Most Recent: News

New Releases: Battlefield 3, Kirby’s Return to Dream Land, Pokemon Rumble Blast, More

Posted on October 22, 2011 by John Scalzo

The war begins this week as DICE’s Battlefield 3 will be published by EA on the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360. The game will have two weeks by itself on store shelves before Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 returns fire on November 8. Have you chosen a side yet?

Also available this week is a Kirby game that we all thought was cancelled back in the GameCube days, Kirby’s Return to Dream Land. It’ll be available on the Wii this week, and yes, that’s Kirby wearing a Link hat and wielding a sword that looks suspiciously like the Master Sword. Nintendo will also unleash the melee-battling of Pokemon Rumble Blast on the 3DS.

A ton of smaller games will also make it onto store shelves this week including Namco Bandai’s Dragon Ball Z: Ultimate Tenkaichi (PS3, Xbox 360), Sega’s The House of the Dead: Overkill – Extended Cut (PS3), Disney’s Disney Universe (PC, PS3, Wii, Xbox 360), Atlus’s The Cursed Crusade (PS3, Xbox 360) and Telltale’s Back to the Future (PS3, Wii).

Check out the full list of the rest of this week’s new releases after the break. (more…)

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Sign up for WoW Annual Pass, get Diablo III absolutely free

Posted on October 21, 2011 by John Scalzo

Blizzard made a ton of big announcements at this year’s BlizzCon, but none so big as their thank you to World of Warcraft fans in the form of the World of Warcraft Annual Pass. While it may sound like just a new subscription plan, there’s a bit more to it that that.

To qualify for the Annual Pass, you must have registered a full version of World of Warcraft before October 18. Signing up for this subscription service (which is payable in 12 monthly installments) will then commit you to a year’s worth of WoW. Sounds pretty standard so far, right? But here’s where the awesomeness comes in.

All Annual Pass subscribers will receive a free copy of Diablo III, an exclusive WoW mount (Tyrael’s Charger), and guaranteed entry in the beta test for the next WoW expansion (the just-announced World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria).

That’s Blizzard saying “thank you” to all current WoW subscribers. You can sign up for the Annual Pass at Blizzard.com now.

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StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm trailer unburrows from BlizzCon 2011

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Ryan Littlefield

Ah, StarCraft. It seems like only yesterday that StarCraft: Brood War was released, and the world first witnessed the haunting transformation of Sarah Kerrigan. A new trailer for the first StarCraft II expansion, Heart of the Swarm, has been released, depicting the panic spreading across the galaxy as the Queen of Blades makes her terrorizing return.

The trailer shows some pretty heavy cinematic content, and some intense gameplay scenarios. As always, Blizzard has included some new units and tactics into the new expansion. You can be sure that Major League Gaming is quivering in awe and joy right now. Unfortunately, there is no release date announced yet, as Blizzard pitches the standard “We are making this game as good as we can for the time being” line. One thing’s for sure though, this is going to be big.

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Blizzard announces next WoW expansion: Mists of Pandaria

Posted on October 21, 2011 by John Scalzo

Kung fu pandas… where does Blizzard come up with this stuff? OK, believe it or not, the Pandaren race of kung fu pandas has been a part of Warcraft lore since Warcraft III. But they’ve been absent from the series since World of Warcraft launched in 2004. But now they’re back and they’re taking a starring role in the MMORPG’s fourth expansion, Mists of Pandaria.

“Players have been asking to see the Pandaren in World of Warcraft since the game’s launch, and we’re excited to finally be able to give them a proper re-introduction to Azeroth,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “In addition to the new playable race and class, Mists of Pandaria contains a huge amount of new content, and we’re looking forward to sharing more information about all of it at BlizzCon and beyond.”

No release date has been announced for the expansion, but it will add a bevy of new features including a new class, a higher level cap, new zones and Dungeon Challenge Modes. Check out a full list of all the new features after the break. (more…)

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Soul Calibur V trailer reveals Ezio as new character, January 31 release date

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Nicole Kline

Hold onto your hoods – the new Soul Calibur V trailer is about to blow you away. The newest character is none other than the master assassin from the Assassin’s Creed franchise, Ezio Auditore da Firenze. Even if you’re not a fan of the bold Italian killer, watching the artistic way in which he does away with his enemies is graceful and intense. Check out the trailer, and be sure to add January 31, 2012 to your calendar, which is when you can pick it up on PS3 or Xbox 360.

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Rumor: Doom 4 indefinitely postponed; Bethesda denies it was ever announced

Posted on October 21, 2011 by John Scalzo

A source inside id Software has told Kotaku that Doom 4 has been “indefinitely postponed” after the poor critical and retail reception for Rage. According to the source, the decision was made by executives from parent company Zenimax/Bethesda. This is in spite of the fact that id founder John Carmack told reporters that the developer would remain independent even after its acquisition by the Elder Scrolls publisher.

Pete Hines, Vice President of Bethesda Softworks, responded to Kotaku’s article with a statement declaring that Doom 4 can’t be “postponed” as it was never officially announced:

“We don’t comment on unannounced games and Doom 4 hasn’t been announced (though I appreciate that id has previously referenced Doom 4). Games are done when they are done and no title under development at id has been postponed – indefinitely or otherwise.”

Now wait just a minute! Mr. Hines, I say this with all due respect, but your statement is bullshit. Doom 4 was officially announced in 2008 and numerous interviews with id executives have since confirmed that development is well underway. The Internet never forgets, so it’s unwise to play these kinds of gotcha games with your fans.

That said, this news is still firmly in the rumor territory and as a Doom fan from way back, I hope it’s untrue.

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Mark Hamill retires as The Joker… for real this time

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Brianne Galli

After almost two decades of voicing the madman on “Batman: The Animated Series” and in numerous games – including the recently released Batman: Arkham City, Mark Hamill is retiring from his post as The Joker. This marks the second departure of a long-time voice actor from the series, with Arleen Sorkin, voice of Harley Quinn, announcing her leave in May 2011.

Hamill made his announcement via Twitter, where he posted, “Hello/Goodbye Joker! I’ve enjoyed every minute behind the wheel of the Crown Prince’s crazy car- I’m going to miss him more than I can say!!”

The sequel to 2009’s Batman: Arkham Asylum, Batman: Arkham City was released on October 18 to critical acclaim and currently holds a 95 average rating on Metacritic. Given the new release’s success, we can only hope that Hamill is staying in character with his recent announcement and playing a big joke on all of us.

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Mass Effect 3 demo detailed, available January 2012

Posted on October 21, 2011 by Ryan Littlefield

If you’ve been living and breathing Mass Effect since the release of the original game, this news is probably going to excite you.

BioWare has announced that a playable demo of Mass Effect 3 will be released in January 2012, featuring both single-player and multiplayer modes. Early access to the multiplayer portion of the demo will only be available to those who have redeemed the Online Pass included with Battlefield 3. And not to worry, this demo will be available in all regions and on any platform.

The duration of the demo’s availability is unknown at this point, but BioWare is saving that news until you calm your crew back down and get the Normandy under control. More details as to the demo’s early-access release date will be specified in November, says BioWare.

Also, don’t tell anyone – but it seems that BioWare will be announcing another way to gain early access with no purchase necessary. Take my word for it though, you’re probably going to want to buy Battlefield 3 anyway.

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