New Hitman Absolution E3 2011 Teaser Trailer.

Dungeon Siege III demo released for PS3 and PC via Steam.

The downloadable demo was first available on the Xbox 360, and a week later on the other platforms.

Dungeon Siege III is an action role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and soon to be published by Square Enix on Ps3, Xbox 360, PC and OnLive. Part 3 will be released in Europe - 17 June, North America - 21 June and Japan - 28 July. Original creator of Dungeon Siege, Chris Taylor served as an advisor during the development of the game. This will be the first in the series to be published by Square Enix, after it acquired full ownership of the Dungeon Siege franchise .

The demo is available through Steam (Valve Corporation platform) . All you need to do is download Steam, create a free account and browse the demo section of the platform for the game.

Dungeon siege III demo is playable with 2 out of the 4 available characters in the retail version. It has 3 difficulty levels: Casual, Normal and Hardcore, the last difficulty level being "not for the feint heart, or those prone to throwing controllers", which is kinda like saying don`t hate us for driving you mad, we warned you in a funny way about it, tee hee.

On a personal note, i found the voice acting a bit poor, just to be mended by nice graphics once the game started. I really find the "Player Menu" weird but i do like the equipment comparison system, they kept it sweet and simple. I`ve noticed 3 skill Tiers, probably level-based unlockables and also recieving "Proficiency Points" along side the usual talent point, upon leveling up. Enjoy the game!

GTA IV add-on discounted for Xbox Live gold members.

Grand Theft Auto add-on discounted for gold members next week.


GTA IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony will be available for gold members at a 1200 points discount rate, while regular users must pay 1600 for it .

To get a better idea, here are a few ratings and a trailer:

TeamXbox **	9.8 / 10
IGN **	9.2 / 10
Extreme Gamer **	9.4 / 10
Thunderbolt **	8 / 10
GameZone **	9.2 / 10

Medal of Honor on PC and consoles starting October.

The gaming market seems to look more and more like a battlefield, as "troops" prepare for the end of the year - the ultimate FPS war.


Medal of Honor and Call of Duty will release two titles on the market this autumn, while Xbox owners also are waiting for a new Halo release. In these conditions, Electronic Arts and Activision set the release dates of their titles relatively close. Activision`s Black Ops will see the light of day on the 9th of November, while Medal of Honor was announced for mid-October. Because of the two being "rival" titles and the prices (at least for the console versions) being a little high, it`s likely that players will buy only one title...who will be the winner?


The new Medal of Honor is staged in Afghanistan, where, in single-player mode, you will write the story of multiple characters. Electronic Arts turned to military experts for assistance in offering gamers as much realism possible.

Mafia 2 `s main storyline,15 hours long .

'Critical path' will take over half a day to complete, says 2K


In an interview for Xbox World 360 Magazine, Alex Cox from 2k said the main story of Mafia 2 will take 15 hours to walk through:


"I'd say the critical path is about 15 hours, maybe a bit longer. It's a nice length, big enough to feel epic without overstaying its welcome."


In it`s previous peek at Mafia 2 the magazine said that the in-game "dynamite shootouts" make Take-Two or GTA IV look "dated".


"We were blown away by both the visual fidelity and intricacy of the level design," the mag said. "As Vito, Steve, Joey and troops poured forward to bout the Brylcreemed baddies, GTA IV seemed very dated indeed."

NFS: World Online Beta opt-in.

Electronic Arts gives players an early chance to try out massively multiplayer online racer, full release set for summer.


Gamers looking to kick the tires on Electronic Arts' massively multiplayer online racing game Need for Speed: World are about to get their chance. Electronic Arts today announced a new round of closed beta testing for the game, inviting would-be players to sign up for a testing slot at the game's official Web site.


While the game will let players compete online in standard Need for Speed drag, drift, and checkpoint races, it also adds a few tweaks to the series' formula. For example, a new power-up system will give players access to a number of new abilities, from turbo boosts to a "traffic magnet" that draws racers into a tight pack. There's even a power-up to add a lap to a race so lagging players have some extra time to catch up. The other big addition to the series is a stat-progression feature that lets players level up their cars as well as their drivers.

Michael Schumacher to feature Codemasters` F1 2010.

Codemasters` F1 2010 will come out September, available on PC, Xbox and PS3.


Fans of the F1 will be happy to hear that besides the "natural" database update on teams,drivers and circuits, the 2010 release will include the introduction of several teams, the new International Korean Circuit and the return of legend Michael Schumacher.All in HD!


Game modes and features to come in this year`s September release are Grand Prix, Championship, Time Trial and an extended Career Mode.F1 2010 will also feature car damage, a dynamic weather system and multiplayer.


The game was developed at Codemasters Studios Birmingham, using the EGO Game Technology Platform.

GTA V announcement to be made

Rockstar "building suspension for a pre-E3 GTA V announcement," says analyst.


Rockstar will most likely announce GTA V before this year's E3 show in June, according to Janco Partner analyst Mike Hickey:


"Assuming GTA V is in their fiscal '11 period as we have currently modeled, [Take-Two Interactive] should be highly profitable, and likely in excess of current street consensus,"


"With the RAGE engine built, the next GTA release should drop faster and require less development expense. Importantly, the Rockstar team is newly incentivized through profitability versus a unit sales approach.

"We believe there is building suspension for a pre-E3 GTA V announcement," he said, adding: "We expect nothing from Rockstar at this year's official E3 event."

He added: "We think the next iteration of GTA for console can significantly outsell its predecessor, reflecting on the sales acceleration of the prior cycle GTA console iterations, [and] an accelerating core gamer installed base (with an emphasis on PS3 installed expansion where GTA has historically dominated relatively)."


So it`s clearly the next GTA trailer will stir the blood in gamers like all the previous, but will it get back on track and release something to match Vice City`s popularity or will it be another fiasco (just my opinion)? Care to voice yours?

Batman: Arkham Asylum GOTY 3D Edition.

Square Enix London Studios has announced a Game of the Year Edition for Batman: Arkham Asylum.


Available on Xbox 360 and PS3 from March 26 the re-release will come complete, with six extra challenge maps which were previously released as DLC. Maybe the most exciting feature, an innovative technology which enables the option of 3D play on all standard and HD TV sets.


Both the PS3 and Xbox 360 having support for TriOviz 3D and coming with included glasses. By leveraging the depth-of-field while maintaining the original gameplay and color integrity, TriOviz 3D is said to create a far more immersive gaming experience.

New Tomb Raider - The Guardian of Light

Crystal Dynamics, a part of Square Enix Europe, today announced Lara Croft And The Guardian Of Light, a new game developed by Crystal Dynamics, which will be released via digital download in 2010.

"This is a really exciting project for Crystal Dynamics, we have created something completely new and very different to what people might be expecting," said Darrell Gallagher, General Manager of Crystal Dynamics.

"Lara Croft is such an iconic character in videogames, with Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light we have created what we believe is a truly original digital experience."

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light will be shown strictly "behind closed doors" at this year's Game Developers Conference beginning on March 9th.

Crystal Dynamics is an award-winning studio located in San Francisco. Founded in 1992, the studio has created and developed key game franchises such as: Legacy of Kain, Pandemonium, Gex and most recently the Tomb Raider series.

For more information visit www.laracroftandtheguardianoflight.com.

ATARI gave the OK for Test Drive Unlimited 2

Eden Games in charge for the second free-roam installment in road racing series for 360, PS3, and PC.


After four years of waiting, Test Drive is ready to get you back on the road. Atari announced that Eden Games will be in charge of making Test Drive Unlimited 2 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC.


Like TDU, Unlimited 2 will feature "massively open online racing," which lets players free-roam, running into other players, having the possibility to challenge or cruise along with them . The first Unlimited took place on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, Test Drive Unlimited 2 will have an entire new island ready for speed, new vehicles and race types,as well as a new redone single-player mode,available for both off and online play. New features like weather effects and vehicle damage will also be included.


Unlimited 2 means a return for developer Eden Games, well known for developing racing games like Atari's V-Rally series and Need for Speed Porsche. Test Drive Unlimited was the studio's last racing game, the developer meanwhile working on Atari's Alone in the Dark revamp in between the two projects.

Gaming: How expensive vs How rewarding

One of the most expensive components is without doubt the video card. Only the "extreme" processors are more expensive. At the moment, investing in a top noch video card can bring a 850$ gap in your pockets, whilst a processor costs about 1170$. Out of one shot,we already have 2000$ gone , to which we add the cost of a motherboard, memory and other components (HDD/SSD, optical unit, case + power source, peripherals). Total costs can reach 3500$. What do we gain compared to a quarter priced configuration? Posibility to run games on high res and maximum details, but on a limited period of time.

Evolution with the speed of light.

Who can keep up with chip developers? Only the ones with a lot of money. Year by year, new generations of processors and video cards come out, everytime with big promises (incredible performance, outstanding graphics etc.), but in the end,it`s all about software. Game developers don`t keep up with the PC components evolution anymore,well maybe just with sequels, even more, i dare to say they lost interest in the PC platform,it not being profitable anymore. Games are not optimized good enough and consumers complain that even though they invested in their PC configuration, they don`t get the expected results.

"Fools rush in."

We already know how many producers focus on sequels, which,as time goes by,remain just with the title. NFS alternates in between mediocre - decent (being indulgent), FIFA who only update club and player database. Call of Duty is still appreciated, but has already ran thru all the wars in the last century. "Lucky" us, wars will never dissapear. Another well known series - Grand Theft Auto. The last release, GTA IV, was harshly criticised for bad optimization, due to which the game ran heavy even on ultra-performant configurations. Also, Crysis proven to be "a big resource eater",only Warhead managing to fix it a little. Fallout 3 is a great game, but was released on the rush (season asociated with the game title was to be respected for the release - "Fall") and had numerous bugs from the beginning.

I have mentioned only a few well known titles which deserve to be "carried" to the finish (except FIFA, it`s enough to play the demo). On the other side, numerous obscure games suffering on gameplay on which you practicly waste money,being bored of them after a few hours. DirectX 10, 11 graphics is not a guarantee for the value of a title. I will anytime, take on a classic (Heroes III, even V, NFS Porsche or, why not, ol` Starcraft), instead of a "new" sketched on the lap,during a bus trip to work.

Amongst the last standing,who show commitment and passion for quality is Blizzard. Unfortunately, they delayed Starcraft 2 too much. Concerning Diablo 3, we will see that baby,in 2011 at best i think. Is it better this way? I dont know. Certainly, Blizzard has immense success with World of Warcraft. In fact, about the only titles who still cash big are MMORPGs. They have a lot of monthly subscribers who pay to develop their "loved" heroes. Otherwise, as you well know it, gaming piracy "owns the seas".

The influence of piracy.

The problem with PC gaming piracy (and of software in general) don`t determine the quality of applications offered to us by developers.My opinion is that things have to move further,higher because,after all,we live in a consumer society.Big companies know that and the only "optimum" thing is the fast rate of product update.

As a parenthesis, this is what happens in the auto industry also (you see the new Y automobile, which is in fact the old X but with a bit modified design and a few optionals).

Back to gaming, i can`t look by and not see the alternative offered by consoles. In the context in which PC piracy almost reached it`s peak (and we don`t have motives to distort the situation), consoles are considered less performant products and dedicated to gaming, which initially costs a lot less, but in time buying game after game dries you out. If hypothetically piracy didn`t exist, i`m well convinced that every each and one of us would have chosen a console for gaming, not a PC. In reality,the situation is exactly the opposite and calculations are made likewise.

PC - indispensable, console is an option.

If you are the type of gamer which focuses on a few titles yearly (maximum 5 let`s say, and those are not RTS`), then a console is the thing for you. If,instead,you are trying out all the releases and what sounds interesting, invest in a PC but don`t pick out the last generation stuff only if you afford them but bare in mind you will have to constantly upgrade if you want to be "top dog".

Consume, Consume, Consume.

Although no company will officially admit, there is a deal inbetween hardware and softare developers,to stimulate the market. Software is developed in such manner that needs resources so you can constantly upgrade your PC. Hardware manufacturers brag with products and technologies that grant you that awesome multimedia experience, gaming, business etc. The final product is delivered to us with a bundle of promises, but like any other thing done with haste,sooner or later,it`s weaknesses will be revealed.

BioShock 2 DLC begins in March

2K Games' first in series of add-on packs expands upon dystopian underwater world's multiplayer on 360, PS3, PC next month for $5.

The first add-on pack, titled Sinclair Solutions Test Pack, will cost $5 (MSP400) and be aimed at the game's multiplayer mode, which was developed by Dark Sector studio Digital Extremes. With the pack, players will be able to attain rank 50 in multiplayer mode, as well as play as Louie McGraff and Oscar Calraca. The Sinclair Solutions Test Pack is rounded out with 20 new trials, a third upgrade for each weapon, and five new masks.

2K Games noted that it has several more add-on packs scheduled to arrive in the next few months that will expand both the single-player and multiplayer portions of BioShock 2. Included in the packs will be additional narrative, as well as new tools and challenges that are designed to further flesh out the tragic fall of Rapture.