Angry Birds may be a simple game, but with over 12 million downloads on the App Store alone, it’s the biggest name in mobile gaming. Which is why I’m really excited to learn that the newest version of the high-flying poultry puzzle game will be in space.

That’s right, Angry Birds Space. SPACE. I LOVE space.

The game’s developer, Rovio, has posted a website for the game, with an image of a slingshot on the moon and the words “One small fling for a bird, one quantum leap for birdkind” underneath.

Thinking about it, Angry Birds is a game about physics and gravity. Knocking down different pieces of the environment is key to finishing levels and obtaining high scores. So introducing zero-gravity into a game based around gravity is going to put an entirely new spin on it, and I think it’s a great way to take this already fantastic game to new heights (literally).

Angry Birds Space launches March 22nd. While you wait, you can check out Rovio’s website where you can download a new wallpaper and watch the teaser trailer after the jump.

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With all the speculation and hype surrounding Apple’s iPhone, iPad and iOS, it’s nice to actually get some concrete details about the company’s next version of the OS that powers its Mac hardware. That’s right, the cat-themed software is back and this time around it’s called “Mountain Lion.”

Apple today released details of the next version of its Mac OS, also known by the more technical name as Mac OS X 10.8, and they are going to be good news for those of you wishing your Mac was more like your iPhone or iPad. Some of the highlight of the new release include the arrival of iMessage on the Mac as well as Notification Center.

Other new features include Game Center integration, AirPlay mirroring, enhanced iCloud support and a number of redesigned apps. A developer preview of OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion will be released on Thursday of this week and the updated OS will become available to end users this summer.

For more, check out the full press release from Apple after the break.

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Even with a perfectly fine piece of software for reading Final Draft scripts on the iPad already available in the form of FDX Reader, some users were still waiting for an “official” solution from Final Draft themselves. Well, they need wait no longer — or at least won’t have to after February 16.

That’s right, the company is releasing its “official” app to read scripts written in Final Draft on your iPad. For some of you, this won’t seem like a big deal. For those of us who use Final Draft daily for work and have alwyas wanted a way to read scripts on our iPads with the same fonts, page numbering and formatting as on our computers, this is a great development.

Some of the apps features will include:

• Works with Final Draft version 8 FDX files – the Hollywood industry standard script file format
• Imports scripts using email, iTunes File Sharing, or Dropbox
• Perfectly paginates to US Letter and standard European (A4) page sizes
• Precisely displays production scripts, including colored production pages, locked pages, scene numbering, and more!
• Scripts accurately scale to actual draft size

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One of the biggest game releases this year is the upcoming Mass Effect 3, the sequel to the mega hit franchise that blends Sci-Fi action and RPG immersion. The game is already being penciled in for game of the century and fans are at a fever pitch in anticipation, so bringing the game to iOS devices seems a smart way to capitalize.

The just announced Mass Effect Datapad is still clouded in some mystery, but we do know it will be an iPad exclusive. Best estimation is that the app will work as sort of a strategy guide, or some sort of informational support for your missions.

Also, EA has announced Mass Effect Infiltrator for all iOS devices, a third person shooter that is meant to feed into the main game’s Galaxy At War system. The mobile game is set around freeing prisoners and gaining evidence against Cerberus, both of which will have a direct impact on your single player experience.

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Telltale Games is known for working on some of the most revered point and click games in PC gaming, with many of its key contributors coming from the famed LucasArts team that created Tales of Monkey Island. Since splitting off from LucasArts, the team at Telltale was able to take their credentials and acquire more well known mass market properties like CSI, Jurassic Park and Back to the Future. Though this is the fifth Law & Order game to be released, Law & Order: Legacies it is the first to come from the team at Telltale.

Gameplay:

When talking about a point and click adventure game, many people recall instances of being left in a world where they must click on or pick up objects in a certain order to achieve a specific goal. Instead, the aspect of the point and click adventure that carries over to Law & Order: Legacies is that of a cerebral experience which players are carefully lead through, almost too carefully at times.

The focus of Law & Order: Legacies’ gameplay is on remembering the facts presented at crime scenes, interviews with witnesses and cutting off the tactics of defense attorneys.

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As its done in the past with other big screen adaptations of its comics, Marvel has gone ahead and put together a comic book prelude for The Avengers for fans to enjoy. This one, called “Fury’s Big Week,” will be eight issues with the first released for free on Marvel’s comics app this Sunday.

Yes, you read that right. It’s going to be free. That’s nice. Too bad the rest of the issues won’t be. Oh well.

Here’s the scoop from the official press release:

“We’ve worked hand-in-hand with Marvel Studios to create an exciting story set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that sets the stage perfectly for the most anticipated film of the summer,” said Axel Alonso, Marvel Editor in Chief. “Now, for the first time. you’ll find out just what happened to some of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes on the road to Marvel’s The Avengers.”

What is the Avengers Initiative? And what are the secrets of S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury? The answers arrive in Marvel’s The Avengers Prelude: Fury’s Big Week and the first issue is free this Sunday only on the Marvel Comics app!

Check out some preview pages for the comic after the break.

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Big day for Apple and the education market today as our favorite fruit-flavored tech company revealed at an event in New York City that it will, as we discussed last week, be getting into the textbook publishing business in a big way. Apple’s VP of marketing Phil Schiller announced several new components of the initiative including iTunes U as a separate iOS app, which gives users of Apple’s new iBooks 2 iOS app access to textbooks from several top publishers to be read on the iPad.

The new textbooks are modern and interactive instead of plain old paper. They support multitouch gestures and also feature dictionary look-up integration and annotation. Students can even highlight text, take notes and create virtual note cards to reference later while studying. Wish this was around when I was in school.

At launch, high school-level textbooks are available in the iBookstore and priced at $14.99 or less. Expect more textbooks to come along in the near future. The first group of publishers with textbooks available for the iPad include Pearson, McGraw Hill and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

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Call of Duty Elite is a service that allows the most hardcore Call of Duty players to lose themselves in some pretty advance stat tracking and multiplayer progression. Now those gamers have even less of a reason to spend any time away from their account with the launch of the iOS app for the service.

The new app will be free for all registered users, and is available on all iOS platforms today. An android version is going to be hitting soon as well.

Immerse yourself in Call of Duty® wherever you go with the Call of Duty® ELITE mobile app. Evaluate your multiplayer progress with in-depth stat analysis. Formulate new strategies based on your recent performance and remotely incorporate edits to your loadouts. Push your changes directly into Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® 3 so you’re always ready to play.

Check out a list of features and some screen shots after the jump.

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It’s a funny thing the video game business (and most technology businesses for that matter). When a game first comes out it’s often the cutting edge of gaming design and graphics and, if popular, almost impossible to find. And then time passes and a new game rises to take its place with the old one left in a pile, all but forgotten.

That’s not the case these days, however, at least with some games. Some games, if they’re popular enough, go on to be ported to the iPad, iPhone and Android-powered devices. That’s exactly what happened with the PS2 hit game Grand Theft Auto 3, which is now available for Android and iOS devices.

Just like in the version we all new and loved ten years ago, in the game you take it to the streets of Liberty City to complete a variety of missions with a large cast of seedy characters. Rockstar Games says players can count on hours of gameplay, updated graphics, HD quality and gameplay that has been optimized for touchscreen devices.

We’ll be the judge of that. Right now. Grand Theft Auto 3 is available in the Android Market and in the iTunes App Store now for $4.99.

The Bitcast returns this week with their record setting 8th Episode featuring the Flickcast’s own version of Mario & Luigi, though JC and WallE will both always lay claim to being the star of the episode.

In the News of the Week, JC and WallE discuss the upcoming Spike Video Game Awards show and speculate on the upcoming announcement from Epic Games, the makers of Gears of War and the Infinity Blade franchises. They also discuss the 10th Anniversary of Grand Theft Auto III coming to iOS before getting into detail with South Park: The Game coming from Obsidian. They even talk Beta numbers for Star Wars: The Old Republic and announce the current and upcoming DLC for Goldeneye 007: Reloaded, sadly with the absence of Sean Bean.

In the Long Grind in Skyrim this week, JC gets in detail on both the dragons and music of the Elder Scrolls V.

For the Topic of the Week, WallE shows that he can handle both movies and gaming as he discusses the scores composed for some of the most influential titles in gaming history.

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Telltale games is a classy organization. They produce character driven adventure games that capture the spirit of classic point and click gameplay while still feeling modern and relevant today. Telltale also has a great ability to nail licensed franchises, really getting the tone right in a wide variety of genres.

Law and Order fans should be thrilled to know that the guys at Telltale are bringing their brand of puzzle based adventure gameplay to the mean streets of New York. Telltale announced details on their blog about the upcoming iOS game:

“Law & Order, one of television’s longest running franchises, is coming to iOS on December 22 in the form of Law & Order: Legacies! Incorporating fan-favorite characters from throughout the entire span of Law & Order, including Olivia Benson, Lennie Briscoe, Rey Curtis, and Jack McCoy, Law & Order: Legacies allows players to effectively play the legendary TV show!”

More details after the jump.

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It didn’t do it as fast as the iTunes store did for IOS apps but still, this milestone is pretty impressive. What am I talking about? Well, according to Apple, its Mac App Store has has now served more than 100 million downloads to eager customers who appreciate not having to buy a boxed product.

”In just three years the App Store changed how people get mobile apps, and now the Mac App Store is changing the traditional PC software industry,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, in a statement. “With more than 100 million downloads in less than a year, the Mac App Store is the largest and fastest growing PC software store in the world.”

See, pretty impressive. With numbers like these you have to wonder what exactly Apple has made from this? Like the iOS store, you can bet the company gets a percentage and, if rumors are to be believed, a pretty decent one.

Not bad Apple, not bad. At least we don’t have to worry about you going out of business like we used to back in the 90s. Let’s keep it that way, okay?

Click through for the full press release from Apple about this milestone.

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