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GameSpy Technologies is shuttering its online matchmaking service on May 31, ending online play for more than 1,000 games that use the company's middleware.

Launched as a Quake server search program in 1996, GameSpy soon branched out to host online play for hundreds of console and PC games. Many recent games with active online communities still employ GameSpy technology, including multiple titles published by Activision, Electronic Arts, Capcom, Sega, and Nintendo. Affected games will need to migrate online play to SteamWorks or other services prior to the shutdown in order to maintain multiplayer functionality.

The service shutdown comes in the wake of GameSpy ceasing editorial content in 2013. Mobile games publisher Glu Mobile purchased GameSpy Technologies in 2012, later shutting down online play for several popular games without notice when developers failed to pay hosting bills.

[Image: GameSpy]

The Dark Knight's greatest enemy may not be the central antagonist of the next Batman video game but that doesn't mean you can't hear Mark Hamill do his rendition of the Joker anymore. This Clown Prince of Crime? He literally poops on Batman. Thanks, Robot Chicken!Read more...

Deadspin Your Field Guide To WrestleMania XXX | Gizmodo 9 Ingenious Urban Hacks To Make the City Smarter | io9 10 Shocking Ways the Second World War Could Have Ended Differently | Lifehacker Your Quarterly Jailbreak Roundup, April 2014 | Kinja Popular Posts Read more...

Aww. Now I can't stop thinking about cosplay couples growing old together, never feeling too old to hit the convention circuit to share their love of dressing up as their favorite characters.Read more...

Win a Titanfall Xbox One Bundle! Titanfall Xbox 360 releases early thanks to retailers & five-year-old boy uncovers Xbox security flaw. Plus, Doom beta coming to PS4, Xbox One & PC only.

Nobuo Uematsu loves indies—the famed composer best known for his work on the Final Fantasy series is going to work on the upcoming strategy game Defender's Quest 2. Cool!Read more...

In a game where you're hiding in the dark, sound might be all that keeps you alive.

We question whether Nintendo has finally turned a dark corner, ruminate over the lessons of Threes, and discuss the week's big news.

We question whether Nintendo has finally turned a dark corner, ruminate over the lessons of Threes, and discuss the week's big news.

The Elder Scrolls Online is now available on PC and Mac, and Bethesda offered up a new trailer today to prove it. The game will arrive on PS4 and Xbox One in June, but those looking to pick up the MMO today should keep our starter guide on hand.

Now that the PS4, Xbox One and Wii U are all out, you'd think it's the perfect time to dive into games on the PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii. Games on those systems are typically cheaper and there are a ton of worthwhile titles released for them already, many of which are already in our backlogs, just waiting for us to tackle them. It's the sort of situation that should make waiting for the PS4 and Xbox One to fill up with must-buy titles less painful for all of us early adopters......except that's not actually what is happening.Read more...

Is that you, Tex Murphy? It remains amazing to me that in this, the year of our lord 2014 AD, we are getting a new Tex Murphy game. But we are, thanks largely to the magic of Kickstarter. Tesla Effect: A Tex Murphy Adventure launches on April 22 on Steam and GoG, and I will play the heck out of it. Here's a new launch trailer loaded with rich, delicious FMV cheese.Read more...

Mojang's sandbox build-'em-up Minecraft remains a popular favorite on the Xbox 360, surpassing 12 million units sold as of this month.

"It is pretty amazing!" Mojang's Daniel Kaplan stated in response to the latest sales milestone. "I remember when we started talking about sales numbers that we would be super happy to sell 1 million copies. That would have put us on par with [Battlefield 1943] and Castle Crashers, which both are awesome games, so that was something to aim for. We never even dreamed of selling 12 million!"

Minecraft previously topped 10 million sales in December last year. Mojang and development partner 4J Studios will continue to update Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition with new content in the coming months, including a Candy Texture Pack due to launch on April 18.

[Image: Mojang]

The beta for the new Doom game will be available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC only.

You'll find today's full list of game deals after the jump, including Lego City Undercover (Wii U) for $39.99 and Harvest Moon DS: Sunshine Islands for $14.95!

Read the rest of the story...

And this trailer just put the biggest, dumbest grin on my face.

And this trailer just put the biggest, dumbest grin on my face.

A young boy from San Diego discovered a way to log into Xbox Live accounts without using the proper password, but instead of using this knowledge for evil, Kristoffer Von Hassel turned his exploit over to Microsoft.

According to a report from local ABC affiliate KGTV, the 5-year-old Von Hassel discovered a mind-numbingly simple trick to get around the Xbox Live password verification service. Von Hassel claims that he simply failed the first password check, then was able to trick the second password verification screen by filling its text entry field with blank spaces. Fear of punishment drove Von Hassel to explain to his father what he'd done, but instead of being angry, his father, who works in computer security, was impressed and contacted Microsoft to share the boy's ingenious findings.

In a statement following the precocious breach of Xbox Live security, Microsoft issued the following statement, "We're always listening to our customers and thank them for bringing issues to our attention. We take security seriously at Xbox and fixed the issue as soon as we learned about it." According to KGTV, Microsoft has awarded Kristoffer Von Hassel a one-year Xbox Live Gold membership as well as four games for his efforts. [Image: Microsoft]

Earlier this week, Square Enix boss Yosuke Matsuda said some things that left a whole lot of RPG fans scratching their heads.Read more...

Matthew Wegner is working on a cool-looking game, but in his free time, he built an actual physical robot that plays Threes, the puzzle game that we're obsessed with. You can watch it playing live on Twitch right here.Read more...

Currently in alpha, Gang Beasts is free to download and you should grab it right now. It’s a surprisingly nuanced multiplayer beat ‘em up that combines playgrounds packed with perilous physics and a control scheme that makes combat a sequence of shoving, grappling and tripping over your own fists. Rounds often come to a halt as the last Beasts standing collapse into a meat grinder together, unsure who is pushing toward and who is pulling away.

It’s already a wonderful game, both hilarious and intelligently designed, but rather than simply praising its silliness, I’ve been thinking about how the whole thing works and why it’s satisfying, while also looking at the possibilities that the future of jelly-combat holds.

… [visit site to read more]

Titanfall on Xbox 360 will be "the true experience"

Renegade Kid unveils a new survival-horror game set in a small western Texas town.

A portion of a GamesRadar review...

+Dense, dark and engaging story
+Looks and sounds fantastic
+Seeing characters interact is a joy
-Abundance of hint coins can make things easy
-The puzzles are Layton’s least taxing to date

Professor Layton Vs. Phoenix Wright - GamesRadar review here

Though dedicated fans have been scouring every inch of Battlefield 4 since its debut last October, no one has yet offered real evidence of the existence of the gigantic Megalodon within EA's shooter - until now.

The footage above comes courtesy of YouTube user "jackfrags" who lays out simple instructions on how to spawn the giant beast within your own Battlefield 4 match. First, you must be playing on the Nansha Strike map which was included with the recent Naval Strike DLC pack. Second, you must find nine other willing players to swim with you out to a specific buoy near the main island. Third, you must all be comfortable with having a giant, supposedly extinct sea creature crush you with its massive bulk.

If that sounds like too much work, just watch that clip again. You won't get the thrill of virtually being there, but it's the only way to really appreciate the inexplicable yet undeniably impressive explosion that accompanies the Megalodon crashing back into the sea. [Image: EA]

We have something that many of you have been looking forward to. And boy, have you been looking forward to it.

This time around, let’s see if we can get you prepared for the beta with all the important questions and answers. If you have any more questions regarding the beta, please feel free to ask in the comments! I’ll do my best to answer them.

Here you’ll find pretty much all of the questions and comments that came up during the first beta phase, with according relevant answers. You can find the following points below:

• When does the beta start?
• What do I need to play the beta?
• Where can I download the beta client?
• Can I carry my character over to the live game after the beta test?
• Can I play my existing character?
• Can I play my existing character (previous beta 1)?
• Do I play on beta servers? Will I see other players?
• Why can’t I create a character on server X?
• I participated in beta 1, and the text was really small. Was that fixed?
• I can’t log in with my existing account!
• Do I need a one-time password to log in?
• I did not get my confirmation mail!
• How can I contact the support center (for account related problems)?
• Can I share a live stream or screenshots from the game?
• Can I use Mouse & Keyboard instead of, or in addition to, DualShock 4?
• Can I play using Remote Play on PS Vita?
• Is the game subscription-based?
• I love it! Where can I pre-order Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn?

When does the beta start?

Beta phase 2 starts today, April 4th, and runs until Monday, April 7th.

What do I need to play the beta?

All you need is a PS4! Some of you may still have the old beta client installed – you can safely delete it to free up hard disk space. We know it’s a big download, but there have been a lot of updates, so updating the old client didn’t make much sense. The good news is: If you buy the game after playing beta 2, you won’t need to download the full game again.  A few small updates and you’ll be up and running in the full game!

Where can I download the beta client?

Just log into your account, go into PlayStation Store, and select Games -> Top Games – you will see it in the list. Alternatively, you can search for Final Fantasy XIV – the beta client will be among the results. (Remember that you can safely uninstall/delete the beta 1, if you still have the old beta client on your PS4, to free up disc space.)

Can I carry my character over to the live game?

Yes! If you decide to buy the game, you can continue playing with your character from beta 2.

Can I play with my existing character?

Yes! Simply log in on PS4 with your usual account details and link your Square Enix Account to your PlayStation Network account (unless you have already played on PS3, then you just need to accept the terms for your existing account). You will be able to play normally.

Can I play my existing character (previous beta 1)?

No – as explained before the first beta, characters that have been created during that phase had to be wiped.

Do I play on beta servers? Will I see other players?

This beta phase will take place on live servers! Which means you will be playing together with all the existing FFXIV players on PC and PS3.

Why can’t I create a character on server X?

During the beta, there will be a massive amount of new players. If too many want to start on the same server at the same time, we might have to temporarily disable character creation on that server to make sure that the game continues to be enjoyable for all players on the server. If you are determined to play on a specific server, you will have to wait for it to open up again.

I participated in the beta 1, and the text was really small. Was that fixed?

We have worked on the size of the launcher as well as the size of the in-game text. Please give it a try. And remember that you can resize and move UI elements at will (see how-to here). We will continue to optimize these settings in future updates. If you still think it’s too small, please let us know on the official beta forums!

I can’t log in with my existing account!

We know the service names are quite similar, and many of you already have a Square Enix membership, where you link your existing games. FFXIV, however, needs a separate Square Enix Account. So please do not try to log in with your Square Enix membership, as it won’t work. Please note: Our account system is also case sensitive!

We know the text entry tool sometimes likes to disfigure things like email addresses (for instance .Com instead of .com). Please make sure to mind capitals in your username and email address when creating an account. If you still can’t log in, please contact our customer support here (North America).

Do I need a one-time password to log in?

A one-time password is generated by a free smartphone app or a small keychain fob. Only users that have previously added this as an extended security measure will need to enter it.

If you buy the Collector’s Edition, you will get a keychain fob in it. Otherwise, just download the smartphone app for free. Everyone that has registered a one-time password device to his account will be able to select a free teleport location in-game. More info here.

I did not get my confirmation mail!

Please let us know in the comments if you do not get your confirmation mail, and make sure to mention which email provider you use (Gmail, GMX, Yahoo, etc.) and if your email address contains any special characters (like underscores, hyphens, commas, dots, etc., or country/language-specific characters). Please do not post your full email address or any identifying information!

Also, please make sure to check your spam folders and add *@account.square-enix.com to any whitelist you may have, if you are familiar with that process.

How can I contact the support center (for account related problems)?

Just check out our convenient chat support tool (North America). Please try to have all relevant information ready before you start the chat though, to keep waiting times short – the beta weekend will probably be very busy. Thank you!

Can I share a live stream or screenshots from the game?

Yes! By all means, go ahead.

Can I use Mouse & Keyboard instead of, or in addition to, DualShock 4?

Yes! You can play the game however you want.

Can I play using Remote Play on PS Vita?

Yes! Someone wants to watch a football game on the TV? Just grab your Vita and continue to level your character remotely.

Is the game subscription-based?

Yes. You get 30 free days of game time when you buy a retail version. You can learn everything about what you get with your subscription in this article, here on PlayStation.Blog!

I love it! Where can I pre-order the game?

Just follow this link.

And that’s it! If you have any other questions, feel free to put them into the comments and I’ll do my best to answer them.