Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Petroglyph Games
Genre: Strategy
Release date: Available now

Like tanks? Big explosions? Strafing aircraft? Unpredictability? Then you might do well to invest some time into Panzer General: Allied Assault. It wouldn’t surprise me if you haven’t heard of it. This turn-based wargame has sneaked under the marketing radar. This is rather a shame, as it offers more value and entertainment than some of the bigger hitters. There have been a plethora of World War II games (most have been first-person shooters), so it’s refreshing to see a different type of wargame. Don’t get me wrong, I love bumping up other players’ kill ratios in Call of Duty, but it tests my reflexes without giving me much of a neuron workout. So it’s nice to find a game like Panzer General that keeps the cobwebs at bay.

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Electronic Arts is happy with two of its hardcore titles. The company has announced impressive sales results during its fiscal third quarter earnings call yesterday for both Dragon Age: Origins and Left 4 Dead 2.

Dragon Age: Origins has shipped 3.2 million copies worldwide since its
launch in November 2009. The team is now preparing a second title in the series, or perhaps a major downloadable expansion, sometime in early 2011. The new title is expected to launch on consoles, PC, and handhelds (which includes mobile phones).

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Peter Molyneux, the force behind the Fable series, expects that an impending announcement at Microsoft’s X10 about the new game (Fable III) will annoy fans. To be honest, I am not sure that Mr Molyneux has got this marketing business pinned down. In a recent interview in Copenhagen he said “I’m really scared that when I go out and tell people what it is, they’re going to be super pissed off. They really are. But it’s the right thing to do, man. I’m sure it’s the right thing to do.”

This has started tongues wagging in the Xbox community that Fable III might be the ‘big title’ that Microsoft has promised to be the first employer of its new motion controller, Project Natal. As if pouring petrol on the small fire he initially created Molyneux later added, “if you’re thinking that Natal is going to give you another version of an FPS, you’re just not thinking broadly enough. After all, it was the invention of the mouse that gave us computing as it is today — not the invention of the microprocessor. The mouse was the real revolution of the PC — not the Intel processor. And who’s to say Natal couldn’t end up creating something you and I can’t even imagine now? It forces us to approach technology in a completely different way.“

I am sure this opinion will calm the multitude of Fable fans quivering at the thought of this dramatic change. I can’t wait for his announcement at X10 this Thursday in San Francisco. I just hope he remembers to wear protective clothing.

Square Enix (owner of Eidos) has trademarked the name Deus Ex: Human Revolution in Europe (it will get the same name in the US minus the colon). The third installment is a prequel to events in the original Deus Ex game. Square Enix is publishing and producing all CG cinematics, and while details of the game are still scant, a “powerful, layered” plot is promised for the third game. Players will assume the role of private investigator Adam Jensen, and the title will have cover-based stealth and customizable weaponry and armor. Responding to the rumor that it will be exclusive to the PC, an Eidos spokesperson has retorted via the official forums that “only the PC version has been announced so far.”

Dante’s Inferno just released a few hours ago, and while reportedly not all that long in its initial form, the plan is to incrementally expand the experience with a series of downloadable content packs. This month, they will be offering Soul Packs, Poet Costumes, and an Animated Feature Film Costume. For those that didn’t purchase the Divine Edition, March will then blow in with an additional Prequel Level, and April’s offerings include new in-game abilities and Trials of St. Lucia.

Manufacturer: SteelSeries
System requirements: Windows 2000/XP/Vista/Win 7/Mac OSX (configuration software not available for Mac systems)
MSRP: $89.99 USD/79.99 Euros

PC users in general (and most gamers in particular) tend to take the humble mouse for granted. It’s standard equipment on every PC, and it’s our primary movement tool through the marvel that is the Internet (try getting around your favorite site using just your keyboard and you’ll gain a new appreciation for your mouse). Yet most of us rarely give it a second thought. All, that is, except hardcore gamers looking for the little extra edge that could make them a force to be feared in their favorite online game.

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Electronic Arts revealed some noteworthy sequels with release dates today. Included in the list for the first quarter of 2011 were Dead Space 2, a Dragon Age: Origins sequel, and a new shooter from Epic Games. Additionally, EA also narrowed release windows for many of their other games: the new Medal of Honor is lined up for release between July and September; and the new NBA Jam, Crysis 2, and console releases for The Sims 3 are coming between October and December.

NewWorld (parent company of the Adrenaline Vault) has just announced the appointment of Joe Garagiola, Jr., as Chairman of the Board of Directors. Mr. Garagiola is Senior Vice President of Baseball Operations for Major League Baseball, and has been a member of NewWorld’s Board of Directors since January 2007. He also holds the distinction of assembling the fastest World Series winner in expansion baseball history, with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Mr. Garagiola, Jr., graduated from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, IN, earning a B.A. cum laude in 1972 and earned a law degree from Georgetown University Law Center.

Quantic Dream CEO David Cage, whose mature interactive drama Heavy Rain hits stores later this month, says he feels that censorship in games is “probably the strictest in all the entertainment industry. One territory asked me to change one scene because it was too emotional. I read the email ten times to make sure I got it right. What do you mean too emotional? Can you change the end of Titanic, it’s really too sad. Same thing for Gone With the Wind, just add a couple of jokes near the end so we don’t cry.”

“If you show two people in love kissing in a videogame, you need to put fades to black before their lips are in contact, before she takes off her bra. Otherwise it might give ideas to these seventeen-plus people who probably never thought about all that before,” he says sarcastically. He feels that current constraints on game makers need to be modified in order to tell the level of stories that people really want. “Trying to create a mature experience for a mature audience is a massive challenge, because every single country has a different understanding of what could be perceived as shocking.”

Source: Destructoid

Publisher: Phantom EFX
Developer: Phantom EFX
System requirements: Windows XP (32-bit) or newer with administrator rights, 1 GHz Intel Pentium IV, Celeron or AMD or better CPU, 1 GB RAM, 64-MB DirectX 9.0c or OpenGL 2.0-compatible video card, DirectX 9.0c-compatible sound card, DirectX 9.0c, 2 GB hard-drive space
Genre: Casual
Release date: Available now

Humans are truly a strange species. Most of us work all of our lives to make enough money to live and thrive, then we jump on a bus to our closest casino and gamble it all away. Those with skill and discipline usually manage to come home with more that they took with them, but most of us aren’t so lucky. It’s the unfortunate many for whom developer Phantom EFX’s Reel Deal casino simulators are targeted, including Reel Deal Slots: Treasures of the Far East, a collection of virtual slot and video poker machines that tries to give you the excitement of the one-armed bandit, but without the unfortunate consequences.

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