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.

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

So you’re already to head out for New Vegas, but what do you really know about it? Until this point, not much, but the details are beginning to flow. You are not a Vault Dweller this time around, but instead a courier, dug up by a robot and nursed back to life by a doctor. The area around Vegas wasn’t hit hard in the apocalypse so many buildings remain intact, and the storyline follows a conflict between the California Republic, Caesar’s Legion and New Vegas residents.

Fallout: New Vegas will introduce a Hardcore mode that challenges players with dehydration, ammo weight, non-instantaneous healing and tougher enemies. In addition, Super Mutants will be more intelligent and varied, and an elite Nightkin has been added. The title also has a Reputation system on top of the Karma score, and these will be tracked by each settlement independently. VATS returns, but with added melee moves, and skills will play a larger part in conversations, unlocking new paths should your relevant ability be high enough.

Fallout: New Vegas will be released this fall for the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360.

Source: Eurogamer

In the gameplay department, Undisputed 2010 will add a new “Sway System” which offers full upper body and head control, as well as a new ground “Posture System.” New moves and cage positions have also been added, including moves from Sambo, Karate, and Greco-Roman Wrestling. Undisputed 2010 will also include the ability to form fight camps and leagues, training your players and then taking them online in a “virtual UFC world.” The Career Mode returns with a new “Game Is Watching You” system that will take note of your actions and influence in-game commentary, opponent A.I., and other elements of career progression. UFC Undisputed 2010 ships on May 25.

LucasArts has just announced the development of LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars for a release in the fall of 2010. The title will include all of the characters from both seasons of the animated television series, as well as some fan-favorite characters from the beloved theatrical saga. The game will feature brand new battle modes, giving players unique, head-to-head combat and an upgraded level builder, allowing the creation of customized bases and in-game battlefields. Play either as a Jedi or Separatist with all-new character abilities, such as Squad command, Lightsaber slicing, Lightsaber jumps, long distance Jedi attacks and Grapple Tie-Ups, all within a new, easy-to-navigate hub.

While there’s no release date yet for the content pack, Futuremark Games Studio has revealed the first screenshots from the upcoming Moonrise content pack for Shattered Horizon, their PC exclusive multiplayer first-person shooter. The Moonrise pack, which will be free to all players, includes four new environments effectively doubling the number of levels in the game.

A catastrophic explosion on the Moon has filled near-Earth space with billions of tons of rocky debris. Teams of players fight in zero gravity to control the limited supplies that mean the difference between survival and death in the cold of space. The four Moonrise levels are set around the shattered Moon, taking the fight deeper into space and showing a new side to the conflict.

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Expose a crooked police officer, help stage an accident for an inmate, steal a van of medical supplies and then sell them, or attack a paramilitary police post. These are some of the new jobs available in the Bangkok expansion of the text-based Facebook game, Mafia Wars. There’s more than just new “jobs” included, however, as the expansion also introduces new businesses, items, and collection sets.

A follow-up Retrevo Pulse study looking at consumer interest in buying the new Apple iPad indicates a failure to convince any new buyers to consider the iPad. Not only did Apple fail to convince new buyers, it may have lost many potential buyers who now say they don t think they need an Apple tablet computer.

Before Jan 20th, only 26% of people said they were not interested in buying an Apple tablet. That number jumped to 52% after the launch announcement. Before Jan 20th, 49% of people said they didn’t think they needed an Apple Tablet, and that number jumped to 61% afterwards.

Source: Retrevo