Publisher: Zachtronic Industries
Developer: Zachtronic Industries
System requirements: Windows XP SP3/Vista/Win 7/Mac OSX 10.5.8 (Leopard), 2.0 GHz CPU, graphics card with frame buffer support, 1 GB RAM, 300 MB hard-drive space
Genre: Puzzle
ESRB rating: Not rated
Release date: Available now

SpaceChem doesn’t seem to have a lot going for it. It’s a simple-looking 2D game about programming machines to build molecules. Yet, under this unassuming surface lies a game of such seething excitement that it’ll have you shouting and yelling more than when you play an FPS. I myself spoke such dark utterances that Khorne himself shivered. How can a science-themed puzzle game go so right?

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Developer THQ has announced its list of upcoming releases. Sneaking out first on February 17 is UFC Undisputed 3. Then comes the company’s fiscal 2013 slate, which includes Darksiders II in June, South Park: The Game and a new WWE title in Q3, and Metro: Last Light and The Devil’s Third in Q4. In 2014 and beyond, THQ plans to release an unnamed game from Turtle Rock, inSANE from Volition, Homefront 2 (Crytek), the new game from Patrice Désilets’ THQ Montreal, and Dark Millennium Online, which will be completed with the aid of a “partner,” company boss Brian Farrell has revealed. On top of these, THQ has four unannounced core games in development for release in fiscal 2014.

Publisher: Paradox Interactive
Developer: Ino-co Plus
System requirements: TBA
Genre: Strategy
ESRB rating: Everyone 10+
Release date: Q2 2012

In 1994, Simtex released a 4X game entitled Master of Magic. Like every similar RTS at the time, it initially looked like a Civilization clone. Despite initial bugs, it was far more then just Civ with spells, and it quickly became a strategy classic. A few games have tried to capture its spark since, most infamously 2010’s Elemental, but none of them have quite made it. Unwilling to let such a great spirit languor in DOS emulators, Paradox Interactive is giving MoM a modern body in the form of Warlock: Master of the Arcane. The details are so enticing it might cause your carpal tunnel to flair up in anticipation.

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If you have set aside your February 7 to relax with your favorite Ubisoft games, you might want to rethink your plans. According to Eurogamer, most of the developer’s games will be unplayable or otherwise impacted when the company starts the process of moving its game servers. Some of the games that will go totally dark include HAWX II and The Settlers 7 (PC), and Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell: Conviction (Mac). Console games and certain PC titles (Assassin’s Creed: Revelations and Driver: San Francisco) will be unaffected by the move, but all games that require Uplay authentication will be unplayable. No word was offered on how long the work will take to complete.

After dozens of hours in the province of Skyrim, I’ve done a lot. I’ve plundered tombs, slain dragons. I’ve picked a point in the landscape and gone there, full of manly purpose. I’ve listened to many personal stories and stuck my mailed fist of intervention into more then a few faces. Though my adventuring might someday come to an end, it will never truly find a conclusion. Yet, through all of it, I have reached one conclusion:

I like Fallout: New Vegas better.

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Another MMO seems to be released or switches from subscription to free-to-play almost every month. Up until now, only the venerable EverQuest has stood strong and resisted the FTP tide. But after almost 13 years, the time has finally come for the last of the classic MMOs. Sony announced today that EQ will be moving to the FTP business model starting sometime in early March. Lead producer Thom Terrazas said in the EQ Player’s Blog that growing the player base was a prime reason for the decision. “With the gaming landscape changing every day, we want to ensure we continue to evolve the game to keep players engaged and bring in even more new players to further expand the community.” If you’re already a paying subscriber, you might be tempted to demand a refund, but don’t worry; your subscription fee gives you a number of advantages over the free players. A detailed comparison of free, silver and gold memberships can be found here.

Publisher: Telltale Games
Developer: Telltale Games
System requirements: Windows XP/Vista/Win 7, 1.8 GHz Pentium IV or better CPU, 256 MB graphics card, 2 GB RAM, DirectX 9.0c, DirectX 8.1-compatible sound device, 2 GB hard-drive space
Genre: Adventure
ESRB rating: Not rated
Release date: Available now

There was a time when some part of creator Dick Wolf’s ubiquitous Law and Order TV franchise was on the tube almost every day in the US. Some didn’t last long (Crime and Punishment, Trial by Jury, Law and Order: Los Angeles), while the parent show became one of the longest-running scripted shows in American TV history. These days, only Special Victims Unit remains, but now Wolf and NBC/Universal are pushing the franchise into new frontiers with the help of game developer Telltale.

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The gate swung open.

Revolted by the thick scent of excrement in the chamber, Locklear hastened to the ladder affixed on the far wall and ascended its filth-slick rungs. Behind him, Gorath and Owyn reluctantly did likewise, gaffing on the noxious vapors in the shaft. “This is nothing,” Locklear grunted, shoving upwards against a grating. “All the windows in the palace are open right now. You ought to smell it in the winter.”

Darkness surrounded them as they slithered out of the privy, their only impressions of the chamber provided by the faint flicker of distant firelight. Ten yards before them the hall joined with an elaborate colonnade stretching in either direction. “Somehow I hadn’t pictured my first visit to Krondor like this,” Owyn sighed, falling blindly into step behind Gorath and the Seigneur.

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Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive
Developer: Rocksteady
System requirements: Windows XP/Vista/Win 7, 2.4 GHz Core2Duo/Athlon X2 4800 or better CPU, GeForce 8800GT/ATI 3850 HD or better graphics card, 2 GB RAM, 17 GB hard-drive space
Genre: Action
ESRB rating: Teen
Release date: Available now

Developers take their careers in their own hands when they set out to make a superhero game. If they want the legions of comic-book fanboys to give their game their seal of approval, it has to be almost perfect. All of the canonical i’s have to be dotted and the t’s have to be crossed, over and above the things that the rest of the gaming public want to see (good story, great graphics, etc). Rocksteady accomplished this with Batman: Arkham Asylum back in 2010. Now they’re trying to make lightning strike twice in the same place with the sprawling action/adventure Batman: Arkham City. In most ways, they’ve succeeded. In some others, not so much.

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Earlier this week, executive producer Hiroyuki Kobayashi characterized Resident Evil 6 as being the largest project undertaken by Capcom so far. “Between the 150 staff members in Japan and everyone around the world, we have more than 600 people involved. A lot of work has gone into this game,” Kobayashi said. “Resident Evil 6 is by far and away the most ambitious game in the series.” Also, producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi indicated that the game will be a blend of action and survival horror, which the team is calling “dramatic horror.” The latest instalment will feature a split plotline, with one thread focusing on Leon S. Kennedy in the US, and the other following Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance member Chris Redfield in China. The game is expected to arrive for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC on November 20.

Gearbox has decided to make you wait even longer to see if anyone can hear you scream in space, announcing that Aliens: Colonial Marines has been delayed from a spring release to a tentative autumn 2012 one. According to an official statement from the developer, “Aliens: Colonial Marines is a process of creativity and invention, and those don’t necessarily follow the structure of an assembly line. While setting clear goals, deadlines and predictions is helpful, they are often subjective. We don’t want to sacrifice the creative process just for the sake of following a blueprint. We prefer to have the creative discovery shape that blueprint, because our goal is to make a great game.”

Publisher: 505 Games
Developer: Reverie World Studios
System requirements: Windows 2000/XP/Vista, 2.4 GHz Pentium IV or AMD CPU, 1 GB RAM (2 GB Vista), 1 GB hard-drive space, 256 MB GeForce 7600 graphics card or equivalent, DirectX 9.0-compatible sound card, Internet connection
Genre: RTS/MMO
ESRB rating: Teen
Release date: Available now
Review by Mindy Hartman

Those darn elves, orcs and humans are at it again: building cities, competing for resources and just plain refusing to get along. Dawn of Fantasy was released a little more than three months ago by developer Reverie World Studios as their first released game. Publisher 505 Games looks like they’re trying to branch out with this publication too, as their bread and butter seems to be cutesy animal games for the DS.

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rComplex, a tense, ominous platformer from 2009, is getting an HD overhaul in its upcoming debut on iOS devices. In this frenetic action game, you play an unnamed figure being constantly chased through seven levels of varied environments by a shadowy squid-like creature, with no immediate idea of what the enemy is or why it’s pursuing you. The game is being developed by InterWave Studios (Nuclear Dawn). InterWave general manager Igor Raffaele points out that the simplicity of the game’s controls aids the player in figuring out what’s going on. “With no gimmicks to distract from the intuitive control system, rComplex is all about survival and unraveling the mystery.” rComplex will be available for the Apple mobile platform at the end of February, with versions for Android, PC and Mac coming later in the year.

Today THQ announced that it would be refocusing its business strategy towards more profitable sectors. To do so, the publisher will be trimming its branches. Currently, that means its sizable kids entertainment wing. THQ has developed and published many games based on popular entertainment properties for children, such as Spongebob Squarepants, Avatar: The Last Airbender and AC-130 Gunships.

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The best way to describe the hit indie game Minecraft to a stranger is that it’s like exploring and building in a world made of LEGOs. Naturally, this has caught the eye of The LEGO Group itself. Initially proposed last December, the project has garnered official approval. An official release states, “We’re happy to announce that the Minecraft project on LEGO CUUSOO has passed the LEGO review and we are now developing a concept that celebrates the best aspects of building with the LEGO system and in Minecraft.” CUUSOO is a site where LEGO fans can campaign for their favorite designs to become retail products.

It might be awhile before players can start indulging in real-world Minecraft fantasies, according to LEGO. “We can’t wait to show it to you—but we aren’t ready just yet. These things take time, so we appreciate your patience.“ Hopefully we’ll see an adorable LEGO creeper leaping through a steampunk Death Star before too long!

— Ian Davis

Source: LEGO Cuusoo