All Topics Gaming older than one year ago

Lucy Bradshaw joins us for a discussion about all things gaming

The mole is always right.

Ars Technica is reporting that Microsoft is on the verge of announcing a Halo: Reach Xbox 360 hardware bundle. The $399.99 package will contain a silver version of the new Xbox 360 S (equipped with a 250GB hard drive), a copy of the game (of course!) and two wireless controllers. The bundle was detailed by -- who else? -- the Ars Mole and would likely be released alongside the various retail editions of the game on September 14.

Further evidence for the Reach-branded hardware comes by way of Joystiq reader "killer rin," who sent us a link to this Xbox.com page (now removed), which had advertised a Reach-themed controller (captured above) for $60. The controller appears to reflect the design suggested by Ars' report.

This free dungeon shooter is retrotastic

Newest update in Nexon America's MapleStory introduces Dual Blade.

A culture-defining movement in China's history now available online.

#xbox360 Dead Rising 2: Case Zero, the game that fills in the gaps between the original zombie action game and the sequel, hits the Xbox 360 exclusively on Aug. 31, Capcom confirmed today. More »

Shoot zombies, have fun.

The Greatest...is back.

#comiccon2010 Zombies invade a fictional Las Vegas dubbed Fortune City in Dead Rising 2, but the original location was something wildly different. Capcom's Keiji Inafune told Comic-Con attendees today it was previously set in an undead-filled version of Disneyland. More »

In a recent developer blog at the Platinum Games website, director Shinji Mikami discussed the changes Vanquish has undergone during development. In the beginning, said Mikami, Vanquish was "an open battlefield type of game, where the goal was to move around crushing enemy positions." As development progressed, however, it became clear that an open environment hurt the game. The reason, according to Mikami, was an increased level of "visual density." There were so many things happening on screen -- special effects, loads of enemies, etc. -- that it was hard for players to focus on the objective.

"In an environment where we were doing whatever we pleased," noted Mikami, "it became pretty obvious that there was no good way of keeping your eye on the prize - the enemies you are targeting." As such, a more linear style of play helps keep players focused. Furthermore, Mikami also notes that the staple enemy, a robot called a Gorgie, was changed from white to red in order to make it stand out from the predominantly gray background.

If Vanquish turns out to be anything like Platinum's most recent action-fest, Bayonetta, then helping players focus on killing baddies is probably a good decision.

Paragon tells us where we'll be serving up justice, and causing mayhem.

This Friday night at 12:30am, GameTrailers TV on Spike TV will air the world premiere of the full DC Universe Online “Blur” trailer, plus a behind-the-scenes look at DC Universe Online.

But first, check out the teaser video below for a taste of what’s in store on Spike TV this Friday night.

This trailer gives a peek at the backstory you will experience when you kick off your experience in DC Universe Online. PS3 players will instantly recognize some of the star-studded voiceover cast we have assembled to give you the ultimate DC experience. Highlights include Mark Hamill as the Joker, Kevin Conroy as Batman, James Marsters as Lex Luthor, and more.

Stay tuned for the full trailer this Friday night at 12:30am on Spike TV. And remember: the next legend is you!

Let's talk Kinect.

Fileplanet to lead exclusive North American beta of free to play online brawling MMO.

Making tigers happy: it's what we do.

Take on global financial crisises, budget deficits, Afghanistan, Iran, and global warming.

With Bond 23 canceled, Activision's James Bond 007: Blood Stone may be your only dose of Bond for some time. It's a good thing they're going all out with the production then, with Daniel Craig in the starring role (sorry, EastEnder) and siren Joss Stone stepping into the appropriately fancy shoes of Bond Girl. You can hear her pipes in the non-titular title song "I'll Take it All" in the trailer here, and see her doing her best Bond Girl impersonation in the gallery below.

#comiccon2010 Jim Rugg, the man behind the comic book series Street Angel and the hilarious graphic novel Afrodisiac, created a special Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 t-shirt for Comic-Con that teases two familiar new fighters coming to Capcom's cross-world brawler. More »

#ps3 Three Platinum PlayStation 3 Trophies on one disc? And that's not at all? More »

New random matchmaking lets HexaLexers battle the world.

If you're a fan of space combat sims like Elite and Colony Wars, I need to talk with you about DarkStar One. But I need to whittle down the crowd a bit first, so hang tight.

DarkStar One is a PC game from 2006 that's been ported as-is to the Xbox 360, with only an improved resolution to show for the jump. The dialog sounds like the worst community theater from every country was gathered to read a half-finished Babylon 5 script aloud, and everyone there was asked to switch accents with the person closest to them. The cinematics look like deleted scenes from a bootleg DVD of ReBoot. There are frequent graphical glitches, and it completely froze up on me no fewer than twice at wholly inconvenient moments. There are local furniture commercials with better special effects.

... Okay, are you still there? Because if you've hung on with me this long -- if you've read this far and haven't moved on to a different post -- I can pretty much guarantee you're going to love DarkStar One.

Build your own town.

No word on release date yet, but at least now we know that the game is going to launch down under. We’ll keep tabs on any release information if it pops up.

Razer announces new lineup of TRON-inspired mice, keyboards, and more.

On this day back in 2000, Waluigi made his very first appearance in a Nintendo game through Mario Tennis. I can’t believe Waluigi has been around for 10 years now! Let’s hope we see the guy get some more game time in upcoming titles. Thanks to Exodecai for the heads up!

#feature For as long as we've known the pair, video games have been video games, and board games have been board games. But as time and technology march on, could two become, as the Spice Girls say, one? More »

Hit the old west for free.

#music When a friend asked Swedish software engineer Linus Åkesson to take an old electric organ off his hands, Linus agreed, as long as he could do anything he wanted to it, and what he did is incredibly impressive. More »