Figurines figure into Civ V Special Edition

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Ex-Ensemble devs working on new Microsoft project

Robot Entertainment announces new projects in the works--one to be published by former corporate masters.

When Ensemble Studios was shut down by owner Microsoft in September 2008, its staff splintered into several startup studios, including Windstorm and Bonfire. Now one of those spin-offs, Robot Entertainment, is making a new project for its former corporate masters.

On its official Web site, the nascent studio declared that "Robot Entertainment is currently hard at work on a new game. This game will be published by Microsoft Game Studios. Additional details have not yet been announced." The company also announced it is working on a second project for an unidentified publisher.

Though the company is staying mum on the games' genres, there are some indicators as to what they might be. Ensemble specialized in the real-time strategy genre and published some highly rated titles in the sector, including Age of Empires and Age of Mythology. Its last project was Halo Wars, although it also worked on the stillborn $90 million Halo massively multiplayer project.

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Blizzard rescinds naming policy

Blizzard nixes decision to require real names on forums just three days after it is made.

Earlier this week Blizzard Entertainment drew great debate from its engaged community over a new tweak to the Real ID service. The measure would require users to register with their real names, where they would be attached to forum postings beginning this month with Starcraft II.

Now you'll never know his name.

However, Blizzard has repealed that policy just three days after it was announced. In a post on the World of Warcraft forums, Blizzard CEO and cofounder Mike Morhaime explained the situation.

"I'd like to take some time to speak with all of you regarding our desire to make the Blizzard forums a better place for players to discuss our games," Morhaime said on the forums. "We've been constantly monitoring the feedback you've given us, as well as internally discussing your concerns about the use of real names on our forums. As a result of those discussions, we've decided at this time that real names will not be required for posting on official Blizzard forums."

The completely voluntary Real ID system, a service that allows friends to easily follow each other's activities is already live for World of Warcraft users and will launch with Starcraft II at the end of the month. Additionally, Blizzard plans to move forward with beefing up forums by implementing comment threading, improved search functionality, and the ability to up- or down-vote posts. The new forums will arrive near the release of Starcraft II this month and World of Warcraft's Cataclysm later this year.

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Star Wars: The Old Republic testing begins

BioWare opens sci-fi MMORPG's servers to select North American bug sleuthers in advance of PC game's spring 2011 launch.

In September 2009, a year after the game was officially announced, BioWare began accepting applications for Star Wars: The Old Republic's closed beta. Almost a year later, the gate has opened, and the developer is letting the first wave of volunteer testers get their hands on the game.

This could be you.

According to a post on SW: TOR's Web site, the game testing process is composed of several phases. The first waves, which BioWare says are "small" and "focused" tests, are limited to North American users. However, as the testing window progresses, it will open to "other territories."

Those interested in getting their hands on the Star Wars-flavored massively multiplayer online role-playing game can express their interest by registering with SW: TOR's community Web site. Additionally, those who are already members can travel to the Game Testing Portal and opt in for selection, though there is no guarantee for admittance into any of the testing periods. More information on The Old Republic's testing phase can be accessed at its FAQ page.

SW: TOR takes place approximately 300 years after the events of the original game but some 3,600 years before the events of LucasArts' quintessential films. Players can choose to align themselves with either side of the Force, taking on professions like the Sith warrior and bounty hunter for the dark side and the trooper and smuggler for the Galactic Republic.

Star Wars: The Old Republic is scheduled to be released on the PC during spring 2011. For more on the MMORPG, check out GameSpot's most recent preview, and the trooper and smuggler mission video (embedded below).

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Black Ops to sell 12 million - Analyst

Pacific Crest's Evan Wilson raises holiday quarter estimate for next Call of Duty game, but still predicts it to fall far short of Modern Warfare 2's sales pace.

Green and red may be the traditional Christmas colors, but this year's dominant shade could be black. Pacific Crest Securities analyst Evan Wilson today boosted his Call of Duty: Black Ops sales estimate for the holiday quarter to 12 million copies, up from his previous projection of 10 million.

Black Ops, white getup.

Citing his firm's retail contacts, Wilson said the preorders for the Treyarch-developed Black Ops are outpacing those of last year's megahit Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. The sentiment echoed comments from Activision CEO Robert Kotick made at a pre-Electronic Entertainment Expo analysts' meeting last month.

But where Kotick stressed that each entry in the Call of Duty series had outperformed its predecessor, Wilson believes Black Ops will break that trend. Wilson estimated that Modern Warfare 2 sold 16 million copies in the holiday quarter of 2009 and called that number unachievable for Black Ops, "due to competition, weaker marketing, and the Infinity Ward situation."

Infinity Ward, the studio that created the Call of Duty series and developed Modern Warfare 2, has been a center of turmoil within Activision this year. The problems surfaced with the March firings of cofounders Jason West and Vince Zampella. After their dismissal, the pair sued the company, which sued back, alleging they had been plotting to start a new studio with chief Activision rival Electronic Arts. Within weeks, West and Zampella did just that. A number of Infinity Ward developers jumped ship to join the new studio, dubbed Respawn Entertainment, while others simply resigned.

Set for release November 9, Black Ops will depict a number of Cold War-era covert operations in countries like Russia, Vietnam, and Cuba. The game represents new territory for the series, which has previously focused on more familiar World War II and modern-day settings.

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Civilization V sheds 20 staffers

Take-Two confirms layoffs at Sid Meier-led Firaxis studio but says upcoming strategy game, Civilization Network, not impacted.

Take-Two Interactive initiated a company-wide reorganization in February, but the publisher was adamant in saying that its efforts would not result in headcount reductions at its stable of studios. Unfortunately, layoffs have come anyway for at least one of Take-Two's developers, as the publisher confirmed for GameSpot today that it has reduced headcount at Sid Meier's Firaxis studio by about 20 staffers.

Firaxis continues to build away on Civilization V.

"I can confirm that Firaxis has realigned its development resources in order to streamline its development process, reduce costs, and maximize the overall performance of the studio," Take-Two global PR director Markus Wilding said in a statement. "This will result in the elimination of approximately 20 positions."

Acquired by Take-Two in 2005, Firaxis is perhaps best known for its turn-based strategy franchise Civilization. The studio's most recent installment, Civilization V, is slated to arrive for the PC on September 21. Already the game has garnered positive buzz, having picked up two nominations from the E3 Game Critics Awards and winning Best Strategy Game at the show.

Firaxis will also be bringing the Civilization franchise to Facebook in 2010. A multiplayer-centric installment, the Civilization Network sees Facebook friends sharing technology and coordinating strategy in battles. Players' friends will be able to participate in elections and help decide resource management, as well as assist in espionage or the construction of Wonders of the World.

As part of Take-Two's statement today, the publisher affirmed that neither project will be impeded by the recent round of layoffs. "These reductions will not impact Firaxis' ability to create and deliver AAA titles, including its forthcoming Sid Meier's Civilization V and Sid Meier's Civilization Network for Facebook," Wilding said.

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Dead Space 2 prequel igniting PS3, 360

Sumo Digital producing interactive comic book with minigames for release this fall on Xbox Live, PlayStation Network.

In March, Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter told investors that Electronic Arts was considering a plan to hype big games with what amounted to "very long game demos" that it would sell through downloadable services for $10 to $15. That plan is starting to take shape, as today EA announced Dead Space Ignition, a downloadable prequel to next year's Dead Space 2.

Donning a hermetically sealed suit is a minigame unto itself.

Described by the publisher as "an interactive comic-style story," Dead Space Ignition will play out like a Choose Your Own Adventure narrative with three different minigames. EA is codeveloping the title with Sumo Digital, the studio behind Sonic Sega All-Stars Racing, OutRun Online Arcade, and the episodic Doctor Who: The Adventure Games series.

Ignition will serve as a prequel to Dead Space 2, following Isaac Clarke in the hours before the space station known as The Sprawl is beset by a necromorph infestation. The game's story is being penned by Antony Johnston, who previously told stories in the Dead Space universe with a six-issue comic series released in 2008.

[SPOILER WARNING]

Dead Space 2 will be set three years after the events of the original, which saw deep-space engineer Isaac Clarke survive an onslaught of zombielike necromorphs on the deep-space mining ship USG Ishimura. The sequel will see Clarke attempt to purge The Sprawl of its necromorph problem, but this time, he'll do so with a new arsenal of dismembering weaponry.

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BioWare confirms Dragon Age 2

Previously announced new Dragon Age project will be a full sequel; sets March 2011 release window.

BioWare today confirmed that Dragon Age 2, a sequel to last year's hit action role-playing game Dragon Age: Origins, is in the works for a March 2011 release. That actually represents a slight delay for the game, as an insert into the packaging for Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening strongly hinted the sequel would arrive in North America next February.

Box art for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.

Dragon Age 2 is set over a 10-year period, according to BioWare. It will see the player transform Blight-survivor Hawke from "a destitute refugee to the revered champion of the land," with new combat mechanics for the game's three classes, as well as "an entirely new cinematic experience." As had previously been confirmed for the 2011 untitled project, Dragon Age 2 will be coming out for PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360.

Dragon Age: Origins shipped in November 2009 to critical acclaim and was followed in March of this year by the Awakening expansion pack. It also received a number of smaller paid-for downloadable content expansions.

BioWare has several major projects in the works in addition to Dragon Age II. The highly anticipated Star Wars: The Old Republic massively multiplayer online game is slated for release next year, and the firm still has to wrap up its sci-fi space opera trilogy with Mass Effect 3.

Dragon Age 2 has not yet been rated by the ESRB or PEGI.

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Blizzard Real ID system sparks controversy

World of Warcraft maker limiting forum posting, cross-game chat, other Battle.net features to those who sign up using their real names; user outcry thread tops 30,000 posts.

Blizzard boasts one of the largest and most engaged user communities of any developer in the world. The benefits of such a following are obvious, but the downside becomes similarly stark when the company runs afoul of its user base.

Grizzled space marine, real name: Quincy Featherbottom.

The company yesterday unveiled its new Real ID system, a service that allows friends to easily follow each other's activities in Blizzard games like World of Warcraft. It also introduces cross-game chat and social networking features that allow users to see not just their friends, but also their friends' friends.

However, Blizzard is requiring users to register for the service with their real names. And beginning with the Starcraft II message boards this month, the developer is changing its forums to require users to post under their Real ID names. Blizzard fans expressing privacy concerns--as well as those dismissing such worries--have flocked to the company's still-anonymous official forums, combining to produce more than 30,000 messages in a 1,500-pages-long thread.

"The official forums have always been a great place to discuss the latest info on our games, offer ideas and suggestions, and share experiences with other players," a Blizzard representative posted in a separate thread explaining the changes. "However, the forums have also earned a reputation as a place where flame wars, trolling, and other unpleasantness run wild. Removing the veil of anonymity typical to online dialogue will contribute to a more positive forum environment, promote constructive conversations, and connect the Blizzard community in ways they haven’t been connected before."

While the Starcraft II forums will undergo the switch to Real ID this month, other Blizzard forums will have some time before the switchover. The World of Warcraft forums are expected to require Real ID around the time of the Cataclysm expansion's launch later this year.

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Focus Home Interactive annexes Cities XL 2011

Publisher acquires city-building franchise, readies new version for release this fall.

Cities XL French developer Monte Cristo recently shut its doors, but not before selling the rights to its city-building franchise to an unspecified partner. The closure happened in May, and today, the acquiring party was revealed, with Focus Home Interactive announcing Cities XL 2011 for release this October.

A new developer, a new city.

In the title, players will assume the role of mayor of a virtual city and decide how its people and resources are to be managed.

The new installment will feature "hundreds" of new buildings and structures, 45 maps, and public transportation, including bus lines and subways. Additionally, the game's taxing system has been overhauled and now allows players to levy separate tax rates on persons and businesses. What's more, a new commerce tool will let gamers trade between cities in single-player mode.

In a statement, Focus Home Interactive expressed its commitment to the game's fan base following the closure of the original developer.

Those interested at getting a first glimpse at the new environments of Cities XL 2011 can check out the game's official Web site. For more on the original, check out GameSpot's Cities XL review.

[CORRECTION] This story originally stated that Cities XL 2011 would be out next October. The game is actually slated for release this October. GameSpot regrets the error.

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Metal Gear Solid 5 might be Kojima's 'next project'

Famed Konami designer says he has no option but to make sequel to top-rated action adventure or original game; Zone of the Enders follow-up "pushed into future."

In April, Kojima Productions head and Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima teased through his Japanese-language Twitter feed that his "next project will challenge a certain type of taboo." Unfortunately, Kojima has been less than forthcoming with more details about this mysterious work.

It's hard to say where things could go after MGS4.

This week, though, Kojima sat down with Hirokazu Hamamura, CEO of Famitsu publisher Enterbrain, and offered a host of cryptic comments concerning one, or more, of the designer's upcoming projects. As relayed by Andria Sang, Kojima began by talking up his "next project," saying that details have been largely firmed up, though "recently, it has wavered a bit."

Kojima told Hamamura that after returning from the Electronic Entertainment Expo in June, he experienced a change of heart. "I'm not sure myself, but I began to want to do something different from what I'd wanted to do originally," he said.

Delving deeper into the specific nature of this project, Kojima said that the game will either be entirely new or Metal Gear Solid 5. "For the next game I make, it's either MGS5 or an original game. I only have these two choices," he said. His indecision notwithstanding, Kojima noted that the game's engine is already up and running, and that he has allocated his key personnel to the project.

It seems clear that the game will not be a new installment in the Zone of the Enders franchise, a speculated frontrunner following interest expressed by Kojima in October. "Regarding [Zone of the Enders] and so-forth, sorry--those will be pushed a bit into the future. I'm 47 this year, and I don't know when something might happen."

As for when the game would release and on which platforms, Kojima said, "It can't take three years," calling out the accelerated pace of game development in the West. He went on to say that the game is being created for unspecified consoles.

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Realtime Worlds reorgs around APB

Scottish developer staffs up just-launched online shooter at the expense of as-yet-unannounced MMOG, "small number" of layoffs confirmed.

Realtime Worlds brought its large-scale online shooter APB to market last week, nearly five and a half years after its storied development timeline entered the public eye. And while neither Realtime Worlds nor the game's publisher, Electronic Arts, has yet to indicate how many online gamers have answered APB's call, the Scottish developer is following the launch with a round of restructuring.

Realtime Worlds continues to staff up APB.

Today, Realtime Worlds announced that it would be realigning its some 300 employees into roles that provide ongoing support for APB. As part of this restructuring, Realtime Worlds noted that more staff would be positioned behind the game, but that an unspecified, "small number" of positions would be eliminated. The studio also said that it would continue to hire for positions related to post-launch roles on APB.

Realtime World's layoffs are largely related to a downscaling of an as-yet-unannounced second development project. In June 2009, Grand Theft Auto creator and Realtime Worlds' cofounder Dave Jones said that his studio planned to announce a new massively multiplayer online game in 2010. According to Jones, the game was the first in production at his nascent studio, but due to the "ambitious" scope of the project, Realtime Worlds opted to launch APB first.

For more on APB, check out GameSpot's Review in Progress blog for the game.

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EA sending FIFA 11 on in September

Gamers in the US get the soccer sim on most platforms September 28; European and Asian fans will have to wait until October 1.

FIFA 11 will be released from September 28, EA announced today. The soccer sim will be released in the US on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, DS, and PSP for the end of September, while European gamers will have to wait until the end of that week when the game hits their territories on October 1, when the Wii version will also be available. North American owners of Nintendo's console will have to wait until October 4 to waggle their way onto the pitch, however.

EA is yet to reveal what 'Yersion' means.

FIFA 11 will be the second entry in the football franchise to come out in 2010. 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa came out at the end of April in time for the buildup to the international tournament of the same name that is now coming to its conclusion. The game has sold well, keeping its position in the top five of the UK all-formats chart since release.

EA also announced that FIFA 11 will feature advanced player customisation options on the PS3 and Xbox 360. A Web-based application will allow players to create their own footballers and then import them into the game. The application will also allow for the creation of club kits and stadia for these custom-made players, as well as saving tactics for them that can then be imported into the game on consoles.

This ties in with the previously announced overhaul of the game's statistics system, dubbed Personality+ that EA claims will allow for closer modelling of players and their individual styles of play. FIFA 11 is being developed by EA Canada and has not yet been rated by PEGI or the ESRB.

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Gamers swayed by review scores - Study

EEDAR study finds gamers more likely to like, buy, recommend a high-quality title if first exposed to critics' thumbs-up.

Gaming executives often emphasize the importance of a game's critical reception, and a new study by Electronic Entertainment Design and Research and the Sothern Methodist University offers one reason why. The study, which measured how game reviews affect perception of quality, purchase intent, and likelihood to recommend to others, found that positive scores can dramatically elevate a high-quality game in the mind of consumers.

Plants vs. Zombies won the hearts, and ate the minds, of critics.

Conducted in conjunction with SMU during the week of March 29, the study involved 188 participants (23 of which were disqualified as inappropriate for the research). The study made use of Plants vs. Zombies, a highly regarded tower defense-style strategy game that participants had no prior knowledge of. Participants were divided up into three groups, with the first initially exposed to high-scoring reviews before participating in a 20-minute play session. The process was repeated with a group who were shown low review scores and a control group who was shown no review scores before its play sessions.

Following the play session, participants were tasked with providing a numerical score to the game on a 100-point scale, as well as selecting whether they'd prefer to receive $10 in cash or a copy of the game as recompense for their time. The study's results found that those who were shown a high review score on average rated the game six points higher than the control group and 14 points higher than the group shown negative scores.

"Even with first-hand experience of time spent playing the game, those exposed to high review scores give the game a higher review and those exposed to low review scores gave the game a lower score," the study noted. "Clearly, this initial review exposure influenced their opinion, even after they played the game themselves."

The data also indicated that 38 percent of those shown high review scores took a copy of the game over the $10 payment. That figure dropped to 21 percent who took the game from the control group and 17 percent from the negative-score group.

"The findings of this study indicate that critic reviews, independent of product quality, significantly influenced participants' willingness to purchase the product," the study found. "As painful as it may be for developers to consider, even with the creation of a high quality game, a game is likely to achieve greater commercial success if reviewed highly, than if reviewed poorly or not at all."

Continuing the trend, those shown a high review score also said they would be more likely to recommend Plants vs. Zombies to a friend. Ninety-one percent of those shown high review scores said they'd recommend the game, whereas only 65 percent of the negative-score group and 79 percent of the control group said they would.

"The most surprising result is Group B (low review exposure), where the majority (65 percent) indicated they would still recommend the game to a friend even though 73 percent of the group would not purchase it themselves’Group B's review score was higher than the anchored review score of 61, indicating that, while reviews influenced their behavior, they still felt that the game was much better than what the 'experts' suggested. This suggests that if a company releases an inherently good game that receives lower than 'deserved' review scores, the company may be able to increase sales through a widely played demo."

As for other real-world applications, EEDAR's study noted that publishers could be well served to offer select media outlets a period to review a game prior to release, for the purpose of selecting choice critique for use on box art. However, the study notes that this method would only work if the prerelease review process remained untainted and that the game itself is of a high degree of quality. These blurbs could also be used in game demos, as well as other marketing campaigns.

EEDAR also said that its conclusions only apply for those games regarded by professional critics as high quality. The market research firm noted that a variety of other factors could contribute to a game's success, or lack thereof, including "marketing, pricing, release timing, and brand awareness."

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Rage, 3DS top Game Critics' E3 Awards

Postapocalyptic combat racer takes home three awards, but Nintendo's new handheld walks off with Best of Show.

With the 2010 Electronic Entertainment Expo over and done with, the Game Critics Awards winners have surfaced. The committee gave three accolades to id Software's Rage, but top honors went to Nintendo's new portable.

Best of Show went to the 3DS, Nintendo's innovative portable that supports 3D without the need for glasses. The device also won the Best Hardware honor, beating out Sony's PlayStation Move for the PlayStation 3 and Microsoft's full-body gesture recognition tech for the Xbox 360, Kinect.

The 3DS certainly popped out at critics.

Prior to voting, id Software's Rage led the nomination pack with five nods, including Best of Show, Best Original Game, Best Console Game, Best PC game, and best Action game. Rage turned in three of those nominations, securing the Best Console Game, Best Action Game, and Special Commendation for Graphics.

Electronic Arts led all competing publishers with four awards: Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (Best Racing Game), Rock Band 3 (Best Social/Casual Game), Star Wars: The Old Republic (Best Role-Playing Game), and NBA Jam (Best Sports Game). The closest competing publisher to EA was Bethesda with three awards (all from Rage).

The Game Critics Awards are doled out by a cross section of 31 mainstream and enthusiast gaming media outlets, with the panel of judges hailing from such online and print publications as GameSpot, Wired, USA Today, and others. To qualify for an award, the game must be shown in a playable form running on its native platform.

A full list of nominees is below, with winners highlighted in bold.

Best of Show
Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)
Disney's Epic Mickey (Junction Point/Disney Interactive Studios for Wii)
Portal 2 (Valve for PC / Mac, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Nintendo 3DS (Nintendo)

Best Original Game
Bulletstorm (People Can Fly/Epic Games/Electronic Arts for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Child of Eden (Q Entertainment/Ubisoft for PS3, Xbox 360)
Disney's Epic Mickey (Junction Point/Disney Interactive Studios for Wii)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)

Best Console Game
Disney's Epic Mickey (Junction Point/Disney Interactive Studios for Wii)
InFamous 2 (Sucker Punch/Sony Computer Entertainment for PS3)
Kirby's Epic Yarn (Good-Feel/Nintendo for Wii)
Portal 2 (Valve for PC / Mac, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)

Best Handheld Game
Ghost Trick (Capcom for Nintendo DS)
Okamiden (Capcom for Nintendo DS)
SuperScribblenauts (5TH Cell/WBIE for Nintendo DS)
Valkyria Chronicles 2 (Sega for PSP)
God of War: Ghost of Sparta (Ready at Dawn/Sony Santa Monica for PSP)

Best PC Game
Civilization V (Firaxis/2K Games)
Crysis 2 (CryTek/Electronic Arts)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda)
Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts/EA)
Portal 2 (Valve)

Best Hardware
Kinect (Microsoft for Xbox 360)
Move (Sony for PlayStation 3)
Rock Band 3 Pro Guitars (Harmonix/MTV Games/Mad Catz)
Rock Band 3 Keyboard (Harmonix/MTV Games/Mad Catz)
Nintendo 3DS (Nintendo)

Best Action Game
Bulletstorm (People Can Fly/Epic Games/Electronic Arts for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Call of Duty: Black Ops (TreyArch/Activision for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Gears of War 3 (Epic Game/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)
Halo: Reach (Bungie/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)
Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)

Best Action/Adventure Game
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Dead Space 2 (Visceral Games/Electronic Arts for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Disney's Epic Mickey (Junction Point/Disney Interactive Studios for Wii)
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Nintendo EAD/Nintendo for Wii)
Portal 2 (Valve for PC / Mac, PS3 and Xbox 360)

Best Role-Playing Game
Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Eidos Montreal/Square Enix for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
Fable III (Lionhead/Microsoft Game Studios for PC and Xbox 360)
Fallout: New Vegas (Obsidian/Bethesda for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings (CD Projekt RED STUDIO/Atari for PC)
Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts/EA for PC)

Best Fighting Game
Mortal Kombat (NetherRealm/WBIE for PS3 and Xbox 360)
WWE All Stars (THQ San Diego/THQ for PS3 and Xbox 360)
Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (Capcom for PS3 and Xbox 360)

Best Racing Game
Gran Turismo 5 (Polyphony Digital/Sony Computer Entertainment for PS3)
MotorStorm: Apocalypse (Evolution Studios/Sony Computer Entertainment for PS3)
Test Drive Unlimited 2 (Eden Games/Atari for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)
Need for Speed Hot Pursuit (Criterion Games/Electronic Arts for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)

Best Sports Game
EA Sports MMA (EA Tiburon/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
Madden NFL 11 (EA Tiburon/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
NCAA Football 11 (EA Tiburon/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
NHL 11 (EA Canada/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
NBA Jam (EA Canada/EA Sports for Wii)

Best Strategy Game
Company of Heroes Online (Relic/THQ for PC)
End of Nations (Petroglyph/Trion Worlds for PC)
Shogun 2: Total War (The Creative Assembly/Sega for PC)
Civilization V (Firaxis/2K Games for PC)

Best Social/Casual Game
Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)
DJ Hero 2 (FreeStyle Games/Activision for PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)
Kinect Adventures (Good Science Studio/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)
Rock Band 3 (Harmonix/MTV Games/Electronic Arts for PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)

Best Motion Simulation Game
Child of Eden (Q Entertainment/Ubisoft for PS3 and Xbox 360)
Socom 4 (Zipper/Sony Computer Entertainment for PS3)
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Nintendo EAD/Nintendo for Wii)
Your Shape: Fitness Evolved (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for Xbox 360)
Dance Central (Harmonix/MTV Games/Microsoft for Xbox 360)

Best Online Multiplayer
Gears of War 3 (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)
Halo Reach (Bungie/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)
Medal of Honor (EALA/DICE/EA for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts/EA for PC)
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360)

Special Commendation for Graphics
Rage (id Software/Bethesda for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)

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Shippin' Out July 4-10: Crackdown 2

Independence Day arrives with a fizzle, as Ruffian Games' 360-exclusive open-world actioner joins High Voltage's Wii-only Tournament of Legends, and not much else.

Fireworks may be the name of the game on the 4th of July, but the US game industry's release lineup for the week is anything but scintillating. The dearth of releases is headlined by Microsoft's sequel to 2007's open-world action adventure Crackdown, as well as the latest Wii exclusive from High Voltage Software.

Pacific City has suffered a mutated zombie outbreak.

Microsoft packed in access to Bungie's Halo 3 multiplayer with the original Crackdown, but Ruffian Games' effort in the franchise won't feature an added sales stimulus. Crackdown 2 takes its cue from the end of the original game, when members of a federal crime-busting task force unknowingly unleashed a virus onto the metropolis where the game is set. The game features online cooperative play for up to four, as well as competitive modes for up to 16 gamers.

The Conduit developer High Voltage returns this week with Tournament of Legends, which is exclusive to the Wii. A fantasy-focused 3D fighter, the game pits players against a range of mythological monsters, such as a minotaur, gorgon, or golem. The fantasy focus follows through to the fights themselves, as players will be able to cast magic and summon assistance from the likes of man-eating lions and venomous snakes in their fights.

With Illumination Entertainment's debut animated film Despicable Me heading to the box office this Friday, D3 Publisher has a game tie-in on tap. To be released for the PlayStation 2, PSP, Wii, and DS, the family-friendly action/puzzle hybrid drops players into the soft-soled shoes of supervillain Gru, who schemes to become the world's most renowned crook.

For further details on the week's games, visit GameSpot's New Releases page. The full list of downloadable games on the PlayStation Store, Xbox Live Marketplace, and Wii Shop Channel will be revealed later in the week. Release dates are based on retailer listings and are subject to change.

SUNDAY, JULY 4
No new releases announced.

MONDAY, JULY 5
No new releases announced.

TUESDAY, JULY 6
2-for-1 Power Pack: Winter Blast/Summer Sports 2--WII--Destineer
Big Beach Sports 2--WII--THQ
The Cages: Pro Style Batting Practice--WII--Konami
Crackdown 2--X360--Microsoft Game Studios
Despicable Me--PS2, PSP, WII, DS--D3 Publisher
Fallen Earth: Blood Sports--PC--Atari
Just Sing with Microphone--DS--Conspiracy Entertainment
Nursery Mania--DS--Zoo Games
Rise of Flight: Iron Cross Edition--PC--777 Studios
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Portable--PSP--Atlus Co.
Sniper: Ghost Warrior--PC--Navarre
Tournament of Legends--WII--Sega

WEDNESDAY, JULY 7
Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck's Revenge--X360, PS3, PC--LucasArts

THURSDAY, JULY 8
Mahjong: Journey Quest for Tikal--DS--Mumbo Jumbo

FRIDAY, JULY 9
No new releases announced.

SATURDAY, JULY 10
The Silver Lining - Episode 1: What Is Decreed Must Be--PC--Activision

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Activision CEO wants to break console 'walled garden'

Publisher head laments lack of income from online console games such as Modern Warfare 2; will strongly support new PC-based hardware designed to connect straight to TVs.

Activision Blizzard CEO Robert Kotick is certainly not afraid to speak his mind. Last year, the executive made blunt threats to drop support for the PlayStation 3 and the PSP unless Sony made cuts to the hardware's price. He also earned the ire of many gamers after stating at a conference in 2009 that he wanted to "take all the fun out of making video games." Kotick also predicted a future independent of game consoles, a statement he reiterated over the weekend in an interview with business news organisation The Financial Times.

Activision Blizzard CEO Robert Kotick.

In the FT interview, Kotick lamented the fact that despite the strong sales of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the publisher saw no additional revenue from the game's continuing popularity on console online environments like Xbox Live. "We've heard that 60 percent of [Microsoft's] subscribers are principally on Live because of Call of Duty," Kotick told FT. "We don't really participate financially in that income stream. We would really like to be able to provide much more value to those millions of players playing on Live, but it's not our network."

The Activision CEO said the company would "very aggressively" support new gaming hardware being planned by the likes of HP and Dell to better integrate PCs with TVs, saying this would break the Xbox 360 and PS3's "walled gardens with new gamer-friendly PCs, designed to be plugged into the television. PCs have long been used for online play, but PC gaming remains niche when the games industry needs to widen its appeal."

"We have always been platform agnostic," Kotick said. "[Consoles] do a very good job of supporting the gamer. If we are going to broaden our audiences, we are going to need to have other devices."

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Mythic Entertainment folded into BioWare

EA confirms Warhammer Online studio given new "BioWare Mythic" name; no development changes indicated.

About this time last year, Electronic Arts tweaked its organizational structure to lump BioWare and Mythic Entertainment into a newly formed massively multiplayer online/role-playing game group. The move put BioWare heads Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk atop the pyramid, while longtime Mythic boss and cofounder Mark Jacobs departed the company. Now, EA has taken one more step toward folding the two studios together, confirming for GameSpot today that Mythic Entertainment has been renamed BioWare Mythic.

Mythic just got some new group mates.

The move comes as Mythic continues to struggle gaining traction with its big-budget fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. Having received solid reviews following its September 2008 launch, Warhammer Online initially appeared to be on a World of Warcraft-challenging trajectory. Three weeks after launch, the game peaked at 750,000 registered users, but that figure had dwindled to just 300,000 by February 2009. EA has not offered an updated subscriber count since then.

In March 2009, Mythic announced that it would be taking 63 of the game's servers offline in an effort to consolidate the evaporating player base. Mythic was also reportedly heavily affected by EA's substantial headcount reduction enacted at the end of 2009. According to unconfirmed reports, more than one-third of the studio was laid off as part of EA's 1,500-job culling.

Mythic's new status as a BioWare studio makes it the second MMORPG-focused outfit within the Edmonton, Canada-based developer's structure. The other studio, BioWare Austin, is currently at work on EA's next big effort to crack the MMORPG market, Star Wars: The Old Republic. That title is currently slated for a 2011 launch on the PC.

EA did not indicate whether Mythic's role within the company would change or whether the rebranding would affect Warhammer Online.

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Need for Speed World open beta revs up

Free-to-play online racer enters four-day public beta ahead of its full release.

With less than three weeks separating today from Need for Speed World's July 20 release date, Electronic Arts is using the time to hammer out the massively multiplayer online racer's final kinks today by opening its beta for all.

The beta kicked off today at 10 a.m. PDT and allows gamers to get behind the virtual wheel and check out what those who got into the closed beta experienced. Those interested in jumping into the game can sign up at World.NeedForSpeed.com and hop into the action when the servers go live.

The tracks are about to get more populated.

Need for Speed World is currently in development at EA Black Box in Vancouver, Canada. It is EA's first online-only racing title and is free to play until level 10. For those seeking a deeper experience, EA will also offer the Need for Speed World Starter Pack, which costs $20. Inside the digital wrapping are access to level 50, a Toyota Corolla AE86 vehicle exclusive to the pack, and $20 worth of speedboost (NFS World's in-game currency). Starter Pack purchasers also receive a discount on power-ups, double experience point periods, and rental cars.

NFS World has 150 miles of in-game road to traverse, including NFS: Most Wanted's Rockport locale and NFS: Carbon's Palmont city streets, as well as a full day/night cycle. For more on the game, check out GameSpot's latest preview.

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Dead Rising 2 passes Aussie censors

Zombie sequel makes it through Classification Board unscathed; set for local release on September 30.

Things didn't go so well the last time the undead tried to invade Australian gamers in a major way. Last year, Left 4 Dead 2 was initially banned by the Australian Classification board, before a toned-down, largely bloodless version was resubmitted and eventually passed with an MA15+ rating. Back then, the Classification board blamed the game's high level of violence for the banning, stating in a report that "whether the objects of the violence were fictional or real, and whether a 15-year-old could discern the difference, is largely irrelevant where the game displays the level of realism this one does."

Another game where you can mow down legions of zombies has now passed through the Classification Board unscathed: Dead Rising 2. The upcoming Capcom sequel has been tagged with an MA15+ rating--the highest available for a game in Australia--with a consumer warning that it comes with strong horror violence, blood and gore, and sexual references. According to a statement from Capcom's Australian distributor THQ, Dead Rising 2 has not been edited in any way for release Down Under.

In Dead Rising 2, new protagonist Chuck Greene has to battle his way through the thousands of zombies he's trapped with in the Las Vegas-like Fortune City. One of the main new features of the game is the ability to create new weapons from different components Chuck collects in the gameworld, including a vacuum cleaner filled with circular saw blades, a giant paddle with chainsaws attached to each end, and more. Dead Rising 2 is set for release on September 30.

For more on video game classification in Australia, check out GameSpot AU's Aussie Games Classification FAQ feature.

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