Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Launch Trailer

Looking to create some hype for tomorrow's big launch, EA Bright Light Studio have released a short teaser trailer for their upcoming movie-inspired Adventure title, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Running just under two minutes long, the video features a mix of cinematic cutscenes and in-game action. Check it out:

Thanks to GameTrailers for the above stream. Mirrors are also available at the following websites:

FileFrontFileShackStrategyInformerWorthPlaying

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince scheduled for release in North America on June 30th and in Europe on July 3rd.

Dreamkiller Announced

Creating a little buzz today, Aspyr Media and Mindware Studios have officially announced the development of a new first person shooter called "Dreamkiller". Due out this Fall, the game promises "mega-bloodbath" action and a twisted storyline that revolves around a psychologist who enters her patients minds to battle their demons. Here's the scoop:

AUSTIN, TEXAS – June 29, 2009 – Aspyr Media and Mindware Studios probe the insidious depths of the subconscious to bring Dreamkiller to the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and Windows PC. A fast, frantic and mega-bloodbath first-person shooter, Dreamkiller takes gamers inside the dark and twisted nightmares of tortured souls possessed by unknown forces.

Gamers will take on the role of Alice Drake, a psychologist with the extraordinary ability to enter the minds of her patients and combat the ravenous foes haunting their dreams. Utilizing a host of fantastic weapons and her own special abilities, Alice confronts our common demons only to discover an even deeper menace reigns within. The ultimate showdown becomes inevitable between that which would torment and she who will protect, and only one force will p 21de revail amidst a variety of dreamscapes as varied and bizarre as the human mind itself.

Dreamkiller features 12 rich levels of single-player gameplay each laced with swarms of hideous and disturbing enemies reflecting the mind’s infinite palette of fear. The onslaught continues with numerous multiplayer modes and a host of over-the-top weapons and supernatural abilities. Stay awake, Dreamkiller will be available this fall.

Included with the announcement are some new screenshots. Enjoy:

 

 

 

 

Sounds like something id Software would do if they had the Psychonauts IP. lol

Steam Weekend Deal: 50% Off Might and Magic, Zeno Clash

Giving us a reason to dust off our wallets this weekend, Valve Software has announced that the Heroes of Might and Magic V games, Dark Messiah Might and Magic, The Heroes Pack, and Zeno Clash are all 50% off through Steam from now until Sunday, June 28th. So if you're looking for something new to play this weekend, you may want to consider checking them out! ;)

ARMA II System Requirements Released

ARMA II System Requirements have popped up on Steam along with the ARMA II demo that was just released and here they are.

Minimum Requirements

OS: Windows XP or Windows VistaProcessor: Dual Core CPU (Intel Pentium 4 3.0 GHz, Intel Core 2.0 GHz, AMD Athlon 3200+ or faster)Memory: 1 GB RAMGraphics: GPU (Nvidia Geforce 7800 / ATI Radeon 1800 or faster) with Shader Model 3 and 256 MB VRAMHard Drive: 10 GB free HDD space

Recommended Requirements

OS: Windows XP or Windows VistaProcessor: Quad Core CPU or fast Dual Core CPU (Intel Core 2.8 GHz or AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ or faster)Memory: 2 GB RAMGraphics: Fast GPU (Nvidia Geforce 8800GT or ATI Radeon 21c2 4850 or faster) with Shader Model 3 and 512 or more MB VRAMHard Drive: 10 GB free HDD space

The reference to a "Dual Core CPU" with a listing Pentium 4 3.0 Ghz and AMD Athlon 3200+ (Athlon XP or Athlon 64? There is a difference...) as examples is just a tad confusing and I'd place a bet that the "Dual Core" bit is an error. The recommended specs are also somewhat odd as a 2.8 Ghz Core 2 Duo (that would be either E7400 at 2800Mhz or E8300 at 2833Mhz, I guess) is a lot faster than a mere Athlon64 X2 4400+ is.

On the other hand, there are reports that the game runs poorly even on fairly high end systems equipped with quad core CPUs and high end GPUs well exceeding the recommended specs. The issues apparently are not universal across all configurations, so your performance may vary based on the exact configuration. I seem to recall similar issues with the first ARMA as well... another buggy release pushed out too early? I hope not.

ARMA II requirements have also been added to the Game-o-Meter and you can compare your system to them here.

Thanks, BluesNews.

Aliens RPG is officially 100% dead

There many conflicting rumours over the state of Obsidian Entertainment's role-playing game take on Aliens. Was it dead? Was it merely wounded with a gunshot and soon going to jump out and shock everyone from behind a pile of crates? The game was declared postponed, then declared in stasis, and now declared, for sure, that it is dead (or is it)?

"Unfortunately, it is true that we are no longer working on the game, and we wanted to finally announce that officially to everyone who has been following its development," said "The Guildmaster," an Obsidian employee, in the Obsidian forums.

Probably most people who have been into gaming for awhile realize that if a project is postponed for any length of time, it has just about as much chance to get back into production as G.W. Bush has at getting re-elected for a third term. However due to some ambiguous reports that surfaced a few weeks ago, hardcore fans of the game were still holding out hopes that the game would be resurrected.

But this is not the case and no, there will be no Aliens RPG from Obsidian.

Besides, Obsidian is hard at work putting the final touches on their single-player spy RPG Alpha Protocol. Then they are going to be diving into the stand-alone Fallout: New Vegas. So there's no time for aliens.

Tropico 3 Beta Sign-ups Begin

Giving us a quick heads-up this afternoon, Kalypso Media and Haemimont Games have announced that they are now accepting applications to beta test their upcoming city-builder, Tropico 3. The closed beta is expected to launch on July 13th. To sign-up, head over to the official beta page and fill in your information. Selected candidates will be emailed details on how to grab the client ect, just before the beta's launch. Cheers!

EVE Online Apocrypha Patch 1.3 Next Monday

CCP announced today that they are pushing EVE Online Apocrypha Patch 1.3 to the live servers on Monday 29th June. Servers are expected to be down between 8:00AM and Noon GMT. Major features include an updated database backend for the massive item inventories and changes to the drop rates of wormhole materials required for Tech 3 production - which should drive down the astronomical prices of Tech 3 Strategic Cruisers quite nicely.

CCP is also finally shortening the anchoring and unanchoring timers of starbase structures, hopefully cutting down the setup time of a fully fitted Deathstar POS from 10-12 hours to less than 6! The rest of the fixes are mostly related to minor bugs in missions and exploration sites. No word yet about the next "major" EVE patch - a refreshing change that will hopefully mean we 2315 get more much-needed balance tweak patches to EVE.

Read on for the full patch notes.

Patch notes for Apocrypha 1.3, released 29 June 2009FEATURES

Need for Speed

The inventory service, which keeps track of the ownership and location of everything in the game, has been changed to use the new database service backend to connect and communicate with the Tranquility database. This will yield noticably less network I/O and memory usage than the previous system. The performance of most inventory related operations will improve, but there may be cases where performance will degrade. We fully expect a good performance gain on the whole though. The in-memory inventory storage has had a new index added which will address "The Jita Problem" where performance has been degrading over time as more items are primed in local storage. Maintaining an extra index induces some overhead, but frees the server from having to search through very large sets in highly populated systems. Degredation of searches over time is now a function of the player population at a given location and not a function of the number of items in a location as before.CHANGES

Tech 3

Several changes have been made to fix the cost of Tech 3 production: the volume of some gases required will be halved; the drop rate of the Neurovisual Input Matrix salvage item has been increased; and the material requirement for the power conduits has been switched from carbon-86 to Scandium Metallofullerene.Reverse Engineering will see several improvements. We are increasing the drop rate of Tech 3 datacores, increasing the runs on the blueprints from reverse engineering jobs and increasing the presence of radar sites in wormhole space.

Modules

The Omnidirectional Tracking Link I has had its description changed and will now correctly state that it "Improves optimal range and tracking on all drones."Strip miners, ice harvesters, doomsdays, triage module, siege modules and other modules which previously used a CPU bonus on the ship to allow you to fit a special module now use a new "Can be Fitted To" attribute and no longer need the high base CPU to restrict the fitting of the module. The CPU on each of these types of modules has been adjusted to no longer require a 10,000 CPU base as a result of employing this new method.

Weapons & Ammunition

The siege module explosion velocity penalty for Citadel Torpedoes has been changed from -92.5% to -60%.

Drones

The drop rates for faction drone blueprints have been increased substantially. In addition, we have increased the material quantities needed in many containers for the parts required to make meta drones. The materials required to make faction drones and rogue drone component material volume have both been decreased.

Skills

The pre-requisite skills for Capital Shield Operation have been changed. The new requirements for the training of this skill will be Shield Management V, Shield Operation V and Engineering V.

Starbases, Outposts and Stations

Multiple changes have been made to the anchoring and onlining of starbase modules and structures. All offensive starbase structure anchoring times have been reduced by 50% and all offensive starbase structure online times have also been reduced by 50%. Defensive starbase structures such as hardeners will have their anchoring, online and un-anchor times reduced by 50%. Finally, all starbase tower un-anchoring times have been reduced by 50%.

Miscellaneous

The Basic Drone Control certificate will now require the skill Drones to be trained to Level 4.FIXES

Modules

All five variations of the Gas Harvester module have had the "Crystals Damage" attribute removed under Show Info. Since these modules do not use crystals, the attribute was redundant.Mousing over a module on the fitting screen will now always display the correct CPU and powergrid requirements when the target ship has a specific bonus to fitting. For example, hovering the mouse over a Covert Ops Cloaking Device II while in the fitting screen of a Covert Ops ship will display the proper CPU requirements. If you have Covert Ops trained to level V then it will display the CPU required as "0" rather than "10,000."

Tech 3

The Offensive Covert Reconfiguration System has had its description fixed and will no longer say that you can fit a Covert Cynosural Field Generator.The reverse engineering of the Intact Power Core ancient relic was incorrectly generating Electronics subsystem class BPC’s. This has now been rectified and the correct Engineering subsystem blueprints will be created as intended.

Agents & Missions

A redundant empty room has been removed from the mission "Cash Flow for Capsuleers (4 of 10)."The mission "Cash Flow for Capsuleers (8 of 10)" has had the "objective completed" location fixed. Players will now be required to approach the destination as per the agent’s instruction. Previously, this mission would be marked as complete as soon as players warped into deadspace area."Balancing the Books (3 of 10)" will now have the correct NPC, depending upon the faction you are running the mission for. Amarr variations will have a Blood Raider pirate, Caldari will have a Guristas pirate, Gallente will have a Serpentis pirate and Minmatar will have an Angel pirate.The NPC’s in the mission "Vitoc Vector - A Terrible Thing (4 of 4)" have been rebalanced. The overall number of enemies has been reduced but their difficulty has been increased.The missions "Delving into The Past (1 & 2 of 3)" now have their completion triggers fixed. The mission journal will now blink correctly when the mission objective has been looted from the container.The orbit range of the two rogue drones in the mission "Making Mountains out of Molehills (4 of 10)" has been reduced from 50 km to 5000 meters.The storyline mission dialogue for "The Numon Claim - Imperial Intervention (3 of 5)" will now correctly refer to the Amarrian Empress rather than Amarrian Emperor. Jamyl Sarum thought it more prudent to ask the agents to update their information rather than go through an unnecessary sex change.The mission "Drone Distribution" has had the name of some structures changed. In addition, players can also use a microwarpdrive in the mission area.Structures have been moved around in the deadspace areas for the missions "Angel Extravaganza" level 3, "Silence the Informant" level 3 and "Spies R Us (Serpentis version)" level 4.The mission "Spies R Us (Blood Raider version)" level 3 has had a missing trigger added. Additionally, the number of destroyers in this mission has been reduced.Grammatical errors have been fixed in the mission description for "Seek and Destroy."A typographical error has been fixed in the pop up warning for the COSMOS mission "Contested Amarr Bastion of Blood."A grammatical error has been corrected in the name of the fighter group in the mission "The Big Sting (3 of 3)."A grammatical error has been corrected in the mission objective for "Lost Records."

Exploration & Deadspace

The exploration site "Blood Raider Naval Shipyard" will no longer throw an exception error in the final room.

Science & Industry

The Reprocessing window will now refine large stacks of items much more quickly. The window has been adjusted to display a message that reprocessing is in progress and the speed has been increased up to 25 times faster.

Markets & Contracts

Many blueprints for COSMOS items have been added to the contracts database and can now be contracted normally.The Amarr Navy Heavy Capacitor Booster Blueprint is now published and can be searched in contracts.

Graphics

Multiple NPC’s have had missing guns added to their ships. Now they look much cooler before you blow them up.

User Interface

The starmap has been fixed and stars will no longer vanish when zooming in and out.The certificates for "Battleship Advanced Artillery Turrets - Elite" and "Battleship Advanced Beam Turrets - Elite" now display the correct description.A ship GUID icon has been added to the Show Info window for all Doomsday Devices.A grammatical error has been corrected in the error messa 2250 ge displayed when attempting to overload Cruise Missile Launchers.We have cleaned up the double spaces and trailing of some names in groups and items. A search for said items will now yield the proper result.A grammatically incorrect attribute which was displayed in the Show Info of the Naglfar has been removed.A grammatical error has been corrected in the "Military-Damage Types (3 of 5)" tutorial.A grammatical error has been corrected in the World Map Control Panel.Several typographical errors have been corrected in the "Mining" tutorial.

EVE Voice, Mail & Chat

It is now possible to join voice chat on newly created chat channels. The "Join Audio" button will now display correctly on all newly created player chat channels.Players can now join other player created channels normally without getting a message stating "You may own at most 10 mailing channels or mailing lists."

Localized Clients

Several grammatical errors have been corrected in the Show Info window for all ships in the Russian clientSeveral words which were displayed in English have been corrected in the German and Russian clients concerning player-owned structures.

Demigod Patch v1.1 Released

Hitting the web today is a new patch (v1.1) for Gas Powered Games' latest Strategy-RPG, Demigod. In addition to the usual laundry list of bug fixes and gameplay tweaks, this update features major network improvements, AI improvements, a new "concede game" option and more! You can check out the full changelog right here or just launch your Impulse client to start downloading!

Spore: Galactic Adventures Ships

Hot off the presses, Maxis and Electronic Arts have announced that their highly anticipated Spore: Galactic Adventures expansion pack has begun shipping to stores across North America today, with an international release to follow on June 25th. Here comes the sales pitch:

"Spore Galactic Adventures enhances the Spore experience by blasting players off into space, turning ordinary creatures into legendary Space Captains," stated Lucy Bradshaw, VP and General Manager at Maxis. "For the first time, players can beam their creatures down to planets to experience all-new adventures or create custom-made missions of their own and share them with the world. With more than 105 million creations available in the Sporepedi 210d a, the Spore library of user-generated content for use in players’ missions, the only limit is their imaginations!"

Full PR is available for your viewing pleasure right here. :)

Math and space-shooting combine in indie game Polynomial

An indie game that could double as a screen saver turned up recently on the Internet.

The game is called Polynomial, and it was made by a Russian guy named Dmytry Lavrov. The concept of Polynomial isn't that special -- you basically fly around in space ship, first person perspective, shooting stuff up. What is exceptional is the execution of this simple concept.

Mr. Lavrov used randomization and fractal generation to generate the landscape space-scape for the game. Each cool looking fields of light you fly around in represents some variety of math equation.

You can get in dogfights with nasty alien shapes, just fly around, or use the included editor to make up your own space-arenas.

A demo version of the game is available for PC, Macs and Linux OS'es. The demo version if fully featured -- it only lacks the ability to save. You can get it here.

New Champions Online Screenies

Moving right along, the fine folks over at Cryptic Studios have released four new screenshots from their upcoming superhero-themed massively multiplayer online RPG, Champions Online. These latest shots feature some sword play, rooftop battles and massive explosions. Check 'em out:

 

 

 

 

Champions Online is scheduled for release on September 1st.

LOTRO: Volume II, Book 8 Launches In North America

Keeping our modems nice and toasty today, Turbine has announced that the "Volume II, Book 8: Scourge of Khazad-dum" content patch for The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria is now live on North America servers, with the European launch to follow on June 25th. This beefy update feature a new 12-player raid, several new instances for smaller groups, various gameplay tweaks and the return of The Summer Festival, which includes two new events. You can check out the full changelog right here or just launch the game's auto-updater to st 2058 art downloading. Cheers! :D

Empire: Total War Patch v1.3 Released

Grabbing out attention this afternoon, the fine folks over at Creative Assembly have released a new patch (v1.3) for their hit Strategy title, Empire: Total War. In addition to the usual laundry list of bug fixes and gameplay tweaks, this beefy update adds 14 new units to the game and implements multi-threading support, which should provide a "huge" performance increase for PCs running multi-core processors. You can check out the full changelog right here or just relaunch your Steam client to start downloading!

ArmA II North American Retail Release Next Month

While the Steam edition of ArmA II is scheduled for release in North America on June 26th, those of you looking to pick up a boxed retail copy of Bohemia Interactive's highly anticipated military shooter will have to wait until July 7th according to a press release issued by the developer today. Here's the scoop:

Prague, Czech Republic, June 22nd - Bohemia Interactive, creators of award winning military simulation Operation Flashpoint* and ArmA: Combat Operations and Got Game Entertainment, US leading publisher of interactive entertainment games, announced today their partnershipfor the North American retail release of ARMA II, one of the most anticipated PC Game of 2009. The two companies have partnered 2176 together to bring the game to most major retail outlets throughout North America this July.

Bohemia Interactive once invented the genre of realistic military sand-box games and it aims now to re-define that genre with its upcoming game ARMA II, the ultimate military simulator, powered by the 3rd generation of their original Real Virtuality engine that's also used to train soldiers in numerous countries from Australia to the United States.

"North America is one of the most powerful and important markets in terms of a game's marketing and distribution," said Marek Spanel, Bohemia's CEO. Spanel continues "We were looking for responsible and credible partners who will focus on ARMA II with the kind of drive and enthusiasm that this huge project deserves. We feel Got Game Ent. will be the right partner for us and I believe together we will make ARMA II a success in North America."

"We are very excited to bring ARMA II to the North American market," said Got Game Entertainment President Howard Horowitz. "This caliber of game brings Got Game Entertainment to a new level of excellence and certainly ushers in a new era for our company."

ARMA II will offer the ultimate realistic combat simulation experience in a modern day setting. With unprecedented freedom of movement, actions and tactics, unbeatable detailed weapons and military hardware, easy-to-use built in mission editor and one of the most dedicated online communities around. The game will allow players to immerse themselves into the battle as never before.

ARMA II is scheduled for an in store Date of July 7th, 2009. For more information please visit the official homepage at www.arma2.com and www.GotGameEntertainment.com

The European edition of the game hit stores last week. Hope you didn't miss the big launch! ;)

Steam Weekend Deal: 50% Off Empire: Total War

Saving us some cash this weekend, Valve has announced that Creative Assembly's Empire: Total War and Empire: Total War - Special Forces Edition are both 50% off on Steam from now until Sunday, June 21st. So if you've been waiting for a sale to pick this bad boy up, here's your chance to grab it dirt-cheap!

Wondering if the game is any good? Then be sure to check out our in-depth review. :)

Left 4 Dead Custom Campaign Update Next Week

Attention mod authors! Valve has announced that they'll be releasing a "Custom Campaign Update" for Left 4 Dead sometime next week. This update will include an official (non-beta) SDK, a new Add-Ons menu to view which mods you have installed and full Add-On Campaign matchmaking support. They also note that they've updated their Developer Community wiki with a new tutorial on how to package your creations. We'll be sure to let you know when the update goes live, so stay tuned! ;)

Grand Theft Auto IV Patch v1.0.4.0 Released

Keeping things rollin' today, Rockstar has released a small patch for their hit open-world shooter, Grand Theft Auto IV. Weighing in at 55MB, this "Maintenance Update" tweaks resource management based on the OS you're running. You can grab it through Games for Windows LIVE or hit-up any of the following websites for a mirror:

RockstarGames.comYouGamers (courtesy of GamersHell)FileFrontFileShackStrategyInformerWorthPlaying

Wonder if it offers a performance improvement. Anyone notice anything?

D&D Online: Eberron Unlimited Store Shots

Moving right along, Turbine has sent over twelve new screenshots from the upcoming Eberron Unlimited update for Dungeons & Dragons Online. These latest shots give us our first look at the new in-game store, where you'll be able to purchase convenience items, dungeon packs, additional character slots, hirelings (hired muscle), potions and a whole slew of other goodies. Check 'em out:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Eberron Unlimited update is scheduled for release later this Summer.

ECA calls on public to protest bandwidth caps

The Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) are the folks fighting for rights pertaining to computer and video gamers.

Their latest waged battle concerns Internet bandwidth caps, that is, how much data you can download to your computer per month. It is the ECA's position broadband customers aren't in the best interests of their providers, and so they've introduced the Broadband Internet Fairness Act, H.R. 2902, which they're asking the public to get behind with them.

"The internet is the economic and entertainment engine of our time," reads their statement. "We don’t need the telecom companies increasing costs, while offering more bandwidth intensive services.Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) believes that gamers should be able to play the games they want on the internet. These user caps could limit or stop game play by arbitrarily and artificially limiting bandwidth in the name of network management."

Supporting the cause is simple -- just head to the source link below, enter in your information, read over the message they've written up to make sure it's something you're behind, and click send. If you want all the details, links to the full text of the bill can be found there, as well as means by which to contact the ISPs directly.

Steam Sale: 20% Off Oblivion, Morrowind & Call of Cthulhu

Celebrating the additions of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and Call of Cthulhu to Steam today, Valve has announced that these classic Bethesda RPGs are 20% off for the first week. They're available individually or as part of a package deal. Here's the scoop:

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Game of the Year Edition - $16.79 (Reg $20.99)The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Game of the Year Edition Deluxe - $19.99 (Reg $24.99)The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind Game of th 2084 e Year Edition - $11.19 (Reg $13.99)The Elder Scrolls Game of the Year Pack - $25.19 (Reg $31.49)Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth - $11.19 (Reg $13.99)

Pretty awesome games...so don't miss out on the savings! :D

Anno 1404/Dawn of Discovery Demo Released

Moving right along, Blue Byte Software has released a new singleplayer demo for their upcoming RTS, Anno 1404 (aka Dawn of Discovery in North America). Weighing in at 1.68GB, the demo allows you to play through Chapters 1 & 2 of the campaign, along with the Continuous Game mode for an hour each. Sound good? Then hit any of the following mirrors to start downloading:

GamersHell - US / UK / FRFileShackFileFrontStrategyInformerWorthPlaying

Dig the demo? Then keep an eye out for the full game when it hits stores in North America on June 23rd and Europe on June 25th.

New 80-Player World of Warcraft Battleground Revealed

According to an update on the official World of WarCraft website tonight, Blizzard Entertainment is working on a new 80-player Battleground for their hit MMORPG, which they plan on rolling out in the upcoming "Call of the Crusade" content patch. The new Battleground, entitled The Isle of Conquest, sees the Alliance and Horde fighting for control of a small island just off the coast of Northrend. To claim victory, you'll have to make use of "devastating siege weaponry" to capture strategic locations on the map and push the enemy team back to their Keep, where you'll then face their General in an epic final battle. You can find a full preview on The Isle of Conquest right here. Sounds like a blast! :D

Wallace & Gromit Episode 3 Released

Spreading the good news today, Telltale Games has announced that they've launched the third episode in their popular Point & Click Adventure series, Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures. Available for purchase through the Telltale Store and Steam, "Episode 3: Muzzled" introduces a new character named Monty Muzzle, who's holding a fundraiser to rebuild the local dog shelter...or so he'd like you to believe! Can Wallace & Gromit prove that this stranger is up to no good? You'll just have to play to find out! ;)

UK publisher Mastertronic launches Great Indie Games label

UK publisher Mastertronic -- who run their own digital distribution service (DDS) -- have started up a publishing outfit specifically for independent games at retail, calling it "Great Indie Games" (how did you guess?).

The company is kicking things off by putting out a boxed version of World of Goo (the mockup below looks really nice, hey?), which will debut in the UK, Ireland, Australia and the Nordic region early next month at the cost of 14.99. There's no word of a North American release, but worst case scenario you could import.

“We have always wanted to work more closely with developers and we believe we can add real value to indie games by getting them in front of a mainstream retail audience and shouting from the rooftops about the fruits of their considerable labour,” Mastertronic MD Andy Payne stated.

“With the many and varied PC games offerings out there, casual or otherwise, there is a place for great games that have been produced on a lower budget than normal by small development teams. Every other creative art has indies, indeed the games industry grew out of indie pioneers, so it is about time we helped them get back to where they belong.

“Great Indie Games is a vehicle to make this happen and I am proud to be representing this talent. We are on the look out for more indie developed games so any developers who want their game sold at retail should get in touch with us.”

New Cities XL Screenshots

Breaking out the eyecandy this afternoon, Monte Cristo has released seven new screenshots from their upcoming city-builder, Cities XL. These latest shots give us an overhead and street-level look at some of the massive cities you can build in the game. Pretty sweet! Check 'em out:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cities XL is scheduled for release in Europe on September 3rd and North America sometime in Q3 2009.

Champions Online Screenshots

Keeping things rollin' tonight, Cryptic Studios has released a fresh batch of screenshots from their upcoming superhero-themed massively multiplayer online RPG, Champions Online. These latest shots feature some high-flying attacks, colorful special abilities and duel wielding weapons. Enjoy:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Champions Online is scheduled for release on September 1st.

Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood 'Brothers' Trailer

Keeping things rollin' today, Techland has released a brand new teaser trailer for their upcoming Western-themed first person shooter, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood. Running just over two minutes long, the video introduces us to the McCall brothers and Marisa via some action-packed cinematic cutscenes and in-game footage. Check it out:

Thanks to GameTrailers for the above stream. A mirror is also available at the FileShack.

Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is scheduled for release on June 30th.

Dawn of Discovery 'Harbor Walkthrough' Trailer

Keeping us on our toes this weekend, Blue Byte Software has released a brand new gameplay trailer for their upcoming RTS, Dawn of Discovery. Clocking in at just over two minutes long, the video walks us through the new Harbor system and the different ways you can customize it to optimize and expand your trade routes. Check it out:

Thanks to GameTrailers for the above stream. The video is also available for download at WorthPlaying.com.

Dawn of Discovery (also known as Anno 1404 in the UK) is scheduled for release in North America on June 23rd and Europe on June 25th.

Mirror's Edge sequel confirmed

Up until now, a second installment in a Mirror's Edge (ME) trilogy was planned, but not confirmed. EA Games Europe's senior VP Patrick Soderlund has brought it to light in an interview at E3, however: the game is indeed in the works.

When asked for an update, he commented on the first game: “Mirror’s Edge was a risky move. It was a bold move, a very innovative and inspiring move. The game wasn’t perfect by any means. We would have liked the game to sell better even though the game has sold better than most people think," adding, "You will see another Mirror’s Edge for sure. It’s just a matter of when that time is and what we do with it. We have a small team on it and I’m excited about what we do.”

CEO John Riccitiello has previously stated: "[It] is one that was very strongly reviewed. That one's gonna go forward--we'll be looking at some issues around the design to make sure strong IP is married with strong business," adding, "Many times, what happens with new IP is the first edition doesn't generate the units that subsequent editions could generate."

Interesingly, aside from putting its faith in the Wii and Natal, EA also appears to put a lot of stock in multiplayer as a selling point, as many other studios are, like 2K with its BioShock sequel (oddly enough to some), and Naughty Dog's Uncharted. In a separate interview with EA Games prez Frank Gibeau, it's revealed the Mirror's Edge sequel is likely to get the same treatment:

"[The game] was a fresh, new take that did quite well in Europe, but not as well in the US, and I think that one suffered a bit from a lack of multiplayer, as well as being a relatively short experience, shorter than we had hoped."

While at first the thought of ME gone multiplayer provoked an "Oh God no" reaction from us, G4 has some pretty good ideas for how it could genuinely enhance the experience, such as races, tag-based Capture the Flag, competing to disarm bombs around the city, etc.

The way Gibeau sees it, investing in new properties is something that takes time to pay off, helped by improvements to each of its franchises. So here's our hope EA puts out some solid multiplayer for the title, and fans are more receptive to this and other changes. By the way: the length was fine, partly because it was still so fun to replay. Silliness!

Saturday Special: Spoilers & previews

Disclaimer: I don't believe there is any "wrong" or "right" with these Specials (or with anything really) -- essentially, only infinite speculations and possibilites. Debate and discussion are strongly encouraged in the comments for these!

With fear of sounding like an old grouch, I recall days when the Internet was not so popular, or even not popular at all. For the video game world, this carried with it one wonderful positive: mystery. It's not that print media was completely free of giving us some juicy details months (even years) before we played a game, but it retrospect, it seems it was more tastefully done, and well-orchestrated, as opposed to what the rabidly curious nature of the Internet produces.

This Special was initially inspired by a story I spotted on NowGamer last week, which ran the headline "Mass Effect 2 has bloodbath ending". The game doesn't come out for at least seven months, and I already have a good idea of one of the endings (not to mention a wad of other details, from that story and various other sources). I hope it's not just me, but I prefer some mysterywith my games. I don't want to know every dirty detail about it seven months or more before it ships -- I want enough to know if it's something I'm interested in, and then I want to open it up on the release date, stare at the package in awe, wonder what lovely things are inside, and let myself become absorbed into the experience. I know almost no details as such on this game, yet still more than I like. In either case, I do know it's something I'm interested in, and here's why:

It's from BioWareI really enjoyed Mass EffectThe concept art is quite nice

For this particular game, that's all I need to know. Maybe like many felt with KOTOR versus KOTOR II, the game won't live up for me in the end, but I'm interested in the meantime.

Console owners have the advantage of being able to rent a game to see how they feel before purchasing (if they do), assuming there is no demo. As a primarily PC gamer (for now anyway), no demo means I have to rely on the opinions of friends and reviewers who share my perspectives. To bring the point home, and not to sound self-righteous, these are the only things I need in whether or not I decide to buy a game, and if I do, for the best experience thereafter.

A second example (there are many) is BioShock 2. If you check out all the news we have on this game on GameGrep, you'll see damn near all of the game pretty much laid out for you. Multiplayer details, screenshots, nine straight minutes of gameplay footage, setting, villians, etc. This is why I loved 2K's initial teaser so much, cleverly snuck into the PS3 version of the game and shortly after put out onto the Internet by a fan. Let's take a look:

I got really excited over this with a friend of mine as we tried to interpret exactly what it meant. Did it take place in an overground city? Was there just one Sister left? Oh, the possibilites. But that all went downhill in the ensuing months, and before I knew it the gaming community had revealed and dissected nearly every possible detail to death.

Of course, this is typically more the fault of publishers who want to build as much hype as possible before release, and make the biggest possible return for their investment in the end. Though I understand this, even from a capitalist perspective: is that the best way to build anticipation? I'm just one person, of course, and I realize a good portion of the gaming community just has no patience at all, but maybe that's the point; maybe we need to learn patience, maybe publishers need to learn money shouldn't get in the way of mystery, and that it's largely a good thing for them anyway.

All I knew about BioShock before playing was the following:

It takes place underwaterIt has a dystopian premiseThe graphics are real niceThe story is original (judging from the trailer below)

I'm a sucker for a good dystopia, and have always been fascinated with tales of Atlantis, so I dove right in knowing only these things. The result, I can tell you, is a more engaging experience. Because I didn't have any preconceptions going in, I very much felt like I was Jack, in this new world, with no idea of what was going on or where I was or what to expect. In my opinion, this is how the game is meant to be played, and if the sequel lives up, the way it is to be played for the best experience, too.

Ubisoft is one team that seems to know how to do it properly, perhaps because they develop great games, too. Case in point here is Prince of Persia: after launching a teaser website campaign, featuring pretty much only the image you see at the top of this article and some nice music, I was definitely intrigued. They followed this with some fan service, noting an Altair skin would be unlockable in the game, and a series of trailers; one in particular is easily among the most beautiful I've ever seen:

This alone swooned me; I knew it was something different, and something well-worth playing, despite what any dissenters had to say (including myself, at one point). Having played it, I can state it's every bit as wonderful as you could hope from that footage.

So with that, I say there's more than one way to promote a game, and I implore gamers, members of the press, and publishers to keep some of the mystery alive: it only adds to the experience.

Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor Patch v2.600 Released

Kicking things off today, Relic Entertainment has released a new patch (v2.600) for their hit strategy title, Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor. Weighing in at 45MB, this update features a truck-load of bug fixes and gameplay tweaks, along with a new multiplayer map called "Panzerkrieg: Hébécrevon". You can check out the full changelog right here or just launch the game's auto-updater to start downloading. Mirror's are also available at the FileShack and WorthPlaying.com. Grab it while it's hot! :D

Burnout Devs Working On Next Need For Speed

Speaking with Kotaku at this year's E3, Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello confirmed that the team behind Criterion's Burnout series is working on a new "revolutionary" Need For Speed title. No other details are revealed, but he does state that this is a true NFS game and not just Burnout Paradise with a different label slapped on. With that concern out of the way, I'm sure NFS fans will get behind this move. Hopefully we'll be learning more about the title in the not-too-distance future. /fingers crossed

Valve not leaving Left 4 Dead for dead just yet

Valve's announcement of Left 4 Dead 2 actually riled a few feathers in their community. Some fans were dismayed with the prospect of shelling another $50-60 for a standalone sequel in just about a year after fans purchased the first title. Outside of obvious concerns over getting short charged on their investment, naysayers also feared the sequel would threaten to split and dilute the existing Left 4 Dead community. Valve has already argued that the content promised in Left 4 Dead 2 warranted a full release as a separate game versus an incremental update for the first title. Now Valve director Gabe Newell himself steps forth to assure fans that Valve remains committed to long term support for their titles, including Left 4 Dead.In astatementto Kotaku:

"Some in the community are concerned that the announcement of L4D2 implied a change in our plans for L4D1. We aren't changing our plans for L4D1.

"In addition to the recently released Survival Pack, we are releasing authoring tools for Mod makers, community matchmaking, 4x4 matchmaking, and more new content during the coming months for L4D1. We also agree with our customers that there needs to be an interoperability plan for players of L4D1 and L4D2, as multiplayer games are driven by the cohesiveness of their community."

While Newell acknowledged that a yearly release schedule for new games will be quite new for Valve, he explains that Left 4 Dead 2 fit the bill as the product announcement expected from companies showcasing at E3. The coming months ought to show just how much steam (pun not intended) Left 4 Dead will really be running on.

Playable PC/PS3 demo arrives for Overlord II

A playable demo for Codemaster's Overlord II became available today. The full game comes out in North American on June 23rd.

Overlord II is an action adventure game. You play as an evil bad summoner dude, who wants to wreck havoc because he is such an evil bad summoner dude. Also, being an evil bad summoner dude, your goal in life is to become the King of Chaos. Apparently their is an opening in your kingdom for the position of King of Chaos.

You get most stuff accomplished via these imp minion-types you can get working for you. For example, say there are some pesky warrior dudes after you -- you can call up some red imps guys to toss fireballs at them. That sort of thing.

Interested PC gamers can download the demo here. Interested PS3 gamers can get the demo from the Playstation Store, of course.

Here are the PC requirements:

Minimum Requirements
- Windows XP.
- DirectX 9.0c
- Pentium 4 @ 2.4 GHz or Athlon 2400+
- 512 MB RAM
- Graphics Card: GeForce FX5700 / Radeon 9500 or above
- DirectX Compatible Sound Card
- 2x DVD-ROM Drive
- 4.5 GB Hard Drive Space

Recommended Requirements
- Windows XP/Vista.
- DirectX 9.0c
- Pentium 4 Core 2 Duo or Athlon X2
- 1 GB RAM
- Graphics Card: GeForce 7800 or Radeon X1800
- Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Sound Card
- 2x DVD-ROM Drive
- 4.5 GB Hard Drive Space
Supported Graphics cards
- ATi Radeon 9500, 9600, 9700, 9800, X300, X600, X700, X800, x1300, x1600, x1800, x1900, x1950
- nVidia Geforce FX5700, FX5950, 6600, 6800, 7100, 7300, 7600, 7800, 7900, 7950, 8800

America's Army 3 Pre-loading Begins

For those of you looking forward to the launch of America's Army 3 on June 17th, Valve has announced that the upcoming freeware-based tactical shooter is now available for pre-load through Steam. They also reveal that AA3 will feature Steamworks support, which will allow the developers to do automatic-updates, add Steam Achievements and utilize Steam Cloud features like storing your saved games and keyboard configurations online. Pretty cool stuff! Click here to start downloading.

Battlestations: Pacific - Volcano Map Pack Trailer

Getting our adrenaline pumping this afternoon, Eidos Interactive have released a short teaser trailer for the upcoming Battlestations: Pacific "Volcano" map pack, which is scheduled for release on June 25th. The minute and a half-long clip features some massive battles in the new multiplayer levels. Check it out:

Thanks to GameTrailers for the above stream. Mirrors are also available at GamersHell and WorthPlaying.com.

AMD: DirectX 11 by the numbers

AMD's Sr. Manager of Developer Relations Richard Huddy wrote a neat little blog post last week about DirectX 11, which should shed a lot of light on what to expect from the next generation of the API collection -- a much bigger jump than DirectX 9 was to 10, to be sure. Couple that with the advancements and improvements Windows 7 has in store (it will be available for Vista, too, though), and well -- it's a good time to be a PC gamer.

Huddy outlines three main areas (there are many others) in which DX11 will affect your graphics experiences, particularly with games, of course. If you're not really into this whole "reading" thing, feel free to skip to the bottom where a summary can be found.

The first step lies with "a beast called the tessellator", which will be behind the stuff we'll be most aware of, like in landscape silhouettes or character profiles (say goodbye to blocky features), as seen above. Most interesting is the change in dynamics -- whereas for what seems like forever, gamers have had to trade-off graphics for performance, or vice versa, old tessy here should offer much more freedom to developers, in turn giving us a more "naturalistic" experience. We've been getting a taste of this for awhile now, as the technology has been in video cards for a bit, including the Xbox 360's, but in combination with DX11, things should be stepped up considerably.

Number two comes from "Compute Shader", aka "GPGPU", a feature which will allow programmers a radically different way of writing for graphics chips (similiar to programming using NVIDIA's CUDA parallel computing engine). In scenarios like this, they can treat the GPU more like a highly parallel CPU, something Huddy says will abolish the "triangle approach" programmers have been forced to use before, allowing for more freedom of expression, also in keeping with the "naturalistic" mode of work offered by the tessellator. For the gamer, the Compute Shader will allow higher frame rates overall -- can't complain, there.

Quite notably, this could evolve into a situation where integrated graphics go the route of integrated sound, becoming substantial enough on their own, with the ability to run most modern games; the big boys from NVIDIA and ATI, then, would be sold to enthusiasts (e.g. those who want to crank the settings). In short, PC gaming would be accessible to just about everyone if this came to fruition.

On the CPU end, 11 is touted as being much more optimized to make use of the power multicore hardware offers, also helping in the frame rate department, as well as with realism and detail.

Though without elaborating, Huddy lastly notes "corner cases" should be significantly improved performance-wise, which would mean more consistent gaming experiences across the board.

In summary, here are his predictions:

We’ll see higher frame rates because the way DirectX 11 uses CPUs will be more efficient.We’ll see higher frame rates because games developers will be able to use our GPUs more like CPUs.We’ll see smoother, more realistic characters and more realistic terrain as we move away from blocky polygonal representations to the kind that are used in movies.And a side-benefit, that will help PC gaming generally, is that the new version is easier to use, so it will help to keep game development costs down.

Windows 7 ships October 22 -- sounds like we have a lot to look forward to, and not long to wait.

F.E.A.R 2 "Armored Front" DLC Released

Getting us ready for the weekend, the fine folks over at Monolith have released a major update for their hit first person shooter, F.E.A.R 2: Project Origin, which adds two new "Armored Front" multiplayer maps, unlocks the Collector's Edition multiplayer heads for everyone to use and addresses a bug with music cross fades. You can check out the full changelog right here or just relaunch your Steam client to start downloading. :)

Heroes of Telara Screenshots

Keeping things rollin' tonight, Trion World Network has released 15 (!) new screenshots from their upcoming massively multiplayer online RPG, Heroes of Telara. These latest shots give us a sneak peek at the game's detailed environments, monsters, suits of armor and rideable mounts. Check 'em out:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Korean hack n' slash MMORPG S.U.N. coming to North America

Another Korean PC MMO is making the translation to English, for release in North America over the next year. In Korea and China it is fairly popular; it is considered to be in the top ten of popular online games in South Korea.

This one is called S.U.N., and it has a hack'n'slash feel to this action-filled MMORPG.

Character classes include: Dragon Knights, Berserkers, Valykries, Elementalists, and Shadows. (Refreshing to see they didn't go with the standard Mage, Rogue, Ranger thing.) Players can create their own custom battle map adventures, where they challenge other players or standard mobs to fights.

A trailer to promote the North American release came out of E3 the other day. Judging from the trailer, the game looks like it has a quick, action pace to it.

No exact release date has been pegged, but a late 2009 release seems likely.

Steam Weekend Deal: 75% Off Penumbra Titles

Giving us a reason to dust off our wallets this weekend, Valve has announced that Frictional Games' Penumbra Overture and Penumbra Black Plague Gold Edition are currently on sale through Steam at a 75% discount. You can buy them separately for $2.50 and $3.75 respectively, or grab both in a package for just $5.00. This hot deal runs from now until June 7th...so don't miss it! :D

East India Company Dated For July

Pinning down an exact release date for us today, Paradox Interactive and Nitro Games have announced that their upcoming RTS, East India Company, will begin shipping to stores on July 28th. Included with the release date news is a two-part video presentation on the game, discussing the different view modes, trading, diplomacy, combat and much, much more! You can check them out via YouTube here (Part 1) and here (Part 2). Cheers!

Ranger expansion pack coming for Elven Legacy in 3Q

Big Russian dev studio 1C: Ino-CO is cooking up a $10 expansion pack for the PC tactical strategy game, Elven Legacy. (If you would like some thoughts on Elven Legacy, go here.)

The expansion pack is bringing another stalwart fantasy icon to the game: the ranger. You play as the ranger Cornelius in the single player campaign, fighting against evil monster dudes, like orcs and skeletons and such.

Released by Paradox Interactive, the expansion back will bring 16 new missions, 3 new heroes, 5 unique artifacts, and 12 new spells to the game.

There is a free demo of Elven Legacy if you want to give the game a whirl - it be downloaded here. The expansion pack is due for the third quarter of this year.

Lionhead's Molyneux promoted to Microsoft Game Studios

Microsoft has seemingly been so pleased with its second-party relationship with Lionhead and its boss Peter Molyneux they've decided to make him first-party, too, heading up Microsoft Game Studios (MGS) Europe.

At MGS he will be overseeing "creative output" of all internal studios on top of Microsoft's third-party studios, meaning leading teams in direction, communication and understanding -- a big job, to be sure.

"The best way for us to make sure our platforms evolve in a way that enables the best creative experiences is to make sure our creative leaders are closely tied into the work that's going on with the platform team," says Phil Spencer, general manager of Microsoft Game Studios. "His role there is to not only help the collaborations and to bring both the thinking from that region back to the platform and Microsoft Game Studios as different things are incubating and being worked on, but the reverse is also true, of taking global knowledge of our platform efforts and different efforts at MGS and help provide context and guidance to those teams."

The news should bode well for the pretty much confirmed title Fable II: We Lost Some Chapters Again, though Molyneux says he won't just be pumping out Lionhead properties:

"What you're not going to see is ten Peter Molyneux games. The value of this role is for someone like myself going in and making those little tiny lights of an idea shine as brightly as possible and ensuring everybody within the organisation clearly understands why we're making those titles, the purpose of those titles and their importance to Microsoft overall. All I'm going to be doing is making sure those lights are as bright as possible. People at Rare and other European studios are super, super bright and creative people and I'll learn as much about design from them as they would from me."

"I'm definitely not going to go in and say 'this is a dumb idea' and 'this is a good idea'. I'm more about making sure they really are doing the experiences they're passionate about. Because passion is really central. That's probably going to involve innovation, I'm going to be pushing them more on the innovation side, especially with project Natal, and saying, 'look, don't think you've got all of your design comforts here any more, let's think of a new way of doing all that.'"

We've already seen a taste of what he has in store for us with the Natal-driven interactive character 'Milo', and can't wait to see what else is planned.

Molyneux will still retain his position as Lionhead boss, presumably by some nature-defying feat.

You have our congratulations at Neoseeker, sir!

Valve Explains Left 4 Dead Sequel Decision

A lot of nerd rage has been vented online over the unexpected announcement of a full-blown Left 4 Dead sequel - Left 4 Dead 2. "Valve is abandoning Left 4 Dead" is the most common complaint, followed by the usual claims that Valve is trying to milk the consumers for more money. Chet Faliszek, one of the project leads at Valve working on Left 4 Dead 2 talked to Ars Technica about the subject. The short version? "Please, don't burn us at the stake just yet. Let us explain!".

"We had some meetings about it, and we all talked about our ideas, and everyone was pretty focused and thoughtful, a lot of the same ideas were happening," Faliszek told me. The team wanted better storytelling, they wanted swamps, and they wanted to include New Orleans. "We wanted the Director to be smarter, but to be smarter it needed more special infected in its stable. For example, the Charger that we see today."

...

"It just became very clear that this was a cohesive, singular statement we wanted to make, not a more slow update t 2235 hing... too much stuff was tied together with too many other things. The Common Infected—now there is destruction in different parts of their body, to ship all the new Common Infected, even with an update, would be a huge thing."

Personally I think that Left 4 Dead 2 promises so much new stuff - new characters, new levels, new weapons, new game modes and more - that it is a full blown sequel and not an attempt to milk the players for a second round of the same thing and this interview tells me that Valve really did think things through before committing to the sequel route. If they actually manage to pull off a way to combine the two games (perhaps allowing the use of old characters in new levels or new weapons in old levels etc.) if you own both titles as well, there is little reason to whine.

Game development costs money and if Valve is putting on the table a completely new set of content - characters, weapons, levels - that just happen to share the key gameplay idea of Left 4 Dead (escape from the zombie horde), charging full price for it as a proper sequel is fine in my book.

Champions Online Screenshots

Rockin' the eyecandy this afternoon, Cryptic Studios has released six new screenshots from their upcoming superhero-themed massively multiplayer online RPG, Champions Online. These latest shots feature some colorful special effects, flying robots and enough spandex to fill an 80's gym locker room. Enjoy:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Champions Online is scheduled for release on September 1st.

The Witcher: Enhanced Edition Patch v1.5 Detailed

Sure to please fans, CD Projekt RED has announced that they're working on a v1.5 patch for their hit RPG, The Witcher, which will add five new fan-made adventures to the game and remove all DRM, including the disc check! They also let it slip that they'll be releasing a North American "Director’s Cut" update, which I assume will remove all the censored content from the NA edition of the game, but that's just a guess...it's not confirmed. No word on when the update will be coming out, but they promise to reveal more details in the coming weeks. So stay tuned! :D

League of Legends To Ship In September

Spreading the good news today, Riot Games has announced that their upcoming Online Strategy-RPG, League of Legends: Clash of Fates, will begin shipping to stores across North America and Europe this September. An exact day isn't given, but I'm sure we'll have one soon enough. Anyways, here's the scoop:

LOS ANGELES — June 2, 2009 — Riot Games, an independent developer and publisher of premium online video games, has set a release window for the highly anticipated online multiplayer session-based game League of Legends: Clash of Fates. Riot’s genre defining upcoming title League of Legends: Clash of Fates will be available in September for Windows PC via download at www.leagueoflegends.com and at retail ou 20fb tlets nationwide through Riot’s retail campaign partner THQ Inc. GOA will publish the game in Europe simultaneously.

“League of Legends will bring gamers competitive battle-arena style gameplay that builds upon and expands on innovative gameplay concepts that were pioneered in DotA-Allstars, one of the most popular mods of all time,” Brandon Beck, co-founder and CEO, Riot Games, said. “With a strong community following itching to jump right into the fray, we’re looking forward to providing gamers with epic combat and dramatic, strategic battles for years to come.”

Added Wim Stocks, senior vice president of strategic partnerships for THQ, League of Legends’ retail campaign partner, “We are excited to work with the high caliber team at Riot Games on such an innovative and genre bending experience as League of Legends.”

League of Legends combines elements of role-playing and strategy genres with addictive battle action that brings accessible, replayable, competitive gameplay into a whimsical universe that deepens with the player’s commitment. During each online multiplayer play session, gamers will choose one of dozens of unique Champions wielding diverse skills and abilities, and engage in fast-paced team-oriented combat to bring their foes to ruin. Champions will gain levels, items and abilities that enable them to slay their opponents and augment the strength of their allies by battling with enemy minions, foul beasts, deadly turrets and enemy Champions. Players also advance their Summoner’s rank and power to gain new abilities and items, assisting their Champions in battle. League of Legends will be constantly evolving and updated with new features, Champions, maps and additional content as suggested by the community.

The League of Legends development team is made up of seasoned industry professionals with credits that include PC & console blockbusters, as well as part of the team that created the popular Warcraft 3 mod DotA-Allstars.

For more information on League of Legends: Clash of Fates and to sign up for the closed beta, visit www.leagueoflegends.com

The countdown begins!

EA says "we lack hits"

In a moment of honesty rarely seen in industry, Electronic Arts' (EA) president and CEO John Pleasants has stated the company's $1 billion losses over the last year are due to a lack of hits.

"If you go back three years, EA would have had 10 or 12 games in the top 30," he told the Guardian. "Look at last year, and we have four or five. You've got to chart. If you don't chart, in the history of the business, you can't get out from underneath it."

"Our hits haven't been good enough. Maybe we didn't market them right, maybe they're not innovative enough. Maybe they're not positioned correctly, maybe the quality's not still the top, top tier that it needs to be."

Pleasants joined EA last year -- certainly not the kind of thing you'd expect a new boss to openly discuss. Moving forward, he says big hits are the key to alleviation:

"That all needs to be worked out of the system so we've got big, blockbuster, tentpole titles … I think then you may start to feel a little bit of reprieve from some of the pressures that we've been under."

Looking back at the last fiscal year, we see EA's bigger names include Mirror's Edge, Dead Space, Mass Effect, Skate 2, Need for Speed Undercover, FIFA 09, NHL 09, Spore, Madden NFL 09, Battlefield: Bad Company, Boom Blox, and Burnout Paradise. Quite notable, they've also been experimenting with free to play, ad-supported, and microtransaction-based models with Battlefield Heroes and Battleforge.

As far as we're concerned, that's a pretty impressive list of games, and the less huge titles we can't really say anything bad about either. Dead Space and Mirror's Edge didn't chart so well at first, but like anything fresh (Dead Space's plot aside), it takes awhile to get through, and it did in the end, each pulling in well over a million sales based on figures of a few months ago.

Their 2009-10 lineup highlights consist of The Sims 3, Crysis 2, Fight Night Round 4, Battlefield: 1943, Mass Effect 2, Need for Speed: Shift, Dante's Inferno, The Saboteur, APB, Star Wars: The Old Republic, and Dragon Age: Origins.

It feels a bit weird to say this since we gave EA a lot of heat last year, but on some level it's a real shame they had to make the cuts they did (1,100 jobs!); they've been putting a lot of money into some really original and much needed titles in the industry and that deserves reward. It's our estimation innovation, quality, or any of that stuff isn't really the problem, it's EA's reputation. Especially in the last couple of years, they've gotten more flak than ever, between DRM and horror stories of work and business ethics -- it's going to take time before things turn around and gamers warm up to the idea of a "new EA", if things really have changed as much as we'd like to think.

Crytek: Crysis 2 to push Xbox 360, PS3 capabilities to the limit

Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli believes their upcoming shooter, Crysis 2, will be such a graphical tour de force that it wouldn't be unreasonable to expect the developer to push the platforms it will be released on to their limits. That's a given for the PC, and Yerli is betting Crysis 2's CryEngine 3 will easily put the PS3 and Xbox 360 muscle to the test. Speaking to Develop:

I believe with Crysis 2 both the PS3 and 360 versions of the game will perform to their limits, until there is no more water in the rock. As for difference, between Consoles and PC I see a difference. The PC version will outscale and outperform the consoles, between each console I believe the experience will be finally both next-generation, but similar experience.

This doesn't necessarily confirm that the PS3 and Xbox 360 games will look equal despite the difference in horsepower between the two consoles. Indeed, Yerli stressed that the goal was to make Crysis 2 the best it can be no matter the platform. That said, Yerli would reference the PS3 in particular when speaking to Gamasutra:

"The interesting thing is we did run a performance analysis on the PS3 devkit, and you know the funny thing is the occupation on all the CPUs, the Cell and the GPUs, is pretty much – the needle is at the limit... There's not much more you can do and frankly the breakthrough was very recent, and otherwise we would’ve had a compromised strategy on the consoles, which we don’t have now.

"So I think we will still have an upside, but we're touching the hardware limits already. We do develop very very low level to get that performance out. Like I said, we started three years ago in the research of technology, and we had to dig very deep into the hardware to find the reserves, and say 'oh we have 2% more here, and 1% more here,' and that allowed us actually to get to where we are."

This confirms Crytek will be highly tweaking and optimizing the game to best suit theconsoles' capabilities, with the aim of making effective ports. Staff will be shared for development of Crysis 2 across all platforms.

E3 2009: Sony Press Conference Notes

Keeping tabs on the "big three" console manufacturers at this year's E3, I've taken some notes on Sony's press conference, which just wrapped up. Heading into the convention, there was a ton of Sony-related leaks, which left many of us wondering if they'd have any surprises left. Well...they did! Read on to find out what they were:

PlayStation 2

100 new titles coming to PS2 this year, "including your favorite franchises".

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (VIDEO)

Multiplayer beta begin tonight at midnight.The developers hop on stage to give a live demo of the singleplayer campaign. He starts out near a pool in the middle of a city surrounded by mountains 2005 . He seems to have a female AI sidekick with him. Climbs a building to see the city, then slides down a line to another building. He comes across a broken bridge and decides to shimmy across a beam, but a chopper comes and starts firing at him halfway through. Blows up the bridge and he jumps off and tries to escape with the femail AI character. Enemies on the ground show up and attack him, along with the chopper. The chase continues through a building, with the chopper blowing down a wall to see him. He pushes over a table for cover to fight some enemies. The chopper switches to missiles and blows down the entire build! As it falls, he (and his sidekick) jump through a window into the next building. Pretty awesome!

MAG (VIDEO)

This is the huge online first person shooter they announced last year.Devs take to the stage to give a live demo...supposidly with 256 players! He gives us a quick look at the command network interface, which lets us get an overhead look at the battlefield and his squad. He sets an objective to destroy a bunker, switches to first person mode and get started. He heads toward the target with a bunch of teamates and a tank. It has a turret protecting it and some other players. Have to fight them off so you can get close enough to plant the explosives. He completes the mission, which forces the other team to move deeper into their own base. He quickly points out that every action you take related to your object gives you bonus points. Next up he moves to an anti-aircraft spot...choppers fly in, allowing dead players to re-enter the battle via a parachute. The finish things off by calling a massive air strike.

Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines

Coming to PSP on November 10th.

Hannah Montana PSP Bundle Announced

Features a special lilac casing.

PSP GO Announced (VIDEO)

It's a digital download-only device.Will not replace the 3000 or UMD PSPs.Feature integrated wi fi, slide-out controls, 16 gigs of internal memory with a port to add even more storage50% smaller and 40% lighter then the original PSP.All PSP titles moving forward will be available digitally via the PSN Store.Available in North America and Europe on October 1st for $249.99/249.99 Euros.

PSP

"Media Go" Announced. Allows you to access PSN from your PC."Sense Me" Announced. Suggests music based on your habits/mood. Available on PSP and PSP Gold this Fall.The video delivery service is coming to the PSP as well.Sure to please developers, Sony is lowering the price on the PSP Tool Kits. An 80% reduction, to entice developers to their platform.

Gran Turismo PSP Announced (VIDEO)

Developers quickly show it running on a PSP GO.The game will run at 60 frames per second.Features 800 cars, 35 tracks and 60 layout variations of those tracks.Singleplayer mode has standard races, time trials and a mission challenge mode to improve driving skills.According to the devs, this is not a dumbed down version. "It offers a full size GT experience."Supports 4-player races.You'll be able to trade and share of cars with other players.They show a quick trailer.The game is scheduled for release on October 1st. It will help launch the PSP GO.

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Announced (PSP) (VIDEO)

Kojima on stage to announce the game.The game takes place 10 years after MGS3. It's set in the 70's.It's a "True sequel of the MGS franchise"Kojima is writing the script and producing the title. The main MGS team is also participating in the game's development.A trailer shown, which includes some gameplay. It's a full 3D game. The trailer shows 4 Snakes, which I assume means it will have 4player co-op. Trailer ends with 2 snakes hiding in the same box...behind another box. Hilarious!Game is coming in 2010.

Resident Evil PSP?

A new PSP Resident Evil game is coming next year.No details, images or anything are shown.

PSN

24 million register users in 55 countries. More then 475 million pieces of content downloaded to date.90 exclusive PSN titles.50 PS1 classics on PSN this year, including Final Fantasy 7 starting today.Brief bit about Home. 6.5 million people worldwide. We can expect new Home stuff based on Infamous, Buzz and Socom, along with some goodies from various 3rd party publishers. They fire-up a trailer showing how far Home has coming since it launched.

Agent Announced

Developer exclusively for the PS3 by Rockstar North.Set in the 70's, dealing with espionage and assassins.No other details or media are given.

Assassin's Creed 2 (VIDEO)

The developers treat us to a live demo. It starts out with you on at a festival, sitting on a bench. Someone walks by, you grab him, stab him and place him on the bench where you were sitting. The developer notes that you don't start out as an assassin, but become one with the help of some friends, including Da Vinci, who will create weapon upgrades and machines for you. But back to the demo! They show off the flying device, which the guards call a flying demon. You can swoop down and kick guys while you fly it. Eventually the device catches fire after being hit by a flaming arrow and the main character jumps off, landing on a rooftop. He proceeds to climb up a pillar and jump down on a guard, killing him instantly. He keeps walking around the rooftop and sees two guards, which he runs up to and uses his double blades to stab them both in the throat at the same time. Very awesome! He then jumps down into an open area and a handful of guys attack him. He disarms an enemy, takes their weapon and uses it against them. The dev stops again to note that there will be 6 unique weapons that you can unlock via Bloodlines on PSP, which you can then connect to your PS3 to get them in AC2. Returning to gameplay, he kills his main target, tosses a smoke bomb and runs away from the guards...hopping in the water to get away. That's how it ends.AC2 is scheduled for release this Holiday.

Final Fantasy XIII (VIDEO)

A new trailer shown. Features a mix of CG and gameplay, along with some storyline tidbits.Game is coming 2010.

Final Fantasy XIV: Online Announced (VIDEO)

Looks like this is the Final Fantasy MMO we heard about a long time ago.It's a PS3 Exclusive. (Available on PC as well!)Trailer is shown.Coming in 2010.

PS3 Motion Controller Revealed (VIDEO)

Sony invites the developers on stage to show off the new motion controller.Looks like a small hand-held brick with an orb on the top of it that changes colors. They note that it's just a prototype for now, so the look could change.It's 1:1 tracking.They give a quick tech demo of it. First they load a small room with a TV and a bunch of items scattered on the floor. The guy reaches down to pick up items (a racket, bat, golf club, sword, strop sign) and tries hitting a tennis ball with them. He then breaks out a flashlight, turns it on and starts shining it around the room. He then picks up a gun, switches to a first person perspective and start shooting stuff in the room. That tech demo end and he moves onto another one, where he has a bunch of blocks to play with. He can build stuck in real time with them. Then he switches to a notepad tech demo and write their names on it, along with a smiley face. Looks very accurate. Next tech demo is an RTS, where he circles some units, then draws a line telling them where to go. In the final tech demo, they head into an arena, where you can see a character. He picks up a second motion controller, having one act as his sword and the other act as a shield. They control how you'd expect. He smacks around a skeleton, then breaks out some throwing stars and tosses a few at them. And to finish things off, he grabs a bow, pulling the 2nd motion controller back to gain a stronger shot and fires some arrows at the skeletons. Overall, it looks pretty solid.More info is coming "in the near future".The motion controller is expected to launch in Spring 2010.

Little Big Planet

More costumes to be rolled out this Fall.

Mod Nation Racers Announced (VIDEO)

It's a PS3 exclusive cart racer focusing on "Play, Create, Share" gameplay.You can create your own character, cars and race tracks.Rate other people's creations.Features real time physics, weapons (missiles ect) and interactive environments.They give a quick demo of Track Studio, which allows you to create your own levels with ease. There's a ton of depth shown, but it's very accessible. They had a working map up and running in 5 mins with power ups, buildings, trees, mountains, dirt/paved roads and even a flock of sheep who wander onto the track. Pretty neat.The game is due out sometime in 2010.

The Last Guardian Announced (aka TRICO) (VIDEO)

From the creators of ICO and Shadow of the Colossus.It's a PS3 Exclusive.A new trailer shown. Similar to the leaked concept trailer, but with more detail and some gameplay mixed in. You see the main character tossing stuff at enemies, jumping from ledge to ledge...everything you'd expect. Looks pretty sweet!

Gran Turismo 5 (VIDEO)

A short trailer shown.No details are given...sorry!

God of War 3 (VIDEO)

The devs give a live demo. Pretty much non-stop action as you would expect. Shows the fire bow, blades and chains. You enter a building and see a flying monster eating a body. You shoot it to grab its attention, it flys over to you and you grab it, stabbing the giant bird and using him to fly across small sections of the environment. As he leaves the building, he sees a HUGE lava god and a flying chariot battling in the distance. He starts to head that way, fighting off waves of enemies, using QTE's to finish them off in gory fashion. Once he arrives near the gods, he meets a mini-boss, which looks like a rat with horns and a snake tail. Battles it, tearing off various parts until it eventually dies and the demo ends.GoW 3 is scheduled for release in March 2010.

Stay tuned for some videos!

E3 2009 Trailer Onslaught - Part 4

With the big announcement flood from E3 2009 slowly winding down, here is the latest batch of E3 trailers related to PC games. Biggest surprise of Tuesday was definitely Final Fantasy XIV Online which is a MMO and it will also come to the PC, so that PS3 exclusivity is limited to consoles. Here are the trailers:

Final Fantasy XIV Online (Trailer)Rogue Warrior (Debut Trailer)Order of War (Command Trailer)Dead Rising 2 (Trailer)Prototype (Launch Trailer)

Read on for all the embedded videos!

Final Fantasy XIV Online (Trailer)

Rogue Warrior (Debut Trailer)

Order of War (Command Trailer)

Dead Rising 2 (Trailer)

Prototype (Launch Trailer)

NPD on digital distribution growth

Research group NPD, which typically doesn't deal in digital distribution, revealed today some interesting stats on the sub-industry which tell us it's growing, though perhaps not as much as many have thought.

It should be noted first, however, NPD didn't make known the size of its study samples, nor did they specify what "regularly" means when referring to how often Xbox LIVE Gold members download content. Onto it, then.

Building on Microsoft's recent data which says 20 million gamers have subscribed to LIVE, totalling over one billion pieces of downloaded content, NPD states 18 percent of the service's Gold members acquire it "regularly." A bit stark, however between 2008 and 2009 the number of those subscribers increased by 24 percent. Sony was less blessed, despite its PlayStation Network being ad-supported and free, with 10 percent of its customers downloading content on a regular basis.

On the PC side, NPD says 17 percent of game purchases are digital rather than boxed, with 56 percent of those digital sales coming through Steam, Bigfishgames and RealArcade between July and December 2008. The figures are in contrast with Capcom's own, who have been pushing for digital distribution this last while and estimate half of their upcoming PC titles will be sold digitally.

CDP announces The Witcher: Enhanced Edition 1.5 & Director's Cut

If the Enhanced Edition (EE) of The Witcher -- which included way too much stuff to be free for original purchasers -- wasn't enough for you, The Witcher: Enhanced Edition 1.5 will be releasing shortly in the form of a patch, hosting everything included in the EE, as well as five fan-made adventures (very cool!).

Publishers CD Projekt (CDP) note that even more importantly, with 1.5, the game will be completely digital rights management (DRM)-free, meaning no more TAGES and no more disk check ("annoying copy protection", they call it). Previously CDP affiliates Good Old Games noted the team couldn't get its publisher Atari to agree to a DRM-free version initially, but it appears they've let up now that the game's been out awhile and has sold quite well.

As such, we'd like to thank Atari for being reasonable -- if DRM really is a necessary evil in the face of piracy as so many publishers believe, it doesn't seem to serve any purpose once the protected game is cracked and widespread, so a patch at some point like the one included in this new version of The Witcher should really be mandatory for those which don't like DRM. This way, everyone interested can enjoy the game in the end, and support the teams involved, too.

All versions of the game will be upgraded, and the patch can be downloaded free from the official website when the time comes ("soon") for all registered The Witcher and The Witcher: EE players.

The team is also announcing The Witcher: Enhanced Edition Director's Cut for North Americans, which will incorporate the patch, and what sounds like previously removed "adult content", including references to homosexuality, rape, domestic violence, etc. No word yet on when this will arrive in shops (digital or retail), but check the official site linked below in the coming weeks for further details.

Alan Wake E3 2009 Trailer and Screenshots

With Alan Wake showing up during the Microsoft E3 presentation, here is a direct feed of the E3 2009 trailer and six new screenshots. Alan Wake is scheduled to arrive in Spring 2010.

A downloadable 720p version of the trailer is available here (Gamersyde.com)

Screenshots after the jump!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Looks as impressive as ever.

E3 2009: Nintendo Press Conference Notes

Keeping our E3 coverage coming, I've taken some notes on today's big Nintendo press conference, which just wrapped up. So if you happened to miss it, here's your chance to catch up on all the big announcements...and believe me, there were some BIG ones! :D

New Super Mario Bros.Wii Announced (Wii)

It's a sidescroller focusing on 4 player co-op.Item boxes usually generate 4 items (1 per player)You can pick up your friend and carry/toss them.If you die, you float back into the screen in a bubble, which your friends can pop to bring you back into the game...if they choose to.There's a propeller suit item which you can shake your Wii Mote to fly and float around.End of the level tells your stats, how many coins each person grabbed, ect...and gives you a ranking.Coming in Holiday 2009.

Wii Fit Plus Announced

You can enter your locker room via menu and customize your experience.Includes six new strength and yoga activities.There's an option to remove interludes for seamless workouts.You can keep track of the total calories you burn.Features 15 new balance games including juggl 2095 ing, skateboarding and "Perfect 10", which is some type of hip-swinging game.Wii Fit Plus comes out this Fall. Bundled with a Wii Balance Board or can be purchased stand-alone for those of you who already own a board.

Wii Motion Plus

More talk about the Wii Motion Plus peripheral.A short trailer is shown, highlighting the precision controls.Wii Resort with Wii Motion Plus trailer.Wii Sports Resort is demo'd live. Starts out with a Mii jumping from an airplane. As a sky diver, you can spin around, turn, twist and even grab other sky divers. Dive down to speed up your decent or flatten out to slow down. The Mii does a little formation thing with his friends, then opens his shoot to end the intro. He then moves on to an Archery mini-game. You gold your Wii-mote like you would a real bow, pressing the A button with your thumb to grip. There seems to be a wind gauge and a circle that tells you how precise you are. The Mii takes a bunch of shots at a target and that section of the demo ends. He moves on to basketball, doing a 2-player shootout with Reggie. You reach down to grab the ball, then shoot. Flick your wrist when you shoot as you would in real life. Reggie pulls out the win at the end. And that concludes the full demo.Wii Sports Resort is coming to North America on July 26th.Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10, Grand Slam Tennis and Virtua Tennis 2009 will all support Wii Motion Plus and are coming "in a matter of weeks".Red Steel 2 works ONLY with Wii Motion Plus control.

Final Fantasy: The Crystal Bearers (Wii)

A short trailer is shown.

Kingdom Hearts (DS)

Trailer shown.Coming out on September 29th

Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story Announced (DS)

The brothers are micro-sized, ingested by their arch enemy.It's an RPG for the DS.Short trailer is shown.Coming to North America and Europe this Fall.

Golden Sun DS

A short trailer shown.

Women's Murder Club: Games of Passion Announced (DS)

From James Patterson."Reads and plays like a novel".Features a bunch of minigames, puzzles to solve and clues to keep you immersed in the storyline.Trailer shown.Coming October 13th.

Cop: The Recruit (DS)

Published by Ubisoft.It's a third person shooter with driving elements.Storyline revolved around your framed partner.Trailer shown.

Style Savvy (DS)

Aimed at preteens to 20-somethings.You can run your own boutique."More then 10,100 fashions."You can fully customize your shop.Compete in runway contests.Shop in other player-made stores.Visit worldwide shops.

Flipnote Studio (DSi)

A trailer is shown.Coming to the DSi this summer.

Mario vs Donkey Kong: Minis March Again! Announced (DSi)

You can design your own levels with traps and items.Upload your creations locally or via wifi.Will be available as a download-only title on DSi via DSi-Ware June 8th.

Warioware DYI (DSi)

Create your own "microgame".Tons of customization.Can share your creations with other players.

DSi & Facebook

Starting this summer, you can take photos with your DSi and upload them to Facebook.

Wii Vitality Sensor

A peripheral that attaches to your finger and tracks your pulse.They hope people will use it to achieve "greater relaxation".

Super Mario Galaxy 2" Announced (Wii)

A short trailer is shown, revealing the game and the new content.Sadly, no other details are given.

Third Party Titles Aimed at Hardcore (Wii)

Trailer shown for Segs's The Conduit. Hits retail in 3 weeks.Trailer shown for Capcom's Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles.Trailer shown for EA's Dead Space: Extraction.

Project M Presents: "Metroid Other M" Announced (Wii)

Created by Nintendo and Team Ninja.It's a new 3D Medtroid title!A gameplay trailer shown.Coming out in 2010

I'll tag on some videos as they pop up. So stay tuned!

Guybrush Threepwood Returns in Two New Titles in the Monkey Island Series

In a joint press release today, LucasArts and Telltale Games have announced the first new entries in the vaunted Monkey Island PC adventure series, with one completely new entry, and the original entry getting a fresh coat of paint. The two have announced The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition, a remake of the first title in the series, and the Tales of Monkey Island, a five-part episodic series with all-new adventures.

LucasArts will be heading The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition, which is set to hit both the PC and the Xbox Live Arcade. This remake of the original classic will feature all-new HD graphics, a remastered musical score, full voice acting, and an in-depth hint system. Guybrush Threepwood embarks on a quest through the fabled Monkey Island, all in the name of trying to become a pirate. No release date was announced.

Telltale Games, meanwhile, will be hard at work creating Takes of Monkey Island, a five-part episodic series that will make its appearance on both the PC and the WiiWare downloadable service. Guybrush Threepwood sets out on an all-new adventure against his rival, the evil pirate LeChuck. Within the coming weeks, the series is set to debut, with Telltale Games already taking pre-orders on their website.

Said LucasArts' President Darrell Rodriguez:

“We couldn’t be any more excited about bringing Monkey Island to today's gamers — both in our special edition of the original classic, and through our collaboration with Telltale on the episodic series. We can’t wait for Guybrush Threepwood and LeChuck to return to gamers’ screens."

E3 game trailer roundup

A whole flood of videos came out today, first being seen at E3. We chose some of the more interesting ones to show you here.

Each time E3 rolls around, there is always news you expect to hear, and then to a lesser extent, news that you really didn't imagine you'd hear. This first video falls into that second category; word is that more zombies are coming:

Left 4 Dead 2? I thought they were still working on the DLC for the first title.

Next up, we have what might be the early fan favorite for best trailer of the show. This cinematic look into the setting for BioWare's MMORPG project, Stars Wars: The Old Republic.

Here is another surprise: a new trailer for cop'n'criminal MMO A.P.B. I thought this one had been canned after not hearing about it for a while. It looks like it has come along way over the last year:

Now here is a new Borderlands trailer. It doesn't show off too much though -- can Gearbox pull off a FPS/APRG MMO? It looks promising. The art direction change seems like a good move to me.

Overlord II. Action adventure, third person. Writing courtesy of Rhianna Pratchett (who also wrote Mirror's Edge). They've been promising much more to do with your minions you control, in this sequel. For this video it looks they went retro, early-government-info-film style, a la Fallout 3.

Assassin's Creed 2 continues the storyline of dudes jumping through time in order to stab people with knives. Perhaps the sequel will overcome some of the repetitive nuances of the first game.

Here is a look at the gameplay of the new upcoming DJ Hero game. Rock Band VS Guitar Hero? Now it's Scratch VS. DJ Hero. The gameplay is pretty much as you would expect:

And finally, here is your chance to get dirty with Colin McRae, in Colin McRae: DiRT 2.

Oh -- we have a late coming arrival. Looks like Ninja Gaiden: Sigma 2 is ready to get the ninja-ball rolling:

Looks like gamers have much to look forward. Long live E3. Stay tuned for more coverage from three of our intrepid Neoseeker reporters at the event.

E3 2009: Microsoft Press Conference Notes

For those of you who didn't catch Microsoft's big E3 press conference earlier this morning, I've taken a few notes on what was shown. Most of it you've probably heard rumblings about via leaks and rumor sites, but there's a few really interesting bits. So grab yourself a coffee, sit back and enjoy:

The Beatles: Rock Band (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

They show a short gameplay trailerPaul McCartney and Ringo Starr hop on stage to talk about it a little. Joking around..talking about the game and how excited they are.

Tony Hawk: Ride (VIDEO courtesy 2313 of GameTrailers)

Gameplay Trailer with Tony Hawk on stage showing the board peripheral. Short clip of real skaters giving their fist impressions of the game and talking about how it will change gaming.

Modern Warfare 2 (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

Infinity Ward take to the stage to demo MW2 live! The demo starts with you scaling a snowy mountain side. You use hooks to make your way up, with your partner climbing above you. A plane swoops by and almost knock him off the side. Very cinematic. Once you're at the top, you pull out a weapon with a small screen attached to the side of it detecting what I assume it other people...which is very useful because you're in the middle of a blizzard and cant see very far. You plant a bomb on a fuel station and all hell breaks loose. Huge firefight ensues, with a bunch of enemies rushing you. You proceed to hop on a snowmobile to get away, but the bad guys continue to chase you...their missed show even seem to knock down trees! And the demo ends.They announce that 2 map packs for MW2 will be available "first on Xbox LIVE"

Final Fantasy XIII

They give a very short live demo running on Xbox 360 hardware. The demo includes english dialog, so that gives us an idea of how far along they are translating the title. The demo features a battle with a "megaboss". Square notes that the battle scene is slightly different from what they've revealed in the past. There are now four active time gauges shown. More available slots allow for more powerful skill/spell combos. The demo ends with the summoning "Oden" to help you take down the boss. Demo end. Pretty cool stuff!They are targeting a Spring 2010 release.

Epic Games and Chair Entertainment Announce "Shadow Complex" (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

It's a sidescolling shooter with over 10 hours of gameplay and a ton of replayability.Massive boss battles.Over 120 hidden items.Coming to Xbox Live Arcade this Summer.

Joy Ride (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

A cartoony racing title that works with your Avatars.Can "trick out" your ride and share any race track you've purchased with your friend, regardless if they've bought it or not.Free to download and play. Out in this Winter.

Crackdown 2 (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

A short CG trailer of Crackdown 2 is shown, officially revealing the title.The end of the trailer shows the Ruffian logo..so I take it Realtime Worlds isn't working on it.

Left 4 Dead 2 (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

A short CG trailer reveals Left 4 Dead 2!Looks like a new cast of characters.Coming November 17th for the PC and Xbox 360.

Splinter Cell: Conviction

A CG trailer is shown. (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)Devs walk on stage to give a live demo. It starts out in a bathroom with a clean-cut Sam Fisher attacking a guy with some BRUTAL melee moves, asking about his daughter. The name "Kobin" is dropped. Apparently he's the guy who was driving the car that hit his daughter. Very cinematic looking with objectives/narrative projected onto the in-game environments. A new mark and execute ability is briefly shown, allowing you to target guys in advance. The sandbox environments allow for many ways of approaching an objective. A new EMP grenade is shown. Tons of stealth and non-stealth moments shown. Looks amazing! (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)Coming out this Fall on the Xbox 360. They don't mention the PC version...hopefully it's still coming...

Forza 3

A short teaser trailer is shown. (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)Devs come on stage to give a live demo. You get a cockpit view of him racing, smashing into cars and eventually flipping his vehicle..which ended the demo. lolThe game is being build on an all-new engine running at 60 frames per second.Over 400 cars from 50 different manufacturers."1 Button driving and gameplay rewind" revealed.Heavy focus on player created content including the ability to paint your cars and create your own video clips, which you can share video Xbox LIVE.Coming out this October.

Halo 3: ODST (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

Wasting no time, they hop right into the live demo. It starts out with you in a pod being dropped into the battlefield. A big explosion occurs and you're separated from your team. Once he lands, he starts walking through the ruined city of New Mombasa. A sound suppressed weapon is revealed, along with a visor with a low light vision mode that helps you see better and locate important stuff in the world. The developer briefly shows a pistol for "fans of the Halo 1 pistol". In an interesting twist, there will be flashbacks in the game, where you can go back in time to fight from another character POV, piecing together clues to find out the "mysteries of new mumbossa". In the demo'd flashback, you have to blow up a bridge with enemies swarming you from all directions. And that's how it ends.A "Firefight" co-op mode is mentioned.Coming out September 22nd.

Halo Reach Announced (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

No details are given really.If you buy Halo 3: ODST, you'll be invited to the Reach multiplayer beta."Falls 2010"

Alan Wake (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

The Remedy guys take to the stage to give a live demo. Starts out with a brief look back at what we've seen in the past and cut to new stuff. The level takes place at night, so Alan breaks out a flashlight. He's going to meet a guy named Rusty, who's holding some pages that you're looking for. Some weird supernatural stuff going on, like objects from world start floating and then fly at you. "Use the light" is written on a wall, which seems like a gameplay hint. A bunch of people lurking in the dark start attacking you for some unknown reason. It seems like there's some kind of charge when you aim your flashlight at them then shoot. Wonder what that's about. Some slow-mo kills are shown, which should make Max Payne fans smirk. Alan pulls out some flares, which seem to scare enemies away/stun them. Ends with a cinematic scenes. Very hot stuff!Coming in Spring 2010.

Xbox Live Announcements

Xbox LIVE is bringing music to your living room via a partnership with Last.fm. It will be available later this year to gold members at no addition charge.Netflix is getting a much-wanted upgrade, allowing you to order your movies right on the XBL. So you don't have to go to PC anymore. Just hit play!A partnership with Sky TV is announced. Available in the UK and Ireland this fall. Allows you to watch live tv, including test cricket and Premier League Football.Microsoft is relaunching their XBL video service this Fall, calling it "Zune Video". Their video library will now be full 1080P, with movies and shows being shown instantly. No discs or downloads. They are also expanding the service from 8 to 18 countries.They remind us of live party, which allows you to watch movies/shows with friends. Not much else is said.A partnership with Facebook is announced. Felica from "The guild" hops on stage to talk about it. Shows off the friend linker. Can see your xbox live and facebook friend profiles and invit 216c e them to either service from there. She moves on to show the photo album viewer and status updates. She then reveals "Facebook Connect", which allows you to share your gaming moments with your friends via video/photos. This feature will work with a future version of Tiger Woods PGA Tour. Facebook on XBL is coming this Fall.More community love is announced via a partnership with Twitter. Works as you'd expect. Hitting XBL this Fall. (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

Metal Gear Solid on 360! (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

It's finally happened! Hideo Kojima took to the stage to announce that the next MGS...Metal Gear Solid: Rising coming to the Xbox 360.A short teaser trailer is shown. Logo says "lightning bolt action" and an image of Raiden is shown.It's a completely new MGS experience, but no other details are given.

Project Natal Announced

As rumored, this is the full body motion capturing camera. It allows you to play games and navigate the Xbox dashboard with body motions and facial/voice recognition. Works with all past, present and future Xbox 360's. (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)Will work with 1v100.Steven Spielberg hops on stage to praise the camera.With the dashboard, the camera will recognize your face an log in automatically. Your avatar will mimic your movements and you can navigate the menus by simply swiping your hand.A tech demo is shown called Ricochet. A girl on the stage shows how it works, hitting a bunch of balls with her feet/hands/head to break stuff. There's no limit your movements either. Pretty neat...and the developer even makes a crack about the Wii mote. ;) (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)Another tech demo is shown called Paint Party. Basically you paint a picture using body motion and voice recognition. Like you can say "blue" then tosses the paint on a blank canvas usuing your hands. Didn't seem like you could do anything too detailed, but it was still neat.Lionhead's Peter Molyneux finishes things off with a trailer showing "Milo", a charater that you can interactive with via the cam using voice/facial recognition and full body motion. Milo seems to recognize emotion in your voice/face as he talks with you. They show it live, but apparently it will be demo'd behind closed doors at e3. Crazy stuff! (VIDEO courtesy of GameTrailers)

I'll add videos as the pop up. So stay tuned! :D

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 Announced

Combining two of the world's most popular brands, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and TT Games have announced that they're teaming up to create a new LEGO Adventure title based on the mega-successful Harry Potter books and films. Due out in 2010, "LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4" follows Harry and crew on their the first four years at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where you'll get to attend classes, cast spells, mix potions, fly on broomsticks and explore iconic settings like the Hogwarts castle, Diagon Alley, the Forbidden Forest and the village of Hogsmeade. Click here for the full press release.

And to tease us, the developers have released a short debut trailer. C 20d5 heck it out over at the FileShack!

E3 2009 Electronic Arts Media Briefing coverage

2:00 pm

Dante's Inferno opens up the press conference. Looks like a gimped God of War.

2:09 pm

The Sims 3 trailer, in anticipation for its midnight release today.

2:11 pm

Littlest Pet Shop Online, a game geared toward young girls, boasting a safe environment for kids to play online.

CGC (Charm Girls Club), with a demo for Pajama Party, featuring a hair combing game with the Wii Remote. Crowd cheers enthusiastically, guys whooping. Why, EA, why?!

2:15 pm

Need for Speed SHIFT, presented by Patrick Soderlund, Senior VP. Soderlund boasts that SHIFT features a detailed and accurate physics. This game will also capture the "physical power" of racing. Driver profiles keep track of your driving style, and libraries are created, made up of challenges suited to your profile.

Profiles give you a unique persona. Now we get a demo, which ends in a spectacular crash. EA will also be offering a chance to win a BMW M3 at their booth during E3.

2:20 pm

Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk speak about Dragon Age: Origins, a game they believe will revolution fantasy games. Given BioWare's stellar reputation for engrossing stories, I'm giving them a benefit of a doubt. It will also be the most mature game BioWare has ever made. As always, players will have to make hard choices that ensure a truly unique experience for every person.

Shipping out October 20 for Xbox 360, PC and PlayStation 3.

2:23 pm

Mass Effect 2! The first one broke sales records on the Xbox 360, and the sequel sees Shepard's return. Another mission to save mankind with peculiar allies, with new characters and worlds. Mass Effect 2 builds on top of the first game, pushing it further.

Game comes out early 2010. And we get a little gameplay sequence, a delicious first taste for fans in the audience. We'll be uploading the video later...

2:27 pm

EA SPORTS takes the stage with everyone's favorite executive, Peter Moore. Fight Night Round 4 comes first on the venue, with an "all-new genre-defining physics system." Cue demo on the Xbox 360, featuring Tyson versus Ali.

Speed, strength, strategy, style -- four pillars of boxing see in FTR4. Fluid movements and high fps gives this game a new appeal for franchise fans. Instant replay lets you go back and see the your fights in greater detail.

Fight Night Round 4 will be launching early on June 25.

2:32 pm

Franchise debut MMA, coming in 2010 and in development by Tiburon. Mixed Martial Arts takes advantage of a growing sports genre.

2:34 pm

Steven Chiang talks about EA SPORTS' online games. Two connective features revealed today is Team Builder from NCAA Football 10, available this summer. Secondly, we have a more real NFL experience enhanced by online -- Madden 10 Online Franchise.

2:38 pm

EA's dedication to the Wii, starting with the recently launched EA SPORTS Active. Trailers and -- wait, isn't this game already out? Unlike the Wii Fit, EA SPORTS Active wants consumers to see this as an effective exercise tool.

2:44 pm

Grand Slam Tennis, for the Wii. Pete Sampras makes an appearance and shows us how it's done.

2:48 pm

The Saboteur trailer, as we leave the realm of EA SPORTS. Some gameplay shown off in the demo, with the highlight being Sean (protagonist) as he hides from Nazis in a sex shop, and comes out with an extra jump in his step.

2:54 pm

Tim Schafer, president of Double Fine Productions, developer of Brutal Legend. The game features some recognizable metal icons, like Lita Ford and the Prince of Darkness, Ozzy Osborne. We'll be posting the premiere trailer later, but it will be released to the public on Tuesday (tomorrow) anyway.

Special video message from Jack Black and some more footage. Game looks pretty amusing actually, and metal fans will probably flip for it.

3:02 pm

Cevat Yerli, CEO & President of Crytek, announces Crysis 2, now being developed simultaneously for Xbox 360, PC, and PlayStation 3. Unfortunately, that's all we know about it.

3:05 pm

Realtime Worlds founder Dave Jones talks about APB, All Points Bulletin. In this MMO, you play as a character seeking fame and recognition, choosing to either prey on the city as a criminal or protecting it as an enforcer. The choice is "being sombody or being nobody." Think of it as a punk GTA MMO.

3:07 pm

Star Wars fans rejoice, for this is your moment. Star Wars: The Old Republic, an epic Star Wars-based MMO set thousands of years before the rise of Darth Vader. BioWare and LucasArts have worked together (again) to bring this first ever fully-voiced MMO. Every character will have their own unique voice -- seriously. Every class will have their own story, hinting at massive replayability from the start.

Very first cinematic trailer for The Old Republic shown here.

Note: More images and videos will be uploaded in the evening.

Try to survive torture in Rendition: Guantanamo, the game

Moazzam Begg, a British citizen originally from the suburb of Birmingham, was arrested in February 2002 by the CIA, who suspected he might be involved in terrorist activities.

The next three years of Begg's live were quite rough. He was first detained, for a year, in the Bagram Theater Internment Facility, in Afghanistan. Following that, he was moved to the dreaded and infamous prison in Guantanamo Bay.

He was never charged with any crimes and throughout his imprisonment witnessed and experienced torture and terror first hand, recounting these experiences in a book and in the film "Taxi to the Dark Side." And now, in a continuing effort to raise awareness and monetary funds for imprisoned "enemy combatants", Moazzam Begg is helping to design a game based on the Guantanamo Bay experience.

In effort to stem at least some of the controversy, Rendition: Guantanamo takes place in the near future when mercenaries control the prison, not the United States government. The mercenaries are using the prison as a holding area for unfortunate people who will soon be sold to maverick enterprises as lab rats. But fictional setting or not, Moazzam Begg will be helping T-Enterprise Scotland in recreating the layout of Guantanamo for the game, as well as serving as a consultant to help the team depict the procedures and life he experienced in the detention facility.

It will be interesting to see how they blend their goal of realism with the necessary game mechanics required to make a game fun -- perhaps it will be another round of controversy similiar to the recent displeasure with Atomic's Six Days in Fallujah.

The game will be coming out for the PC and Xbox 360.