2009 Game Developers Conference

Although it wasn't your favorite game of last year, we all know that LittleBigPlanet is an amazing (and adorable) game. So it's only natural that at this year's Game Developers Conference, it was rewarded with four Game Developers Choice awards including Best Game Design, Best Technology, Best Debut, and Innovation.

Those little sackboys worked their way into our hearts, and personally, I still can't get enough of them! Also taking home awards are Fallout 3 for Best Writing, and Dead Space for Best Audio. I can totally agree with that last one — have you played Dead Space yet? It's pretty darn creepy and the sounds definitely add something to the game. However, I am a bit disappointed that Patapon didn't take the award for Best Handheld (it went to God of War: Chains of Olympus), as it was by far my favorite PSP game of last year. But hey, I guess I'm partial.

Last night during the Game Developers Conference here in San Francisco, Google's vice president of search products and user experience, Marissa Mayer, announced new gaming themes for iGoogle! With video games like Super Mario Bros., Guitar Hero, and World of Warcraft to choose from, avid gamers can spice up and personalize their iGoogle homepage with their favorite game. To see the other game themes available and to get a theme for your page, just visit Google's game themes site. And for more themes and theme info, you can check out our Google Themes info section.

More details about the DSi were announced during the Game Developers Conference today, including the consoles downloadable content prices. The DSi Shop will allow you to download tons of games through your wireless connection, which will cost anywhere from 0 - 2000 points per game. The point-to-dollar system seems pretty standard (and perfectly reasonable) with 100 points costing one dollar.

There is some bad news coming for you Game Boy Advance fans with this new console roll out: your GBA cartridges will no longer work in the DSi like they did on the DS and DS Lite. However, to make up for it (and to encourage early adoption), Nintendo is tossing in a free 1000 points to all you gamers that pick up the DSi before October. That way, you can download your favorites so you don't go through GBA withdrawals. They are the classics, you know.

Right now, when you want the latest video game to hit the shelves, you run out and plop down $40 - $60 bucks to own it, or, you download a new title from your console's online store. But what if you could stream that hot new game right onto your TV? At this year's Game Developers Conference here in SF, a company called OnLive (which has been developing its plan to take over the gaming universe for seven years) has finally announced its vision: to stream new and current video games right over the Internet at the same time they are being released into stores.

OnLive allows you to stream any game you want (regardless of console) to your Mac, PC, or television, with a (likely) monthly subscription, a minimum 1.5 Mbps Internet connection, and a custom OnLive wireless controller. No more waiting in lines for midnight releases, heck, you won't even have to have a PS3 to play PS3 games — they stream directly to you.

To see which gaming companies are likely to get on board, and to see what OnLive will do to ensure seamless gameplay, just read more