Well, The Escapist has reported that the last player has been logged out of the final Halo 2 lobby on the Microsoft dedicated servers, officially ending the game's popular run since 2004. Despite Microsoft officially ending Live support for the original XBox on April 15th, a handful of dedicated Halo 2 fans refused to log off until the last one, with the handle Apache N4SIR was forcibly booted at 1:28 EDT this morning. Despite your feelings on the Halo franchise, it is pretty cool that even a game that is six years old is (well was) still supported by a committed fan base. Think about how many great games have come and gone out of our memories and minds in the last six years. Read More...

This past Friday we were able to join in on the conference call for Split/Second, the upcoming game from Disney and Blackrock Studios. Split/Second is releasing next week (5/18/2010) and we had the honor to have our questions answered by Nick Baynes, Game Director for Blackrock Studios. So why should you pick up this racer? Well give it a listen and you can judge for yourself on why you would want to pick up this racer. If for some odd reason you don't want to listen to over fifty-six minutes of the conference call than let me give you some of the key points for Split/Second. Read More...

The comic and film of this intellectual property have come and gone. Both spectacular in their own right. If you have yet to read or see either, do both. But what if you have done one or both already? Well did you know there is a video game version of Kick-Ass for the PSN and iPhone? There most certainly is. Why wouldn't there be, as merchandising is a great way to make more money off a great franchise. It is the capitalist way after all. Read More...

Normally I would have some sort of opening line for many of my articles, but today I got nothing. Maybe its because I am really excited about what I am about to report to you, and that will be 2K Games and Valve have announced an agreement to power all PC versions of Sid Meier's Civilization V with many of Steamworks' features and offer a special Digital Deluze Edition via Steam. Those who pre-order the Regular or Deluxe edition will be rewarded with a free map pack when the game is released later. So whats the difference between the Regular Edition and the Deluxe Edition. Read More...

So have you been curious on how the multiplayer aspect of Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days is going to look? Or have you been curious on how it will actually be implemented through story or any other way? Well ponder not so much any more. We have a new look at the multiplayer for Kane and Lynch 2. One of which is a very fun descriptive, and audio non-safe for work, clip describing what is going on. While I am not a big fan of multiplayer in games, in fact I think it can ruin a game in some cases, the multiplayer for Kane and Lynch looks like an interesting twist. I mean, your allies and team mates can turn on you at any moment if I heard and saw that right in the clip here. Read More...

I know what your thinking, "damn another crappy Street Fighter film," but that's not the case here. This new adaptation looks fantastic, and true to the style and impact that so many Street Fighter fans have felt over the years. This is a movie for the fans. Joey Ansah is a stuntman (last see in Bourne Ultimatum) with a passion, a passion for the Street Fighter franchise. Ansah has personally expressed what so many fans of the game have felt every time a mention of a new Street Fighter movie was announced: "As an actor, film maker and a fan, I have been repeatedly disappointed by the many diluted, un faithful and outright butchered movie adaptations of fighting video games. It was clear to me, that given the way the movie industry worked, we would never see a super faithful, darker toned and more adult themed (or just plain good! Read More...

Well there's not much else to report here except go here to get your hands on one of the best PC-exclusive action titles ever released. Nothing streamlined or dumbed down for the console, just pure 30 button action at its best. There have been some reports of server issues, but they seem to have been resolved. I personally think this is an awesome move that will have a short term loss, long term gain for Microsoft (who has finally released one of my favorite IP's), as well as Smith and Tinker - a new developer who has taken the reins for Mechwarrior 5. There are no profits to be found by doing this, but what they will get is the love and respect of the huge Mechwarrior fanbase. Read More...

Dead to Rights: Retribution is a third person action title following vice cop Jack Slate and his groin-ravaging, canine companion Shadow as they uncover the seedier threats that are rising against an already seedy Grant City. Essentially, it is a re-imagining of the franchise that began with very basic, but very fun run and gun gameplay with a hint of John Woo-style dramatics. The sequel to the original, Dead to Rights II: Hell to Pay, moved the series from all the aforementioned positives into an area of monotony and outright brokenness. It took the ideas of the first game, which were actually pretty fresh amidst most of the titles out at the time, and did absolutely nothing with them. Read More...

Super Street Fighter IV is definitely a great value at $40, especially for people who didn't pick up the original. Aside from everything originally included with IV, Super also includes a handful of new characters, new stages, new music and updated online play. This includes some new modes and features that fans have been wanting for over a year now. A new roster update comprises of a nice selection of characters from various series in the Street Fighter universe, as well as two new ones exclusive to Super. Juri is a welcome addition with a quickness that many other characters are lacking, and Hakan is a grappler covered in oil that brings more depth to his style of character. Read More...

As I woke up this morning and logged-in to my Twitter account only to find shocking news of the day. If you do not know by now, Bungie has signed a ten year partnership with Activision. Despite everything that is going on with Infinity Ward and Activision, Bungie went ahead and pulled a fast one on everyone. Activision will have exclusive, worldwide rights to publish and distribute all future Bungie games based on their new intellectual property on multiple platforms and device. So 360 fans, you will have some company when it comes to future Bungie games. Read More...

Well it's coming closer to crunch time for Iron Man 2. Both for the film and videogame. So let's take a look at what we get to look forward to in the next week. At least as far as the videogame goes. Visually it is looking rather decent. As you can see from the below screen shots and new "prologue" trailer for the game. I mean they are not the best visuals known to the gaming industry, but for a movie tie in game you have to admit to yourself that they are pretty spectacular. Even though they do take on the cartoon feel to the whole style, but that is ok. Read More...

I've never tried to hide the fact that I was not the biggest Splinter Cell fan. The exploits of one Mr. Fisher never struck me as the most engaging, no matter how polished the series might have been. There was nothing about the character that made me want to be a part of the world, so imagine my surprise when I discovered that what made me want to explore the game’s mythology was the dehumanization of Sam Fisher. I think the cover definitely serves as a metaphor for the changing of style and approach with this title. Fisher has lost his daughter and along with her, he’s lost his fragile grip on the world around him. Read More...

Today, Disney Interactive Studios announced today that the demo for their upcoming action racer Split/Second is now available for download on XBox LIVE. Developed by the award winning Black Rock Studio, Split/Second will be exclusively for XBox LIVE until May 11th. After the 11th, it will be available for the PlayStation Network. The demo will allow players to experience the Airport Terminal level where players will race through a fictional airport terminal taking out opponents by triggering events, such as bringing down the air traffic control tower and piloting a cargo plane remotely. Split/Second will be released on May 18th and May 21st in North America and Europe, respectively. Read More...

A combination of the best of what you love about Geometry Wars, Asteroids and Audiosurf, Beat Hazard is a rocking hand-eye coordination / spatial recognition challenge. Developed and published by Cold Beam Games, the game takes the music already stored on your computer and turns it into a space shooter. Big on gameplay, Beat Hazard makes no pretense regarding the presence of a story. Rather, it absorbs the drama from the song and builds your world from that palette. Read More...

It's an exciting time to be a gamer because there is definitely a lot of pivotal stuff going on in our industry right now. Today I want to go on about a reasonably new development of an old concept. Expansion packs have been around since the mid 90's in the PC world. Back when the PC dinosaurs ruled the video game landscape (and just about any game could be played on any computer without a video card that costs more than a PS3), if there was a successful game, a half a year or so later we would see an expansion pack. People who enjoyed a game could purchase more content for around $20 to $30-ish. Don't quote me on this, but the first expansion in my memory was the level add on pack for Doom II released in 1995 called "Doom II Master Levels. Read More...