THE BUZZ: As part of the Nintendo Direct event earlier today, Wii owners in Europe found out that they’ll be getting the Wii remake of Fatal Frame 2.

EGM’s TAKE: I love Fatal Frame 2. I mean really, really love it. It was one of my favorite survival horror games last generation, and I just adored how it mixed a legitimately scary environment with interesting characters and storyline elements.

While I’d love to see a sweet HD remake of the game, that may never happen now that Nintendo official owns the rights to the series (titled Project Zero in Japan). What I can get, however, is a Wii remake of the game.

Well—maybe I can get it. As part of today’s announcements by Nintendo, we now know that those lucky gamers in Europe will be getting the Fatal Frame 2 Wii remake sometime this year. What about us here in the good old US of A? Yeah, I’m not exactly going to be holding my breath waiting for that to happen. Europe has turned into the land of sunshine and rainbows when it comes to Wii games being brought over from Japan, while us here in America are never sure when we’ll get those same games—if we even get them at all.

So, let’s hope. Just don’t get those hopes up too much.

THE BUZZ: It’s another round of comments on upcoming Battlefield 3 updates from DICE’s Alan Kertz.

EGM’s TAKE: Alan Kertz has a lot of great things to say about the regular process of updates to Battlefield 3, so every now and then we like to take a few moments to cover some of the things he’s mentioned. So, here’s another round of that!

When asked if the G3A1 is losing 100% first shot accuracy when ADS using heavy barrel: “It’s still incredibly accurate, the 100% accuracy while aimed and moving was a bit too much.”

When asked if DICE would be decreasing cap time and/or increasing ticket bleed in CQ: “No. We’re happy with both of those where they are.”

In general, taking about the FAMAS: “The supposed FAMAS ‘buff’ is anything but, the FAMAS will pull to the side when shooting, a behavior much more difficult to control.”

And then, in response to that, when asked if the foregrip would be the only under-barrel attachment getting tweaked for the FAMAS: “No, the bipod is getting significantly improved.”

When asked if the G3A3 will be receiving a buff in the next patch: “Aye. 34-22 damage. Up from 30-20 now.”

When discussing the difference in rate of fire between Battlefield 2 and Battlefield 3: “The BF2 engine only allowed for 900 or 600 rpm. Most guns got 900.”

In general, talking about the M98B: “Found a way to keep 95 damage on the M98B without making it OP.”

And then, in response to that, when asked what makes a bolt gun with a 5-round mag so OP that it needs nerfing: “New mechanics. But it wasn’t ever a nerf and now it won’t look that way either.”

And finally, for fun, when asked whose “bright idea” it was to have grenades shoot out of an automatic shotgun (USAS w/frags): “Mine. You’re welcome.”

THE BUZZ: Sony is determined to see The Last Guardian finally be released—so much so that other well-known Sony studios are helping on its development.

EGM’s TAKE: Life wasn’t supposed to work out this way for The Last Guardian. I still remember the very first rumors that a third game from Team Ico was coming, and how excited I was by that idea. I was expecting the game to come out, be a huge deal on the PlayStation 3, and to have already purchased and beaten it long before now.

And yet here we sit, teetering on the edge of the announcement of the next generation of consoles, and the game is still nowhere to be seen. It isn’t dead, at least not publicly—and I’m grateful for that—but it’s hard not to be a little worried about how the game is coming along.

In an interview with Sony Computer Entertainment’s Shuhei Yoshida, Wired’s Chris Kohler brought up the fact that he’d heard that staff from Sony’s Santa Monica Studio—the team responsible for releases such as the God of War games, and collaborators on many, many other Sony releases—had gone to Japan to help out in the development of The Last Guardian. Here was Yoshida’s response to that:

“Well, you know, it’s not just Santa Monica. We have great tech people in Worldwide Studios. We have a central tech group in the U.S. and the U.K. so we are giving them whatever help they need. Technically, we have the best engineers in the U.S. and Europe, so these teams are helping them, giving advice.”

In everything that’s come out, we know that development of the game has been troubled—but the exact problems aren’t exactly known. My guess is that the project simply ended up being far bigger than Team Ico was able to handle, especially given that the game is implementing a computer-controlled character that will require a very high level of artificial intelligence.

The question now will be if all of that external help coming in to assist on The Last Guardian will be exactly what it needs, or if it will leave us with a final product that—while finished—also feels obvious that it had a large variety of different people trying to fix or create its various pieces.

THE BUZZ: Kid Icarus Uprising is coming to the 3DS, and it’s bringing versus multiplayer with it. Check out that multiplayer in this new video.

EGM’s TAKE: Kid Icarus with multiplayer? That’s just crazy talk! This mode certainly does look interesting, even if I’m not sure it’ll really be my kind of thing. The idea of the weapon you’re using changing your “value” in terms of health lost if you die is, I have to say, a compelling idea.

What do you think? Think this multiplayer mode for Kid Icarus Uprising is going to be a worth adddition to the game?

THE BUZZ: BioWare has posted a video of the unboxing of the standard edition of Mass Effect 3, and the video reveals a nice surprise about the packaging.

EGM’s TAKE: As a die-hard support of FemShep, I am very happy to see this! You’ve done good this time BioWare. The reversible cover will be provided on all versions of the game, no matter the platform or edition purchased.

THE BUZZ: Fans of hardcore old-school dungeon crawling series Etrian Odyssey have more FOE to look forward to, as Etrian Odyssey IV is coming to the 3DS.

EGM’s TAKE: Yeah, okay, so, I’ve never played the original Etrian Odyssey, I own parts II and III, and yet I’ve only played a few hours of EOII and haven’t even opened EOIII. I’m never going to get through this series before I die, am I?

For those of you who have been good about devoting the time to get through them, then you’ll have more Atlus dungeon-crawling fun to experience some time in the near future. The game is hitting Japan on July 5th, and I would expect it’ll be announced for America for release sometime before the end of the year.

Etrian Odyssey IV will feature classes such as swordsman, sniper, fortress, medic, rune master, night seeker, and dancer, and will feature a new “casual” difficulty mode for players who aren’t as skilled at the genre (though difficulty can be changed at any time).

Here’s a quick teaser trailer for the game show at the Nintendo Direct conference earlier today in Japan.

THE BUZZ: CD Projekt Red reveled some numbers for how their fantasy RPG The Witcher 2 did in 2011—and those numbers are good.

EGM’s TAKE: Unfortunately this generation, we’ve had a lot of stories about publishers and developers falling upon tough times. So, whenever news comes along about a game creator having their product sell well, it’s always something we love to hear.

That’s the case today with The Witcher 2, which Eurogamer reports sold 1,110,055 copies last year on the PC. PC gaming is dead? Hardly!

What’s very interesting, however, is that only 270,000 of those copies were sold via digital distribution services—I really, really thought that number would have been higher. 40,000 of those were confirmed to be via GOG.com, so Eurogamer postulates that most of the remaining 230k no doubt came from being sold via Steam.

As another piece of good news, it was also announced that The Witcher 1—originally released in 2007—sold 401,543 copies in 2011. Not bad at all for a five-year-old game!

Hello Wisconsin

Mill Creek Entertainment have announced that the first season of “That ’70s Show” will be released on Blu-ray on March 20.

Besides all twenty-five episodes, the four-disc collection will also include a new featurette on the show’s use of green screen and, rather oddly, behind-the-scenes looks at three episodes from Season Two. It will also include trivia and other extras.

“That ’70s Show: Season One” will retail for $24.98.

THE BUZZ: The official trophy list has been revealed for the upcoming Assassin’s Creed: Revelations DLC known as Lost Archive.

The list can be found below:

Part of the Creed (Bronze)

Take the leap of faith induction

Jump They Say (Bronze)

Reach the animus memo

Enter the Animus (Bronze)

Enter the Animus simulation

Meet Your Maker (Bronze)

Finish five memory

Find More Pieces (Silver)

Find all of the fragments decipher

Save yourself (Bronze)

Land on a block after falling more than 25 meters

Impress Warren Vidic (Bronze)

Complete the animus testing sequence without falling

Cross Styx without dying (Bronze)

Make it across the river Styx without falling

Two Secret Trophies

EGM’s TAKE: The DLC will feature missions involving the game’s present day protagonist Desmond Miles, and appears to center around his time trapped in the animus. The list seems pretty trivial, nothing to complicated or time-consuming. You can expect around three to four hours of gameplay from this content.

THE BUZZ: Nintendo has announced that the Wii RPG The Last Story will be coming to North America this year.

Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime made the announcement at the latest Nintendo Direct event. However, Nintendo won’t be publishing the title,that role will be passed on to XSEED.

EGM’s TAKE: Fans have been begging for this announcement ever since the game was announced for Europe, with Nintendo of America repeatedly refusing to comment on speculation that the title would make it to North America. Well now the wait for an announcement is over and now the wait for release can begin. Don’t you just love waiting for games?

THE BUZZ: Nintendo has confirmed the release dates of several titles in their latest release schedule.

The full schedule reads:

Nintendo 3DS Download Software – Dillon’s Rolling Western (Nintendo) – 22nd February 2012

Nintendo 3DS Demo – nintendogs + cats (Nintendo) – 22nd February 2012

Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console – Punch-Out!! (Nintendo) – 1st March 2012

Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console – Super Mario Bros (Nintendo) – 1st March 2012

Carnival Games Wild West 3D (2K Play) – 2nd March 2012

50 Classic Games (Avanquest) – 2nd March 2012 (UK, Ireland)

Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D (KONAMI) – 8th March 2012

BEN 10 Galactic Racing (NAMCO BANDAI Games Europe S.A.S.) – 16th March 2012

Rayman Origins (Ubisoft) – 16th March 2012

Kid Icarus : Uprising (Nintendo) – 23rd March 2012

BIT.TRIP SAGA (Rising Star Games) – 23rd March 2012 (Pan-Europe)

Farming Simulator 2012 3D (astragon Software GmbH) – 29 March 2012

Hundle & Katzen 3D – Tierisch verspielt (dtp young entertainment GmbH) – 30th March

Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console – Dr Mario (Nintendo) – March 2012

Nintendo 3DS Download Software – Fun! Fun! Minigolf TOUCH! (Shin’en Multimedia) – March 2012

Rhythm Thief & the Emperor’s Treasure (Nintendo) – 5th April 2012

Jewel Master – Cradle of Rome 2 (rondomedia Marketing & Vertriebs GmbH) – 24th April (Germany, Switzerland, Austria)

Secrets of the Titanic (Avanquest) – 27th April (UK, Ireland)

Nintendo 3DS Download Software – SpeedThru: Potzol’s Puzzle (Nintendo) – April 2012

BATTLESHIP the videogame (Acitvision) – April 2012

The Hidden (Majesco Entertainment Europe – distributed by 505) – April 2012

Pet Zombies (Majesco Entertainment Europe – distributed by 505) – April 2012

Face Racers (Majesco Entertainment Europe – distributed by 505) – April 2012

Nano Assault (Majesco Entertainment Europe – distributed by 505) – April 2012

Nintendo 3DS Download Software – 3D Solitaire (Zen Studios) – April 2012

Azada (dtp entertainment AG (distributor)) – 11th May 2012 (Germany, Switzerland, Austria)

4 Elements(dtp entertainment AG (distributor)) – 11th May 2012 (Germany, Switzerland, Austria)

Junior Games 3D (rondomedia Marketing & Vertriebs GmbH) – 29th May 2012 (Germany, Switzerland, Austria)

MARIO TENNIS OPEN (Nintendo) – 25th May 2012

Boulder Dash XL 3D (Reef Entertainment) – June 2012

Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir (Nintendo) – Q2 2012

Harvest Moon: The Tale Of Two Towns (Rising Star Games) – Q2 2012

Shifting World (Rising Star Games) – Q2 2012

Super Black Bass 3D (Rising Star Games) – Q2 2012

Jewel Master: Cradle of Rome 2 (Rising Star Games) – Q2 2012 (Pan-Europe except G.A.S)

Crash Time 3DS (PQube) – Q2 2012

Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console – Toki Tori (Two Tribes) – Q2 2012

Nintendo 3DS Download Software – Art of Balance TOUCH! (Shin’en Multimedia) – Q2 2012

Nintendo 3DS Download Software – Colors! 3D (Collecting Smiles) – Q2 2012

Nintendo 3DS Download Software – Mutant Mudds (Renegade Kid) – Q2 2012

Nintendo 3DS Download Software – Picross e (Jupiter) – Q2 2012

Nintendo 3DS Download Software – Marvel Pinball 3D (Zen Studios) – Q2 2012

The Amazing Spider-Man (Activision) – Q2 2012

Luigi’s Mansion 2 (Nintendo) – 2012

Professor Layton 5 (Nintendo) – 2012

EGM’s TAKE: Nintendo certainly has a lot of titles coming out between now and the end of the second quarter. Some highlights include Kid Icarus, Rayman Origins, Harvest Moon and Mario Tennis. Also a quick mention to our most anticipated game on the list, Farming Simulator 2012 3D. Everyone get that on your must buy list right now!

THE BUZZ: Activision has announced that Clan Operations are now available to all premium Call of Duty: Elite subscribers.

For more details on what Clan Operations are you can read our rundown here.

EGM’s TAKE: Clan Operations are a fantastic way to bring the community together. Now instead of random matches taking place in one-on-one situations, clans can compete against multiple opponents. This will allow for more competition between them, and the medal system will allow for more bragging rights than ever before. If you’re looking for a way to extend your Call of Duty experience then joining a clan would be the perfect way with this new system.

THE BUZZ: Epic Games has licenced out its Unreal Engine 3 for use on the PlayStation Vita version of Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock.

According to Epic, this will be the first Vita game to use the Unreal Engine. The game is also set to release on PC and PlayStation 3 this March. ”At Supermassive, we always try to be very pragmatic about our choice of technology and choose the right tool for the job at hand,” said Jonathan Amor, chief technology officer at Supermassive Games. ”Our aim for Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock is to match it as closely as possible in aesthetics, tone and sound to the television series, and also to achieve a new level of quality on Sony’s outstanding platforms.”

“Critical factors in our decision to license Unreal Engine 3 include the capability and maturity of the Unreal Editor and tool chain, and we required an engine that has proven success in the marketplace,” he added.

“We are big Doctor Who fans here at Epic. It’s brilliant to see the world of Doctor Who brought to life by the team at Supermassive and especially to see Unreal Engine 3 powering the game that’s bringing this universe to a whole new platform and an entirely new generation of gamers and Doctor Who fans,” added Mike Gamble, European territory manager for Epic.

EGM’s TAKE: While it’s not quite the epic Doctor Who meets Mass Effect adventure that we had hoped for, it’s still the closest thing we have on consoles. Given design power we’d like to see a Skyrim sized adventure with the Doctor travelling through time and space visiting different planets, meeting new species, use of a conversation wheel, and use of outrageous story telling on par with the television series. Sadly we are not a game studio so we can only dream.

THE BUZZ: A third-person Call of Duty game titled, Devil’s Brigade, was cancelled by Activision nine-months into development, according to a new report.

The Verge explains that the publisher assembled a small team to work on third person spin-off set in World War 2 back in 2007, while the original Modern Warfare was preparing for launch. The team comprised of three former EA employees – Jason VandenBerghe, Scott Bandy and Trevor Jalowitz – created a 15 minute “vertical slice” of a squad based shooter, using Italy as the setting.

The game featured a slower pace than the series is known for and the demo featured squad commands and parkour.

“[The vertical slice] didn’t have a whole lot of [cinematic moments],” said designer James Schomer, “but I think a lot of that was planned. We were aware of the cinematic nature that Call of Duty was trending towards. But it was not part of the original demo. It was a ‘this is what we’re shooting for’ sort of thing.”

The demo received positive feedback, but got lost in the shuffle following Activision’s merger with Vivendi back in December 2007. The project was officially cancelled in March 2008.

“Here’s what happened: We were ready for our final green light just as the merger with Vivendi/Blizzard was announced. As is normal in a merger, you do everything you can to clean up your balance sheet,” explained lead designer Kyle Brink. ”A studio that isn’t in full production on a title with major revenue attached to it, which is about to ask for tens of millions in development dollars, is a great candidate for closure at that point. Was this also a way to keep IW happy after they had just produced Modern Warfare and made a hojillion dollars? Perhaps, but nobody ever put it to us that way.”

Some screenshots of the title leaked out and can be found below.

EGM’s TAKE: This isn’t the first time we’ve heard of a third-person Call of Duty title being cancelled before release, Sledgehammer Games was also working on one before they joined with Infinity Ward to create Modern Warfare 3. The concept seems sound enough, but we don’t feel that fans if the series would ever take to a third-person Call of Duty title due to the required change in pace that would have to occur. It appears that any third-person attempt is doomed to failure. And you have to ask yourself, do we really need yet another Call of Duty game?

Would you like to see a third person Call of Duty title? Leave your thoughts below.

May We Rock You?

Rockers Rob Zombie and Megadeth have announced plans for a co-headlining tour this May.

The tour kicks off May 11 at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, New Jersey, and will include the Rock On The Range and Rocklahoma festivals.

Here is a list of the confirmed dates (though more are expected to be announced).

May 11: PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ
May 12: Toyota Pavilion in Scranton, PA
May 16: Stage AE in Pittsburgh, PA
May 18: The Deltaplex in Grand Rapids, MI
May 20: Rock On The Range in Columbus, OH
May 22: La Crosse Center in La Crosse, WI
May 24: Tyson Center in Sioux City, IA
May 25: Hartman Arena in Wichita, KS
May 26: Rocklahoma in Pryor, OK

Ticket sale information is available on Rob Zombie’s website, http://robzombie.com

Missionary Position

Paramount Home Video have announced that the DVD and Blu-ray of “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol” will be out on April 17.

The DVD edition will include deleted scenes that have optional commentary by director Brad Bird, two featurettes on the props and the sandstorm, and a digital copy. The two-disc DVD/Blu-ray combo pack will include those same extras, but will add two more featurettes on the fighting and the Dubai scenes, and an alternate ending.

There will also be a limited edition three-disc version with all of the above extras plus the original trailers, and ten additional making-of featurettes.

The DVD will retail for $19.99, the two-disc DVD/BD combo will be $29.99, while the limited edition three-disc DVD/BD combo will be $34.99.

THE BUZZ: Kojima Productions is currently looking for staff for the next game in the Metal Gear Solid series.

“Big Boss wants you! The next MGS,” reads a post on Konami’s site advertising for new staff members. The firm will be at GDC next month on the lookout for new staff, the roles include:

• Project engineers for the latest Metal Gear Solid targeted for high-end consoles and PC
• Engineers to help develop next-gen game engine technology for use with the “FOX Engine.
• Kojima Productions Brand Manager

EGM’s TAKE: Could this be the start of the Metal gear Solid 5 journey? Kojima has stated already that he plans on creating a fifth game in the series just to please fans, but has yet to announce anything solid on its existence. This can only be for MGS5. It’s highly doubtful that Kojima would waste time and effort on yet another spin-off. Will the next game use the next-gen FOX Engine that was shown off a few months ago? We certainly hope so.

What would you like to see in the next game? Let us know in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: Unit Lost is back once again, this time with a tutorial for the Support class in Battlefield 3.

EGM’s TAKE: Support is probably one of the most effective classes in the game; not only do you have access to vehicle destroying weapons such as C4, but you also have access to the highly controversial mortar, something which can prove to be deadly in the right hands. Add to this the machine gun and you will be laughing your way to the end of the round. Remember to always drop those ammo crates.

Assault and Engineer guides are also available.

If you have any tips share them with us in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: 2K Games announces the official release date of Borderlands 2 with a new trailer as well as their pre-order bonuses for different retailers.

EGM’S TAKE: With the launch of the game’s official website at http://borderlands2.com, 2K Games has revealed the new “Doomsday” trailer and in the process let us all know that the release date for Borderlands 2 will be September 18, 2012.

The release looks to avoid the holiday rush that usually starts to ramp up shortly after that date and should help the game garner more notice with new audiences who may look to jump on board the series.

The three-minute trailer, which you can check out below, also gives us a quick glimpse of all characters in the game including the previously unrevealed Axton, who looks like Roland’s soldier type, and Zero, who carries a sword and therefore is automatically awesome. We also see some of Maya’s skill tree and what unique havoc she’ll be able to unleash.

“Borderlands 2 is a passion project through and through. The result is a sequel that has improved every successful aspect of Borderlands while innovating with an all-new experience,” said Gearbox Software President Randy Pitchford with the release of the news.

Along with this, 2K has unveiled the same pre-order bonus should you pre-order from Gamestop or Amazon.com. Being called the “Premiere Club”, you’ll get access to three items. The first is a Golden Key that unlocks a special item in the Sanctuary Loot Chest, the Vault Hunter’s Relic that boosts your in-game fortune hunting, and the Geabox Gun Pack, which includes a bunch of unique golden guns that should help you during your conquest of Pandora.

What do you folks think? Is Borderlands 2 on your must-have list? Does the pre-order pack help? What do you think of the new characters Axton and Zero? Let us know your thoughts with comments below!

THE BUZZ: Sony has announced the Starhawk beta is now available to all PlayStation 3 users.

The beta began back in January for a select few, then PlayStation Plus members were allowed in, and now it’s a free for all. ”In the coming weeks we’ll be upgrading the Beta a ton. You can expect a new map, new vehicles, new weapons, 32-player max matches and more,” Sony said on the PlayStation Blog. ”Remember, this is still a beta, not a demo. We are actively finding and fixing problems – and we need your feedback.”

EGM’s TAKE: This is quite a long beta for a console game. Obviously Sony wants to make sure that the launch of Starhawk goes completely without a hitch, and has a fully working online component from day one, which is quite a sound strategy. Also it allows them to advertise the game more by offering a free sample in order to convince players to purchase the retail version. Sony obviously wants Starhawk to be a success and by what’s been shown so far it certainly has that potential.

Have you tried the beta? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: Grasshopper Manufacture has released a new trailer for Lollipop Chainsaw, featuring some over the top zombie shredding gameplay.

EGM’s TAKE: Only one word can truly describe this game: mental. If you thought Dead Rising was off the hook then wait until you get a load of this. Take one cheerleader, a chainsaw, a decapitated boyfriend and a horde of Zombies and you’ll get Lollipop Chainsaw. Also not to sound like a nagging parent, but those outfits aren’t really appropriate for going out in, let alone taking on Zombies.

THE BUZZ: Capcom has confirmed several DLC episodes for the recently released Asura’s Wrath.

The publisher has revealed that two episodes coming shortly after release, ”will offer a completely new artistic look taking their inspiration from the world of anime.”

“These DLC packs explore what happened between episodes from the full game. What was going through Asura’s mind when he fought against his mentor Augus? Which is the right path for Yasha to follow; should he betray his friend Asura or take his side against Deus? These questions will be answered when the DLC episodes launch shortly after release,” Capcom explained.

Several pieces of Street Fighter DLC were also confirmed for the game in which, ”the world’s greatest warriors from Street Fighter appear before Asura, challenging him to a fight.”

EGM’s TAKE: DLC that completely changes the art style of the game is a brave move considering that all Asura’s Wrath really has going for it is its style. However, the Street Fighter DLC does sound pretty awesome. Fans may be tempted to buy the game after this little announcement. For those that have already purchased it DLC support this early on will please them no end.

What do you think of the DLC? Leave your comments below.

THE BUZZ: Capcom has released the official launch trailer for Asura’s Wrath which hit U.S. stores yesterday.

Europe is set to get the game this Friday, however fans in the U.K. will have to wait until March 9 due to a recent delay.

EGM’s TAKE: The game looks over the top with a pretty cool art style, however this can’t paint over some glaringly obvious cracks in the game itself. Considering it’s running on the Unreal Engine we’d expect something a little better. Expect this to sell OK in the current market. But those hoping for a sequel shouldn’t get their hopes up. Your best bet is to wait for a price drop before diving into this one.

THE BUZZ: Well well—seems the first piece of Mass Effect 3 DLC was briefly put up on Xbox Live when it wasn’t supposed to be.

EGM’s TAKE: Alright, look: From here on out, you’re probably going to read spoilers. Understand that? Don’t read on if you don’t want spoilers! I’m warning you!

*** SPOILERS BELOW ***

Alright, still here? The first piece of DLC is called “From Ashes”, costs 800 MS Points ($10), and will be released on the same day Mass Effect 3 launches. The Xbox Marketplace page contained this description:

“Unearth lost secrets from the past and recruit the Prothean squad member in Mass Effect 3: From Ashes.”

We talked before about the fact that a Prothean support character was revealed in the ME3 art book, so it looks like this is how you’ll recruit him.

While the DLC was quickly pulled, BioWare’s Mike Gamble come out with the following statement:

Hi all!

We’re happy to confirm that Mass Effect 3: From Ashes DLC will be available at launch for all platforms. For those of you who have purchased the N7 Collector’s Edition (including the PC Digital Deluxe Edition), you will get this content at no extra charge. We’ll have a lot more details for you later this week! Stay Tuned!

So, there you go. But man—day-one DLC. I don’t like that idea. I never like that idea.

Also, here’s the banner that was used on the xbox.com page for the DLC—if you’ve come down far enough to see this image, then don’t yell at me! I already warned you that there would be spoilers!

THE BUZZ: 999: 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors was a cult hit on the DS, and now it looks like Aksys Games will be bringing the sequel to North America.

EGM’s TAKE: Ah, 999—a game so beloved by so many, yet a game I still haven’t gotten around to playing!

I guess I’ll have to fix that sometime soon, as the latest issue of Nintendo Power reveals that Aksys Games—publisher of the original 999—will be bringing the next game in the series to our shores by year’s end.

While the Japanese title of the game translates to “Extreme Escape Adventure: Good People Die,” the English-language version name hasn’t officially been announced yet. Released on both the Vita and 3DS, Good People Die is a visual novel where a reluctant group of people are forced to play a deadly game where cooperating with or betraying others will be the key to survival.

Even if I haven’t gotten to 999 yet—I’m going to, seriously—I’m super stoked to hear the sequel announced for release here. Not just because so many other people are looking forward to it—so I’m glad they’ll now have the chance to play it in English—but also because I always love hearing that more niche Japanese games are making it our way.

Oh, and I totally dig the name “Good People Die.” I guess it probably wouldn’t fly over here, though.

THE BUZZ: If you’re a hardcore player of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 on consoles and want the new ranks and prestige levels, here’s when you can expect to get them.

EGM’s TAKE: Last week, the PC version of Modern Warfare 3 received an update giving players 400 new ranks and 5 new prestige levels.

Via Twitter, Infinity Ward’s Robert Bowling announced that the Xbox 360 version of the game will be getting this update today, and PS3 owners will be able get everything in a patch hitting on February 28th.

Are you looking forward to the new ranks and prestige levels for Modern Warfare 3?

THE BUZZ: Want Mass Effect 3 on launch day? Want swanky bonuses for pre-ordering it? That is now all possible via the PlayStation Store.

EGM’s TAKE: While it is no surprise to see retail games show up in digital versions for purchasing and downloading, that doesn’t always happen on the same day that the game launches.

It will happen, however, with Mass Effect 3. On the Official PlayStation Blog, BioWare Community & Social Media Manager Jessica Merizan announced that starting today, PS3 owners will be able to pre-order a digital version of Mass Effect 3. If you do so, you’ll not only get an exclusive M55 Argus rifle as a pre-order bonus, but also a special Mass Effect 3 XMB theme.

So, here’s the question—do you like the idea of being able to pre-order big upcoming games digitally like this? Would you consider purchasing Mass Effect 3 as a download versus a retail copy?

THE BUZZ: We all knew it was coming, but now it’s official—the Persona 4 fighting game is making it’s way to North America soon!

EGM’s TAKE: Seriously, this isn’t a surprise at all, as there was absolutely no way Atlus wasn’t going to bring it to us. But now not only is it confirmed, but we know we’re getting it around the same time that Japan is!

Titled Persona 4 The Ultimate in Mayonaka Arena in Japan, the game will go by the simpler (and more sensical to Westerners) name Persona 4 Arena. Coming this summer (that’s as specific as Atlus will be at this moment), Persona 4 Arena will be released for both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, and will feature console-exclusive story and online modes.

Er, just to be clear—console-exclusive versus what the arcade version contained. Not, like, certain things only on the Xbox 360 version, and certain things only on the PS3 version.

Personally, I am so hyped and ready to go for Persona 4 Arena. Can’t wait to get my hands on it!

THE BUZZ: Capcom has officially announced that Street Fighter X Tekken will be heading to the PlayStation Vita—and will be bringing twelve new character choices which may hint at upcoming DLC for the console versions.

EGM’s TAKE: First of all, wow—it’s kind of amazing to see the fighting game support the Vita has already gotten. Very, very cool.

Keeping that in mind, it isn’t surprising at all to see Capcom make this announcement. However, two things about this news are surprising. First is the release date, which will be sometime this Fall.

That timing may make more sense when you combine it with the other element revealed about the Vita release of the game: It’ll include twelve additional characters. Now, obviously, these won’t be Vita-exclusive characters—so my guess is that the Vita version has been planned to arrive after all of these new characters have hit the console versions as DLC. Did this announcement of the Vita version of the game just tell us what to look forward to for the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions?

So who’s going to be joining the cast? For the Street Fighter side, we’ll be getting Elena, Guy, Cody, Sakura, Dudley, and Blanka. On the Tekken side, the new roster will be Alisa, Christie, Jack, Bryan, Lars, and Lei.

Elena? Awesome! Though, really, I would have also loved to see Karin show up as well. Give that poor girl some love Capcom!

THE BUZZ: EA has released the extended version of the Mass Effect 3 “Take Earth Back” trailer that was unveiled last weekend.

The trailer adds an extra minute of footage to the original which was first aired during The Walking Dead. The video shows an all out war for Earth with plenty of soldiers and civilians dying.

EGM’s TAKE: The extended version is even more epic than the original! That extra minute at the start of the video really sets the war scene so much better than before and fills in a lot of questionable gaps. We are so stoked for March 6, it can’t come soon enough. Can Commander Shepard save the Earth from its greatest threat? How will his/her story end? Only a few more weeks until we find out.

What do you think of the trailer? Let us know in the comments below.

SPECIAL NOTE: The date listed in this trailer is the European date, and also uses the European style for writing dates (which is day/month/year). So, for all Americans watching this trailer, don’t worry—the day is not saying September 3rd. Mass effect 3 is March 9th for Europe, and March 6th for North America.

THE BUZZ: 2K Games has announced the official release date for Spec Ops: The Line.

The game will hit North America on June 26 and Europe on June 29. Fans who pre-order the game will receive access to the FUBAR pack which will ”enhance the multiplayer experience,” according to the publisher. The pack includes:

• Twice the amount of experience points will be awarded during the first week of play, enabling gamers to expedite character ranking;
• The AK-47 weapon will unlock at rank one;
• The “Officer Class” will unlock at rank one. This character class includes several team-based advantages, such as reducing damage to teammates and increasing the effectiveness of other classes;
• Access to the “FUBAR Pack,” which contains exclusive accessories allowing players to customize their characters with unique and visually distinctive items.

EGM’s TAKE: The pre-order pack is a pretty sweet deal for a number of reasons. First, it’s completely free to anyone who pre-orders. Secondly you get double experience not just for the first day like most offers but for a whole week, a massive boost that could see you reaching top rank way before normal players. Finally, access to the AK-47 at rank  one, a staple gun in any shooter that almost every single fan will be comfortable and familiar with allowing you to instantly get into the action.

You can read our hands-on preview of the game here.

THE BUZZ: Microsoft has confirmed the official release date of the upcoming DLC for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations known as “Lost Archive.”

The DLC will be hitting Xbox Live February 28, according to a recent Marketplace update post. We assume that it will release for PlayStation 3 and PC around this time too. Developer Ubisoft is yet to officially announce the DLC, but details were leaked by GameStop last week.

Based on the achievements included in the DLC, it seems to revolve around the game’s modern day protagonists Desmond Miles as he makes his way through a series of new missions.

EGM’s TAKE: It’s nice to see some single-player love for Revelations after numerous multiplayer DLC packs. The only problem is that it really adds nothing to the story. By the looks of the content it also appears to be very short. But let’s face it, we’re all more interested in Assassin’s Creed 3 since it’s been officially confirmed. Let the hype train begin!

THE BUZZ: Check out what’s coming to the PlayStation Store this week.

PlayStation 3 Content

Demos

• SSX
• Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm – Generations
• Shank 2

PS3 Games

• Mafia II
• Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II

PS2 Classics

• Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers

Downloadable Content

• NeverDead: Expansion Pack Volume 1

PlayStation Vita Content

Apps

• Facebook
• LiveTweet (Twitter)
• Netflix
• Flickr
• Music Unlimited

Demos

• Unit 13
• FIFA Soccer
• Hustle Kings

PSN Games

• Super Stardust Delta
• Hustle Kings
• Escape Plan
• Plants Vs. Zombies
• Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack
• Augmented Reality Suite – Fireworks, Cliff Diving, and Table Soccer

PS Vita Games

• Uncharted: Golden Abyss
• Wipeout 2048
• Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational
• Little Deviants
• Lumines: Electronic Symphony
• Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3
• BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend
• FIFA Soccer
• Virtua Tennis 4: World Tour Edition
• Asphalt Injection
• Michael Jackson: The Experience HD
• Rayman Origins
• Dungeon Hunter: Alliance
• BEN 10: Galactic Racing
• Shinobido 2: Revenge of Zen
• Army Corps of Hell
• Dynasty Warriors NEXT
• F1 2011
• Touch My Katamari

Downloadable Content

• Super Stardust Delta: Blast Pack

EGM’s TAKE: Well it’s finally here folks, the PlayStation Vita is available to all this week and there’s a ton of new content for you to enjoy. First there’s the usual onslaught of various social media apps, like we need another way to access Facebook or Twitter. The there’s a couple of demos, the most noteworthy being Unit 13, which is set to launch next month. A number of PSN downloads are also available to the system, and we highly recommend that you check out Escape Plan which is a fantastic puzzle game. Finally every launch title for the Vita is also available to download at a slightly cheaper price, so those looking to do away with boxes and cartridges are in luck.

THE BUZZ: The Overwatch multiplayer map content drop for Modern Warfare 3 is now available to download.

If you’re an Xbox 360 Call of Duty: Elite premium subscriber then you can now download the map completely free of charge. PlayStation 3 Elite subscribers will have to wait a month for their turn.

You can check out some gameplay from the map here.

EGM’s TAKE: The major problem we have with Call of Duty maps is that they all look far too similar. There’s little differentiation in layout or textures. They work well for close quarters, fast-paced action, but they are boring to look at. Overwatch is no different. Maybe some more map mechanics thrown in might spice things up a little, but at the moment things are just becoming monotonous.

What do you think of the new map? Let us know in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: Vblank Entertainment has announced that Retro City Rampage will be coming to an additional three platforms when it releases this May.

Originally slated for Xbox Live and WiiWare, the title will now also see release on PC and the PlayStation Network for both PlayStation 3 and Vita. The game is basically a parody of the old 8-bit fighting games like Double Dragon mashed up with the top-down Grand Theft Auto titles, featuring a ton of pop culture and video game references.

EGM’s TAKE: It’s no surprise to see this small Indie, which is poised to be a  hit, make it’s way onto more platforms for launch. The hype surrounding the title has been growing substantially over the last several months, so it’s no wonder that Sony wanted a piece of the action. Retro City doesn’t take itself seriously which is what we love about it, it’s just a pure nostalgia trip for gaming fans.

Will you be buying the game? Leave a comment below.

THE BUZZ: Naughty Dog has announced that a new game type will be coming to Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception next month, in the form of the co-op Shade Survival.

The developer teased the new mode, that will be available this March with the above screenshot. No further details were offered.

In other news, Flashback Map Pack 2 is available today, February 21, priced at $9.99. Details and a trailer can be found here.

EGM’s TAKE: With only a picture to go on it’s a little hard to decipher exactly what this mode will entail. At first glance appears to be a Horde-style mode, which will probably see you and three friends suriving against waves of shades. It will be interesting to see what these shades are capable of.

What do you think the mode will entail? Let us know in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: Skyrim update 1.4.26 is now available to beta test via Steam.

To opt-in, log into your Steam account, click Steam in the upper corner, select settings and under the account tab go to Beta participation. Click change and a drop down menu will appear, select Skyrim beta and steam will restart, once it does the update will begin downloading.

The update includes:

Launcher:

• Fixed issue with downloading mods when you are subscribed to more than 50 mods
• Fixed crash when loading a subscribed mod that has been removed from Workshop by the author
• Mod load order functionality

Bug Fixes (PC only):

• Fixed occasional crashes when loading a save that relies on plugins/master files that no longer exist
• Fixed issue where controls would become unresponsive while charging an enchanted weapon
• Fixed issue where controls would occasionally become unresponsive while switching from third to first person while using the Arcane Enchanter
• Fixed issue where controls would become unresponsive if activating a crafting station with autorun active
• Fixed issue where keyboard would fail if Rename Item was selected before choosing the number of charges, while using Arcane Enchanter
• Fixed several issues with remapping buttons while using an Xbox 360 controller
• Fixed issue where pressing Escape button after fast traveling but before the loading would cause certain menus to stop working properly

EGM’s TAKE: This appears to be a PC only update so don’t expect this patch to make it to consoles. The two crash issues related to mods will be a welcome fix to players, especially those who have a lot installed, and let’s face it, with the number of fantastic mods this is a large group. The rest of the fixes appear to be small, niggling issues that shouldn’t have a major impact on your gameplay unless you belong to the small group of players these issues have inconvenienced.

What other fixes would you like to see? Let us know in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: Take-Two has trademarked GTA TV and Rockstar TV, which could hint at a wider cross-media promotion for Grand Theft Auto V.

The trademarks themselves are open to interpretation, with the listings mentioning:

“Computer game programs and software; animated motion picture films featuring entertainment, namely, action, adventure, dramatic, comedic, children’s and documentary themes; pre-recorded video discs and other pre-recorded digital and electronic media in the field of live action programs, motion pictures, or animation featuring entertainment, namely, action, adventure, dramatic, comedic, children’s and documentary themes.”

EGM’s TAKE: Could we be seeing some GTA themed TV programming or even a web series in the next few months leading up to the game’s release? This wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen an advertising campaign like this, Ubisoft did it with Assassin’s Creed and EA with Dragon Age, both with major success. How would the team choose to go about it though, would they use live action or animation? Personally We feel that live action would be a bad move as it may cheapen the Grand Theft Auto universe down to a bad gang movie.

Rockstar recently revealed that they plan on offering new Grand Theft Auto V details in the next few months.

What would you like to see Take-Two do with these trademarks? Let us know in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: YouTube user “sodahawk” delivers a humiliating defeat to the opposition after hijacking an assault drone.

EGM’s TAKE: If there’s one way you don’t want to lose a match it’s via a multi-kill from a hijacked killstreak. Not only did he manage to steal their assault drone but then went on to win the match with it. There is a lot of skill and a fair amount of luck involved in this video.

Yesterday Activision released a new gameplay trailer for the upcoming Overwatch DLC.

Skill or luck? Leave your thoughts below.

THE BUZZ: Battlefield 3 player “raysteinerz” has shared some of his impressive pistol skills.

EGM’s TAKE: A lot of people have been calling foul on this video, accusing him of using an aimbot, which is quite believable if you see how good he is with a pistol, however, he misses a few shots which wouldn’t happen using a bot. He’s obviously playing on hardcore hence why he can one shot people, also this is just five minutes of gameplay footage, we highly doubt that he plays this well all of the time. But if he uploaded all the bad parts then it wouldn’t make a very good video would it?

Hacker or just skilled? Leave your thoughts below.

THE BUZZ: It appears that fans will get to hear about the next game in the Pokemon series soon.

A question pitched to Pokémon Black/White director, Junichi Masuda, during a recent Q&A session asked how long fans would have to wait. Masuda hinted that people should keep and eye on “Pokemon Smash,” a weekly Japanese TV show that airs every Sunday. He also followed this up on Twitter, repeating the hint and also advising that fans should keep glued to his feed.

EGM’s TAKE: With the 3DS is finally taking off in Japan after a rocky start, could this be the perfect time to unleash a Pokemon 3D adventure? The next game is bound to be the third title to accompany Black/White, just like every previous set of games. Is it taking so long because they are transferring it to 3DS? We’ll have to wait and see.

THE BUZZ: Square-Enix has confirmed that the Japanese Dragon Quest X Online beta will begin this Thursday, February 23.

The beta will begin with restricted numbers, and more invitations will be issued over time. Application are still being accepted.

EGM’s TAKE: Sadly with the beta being hosted in Japan we won’t get to play, but it does mean that a lot more gameplay footage from the game will come flooding in once it begins. So those of you who are itching to see some more of the latest Dragon Quest are in luck.

THE BUZZ: Square-Enix is apparently working with EA in order to bring some Mass Effect themed DLC to Final Fantasy XIII-2.

Square-Enix has already confirmed a collaboration with Ubisoft in order to bring Ezio’s costume from Assassin’s Creed’s to the game for main protagonist Noel.

An anonymous source has told Siliconera that a similar deal is currently underway with EA to bring Mass Effect themed costumes to the game.

EGM’s TAKE: Square are really pushing the boat out when it comes to DLC for Final Fantasy XIII-2, but the problem is that fans don’t want additional costumes, they want useful items. Some additional story based DLC would be nice, for instance, letting us know the ending of the game we paid for. While Mass Effect costumes would be cool, we don’t see them selling very well as they offer no character buffs and are purely aesthetic.

It was recently announced that two new costumes and a Sazh episode will be releasing this month.

Funny, this future feels a lot like the past…

For a guy who sees the world in ways others can only dream of, Eurocorp agent Kilo seems ironically familiar with life in corporate America. Raised from infancy as a wage slave bound to the whims of his employment overlords, the guy can’t seem to escape his lot in life. In that sense, he shares a strange kinship with Strabreeze’s 2012 reboot of the RTS classic Syndicate.

Originally released in 1993, Bullfrog’s baby was a gritty real-time strategy game with a flair for dirty work, but this new sci-fi shooter borrows more from big-budget bonanzas like Call of Duty and Battlefield than the old-school fan-favorite or its thematic twin Deus Ex, rightfully raising some serious red flags in the gaming community. But does this distant cousin hold true enough to the family name to avoid a web-riot?

For the most part, yes.

The core game’s driven by excellent shooting controls that handily demonstrate Starbreeze’s continued mastery of action gaming. Artfully executing the switch between DART mode, all-out combat, Brink-style level navigation, an intuitive cover system, and over half a dozen hacking methods, Syndicate excels at the sticks at all times. What’s more, the underlying engine offers a diverse, beautifully realized world that effortlessly illuminates the heights and horrors of future earth; the enemy AI makes clever use of their surroundings to give you grief as often as possible, leading to some serious shootouts that’ll get your pulse pounding with alarming frequency.

The thing is, the whole experience never quite reaches the heights of Infinity Ward’s flagship war simulator. It’s a typical rollercoaster ride from start to finish, but there’s a noticeable lack of screen-shaking explosiveness, and the blockbuster moments are perplexingly few and far between. Boss battles factor in nicely to the game’s light RPG elements, but the ability to “steal” upgrade points from other agents is a great example of how the game ultimately fails to deliver on big moments. Rather than allowing you to capture capabilities in the Mega Man vein, you’re limited to basic points that power up your chip via a small subset of basic enhancements. It certainly adds something to the experience, but it’s not quite as empowering as I would’ve liked.

The same could be said for the game’s series of event-based minigames, which introduce new gameplay, weaponry, and even a small homage to Portal into the mix in fun ways, but Syndicate’s just as quick to toss these techniques to the side in favor of another new gimmick, rather than building on those mechanics in meaningful ways. Obviously, this is the order of the day in a CoD-style shooter, but after Human Revolution, I really missed the sense of growth provided by consistent use of new elements here.

Starbreeze did try to spice things up a bit with the co-op missions, and they’re a nice addition that provides some much-needed replay value and a dash of nostalgia for the old-school fanbase, but as with most modern “co-op” efforts, I would’ve rather seen this approach integrated into the story mode itself—and I’m not sure if it’s something that’ll keep me coming back in the long run.

This leaves the game’s story as a big part of the main event. Penned by science fiction veteran Richard K. Morgan, it would’ve work nicely in a Hollywood action flick that sported the same themes, but (slight spoiler alert) the whole “secret agent who gets caught up in a conspiracy that forces him question his loyalties” bit has been seen so many times before that it failed to add much to the action, eventually serving as yet another reminder of Syndicate’s struggle toward individuality.

And that’s just it. At certain moments, Syndicate was a beautiful, engaging shooter that had me on the edge of my seat, but there were just as many phoned-in, shoot-by-numbers sequences that left me feeling that it’s bound a bit too tightly by a set of conventions that lead to an unfortunately predictable experience. Starbreeze definitely knows its way around the genre, but I can’t help but wish that they would’ve strayed a bit farther from the script with this one.

SUMMARY: If you’re looking for a sci-fi shooter in the style of Battlefield and won’t expect the same level of “OMFG” around every corner, you’ll probably have a great time with this one. But, in the event you were hoping for a more action-oriented Deus Ex, Syndicate’s just a few steps shy of delivery on that front.

• THE GOOD: Tight gameplay and admirable visuals.
• THE BAD: One-and-done game mechanics, no campaign co-op.
• THE UGLY: The inescapable feeling that we’ve seen this all before.

SCORE: 7.5

Syndicate is available on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. Primary version reviewed was on Xbox 360.

THE BUZZ: Why do Tuesday updates to the PlayStation Store often come at irregular times? A rep from Sony recently gave a response to that.

EGM’s TAKE: For some time now, PlayStation fans have felt frustration over how those Tuesday updates seem to come at unpredictable—and regularly late—times of day.

Not, let’s be fair—in the grand scheme of things, it isn’t really that big of a deal. Still, both Nintendo and Microsoft seem to be very good at keeping to a set time for their weekly digital store updates to go up, so why can’t Sony?

In a recent post on the Official PlayStation Blog, Sony Computer Entertainment Senior Social Media Specialist Sid Shuman had the following to say:

I know that it’s frustrating when the Store publishes a little late, but there’s a huge amount of content publishing every week and I work closely with the team who publishes it — I know how hard they work to keep things on track. That said, publish times now are much better than one year ago and vastly better than 2 years ago. It’s getting better, but it’s not an “overnight fix.” Updating PS Store is a monstrous and highly stressful job, it’s much more than just flicking a switch.

Now, obviously, I have no involvement in the updating of the PlayStation Store—and as such I have absolutely no idea what the work involved with doing so is. Still, I’ve got to be honest in my opinion: It should just be the flick of a switch. All of the data needed for adding product to the PlayStation Store should be coming from a database of some sort, and there shouldn’t be any reason why all of that data couldn’t be entered in and ready to go long before the scheduled update time.

If the process is a great deal more difficult than that, then maybe the problem is that Sony’s system for managing their digital store needs to be re-examined? But again, I’m no expert.

What do you think? Do the unpredictable update times bother you, or do you not care?

THE BUZZ: Wait, didn’t the Vita just get a firmware update very recently? Yes it did—and now it’s getting another one!

EGM’s TAKE: Unfortunately, this time, things aren’t as exciting.

Last time, we got v1.60, which brought along a maps application, the ability to record video, Mac OS syncing support, and more. v1.61, meanwhile, gives us one major change—and update which “…will improve certain aspects of the system software.”

So, there you have it! Improvements to certain aspects of your system software, whatever they may be. I always love firmware updates like these—the ambiguity is exciting and underwhelming all at the same time!

THE BUZZ: While it’s far from proof that Namco Bandai may be prepping a North American release of Tales of Innocence R for the PS Vita, a curious piece of DLC has been found.

EGM’s TAKE: So, this comes from GameFAQs member soras_hold, who found (and snapped a shot of) the following piece of content in the Vita’s US PlayStation Store:

Had this been an avatar, theme, or some other piece of downloadable content, it probably wouldn’t mean much. This, however, is a piece of actual DLC from the game, serving as an alternate outfit for the character Ruca.

Was this put up just as some sort of test or placeholder? Was it a mistake? Or could this be a sign that the publisher is looking to bring Tales of Innocence R our way in the future?

One additional element to this store is that Namco Bandai originally trademarked the name “Tales of Innocence” in the US in 2007—but then re-upped that trademark in April of last year.

THE BUZZ: Two Sony-filed patents have been uncovered, ones which show the company not only working on potentially adding Kinect-like abilities to the PS Eye, but also hardware to support backward compatibility for games.

EGM’s TAKE: Patent filing discoveries are always interesting—while they might not tell us for certain what’s coming next, they do often give us a look at technology that companies are working on (or a first look at technology that indeed ends up getting released).

Today we have two Sony patents found by Panajev2001a over on NeoGAF. The first is a 2011 patent for a “depth sensing device” which could understand and track elements in a “three-dimensional interactive environment”. To me, this sounds like technology that could potentially give the PlayStation Eye motion-tracking abilities similar to what Kinect can do.

An invention is provided for affording a real-time three-dimensional interactive environment using a depth sensing device. The invention includes obtaining depth values indicating distances from one or more physical objects in a physical scene to a depth sensing device. The depth sensing device is configurable to be maintained at a particular depth range defined by a plane so that objects between the particular depth range and the depth sensing device are processed by the depth sensing device, wherein the particular depth range establishes active detection by the depth sensing device, as depth values of objects placed through the particular depth range and toward the depth sensing device are detected and depth values of objects placed beyond the particular depth range are not detected. The objects placed through the particular depth range are rendered and displayed in a virtual scene based on geometric characteristics of the object itself.

The second is a filing done in February 2010 (but published last week) which talks about a “compatibility adapter configured for connection to an external connection terminal of a new-generation game device is provided”.

What in the world is this patent application talking about? A device which contains “old-generation” technology that could be plugged into a “new-generation game device” in order to provide backward compatibility for older games. Basically—imagine the idea of a PlayStation 4 where, instead of having to build PS2 support into the console, you could offer that support as a separate external purchase.

A compatibility adapter configured for connection to an external connection terminal of a new-generation game device is provided. An old-generation processor unit is a processor unit compatible with the processing function of an old-generation game device. When it is determined that the type of a recording medium storing application software is for the old-generation game device, a hub receives data, which has been input to the new-generation game device, from the new-generation game device via the external connection interface. Data extracted from a received packet is supplied to the old-generation processor unit and processed accordingly. The hub supplies the processed data to the new-generation game device via the external connection interface.

So—potential 3D environment tracking for the PlayStation Eye, and possible backward-compatibility modules for your next PlayStation console.

And interest at all in those two ideas? Have your say in the comments below!

THE BUZZ: Remember when the 3DS was the system everybody thought was doomed, and which nobody supposedly wanted? That little system is now Nintendo’s fastest-selling to date.

EGM’s TAKE: If there’s one certainty in this industry, it’s that nothing is certain. It really wasn’t that long ago that the 3DS wasn’t selling many units, didn’t have a lot of excitement surrounding it, and was expected to crumble under the might blow of the PlayStation Vita.

Whoops.

Nintendo has just announced today that the 3DS has officially sold through 5 million units in Japan, making it the company’s fastest-selling gaming hardware to date—beating out other previous top-sellers the GameBoy Advance, Wii, and DS.

Now, of course, this comes after Nintendo made a drastic price cut to the hardware, and after some major titles have now been released for it. Still, one can’t help but congratulate Nintendo for the huge turn-around they’ve made for the portable. Just 10 weeks ago, the 3DS was still tracking a decent ways below those three other platforms—now, it’s on course to start handily beating them.

THE BUZZ: Giving players choice is almost always a good thing—it certainly is in terms of the option Ninja Gaiden 3 owners will have.

EGM’s TAKE: If there’s one thing I’m thankful for when it comes to the gaming industry, it is that the English voice acting applied to Japanese games when bringing them over has only gotten better over recent years.

Even so, it’s still nice to have the ability to choose which voices you want to hear in a game—especially when that game is heavily steeped in Japanese culture and characters, such as Tecmo Koei’s upcoming Ninja Gaiden 3.

On the official Team Ninja twitter account, it was confirmed over the weekend that the game will indeed over players the option of deciding between English and Japanese voice acting.

And, as I said, choice is almost always a good thing.

Heeeeeeerrrreee’s Alan!

The original Alan Wake wowed audiences with a twisted and unique story that saw an unlikely protagonist rise to the unreal situation he found himself in. And when last we saw Alan, he had sacrificed himself to the Dark Dimension in order to save his beloved wife Alice, taking her place as its hostage.

Flash-forward now two years later. Alan has basically had to scrape together an existence, fighting for his life on a near daily basis in the Dark Dimension, his love for his wife the only thing that keeps him going as he continues to look for a way out. The Dark Dimension satiates itself by feasting on Alan’s creative writing talents, but in the process of being touched by this ethereal power, Alan has acquired some unique abilities all his own, including using his writing to help change the reality of the given situations he finds himself in to better suit his needs. And in this new adventure, where the Dark Dimension has inserted Alan into one of his early writing experiences, a script for the cult-TV show “Night Springs”, Alan must take on his dark side given physical form in the nefarious Mr. Scratch, who taunts Alan by being able to cross between dimensions freely where the barriers are at the weakest, like Cauldron Lake or in this case, the Arizona desert, and threaten everything that Alan has ever loved.

A major goal in developing this game for the guys at Remedy was to try to make American Nightmare accessible to both new and old audiences to the franchise. And I think that by trying to play both sides of the fence, they may have missed their mark a little on each side. Easier to find manuscript pages help fill in the back story to newcomers, while some also flesh out this newest adventure for the series loyalists, but unless you actually experience the first game, a small narrative piece, that many people may not even find all the parts for, doesn’t do the first game’s tremendously original story and adventure justice and newcomers may feel like they’re missing out on something.

Meanwhile, the game does have a lot more of a “pick-up and play” feel to it as the action comes hot and heavy from right after the opening cut scene. This is all well and good as newcomers and veterans alike will enjoy the smooth controls, still awesome “light washing away the dark” dynamic, and the satisfying feeling that comes from dispelling the huge variety of new Taken like the Giant or the Grenadier. The problem that hardcore fans will find though is that after the survival horror aspects of the first game had you hording your strongest light producing materials for more diffcult moments in the game and scrounging for ammo, batteries, and flares, the abundance of self-replenishing ammo boxes in American Nightmare will ruin any chance of building suspense as you never actually feel in danger anymore. Flares, flashbangs, and some new and more powerful weapons not in the first game at all make themselves very readily available right from the get-go (SMG for the win). The challenge that I loved from the first game is completely gone.

Even with these flaws though, there are enough aspects that fans on both sides of the fence will also tremendously enjoy that makes the game a worthwhile purchase considering its 1200 MSP ($15) price tag. Again, the action is very well done and the controls are still tight and responsive enough that each kill or nimble dodge of an axe swipe by Alan feels very satisfying. The new Arcade challenge mode, complete with 10 maps, adds to some of the replay-ability found in the collectible hunting of the main story as you try to work your way up the leaderboard and earn the high score as you refine your Taken bashing skills.

Another brilliant aspect of the game is the TV sets scattered about Night Springs, Arizona. The dynamic of a live-action Mr. Scratch, using the TVs that established “Night Springs” in the first game, to taunt Alan in that classic villain fashion, is almost comical as Scratch is that rare charismatic bad guy who a part of you deep down roots for. There is one where he talks about his “tools of the trade” that was absolutely spectacular. And the use of licensed music in proper moments, especially as a backdrop to these “episodes” is definitely another strong point for the game.  And at the end of the day, it is all part of what is really a very solid story, especially if you look at this as a day in the life of Alan now since he has become trapped in the Dark Dimension.

Although it doesn’t do much in terms of forwarding the overall plot of the franchise and how Alan will hopefully one day escape or destroy the Dark Dimension and its denizens, it gives us a peek into what Alan must endure to hopefully set himself up for the end game and makes us care about the characters even more so than before and gives the series a weird sense of realism considering how far out there it is concept-wise. But one thing that American Nightmare does do in terms of forwarding the franchise’s story is it helps give us the sense that the Dark Dimension is not just some primal entity, but it is conscious of what it does in many ways and is truly alive, giving us a sense of some epic struggle worthy of a Greek mythos as Alan must endure trials and tribulations thrown in his path by some dark and unyielding god before he can finally return home.

There are also some minor nuances I believe that will also be universally panned by both sides of the fence with this game. The voice acting and dialogue outside of the “Night Springs” narrator or the Mr. Scratch TV episodes is bad. Like Japanese-import bad. And there are moments where Alan is surrounded by light, but still has to take on Taken. There is one scene where you are surrounded by a burning oilrig. Last I checked, fire gave off a good amount of light. And there was a lot of fire, and a lot of Taken. Small little gaps in the continuity of the universe like that had me scratching my head some.

All in all though, I think that as a stand alone adventure and a spot check on seeing how Alan was doing, this game did a good job of giving us an idea of the struggles the character is going through and hopefully will serve as the launching point for a bigger and even better story down the road.

SUMMARY: In trying to please everyone, American Nightmare takes a small step back from what made the original Alan Wake an original and enthralling experience, but is still well worth the price of admission for old and new fans alike.

• THE GOOD: Fluid action and smooth controls
• THE BAD: Dumbed down, broader appeal approach will turn off hardcore fans
• THE UGLY: Dialogue worthy of a Japanese import

SCORE: 8.5

Alan Wake’s American Nightmare is an XBLA (Xbox 360) exclusive.

THE BUZZ: A new job listing posted by EA has suggested that a new Crysis title may be in development.

The publisher is looking for a Video Director to work at partner studio Crytek to capture game footage. The job ad states that CryEngine knowledge would be a bonus.

Crysis 2 launched back in March 2011 and has since sold over 3 million copies worldwide.

EGM’s TAKE: Of course this may not have anything to do with Crysis at all, but the fact that Crytek has already stated that they fully intend to release Crysis 3 at some point does add some weight. Maybe we’ll see an E3 reveal. Considering EA is looking for a video director, it could be prepping an announcement trailer. Considering the success of the second title it wouldn’t be a shock for EA to want a sequel out as soon as possible.

Would you like to see a third game in the series? What would you like to see added or changed? Leave your thoughts below.

THE BUZZ: Microsoft has released an update for the U.S. Xbox Live Marketplace, which moves Indie games onto the front panel of the dashboard.

The update comes after concerns that the new dashboard was pushing Indie game even further into obscurity burying them under menus in the marketplace. Microsoft issued the following statement:

“As you’ve now noticed, the Xbox Live Marketplace was updated to change the way games are surfaced to customers.”

“Microsoft is continually working to better organise our digital game content on the platform and your feedback played a part in that.”

“Part of this new organization means that Xbox Live Indie Games now has a tile on the top level of the marketplace right next to Xbox Live Arcade and Xbox Games on Demand.”

“Inside of the new Xbox Live Indie Games section, you’ll notice that there are New Release, Top Download, A-Z, and Genre options, as well as a rotating carousel that shows off Kotaku’s Picks, Contest Finalists, and can be used to house other content as desired.”

“This update is something we are extremely excited about as it really brings Xbox Live Indie Games to a higher level of visibility in the dashboard. We believe these changes will help even more gamers find and experience the great offerings you’ve all developed for Xbox Live Indie Games.”

EGM’s TAKE: Many developers have warned that Xbox Live Indie Games will die out if the publisher continues to push them further from the spotlight. Luckily Microsoft has listened to this advice and has gave the service a much needed visibility boost. Indie games help to find the developers of tomorrow and give a place for budding developers to cut their teeth. If the service disappeared from Xbox Live it may force some to consider a switch to PlayStation 3. This is the last thing that Microsoft would want.

How To Train Your Dragon

THE BUZZ: FUNimation have announced that the anime “Dragon Age: Dawn Of The Seeker” — which, is obviously based on BioWare’s fantasy role-playing series — will be out on DVD and in a DVD/Blu-ray combo pack on May 29.

The 90-minute long CG animated movie is being directed by Fumihiko Sori, who previously directed “Vexile,” “To,” and “Tomorrow’s Joe,” and produced the 2004 version of “Appleseed.” The script being written by Jeffrey Scott, who’s written episodes of “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” “Transformers,” and the cartoons based on “Mega Man” and “Dungeons & Dragons,”

No extras were revealed, but FUNimation did say that the DVD will be retail for $24.98 while the Blu-ray will be $34.98.

EGM’S TAKE: If his work on “Vexille” and “Appleseed” is any indication, “Seeker” should, at the very least, look cool. But we’re actually expecting more given that FUNimation has also made such cool animes as “Afro Samurai,” “Black Lagoon,” “Mushishi,” “Dragon Ball Z,” “Case Closed,” “Gunslinger Girl,” “Samurai 7,” and probably a bunch of other ones we’re forgetting at the moment.

Well, Maybe Not A Miracle

Warner Home Video have announced that the DVD and Blu-ray of “Torchwood: Miracle Day” will be released on April 3.

Besides the show, the collection will also include commentaries, character profiles, a featurette on the special effects, a making-of featurette, the iTunes intros, and the “Torchwood” motion comic “Web Of Lies.”

The DVD will retail for $49.99 while the Blu-ray will be $59.99.

And We’ll Have Fun Fun Fun ’Til Daddy Takes The DVD Player Away

Anime powerhouse FUNimation have announced their DVD and Blu-ray release schedule for May.

On May 15 they’ll release “Cat Planet Cuties: Complete Series” on a DVD/Blu-ray combo for $69.98, as well as the live action movie “The Woman Knight Of Mirror Lake,” also on a DVD/BD combo but for $29.98.

A week later, on May 22, they’ll release “Dragon Ball Z Kai: Season One” and “Season Two,” with both collections available on DVD for $49.98 each and on Blu-ray for $54.98 each. That same day also sees the release of “FMA Brotherhood: 4 OVAs & Comic Theater” in a DVD/Blu-ray combo for $24.98.

Finally, they’ll end the month on a high note with “Dragon Age: Dawn Of The Seeker,” a CG anime based on the role-playing game. It will retail for $24.98 for the DVD and $34.98 for the DVD/Blu-ray combo pack. May 29 also sees the release of “Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple: Season Two” on DVD for $49.96, a limited edition version of “Shiki: Part One” on DVD/Blu-ray combo for $69.96, a regular edition of “Shiki: Part Two” on DVD/Blu-ray combo for $64.96, and Super Amazing Value Editions of “D. Gray-man: Season Two” and “Black Cat” for $29.96 each.

THE BUZZ: Epic has released two flythrough videos for the Artillery and Jacinto maps included in the recently announced Forces of Nature DLC for Gears of War 3.

The DLC, set to release March 27, will contain five new maps: Aftermath, Artillery, Cove, Jacinto and Raven Down, along with four new cleaver weapons, four character models, seven weapon skins and 10 achievements.

Full details on the DLC can be found here.

EGM’s TAKE: Jacinto looks a whole lot darker than when we left it back in Gears of War 2. The Imulsion has really taken a toll on the architecture of this once glorious city. Be prepared for some frantic dashing between cover once the rain really starts to set in towards the end of the match, making viability pretty much zero. Artillery is a military base that features a tornado that sweeps across the map kicking up dust and debris around half way through the match, and may prove to be a game changer if the losing team can take advantage of the confusion. This DLC signals the last in the Season Pass deal, and we look forward to seeing what Epic will offer fans next.

What do you think of the two maps? Let us know in the comments below.

Malkovich!

Criterion Collection have announced that a special edition DVD and Blu-ray of “Being John Malkovich” will be released on May 15.

Overseen by director Spike Jonze, the collection will include commentary on select scenes by Michel Gondry, a new behind-the-scenes documentary by filmmaker Lance Bangs, a second documentary by Bangs called “An Intimate Portrait Of The Art Of Puppeteering,” a conversation between John Malkovich and John Hodgman of “The Daily Show,” a photo gallery narrated by Jonze, the original trailers and TV spots, and the two films within the film (“7 1/2 Floor Orientation” and “’American Arts & Culture’ Presents John Horatio Malkovich, ‘Dance Of Despair And Disillusionment’”),

In addition, the Blu-ray will have a new, high-definition transfer of the film, complete with a 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack.

The DVD will retail for $29.95 while the Blu-ray will be $39.95.

THE BUZZ: As fans become increasingly restless over the lack of Half-Life 3 news, Valve Boss Gabe Newell has stated that the team wants to ensure new titles are “more baked” before revealing them.

Valve’s bad expereinces with Half Life 2′s many delays led the team to rethink its announcement strategy, to avoid getting fans excited about new releases too early.

“Part of the reason that we backed off talking so much about what was happening in the future is that when we’ve done that in the past, you know, with Half-Life 1 it was a year after we originally said it would be, Half-Life 2 basically if you go and read the forum posts apparently took us 50 or 60 years to get done, so we’re trying to be careful not to get people too excited and then have to go and disappoint them,” Newell explained. ”So we’re sort of reacting in the other direction and saying, ‘okay, well let’s have things a little more baked before we start getting people all excited about it.’”

Newell also responded to the lobby group that formed requesting information on the next Half-Life title:

“We’re acutely aware of how much we annoy our fans and it’s pretty frustrating to us when we put them into that situation,” he said. ”We try to go as fast as we can and we try to pick the things that we think are going to be most valuable to our customers and if there’s some magic way we can get more work done in a day then we’d love to hear about it.”

“But we recognize that it’s been a long time whereas we have so many games that people really love – Counter-Strike, Half-Life, Portal, Left 4 Dead, not a whole lot of Ricochet enthusiasts out there, and at the same time we want to be making sure that those games and those stories and those characters are moving forward while also making sure that we don’t just get into terminal sequelitis,” he concluded.

EGM’s TAKE: Restless fans is one thing all developers want to avoid, and the longer the restlessness continues, the more dangerous it can become. We’ve already seen some fringe enthusiasts creating very public lobbying campaigns for information, which is not the sort of publicity that Valve wants. Everybody knows that a new Half-Life title is coming, but what’s taking Valve so long? Is it finally suffering from having so many great games to support? Hopefully E3 will herald some new snippets of information or Valve might have a rebellion on their hands.

THE BUZZ: CD Projekt has revealed that it is already working on the next-gen engine that will power two AAA titles in 2014 and 2015.

Managing Director Adam Badowski has confirmed that the developer is set to release two new games by 2015 which ”are definitely starting for new consoles.” Both games will run on a new engine that the team’s already started to work on, he added.

“We prepared a backlog for the new features quite a long time ago. You probably know that we’ve decided to develop our new engine that is called Red Engine, so we’ve prepared a long-term plan for that engine. So we are yes, yes we are developing some features just for the new [engine],” he explained.

Head of marketing Michal Platkow-Gilewski added, ”We are anticipating what the new generations of consoles may be.”

Finally Badowski confirmed that one of the titles is an RPG: ”The whole scenario is quite simple: we’re going to create almost exactly the same kind of team, and our policy is to create RPG games for mature audiences. But of course the second title will be different than the first one. We need to change universe and gameplay mechanics, but the game will be based on a deep scenario as [are] The Witcher games.”

EGM’s TAKE: Has CD Projekt seen the new consoles? Highly unlikely as Badowski and Platkow-Gilewski both explained that they are simply guessing what the power of the next-generation will be, let’s hope they are right or these games may not be completed in time for their speculative release windows. Based on the graphics that the team manged to push out of the Xbox 360, we’re incredibly excited to see what they can do with even more powerful machines, including how they will enhance their PC version.

THE BUZZ: Ubisoft has released an impressive gameplay trailer for Far Cry 3, following the epic CGI trailer last week.

The trailer shows more than five minutes of gameplay, as the game’s protagonist Jason Brody fights his way through a gang controlled ship in order to disable a radio transmitter.

“Far Cry 3 players step into the shoes of Jason Brody, a man alone at the edge of the world, stranded on a mysterious tropical island cut off from civilization,” says the publisher.

EGM’s TAKE: The game seems weighted on the fast-paced, run-and-gun style of gameplay, thanks to the amount of enemies and lack of available cover. However this is only a small section of the game, and it may differ in other sections. The animations look fluid and solid, especially the quick use of grappling hooks and zip lines. Graphically the game looks beautiful: the seas are the brightest blue, the sands the whitest white and the blood the thickest red. We’re also looking forward to seeing more of the game’s main antagonist who made an appearance in the recent CGI trailer, and liked to repeatedly ask us if we knew the meaning of insanity at last year’s E3.

You can check out several screenshots of the game here.

What do you think of the gameplay? Let us know in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: Activision has sent over a new gameplay trailer for the upcoming Overwatch multiplayer DLC for Modern Warfare 3.

Xbox 360 Call of Duty: Elite premium subscribers will get access to the DLC starting tomorrow, February 21. PlayStation 3 owners will have to wait an extra month to gain access, however the game’s first two DLC maps, Piazza and Liberation, are set to release for that platform February 28.

Set in New York, Overwatch ”takes place along two levels in a near symmetrical layout, with the central bridge and side routes open to attack from multiple angles,” according to the publisher.

EGM’s TAKE: Overwatch looks like your typical Call of Duty map: small, compact and with plenty of bottlenecks. It also appears to be set on multiple levels thanks to the scaffolding and discarded metal, which should add an extra dimension to gun fights. Fans are once again going to be bitter about this latest content drop as the Xbox 360 Elite subscribers get the map a month before everyone else, but this seems to be what Activision is aiming for with its new tiered system. We wouldn’t be surprised if Elite 2.0 featured another more expensive tier.

Are you happy with the staggered releases? Leave your thoughts below.

THE BUZZ: Unit Lost is back with another Battlefield 3 tutorial, this time to help you become better with the Assault class.

EGM’s TAKE: If you’re new to Battlefield 3, or just looking for a refresher course, then this guide is perfect. The guide is well thought out and covers pretty much everything you could ever need to now about the Assault class to get you started and wracking up points like a pro. However, no guide can make you good at Battlefield 3, only practice will achieve that.

You can check out an Engineer guide here.

Have you got any pro tips to share? Leave your comments below.

THE BUZZ: Just when we thought the Battlefield 3 community couldn’t stun us anymore, YouTube user “Stungravy” goes and pulls off this insane trick.

“SU-35BM hot on my tail. Javelin missiles locked on from the ground. Flares wouldn’t do any good. There was only one reasonable option,” he says.

EGM’s TAKE: It appears that even when all seems lost, there’s always hope as long as you have luck on your side. The chances of this ever being repeated are basically zero, not only did he one shot kill the guy in the other plane but to have it flying directly at him at the right time so he could just drop right in is insane. We also have to hand it to “Stungravy” for his quick thinking and coolness under pressure. However, he’s still one lucky son-of-a-gun.

What’s your most amazing Battlefield 3 moment? Let us know below.

THE BUZZ: BioWare has released the full version of the Mass Effect 3 “Take Earth Back” trailer it teased last week.

The trailer features an all-out war for Earth between the humans, led by Commander Shepard, and the Reapers. An extended-cut of the trailer is set to release February 21.

EGM’s TAKE: Now as trailers go this can only be described as Epic. A lot of games use Earth as a battleground but not many manage to capture something that feels so close to home. If this is just a taste of what we can expect from Mass Effect 3′s story, then we can’t wait until March 6. The tease of an extended cut trailer seems a little much though, considering that they teased this trailer last week. How much more can they really have to show us?

What do you think of the trailer? Let us know in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: Zipper Interactive has revealed that a demo for the upcoming Vita shooter, Unit 13, will be available this week.

Zipper Interactive’s Chris Roper has confirmed that the demo will be released February 21 on the PlayStation Store. The demo will ”give you access to one of the game’s Direct Action missions and includes all six operatives and online leaderboard support,” he announced. On top of that your scores and progress will be saved and carried over to the full game.

EGM’s TAKE: Unit 13 will be one of the first shooters on the handheld and could indicate how successful this genre will be on Vita, considering how much they struggled on its predecessor, the PSP. Hopefully the twin sticks should make it feel just like a home console, and the superior graphics power of the Vita should really help with immersion. If you’re looking for a way to test the Vita’s abilities without forking out for the full game then be sure to check out the demo tomorrow.

THE BUZZ: Nintendo has released a new trailer for Xenoblade Chronicles.

The game has been out in Europe for quite some time, and on April 2 it’s set to launch stateside.

EGM’s TAKE: The trailer is epic just as you would expect from a top-tier JRPG. Fans have been begging Nintendo to bring the game to the U.S. and it finally gave them what they wanted. If you’re in Europe and are still contemplating a purchase then maybe this kind of fervant enthusiasm will convince you. If you’re in the U.S. then prepare to get excited.

THE BUZZ: Nintendo has released a new trailer for Kid Icarus: Uprising on 3DS.

The trailer shows off the various on rails shooting sections of the game, but also pays tribute to the NES original by inviting us to save the world once again.

EGM’s TAKE: Kid Icarus was one of the first titles shown for the 3DS and a lot of people got excited by it, however we fear that the excitement may be dropping off after a lengthy delay. If the buzz disappears then the sales may go with it, which would be terrible news for Nintendo as it is relying on Kid Icarus to get its system going in 2012.

THE BUZZ: Marine Sgt. Jacob Way took time out of his busy schedule of protecting our nation to create a game about a marine protecting the world from a zombie invasion. I Shall Remain puts players in the boots of  marine Capt. C.J. Hodges, a man suffering from amnesia trying to put the pieces of his life together and remember who he was. All while fighting off a blood thirsty zombie horde. Hodges is a bit of an homage to Sgt. Way’s friend Cpl. Craig Hodges Jr. who died in 2010 and his former superior, Capt. Tyson Ackermann. When asked about Sgt. Way and his tribute Ackermann said, “It’s a little humbling to know you made an impact on his life — that he remembers you months or years down the road.”

The game cost Sgt. Way $40,000 to hire a sound designer, marketer, designers, and programmers. When questioned on the cost Sgt. Way said, “If I fail and lose all my money, I look at my $40,000 as a year in private college.” Sgt. Way’s confidence grew when he asked marines in his barrack to play test the game and came back with positive feedback.

EGM’s TAKE: When you think about a feel good story you rarely think about video games. Sgt. Way is obviously a gamer at heart, and like many gamers he had a dream of one day creating a game. Kudos to him for following his dream and putting his ideas out there for the world to see and judge. The game seems fairly standard in its top down point of view and urban setting, but it’s more than we’ve created, so we wish Sgt. Way good luck.

THE BUZZ: For baseball fans there are few things more elusive playing a full 162 game season. Baseball games are long, and going through each game and moving onto the playoffs before the following year’s version is out is near impossible, unless one shows the dedication to the sport that professionals get paid for. The PS Vita’s ability to access cloud saves from the Playstation 3 is a boon for Sony and its upcoming MLB 12 The Show. Players that own both PS3 and PS Vita versions of MLB 12 The Show will have the ability to take their season progress on the road with cross platform cloud saving.

Ramone Russel, a designer for the vaunted baseball series, explained to CNN saying, “You save that file up into a Cloud. Pick up your PlayStation Vita. Take it on the road. Download [the save] from the Cloud, and you keep going. And it works vice versa.” Russel also revealed that the console version will come with no less than 70 new features, while the new handheld will boast 65 new features, including being able to touch the back panel to throw to a base.

EGM’s TAKE: Gamers that like baseball are a niche market that has gone through a lot over the years. A feature like this for the Vita and Playstation 3 has been on their wish lists for years, but the technology just wasn’t there. With cloud saving finally becoming a reality for both major consoles, it’s nice to see Sony get this type of accessibility onto its new portable system. Hopefully this means more time to play through long seasons.

THE BUZZ: Steam is one of our industry’s the true success stories. A digital distribution system that gamers love, trust, and most importantly for Valve, use. Some believe that without Steam PC gaming would have been on the brink of extinction, and while that may come off as hyperbole, the fact is that Steam has legitimized the PC market in a time where piracy has all but taken over.

Forbes has shed some light via VideoGameDesignSchools on the numbers that Steam is dealing with in the PC market. One of the most notable figures is Steam’s massive chunk of the digital marketplace at 51%. While virtual store fronts like Amazon hold a meager 11% of the market, the physical retail space isn’t doing any better with Gamestop only accounting for 10% of that pie. The most starting piece of information is that Valve only gets 30% of a sale while the publisher takes home 70%, which is a far cry from how these numbers look at the retail end with those numbered flipped and the retailer taking home 70% and the publisher getting a scant 30% for their effort.

The rest of the chart shows off some other interesting bits of information:

EGM’s TAKE: We shutter to think what the PC market would be like if not for Valve and all its efforts. Maybe EA’s Origin would have come sooner, or maybe Microsoft and its Games for Windows would have gained some relevance after all. Valve has made a killing with Steam, but as long as it keeps up with sales and discounts, gamers will be hard pressed to hate on a system that just works the way we want it to.

THE BUZZ: Alan Kertz, core Gameplay Designer at Dice, outlined some some tweaks to Battlefield 3 that the team has been working on, and the fine folks at Symthic forum have taken the data and further analyzed the hell out of it for your benefit. You’re welcome. What we have here is all the fine tuning Battlefield 3 “may or may not” have in the next patch, according to Kertz. Once the members of Symthic put out their data, Alan Kertz confirmed the results via Twitter when he said, “yes symthic has authentic update info, your feedback on these preliminary changes will be hugely valuable for a future update.”

1. Damage changes

Assault Rifles:
545x45mm bullet minimum damage (All assault rifles except G3A1)

• 17 -> 18.4 {Buff}

G3A1

• Min Damage 20 -> 22 {Buff}
• Max damage 30 -> 34 {Buff}

Carbines

SCAR-H

• Min Damage 17 -> 20 {Buff}

LMGs
M60 & M240B

• Max damage 30 -> 34 {Buff}
• Min damage 20 -> 22 {Buff}

PKP

• Min damage 20 -> 22 {Buff}

M249, M27IAR, RPK-74M

• Min damage 17 -> 18.4

Sniper rifles
All sniper rifles:

• Upper chest damage multiplier 1 -> 1.25 {Buff}

M98B

• Max damage 95 -> 80 [Nerf]
• Dropoff start dist. 20 -> 15 [Nerf]
• Dropoff end dist. 75 -> 120 {Buff}

All other bolt-action sniper rifles

• Max damage 75 -> 80 {Buff}
• Min damage 55 -> 59 {Buff}
• Dropoff start dist. 20 -> 15 [Nerf]
• Dropoff end dist. 75 -> 100 {Buff}

All semiautomatic sniper rifles except SKS:

• Min damage: 34 -> 37.5 {Buff}
• Dropoff start distance 12 -> 15 {Buff}

SKS

• Dropoff end distance 50 -> 60 {Buff}

2. Attachments

Fore grip

• Basically before it reduced the horizontal recoil by 50%, in these files it reduces h-recoil only ~20-33% depending on weapon.
• It also increases the minimum spread 20% ~ 50% depending on stance and weapon.

Suppressor

• Suppressors will not reduce the damage anymore.
• Now it will reduce the distance where damage starts/stops to drop off instead.
• For most weapons it will decrease the min spread by 25% instead of 50%
• Although looks like M60 will still have the same 50% effect.

Heavy barrel

• For most of the weapons it decreases ADS min spread by 75 or 50% depending on weapon.
• Recoil is still increased by 10 or 15% and HIP min spread by 20-25% depending on weapon.
• It doesn’t make AN94 100% accurate anymore while aiming down the sight.
• Reduces ADS min spread by 75% and only increases recoil by 10%, the hip fire penalty is 20% for AN94
• G3A1 is same than AN94 except heavy barrel increases recoil 6.7% and hip fire is increased only 14.3%
• For few weapons it also makes Spread increase per shot 10% higher.
• It will also increase drop-off end distance by 50% making weapons more deadly at ranges between 50m and 90m, depending on weapon.

Flash suppressor

• Will decrease recoil by 17 ~ 25% depending on weapon.
• For most weapons it increases hip min spread by 20~25% but some weapons don’t have any hip accuracy penalty.

Extended magazine

• There seems to be extended magazine for AS VAL which didn’t exist before.
• With ext mag it will have 30 bullets in a mag instead of 20

3. Accuracy changes

Assault rifles

AEK971

• Recoil right 0.5 -> 0.3 [Nerf]
• ADS Min Spread, Not moving 0.2 -> 0.4 [Nerf]

AK74M

• Recoil up 0.3 -> 0.28 {Buff}
• FirstSRecoilMul 2 -> 1.5 {Buff}

AN94

• Recoil up 0.45 -> 0.3 {Buff}
• FirstSRecoilMul 1.5 -> 2 [Nerf]

F2000

• Recoil up 0.3 -> 0.26 {Buff}

FAMAS

• Recoil left 0.6 -> 0.35 {Buff}
• Recoil right 0.6 -> 0.5 {Buff}
• Recoil decrease 15 -> 18 {Buff}
• FirstSRecoilMul 2 -> 2.6 [Nerf]

G3A1

• Recoil up 0.55 -> 0.45 {Buff}
• FirstSRecoilMul 1.2 -> 1.8 [Nerf]

L85A2

• Recoil left 0.4 -> 0.3 {Buff}
• Recoil decrease 22 -> 18 [Nerf]
• Min spread, ADS, not moving 0.4 -> 0.2 {Buff}

M416

• FirstSRecoilMul 2 -> 2.4 [Nerf]

Carbines
AKS74u

• Recoil up 0.3 -> 0.28 {Buff}
• FirstSRecoilMul 2 -> 2.2 [Nerf]

HK53

• Recoil up 0.3 -> 0.28 {Buff}
• Recoil left 0.3 -> 0.2 {Buff}
• Recoil right 0.5 -> 0.35 {Buff}
• Recoil decrease 22 -> 18 [Nerf]

SCAR-H

• Recoil decrease 15 -> 13 [Nerf]

SG553

• Recoil up 0.3 -> 0.25 {Buff}
• FirstSRecoilMul 2.5 -> 2.2 {Buff}

QBZ-95B

• Recoil left 0.5 -> 0.335 {Buff}
• Recoil right 0.5 -> 0.335 {Buff}
• Recoil decrease 22 -> 18 [Nerf]
• Min spread, ADS, not moving 0.4 -> 0.5 [Nerf]

LMGs
M240

• FirstSRecoilMul 1 -> 1.7 {Buff}

M249

• FirstSRecoilMul 1 -> 2.2  [Nerf]
• Recoil decrease 15 -> 12  [Nerf]

M60

• FirstSRecoilMul 2 -> 1.5

MG36

• Recoil decrease 15 -> 13  [Nerf]
• FirstSRecoilMul 1 -> 1.8  [Nerf]

PKP

• Recoil up 0.75 -> 0.65 {Buff}
• Recoil decrease 7 -> 13 {Buff}
• FirstSRecoilMul 1 -> 1.5  [Nerf]
• Max spread, ADS, not moving 1 -> 3  [Nerf]

Type88

• Recoil left 0.4 -> 0.3
• Recoil right 0.4 -> 0.3
• Recoil decrease 15 -> 12  [Nerf]
• FirstSRecoilMul 1.34 -> 1.5  [Nerf]

RPK

• Recoil decrease 15 -> 13  [Nerf]
• FirstSRecoilMul 2 -> 1.8 {Buff}

QBB-95

• Recoil up 0.45 -> 0.37 {Buff}
• Recoil left 0.1 -> 0.4  [Nerf]
• Recoil right 0.3 -> 0.4  [Nerf]
• FirstSRecoilMul 1 -> 2  [Nerf]
• Recoil decrease 15 -> 13  [Nerf]

PDWs
AS VAL
Recoil left 0.2 -> 0.25 [Nerf]
Recoil right 0.3 -> 0.45 [Nerf]
Recoil decrease 22 -> 18 [Nerf]

PDW-R
Recoil decrease 22 -> 18 [Nerf]
FirstSRecoilMul 2.5 -> 2 {Buff}
Min spread, ADS, not moving 0.4 -> 0.5 [Nerf]
Min spread, ADS, moving 0.6 -> 0.8 [Nerf]
Min spread, HIP, not moving

• Standing 1.5 -> 2 [Nerf]
• Crouching 1 -> 1.5 [Nerf]
• Prone 0.75 -> 1 [Nerf]

Min spread, HIP, moving

• Standing 2 -> 2.5 [Nerf]
• Crouching 1.5 -> 2 [Nerf]
• Prone 1.25 -> 1.5  [Nerf]

MP7

• Min spread, HIP, not moving, prone & crouching 0.75 -> 1.2  [Nerf]
• Min spread, HIP,moving, prone & crouching 1.25 -> 1.5  [Nerf]

P90

• Min spread, HIP, not moving, prone & crouching 0.75 -> 1.2  [Nerf]
• Min spread, HIP,moving, prone & crouching 1.25 -> 1.5  [Nerf]

PP-19

• Recoil decrease 25 -> 20 [Nerf]
• FirstSRecoilMul 2.5 -> 2 {Buff}
• Min spread, HIP, not moving, prone & crouching 0.75 -> 1.2 [Nerf]
• Min spread, HIP,moving, prone & crouching 1.25 -> 1.5 [Nerf]

PP2000

• Min spread, HIP, not moving, prone & crouching 0.75 -> 1.2  [Nerf]
• Min spread, HIP,moving, prone & crouching 1.25 -> 1.5 [Nerf]

UMP45

• Min spread, HIP, not moving, prone & crouching 0.75 -> 1.2 [Nerf]
• Min spread, HIP,moving, prone & crouching 1.25 -> 1.5 [Nerf]

Pistols
G18

• Recoil up 0.7 -> 0.5 {Buff}

M9

• RecoilDecrease 15 -> 30 {Buff}

M93R

• Recoil up 0.5 -> 0.4 {Buff}
• Recoil left 0.4 -> 0.2 {Buff}
• Recoil right 0.4 -> 0.2 {Buff}
• FirstSRecoilMul 2.5 -> 2 {Buff}

.44 Magnum

• Spread increase 0.6 -> 0.3 {Buff}

EGM’s TAKE: Holy Nerfing Batman. DICE seems to have carefully changed the game and made it a bit more accessible to casual gamers. While we doubt hardcore gamers will like a lot of these changes, there is something to be said about showing enough confidence in the core gameplay to make these types of tweaks that could potentially ostracize franchise-long fans.

THE BUZZ: Armored Core V is almost upon us, so how about a look at the achievements Namco Bandai is preparing to dangle in front of gamers. Below we see a standard assortment of mission complete achivements along with a few secret ones as well. Depending on your opinion on multiplayer achievements you are either glad or annoyed that you’ll need to go online to accomplish an S rank on this game. Armored Core V is coming to Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 on March 2o in the U.S. and March 23 in Europe.

• Rookie (5 points)
• Awarded for joining a team.

• Assembler (5 points)
• Awarded for assembling of AC.

• Color Customizer (5 points)
• Awarded for setting of AC’s coloring.

• Emblem Designer (5 points)
• Awarded for editing of emblem.

• Communicator (5 points)
• Awarded for editing a message.

• AC Wrecker (15 points)
• Awarded for winning a battle against AC on.

• Batch Master (5 points)
• Awarded for destroying an enemy with a boost charge.

• Complete custom product (15 points)
• Awarded for continuing to use an arm unit to maximize its performance.

• Story 00 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 00th

• Story 01 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 01st

• Story 02 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 02nd

• Story 03 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 03rd

• Story 04 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 04th

• Story 05 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 05th

• Story 06 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 06th

• Story 07 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 07th

• Story 08 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 08th

• Story 09 (10 points)
• Awarded for completing story mission 09th

• Complete Story Missions (50 points)
• Awarded for completing all story missions.

• Story Master (50 points)
• Awarded for completing all of Story Missions with Rank S.

• Order Mission (10 points)
• Awarded for completing at least one order mission.

• Complete Order Missions (40 points)
• Awarded for completing all mission orders.

• 30% of sub-quests (20 points)
• Awarded for completing 30% of all story missions and order mission sub-quests.

• 50% of sub-quests (20 points)
• Awarded for completing 50% of all story missions and order mission sub-quests.

• Subquest Master (50 points)
• Awarded for completing all mission story-and-order mission sub-quests.

• Emblem Master (30 points)
• Awarded for getting all emblems and emblem pieces by buying them at the shop and / or destroying ACs.

• Mercenary (5 points)
• Awarded for accepting and going on a job as a mercenary.

• A Job Well Done (10 points)
• Awarded for successfully completing a job as a mercenary.

• Sortie team (15 points)
• Awarded for going on a mission or Territory Conquest mission with four or more team members.

• Operator (15 points)
• Awarded for leading your team to victory on a Conquest mission or Territory Mission.

• Territory Mission Sortie (5 points)
• Awarded for going on a Mission Territory.

• Accomplish Mission Territory (10 points)
• Awarded for claiming victory on a Mission Territory.

• Territory Mission Victory (30 points)
• Awarded for claiming victory on a Territory mission in an emergency state.

• Conquest Mission Sortie (5 points)
• Awarded for going on a Conquest mission.

• Conquest Victory Mission (30 points)
• Awarded for claiming victory on a Conquest mission.

• Territorial Claim (30 points)
• Awarded for claiming victory on a Conquest mission as to invasion mission.

• Customize Territory (10 points)
• Awarded for acquiring territory and uploading custom gun battery positions.

• Perfect Mission (30 points)
• Awarded for completing emergency Territory / Conquest mission w / four or more members, all surviving.

• Level 10 team (15 points)
• Awarded for belonging to a team with a team of 10 or higher level.

• Level 50 team (40 points)
• Awarded for belonging to a team with a team of 50 or higher level.

• Migrants (20 points)
• Awarded for raising your money to Au 10 million or more.

• Overlord (30 points)
• Awarded for belonging to a team that holds th different territories at the same time.

• Ruler (50 points)
• Awarded for belonging to a team that holds one or more territories in all areas

• Secret Achievement (30 points)
• Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement.

• Secret Achievement (30 points)
• Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement.

• Secret Achievement (30 points)
• Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement.

• Secret Achievement (30 points)
• Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement.

• Secret Achievement (30 points)
• Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement.

• Secret Achievement (30 points)
• Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement.

• Secret Achievement (40 points)
• Continue playing to unlock this secret achievement

EGM’s TAKE: Armored Core V is going to be a more tactical game, with victory in battle having more to do with your strategy than quick reflexes. Will a niche game within a niche genre be all Namco wants it to be? We’ll find out soon. Our guess is Armored Core fans will eat the newest entry up with a spoon.

THE BUZZ: This week in gaming sees us walking in the footsteps of a god, a very angry god. The world gets to see if Snake can hide in 3D space, and Alan Wake’s twisted nightmare becomes a reality. The big release this week is Sony’s sophomore attempt at capturing the handheld market with the PS Vita. Last time around they had just a Nintendo DS to contend with, but now that every phone under the sun can at least play Angry Birds Sony will have to up the ante if they want to stay relevant. The Vita won’t be alone, Ryu Hayabusa will be debuting on the handheld ready to cut everyone to ribbons at a moments notice.

Asura’s Wrath (PS3, Xbox 360) – February 21st

Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D (3DS) – February 21st

Pro Evolution Soccer 2012 3D (3DS) – February 21st

Syndicate (PS3, Xbox 360, PC) – February 21st

SSX Demo (PS3, Xbox 360) – February 21st

Army Corps of Hell (PSV) – February 22nd

Asphalt Injection (PSV) – February 22nd

Alan Wake’s American Nightmare (XBLA) – February 22nd

Dynasty Warriors Next (PSV) – February 22nd

Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus (PSV) – February 22nd

Playstation Vita (System) – February 22nd

Ridge Racer (PSV) – February 22nd

Shinobido 2: Revenge of Zen (PSV) – February 22nd

Touch My Katamari (PSV) – February 22nd

Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 (PSV) – February 22nd

Virtua Tennis 4: World Tour Edition (PSV) – February 22nd

EGM’s TAKE: The PS Vita sure is launching with a lot of games. With nothing said of the quality of some of these games Sony has done a great job not mimicking the mistakes of the competition. We stare and yawn at Dynasty Warriors Next, and while we won’t go so far as to say Ridge Racer is a creatively bankrupt franchise, the game has lived off of nostalgia alone for far too long. We are excited for everyone to get their hands on the SSX demo this week but are even more excited to see the classic game Syndicate rebooted for modern times.

THE BUZZ: Gearbox took time out of its busy schedule of developing the highly anticipated Borderlands 2 to reach into its letter bag and answer some questions. When a question inquired about how classes might evolve in the upcoming sequel, game designer Jonathan Hemingway tackled the answer. Hemingway explained that the Gunzerker is an evolution of the Berserker from the first game, where as Brick who used his bare hands to get the job done, the Gunzerker played by Salvador uses two massive guns instead. The Siren class was also highlighted and is now played by Maya mixing old and new abilities. Whereas in the first game Lilith relied on speed and deception, Maya is all about control, and because of this Hemingway claims it will provide a “completely different experience.”

Borderlands 2 is set for release sometime in 2012 for Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and PC.

EGM’s TAKE: It would have been easy for Gearbox to rest on its laurels and churn out more of the same, but since the game’s first announcement the company has been preaching that it knows what it takes to create a sequel, and it understands how far it can take the formula while retaining the first game’s core values. From this short answer regarding classes we’re incline to give them the benefit of the doubt.

THE BUZZ: Peanut butter and jelly, cookies and milk, Call of Duty and PS Vita – what do these things have it common? Apparently, they go really well together. At least if the senior vice president of PlayStation Brand marketing Guy Longworth is to be believed. Longworth, in an interview with Gametrailers revealed that Call of Duty is currently in development for the PS Vita and should be released this fall. No further details were given but Longworth made it clear that this is a big deal for the Vita calling it an “absolute game-changer.”

EGM’s TAKE: We haven’t had too much experience with Guy Longworth but we do recognize that his name is awesome which probably means he’s an honest fellow with no agenda whatsoever. PS Vita fans do not need to be reminded that Sony’s new device is the first real gaming handheld that comes with two analog sticks which of course makes it perfect for first person shooters, therefore Call of Duty should feel right at home. We’re not yet suggesting that this is the game changer that Longworth is claiming, but with Call of Duty’s track record and Sony’s behemoth of a portable it may not be far from it.

THE BUZZ: Ghost Recon Future Soldier is a game that seems to have been in development since the very dawn of technology. Ironically, the game itself, as the title suggests, is about how near future technology will give our best soldiers the advantage on the battlefield. Ubisoft is using a bit of current technology in Facebook to post the first in a series of inside looks at what makes Ghost Recon Future Soldier special. This first video highlights the animation and cover system gamers can expect when they step into the boots of a soldier from the future.

The video depicts a very detailed character model moving in a very convincing way about the field. Ubisoft wants us to never forget this is a 3rd person shooter and that actual Navy Seals were used to motion capture every dive, vault, and roll in the game. Ubisoft also boasts that more than 2,500 animations were used on the main character alone, and seeing the game in motion you can tell why it’s making this such a big deal.

EGM’s TAKE: Sign us up. Ubisoft has been touting this game for a long time and we can finally see why. Not only are animations top notch but the decision to add virtual overlays of text, cover points and other bits of fun to the mix seem to really pay off. What was once a franchise left to niche gamers and military junkies has expanded into a full-on assault on the 3rd person shooter genre.

THE BUZZ: You have to hand it to the folks at Bethesda, when they do something, anything, they do it big. Not only have they created arguably the biggest game ever, they plan to follow it up with downloadable content that that could have a passing resemblance to the size of an expansion pack. DLC is frequently some new weapons, some new missions, and a few pieces of horse armor (no we will never stop pointing that out). Speaking with Kotaku at DICE last week, Todd Howard explained that while Fallout 3 had no less than five separate pieces of content, Bethesda sees Skyrim’s DLC path a bit less aggressive but by no means plans on skimping on the depth.

In a perfect world we should see less DLC for Skyrim but, as Howard points out, gamers can expect “more meat on them” adding “they’ll feel closer to an expansion pack.” With that admission it seems that we’ll see less than five pieces of DLC in our future but if we get a few more hours of gameplay out of these packages no one will complain. That’s not the entire plan though, Howard points out that his team would like to release smaller updates between the larger ones saying ,”Because that gap is going to be bigger, we want to put little things out for free in between. We’ve already done that for PC with the high-res pack. We’re trying to figure out what those things are.”

Bethesda seems committed to keeping gamers in its world, and if it keeps the content flowing gamers will happily oblige.

EGM’s TAKE: There are more than a handful of developers that get DLC right, but arguably none more so than Bethesda. The timing usually seems to be right, so no one gets their feelings hurt, the content is thick and meaty, and other than a few missteps the company has been generally perfect about giving its games legs for years. At DICE, when Bethesda showed off everything its developers had created, the very heart of the Internet was aflutter with dreams of dragon mounts and every type of arrow you can imagine. Let’s hope we’ll see some of those in the near future as well.

THE BUZZ: Bethesda and Playstation 3 gamers have always had a hard time getting along. To be frank, Bethesda games tend to break on Sony’s platform. With that said, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is one of Bethesda’s best releases yet in terms of quality and stability. Although if you ask the average Playstation 3 gamer they will tell you all is not well in the land of Skyrim.

A report by Kotaku reveals that Bethesda seems to be working tirelessly to right some of its wrongs with gamers, answering complaints that frequent lock ups and memory issues are hampering their experience with Bethesda’s latest opus. Last week at DICE, lead game designer Todd Howard described with some detail the trials and tribulations with the Playstation 3 version of the game. Howard explained that the team was aware of potential memory issues and tried to prevent it from occurring, as well as revealing what could be at the heart of the issue. Howard said, ”The way our dynamic stuff and our scripting works, it’s obvious it gets in situations where it taxes the PS3. And we felt we had a lot of it under control. But for certain users it literally depends on how they play the game, varied over a hundred hours and literally what spells they use. Did they go in this building?”

Bethesda had hoped that their 1.2 patch would resolve a lot of these issues with gamers, but found that while it may have helped gamers to restart their consoles every few hours it did not eradicate the problem completely. The team even went as far as to ask gamers for memory saves so their developers can find patterns in the matrix. With patch 1.4 Bethesda is confident that most gamers will be happy, but Howard was quick to point out that he is painfully aware that not everyone will be content. “Now that we’ve been through this, we’re not naïve enough to say, ‘We have seen everything,’ because we have to assume we haven’t,” he said.

So there you have it, Bethesda feels your woes, and while it may not make everything better at the very least Bethesda is actively and aggressively working on a solution.

EGM’s TAKE: Sure your copy of Skyrim may be almost useless at this point but find solace in the fact that someone, somewhere is trying to right this wrong. In the meantime, send Bethesda an email or two or twenty, it’s sure to light a fire under them to get this donkey back on track. Or you can read “A Song of Ice and Fire” and satiate your hunger for blood thirsty, fire spitting dragons until all this gets sorted out. We’d even go so far as to suggest going to Komodo Island and speak to a real Komodo Dragon, we’re sure your thu’um with work on them.

THE BUZZ: Steam  is building behind the rumor that Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 will become a reality this year.

First, the french arm of Amazon listed Black Ops 2 with no release date or developer, only to change it quickly to the too generic to be a thing Call of Duty 9. Besides this bit of evidence, Joystiq is reporting that Huge Beyer, an artist for Nerve Software who worked on the first Black Ops game listed Black Ops 2 as a current project he is working on his Linkedin account. When his profile caught the attention of the internet, it was quickly taken down. Activision has not made any official comments or announcements about the next game in this massive franchise, but with all this mounting evidence maybe they should.

EGM’s TAKE: Sure Amazon may have been using a place holder, but then, why change it once it got some attention? It’s no secret Activision has the Call of Duty franchise in a yearly cycle and Black Ops was hugely successful. And we know companies make sequels to hugely successful games without fail. So maybe this was inevitable, and the only question is, will gamers still care? For as much backlash the Call of Duty franchise gets, it still drinks everyone’s milkshake every year. There is always this feeling that the other shoe will drop and this one will be the one that bombs, but every year it proves all doubters wrong.

So to recap; The Sun is hot, gravity is better than you and Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is probably coming.

The weekend has officially arrived—so what will the EGM crew be playing during our precious free time? We’re glad you asked!

With the deadline for the next issue of EGM rapidly approaching, I’ll be knee-deep in gaming most of the weekend, though I’ll do my best to squeeze in some quality time with my new puppy, provided (of course) that she doesn’t eat my other PS3 controller and force me to sell her to the circus…

Syndicate: My last big review for the next issue is Syndicate, and I’ve still got some serious time to log here before I’m ready to issue a final verdict, so I expect to spend most of tomorrow working my way through the campaign. Gotta love work weekends…

Twisted Metal: Online play has been bumpy at best since Twisted Metal ruined romance for valentines everywhere, but rumor has it a patch is on the way and may even be on PSN by the time I get home, so I expect to continue my rise through the leaderboards this weekend with some serious car-crushing insanity.

Warp: Time permitting, I’m hoping to spend a few hours with this charming little action-puzzler from our friends at Trapdoor. I loved what I saw at PAX and am looking forward to seeing how the final product stacks up to the hype I’ve been building in my brain all these months.

With the Vita launch just around the corner, we’re experiencing an uncharacteristic February deluge of games. Eric’s actually going to be taking our office Vita for the weekend, so I’m going to be playing through Aksys’ foray into the otome market, Hakuoki: Demon of the Fleeting Blossom on the PSP, and I’ll also be tackling survival-horror with Resident Evil: Revelaitons on the 3DS—er, Revelations, that is! Sorry, spelling can be a chanllenge sometimes, particularly when we’re trying to put together the next print edition of EGM at the same time! Wish us luck!

As I’ve finally powered my way through playing all the PS VITA shovel ware I could handle, I look forward to sitting down in front of an actual big screen TV again and playing a pair of downloadable titles that have been high on my list for a while.

First is Warp where I’ll get to play as a cute little alien with the amazing power of teleportation. And like anyone who’s ever read an X-Men comic featuring Nightcrawler, you know a teleporter can’t exist in the same space as something that is already there. So guess what happens when our cute little alien avatar ends up teleporting inside the evil scientists who are holding him against his will? KABOOM! It will rain blood and guts all day Saturday on my TV, that’s for sure.

And speaking of raining blood and guts, Sunday will finally allow me to get my hands on the completed Alan Wake: American Nightmare. I thoroughly enjoyed the first game and can’t wait to see where the story goes from here. Not to mention that my curiosity is piqued with the heavier action slant the game play looks to go in. Also, as a side note, I will most likely be playing that one with my lights ON.

This weekend I will be diving into Twisted Metal, a game I’ve been looking forward to since seeing it at E3 in 2010. David Jaffe has never let me down, and although I’d much rather be slaying mythological beasties with Kratos, I have no trouble facing off against Sweet Tooth and his ilk.

I’m also determined to finish beating The Darkness II. I’ve played through 90% of the game and stopped when Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning crashed into my life and sucked away all of my free time. I owe it to Jackie Estacado to finish what he started.

Finally, I’m hoping to have time to get back to Reckoning. I know I’m in a distinct minority, but I can’t remember another single-player RPG I enjoyed this much, and yes, that includes Skyrim. There’s something about Reckoning that keeps me pressing onward, slashing my way through trolls and boggarts while trying to manage an ever growing number of quests. I haven’t nearly finished the game yet, but I’m already waiting with whetstone and reagents bag for news of some beefy DLC. I have a feeling Reckoning will be claiming most of my free time for at least the next month.

When your job is to play video games, the idea seems like nothing but sunshine and rainbows. However, there are two times when you really come to despise what you do for a living: When you’ve been tasked with reviewing something that’s just absolutely terrible, or when there’s a ludicrous flood of games to somehow get through in a short span of time.

The latter is what we here at the EGM offices are experiencing, thanks in part to the launch of the Vita and its mammoth amount of day one games. Sure, all of you out there who are going out to buy a Vita for fun—having 20+ titles to choose from is wonderful for you! For me, it means a weekend of nothing but sitting at home experiencing as much of this amazing new platform as I can!

Thankfully, however, all of the games I’ll be giving a go are things I actually want to play. Where as Lumines was the talk of the PSP’s launch; this time, it’s Lumines: Electronic Symphony. Being a long-time Lumines fan, I’m definitely looking forward to this one—and also to the promises of the game getting back to a more electronic feel in terms of soundtrack.

Next up is Touch My Katamari—and I will indeed be touching a lot of Katamaris. At least, as many as are legal. I loved the series on the PS2, but then kind of lost touch with it after that. Putting it on the Vita—which has two analog sticks perfectly situation for the game—sounds like a swell time to me! This one I’m really hopeful for, so I can’t wait to sit down with it.

Finally I’ll be tackling Shinobido 2: Revenge of Zen. With this one, I’m not as sure what to be expecting—but I do know I’m certainly curious to give it a try. Even if I wasn’t always super-hugely into them, I do have a soft spot in my heart for ninja action games like this or Tenchu. So, this’ll be another one that has my curiosity piqued.

So, now that you know what we’re playing—what are YOU going to be playing this weekend? We’d love to know, so post a comment below and tell us what games will be giving you joy (or frustration) this weekend!

It’s déjà vu all over again

It was one of last year’s premiere fighting games and it is a franchise that arcade fighting fans absolutely can’t get enough of. So, much in the same vein of how the Nintendo 3DS had Super Street Fighter IV at their handheld system launch, Sony wanted to make sure they had a premiere fighting game to go along with their handheld on launch day as well.

That game, of course, is Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. But with a game already heralded as a superior fighting product that gave fans everything they wanted and then some, what could they possibly do with their port to the PS Vita? Nothing. Well, that’s not entirely true, but relatively speaking Capcom did very little with this latest version of the game that makes it stand out from its console brethren.

And this can be a good thing because why mess with something if isn’t broken? The game still has stunning visuals due to Vita’s processing power and the full 48-character roster of fighters remains completely in tact. The arcade, training, mission, and versus modes all return as nothing content wise was cut to facilitate the small size of the Vita’s cartridge. The voice acting and original music is still all there, the story cut scenes done in a style similar to comic book panels, the hyper combos, Galactus as the final boss, and even personalizing your online card is still present. All of the patches and balancing tweaks that console players had to wait for are all packaged in the game and because of it you still get one of the premiere fighting experiences of 2011 available to you.

The problem is that now it is 2012. And most people who were going to buy this game already have. And the major negative of making little to no changes with the game is now evident. If the audience has already been tapped, who is going to buy the exact same game twice?

Sure, it’s portable now and you can link up with friends to get in some quick versus matches. That’s a cool feature, but again, most people won’t have need of it really if they already bought the game unless they are so hardcore that this game is the center of their entire gaming universe and must have it with them AT ALL TIMES. But for the rest of us, what might sell us on this? Will a new touch screen system make us want to pick this game up? No. Especially since the touch screen is mostly pointless as it is crucial to actually see the screen when playing a fighting game to learn hit boxes, range, patterns, and other critical elements to victory and so you can’t have your fingers constantly getting in the way of that.

And speaking of fingers, it does become a bit harder to pull off a lot of the moves you’re accustomed to with the smaller joystick and buttons of the Vita. And the one thing the Vita version of Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 does lack isn’t a shortcoming with the game itself, but with the hardware as you only have two shoulder buttons to try to pull off moves that were originally mapped to four. This can lead to some unnecessary button mashing that changes the game play for the worse.

But, aside from that, if you should pick this game up again, you’ll get everything you would expect from the console version. And if you missed it the first time around on a console, then picking it up for the Vita will definitely be money well-spent. There just isn’t enough of a positive difference though between the console and Vita versions to warrant owning both in most cases.

SUMMARY: Still a stellar fighting game, but if you already have it on a console, there’s no point in picking it up again.

• THE GOOD: Basically the same game as on consoles
• THE BAD: Pointless touch controls, lack of shoulder buttons sacrifices move list
• THE UGLY: Tiny buttons and joysticks make button mashing more difficult

SCORE: 8.0

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is available on Xbox 360, PS3, and PS VITA. This review was based on the PS VITA version of the game.

THE BUZZ: New DLC is coming to Assassin’s Creed Revelations, and a customer email from GameStop reveals release date, price, and name for that DLC.

EGM’s TAKE: The DLC will be called Assassin’s Creed Revelations: Lost Archive, and is listed as hitting on February 28th. Lost Archive will be released both for the Xbox 360 and PS3, and will be priced at $14.99. If a set of achievements that were found a few days ago is correction, this DLC should be a new single-player campaign.

So, simple enough, right? Will you be picking up this DLC when it hits (if this is indeed the proper date and pricing)?

THE BUZZ: Thanks to the Official PlayStation Blogcast, we now get an early look at what will be hitting the PlayStation Store the following week. So, here’s a taste of what’s coming in that next update.

EGM’s TAKE: I’m not used to seeing the PlayStation Store get this much content in one update. Of course, that’s partially because—thanks to the Vita’s release—there’s an initial flood of stuff ready and waiting to come out.

Also nice to see that some of those Vita apps are indeed coming at launch, instead of potentially getting pushed back a week or two.

So, here’s what the podcast mentioned (transcription thanks to psnstores.com):

Betas

• Starhawk

Demos

• Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations
• Shank 2
• SSX
• Fifa (Vita)
• Hustle Kings (Vita)
• Unit 13 (Vita)

PS3 Games

• Mafia 2 ($19.99)
• Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 ($19.99)

PS2 Games

• Full Spectrum Warrior 10 Hammers

PS Vita Games

• Ben 10 Galactic Racing
• Hustle Kings
• Plants vs Zombies
• Mutant Blobs Attack

PS Vita Apps

• Facebook
• Flickr
• Livetweet
• Netflix

THE BUZZ: Soon, Rovio Mobile will be taking Angry Birds where it has never gone before—space.

EGM’s TAKE: I feel the need to make a “Pigs in Space” joke here, but then I’m depressed by the fact that at least half of you probably wouldn’t get it.

That aside, Rovio has unveiled the next chapter of their unbelievably popular video game series pitting pissed-off birds against nefarious swine: Angry Birds Space. For now, we’ve got nothing more than a teaser and a release date—March 22nd—but there’s at least a few ideas that instantly come to mind. Possibly a wide variety of gravity modifiers due to different gravitational pulls in space? That could certainly have a major effect on gameplay, and mix things up in a new way.

Any ideas for what Angry Birds Space will bring to the series? Let us know in the comments below!

http://space.angrybirds.com/teaser1/

Waking Up to Sleeping Dogs

I was always a fan of the True Crime series and so, like many others out there, I was excited a couple of years ago when I heard that it was being brought back to life with a romp in Hong Kong. Then, unfortunately, after countless delays it had its plug pulled and was put on the shelf. But luckily, Square Enix saw the potential in this open world game and so their London Studios, with plenty of experience in the open world with Just Cause 2 and an assist on Batman: Arkham Asylum under their belt, felt they were ready to tackle this challenge with the game’s original developer, United Front Games. And boy, am I ever grateful for that after getting my first hands-on with the game this week.

Re-titled Sleeping Dogs, the game follows undercover cop Wei Shen who, after joining the Hong Kong police force after a stint in the United States, is tasked with infiltrating one of the most cut throat organizations underneath the Triad umbrella and taking them down from within. Inspired by Hong Kong movies like Infernal Affairs (which would later inspire Martin Scorsese’s Oscar winning movie The Departed), the folks at United Front Games wanted to bring that realistic grit and grime into the a game world while keeping up a pace of action fit for a martial arts masterpiece.

And there looks to be a ton of action it looks like in Sleeping Dogs as we were able to go hands-on with a pair of levels. The first was a street race to let us know that even in the crowded and cramped streets and alleyways of Hong Kong, there is still plenty of driving to do in the game. After ramming several opponents off the road and taking first place in what was a satisfyingly smooth handling sports car, we got out from behind the wheel and were ready to really get our hands dirty though.

In this level, we were attempting to earn the trust of some of the Triad lieutenants and so had to shake down someone who had missed a payment of his protection money. Moving through a crowded marketplace, we quickly came upon our mark. When we explained to him who we were, he bolted and a free-running sequence fit for an Assassin’s Creed game began. Immediately the interactive environments were revealed to us as I kicked a crate of oranges out of the way and each one bounced independent of each other down a flight of stairs. As I kept the runner in my sights, our climbing skills were also put to test. Unlike in Assassin’s Creed, to help convey that sense of realism and interaction, instead of automatically overcoming objects in your path, you actually have to press the jump button at the right time to run up walls or vault dumpsters. Otherwise, you’ll still traverse your obstacle, but the animation will change and you’ll be slowed as your poor game reflexes will also directly affect how Wei handles this in game. If successful, you’ll maintain speed. If not, Wei will humorously flop for a moment before regaining his composure.

Once we caught up to the runner, a handful of his friends came out of the woodwork and we were going to finally put our combat skills to the test. With clear influence from the work Square Enix London did on Batman: Arkham Asylum, a similar two button combat system was in place here. One button was for attacks, the other for counters. What was new here though was that if you grabbed an opponent, the world lit up in a flash of red, pointing out what was interactive in the environment to instantly take out a thug if we could drag them over to it. From frying them in an electric panel, to tossing them into an open dumpster, the options were near endless and I replayed the level just to make sure I interacted with every possible item I could.

“You look at a lot of Hong Kong action movies and one of the hallmarks is that they never stop. The action never stops and its flowing, very fluid. You have a lot of people running around moving to fight or take action in the scene. And one of the key things is seeing how they bring the environment into play.  Picking up objects very quickly that they can use as weapons or just the environment in general is a weapon. So we wanted to extend that core philosophy to the game. The thing is almost that the more mundane the object, the cooler it becomes because you never stop to think about how deadly some of these everyday objects can be. So everyone has a car, but smashing someone’s head three times in the door before delivering a final kick, is really going to do some damage. So it’s all there really just to help keep the combat flowing and interesting,” said United Front Games Executive Producer Stephen Van Der Mescht in a brief interview with EGM, speaking about how important environment interaction was for them in this game.

Of course, if I didn’t want to use the environment, or was too far our of place to reach my desired target, the kung-fu Wei uses felt just as fluid as Batman did in the Arkham games as I strung together a brutal string of punches, kicks, and counters that left my foes broken, bruised, and battered. And without Batman’s moral compass, with me at Wei’s helm, I often left a scene behind that would require numerous body bags as I threw guys off high rises, turned their own lethal weapons against them, or smashed them face-first into rooftop fans that gave me just enough gore to feel more satisfied than disgusted.

Although our time with Sleeping Dogs was short, there was a lot there that had me very excited to see how the game would play out. Smooth flowing and rewarding action sequences worthy of the Hong Kong cinema that inspired them, high-speed car chases, and a deep, gritty, and compelling story that looks devoid of the fantastical that occasionally seeped into the original True Crime games has me feeling that Sleeping Dogs is not a game you should sleep on this summer.

THE BUZZ: Wanting to go back to Fallout 3 and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion? Never had the chance to do so in the first place? Both games will now be bundled together for one low price.

EGM’s TAKE: Is there anybody out there who hasn’t played Fallout 3 and Oblivion at this point? I mean, besides me?

Well, if there is, then this new release from Bethesda may be right up your alley. Hitting on April 3rd, the Fallout 3 & Oblivion Double Pack will feature the standard editions of both games, and will retail for $29.99 for the Xbox 360 and $19.99 on PC.

THE BUZZ: Sony Online Entertainment has kicked off its 2012 Gamers in Real Life game design competition, aimed at inspiring women’s involvement in the video game industry.

EGM’s TAKE: Women in gaming is a very interesting—and sometimes extremely delicate—topic. For a long time seen as a hobby and industry strictly for men, gender equality in gaming has been improving over recently years—but there’s still a long ways to go.

To help encourage more females to get involved in game development, SOE is now in its fifth year of running Gamers in Real Life—or G.I.R.L. for short. Applicants are asked to submit two pieces of concept or 3D art based around two SOE games—EverQuest II or Planetside 2—along with the application and entry forms.

The winning entry will receive a $10,000 scholarship to be used towards “tuition and other educational expenses” for the winner’s school of enrollment. As well, the winner will also have the chance to take part in a 10-week paid internship at SOE’s headquarters in San Diego.

“The goal of G.I.R.L. has always been of opportunity, education and recruitment to get more women into the gaming industry,” Sony Online Entertainment senior vice president of global sales and marketing Laura Naviaux said in the official announcement of the launch of the competition for this year. “Over the last few years, we have been nothing short of impressed with the hundreds of amazing submissions from talented students nationwide. Now in our fifth year, we can’t wait to see the creativity that comes out of the G.I.R.L. program.”

For more information about G.I.R.L. or this game design competition, hit the link below.

THE BUZZ: Somebody forgot their broom, because it looks like the fighting game scene is about to get dusty again—thanks to the return of Guilty Gear.

EGM’s TAKE: Ever since Arc System Works acquired the right to Guilty Gear—the legendary 2D fighting franchise the team made before they broke off to create their own property, BlazBlue—fans everywhere have wondered what they would now do with the series.

Well, that picture is now a little clearer. Not only will Arc be bringing the most recent version of the game—Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus—to arcades, but the developer has also just announced that it will be hitting the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network as well. (Accent Core Plus was previously only released for the PS2, PSP, and Wii.)

Needless to say, hardcore Guilty Gear players everywhere now have a lot of reason to be excited. The return of the series, complete with online netplay? Consider how amazing of a job Arc has done with BlazBlue‘s net code, you know Guilty Gear is going to be equally sweet.

THE BUZZ: It seems as though Sweet Tooth has been running amok online and screwing with network connectivity for the recently launched Twisted Metal reboot.

Players have been complaining about network connectivity errors since the game launched last Tuesday, February 14. In a new VLOG post, lead designer David Jaffe updates fans with the latest information regarding the network problem as well as a number of other issues.

It seems like the Network error is a combination of things, including a mistaken message when a particular room is full. Instead of redirecting to a different room, the error message pops up. Reportedly, this error is affecting about 10% of the matches. A few fixes are mentioned, but Sony is hoping to have that issue fixed today so hopefully it will be a non-issue soon.

Jaffe also makes it a point to ask the community for assistance in gathering information to solve other issues that Sony is having trouble duplicating. Jaffe assures users that once these bugs are squashed he’ll get to the business of adjusging any balancing issues fans are experiencing.

EGM’s TAKE: This is why fans love Jaffe. The man killed himself for months getting Twisted Metal out the door, and now that it’s on store shelves he’s working harder to make sure the experience is as clean as possible. Plus, he jumps online to talk about what’s wrong and what’s being done about it. As for the issues being experienced, they are certainly annoying, but we hope everyone will give Sony a few days to get things corrected. Twisted Metal is a great game and it deserves to be played once the kinks are worked out.

Read EGM’s Twisted Metal review here.

Have you experienced any problems with Twisted Metal online or off? Let us know below.

THE BUZZ: In anticipation of its launch next week, Remedy has dropped a launch trailer for Alan Wake’s American Nightmare.

EGM’s TAKE: We really like the creepy-ass, Rod Serling-esque narration. Alan Wake kind of reminds us of an episode of the Twilight Zone, so the correlation works. However, the trailer’s gameplay emphasizes visceral combat rather than the psychologial aspects of the story. While certainly much easier to show in a preview, we’re hoping that American Nightmare doesn’t stray too far away from the brooding tension that made the original Alan Wake such a breath of fresh air. We’ll know forsure on February 22, when the game hits Xbox Live.

THE BUZZ: Sony U.S. Boss Jack Tretton has revealed that he’s not even thinking about announcing the PlayStation 4 anytime soon.

In an interview with IGN Tretton said, “I don’t want to be thinking about trying to launch new technology anytime soon,” and that it would be “very distracting” to talk about the next-gen this year.

“In terms of when you talk about [the next generation] and when you announce it, it really depends on the health of the existing platform and the other things you have going on,” he said. ”And right now, we’re focused on PlayStation 3, and I’ve got another platform [Vita] to get out the door in seven days, so I don’t want to be thinking about trying to launch new technology any time soon. I want to focus all our energy on our console business, which is really just hitting its stride, and Vita, which really deserves a dedicated push from us.”

“I, quite frankly, would be very distracted if I had to be talking about next generation hardware this year,” he added.

EGM’s TAKE: Well it’s looking increasingly likely that we won’t be seeing a PlayStation 4 announcement this year. Considering that the Vita is launching this year perhaps the company doesn’t want to overshadow it’s new hardware before it’s had a chance to shine. When you consider how busy E3 is set to be this year, with the Wii U and a possible next Xbox announcement, along with plenty of top software, it may be in Sony’s best interests to hang back and wait until it can have the world’s full attention. We’re personally hoping that this is just some elaborate plot to throw us off the scent, but in our hearts we know that not to be true.

THE BUZZ: Square-Enix has released a new batch of screenshots for Sleeping Dogs.

Earlier this month Square announced that it would be releasing the recently acquired True Crime: Hong Kong, after previous publisher Activision axed it, under the name of Sleeping Dogs. The game is set for release in the second half of 2012 and is being developed by United Front Games in conjunction with Square Enix London Studio.

You can read out first look preview of the game here.

EGM’s TAKE: The game doesn’t seem to have changed much since Square-Enix took it over, so fans of the True Crime series shouldn’t fret about the franchise being lost. It appears to be the GTA-style sandbox game that previous True Crime titles were. Obviously those at Square-Enix saw potential in this title that Activision couldn’t, let’s just hope that they were right.

THE BUZZ: EA has announced that it will be releasing a demo for SSX next week.

The demo will be available from February 21 on Xbox Live and PlayStation Network. Players will be able to play four events, two tutorials and take a sky diving lesson. Only Zoe will be available to play in the demo, however players can unlock Mac by referring a friend.

EGM’s TAKE: A chance to try out the most adrenaline filled game this side of summer? Yes please! It’s shame that only one character will be available, but at least players get to try out several different events to get a good feel of the game. We’re not a fan of the whole refer a friend system, as it leads to getting a bunch of unwanted messages from friends asking you to play the demo.

THE BUZZ: A new batch of screenshots for Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus have been released showcasing Rachel’s various outfits.

EGM’s TAKE: Now we’re not one to criticize, but what self respecting person goes to war dressed like that? Especially against demons, these outfits offer no protection whatsoever. In fact that most protected part of entire body is her legs and feet thanks to those massive high heeled boots, which can’t be practical when wielding such a big weapon. At least the office outfit covers her up more but isn’t exactly going to survive a demon claw attack, unless it’s an armor plated business suit. We just don’t know what demon hunting ninjas are thinking these days.

THE BUZZ: Gelid Games is set to release Wheels of Destruction to the PlayStation Network soon, which is a brave move considering that another vehicular based combat game called Twisted Metal just released.

Based on the Unreal Engine, Wheels of Destruction features arcade-style fast paced combat. Along with futuristic cars, environments, lasers and over the top physics. The games uses a ”unique control scheme built around controlling the vehicle with a single analog stick,” according to the developer in order to ease control difficulties.

There is currently no set release date for the game.

EGM’s TAKE: It takes a lot of guts to release your arcade game around the same time as a major player in the same field. When it comes to vehicular based combat Twisted Metal has held the crown for many years. On the other hand it may also be a blessing to the developers as the genre will be fresh in peoples minds and excitement will be high, which may lead to people buying the game to extend their experiences. As a stand alone title it looks like great fun, we just hope that it doesn’t fall into Twisted Metal’s shadow.

What do you think of the game? Let us know in the comments below.

THE BUZZ: Remedy has released a third developer diary for Alan Wake’s American Nightmare, which takes a closer look at Mr. Scratch, Alan’s evil alter-ego.

EGM’s TAKE: Alan Wake’s crazy aler-ego was always my favorite in the live action parts of the original game, the actor who played him was superb. He always sucked you in and actually made you believe that Alan may actually be insane. Now he has been manifested into the real world as Mr. Scratch, an urban legend made up about Wake after he disappeared, and it’s up to Alan to finally defeat him once and for all. But will he stop him in time before Scratch gets his hands on Alan’s wife Alice?

THE BUZZ: YouTube user “bigirpall” has created a new Battlefield 3 video known as “Operation Cars” which features some interesting ways to use C4.

EGM’s TAKE: Damn, that’s a lot of explosions in one video. We feel most sorry for the poor guy on the ladder just minding his own business until some C4 landed on his head. The whole video is well edited, and we really like the backing track. Next time a jeep comes hurtling towards your tank be sure to bail quickly.

THE BUZZ: Modern Warfare 3 is free-to-play this weekend via Steam.

Activision is holding a free weekend via the service for anyone who doesn’t own the game. All you have to do is download the multiplayer component of the game and you can play it fully from now until Monday. After which it will lock you back out and demand cash for you to continue.

EGM’s TAKE: It’s almost like offering drugs, you get a little taste for free until you’re addicted and then Activision demands money for you to get a fix after. The again there’s probably only a modest percent of Steam users who don’t already own the game on one platform or another already. So this is just the publisher trying to rope in those last few who resisted the urge to join the phenomena. It’s free, so even if you’ve never played it you may as well give it a shot and see what all the fuss is about.

Activision recently released gameplay footage of the game’s next content drop, Overwatch.

THE BUZZ: It seems that EA is setting up for the ultimate of PR stunts with Mass Effect 3.

Next week, the publisher plans to launch copies of Mass Effect 3 into space for fans to find after they descend back to Earth. The copies will be sent into the upper atmosphere via weather balloons launched over New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Berlin, London and Paris, sometime next week. Once the balloons pop the games will then fall back to earth for fans to find, in one epic treasure hunt.

You will be able to track the games via the Mass Effect 3 official site once they launch and then head off to find them.

EGM’s TAKE: Now while this sounds like an amazing idea there must be some pretty hefty legal loop holes that EA had to jump through to get permission for this. There’s flight paths to avoid, the ocean, people, a lot could potentially go wrong with this stunt. We expect that the games will be fitted with some kind of parachute device and kept in a case to protect the plastic, if not then some series injuries may be caused by falling game cases at terminal velocity. On the plus side anyone that does find a copy will get to play the game a couple weeks before anyone else.

Do you think this is a good idea? Will you go looking for a copy? Let us know in the comments below.