $5,000 for this version, if it was the one you pointed out the price would be 10x as high.

You can find the full listing here. We’re not taking any stances on this end regarding the policy, but anytime someone prices a fantastic game of ours just under five grand and emblazons it in well-done satire, we’re sure to take note.

Granted, the price may be a little high, but on the plus side – it does come with free shipping.

A while back, there was a story about a boy in Lawrence, Kansas who petitioned for three years to overturn a ban against owning hedgehogs in his hometown. (He ended up winning, too.) Now it’s time for more news about hardcore Sonic fans – this time in the form of a six-year-old halfway across the world.

The boy’s name was Christer – but he didn’t want it to stay that way. Being Norwegian, he wrote a letter to the king and asked for his name to be officially changed to ‘Sonic X’, and the king actually replied. Via gamezine UK:

…The request was rejected for the sole reason that at six-years-old, Christer was not old enough to make such a decision. Thus, the boy must contact King Harald V in twelve years time once he’s turned 18.

Christer admitted that he was disappointed, explaining that “it was a bit bad.”

Still, once he gets through the remaining 66% of his life required before he can officially make the changes, he could technically do it.

Will he still want to go through with changing his name in twelve years? That’s a good question – and it looks like we’ll just have to wait and find out.

SEGA and PS3Center.net have partnered up to bring Valkyria fans another contest, and even more chances to win some of those rare limited edition Art Books (Did I mention they sell for as much as the game does?), as well as some free DLC pack vouchers!

Also, be sure to give some props out to their site, who joined VGChartz as the second to prop up some permanent Valkyria Chronicles placement on their front page for the next full week!

A very shiny Valkyria Chronicles website skin.

For details on how to win one of their Art Books or DLC codes, click here or hit the contest link via the image above.

Finally, we’re also giving away another free DLC voucher ourselves on the Valkyria Facebook page at around 3 PM today. Get those typing fingers ready.

Have a great weekend everyone, and good luck to those of you working your way through Hard Mode EX and trying to A rank Edy and Selvarai’s missions! Especially in Selvara’s case, it’s well worth the effort.

Earlier last week, on arriving to work and entering my cube, I was surprised to find a rather sizeable box with my name on it. Work on not, boxes that are labeled with your name are generally filled with good stuff, and this box was no exception… this box contained a ton of swag for The Conduit and High Voltage Software! T-shirts, mouse pads, cups, and even license plate holders! Everything a fan of the Conduit would need to show their support.

Quite a lot of great stuff and all for the community! If you like what you see, we’ll be working on ways to get it to you through some community giveaways.

High Voltage Software came through and delivered a ton of stuff to be given out to the community! We’re working out the details on where this stuff will be going, but we wanted everyone to have a chance to look at the cool stuff before it goes out.

We’ve talked about Let’s Tap before, and you’ve seen the box art… now you can see it in action! Check out this just-released trailer for Let’s Tap.

Let’s Tap is coming to the Nintendo Wii this summer.

Giant rolling tennis balls, tennis bowling, hit-the-crocodile-in-the-face-with-a-tennis-ball and more comprise the legendary mini-games that have survived throughout the years in the Virtua Tennis series.

*Please note that we do not condone hitting real life crocodiles in the face with real life tennis balls. Otherwise, you risk becoming this guy on the left.

Last Feburary’s New York Comic Con was a busy time for all of us – those on SEGA staff who were manning the booths through the crowds, the community members that came out to see and play the games, and most definitely the team from Platinum Games, who were down to promote MadWorld, do interviews, and sign some MadWorld game covers.

That VideoGame Blog is now giving out one of those rare signed covers, and to get a shot at it, one need only comment on this post with their thoughts about the game. In their own words:

It can be one sentence, it can be an full fledged review, just make it good. The winner will receive the signed cover slip in his mail. Good writing!

I can also answer their question about what exactly a “Happy Onion” is – those would be the onions found in various levels that will instantly restore all your health. Now you know – and knowing, as they say, is half the battle.

Another Valkyria Chronicles contest has emerged! The cool guys over at SEGA Nerds have just posted up a new giveaway with five Valkyria Chronicles capsule figurines as prizes!

To enter, all you need to do is answer a pretty simple question regarding a previous SEGA game called Skies of Arcadia. Skies was also made by many of the same people who worked on Valkyria, so if you haven’t yet, be sure to check it out on either the Dreamcast or Gamecube. Trust me – you’ll be glad you did. (If anyone else feels the same, back me up via comments!)

Click here or on the image to visit their contest page. This makes three contests in under half a week, and we’ve got even more to come!

Tip: If you haven’t yet, join our Valkyria Facebook page and follow the ValkyriaTribune on twitter. A flying pig tells me that people who do will get a special shot at some free stuff later this week…

Behold, the pack front for Let’s Tap, coming out this summer on Nintendo Wii.