SSX Live Demo

Check out the demo that wowed us at E3, live from EA's Vancouver studio.

This week EA invited SSX fans from all over the world to EA Canada's Vancouver studio for the SSX Community Event.

Kicking off the event on Wednesday the SSX developers showed off a game demo presentation for all three game modes. SSX fans are getting the E3 treatment here.

For those of you that didn't make it to E3 or Canada, fret not. IGN has you covered. We've got the archived live stream from the presentation right here.

Let us know what you think of SSX. What's your favorite mode? Excited for the character reveal? Drop a comment below.

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Blizzard Introduces the World of Warcraft Starter Edition

Launching alongside Rage of the Firelands, Starter Edition capped at level 20.

World of Warcraft isn't going free-to-play (not with 12 million paid subscribers it's not), but Blizzard is making the game's free trial indefinite courtesy of the new WoW Starter Edition, allowing players to experience a huge chunk of Azeroth and create a character they can level up to a cap of 20.

Alongside Cataclysm's latest update, patch 4.2 Rage of the Firelands, Blizzard has announced it will launch the WoW Starter Edition. The new World of Warcraft trial experience transforms the previous 14-day affair into an indefinite playthrough that includes the core game and some elements of the first expansion, The Burning Crusade.

Players can continue playing the Starter Edition through level 20, but if they want to unlock the full Burning Crusade expansion and continue to advance their character, they'll have to upgrade to the full game and the monthly subscription.

Blizzard Considering World of Warcraft for iOS

Company "looking at" making WoW playable on iOS devices.

With a variety of online services and Apps, World of Warcraft is never far from its players -- even when they're not sitting at their keyboard. And according to Blizzard, the next step is now being considered: taking all of WoW to iOS devices.

In an wide-ranging interview with Eurogamer, WoW forum moderator Greg Street discussed the challenges of taking the mega MMO to consoles, the game's upcoming patch, and the future of WoW. Most notable were his comments about the possibility of transporting World of Warcraft to the iPad and/or iPhone.

"Everyone I know here has an iPhone or an iPad so we're huge fans of the hardware," Street told Eurogamer. "If we could make the right game changes to make that work, it's something we'd be interested in. It's not something you're going to see in the next week or two, but it's the kind of thing we're always looking at."

Kirby's Dream Land Coming to 3DS this week

Thursday's update will include a Game Boy classic.

This week's 3DS eShop update will feature Kirby's Dream Land, the first game to star the pink ball with legs.

The game will go on sale this Thursday on the Virtual Console. The 1992 platformer is priced at €4, which is around $3.50. A US date and price have yet to be revealed.

Joining Dream Land is A Fairy Tale on DSi and 3DS and the wonderfully named Successfully Learning German: Year 3 across all three of Nintendo's current systems.

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U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down California's Violent Video Game Law

In a seven to two vote, justices rule law violates protected freedom of speech rights.

The United States Supreme Court ruled today that California cannot restrict the sale of violent video games to minors. In a seven to two vote, the justices deemed California's law infringed upon First Amendment rights and put the state in a position where it would have the authority to restrict the ideas to which people are exposed.

The ruling on Brown vs. the Entertainment Merchants Association put an end to California's six-year-long effort to make it a crime for retailers to sell or rent video games loosely defined as "violent" to anyone under the age of 18.

"Video games qualify for First Amendment protection," the justices stated in their opinion. "Like protected books, plays, and movies, they communicate ideas through familiar literary devices and features distinctive to the medium. And the basic principles of freedom of speech do not vary with a new and different communication medium."

"This country has no tradition of specially restricting children's access to depictions of violence. And California's claim that 'interactive' video games present special problems, in that the playe rparticipates in the violent action on screen and determines its outcome, is unpersuasive."

Resident Evil Mercenaries 3DS - Mission Gameplay: Chris Redfield

Chris shows off his moves in Mission Mode.

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Star Wars: The Old Republic - Alderaan Mission

Group combat in BioWare's upcoming MMO.

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Sony Confirms Uncharted Bundle Coming Soon

Get the first two games in the Uncharted series for $40.

If you missed out on Nathan Drake's first two adventures, Sony will help you play catchup in time for the third installment in the award-winning adventure franchise, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. The Japanese tech giant has confirmed a bundle of the first two Uncharted games is set for launch on July 22.

Sony previously announced that bundles for Resistance and Ratchet & Clank would ship on the same day, and now the Uncharted set makes July 22 an unofficial bundle holiday. CVG unearthed the Uncharted bundle on Best Buy's website (since removed), and Sony later confirmed with the publication the set is on the way.

The bundle will include Drake's Fortune and Among Thieves as well as an Uncharted PlayStation 3 theme and avatar. The Uncharted bundle, along with the Resistance and Ratchet & Clank bundles, will retail for $39.99.

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception is a PlayStation 3 exclusive. The game is set for release on November 1.

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Halo Predecessor Coming to iPad

Marathon redone with touchscreen controls.

An interview published on Bungie.net with indie developer Daniel Blezek reveals that Bungie has given its blessing to his iPad port of Marathon, Halo's spiritual ancestor.

Originally released in 1994, Marathon was (at the time) a great technical achievement, but it never sold well and still isn't known widely, largely because its primary platform was Macintosh rather than PC.

The iPad remake will be out very soon, it seems – Bungie says it'll let us know when it hits the app store. It features redesigned controls for the iPad touch-screen, which Blezek worked hard to implement.

Lawsuit Alleges Sony Knowingly Failed to Protect Customer Data Ahead of PSN Attack

Company fired network security personnel, used inferior cyber security for customer data, lawsuit claims.

Sony has repeatedly stated there was nothing more it could have done to prevent the April PlayStation Network cyber security breach that led to one of the largest thefts of consumer data in history. But according to a new class action lawsuit, nothing could be further from the truth.

As Reuters reports, on Monday a trio of men (Felix Cortorreal, Jacques Daoud Jr., and Jimmy Cortorreal) filed a lawsuit against Sony that alleges the company fired network security employees two weeks before the attack on PlayStation Network and "spent lavishly" on cyber security to protect corporate information while choosing not to use the same level of security for customer data.

Google Gets into Gaming

Search giant is now hiring for 'Games at Google'.

Google is getting into games. The search engine behemoth is looking for a Product Manager for its gaming platform.

The job description reads, "Rare opportunity to grow a brand-new business - Games at Google! We are looking for a strategic, technical and game-loving Product Manager to drive Google's gaming strategy. You will design strategies for game distribution and discovery, player identity, game mechanics, and more."

One of the key responsibilities listed in the specification is to "Drive feature requirements for Google's gaming platform".

But what would you like to see from Google's new 'gaming platform'? The focus is likely to be on social and casual gaming. But let us know your thoughts below.

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BioShock: Infinite Tears Trailer

Developer diary details the unique new gameplay mechanic coming to Infinite.

Ken Levine is back for another fireside chat, this time describing the unique abilities your companion, Elizabeth, brings to the table in Irrational Game's upcoming adventure, BioShock: Infinite.

Elizabeth isn't just a pretty face in Infinite. As Levine explains, she's able to see and manipulate tears in the universe, reaching into them to bring people, places, and things into Columbia's reality. Find out how this will be used as a critical gameplay mechanic below:

BioShock: Infinite is being developed for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows PCs, and the Nintendo Wii U. The game is set to ship sometime in 2012.

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Report - PlayStation 3 Price Drop Imminent

Sony could use Gamescom to announce a sub-£200 price drop for PS3.

According to MCV, the UK games industry is expecting Sony to announce a pricecut for PS3 at this year's Gamescom.

Trade insiders are said to be hoping for a recommended retail price of £199.99, allowing stores to sell it at £179.99.

Codemasters boss Rod Cousens said, "I would anticipate a further price cut on existing consoles prior to Christmas.

"It'll probably happen around September and Gamescom may be interesting. But there's also time for a further cut next year, before Wii U is out."

Sony has said that it doesn't comment on rumour or speculation.

Gamescom runs from 17-21 August, and IGN will be there keeping you in the loop.

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Rockstar Announces PC Version of L.A. Noire

Enhanced graphics, keyboard remapping, 3D support for L.A. Noire on PC.

Rockstar and Team Bondi are throwing PC gamers a Fedora. The publisher and developer have announced that crime thriller L.A. Noire will be available for PC this fall.

Now in development by Rockstar Leeds, the PC version of L.A. Noire will feature keyboard remapping, gamepad functionality, enhanced graphics, and 3D support.

"L.A. Noire is a new type of game that makes players see through a detective's eyes in 1940s Los Angeles," said Sam Houser, founder of Rockstar Games. "Its unique blend of story, action, and crime solving will be perfect to play on PC."

In announcing the PC version of L.A. Noire, Rockstar also noted the console versions of the game have shipped 4 million copies worldwide to date. Official sales numbers were not revealed.

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Gears of War 3: Horde 2.0 Briefing Video

Get your first taste of the new Horde 2.0 in this briefing trailer for the intense Gears 3 mode.

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Portal 2 Sales Top Three Million

Sequel off to a hot start.

Sales of Portal 2 have reached three million copies sold since launch, stated Gabe Newell, co-founder of Valve Software, during the Games for Change festival in New York City today.

According to multiple reports, Newell did not provide any additional sales details, such as the split between digital sales on Steam and retail. Portal 2 was released on April 19, 2011.

Excluding Steam sales, the original Portal sold over four million copies.

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Two PSN Pinball Games For the Price of One

It's time to get more bang for your buck.

This week's PSN Update article was posted yesterday, but there was no information given about a special deal that's going on for one week only on the PlayStation Network. Good thing, then, that we received an e-mail this morning that illuminates this illusive deal, and it's certainly worth mentioning to those looking for their digital pinball fix on the PSN.

For $9.99, you can purchase Marvel Pinball via the PlayStation Store. This isn't news itself, of course, but the fact that you get ZEN Pinball for free for purchasing Marvel Pinball certainly is. This two-for-one deal began yesterday, and only runs through June 28th. So if you want two pinball games for the price of one, now's the time to act!

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Supreme Court Ruling on Violent Video Games Due By the End of Next Week

Brown vs. EMA will finally be decided as the Supreme Court's current term comes to a close.

In November, the United States Supreme Court heard arguments in the case of Schwarzenegger vs. Entertainment Merchants Association. Seven months later, the Justices have yet to decide whether or not California can regulate the sale of violent video games, but with SCOTUS now in the last two weeks of its term, a ruling is finally imminent.

The case, now known as Brown vs. EMA with the Governator out of office, marks the first time the Supreme Court has considered the issue of violent video games, a hot-button topic that has been debated nationwide for years.

In 2005, the California legislature passed AB 1179, a law that would punish retailers who sold or rented violent, mature-rated videogames to anyone under 18 years old. The lower court quickly struck down the law on free-speech grounds, as did lower courts in a dozen other states over the years that attempted to enact similar pieces of legislation.

FIFA 12 Release Date

EA announce that FIFA 12 will be released at the end of September.

FIFA 12 will be released in the US on September 27, and in Europe on September 30 on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.

EA also confirmed that the Impact Engine - previously only available on HD console versions of the game - will be coming to the PC. The system simulates the way real-life players challenge for the balls and interact.

"This is the moment all PC gamers have been waiting for, as they are finally going to fully experience the award-winning FIFA gameplay on their preferred platform," said Kaz Makita, FIFA 12 executive producer.

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Walmart.com Game Center Adding On-Demand Game Demos through Gaikai

Cloud gaming platform announces deal with world's largest retailer.

Walmart is taking a page from OnLive and getting into the on-demand video game business -- with a twist. The retailer has announced a new partnership with cloud gaming platform Gaikai that will allow potential customers to instantly demo games on the Walmart.com Game Center before they buy.

For startup Gaikai, the Walmart deal is a huge, linking its platform with the world's largest retailer. The company has also already signed a deal with Electronic Arts, and deals with a number of other publishers are now in the works.

The Walmart.com Game Center will use Gaikai's platform to allow potential customers to instantly demo the biggest upcoming video games. Because Gaikai hosts and runs the games on its own servers, even Game Center visitors with low end PCs will be able to sample titles.

Fallout: New Vegas DLC Release Date

Return to the Mojave. Old World Blues DLC dated.

The third DLC for Fallout: New Vegas, Old World Blues, will be released on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC on Tuesday, July 19.

And before the DLC hits, a title update will bring improvements to "performance and stability in major areas," according to a press release.

In Old World Blues you will find out some of the secrets behind the Mojave's mutated monsters, as you play the role of an unfortunate lab rat.

Previous New Vegas DLC has been priced at 800 Microsoft Points on Xbox Live and $9.99/$7.49 on PSN.

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Study: Violent Video Games Linked to Decrease in Violent Crimes in U.S.

Sales of violent video games directly tied to a decrease in lower crime rates.

In the video games and violence debate, the steadily declining crime rate in the United States has often been cited by gamers as evidence gaming does not, as some would lead you to believe, turn youths into violent killers. Now a group of professors has added a level of validity to the correlation, publishing the results of their research in which they conclusively state, "violent video games lead to decreases in violent crime."

A BBC article entitled "U.S. Crime Figures: Why the Drop?" cites 10 possible reasons why, over the past 20 years, FBI figures show a consistent drop in murder and robbery rates. Among those reasons is the study by University of Texas at Arlington and Baylor University professors and the Centre for European Economic Research, "Understanding the Effects of Violent Video Games on Violent Crime."

"Regulation of the video game industry is usually predicated on the notion that the industry has large and negative social costs through games' effect on aggression," the study states. "Many researchers have argued that these games may also have caused extreme violence, such as school shootings, because laboratory evidence has found an abundance of evidence linking gameplay to aggression. Yet few studies before this one had examined the impact of these games on crime."

Dragon Quest X Could Come to Wii U

Square Enix considering releasing title for both Wii and Wii U.

During its investor meeting today in Japan, Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada stated the company may consider releasing a version of Dragon Quest X that's compatible with both Wii and WIi U.

As reported by Andriasang, Wada was asked about the status of Dragon Quest X for Wii now that Nintendo announced its next console. He said Square Enix is currently investigating ways to make the game work for Wii U.

It should be noted the Wii U is backwards compatible with Wii software, and that Square Enix is likely looking to add support for the console's touch controller rather than overhauling the graphics. Nintendo previously released two versions of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for both GameCube and Wii.

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City of Heroes Transitioning to Free-to-Play

Long-running superhero MMO set to make the switch later this year.

Seven-year-old superpowered MMO City of Heroes is the latest subscription-based online game to make the transition to a free-to-play model. Paragon Studios and NCSoft have announced that City of Heroes Freedom is now in development and set for launch later this year.

Promising to redefine the long-running super hero MMO on the cornerstones of content, rewards, and choice, Paragon said it has been working on its hybrid F2P model for City of Heroes for over a year in an effort to improve the overall customer experience.

"Freedom is about getting more content into the hands of our players, whether they are subscribing or playing for free," Brian Clayton, Executive Producer at Paragon Studios, said in a statement. "To do this, we've looked at City of Heroes from the ground up and focused on three ways to enhance the experience by giving our players more choices, greater rewards and the best content we've ever produced. And for the first time ever, players can choose to enjoy more than seven years of content for free."

Sega Sets up New UK Studio for Next-Gen Games

Working with original IP rather than established SEGA franchises.

SEGA has announced that it is setting up a new studio in the West Midlands, UK, dedicated to working with new technologies like the PlayStation Vita and Wii U. The studio has one unannounced game already green-lit, currently intended for the PlayStation Vita.

The core staff is made up of people that were retained when Sega sold its Solihull-based Racing Studio to Codemasters back in 2008, says Sega West VP of Production Gary Dunn. "We're not looking necessarily to concentrate on huge blockbuster titles," he claims. "We want to do innovative new things that others haven't been doing."

Interestingly, the studio won't be working on established Sega franchises, Dunn says, working on new ideas instead. "It's absolutely new IP. If there were a way to reinvent a Sega franchise in a way that takes advantage of a new piece of technology, we wouldn't rule it out. But that's not what they're doing with the first title they're producing."

On the studio's first game, Dunn had this to say: "I'd love to give it a genre, but I don't think I can. It uses the features of the system uniquely – when people see it, they'll say, I don't think I've ever done this on a games console before. I can say it's not racing!"

At a time when many UK studios have been closing their doors, Sega's investment in our gaming industry is hugely encouraging. Recruitment's currently underway for the new studio. Check out Sega UK's job site for details.

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Treyarch Talks Call of Duty: Black Ops Annihilation

Studio reviews four new maps, zombie level coming to Black Ops.

The team at Treyarch is ready to talk about the third Call of Duty: Black Ops map pack, and in a lengthy developer's diary, they break down the four new battlegrounds and zombie level that will hit Xbox Live on June 28.

Travel to Area 51 in Hanger 18, check out one of the biggest maps in the game in Silo, relive the clusterf**k of Nuketown in Drive-In, and stay off the fairway in the sniper-friendly map, Hazard. See what else Treyarch had to say about Annihilation below:

Annihilation, the third map pack for Call of Duty: Black Ops, is scheduled for release on June 28 on Xbox Live for 1,200 Microsoft Points or $15. Activision has yet to announced the launch date for the PS3 and PC versions.

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Mortal Kombat DLC Dated, Fighters Detailed

A new trailer and new names round out our report.

It wasn't too long ago that we heard Skarlet -- a blade-wielding hottie -- would be joining the Mortal Kombat cast, but now we know when she's coming and who will be coming after her. The new trailer below says "download now," but the Skarlet downloadable content will really hit the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on June 21, 2011. The trailer goes on to tease three additional characters -- Kenshi, Rain and a fighter to be named later.

Robin a Playable Character in Batman: Arkham City Through Best Buy Pre-order

Retailer announces sidekick playable on two challenge maps.

Catwoman won't be the only playable side character in Batman: Arkham City. Electronics retailer Best Buy has revealed that its pre-order bonus for the game will feature a playable version of the Dark Knight's acrobatic sidekick, Robin.

Listing the pre-order details for Batman: Arkham City on its website, Best Buy appears to have let a sizable cat out of the bag, outing the Boy Wonder as a character gamers will be able to navigate through two challenge maps.

Whether or not Robin would make it into Arkham City has been a topic of debate since Rocksteady announced the Batman sequel last year. The studio still hasn't made an official announcement about Robin, and there are four spots left on the Arkham City character reveal page.

For the record, other pre-order bonus announcements include a Joker Carnival challenge map at GameStop and the Arkham City prequel comic from Amazon.

Batman: Arkham City is scheduled for an October 18 launch on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Windows PCs. The game has also been announced for the Wii U.

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Report - Wii U 50% More Powerful than PS3?

According to some developers, Nintendo's new console has 50% more power than extant consoles.

Speculation has emerged that the Wii U is 50% more powerful than PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Industry Gamers has quoted Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia as saying, "Some of the developers we spoke to indicated to us that the console will have 50 per cent more processing power compared to the PS3 or Xbox 360. This is yet to be confirmed by Nintendo."

But this conflicts with the remarks of John Carmack, id Software's technology chief. Speaking to Gamespot, he said that "the technology level on there brings it up to parity with the other consoles."

At the moment this is all just speculation, of course, but a few weeks ago IGN made its own Wii U - see what we put under the hood and the results we got out of it.

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May U.S. Video Game Sales at Lowest Level Since 2006

L.A. Noire, Xbox 360 led the way in a slow month at retail.

A light release schedule led to the slowest month of video game sales in the U.S. since October 2006, market research firm NPD Group revealed in its May industry report. But the numbers do not include what was likely the best selling title of the month: the latest Call of Duty: Black Ops map pack, Escalation.

Total hardware and software sales at retail topped $743 million, a 14% fall compared to May of 2010, NPD reports. Software in particular slumped, with sales totaling just over $400 million, a decline of 21% compared to last year.

"This month's story really is about a light release schedule compared to last year," NPD analyst Anita Frazier said in a statement. "There were 42 new SKUs introduced in May as compared to 58 last May, and 72 in 2009."

Bungie Aerospace Reveal Dated

Bungie will finally show us what it's been working on.

Bungie has confirmed that a full announcement regarding Bungie Aerospace will take place in the next few weeks.

The reveal - which has not been given an exact date - will coincide with a series of celebrations hosted by Bungie to commemorate its 20th anniversary and the 10th anniversary of its hugely successful Halo franchise.

The festivities will run from June 23rd to July 7th.

Speaking on its official website, Bungie said one reason to turn out for the party was that it'll "tell you, in explicit detail, exactly what Bungie Aerospace is all about."

Back in March, IGN reported that Bungie had trademarked the title Aerospace, and that is was listed as being vaguely video games related. In a few weeks, we'll know exactly what all this mysteriousness is about.

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Activision: 2 Million Gamers Enlisted for CoD: Elite Beta

Social network set to begin testing later this summer.

More than 2 million people have signed up for the beta for Call of Duty's upcoming social network, Elite, Activision has revealed, a sure sign the fastest selling entertainment franchise in history isn't about to slow down anytime soon.

Posting on his blog, One of Swords, Activision's social media manager Dan Amrich announced that in less than two weeks since sign-ups for CoD: Elite opened, more than 2 million gamers have enlisted for the beta. And Activision expects that number to rise significantly.

"The official start of the beta is a month away, so there's still plenty of time for you to sign up," Amrich writes. "When the studio head at Beachhead said this would be a live beta, he was not kidding -- your participation really can make a difference in how Elite evolves. And don't be discouraged by the big number, thinking you shouldn't bother because they already have enough people -- two million volunteers among 30 million Call of Duty players is a small amount."

Child of Eden - Launch Trailer

The coolest Kinect game yet is about to hit store shelves. See what the hype is about.

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THQ Closes Homefront Dev

Kaos Studios shuttered. Homefront development shifted to Montreal.

THQ said today it has closed both its internal UK studio and Kaos Studios, makers of Homefront. Development of the franchise is being shifted to the publisher's Montreal studio.

This move was done as a "strategic realignment" of resources. Below is the statement in full from THQ:

THQ confirmed today that it has made a strategic realignment within its internal studio structure and is in the process of closing two locations: the company's UK studio and KAOS studio in New York. Both studios' employees have been informed.

THQ continues its strategy of aligning the best industry talent with the company's marquee franchises. The Montreal studio will take over product development and overall creative management for the Homefront franchise. The Montreal studio actively collaborated with KAOS on Homefront.

The company continues to strengthen its internal creative development expertise and is actively hiring in many of its internal studios, including Montreal and Vancouver, Canada, as well as Austin, Texas. THQ's UK studio and KAOS employees will have the opportunity to interview for open positions with the company globally.

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War Between Battlefield 3 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Begins at E3

CEOs from both publishers take shots, report claims Kotick denied from playing BF3 at E3.

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick and his counterpart at Electronic Arts, John Riccitiello, exchanged verbal barbs over their competing military FPS franchises at E3 2011 last week, with Riccitiello declaring the war between Battlefield 3 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has officially begun.

Asked what he thought of Battlefield 3 in an interview with CNBC, Kotick defined the franchise as a PC-oriented game with a "small audience." The comments quickly found their way to Riccitiello, who responded with a statement to Reuters:

"It's the beginning of the war and [Kotick] recognizes they're going to be threatened. We're going to have a clash of the titans this fall. The very fact that he's trying to cast doubt on our game is a perfect example of how we got his goat."

E3: Wii U Close to the Finished Design

Unlikely that the form factor of the Wii U will change radically before its launch.

President of Nintendo America Reggie Fils-Aime has revealed that the Wii U and its controller on display at E3 this year were "quite near final" in terms of their designs.

Aesthetically, the Wii U unit is consistent with the familar, white, minimalist design of its predecessor.

It's a little bigger. But according to Fils-Aime, speaking to VentureBeat, "The size is driven by the componentry and what's inside... when you compare it to any of the competitive systems, it's still dramatically smaller."

Fils-Aime also took the opportunity to stress that the controller was not a portable device, and was very different to a tablet in terms of functionality.

"It is a connected experience to the base console," he said. "It talks with the base console. It interacts with other Wii accessories whether that is a Wii Remote Plus or a Wii Balance Board."

Are you happy with Wii U's design? If anything, what would you tweak?

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Three Anonymous Members Arrested in Spain, Tied to Attacks on Sony Sites

Anonymous responds with a statement, apparent denial of service attack on Spain's national police website.

Authorities in Spain have arrested three men with links to hacker activist group Anonymous, charging them with organizing cyber attacks against Sony. Anonymous has already responded, knocking the website for Spain's national police force offline.

As Reuters reports, the arrests occurred on Friday in Almeria, Barcelona, and Alicante, with Spanish police referring to the three men as "core members" of Anonymous. The men, all in their 30s, were charged with the recent attacks on Sony websites, but authorities said they were not linked to the massive April 19 attack on PlayStation Network.

"They are structured in independent cells and make thousands of simultaneous attacks using infected 'zombie' computers worldwide," Spanish police said in a statement describing Anonymous. "This is why NATO considers them a threat to the military alliance. They are even capable of collapsing a country's administrative structure."

E3 2011: DC Universe Online - Ra's al Ghul in Action

Batman's villain is ready to bring the pain, and we have big news this weekend.

Last week IGN brought you the full rundown of DC Universe Online's next update. It packs Bat-villain Ra's al Ghul, a new alert, a new Duo and a Swamp Thing/Poison Ivy event for the MMO. But words only do so much, and that's why we've got the video below that offers your first glimpse of Ra's in action.

On top of that, if you're anxious to see what's on the horizon for DC Universe Online at E3 and beyond, I suggest you check out IGN this Saturday for some major news.

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Duke Nukem Forever - Duke Nukem Forever Launch Trailer

A trailer 15 years in the making.

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Nintendo 3DS System Update Adds Online Store and More

Nintendo offers free re-mastered 3D version of NES classic Excitebike for limited time.

Press Release

Nintendo of America has announced that the first major system update for the hand-held Nintendo 3DS™ system will be available in North America the evening of June 6, Pacific time. By installing the free update via a wireless broadband Internet connection, Nintendo 3DS users will have access to an Internet browser and the Nintendo eShop, which contains a variety of new content, including Pokedex™ 3D, an application that lets fans see Pokemon™ characters in 3D.

To celebrate the grand opening of the Nintendo eShop, Nintendo is offering the NES™ game Excitebike™ re-mastered in 3D as a free download until July 7 for anyone who installs the system update. Upcoming Virtual Console™ content available in the Nintendo eShop includes Game Boy™ games Super Mario Land™, Alleyway™ and Radar Mission™. New content will be added to the Nintendo eShop on Thursdays.

The Nintendo eShop is a digital store for Nintendo 3DS owners that provides access to a wide variety of downloadable content, such as original 3D software, classic games that have been re-mastered in 3D called 3D Classics, Game Boy and Game Boy Color "Virtual Console" games in their original 2D glory, and more than 350 Nintendo DSiWare™ games. Visitors can also view video game trailers, screen shots and product information for games, including those available at retail locations.

E3 2011: The Big Games List

Want to know what games are at E3 this year? We're here to help.

IGN's E3 Big Games List compiles all the titles confirmed by publishers or developers. There are plenty more games we know or expect -- this list isn't for those. These are the things that have been promised publicly or told to us on the record. Check the list. Come back to it often.

LAST UPDATE: June 2, 2011 08:30 PDT

2K Games

BioShock: Infinite (PC, PS3, X360)
Duke Nukem Forever (PC, PS3, X360)
The Darkness II (PC, PS3, X360)
XCOM (PC, X360)

2K Sports

NBA 2K12 (PS3, X360)

505 Games

Backbreaker Vengeance (X360)
Michael Phelps: Push the Limit (X360)
Supremacy MMA (PS3, X360)
Wrecked: Revenge Revisited (PS3, X360)

Activision

Prototype 2 (PC, PS3, X360)
Skylanders Spyro's Adventure (PS3, Wii, X360)
Spider-Man: Edge of Time (PS3, Wii, X360)
X-Men: Destiny (DS, PS3, Wii, X360)

Bethesda Softworks

Prey 2 (PC, PS3, X360)
Rage (PC, PS3, X360)
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (PC, PS3, X360)

Batman: Arkham City - Catwoman Rewind Theater

Come see what you missed in the new Batman: Arkham City trailer.

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Sony Restores PlayStation Network Store

After more than 40 days offline, the digital store is finally back up and running.

After being pulled offline on April 20 in the wake of the PSN security breach, the PlayStation Network Store has been fully restored with a massive update. But Sony isn't quite ready to roll out its Welcome Back program just yet, and the deluge of PlayStation 3 gamers anxious to download digital goods is causing the store to spit out error messages to some visitors.

"The PlayStation Store is back online and thank you everyone for your patience," PSN Store Director Grace Chen said in a statement. "You will notice a huge lineup of new downloadable games, demos, add-on content, themes, avatars and videos. Also, PlayStation Plus has been updated with new full game trials, free games and DLC, free avatars and even more discounts."

The very lengthy list of new PSN Store content, including long-in-waiting SOCOM 4, Killzone 3, and Motorstorm: Apocalypse DLC, can be found in this posting on the official PlayStation blog. And if you're having trouble getting past the 807 error on the PSN Store door, Sony asks that you once again be patient.

Serious Sam 3: BFE Reveal Trailer

See how Sam "Serious" Stone looks on current gen technology.

Mental's legions have invaded the Earth, and in Serious Sam 3: BFE, players will get to experience man's final struggle against the hordes of monsters and mercs first hand. For now, developer Croteam is providing a first peek at the war to come with the Serious Sam 3 reveal trailer.

To get you up to speed on the shooter before you push play, here's a synopsis of the game from the developer:

The third in Croteam's wild and fast-paced shooter series, Serious Sam 3: BFE is a glorious throwback to the golden age of first-person shooters where men were men, cover was for amateurs and pulling the trigger made things go boom. Serving as a prequel to the original indie sensation, Serious Sam: The First Encounter, Serious Sam 3: BFE takes place during the Earth's final struggle against Mental's invading legions of beasts and mercenaries. Set against the collapsing temples of an ancient civilization and the crumbling cities of 22nd century Egypt, Serious Sam 3: BFE is an exhilarating fusion of classic twitch shooters and modern gameplay features.

To learn more about the over-the-top FPS, check out the interview our friends at IGN had with Croteam CEO Roman Ribaric.

Serious Sam 3: BFE is being developed for Windows PCs, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3. The game is scheduled for launch sometime this summer.

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Road to E3: Dark Souls

Anticipation is high for Demon's Souls' spiritual successor.

Don't look now, but E3 2011 is only a week away. By this time next week, the IGN crew will be drowning in a slew of new games. But while E3 runs in Los Angeles from June 6-9, we still have a few ideas of what you can expect from some of your most-anticipated titles a bit early.

Today, we'll give the special treatment to the highly-anticipated Dark Souls, the "spiritual successor" to the PlayStation 3-exclusive dungeon-crawling RPG Demon's Souls.

What We Know

When I saw Dark Souls early in May, the lasting impression I had of the game was that it's more of the same. Demon's Souls took PlayStation 3 gamers by storm when it was released, and Dark Souls promises to do the same, but in an even more sadistic and ruthless fashion. And better yet, unlike Demon's Souls, Dark Souls isn't a PS3-exclusive. So there are plenty of reasons for Xbox 360 gamers to be excited as well.

Demon's Souls was hard, almost comically so. And Dark Souls promises to be even more difficult. During my earlier preview of Dark Souls, I was able to check out a location known as Sen's Fortress. Sen's Fortress was chock-full of dangerous pitfalls, strong enemies and a ridiculous amount of traps. Our nameless hero did his best to fend off all of the attacks, but even the buffed-out character being used by the developer giving the demo was nearing death (and did, in fact, fall to his death once). So that should give you a pretty good idea of what you're in store for when your much-weaker character is dispatched to see what he or she is made of.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to see any other locations in Dark Souls, but the developers did promise me that places in Dark Souls are much more interconnected than they were in Demon's Souls. Otherwise, mechanics seem to be pretty similar. Souls will be required to upgrade your character, and you'll find plenty of useful loot by killing powerful enemies and scouring the entirety of sprawling dungeons.

We also have a release date for Dark Souls. Look for it on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on October 11th of this year.