Similar to other FPS games, but similarly much more grand, this MMO like shooter takes place across the entirety of Europe, with up to 10,000 players participating in several reenactments of the second world war. As part of either the Axis or allied forces, you’ll take to the skies and ground, on foot and in vehicles (even on the odd bicycle) and take the fight to the enemy.

It all works seamlessly through a browser experience, making the game accessible to a wider audience, as well as offering a strategic gameplay experience over the traditional run and gun of games like CoD and MoH. Perhaps the most exciting element however, is that similar to titles like Savage, some gamers will be able to rise up the ranks of command. This allows them to manage the war at large, calling for gamer reinforcements in some sectors, while sending in those with pilot characters to perform bombing runs.

There’s a lot of depth to this game and the surface has only just been scratched. We’ll be keeping out eye on it, and signing up for a beta key too.

Microsoft’s counter argument to this demand is that it wouldn’t be fair on consumers, since it would leave them with only two console options. The judge seems happy that Sony and Nintendo could pick up the slack – seemingly assuming that everyone can afford to just buy another console, whether they like the Xbox experience or not.

As far as the judge is concerned intellectual property rights are more important.

In terms of the bond payment, Microsoft wants to reduce it from 7 per cent to 2.5 per cent. In contrast, Motorola is recommending it be increased to 100 per cent of unsold Xbox consoles.

Outside Judge, James Robart, said both sides were clearly “driven by an attempt to secure commercial advantage. To an outsider looking at it, it has been arbitrary, it has been arrogant and frankly it has been based on hubris.”

Motorola has already won its case in Germany, leading to a block order on Xbox consoles. Funnily enough though, Microsoft was able to use US legislation to prevent the ban taking place.

The global legal system is confusing.

Source: Eurogamer

“We’d like to take a moment to address the recent reports that suggested that Battle.net and Diablo 3 may have been compromised,” Blizzard said in a statement.

“Historically, the release of a new game – such as a World of Warcraft expansion – will result in an increase in reports of individual account compromises, and that’s exactly what we’re seeing now with Diablo 3.”

That almost seems as if its denying there are any real issues? This isn’t people leaving passwords lying around, it seems to be nefarious individuals from overseas spoofing session ids to login without username or password, thereby giving full account access to someone that isn’t the owner.

“We know how frustrating it can be to become the victim of account theft, and as always, we’re dedicated to doing everything we can to help our players keep their Battle.net accounts safe – and we appreciate everyone who’s doing their part to help protect their accounts as well.”

It then went on to recommend the account authenticators. The app is free, but the hardware version is £10. Ontop of the £35 or so you’ve spent on Diablo III.

While the game itself is turning out to be a great experience, people are really disliking this new direction of forced gameplay that Blizzard is going. Its reputation as a stalwart publisher may be damaged for good.

Source: Eurogamer

It showed up on the twitter account of a QnA tester at lego developer TT Games, making it seem incredibly likely that an NDA has been broken with this image. That said, it’s nice when gamer fans get thrown a bone once in a while.

This latest image shows fully fledged thumbsticks, whereas in the past there were mere nubs suggesting a new direction in controller design beyond just the touch screen. However this latest version appears to show much more typical analogue controls.

The Wii U was initially debuted at E3 2011, with the hardware and controllers shown off, but with neither of them powered on. With an intended end of year release date, E3 2012 is expected to see Nintendo really show off what the next-gen system is capable of and perhaps some of its planned launch titles.

Microsoft and Sony will certainly be watching closely, having chosen to not début their own hardware this year and instead wait for 2013 before any of its competitive console components begin appearing in the wild.

“‘Virgin Media’s 100 Day Game Project’ is on a mission to find the brightest talent in game design and creation, and, with input from the wider gaming community, help them to bring their game idea to life,” reads the promotional site. “We’re looking for amateur and student game designers from across the country to come to us with their concepts for a top quality mobile/tablet game. Utilising some of the industry’s brightest brains, we’ll select one concept and help the lucky winning team create their game and make their vision a reality. Reaching out to gaming fans everywhere, the project will culminate with the beta game launch at the Eurogamer Expo on 27th September.”

If you want to enter the 100 Day Game Project, you’ll need to have a team of 3-4 members all aged between 18 and 35. You have until May 27th to get your entry in.

Do so here.

Jumping on this, Blizzard has offered to give discounts to anyone that purchased the digital version of Diablo III and can provide a GAME receipt to show the pre-order was made. If you paid the full price when you reserved the game, you’ll get a digital copy for free.

“We’re aware that some Australian GAME customers have been left out in the cold on what should be the hottest night of the year — the launch of Diablo III. To help with this situation and get these players into the game as soon as possible, we’ve put the following process in place,” said the Blizzard release.

It also posted instructions on how to obtain your discount:

“Australian GAME customers with a valid preorder/prepurchase receipt dated before May 15, 2012 can do the following:

1. Purchase the digital version of Diablo III from http://www.diablo3.com now or anytime before May 21, 2012.

2. Download and start playing when the servers go live!

3. Submit your GAME Australia preorder/prepurchase receipt to us before June 30, 2012.

4. Receive a credit from Blizzard”

Moves like this really cement companies as “good guys,” as Blizzard had no obligation to do this, but has ensured that its fans won’t be left ouf of pocket just because of their choice of retailer. It’ll be interesting if we ever learn how much Blizzard has been willing to lose to make to this geture.

“Due to the appointment of an administrator to our business this morning, it is with regret that I inform you all that our stores will not be receiving any stock of diablo 3 (sic)”, said a text message sent to those that pre-ordered the game. “Because of this, we regrettably will be unable to fulfill any pre-orders. Also, we will be unable to refund any deposits paid towards a pre-order of diablo 3. If you need any more info, please email customerrelations@game.com.au”

Unfortunately, beyond signing on as an unsecured creditor, there isn’t much you can do. It’s unlikely to get you anywhere even if you do though, since there are banks and big lendors looking to regain more than just a pre-order deposit from the GAME Group, and they are first in line.

“Initially we will continue to trade all stores, operating these on as close to a ‘business as usual’ mode as possible whilst we get a clearer understanding of the current state of the business and actively pursue options to secure its future,” PricewaterhouseCoopers spokesperson Kate Warwick stated.

“Prior to our appointment, the company’s management had been exploring interest in investing in the business with a number of parties and we will look to see whether this interest can be harnessed to continue the business or part of it through the voluntary administration process.”

While we might not see such an epic struggle for redemption in the Aussie branch of GAME as we did in the UK, that part of the business now enters the stage where it’s hoping for a buyer. It’s been said that some businesses have been courting GAME Australia for the past few weeks, but no information as to their identity has yet been revealed.

Source: Eurogamer

To celebrate this achievement, Valve has announced a weekend sale, bringing down the price of – of course – Portal 2 to just £5.09 for the next couple of days. Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has also had a price cut, dropping to £23.44. Team Fortress 2′s Workshop items will also see their prices halved for the duration.

Portal 2 maps and test chambers can be downloaded and viewed in the Steam Workshop, where a rating system by fellow players will no doubt help you decide which to try first. The most popular at the moment are the series of 12 Angry Test maps, split into several parts. Each has a short story to accompany it, showing the extent some users have gone to, to perserve the single player experience of the original game.

Source: Eurogamer

Known as Legend of the Beast, the new downloadable content sees Sam taking on the ram god known as The Great Obelisk. This will take place over three new campaign levels. In terms of multiplayer, gamers can experience three new survival maps and three new versus modes.

Lots of threes.

If you’re interested in picking up this DLC, it’ll cost just $4.99. This is a nice respectable prices for DLC, considering in essence it’s just a map pack. It would be quite easy to point a dirty finger at some developers for their DLC pricing.

The developer behind the series of Serious games, Croteam, has also announced that the HD remake of Serious Sam the First Encounter, will have its multiplayer component made free to play. This will allow players to jump in and begin blasting each other, or work together in survival mode to fight off the alien hordes. This will be available as of the 15th May.

Describing the early days of the game as a true event, something that non-gamers could be interested in, EA’s Label boss Frank Gibeau said that now, “as the service evolves from here, what we’re seeing is that some of the initial casual customers have gone through a billing cycle and decided not to subscribe to the game.”

He countered this however by saying that despite the casual players fleeing the title, the hardcore MMO players have remained. He believes the current crop of 1.3 million players is likely to stay dedicated for some time.

EA’s top dog John Riccitello said that while the game wasn’t in the top five earners for the company, it was in the top ten. “So it’s a business contributor, while important, is not as important as Medal of Honor or Battlefield or FIFA or Madden or The Sims or SimCity, but it’s more important than Tiger Woods PGA Golf.”

“So while I understand there’s an enormous amount of interest, I don’t know that it warrants as much as what we’re seeing right now. But we love the franchise, we’re going to grow the franchise and just like we want to see Tiger Woods Golf grow or SSX grow, or Madden for that matter, we’re going to drive this one for growth,” he continued.