Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space Episode One free to download on iOS for a limited time

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Melissa Niedringhaus

Telltale Games announced today that the iOS version of “Ice Station Santa,” the first episode of Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space, is free to download for a limited time.

In addition, all of the follow up installments in the collection are available for $2.99, or 40% off their original price.

If you’re a fan of the series, and have been wondering if getting Sam & Max on your iDevice is worth it, remember that there’s a ton of iOS-specific content like a competitive Whack-Da-Ratz minigame, and a sound board that allows you to create your own mix of words straight from the game.

To download it now, be sure to check out the Sam & Max: Beyond Space and Time page on the iTunes Store.

Posted in Mobile, News |

Daily Scoop: May 8, 2012 – No deals

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Well, there are no deals today. I mean really, there’s nothing worth mentioning. I think the Internet has hit a lull, waiting for next week and Diablo III. I can’t believe that’s touching down the same day as Max Payne 3. If I wasn’t dating an awesome dude with a good rig, I would obviously be jumping headfirst into Max Payne. But seeing as I am, it looks like, for the first time in my life, a PC release is going to take precedence over anything else for a change. I never thought I’d see the day…

Anyway, at least there are two gaming-related t-shirts today! It’s not a total loss…

Press Start to Continue →

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Pre-order Hitman: Absolution from GameStop, gain access to “Sniper Challenge”

Posted on May 8, 2012 by John Scalzo

Publisher Square Enix and developer IO Interactive are teasing a major Hitman: Absolution announcement this Thursday, May 10. But an ad in the newest issue of Game Informer has beaten them to the kill.

According to the ad, gamers who pre-order Hitman: Absolution from GameStop will receive access to the Hitman: Sniper Challenge downloadable level. The best part, it appears to be a standalone mini-game (“Available NOW,” according to the ad) that comes complete with prizes for high scores.

What kind of prizes? Will the mini-game be downloadable by regular joes who don’t plan to pre-order Hitman: Absolution? We’ll have to wait until the official announcement to answer those questions.

[Source: Push Square]

Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Add Halo: The Thursday War to your book library this October

Posted on May 8, 2012 by John Scalzo

Microsoft and Tor Books have announced the next novel in Karen Traviss’ Kilo-Five trilogy, Halo: The Thursday War, will be released on October 2.

The novel is a sequel to Halo: Glasslands and will give fans their first taste of the “events and circumstances that will come to define the state of the Halo universe in Halo 4.”

Instead of the big action moments of the previous Halo novels and games, Traviss said she wanted The Thursday War to “focus on what it feels like to operate in a fragile ceasefire that’s turning into a mass of small, unpredictable wars where the enemy is much harder to spot and define.” She added, “This is a messy conflict seen at close quarters by real people with their own problems, whether those people are human, alien, or artificial intelligences.”

Halo: The Thursday War picks up immediately where Halo: Glasslands left off, with forces on Earth and among the Covenant threatening a peace that is precarious at best. With a splinter group among the Sangheili [Elites] pushing for war, some human colonies rebel against earth authority; and as ONI policy continues to shift with the volatile situation in space, the discovery of a trove of Forerunner technology on Onyx provokes leaders on Earth to seek uses for it in the conflict. For the fight is far from over…

Halo: The Thursday War will be available in both hardcover and audio formats.

Posted in Etcetera, News, Xbox 360 | Tagged

EA plans to release SimCity, new Dead Space, new Need For Speed in late 2012/early 2013

Posted on May 7, 2012 by John Scalzo

Electronic Arts held their quarterly financial briefing today and CEO John Riccitiello had plenty to say about the company’s plans for the remainder of 2012 and early 2013.

In addition to reassuring sports fans the world over that EA would be producing new entries in the Madden and FIFA franchises (I heard it was real touch and go for a while there), he also revealed a new Dead Space game and a new Need For Speed game for 2012/2013 as well as narrowing down SimCity‘s release date:

“The key considerations for our [Fiscal Year 2013] plan, as it came together these past months, are these. At the foundation is another year of blockbuster brands: Madden NFL, FIFA, SimCity, Medal of Honor, Dead Space, and Need For Speed.”

SimCity was previously announced as a 2013 release, but if it’s going to be available during EA’s 2013 fiscal year, it’ll have to be released by March 31, 2012 at the latest. So pencil SimCity in as a Q1 2013 release on your big calendar.

EA’s Criterion studio went on a hiring push late last year, so it’s likely that they’re producing the next Need For Speed game. Their last retail title, Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit, was released in 2010. Finally, a new Dead Space game was rumored for release this year, but it’s nice to have confirmation.

I’m sure we’ll learn all about these three games at next month’s E3 Expo.

Posted in News | Tagged , ,

Blockbuster UK has 25 Wii U games in its database

Posted on May 7, 2012 by John Scalzo

With E3 just a month away, the Wii U rumors are going to start heating up and that includes this latest bit of news… Blockbuster’s UK arm has added 25 Wii U titles to its inventory database.

None of the titles have release dates, and most were previously announced, but there are a few surprises including a Marvel Super Heroes game, something titled Shield Pose, and a game simply known as “Zombie.”

Here’s the complete list of Wii U games in Blockbuster UK’s system. All unannounced titles are listed in bold.

  • Aliens: Colonial Marines
  • Assassin’s Creed III
  • Batman: Arkham City
  • Darksiders II
  • Dirt 3
  • F1 All-Stars
  • Game Party
  • Just Dance 4
  • Killer Freaks from Outer Space
  • Marvel Super Heroes
  • Metro: Last Light
  • Monsters Party
  • New Super Mario Bros. Mii
  • Ninja Gaiden 3
  • Pikmin 3
  • Rabbids Party Land
  • Raving Rabbids
  • Rayman Legends
  • Shield Pose
  • Sports Connection
  • Tekken
  • Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Online
  • Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell 6
  • Your Shape 2013
  • Zombie

[Source: Go Nintendo]

Posted in News, Wii U |

Rise of the Videogame Zinesters Review: A How-to Book on Taking Back an Art Form

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Rise of the Videogame Zinesters is the declaration of an independent game maker that we, the common people, can take back game creation from the overworked developers and overpaid publishers. Anna Anthropy has a plan, and that plan is to change the world and make it so that anyone can create a video game. Much like the printing press changed the world of reading and writing, there are tools today that will change video game design and bring about a renaissance of creation and distribution.

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Posted in Etcetera, Reviews, Top Story |

This is the complete Halo timeline

Posted on May 7, 2012 by John Scalzo

Frank O’Connor, the Halo Franchise Director at 343 Industries, has mentioned the shooter’s “series bible” many times in the last few years. O’Connor isn’t just developing new games in the bestselling franchise, he’s trying to create an interconnected world that would make George Lucas gasp in astonishment.

Now, CVG has pulled together the many different threads of the Halo franchise (six original games, one remade game, six trade comics, nine novels, two short story collections, and an animated film) into one cohesive timeline, and what it means for Halo 4. Even if you don’t play the games, it’s an interesting read:

Under Bungie and Microsoft the Halo timeline was malleable, but for 343 it’s set in stone. Halo’s extended universe is informing everything about Halo 4, from its setting on a Forerunner Shield World to the enemies drawn from a point 100,000 years in the past. Halo 4’s protagonists were first introduced inthe pages of Primordium and Cryptum and its new technologies debuted in Glasslands.

Catching up with it all could take a while, so we’ve done the hard work for you, pulling together threads from every piece of Halo fiction and ironing out the contradictions for adefinitive wrap-up of one billion years of fiction.

Posted in News, Xbox 360 | Tagged