Joystiq

Capcom has announced its own branded, pre-paid Visa cards, the first run of which will feature artwork from Street Fighter IV, Resident Evil 5 and Bionic Commando. The Capcom Unity Card will be available online beginning February 17 -- SFIV's launch date, we're guessing not concidentally -- and offer some interesting rewards for their use.

The most immediate benefit will be a 15% discount off purchases made using the Unity card on Capcom's online store. Every dollar added to these "rechargeable" cards will also grant their holders five Capcom Unity Points, which the company says "can be used in a number of different ways" at a revamped Capcom Unity website.

Auctions and raffles are already planned, with Capcom developing "a larger suite of rewards ... above and beyond the standard incentives." According to the announcement, these will range from "exclusive access" to beta programs for upcoming games to the possibility of "being written into a Capcom game or comic book" and -- get this -- potentially landing a spot as an extra in a movie based on Capcom properties. Additional card designs are also in the works (we know: "Where's my Mega Man?").

Most intriguing of all, card holders will be able to send money to other folk's Capcom Unity cards online. We think the timeline will go something like this: February 17, Capcom Unity card launches; February 18, the first underground SFIV fight betting network using the Unity card is formed.

For this weekend only, Valve is offering Left 4 Dead for half-price via Steam. So now, like everyone else with a pulse (seriously, no zombies allowed!), you can get with the program and start playing this game zombie apocalypse training simulator. The cost of civic duty entry: $24.99. In other words, a steal. And it's only going to get better when the free DLC hits.

What? The public being allowed into a game's launch event? We've never heard of such a thing. Okay, maybe we have. So has D3 Publisher, who is going to let the first 100 Joystiq readers that RSVP to PQGalactrixRSVP@d3p.us celebrate the release of its latest controlled substance Puzzle Quest game, Puzzle Quest Galactrix.

The event is being held in Los Angeles on Thursday, February 19 from 6:30 to 10:00 p.m. -- so bear that in mind before emailing. The publisher isn't going to fly you there or anything.

The first 50 "chosen ones" who show up with a Nintendo DS will receive a pre-release copy of the DS version of Galactrix. They'll also be able to play every version of the game pre-launch and have a chance to win T-Shirts, calendars ... and potentially even a customized Galactrix DS Lite. To your email clients, dear readers!

Update: 2/15 - 11:40PM EST : Tickets are still available, feel free to email the address above.

Korean MMO house NCsoft has made more cuts to its global operations, laying off 55 staffers at its UK-based NC West operation. GamesIndustry.biz reports that those let go were from five departments eliminated at the location, including community support, quality assurance, IT, creative services and localization.

The site reports that the remaining staff will handle customer support, sales and marketing. NCsoft carried out a similar downsizing of its Austin, TX studio last August.

We're starting to think that Capcom has caught word of our frequent nightmares about the inevitable Zombie Apocalypse. (It's going to happen.) Why else would it release a batch of new screens from Resident Evil 5 just as we were about to turn in for the night?

Well, perhaps it's to show off some new, decidedly non-shantytown areas of the game, including a sequence that takes place on boats. (Where the not-zombies can clearly still getcha.) It's a good thing water kills them. Oh wait, that's Gremlins. No, it makes them multiply. We're confused.

They say there are some things you just can't make up. The accompanying photos, received today from an anonymous tipster who works at one of Sony's distribution centers, are definitely some of them.

What you see are "PS2 consoles" returned to retailers -- such as Best Buy and Walmart -- then subsequently sent to Sony for credit. We're not sure what's more silly: that someone would try to pass off a wooden replica PS2 for return, or that someone would actually take the time to make a wooden PS2 with such detail. The question of "Who would accept these for return?" must also be raised.

We'll take a moment to answer "Yes," "Yes" and "Maybe" to the following questions in advance: "Are those ladies dumbbells inside a PS2?," "Is that PS2 stuffed with towels?" and "Is that some sort of Chinese PS2 knockoff?" We hope that helps ease the pain.

Brace yourself: you know that new Transformers movie, Revenge of the Fallen? Activision's making a game based on it. As you know -- despite trying your best to surpress the memory -- the publisher was resonsible for the video game adaptation of the first film, which only managed to transform your childhood memories and $60 into salty tears.

There's some promising info to report on this sequel: It has a different developer on PS3 and 360. Traveller's Tales has been ousted and replaced by Luxoflux, which is best known for its Vigilante 8 car combat titles and Activision's two True Crime games.

IGN's story on the game can be summed up thusly: It will have a larger number of playable Transformers than the first film's tie-in, will include a multiplayer mode and will take place in locales including Cairo and Shanghai. The site also lists versions for Wii, PS2, PSP, DS, PC and ... wait, no iPhone? Rolling out the game on Apple's emerging platform would certainly maximize your profits, Activision.

Check out the teaser trailer in all its "gameplay projected onto a logo" glory after the break.