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Mass Effect 3 Single Player Demo Impressions -- Is It March 6th Yet? (Potential Spoilers)

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 00:02:00 -0800

The demo for Mass Effect 3 is the ultimate tease. The tease begins by allowing gamers to choose their Shepard. You won't be able to transfer your save file for the demo. I admit clicking new game was painful, but I powered through it.

The first thing you'll notice in ME3's demo is the ability to decide how you want to play: Action, Role-Playing and Story. Before you panic like I did, Action means you want to play this game like Call of Duty. Dialogue choices are cutscenes and the primary focus is combat. If you want to mosey through the game not focusing on actual skill, instead allowing yourself to get caught up in the emotional story, then choose Story mode. If you want to play Mass Effect 3 the way it was intended, with a balance of guns and dialogue wheels, then choose Role-Playing. I obviously chose it.

NEWS: Mass Effect 3 Videos Look At Weapon Customization, Story, Co-op And More

You'll be asked to answer three more questions, one addressing your origins, one allowing you to decide your Shepard's reputation and another deciding who you chose to live and die in Mass Effect 1. Normally in an RPG I would tell you there's no wrong choice. But kids, Ashley Williams in the wrong choice. (Nikole + Kaidan = Love Forever) These questions are supposed to catch you up if you've never played ME1 and ME2. It's certainly not the interactive comic for the PS3 version of ME2, but this is just a demo.

A ship zooms by the screen, but as the camera zooms out you see it's just a toy a child is playing with. The demo starts out with a command station in panic, as shown originally during E3 2011. Captain Anderson's voice is echoing as alliance officers scatter. Shepard walks with Anderson, asking why there was such panic. Word of the impending Reaper invasion has just become accepted, which is good timing since they've actually begun invading Earth.

As we walked down the hallway I noticed a familiar face. (OMG IT'S KAIDAN!) We exchanged a few casual words before going our separate ways. James, Shepard's newest squad mate asked Kaidan, "Do you know her." He replied, "I used to." YOU'RE KILLING ME KAIDAN!

This part of the demo is an on rails cinematic. My only interaction was making choices on my dialogue wheel. The counsel demanded help, a plan, but I told them to shove it. My plan? "Fight or Die." Apparently they chose "die" because as soon as the room was quiet a Reaper descended from the sky as a giant red laser cut through the room. The only obvious survivors were Anderson and Shepard.

VIDEO: Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer Gameplay Trailer -- Galaxy At War "Special Forces" Video

Anderson leads Shepard to a drop ship that was attacked, scaling the outside of the building along the way. If you pan the camera left you'll see at least four massive Reapers terrorizing the city. As Shepard made her way down the building, Husks began to attack. I don't know where the husks came from or why they were there, but neither hindered my ability to shoot them in the face. While inside a building, Shepard runs into the kid from the beginning. He's hiding in an air duct but before Shepard can help him, he slips away.

After the husks, your next enemy is the Cannibal. There wasn't an explanation for these guys either but they looked like the Mass Effect equivalent to a husk who drank too much imulsion (Gears of War). A few headshots later and the SR2 will swoop in to pick Shepard up. As Shepard's ship ascends, you see that same child from earlier climb aboard a ship. Before you have a chance to sigh from relief, a Reaper's laser blasts the ship into millions of pieces. Dramatic fade to black.

Part 2 of the demo is the Krogan female rescue mission from back at Gamescom last year and then again at PAX Prime. This part of the demo takes place later in the game as your character is already level 12. This mission is meant to show off ME3's combat abilities. Shepard has a decent amount of ammo, ample cover and enough Cerberus baddies to familiarize gamers with ME3's combat style.

The best part about this mission is it reunited me with Liara, Wrex, Garrus and Mordin. I do wonder which characters would be there had I let them die in ME2. The only annoying part of this part of the demo was backtracking. You'll have to go back through rooms, which can be a little confusing. The climax of the demo is a mech fight to allow Wrex to land the ship for the Krogan female. Using the d-pad you can direct your squad to distract him, allowing you to focus on red spots on its back. When there are no Cerberus soldiers left, Wrex lands to free the female. End of demo!

Coming up soon, our impressions of the multiplayer co-op game!

Battlefield 3 Pro Tips With Tsquared -- Know Your Class And Your Teammates Will Love You Long Time

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 18:30:00 -0800

X-Play and Tsquared have a few pointers for EA's Battlefield 3. If you don't want to have your ass handed to you, you're going to have to know a thing or two about your class. Before you start crying about the bourgeoisie and the caste system, watch this video and learn a thing or two.

Watch Larger Version | Watch HD Version

In Battlefield 3 you can play as the following classes.

Assault
Engineer
Support
Recon

My go-to class is Engineer when I play BF3 or BF:BC2. What's your favorite class?

Skyrimball Z Mod -- Skyrim Meets Dragon Ball Z

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 11:02:00 -0800

The next Skyrim mod to get your knickers in a twist is going to be Skyrimball. The mod adds two of everyone's favorite DBZ characters, Goku and Krillin, to the game. Who am I kidding, no one's favorite character is Kirllin. (I'm partial to Chiaotzu and Tien myself.)

This mod is definitely a work in progress but considering Bethesda's official mod tools have only been out for a week, I'd say they are on the right track. We'll let you know when the mod hits the Steam Workshop.

If this mod is accurate, the final battle with Alduin will last 20 episodes before Alduin reveals he was only using 20% of his power.

Source: RipTen

Grand Theft Auto 4 Mod -- Incredible GTA 4 Graphics Enhancement!

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 09:25:00 -0800

I know we're all looking forward to Grand Theft Auto 5, but it's time to take a look back at GTA 4, specifically, the amazing ICEnhancer 2.0, the just released graphical enhancement mod that makes GTA 4 look as next-gen as any game I have ever seen.

You can pick up the ICEnhancer 2.0 at the official site.

Rockstar: Max Payne 3 Delayed To Add Epicness

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 08:39:00 -0800

Rockstar Games this morning answered pressing fan questions about Max Payne 3 on its website, including addressing why the game has been delayed. Here's Rockstar's official answer as to why you'll have to wait to play Max 3:

"We understand it's disappointing to have to wait another couple months for the game, but we hope you know our goal is always to deliver the best games we possibly can. Trust that the delay is all to ensure the game is as epic and highly-polished as possible. Thank you all for your patience and understanding. We believe it will be well worth the wait."

Personally, I've been waiting since 2003 to play this game, so a few more months doesn't matter to me all that much.

NEWS: Max Payne 3 Multiplayer Details: Introducing Gang Wars

Other interesting information from the fan Q & A: The game will have free aim. Rockstar's full description of the shooting system is under the "Read More" tag.

Yes. The Max Payne series was built on its precise and fluid shooting mechanics, and a huge amount of work has been put into ensuring Max's aiming and weapon balance systems not only live up to the reputation of the original but also try to maximize what is possible with modern third and first-person shooters, enabling us to deliver fluid free-aim mechanics on both PC and console. To go more in-depth and see some of it in action, check out our latest Design and Technology series video focusing on targeting and weapons.

We also got some insider info about Max's signature bullet-time mechanic, and how it will work in multiplayer:

"Max Payne’s multiplayer is all about taking the physicality and tech of Max’s movement and shooting abilities and translating that directly into multiplayer in a way that fits with the overall story and the themes of the game, so getting Bullet Time right in the multiplayer experience is a huge priority. Bullet Time in multiplayer works via line of sight rather than applying to the whole level, or to a bubble around the player. While Bullet Time is Max’s special ability, it is just one of a range of special abilities - called Bursts – that you’ll find in multiplayer. Each Burst plays on an aspect of Max Payne 3’s overall themes such as conspiracy, paranoia, heroism, betrayal – and all come into play in our new narrative-based gameplay mode, Gang Wars. You can read more first details about Max Payne 3 multiplayer here and we will be revealing much, much more information very soon."

Also, because I'm sure you're curious: Rockstar revealed no new information on Grand Theft Auto 5 or a potential sequel to L.A. Noire.

Skyrim Made More Awesome With A Pinch Of Bastion In Today's Nugget From The Net

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:17:00 -0800

I'm pretty sure that most of you played Skyrim last year. Even if you didn't, it was next to impossible to avoid features, interviews, lists and amazing "arrow in the knee" and "Fus Ro Dah" video hilarity. You also hopefully played Bastion, the digitally distributed action-RPG from Supergiant Games with a great sense of style and killer voice and music work, with particular props going to the game's narrator, Logan Cunningham.

YouTube user Egger3rd definitely played both games, and used that background to get creative with a cool machinima mash-up (via Destructoid) that you really ought to watch. It's a reinterpreted take on the Skyrim intro, with narration from Bastion voice actor Logan Cunningham. It's a great watch and, even better, it's only part one.

Source: YouTube

Mass Effect 3 Demo Footage Appears Online

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:03:00 -0800

The playable demo for Mass Effect 3 arrives TOMORROW, but for those who simply can't stand to wait just 24 more hours (give or take), salvation comes in the form of streaming videos. YouTube user NinjaDancer (via VG247) scored early access to the demo and captured roughly 50 minutes of footage from the single player portion.

You get to see the very beginning of the game's story and watch as someone who isn't you plays through the first couple of missions as Commander Shepard. I'm going to hold off on watching these myself, since the demo is arriving so soon and all, but I'm sure at least a few of you BioWare fans won't be able to resist the temptation. Look for the second video after the jump.

Tonight 6:30PM on X-Play: Brace Yourselves for the PlayStation Vita

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:00:00 -0800

Tune in tonight 6:30PM ET on X-Play as we get ready for the PlayStation Vita. We've got one here, and we'll run down everything we like, and anything that's got us worried. Full show details below:

PlayStation Vita
We're inside of two weeks of the PlayStation Vita's official launch, but we have our hands on one now, and we'll take you on a thorough tour of what Sony's new portable gamer is set to deliver.
Tsquared's Battlefield 3 Pro Tips
Battlefield 3 is all about understanding your strengths and limitations, and pro gamer Tsquared will have pro tips for finding your role, and carrying it out effectively.
The Darkness 2 Review
Sequel The Darkness 2 has new developers, new gameplay mechanics, and a reworked art style. We'll weigh in on the results with our review.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning Review
The wait is over, and the first game from baseball great turned videogame magnate Curt Schilling and his 38 Studios is here. It's action RPG Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, and we'll have our review.
X-Play Inbox
We'll open up more viewer mail in another edition of X-Play Inbox.
X-Play Recommends - iPad Game Jazz: Trump's Journey
We'll check out Jazz: Trump's Journey, a jazzy platforming romp through 1920s New Orleans.

Watch X-Play weekdays at 6:30PM ET, only on G4!

Call of Duty: Black Ops Given 'Best Game Ending' Honors By Guinness

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 05:44:00 -0800

Guinness, the standard-bearer for world records, has declared that the 2010 Call of Duty release from Treyarch, Black Ops, ranks at number one on the Top 50 Video Game Endings of All Time list. So that happened. Science wasn't used to determine the winner; instead, the game won in a poll that "13,519 fans of gaming" participated in. Moral of the story? More of you should get out and vote next time.

I'm a definite Call of Duty fan, and Black Ops is one of the series' superior titles in my own book. Best game ending ever though? Ehhhhhh.... Does such an objective judgment even belong in the Guinness record book, especially when it's just decided by a poll with a relatively small turnout?

No, I don't take any of this seriously. Any list that names Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II the best at anything is immediately suspicious. But since we're talking about best game endings, why don't you share some of your favorites in the comments? You can also hit the jump for the full list.

50. Resident Evil 4
49. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
48. Ratchet & Clank: a Crack in Time
47. Crysis 2
46. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
45. Call of Duty: World at War
44. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II
43. Half-Life 2: Episode Two
42. Super Metroid
41. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
40. New Super Mario Bros. Wii
39. inFamous
38. Fallout 3
37. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
36. Gears of War 2
35. Bioshock
34. Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty
33. Sonic Adventures 2
32. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
31. Kingdom Hearts II
30. Mass Effect
29. Super Mario Galaxy
28. Sonic the Hedgehog
27. Metal Gear Solid
26. Assassin's Creed II
25. Assassin's Creed
24. Shadow of the Colossus
23. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
22. Kingdom Hearts
21. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
20. Super Mario Galaxy 2
19. Mass Effect 2
18. Grand Theft Auto IV
17. Portal 2
16. Assassins Creed: Brotherhood
15. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
14. Halo: Combat Evolved
13. Halo 3
12. Pokemon Black and White
11. Super Mario Bros
10. Heavy Rain
9. Final Fantasy VII
8. Metal Gear Solid 4
7. Portal
6. Red Dead Redemption
5. God of War
4. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
3. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
2. Halo: Reach
1. Call of Duty: Black Ops

Source: Guinness

Dirt 3 Getting Complete Edition Next Month

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 05:17:00 -0800

Offroad racing game Dirt 3 scored high marks with critics when it launched last year, including a four-star rating on G4 from the lovely and talented Mitch Dyer. The new gymkhana mode (not to be confused with the old Gymkata movie) gave the time-tested series gameplay a new focus, and fans approved. Now, less than a year after the game's May 2011 release, Codies is prepping a value-priced Complete Edition, a press release confirms.

For $39.99 you'll get last year's game along with 12 new track configurations spread between two new locations -- Monte Carlo and X Games Asia -- along with five car packs that bring 13 additional cars and all manner of liveries (skins) into the game. The Dirt 3: Complete Edition is coming to Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Windows PC platforms sometime in March; stay tuned for more info.

Steam Knocked Out By Power Failure, Now Back Online

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 05:00:00 -0800

PC gamers might have been troubled to learn yesterday that Valve's digital distribution service for PC games, Steam, was offline and completely inaccessible for more than an hour yesterday. The timing was inconvenient, what with Valve boss Gabe Newell confirming last week that more user information was likely obtained in a 2011 hacking than was previously thought.

Valve quickly confirmed yesterday afternoon that Steam's service interruption was the result of a power failure rather than anything sinister. Valve took to Twitter a few hours after the outage occurred to alert users to what had happened: "Our data center's [universal power supply] experienced a power failure. Power is back on now and working to get service restored asap."

In other words: move along, people. Nothing to see here.

Source: Twitter

Rosario Dawson And Brian Cox To Star In Syndicate

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:59:00 -0800

Electronic Arts has announced that two celebrated actors, Rosario Dawson (Sin City, Men in Black II) and Brian Cox (The Bourne Identity) will star in the sci-fi first person shooter, Syndicate. "The stars take on the role of cutthroat executives working for the biggest and most aggressive syndicate, EuroCorp, in a near-future world ruled by three mega-corporations," said EA.

Rosario Dawson will be play Lily Drawl, the rising star of EuroCorp with a shattered and conflicted psyche. "Lily is torn between the demands of her corporate masters and the underground resistance to syndicate rule. She knows that this balancing act can only last for so long before she falls, most likely, to her death," EA said.

DETAILS: Syndicate Hands-On Impressions: Stealthy Yet Satisfying

“I’m amazed how videogames have become so deep in story, delivering fantastic worlds and memorable characters rivaling big Hollywood films,” said Dawson. “I was excited when EA approached me to play Lily Drawl in Syndicate. She’s an interesting and strong female character. How cool is it to play the mastermind who designed the military chip inside the player’s head!”

Brian Cox will be playing Jack Denham, a ruthless power behind the boardroom throne. Michael Wincott rounds out the cast as Jules Merit. They're both members with significant power at the top of the Eurocorp organization.

Syndicate will be out February 21 for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.

Do these casting choices make you more excited about Syndicate? Let us know in the comments section.

Have something to share? Sitting on a news tip? E-mail me. You can also follow me on Twitter!

Next Week on X-Play: Reviews of Amalur: Reckoning, Twisted Metal, UFC 3, The Darkness II, and First PS Vita Games!

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:31:00 -0800

Next week on X-Play, the new release season is upon us, and we'll have verdicts on Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, Twisted Metal, UFC Undisputed 3, The Darkness II, and Amy.

Plus, the PS Vita is almost here, and we'll get one in our hands and deliver our first game reviews for this next generation of portable gaming hardware from Sony.

We'll also get Battlefield 3 pro tips from pro gamer Tsquared, and have our top 7 games for Valentine's Day. All this and so much more when a brand new week of X-Play kicks off this Monday at 6:30PM ET.

Watch Larger Version | Watch HD Version

Steam Hacking Update: Hackers Obtained Credit Card Info, But Not Passwords

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:06:00 -0800

Game company Valve has just sent more information about the hacking attacks against its Steam service.

According to Valve's president Gabe Newell: "It is probable that the intruders obtained a copy of a backup file with information about Steam transactions between 2004 and 2008. This backup file contained user names, email addresses, encrypted billing addresses and encrypted credit card information. It did not include Steam passwords."

Valve says it has no evidence that the information has been "compromised," so, presumably, the encryption is still in place. The company advises Steam users to "watch your credit card activity and statements. And of course keeping Steam Guard on is a good idea as well."

The full text of Valve's email is under the "Read More" tag.

Dear Steam Users and Steam Forum Users

We continue our investigation of last year's intrusion with the help of outside security experts. In my last note about this, I described how intruders had accessed our Steam database but we found no evidence that the intruders took information from that database. That is still the case.

Recently we learned that it is probable that the intruders obtained a copy of a backup file with information about Steam transactions between 2004 and 2008. This backup file contained user names, email addresses, encrypted billing addresses and encrypted credit card information. It did not include Steam passwords.

We do not have any evidence that the encrypted credit card numbers or billing addresses have been compromised. However as I said in November it's a good idea to watch your credit card activity and statements. And of course keeping Steam Guard on is a good idea as well.

We are still investigating and working with law enforcement authorities. Some state laws require a more formal notice of this incident so some of you will get that notice, but we wanted to update everyone with this new information now.

Gabe

Call of Duty Achievement Unlocked: 40 Million Active Users

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:39:00 -0800

During a quarterly financial call yesterday, Activision dropped some interesting stats on FPS Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. There are more than 40 million monthly active users across all COD releases, and Call of Duty Elite boasts 7 million users with 1.5 million paid annual members. Activision reported that it is working on Call of Duty Elite 2.0, which will add new features and will support the next major series entry, due to launch later this year.

Basically, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is a very successful video game. The most successful ever, according to Activision. To make sure we understand the dominance of MW3 over every other video game and other piece of entertainment ever in history, Broadband Choices sent us a huge infographic outlining the ways in which Modern Warfare 3 has trounced all competitors. I've taken some interesting slices of the scroll-like thing and pasted them below the "Read More" tag, but if you want to view the entire thing, click there... it's a huge file, though.

James Cameron's Avatar is a loser

Modern Warfare 3 was awesome before it was even released.

Even the trivial, little things about Modern Warfare 3 are super awesome

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is more awesome than anything else in the world!

These fun-facts are not represented in the above material because I made them up, but...

Modern Warfare 3 is so mean, it once shot a man just for snoring.
If Modern Warfare 3 was a person, it would be Johnny Cash.
I once heard about a kid who didn't play Modern Warfare 3, and that kid grew up to be Robo-Hitler.

Please leave your own Modern Warfare 3 facts in the comment section below.Infographic by Broadband Choices via G4TV

Skyrim, Uncharted 3 Win Big At The Interactive Achievement Awards

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:11:00 -0800

Bethesda’s The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim was the big winner at the 15th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards held last night as part of DICE 2012. Skyrim was named Game of the Year, and took home four other awards as well including bestRole-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Online Game of the Year, and Outstanding Achievement in Story, Gameplay Engineering and Game Direction.

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception received accolades for publisher Sony Computer Entertainment America and developer Naughty Dog, getting awards for Outstanding Achievement in Animation, Art Direction and Visual Engineering.

Valve was represented as well. Portal 2 was lauded for Outstanding Achievement in Connectivity, Character Performance (for Wheatley), and Original Music Composition.

Here is a list of all the AIAA winners for 2012:

Bastion - Downloadable Title of the Year
Batman: Arkham City - Adventure Game of the Year
Battlefield 3 - Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 - Action Game of the Year
FIFA 12 - Sports Game of the Year
Forza Motorsport 4 - Racing Game of the Year
Fruit Ninja Kinect - Casual Game of the Year
Infinity Blade II - Mobile Game of the Year
LittleBigPlanet 2 - Family Game of the Year
Mortal Kombat - Fighting Game of the Year
Orcs Must Die! - Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year
Portal 2 (3) - Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition, Outstanding Character Performance (Wheatley), Outstanding Achievement in Connectivity
Skylanders Spyro's Adventure - Outstanding Innovation in Gaming
Star Wars: The Old Republic - Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay
Super Mario 3D Land - Handheld Game of the Year
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (5) - Game of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Story, Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Online Game of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Gameplay Engineering, Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction
The Sims Social - Social Networking Game of the Year
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (3) - Outstanding Achievement in Animation, Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction, Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering

Should you want to watch the entire awards show, check out the link below:

Blizzard And Valve Descend Into Legal Tussle Over DOTA Title

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 07:10:00 -0800

Blizzard is locked in a legal dispute with Valve over the latter's trademark request for the DOTA 2 title. The upcoming game is a spiritual successor to the popular WarCraft III mod, Defense of the Ancients. The lead designer on the project is IceFrog, a modder who worked on keeping the mod going from 2005 onward, until joining Valve's DOTA 2 team sometime before the game was announced in late 2010.

Blizzard hasn't been quiet in expressing its dissatisfaction over a competitor developing what is essentially a standalone sequel to a mod from one of its own games, but we're only now first hearing of an ongoing legal action to block Valve's trademarking of the DOTA name. NeoGAF users discovered (via Kotaku) a November filing with the US Patent and Trademark Office in which Blizzard formally opposes the Valve trademark request.

The WarCraft dev argues that because the title has "for more than seven years... been used exclusively by Blizzard and its fan community" that it has a claim to the name that Valve does not. "By virtue of that use, the DOTA mark has become firmly associated in the mind of consumers with Blizzard," the dev argues in the intro portion of the legal document. Neither company owns the trademark, but Blizzard contends that it has more of a right to the title than Valve does.

Valve's most recent public comments on the decision to go with the DOTA 2 title came from the big boss himself, Gabe Newell, in an interview with Eurogamer at Gamescom last year. ""The issue with that was, when we were talking with IceFrog originally, he wanted to build the sequel to DOTA," Newell said. "So the reason to call it Dota 2 is it actually does a pretty good job of communicating to gamers what it is the game is going to be."

Newell goes on to discuss how the use of the title would be received by the gaming community, but he stop short of commenting extensively on the possibility of a future trademark dispute. "That's really not my domain. I'm sure there will be a bunch of nattering back and forth, but I'm more concerned about the game than anything else," he said.

We've reached out to Valve for comment, and will update this post accordingly when we hear back.

Source: USPTO

Mass Effect 3 Videos Look At Weapon Customization, Story, Co-op And More

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 06:04:00 -0800

Mass Effect 3! Videos! Information!

That pretty well sums up everything you need to know about this news. The official Mass Effect 3 website is now home to five new gameplay videos, with each one focusing on different aspects of the game. The RPG junkies out there will definitely want to check out the "Custom Arsenal" video. For all its accolades, some felt that Mass Effect 2 was a little too stripped down compared to its predecessor in the realm of customization. ME3 not only has more weapons to find, it also brings back a more involved mechanic for modding those weapons (and armor).

You'll find four more new videos after the jump, offering closer looks at things like online co-op, enemies, storytelling and action. You should also head over to the official website, as each video lives on a page that offers even more details on what you can expect to find when Mass Effect 3 launches for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Windows PC platforms on March 6.

Double Fine Adventure Kickstarter Campaign Reaches $400K In Hours

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 14:25:00 -0800

UPDATED 3:45 PM -- Well, it's official. Thanks to the donations of 25,995 individuals, Double Fine's Kickstarter campaign has now surpassed the $1 million mark. The total currently sits at $1,001,988.

Original story follows:

Wow, gamers of the world! You can all give yourselves a hearty pat on the back this morning. Yesterday, Double Fine boss Tim Schafer launched a Kickstarter page seeking to raise $400,000 in crowd-sourced donations to fund a new adventure game, called Double Fine Adventure. Just over eight hours later, that goal was reached and surpassed.

There are 33 days left for more money to be raised, but with 11,735 backers and a total of $512,855 pledged at the time of this writing, it's safe to say now that Double Fine Adventure is officially a go. And it's all because fine gamers like you, the people reading this news, saw this awesome thing and opened your wallets en masse. You should be proud. Seriously.

Mere days ago, Schafer was in the news for commenting in an interview on the existence of a pitch for Psychonauts 2 that multiple publishers had passed on. Minecraft creator and Mojang founder Markus "Notch" Persson read this and stepped up with a tweeted offer to Schafer to make the sequel happen. The actual project is still a long way off, assuming it even happens at all, but lets all give it up for the power of social media this week. Not many studios can claim to have gotten the ball rolling on two potentially upcoming projects using Twitter and then Kickstarter.

Project backers get a number of bonuses based on how much money they pledge, including a free copy of the game, access to the beta, access to the behind-the-scenes video series from 2 Player Productions and more. The goal is to get the game out into the world by October of this year. Things certainly seem to be on pace for hitting that target, based on the response so far.

In the interest of full disclosure, I should probably out myself as one of Double Fine Adventure's backers at this point. Joystick journalists are gamers too and I've long been a fan of Schafer's work. This was an easy choice for me. No, I won't be reviewing the game. This will probably be the last you hear from me on it, outside of my personal Twitter feed. But I'm excited to support this effort, and I'm glad to learn this morning that so many others are as well. Good show, gaming world.

Source: Kickstarter

Diablo 3 Planned For Quarter Two 2012 Release

Thu, 9 Feb 2012 14:15:00 -0800

The release of Diablo 3 is getting closer and closer, people. During a financial conference call held moments ago, Activision Blizzard displayed a slide indicating that the company is aiming for a Diablo 3 release in Quarter 2 2012. What that means in gamer speak is that Diablo 3 is intended to be released by June 30, 2012.

The real release date, however, is still "when it's ready," of course. As soon as we know anything more about the release date of Diablo 3, we promise to tell you.