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A US judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by shareholders against Zynga today. The lawsuit alleged that Zynga purposely misled shareholders about the financial state of the company, its active user count and potential business prospects in the run-up to, and after, Zynga's initial stock offering in late 2011.

US District Judge Jeffrey White said the 110-page complaint failed to offer "relevant, basic factual details" worthy of the indictment against Zynga, Reuters reports. White also threw out a complaint filed against Zynga's secondary stock offering in April 2012, citing the plaintiffs in the case had no standing due to the fact none of them had purchased any of that stock. White has given the plaintiffs an opportunity to amend their complaint and re-file.

Months after Zynga's initial public offering, the company was hit with an insider trading lawsuit. While all Zynga stock holders were "locked up" and prevented from selling their stock until May 28, 2012 - months after Zynga's IPO in December, 2011 - executives within Zynga's ranks used underwriters to sell their stock at $12 a share. This loophole allowed executives to profit from the stock, which made its debut at $10 a share but quickly fell. Currently, Zynga stock prices hover at $5.29 a share on the NASDAQ. [Image: Zynga]

Aside from being the closest we'll get to seeing a Shenmue 3 in this lifetime (given its high-level simulation of forklift physics), United Independent Entertainment's Warehouse and Logistics Simulator is best known for its realism and faithful recreation of mundane labor. Similar to PC games like Farming Simulator and Train Simulator, Warehouse and Logistics Simulator challenges players to complete an honest day's work while focusing on safety and efficiency.

Forget all of that, though. This week sees the release of Hell's Warehouse, a horror-themed add-on that fills the game's harbors, distribution centers, and construction sites with bloodthirsty zombies.

Luckily, players find themselves behind the wheel of a rugged forklift, which is more than capable of mowing down the undead hordes. Bombs, mines, and other weapons will also help to clear out particularly stubborn zombies across multiple scenarios and gameplay modes. Hell's Warehouse is available at a 20 percent discount during its first week of release.

[Image: United Independent Entertainment]

More control, more sales.

We talked to FromSoft programmers on how Dark Souls 2 is built for the future.

Gods Will Be Watching, the violent point-and-click thriller, was initially aiming for a February release, but its since been pushed back to the summer, giving the team more time to finish the game and more time to release moody trailers full of beautiful pixel art. The latest is below, is typically stylish, and apparently has something against kneecaps. … [visit site to read more]

Our review of Pokemon X and Y spent a lot of time gushing over the introduction of 3D to the series, but now fans have taken things one step further by dragging the pixelated world of Pokemon Gold and Silver into the stereoscopic reality of the Oculus Rift headset.

The footage you see above was created by a YouTube user calling himself "Vaecon," who you may recall from his work in bringing The Legend of Zelda to the Oculus Rift. For his latest project, Vaecon modified the ongoing Pokemon 3D fan project to support the virtual reality headset. Some things don't quite work - text doesn't display properly and certain details are hard to make out - and it's apparent that the game was built for a more traditional display, but despite its flaws, the end result is a three-dimensional visit to the Johto Region.

While replicating this experience for yourself at home will require you to own an Oculus Rift headset, Pokemon 3D is a free download. It's not supported by Nintendo and could be struck down by a cease and desist order from the publisher at any time, but until then, the project's creators continue their efforts to add every known Pokemon and region to the 3D remake. [Image: Kolben Games]

Blizzard is looking to provide players with a new way to customize their decks and show off their accomplishments.

Renegade-X, which we previously reported would be released on its release date, has now been released on its release date. The Command & Conquer-inspired multiplayer shooter is now in open beta and available to download for free, although it looks like the official site is getting a bit hammered. … [visit site to read more]

Get in line for a chance to beta test the dictator sim on PC.

Bethesda announced that it will begin selling QuakeCon 2014 passes next week, revealing a number of premium packages for early-bird buyers looking to secure event access and bring-your-own-computer (BYOC) seating.

On March 5, attendees can purchase a $175 QuakeCon 2014 bundle that includes reserved-access seating for all panels, events, and presentations, along with a bonus t-shirt, lanyard, and signed print. A $150 package that includes two t-shirts, a headset, and other goodies goes on sale March 19. Additional premium packages will be available for purchase on April 2 and April 16.

All packages are limited in quantity but optional, as general admission is free. QuakeCon 2014 will take place at the Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas, between July 17 and July 20.

[Image: Bethesda]

WildStar's Design Producer Stephan Frost walks us through the ways you can deck out your mount in the upcoming MMO.

The rather confused headline refers to the fact that free browser game Into The Box plays like the bastard (hard) child of Terry Cavanagh’s brain-searing Super Hexagon and AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! – A Reckless Disregard for Gravity. The music and frame wobble like Pac-Man at a well-stocked rave, and the player falls ever-forward, attempting to steer into boxes, which are scattered within larger boxes. Reaching specific score thresholds unlocks new music tracks and bonus rings, which provide fresh targets to aim for. I’m finding it hard not to go straight back in because my current high score is a pitiful 33.

… [visit site to read more]

Warehouse and Logistics Simulator has just been released on Steam. It contains “original Jungheinrich forklift”, a “huge variety of quests” about lifting pallets from point A to point B, and no collision detection on the people idly milling around the warehouse.

There’s a launch trailer below, and some thoughts from me while I attempt to resist all the easy jokes. … [visit site to read more]

Outlast receives its first DLC in April both on Windows PC and PS4, obliterating any hope that you'd escaped the Mount Massive Asylum for good. The first-person survival horror features reporter Miles Upshur investigating the creepy hospital, and the "Whistleblower" DLC details the events that led him to the asylum's foreboding gates.

Whistleblower stars Waylon Park, a software engineer working for the Murkoff Corporation, which owns and runs Mount Massive. After spending two weeks at the asylum, Park felt he had to email Upshur and other journalists to spill the beans on the secret horrors of the asylum - probably not the best idea from a self-preservation point-of-view, but there we are. Whistleblower doesn't just chronicle these events, though, with developer Red Barrels noting "it will actually stretch past the events of the first game to show the final chapter in Mount Massive Asylum's story."

The above image is from the main game rather than the DLC, but we'll let you decide for yourself if you want to see the gruesome screenshot Red Barrels published alongside this week's news. Really, who drinks soda just before dinner? Revolting. [Image: Red Barrels]

Well, this is a start, I suppose. A slow, lurching start akin to that of a belligerent old truck running on stagnant fuel and wildly outdated business practices, but it’s still something. The long and short of it? Notorious Banner Saga pursuer King doesn’t want to own the word “candy” anymore. In the US. In EU territories? Well, that’s a different story. And it hasn’t announced any sort of cease-fire in its war against those who dare wield the word “saga” to describe their games that apply the actual dictionary definition of “saga.” Meanwhile, the trademark it’s sticking with – “Candy Crusher” – is mired in further controversy. The Candy Saga, in other words, isn’t over just yet.

… [visit site to read more]

Last week’s Flare Path contained a thorough report regarding Air Marshal Stone’s experiences in French fantasy flight simulator BOMB. As bold as its capitalised letters, the game is an alternate history explosion of air buccaneers, sky pirates and casino-baiting. Robbing a casino with naught but a biplane and my wits ranks fairly high on the bucket list and while BOMB doesn’t have a heist component, it’s feats of derring-do invoke memories of Crimson Skies’ roguish charm. The game is now available, although it’s set to be released in five stages. The current build contains the first act (six missions) of the campaign, a skirmish mode, and multiplayer deathmatch, with a team variant. It’s currently £7.75 through Desura and updates are planned monthly, through to June.

… [visit site to read more]

Survival sims might be unnerving conflict machines in this brutal modern era, but I remember a more affable time. Games like Lemmings and Brat placed the player in charge of vulnerable and mindless creatures (lemmings and babies, respectively), unable to control them directly but responsible for their continued existence. Back To Bed is a return to that gentler age, asking the player to protect a hapless sleepwalker in a strange world. Since we last looked, outside investment has allowed the student team to form a studio and they will now complete the game and begin work on its spiritual successor.

… [visit site to read more]

Blizzard is moving to further simplify the MMO.

Every day, in addition to The Daily Fix, we list off the day's biggest stories in this simple and easy to read format.

14.3% of them have converted to paid accounts, reveals Mojang’s Markus Persson.

Ubisoft opens the doors for all would-be looters to enter at their own risk.

The PC and PS4 horror game Outlast is about to get some new DLC, DLC that continues the story while giving some much-needed context.

Triumph Studios' turn-based strategy game Age of Wonders 3 will launch on PC next month, on March 31. The fantasy game was originally due late last year, but had to be pushed back for "additional polish."

All those who pre-purchase the game through GOG or Steam will be guaranteed an additional mission, playable in both single-player and multiplayer. Called "Elven Resurgence," this mission takes travelers to Heartwood Forest - once a meeting place for the Elven High Court, the forest is now an abandoned battlefield where scattered clans of Elves wage war for its control.

Age of Wonders 3 will be available in both a standard version for $40 and a deluxe edition for $45. The latter tosses in the Age of Wonders 3 soundtrack and an additional single-player mission revolving around eight lords feuding over a discovered dragon's egg.

Hello youse.

I haven’t read any of the Discworld books. Don’t judge me. I’m just – DO NOT JUDGE ME – not that big a fan of fantasy stuff, really. I couldn’t even make it through Lord of the Rings, that stuffy phone book of a thing. I was a horror guy in my youth. Stephen King and James Herbert and HP Lovecraft. Wizards? Nah. Not my bag. So Discworld was something that passed me by. Which makes it VERY INTERESTING that I now review a Discworld board game, because I have no *crag*ing idea what any of the stuff refers to. ONWARDS. … [visit site to read more]

Pre-orders now available to gain access to series callback "Elven Resurgence" scenario.

The RPG franchise is rolling out to the PC and current-gen systems.

One man's space trash is another man's space station in Habitat, a PC, Mac and Linux game that takes place in the cluttered arena of Earth's orbit, far in humanity's future. Players must use the junk floating around Earth - both manmade and alien - to manufacture a space base and manage its citizens. It's a strategy game with defense elements, since any piece of trash can be used to create kinetic weapons and fight off invading enemies.

Any trash - including the Eiffel Tower and Statue of Liberty, apparently.

Habitat comes from 4gency, an indie studio founded by Charles Cox, former senior program manager of the Xbox Advanced Technology Group at Microsoft, where he helped launch the Xbox One. In his resignation letter penned in September, Cox offered the following reason for his departure:

"There is no question in my mind that the adventure we have been on with Xbox One has been the greatest, most challenging of my career so far, and yet, a dream, nurtured since childhood, looms ever larger ahead of me, demanding I take action: to dive in as full-time founder of my own independent game studio. The time is right, the plan is set, and in true indie fashion, the passion is unstoppable. The parachute, of course, is nonexistent, but those things are overrated."

Habitat will be playable at GDC 2014 from March 19 - 21, at GDC Play booth #100 in the North Hall. 4gency plans to launch a Kickstarter in April to fund development of Habitat.

Hands up folks, who wants to play a game that makes you feel awesome? That looks incredible? The game that has had my stomach doing somersaults, my right thumb hammering away for all it’s worth, and my brain pumping out adrenaline like Coca-Cola at a Justin Bieber concert? Strider is that game! Oh man Strider is that game. YES! If ‘it’ for you is 2D combat platformers that push every big red button at once, then Strider Is It! … [visit site to read more]

Spielberg made me afraid to go into the water, Hitchcock made me afraid to stand underneath the water and now I’m worried that Caffeine is going to make me afraid to add delicious coffee to the water. It’s a terrible state of affairs when a man can’t swim, wash or stay awake and focused for more than ten minutes, but that is the future I face. Caffeine has an odd plot: “You awaken aboard a caffeine mining space station to find yourself, a young boy seemingly all alone. The only thing you know for sure? Something bad has transpired here…” I’ve been to many abandoned space stations and it’s inevitable that bad things have either happened or are about to happen. But a caffeine mining station? That’s new. The trailer is a masterclass of audio design and reminds me of Moon’s environmental excellence.

… [visit site to read more]

Evolve didn't have classes when it started. Now the team may distribute class-based characters similar to LoL or Dota 2.