Do you like Batman? Do you like Arkham City? Do you like Deathstroke? HOW ABOUT ALL THREE TOGETHER!?

The game comes out on October 25th, 2013. For now, enjoy the teaser trailer for Batman: Arkham Origins. Epic live action or Amazing CGI? You decide. Click the jumper for the trailer.

It was announced that Warren Spector, the developer who brought us Deus Ex and Epic Mickey, will personally work with Blizzard Entertainment's Chief Operations Office, Paul Sams, in order to oversee a gaming program at the University of Texas, Austin. This isn't just a normal game development class, folks. Students who graduate will receive a postbaccalaureate certificate rather than a graduate degree which has less restrictions and what I assume would be additional bragging rights and win-points.

I'm not feeling so hot right now. Obviously Carbine Studios knew I needed a lift and so they sent me this little gem in my email:  The second installment of the WildStar DevSpeak video series.  The first one was on housing, and all the slick things the developers are planning to make player housing a core feature to the MMO.  This episode focuses on movement, and while movement may seem basic, the design decisions made about what movement mechanics to add to the game deeply influence how a game is played and what content it can offer.  

Hit the jump to watch the video. What up.

I don't know where this is from, but it's awesome:  Evidently there's a convention that recently happened where fans were able to pose for a picture with Nathan Fillion.  This particular entry just proves how amazing the guy really is.  It turns out that after all that saving Link never gets to be with Zelda -- Fillion nabs her and gives him what for in return.  Hit the jump to the image so amazing I had to share it.  

League of Legends is commonly seen as "just another MOBA." However, the range of depth and story behind the onslaught of champions and minions alike is over-looked by many. Each character has it's own unique lore and in the grand scheme of things, you could probablly fit multiple RPG titles in LoL's expanded universe. Riot Games has finally given us a taste of this greater outside world by revamping the Howling Abyss to represent Freljord, the wore-torn icy tundra.

The new All-Random-All-Mid map is really well-done visually but why stop there? Riot went above and beyond to immerse players in their world so they needed good music to go with their theme. This video was released recently and shows us the making of the piece behind the conflict of the three sister tribes and boy does it give me goosebumps. Hopefully, we'll see mroe from Riot's vision here soon.

Just another MOBA? I think not. Check out the video below and tell us what you think of Freljord.

Finally, some good news regarding my favorite frachise! Electronic Arts has signed an exclusive deal with Disney to bring the world more Star Wars video games. Pinch me i'm dreaming!

"Every developer dreams of creating games for the Star Wars universe," EA Labels President Frank Gibeau said in a statement. "Three of our top studios will fulfill that dream, crafting epic adventures for Star Wars fans. DICE and Visceral will produce new games, joining the BioWare team which continues to develop for the Star Wars franchise."

I had a feeling someone was going to buy the rights to Star Wars following the reconstruction of LucasArts into a liscensing company but I didn't think it was going to be EA. Even though they did bring us Knight of the Old Republic, which is arguablly one of the most highly-acclaimed games of the decade, they also brought us the expensive disaster everyone knows to be The Old Republic. May mean a lot to some of you, but not much to me because the writers of the game were excellent but I can't say they did a good job making a full-on MMO.

So what do you guys think of this move? Perhaps we'll seem some horror-based games come out of Visceral *Cough* "Death Trooper" *Cough* and perhaps the revival of First Assault via DICE? Oh the ideas! I just hope everything doesn't have to be Disney approved... Since you know, there is a dark side to Star Wars after all. No pun intended.

Microsoft has announced that they will let us know the details of their next gen Xbox console on May 21st, but recent Internet domain purchases may have already let the cat out of the bag.  It seems that Microsoft has purchased a slew of URLs containing the name "Xbox Fusion."  Does this mean that we have stumbled upon the name of the next console?  And if so, what does that mean?  Let's look a little at what this word signifies:

Fusion  (noun)

 

1. the act or process of fusing; the state of being fused.

 

2.that which is fused; the result of fusing: A ballet production is the fusion of many talents.

 

3.Politics.

 

a.a coalition of parties or factions.

 

b.( initial capital letter  ) the political party resulting from such a coalition.

 

4.Also called nuclear fusion. Physics. a thermonuclear reaction in which nuclei of light atoms join to form nuclei of heavier atoms, as the combination of deuterium atoms to form helium atoms.

Fusion is most commonly referred to when we talk about the combination of things that when joined together become inseparable.   The new creation is often stronger than the two things that went into making it.  Also, nuclear fusion - the combining of atoms rather than the splitting of them is supposed to be both much more powerful and much safer than the destructive force we use to generate nuclear power today.

The subject of gaming piracy is one people don't really talk about these days.  Sure, gamers lament, sometimes incredibly loudly, DRM and "always online" practices, claiming that their rights and freedoms are being taken away.  But very little is said from the game makers themselves about what a toll piracy takes on their business.  

Enter Greenheart Games, who released Game Dev Tycoon this week.  While a standard game release announcement isn't all that interesting this one is, because Greenheart created two versions of the game -- the standard one, and a cracked copy they themselves uploaded to The Pirate Bay (a site I will not be linking to, by the way).  Over 90% of the game's downloads that first day were from the pirating site, and those 3000 odd players received some interesting additions to their version of the game when they played it.

First, the members of the gaming company start talking about how dangerous piracy is to their business.  And suddenly your funds begin to dwindle as most of the games you produce are they themselves pirated.  Ultimately your game company runs out of funds and is forced to close.  The ultimate irony is that some players went online looking for help on how to beat the game since they kept running out of money and losing -- from piracy.

The amount of hype and accolades this game has is astonishing since it's debut at E3 2012. Ubisoft's Watchdogs, arguably one of the most anticipated titles of this year, has a new trailer for everyone and this time, we get a bit of background about the story.

Finally, the protagonist is given a name: Aiden Pearce. For all I know, this could be a fake tag name but hey, they showed something. Also, a bit of backstory; hoping not to spoil but he does have an incentive for the badassery he does... Even if that means hacking street lights to cause a multi-car collisions.

Watchdongs is coming out to all Platforms, even the unreleased PS4 on November 19th, 2013. I can't wait to beat up bad guys in the flashiest of way! Check out the trailer below.

Nothing like good ole' fashioned dubstep and fighting to get you up in the morning. Because that's really what this trailer for Capcom's Remember Me is: dubstep and fighting. And a lot of it. Mind you, I enjoy seizure-inducing bawawawa-dumdaa trailers but here's to hoping the game will have more appropriate background music for 2084 Neo-Paris.

I was able to try out the game at the Capcom booth during Wonder-con 2013. Was I impressed by what I saw? Only a little to be honest, but still, the demo didn't have all the core features of the game, like creating your own fighting combos with memories. On top of that, the enemies weren't anything like what is seen in this video.

Remember Me is set for release on June 4th, 2013. I hope it sees some success because the concept of the game is incredibly unique, you know, being a memory hunter and all but it still plays out as a risk since you don't often see these types of games fly by. Click the jumper below to see the trailer.

The chat goes wild, the fans are baffled, and Ken's head hurts! There are enough upsets at the League of Legends spring play-offs to make a happy cat rather sad. Day one hosted two match-ups where both seasoned pro teams, Dignitas and Counter Logic Gaming, fell to their opponents, Vulcan and Good Game University respectively.

If that's not enough for you, Day 2 saw an incredible upset where 2nd seed Curse Gaming fell to the still-standing GGU line-up in a final score of 2 to 1. League of Legends is no longer about the better team. It's merely all about which team throws harder. Ok, i'm wrong there, 1st seed TSM Snapdragon managed to beat vulcan in a final score of 2 to 1. Still, one does not simply... sweep a lower seeded team.

Even though I expected the veteran teams to win, i'm not that surprised here. Even though the games were good, there were just more unexpected mistakes made than great plays initiated. Well, at least it makes amatears and casuals alike feel good about themselves when the pros make harder mistakes with more on the line.

It’s very subjective of someone to say a particular champion is bad, even if one starts losing all their games with it. So i'm just going to say this guy is cursed instead! In the wake of a play-off chalked full of upsets, one particular pattern kept popping up in this year’s League of Legends LCS match-ups -- all the teams that played Lee Sin on their roster lost… badly.

Prior to the Spring Play-offs, I spent some time watching the OGN match which involved Korean pro teams Najin Sword going against MVP Ozone. Needless to say, the team with Lee Sin lost. Can’t really say it was his fault that time around but it still happened. Come the first round quarter-final of the NA LCS play-offs, Dignitas’ playmaker, Crumbz, pulled out the blind monk in game one against Good Game University. My immediate reaction was “Nooooooo Whhhyyy.” But that’s just me, particularly because I haven’t seen him play the fella’ in a while. Despite my confidence in veteran play, Dignitas lost that game and ended up falling to GGU in the whole series 2 to 1.

But wait, there’s more. Counter Logic Gaming’s play-maker, Chauster, pulled out the cursed monk(I get to call him that now, right?) for their game 1 against Vulcan. Surprise surprise, utter annihilation befell the all-star ADC, Doublelift, and his team where Vulcan confidently took game 1. I know one champion can’t possibly be at fault here, but the chat doesn’t lie when they say “the monk threw.”

Stay tuned, folks! Today marks the first day of the League of Legends spring play-offs, the first of its kind. As an eSports fanatic, I am fairly excited to see something like this go down outside of a major network like MLG and such. Oh how I love thee, Riot Games.

All through-out the weekend of April 26^th through the 29^th, the top 6 seeded LCS pro teams are going to duke it out for a total prize pool of $100,000 within their region. Match format will be best two out of three instead of the usual singles. In North America, 1^st place TSM Snapdragon and 2^nd seed Curse each have an automatic first-round buy and will later face the winners of their region’s quarter-final round. Right now, we’re looking at 3^rd seed Dignitas facing off against 6^th seed Good Game University for their chance to face Curse. On the other end, 4^th seed Counter Logic Gaming will go up against 5^th seed Vulcan for their shot at trying to knock-out the explosive Team Solo Mid.

Yesterday I received a rather bland image in my inbox proclaiming that Microsoft is finally ready to reveal the next Xbox console.  Granted, the announcement won't happen for another 26 days, since the live reveal will happen on May 21st at 10:00 AM.  Mark up your calendars friends, because it's going to be a day worth remembering -- or at least I hope so.

Considering how lackluster the PS4 reveal was (they didn't even bother to show the console they were "revealing")  Let's hope this presentation doesn't start with a systems engineer running down a set of dry specs.  Microsoft does know how to put on a show, so I have high hopes that at least this presentation will be entertaining.  Who knows, maybe they'll even show the new Xbox at the new Xbox reveal presentation.  How novel.

The presentation will stream live from Xbox.com and Xbox Live.  As someone who attempted to watch the PS4 reveal on PlayStation Home (yeah, I'm a dreamer) I can only hope that the XBLA stream goes off without a hitch.  Either way, we'll have the rundown on the new Xbox as soon as we can peel our eyeballs from the livestream. 

One is an odd alien rodent-ish person with a knack for building things and using heavy weaponry, the other a small robot that is a living Swiss army knife of tools and abilities. Together they form PlayStation's oddest odd couple: Ratchet and Clank. Their series of video games has been going strong for awhile now, through both single player adventures and multiplayer chaos. So what does a successful, fourth wall breaking franchise do during the downtime between major releases? Make a full length motion picture, of course!

That's right, Ratchet and Clank are making the move to the big screen near you. Check out the teaser trailer after the jump - it will set up the movie nicely while at the same time making a small homage to a classic Looney Tunes skit. I call that a two-for-one deal if I've ever heard one.

Simply put, there just aren't enough gamers represented on today's reality TV. The producers of The Amazing Race aim to change that, with their upcoming show The Quest. This competition show is the brainchild of an Executive Producer of the Lord of the Rings movies, so you know they'll have at least one guy around who has geek cred.

The image above appeared on Twitter a few days ago, so the casting call has begun.  They are interested in any geeks (geex) who have a passion and want to use their geekiness to win massive amounts of cash and glory.  If you think this might be you, send the casting crew an email.  If you do apply, please drop a comment below and share with us any details you can.  I might not be able to apply, but I will watch the stuffing out of this show and can't wait to hear more.  Hit the jump to see the entire casting poster.

In just 200 days fans of Blizzard games will descend upon Anaheim, California.  This is a little reminder that BlizzCon 2013 tickets will be going on sale this week. Just to refresh your memory tickets will be sold on the following days:

BlizzCon 2013 Ticket Sale #1: Wednesday, April 24 at 7 p.m. PDT
BlizzCon 2013 Ticket Sale #2: Saturday, April 27 at 10 a.m. PDT
BlizzCon 2013 Benefit Dinner Ticket Sale: Wednesday, May 1 at 7 p.m. PDT

This is also the time you probably want to start building your costumes for the contest -- that is if you didn't start the day after the last convention.  And ladies, here's a tip: I would suggest skipping the Succubus as a cosplay idea, unless you want to be known as the Slave Leia of BlizzCon. 

Good news for fans of Final Fantasy XI and its ever-so popular character class, The Summoner. Square Enix has decided to revive the fan favorite in the form of the just announced Arcanist in their upcoming MMO, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn.

Ubisoft  has released footage of an interview with Michael Biehn for Farcry 3's upcoming DLC, Blood Dragon. That's right. You read correctly, Michael Biehn, the infamous action star who played parts in movies such as Aliens and The Terminator. He will be voicing the main character cyborg, sergeant Rex Colt.

When I watched the first trailer for this downloadable content, I was already amazed by the awesome epic 80s action feel. Dean Evans, the games director is very passionate about Blood Dragon, somehow getting Michael Biehn to go along with this 80s themed DLC is just epic. I mean come on, its John Conner for crying out loud!

What I want you to do now is watch this interview, go to your local video game store and tell them that I want the blood dragon dlc for preorder. Once they start talking about their rewards cards and promotions, yell "shut up and take my money! Farcry 3's Blood Dragon will be releasing May 1st, 2013 on Xbox Live and Playstation network.

Not sure if I should be laughing at this video or not but i'm not going to lie here, it was funny. The boys down at IGN played the just-released Steam game, Surgeon Simulator 2013, which apprently "teaches you how hard heart surgery is." And judging by this video, i'm sure it's pretty damn difficult.

The game allows you to become the doctor, who performs heart surgery on a patient, and are given a bunch of tools to get the job done. In the game, all you get to control is the hand and each finger has its own button. Let's just say I have a full understanding of why video games just have one button to do full character actions now.

Surgeon Simulator 2013 was released on April 19th, 2013 on PC for all of you aspiring M.D. to enjoy. But for now, just watch IGN's play through.

When you think of Bethesda Softworks these days, most people associate them with RPGs -- Skyrim, or even The Elder Scrolls Online.  Today they are proving that they want to break that mold and set it on fire and then feed it to some zombie dogs that they then will stab in the face with a bowie knife.  They've announced The Evil Within, a new survival horror game from the brilliant mind of Shinji Mikami, father of all things horror and creator of the Resident Evil series.

Will I play this game?  Heck no.  I hide under the covers in the opposite side of the apartment from a survival horror game (unless you count Minecraft), but I have to give Bethesda props for stepping out of their comfort zone -- and so I step out of my comfort zone to tell you about this game.  

You there!  Yes you, the one standing there on the virtual street corner with your hands in your pockets.  You need a purpose in your life -- a direction!  I have just the thing my friend.  It's called Firefall, and it calls you to the battlefield Bucko.  For months now there have been whispers of a Sci-Fi shooter you play online with your friends, one with style and polish and pizzazz.  But so far the access has been closed off, and so you can only sit on the sidelines wondering when you too will have the chance to try out the game.

Well wonder no more!  On July 9, 2013 you too will be able to step up to the plate and join the heroes as they plunge themselves headlong into battle with massive alien bugs.  You too will be able to get their sliming guts all over you, receive battle scars you can show off at the local watering hole, and generally be the envy of all your friends.  

Interested?  I knew you would be Kiddo.  While you still have some time to wait, you can begin preparing now.  First and foremost, start warming up your trigger finger by heading over to the Enlistment Page and get yourself signed up for your tour of duty.  Tell 'em General Mandifesto sent ya -- my name goes along way with them folks down at the Red 5 HQ. Then get working on those pushups.  It's going to take a lotta muscle to be able to tool around in that heavy armor.  Best be starting the bulking up now.   

One of the most notorious spies in gaming is back and ready for action. Sam Fisher makes his deadly return in the upcoming Ubisoft game, Splinter Cell: Blacklist.

The trailer is very direct. There's a big international problem and players must join Fisher and stalk their prey and strike when needed. This means the stealth mechanic Splinter Cell fans have always enjoyed will be making a return. And here I was hoping Fisher would go around slicing people... Besides, the mechanics, there's a lot of action and drama so fans of Tom Clancy's storytelling should be excited as well.

Personally, i'm very excited for this game. I understand Michael Ironside is no longer the voice of one of the most badass characters ever, but hey, it doesn't seem to bad. Also, Ubisoft does love the use of real-life clips which hints at their constant practice at bringing gaming to the big screen (movie, when?).

Yesterday Blizzard announced the winners of their 2013 Student Art Contest.  This year's submissions were long on style and short on poly count, and I could definitely see any of these models in the World of Warcraft.  I do find it interesting that they focused on WoW models this year.  Usually you see at least a couple StarCraft and Diablo creations thrown in there. Perhaps this means these games will get contest of their own this time around.  I wonder where that leaves Project Titan?

Personally, this teaches me a lot about what Blizzard appreciates in their artists.  They are looking for those that can bring their own style into the game's universe, but at the same time produce a highly detailed texture on a simple model frame.  The winners of this year's contest produced brilliant work that is only complex to the eye, not to the game engine -- and that is not easy to do.

The world premiere of "Defiance" the TV show aired just a few moments ago from this point in time on SyFy. Catching the show became top priority to me upon finding out it would directly tie in to the just-released, multi-platform MMOFPS video game, Defiance. Having already played the game to a point deep enough to make a statement, I can safely say after watching the two-hour long premiere, whoever thought of this idea is brilliant.

Farcry 3 released a trailer for the new downloadable content Blood Dragon! This trailer is the by far the best trailer bestowed up my very soul(next to Cyberpunk 2077). It has it all, from the retro 80s action cartoon nostalgia feel, down to the love of modern day video games.  is making me want to bust out my VHS player and watch the old Heavy Metal animated movie.

Call me insane if you will, at first I had no interest in Farcry 3. It just seemed like another first-person shooter to me. Now I'm screaming shut up and take my money, all of it! I've just been watching the trailer over and over again. It make me feel like a child again every time I watch it.

Do you have what it takes to be cyborg sergeant Rex Power Colt? Watch this trailer and I dare you to tell me no. I dare you to watch this and tell me you don't want this DLC. Farcry 3 Blood Dragon will be releasing on video cassette May 1st 2007? Oh wait, this darn VHS is worn out. It will be releasing May 1st, 2013, now watch this trailer on sausage pancakes!

Over at Wondercon 2013 I came across the Capcom booth with the Lost Planet 3 demo. I mainly wanted to play it to get a Lost Planet 2 toy for free, but the game turned out very interesting, different and fun.

The style felt a bit less anime like the previous games. Some sequences in the first game made me feel like I was playing something like Metal Gear or a random anime style Capcom game. Lost Planet 3 has a more realistic art style this time. Transitioning from  Lost Planet to the sequel, I really didn't feel like it was a whole new experience, because it kept a lot of the same features. However this new and improved Lost Planet didn't feel like a sequel at all, which is what I love.

This isn't just the third installment to the Lost Planet series, they changed a few huge features. The main one that had me stumped was the giant drivable mechs.  Lost Planet 1 and 2 were small, maneuverable little things you controlled from the comfort of your third person perspective. This time you play with larger mechs in first person from the cockpit view. They are also much slower than how they were. I kind of like the new style, but I do miss the old Armored Core style robots.

nVidia took us all by surprise a few months ago when they announced that they throwing their hat in the mobile console market with the appropriately named nVidia Shield. While we know a little bit about the device, including its almost magical ability to play full PC titles streamed off your computer if you have a supported graphics card, there is still a lot we do not yet know. nVidia must have realized this, as they decided to host a round table style Hangout to discuss the ins-and-outs of the device with potential developers and customers alike.

I completely missed it. <_>

But fortunately, they are hosting a second Hangout in the next few minutes! It begins at 11:00am PST today, April 6th, so if you are reading this post anytime near then, you can get the information to participate in the Hangout from here, as well as see the actual Event page here. If you missed it, dont worry, we've got you back: You can check out the YouTube video of the event after the jump.

Unfortunately, tragic news struck the gaming industry when Disney announced the end of LucasArts. To make matters even sadder, for us Star Wars fans at least, it was revealed that Star Wars 1313 was indeed going to be about Boba Fett. Called it... Excuse me, I need a moment...

Avid readers of the Star Wars books know "1313" was an alias Boba Fett used in one of the written series for infiltration purposes. It became apparent the moment of its announcement the game was going to follow in Bounty Hunters footsteps and be about the green-armored mandalorian. Judging by the concept art given to us, it would appear the game would have taken place during Boba's very early life since his armor looks incomplete, perhaps implying he either does not fit into it yet, or has not finished its full modification.

This news strikes my heart really bad. I longed to play a game, especially a story-driven title, about Boba Fett. The guy had a really epic life before the event of A New Hope and seeing it put into video game form would have been a dream come true. I actually would have preferred this news to be hidden than made public. Click the jumper below for the final concept art revealed by LucasArts.

Yesterday Blizzard Entertainment announced the ticketing information for BlizzCon 2013.  Tickets for the convention will go on sale in two batches:  April 24th and 7pm and again on April 27th at 10 AM -- both times Blizzard Standard Time (read: PST).  The ticket itself will cost $175.00 USD.

Now if that's not enough dough for you, you can plunk down an extra $500 bucks to attend the Blizzard dinner before the convention, where you can hob nob with the devs and pitch your winning game idea to Rob Pardo (Irritated Toilet Ducks!  It can't lose!).  All proceeds for the dinner go to CHOC - Children's Hospital of Orange County. As a parent of a child who needed hospitalization, I really appreciate their choice of charities. Tickets for the charity dinner go on sale May 1st.

So why go to this year's BlizzCon?  Well there are a couple huge announcements coming: The next WoW expansion, and the Project Titan reveal.  In addition attendees will get a chance (I expect) to play Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft.  In addition you have details about the third StarCraft II expansion, and probably even Diablo III playable on the PS4.  I'm even hoping for WoW movie news.  So yeah, it's going to be a good year to head to the Anaheim Convention Center. 

ALLLL OFF MY RAGE AND SAAADDS! Unfortunately, the headline is true as we are now officially done with April Fools. Disney has officially announced they will be killing LucasArts and sending current projects such as Star Wars: 1313 and Star Wars: First Assault to the chopping block.

"After evaluating our position in the games market, we've decided to shift LucasArts from an internal development to a licensing model, minimizing the company's risk while achieving a broader portfolio of quality Star Wars games. As a result of this change, we've had layoffs across the organization. We are incredibly appreciative and proud of the talented teams who have been developing our new titles."

i'm so sad to hear this news today. Both First Assault and 1313 looked brilliant but once again, will not see the light of day much like the previous controversial title, Star Wars: Battlefront 3. Though I can see Disney's reasoning, I mean LucasArts most recent titles like The Force Unleashed 2 were quite disappointing. The semi-good news to come out of this is Disney has opted to turn the company into a means of licensing projects so it might not be impossible for someone to acquire these fallen titles.

It seems every cool thing in geekdom gets its own Minecraft ?map, and now BioShock Infinite joins the fray.  Minecrafter Volx1337 has taken the floating city of Columbia and recreated it in all its blocky glory.  

To some this might seem played out, but personally I love the fact that we have such an accessible medium with which to express our fanaticism for our favorite games. Those of us who love passionately but cannot draw can instead build in tribute to what we love.  Hit the jump to what the video and enjoy an angular tour of Columbia.

This morning is pretty Nintendorific but it's exciting to me because it involves two titles that have engulfed my early childhood. Over at Wondercon 2013, straight after Pikmin 3, which shattered my soul, I took two steps to the left and ran into Animal Crossing: New Leaf, which broke everything else. The game is slated for a 3DS release and no word on the Wii U version has been made based on information I have recieved at the event to say the least.

The weekend of Wondercon 2013 was a fun time, but of all the moments during the convention, the first 20 minutes were the most exciting for me. One of the first booths I ever looked at was Nintendo, because honestly, you couldn't miss them. I wasn't expecting much but my soul sort of shattered when I saw the playable demo for Pikmin 3. I have been excited for this game since the dawn of it's announcement, and pretty much a span of four years before that and finally being able to play it was a good experience.

It is that day again. The 1st of April, known colloquially as the prankster's holiday, April Fool's Day. And no one cherishes (dreads?) their AFD pranks more than the video game industry. Each year, wise gaming enthusiasts hit the internet with a skeptical eye, knowing full well that the majority of announcements put out by game and technology companies today are less than legit.

We here at GameGeex have decided to collect a list of AFD pranks to make it easier for you to follow along with all the fake news coming out today. I will try to update this several times throughout the course of the day, so if you know of a great gaming, geek or tech related AFD post that isn't listed here, feel free to send the link to me at arthur@gamegeex.com and I will be sure to get them included. Be forewarned, though - Many of these links may no longer work once April 2nd rolls around.

UPDATED 6:29pm PST

Not entirely sure if this goes on the list of April Fool's Day jokes or not but Riot Games has released a fun 2D arcade game featuring a homage to everyone's favorite lit.. err huge monster, Chogath. The game is fittingly titled Chogath Eats the World and features a simple set of controls: "WASD" for movement and "JK" for attack (no pun intended?).

All I can say is it's fun, and i'm still playing. Also, as a fact of the day, eating rainbows turn you into Teemo. Makes perfect sense. Still, i'd advise you to check out the game for yourself! Now, I need some thearpy otherwise i'll be to addicted to go off and seek other AFD jokes.

Chogath Eats The World has released for Adobe Flash... earlier today and will be available for the remainder of the day.

Terraria was officially released on May 16, 2011. Now I don't know how long I had been playing prior to official release nor do I want to know how long I played it after but that's when it hit he PC. If you don't know what Terraria is then picture Minecraft in 2-D, mated with Castlevania, Zelda II and some other 2-D hybrid that escapes me at the moment. The game was "stupid" hard when I first started playing it but I refused to give up. Eventually things started to click together and after watching a few other people unlock certain things the logic came together. One of those key factors was building "suitable housing" for the NPCs that show up as you unlock them. 

I just completed my play through of BioShock Infinite, and I find myself staring silently at my keyboard as the ending plays over and over in my head. How the hell do I discuss this game without spoiling anything for those who haven't experienced it yet? That may sound like an absurd thing to say, especially coming from someone that discusses games professionally. But so often nowadays we see games where the story is completely auxiliary - like the cape draped over James Brown's shoulder, fancy in it's own right but ready to be shrugged off to the floor of the stage whenever its time for some serious action to take place. It is rare, however, to find a game where the story is so elaborate, so integrated and interwoven, that you can in hindsight see how it has influenced every aspect of the title; from the menus and user interface down to the powers and abilities.

The more I think about it, the more I feel we are going to need a little bit of shared perspective for me to get my opinion of this title across to you properly, and for that, lets back up a step and get the basics of the game out in the open.

BioShock Infinite is officially the third title in the BioShock series, even though the series itself is technically a spiritual successor the venerable System Shock titles of the mid '90s. While BioShock 1 & 2 take place in the fictional underwater city of Rapture, a dystopian future gone wrong under the corrupted ideals of Andrew Ryan, BioShock Infinite leaves that setting far, far below in order to show us the flying city of Columbia, a hovering citadel built of pure patriotism on the bent and broken backs of racial minorities. Our main protagonist, Booker DeWitt, is thrust into this world with a single mission statement: To retrieve the girl Elizabeth in exchange for absolution of his debts. It is through his eyes that we experience Columbia's two faces - the majesty of its facade and the bigotry of its underbelly, but we will get back to that in a minute. First, lets talk about shooting the place up.

I remember when StarCraft hit store shelves - I was actually working in retail at the time, at a Media Play in Wappingers Falls, NY. As I stocked and straightened those countless boxes on the shelves, I could barely control my enthusiasm to finally play what could only be described as "WarCraft in space". Unfortunately, I had to wait for payday the following Friday before I could afford to buy a copy for myself. Those four days from Tuesday to Friday felt like they lingered forever, but then when payday did finally came around, I was faced with a conundrum I hadn't thought to anticipate: Which of the three distinctive box art covers would I purchase the game in? Did I want the industrious Terran, the feral Zerg or the enigmatic Protoss staring down at me from the place of honor of my bookshelf while I delved into the single player campaign?

Blizzard knows that was a difficult choice for us all. So in celebration of the 15 year anniversary of the StarCraft franchise, they are giving us all three box art portraits as in-game avatar pictures! All you have to do is sign into StarCraft II prior to 11:59PM PST of April 17th  (with or without the Heart of the Swarm expansion) and play a single online match to earn the 15 year Feat of Strength achievement. Valid game types include Arcade, Custom, Ranked, Training, Unranked, or Versus A.I., so you have plenty of options on how to obtain your own set of classic Terran, Zerg, and Protoss portraits.

Now comes the difficult part: Which one to use first?

At GDC this week, people are talking about a lot of things, but the execs at Electronic Arts only have one subject on their mind: SimCity.  What should have been one of their most successful game launches ever turned into their worst nightmare, and all because of three little letters: DRM.  Now the Labels President of EA is stepping out from under the DRM banner and admitting that it's only hurting games like SimCity -- a game that now plays like an MMO but isn't one.

Always online is never a good plan for a standalone product, and in the case of SimCity, it ends up making the game's core mechanics feel like a completely different game.  I myself have noticed that people are using it as a social gaming experience because of the always online feature.  One friend logged in the first day and immediately started building the suburbs of his own town, demanding that his friends come in and complete the city districts adjacent to him before someone else claimed the idea.  Now honestly this isn't a bad game idea, it's just not SimCity.  SimCity isn't a collaborative experience, it's about pitting your wits against the AI, building a city that is more successful than anyone else's.

But with the latest iteration of the game, Maxis set out to build an MMO-infrastructure into the title, and personally I think that's where they went wrong.  Here's how the EA Labels President Frank Gibeau explains it:

Hideo Kojima was present at GDC 2013 and he has officially confirmed that The Phantom Pain is indeed Metal Gear Solid V. The Phantom Pain made it's debut at Spike TV's VGA 2012 awards and caused a lot of internet controversy. On top of the confirmed news, Metal Gear Ground Zero, which was announced at PAX Prime 2012 is said to play a big part in MGV. In fact, it's the prologue portion of the game.

"'Ground Zeroes' is a prologue of MGSV," Kojima said. "9 years after that event will be 'The Phantom Pain.'" Metal Gear Solid 5 comprises these two parts, much like Metal Gear Solid 2 opened with the Tanker chapter, then moved onto the Plant portion starring Raiden. "The game play demo I presented today is the opening of [The Phantom Pain] which is tutorial that starts from crawling." [Update: Contrary to what Kojima said during the GDC panel today, Konami has confirmed with Joystiq that Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes and Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain are indeed separate games.]

Personally, I was a non-believer particularly because the trailer of The Phantom Pain was just so odd. I felt it was more of a horror game if anything. But this confirmation news has me puzzled about what the premise of the upcoming game will be. Perhaps The Phantom Pain is the opening part after the prologue and Snake makes some sort of dramtic escape... Heck, I don't even know when the new events take place. Man it's all tangled up for me!

The beta for Trion World's MMOFPS, Defiance was surprisingly good but one of the most memorable portions of the whole thing were the Arkfall Missions. Most of you avid MMO players out there might recognize them to be server-wide raids where you just show-up and join in the action. On a fine day when there's no one you know on or just want to take a break from normal mission grinding, this a is a fun way to pass the time.

Lukewarm Media has just revealed Primal Carnage Genesis for the Playstation 4. The new and improved dino-shooter will be running on the fabulous Unreal Engine 4. Watching dinosaurs walk the earth under your control with very pretty graphics expands your imagination much more. This means more Jurassic Park references!

The first Primal Carnage was really fun, some things could have been a bit better in terms of balance, but it was a very enjoyable game. Having the same game but adding a controller in your hand and way better graphics is a huge upgrade. My eyes go straight to the detail of every Dinosaur in this game, and Lukewarm does a fantastic job on bringing these monsters to life.

Primal Carnage will be releasing for the Playstation 4 and Pc. Unfortunatly the game won't release for a while since the Playstation 4 isn't releasing until Quarter 4 of 2013. So hold on to your butts and watch this awesome new trailer.

Join the GGX staff for some Defiance livestream! This time, the game is better.

Click the jumper below for the stream.

Stream: Offline. Re-run available.

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and DC Entertainment have just announced Infinite Crisis. Turbine is making a massive online battle arena where you get to actually use heroes and villains from the world of DC. I call the Joker!

I love DC so I really hope this game is what it is hyped up to be. I didn't really like Dota 2 nor Guardian's of Middle Earth. Every time I look forward to a MOBA that isn't League of Legends I get disappointed, but this game looks very promising.

Infinite Crisis is set to release in 2013 for the PC. You can also sign up for the beta here. So get your batarangs and heat vision ready for complete and total chaos!

Some of you may or may not be familiar with what went down in the first few hours of the Defiance (game) Beta 3. Let's just say this was the aftermath of what was recorded in a segment we call "First 15." Just a little fun if you will.              

Defiance was an exceptional game that challenged the gamer in every aspect. Pro gamers rejoice, average gamers brace for impact, this game has a side to it that'll punch a whole straight through your frustration-nerves! Got to have a little bit of that, right?

Click the jumper to watch the video review

As far as its core mechanics go, Defiance is simple at heart. You get to choose among two different races, the humans and the Irathient as well as your preferred gender. Once you've made your choice, you get to choose one of four origins ; the Veteran, the Survivalist, the Machinist, and the Outlaw. As you begin to level you get to upgrade your skill grid with the points you accumulate to build your character. A long the way, you make friends, do raids, and get better gear. What more could you ask for? For now, let's get a little bit more specific about the game's skills and playable characters.

At this very moment, thousands of gamers just like you are fighting and looting their merry way around Cryptic's D&D Action MMO, Neverwinter, as it's third Beta Weekend is in full swing. Whether they were lucky enough to score a beta key, or fortunate enough to have the money to spare for a Founder's Pack, they are all happily adventuring away. But are you? Or are you sullenly sifting through the videos and screenshots posted around the 'net, wishing you could join in the fun but feeling like the one poor kid with severe asthma and allergies, watching the kids out the window as they play tag and silently dreaming of being a super hero who could show them all how awesome you are and capture the heart of the cute red head that lives around the way even though she doesn't seem to know you exist...

Where was I? Oh yeah! Neverwinter...

Well, boy howdy do I have great news for you! We here at GameGeex have been given a handful of beta keys to let you in on the fun!  Beta Weekend 3 introduces the Giant Weapons Fighter to the mix, as well as adding PvP combat and raising the level cap to 50. So what are you waiting for?! Grab your beta key at the bottom of this post, but you better hurry - Beta Weekend 3 ends tomorrow night (3/24) at midnight! 

I've never really yearned to be in Boston, that is until today, when Blizzard up and announced a brand new sleeper title during this week's PAX East convention.  Dubbed Hearthstone:Heroes of Warcraft, this game is a CCG built within the Warcraft universe.  Amongst its interesting list of features is the fact that this is Blizzard's first free-to-play title.

This announcement completely blindsided me, even though we were told to expect big things at PAX East this year.  I guess I just didn't believe hard enough (maybe I need to replenish my magical believing dust supply), but I was delighted to watch the presentation of a new Blizzard game given by Rob Pardo.  It wasn't the Blizzard announcement I've been waiting for, and so much like the entire concept of Hearthstone, this is a small little surprise for the Blizzard fans out there.

Below I've included all the artwork, screenshots, and videos they posted to date.  Interestingly, we have a background video that tells us how they decided on the new development team, their "agile" design style, and what we can expect from Hearthstone. From a game design perspective the entire concept is fascinating. The game is playable on the PAX East floor, so if you're there, do drop us a comment below and tell us how it is?

Come see what Trion World's Defiance is like LIVE with some of the Game Geex staff! The game is an MMOFPS available on Xbox 360, PC, and PS3 and is based on the upcoming TV series, Defiance, which will premiere on Syfy on April 15th.

This particular stream features the Xbox 360 version. Video is set to 720p @60FPS. Enjoy!

I'm not your biggest neighborhood Gears fan but I still am fond of tower defense. The over-run mode from Epic' Game's next installment in the franchise, Gears of War: Judgement, takes tower defense to a whole new level since both sides of the party are all players. An epic battle of COG vs. Horde! For this video though, let's just say I was a little fond of one particular character. Who knew the guy who doesn't know what he's doing could speed the game up.

Check out the video after the jumper!

Freddie Wong and his notorious friend, Brandon Laatsch have done it again. They've turned Metal Gear Rising's star Raiden into a soldier living his life with Post traumatic stress disorder. It's interesting to see what in game characters do after they finish the game. Our minds go wild and we imagine what happens next.

In this awesome video, Raiden pretty much tells us his daily routine until his past decides to haunt him. I've always loved Freddie Wong's videos because they are always witty and usually video game related. Getting help from Konami itself is amazing. Quinton Flynn, the voice of Raiden was also there to help.

Keep up the great work and constantly make awesome videos. I definitely can’t wait for season 2 of Video Game High School. Also, please never make a sequel to the Mario Harlem shake, that hurt my head.

Gamers like to show-off. Or at the very least, showcase their knowledge in the gaming arts so of course, the recording and streaming business has grown exponentially. It's not easy being a streamer or a Youtube director. It takes a lot of work, dedication, and technical skill but more often than not, it takes a good investment in the right equipment that not everyone can afford. Thanks to Avermedia, there might just be something to look at if you want to take it one step at a time and start streaming and recording right now like your favorite online personalities.

The Avermedia Live Gamer HD is as close to "plug-and-play" as you're going to get. Pop this baby in your computer and your good to go. The big thing here is people have been saying even with low-end to mid-grade computer can you record and stream. Though, the standards have gone up and as far as i'm concerned streaming and anything video takes the best equipment possible. How can a little capture card make any computer a streaming computer? Well, I thought it was silly till I tested it out for myself. Turns out that built-in encoder that sets this card apart from the rest is THAT big of a deal.

Click the jumper below to see a full video preview on what this card is capable of.

It would appear that the failed launch behind the highly controversial simulation title,SimCity, hammers the final nail in the coffin. Long time CEO of Electronic Arts, John Riccitiello has officially announced that he will step down as head of the company. In his absence, former CEO Larry Probst will head the giant publisher to make the transition smoother. No word on who will replace Riccitiello has been made.

There are few games have have moved me the way Bastion did.  From the moment I stumbled on it on the E3 show floor, I knew this was something special.  And since I finished playing the game, I have been waiting to see what Supergiant Games would do next.  Well today they revealed their next title, another Action RPG set in a beautiful and dangerous Sci-Fi universe.  

Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce Transistor.  This game focuses on a city known as Cloudbank, an idyllic utopia where not everything is as peaceful as it seems.  The main character is a chap named Red who seems to be the next target of a huge government cleanup program -- a program that is making citizens disappear.  Red wields a mysterious weapon of unknown origin as he battles his way through the futuristic landscape unraveling the mystery of what is happening to the city's citizens.

Intrigued?  I know I am.  Hit the jump for the reveal trailer and some yummy screenshots.  Transistor is playable at PAX East, and is slated for a 2014 release date, but the platforms have yet to be determined.

Lucasarts was working on an amazing project called Star Wars: First Assault. The game is suppose to be a downloadable multiplayer shooter where it features up to sixteen player, 8v8 multiplayer of rebel versus empire goodness. Thanks to more unexplained problems at Lucasarts, the project is on hold, surprised?

What is going on Lucasarts? You've decided to make a multiplayer shooter to satisfy that Star Wars needs we fans have been craving for. Since Star Wars Battlefront 3 was impaled in the face by the dead company, Free Radical, my hopes and dreams of playing a Star Wars shooting game keep dying. It's like someone stabbed me with a knife and they are just twisting the blade rather than pulling it out.

Star Wars: First Assault was suppose to be released this Spring but might get trashed and fed to the mighty Sarlac. Why must you take everything away from me Lucasarts? Your games were the highlight of my childhood, stop giving awesome projects to horrible companies and make a game worth buying! Well if you think The Force Unleashed was great you're wrong! I am very disappointed that this project isn't finished or finishing, but I swear if Star Wars 1313 doesn't release, you might as well stop making games and announcing ones that aren't meant to be! I don't know you anymore. Lucasarts, your breaking my heart. Your going down a path I can't follow!

Ken "Chaobo" Serra is the current manager of Rogue Knight Gaming. He also heads the Call of Duty division as primary coach and Team Captain of RKG Prime. With his 7 years experience on the field of eSports, he aims to help those who wish to put their foot through the door. His goals and ideals primarily involve the success of those around him and his experience will greatly help dedicated souls in and out of the organization itself.

It's one thing to be a player but not many know what goes on behind the scenes in the management department of things. I'm not going to go into so much detail but hey, let's just say it's more stressful than meets the eye. Rogue Knight Gaming has been through a lot of changes in the past few weeks. Heck, we weren't even called "Rogue Knight Gaming" until just recently but the details on that are all hush hush for now.

This week Patch 5.2 landed on Pandaria, and the mists pulled back to reveal several new islands for adventurers to explore.  I was excited to get a chance to see the new Isle of Thunder, and so went there as soon as the servers came up Tuesday afternoon.  What I saw there started an obsession that took me days to conquer -- for you see friends, I saw Hunters running around with Triceratops pets, and I play a Hunter.

I searched the island, did research online, but I was missing something.  One post I read said they spawn on the Eastern side of the isle, but I was never able to find them.  And then, like a whisper on the wind, I found this little gem on Petopia:  

Skill Required: In order to tame Direhorns, you must use the Ancient Tome of Dinomancy to learn Ancient Zandalari Knowledge.

It’s one of those weeks when a bunch of reveals come out at the same time. Today we got to see what was hiding behind the countdown clock on LordBritishPresents.com. Via livestream Richard Garriott revealed his new game Lord British’s Shroud of the Avatar: Forsaken Virtues, that’s a mouth full. Where role playing games seemed to have focused more and more on the grind, Garriott plans to turn the focus back on role playing.

Today we got a first look at the alpha gameplay footage of Hairbrained Schemes' Shadowrun Returns. It’s great to get a view into all the hard work this studio has been putting into a game many of us have been dying to get your hands on. Not only do we get a good look at the conversation system they take us on a mission, spoiler free, so we can see the combat first hand.