It’s been almost six years since Agent 47 last donned his trademark black suit and dual .45s, and not much has filled the void he left behind. While game series like Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell have given us plenty of stealthy, stabby action, they don’t deliver the same rush of excitement or sense of accomplishment gamers received when playing the Hitman titles. Next year, however, the bald assassin returns in Hitman: Absolution, the fifth game in the series cannon. Yesterday, IO Interactive and SquareEnix release a whopping 16 minutes of gameplay footage.

The demo introduces several new abilities, including improvised weapons (such as unplugging a power cable to use as a garotte) and ‘Instinct Mode.’ Instinct allowes players a glimpse into the mind of 47, showing weapon and item locations, enemy positions, even the path that the Hitman thinks they’ll patrol. Footage also showcased some impressive and dynamic enemy AI, dubbed by IO as the “comprehensive intelligence spectrum.” It not only allows NPCs to counter your tactics individually, but actually work together as a team to  take you down.

In an interview with IGN, developer Martin Amor noted that, “In the earlier Hitman games when you started to shoot, the AI would take out their weapons and start shooting back … Now the AI is like – what exactly is going on? And the AI is always talking … Very complex AI is worthless if you don’t make it clear to the player what it’s doing and what it’s thinking.”

Check out the full 16-minute gameplay demo after the jump; while the official release date for Absolution has yet to be announced, but keep an eye out for it between Q2 and Q3 of 2012 on 360, PS3 and PC.

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Dead Rising 2 was a slight departure from the tone of the original game from 2006. While the sequel was just as violent, outrageous, and insanely fun as its predecessor, the game carried a more somber feeling in regards to its story and protagonist. Chuck Green was a vastly different protagonist than wisecracking photojournalist Frank West (hero of DR 1); he was a more sympathetic character, and his quest to save his daughter made for a more earnest and emotional story.

Next week, however, Capcom is releasing Dead Rising 2: Off the Record – a ‘re-imagining’ of DR2 that puts Frank West back in the spotlight. Having been referred to as the video game version of a director’s cut, this release will feature new combo weapons, psychotic boss battles and entirely different dialogue and story points. While still being set in the same location (the Vegas-esque ‘Fortune City’), this is promising to be a very different game.

Check out the official launch trailer below, and stay tuned for our full review next week. Dead Rising 2: Off the Record is available on XBox 360, Playstation 3 and PCs starting October 11th, 2011.

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Fans of the Action/RPG genre are eagerly awaiting the release of The Lord of the Rings: War in the North, a new role-playing title from Snowblind Studios. WitN will feature an expansive three-player cooperative campaign allowing players to form their own fellowship, as well as a series of in-game challenges which will test players abilities to work together.

To emphasize the importance of co-op gameplay, the developers have released a behind-the-scenes / gameplay trailer focusing on “The Power of Three,” and highlighting the different abilities and tactical advantages offered by each character class.
From Premier PR:

“Each hero in this tale – Andriel the Elf, Eradan the Human, Farin the Dwarf – contributes a vital talent further uniting the Fellowship.  Hear from the creators themselves as they delve into the inner workings of the game’s heroes.  Utilising teamwork and communication, players can join together to fight the War in the North. ”

Watch the video below, and keep an eye out for The Lord of the Rings: War in the North when it releases for PS3, PC, and XBox 360 on November 1st, 2011  in the U.S., and the 25th in the UK.

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Let’s face it, we are on the cusp of the podcast generation. Nine out of ten average internet users either listen to daily podcasts if not record one themselves. That means that prosumer audio tools need to be simpler and more cost effective than ever.

Nobody who records a podcast, voiceover, or even voicechats online with friends or family wants to lug around an expensive XLR or headset mic place to place so that they can sound good. That’s where Blue Microphones’ Snowball USB microphone comes in handy.

This simple, science fiction-looking USB mic isn’t your normal USB mic. The #1-selling wired condenser mic out there, the Snowball has a high-quality dual capsule design that enables recording in three settings: cardioid, cardioid w/pad, and omni-directional.

For those who aren’t in it for the high-tech lingo and want simplicity, you can expect nothing simpler than the fact that the mic is plug-and-play for both Mac and PC, so even your grandparents could use this guy with ease and no concern of “drivers” or annoying instructions.

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When looking back at the most truly terrifying moments in film in the last thirty years, some can be found in both Alien and its sequel Aliens. Though the series started to focus more on action than horror in its later iterations, no one can say the first time they saw Sigorney Weaver face to face with a xenomorph that it wasn’t a horrifying experience.

The Alien franchise has always had a home in video games with everything from side scrolling adventures on the NES to the much acclaimed first person shooter Aliens vs. Predator titles on PC in 1999. SEGA is now bringing out two new Aliens titles over the coming months. The most prominent of the two comes in the form of Aliens: Colonial Marines for PC, XBox 360 and PlayStation 3.

Aliens: Colonial Marines has been a subject of much discussion in the video game world. At one point, there was a game set to release in 2002 entitled Aliens: Colonial Marines which ended up being canceled. Later, SEGA revived the name with a new development team and concept, slating it for a 2009 release. It would end up being delayed for about three years in favor of development of the updated Aliens vs. Predators title which came out to mixed reviews.

Now, Aliens: Colonial Marines looks like it is finally set to come out in 2012 from Gearbox Software. Gearbox is the team that put together the Opposing Force and Blue Shift expansions for the original Half-Life and most recently released the now infamous Duke Nukem Forever.

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When DC Universe Online launched earlier this year, it was possible to recreate almost any character, classic or modern, that fans of comics have loved for decades. There was one group of heroes and villains though that was noticeably left out in terms of power sets though. The Lanterns. Green, Red, Yellow, Blue and all the others had no presence in DC Universe Online from the player community. Sure they could fight alongside Hal Jordan but without a power ring of their own where is the fun in that?

Coming at the end of summer, the Fight for the Light expansion comes to DC Universe Online allowing ring based power sets to create a new array of combat options. Boxing gloves, freight trains, fighter jets, machine guns and more all produced by little green rings will up the ante in DCUO.

At Comic-Con, Mark Anderson from Sony Online Entertainment spoke with The Flickcast about what we would see in this expansion. In addition to seeing sights like Coast City or the Science Cells on Oa, the expansion will also help wrap up the story with Brainiac and the anomalies of the power rings. Players will be given the role as Corps Reserve members to help explain why so many lanterns are running around in a single sector.

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If you’re one of the people who’s been waiting fifteen years for Duke Nukem Forever to arrive, your wait is finally over. That’s right folks, after many, many delays and lots of time since Duke Nukem 3D’s original release, the sequel Duke Nukem Forever, which was announced way back in 1997, has now arrived.

“June 14 in North America will forever be celebrated as the day that legendary Duke Nukem Forever went from video game folklore to earth-shattering reality,” Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K Games, said. “For 15 years, fans have waited in limbo just yearning to hear those two little lovely words strung together–now available.”

As happy as this news is for many old school gamers, early reviews of the game have not been, shall we say, kind. The Guardian’s review was particularly unflattering saying: ”If this was 15 years in the making, it makes you wonder what they did for the other 14 years and 10 months.” Ouch.

Even with the seeming bad press after waiting so long for a game to arrive it seems a shame to not at least check it out. After all, how bad could it really be?

Duke Nukem Forever is in stores now and available for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.

As if we weren’t excited enough for Bioshock Infinite after what we were shown at PAX East, Irrational Games showed off a new trailer at E3 yesterday.

While short and a bit frenetic, the trailer gives us a taste of everything Bioshock Infinite has to offer, from the weapons and powers you’ll be wielding, the chaos and violence consuming the city of Colombia, and the fraught relationship between you and Caroline.

After the trailer was shown, Irrational Games’ Ken Levine announced that Bioshock Infinite will have some Playstation Move support, though he did not say how. He also revealed that a Bioshock game is in the works for the recently revealed PS Vita.

Bioshock Infinite will be released on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and PC sometime next year. You can watch the trailer after the jump.

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If you are one of the people out there who’s love for Star Trek is only matched by your love of video games, this post is directly straight at you. Paramount Digital Entertainment announced today a brand new action adventure co-op game that will allow players to take on the roles of some of their favorite classic Trek characters including Spock and Kirk.

The game is set to debut next week at the E3 Expo in Los Angeles and will “continue the adventure that J.J. Abrams J.J. Abrams envisioned with Star Trek” and “boasts a stand alone story filled with action-packed combat as Kirk and Spock must work together to stop a legendary enemy race bent on conquering the galaxy.”

“Star Trek challenges the boundaries of co-op gameplay with a galactic adventure that gamers and fans have never experienced,” said Tom Lesinski, President of Paramount Digital Entertainment. “Working closely with the Star Trek filmmaking team throughout development, the game is sure to deliver AAA production values, a wide variety of gameplay and all the action you would expect from the hit franchise. This will be the definitive Star Trek gaming experience.”

The game features an original story by BAFTA award winner, and God of War writer, Marianne Krawczyk, in collaboration with the writer/producers of the new Star Trek films, Bob Orci and Alex Kurtzman.

If we can find this booth at E3 next week we’ll try to get a look at the game itself and bring you more details.

After years of speculation, delays and a feeling it was really never going to happen at all, we’ve finally got a firm belief that Duke Nukem Forever is actually going to come out. How do we know?

Well, we’ve got a launch trailer for the game to share with you today. Sure, it’s only taken about 14 years (the game was first in development in 1997) to get to his point, but who’s counting? Having a launch trailer has got to be a pretty good indicator, right?

In case you’re not familiar with Duke Nukem Forever, it’s the sequel to Duke Nukem 3D, which launched in 1996, and continues the story of badass Duke Nukem as he winds his way through a world infested with zombies, aliens and scantily clad women. In this new game the aliens have returned and are stealing earth’s women. Of course, Duke isn’t having any and takes matters into his own hands.

Check out the trailer after the jump. By clicking through you certify you are 18 years of age or older.

Duke Nukem Forever drops on June 14th for XBox 360, PS3 and PC.

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After years of waiting (and reporting) DC Universe Online has finally made its way to both the PC and PlayStation 3 console. And we are happy to see it has lived up to the hype. While DCUO isn’t a ground breaking experience that will redefine the MMORPG genre, it does provide an addictive and fun super hero world for people to play in.

Taking a few lessons learned from previous super hero titles like City of Heroes and Champions Online, DCUO allows players to experience an MMO world in an iconic universe with well known locations and super hero and villain compatriots at their side. Unlike SOE’s previous iconic MMO with Star Wars Galaxies, players are actually able to fight alongside their favorite heroes and villains instead of just receiving missions from them. The game also has a fully voiced cast, a much notable difference to players of past titles like classics like Everquest or Galaxies.

Gameplay:

DC Universe Online plays similar in many ways to most other successful MMOs. It is to be expected since those formulas have proven successful for the type of game. Players move using the traditional WASD format combined with their mouse for changing directions and looking around and aiming. Different tap and hold button combinations on the mouse (unlocking more as players increase in level) release different attacks on foes. Additional super powers are unlocked and assigned to the 1 through 8 keys that can be used during combat.

Combat itself is fast paced and fun without much down time between. Unlike many MMORPGs, combat is not item-centric where players must worry about equipping tons of healing items to use after each combat instance. As long as players don’t run through like a lunatic kamikaze, they should be able to take a breather between fights to allow their character to quickly heal up before heading into the next encounter.

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So first there was Bejeweled, and that was awesome. Then there was Bejeweled 2, and that was awesome too. So you might be asking yourself, “Do we really need a Bejeweled 3? Weren’t two of these jeweled-swapping games enough?” My answer to you, doubters and naysayers, is that yes, we did need Bejeweled 3. Because it is indeed awesome, and brings some really new, innovative game modes, cool graphics, and more of the jewel-swapping, color matching madness that we all know and love.

At its core, Bejeweled 3 does provide more of the same, but there’s nothing really wrong with that. It brings the well-known Classic mode, the untimed game that only ends when there are no more moves on the board. It also has Lightening Mode, which is basically the same as the previous Action Mode, or the timed version. Zen Mode is the same as Endless, with no time limit or end to the game if moves run out. These modes feature new music and graphics, and they’re a nice update to their previous counterparts in Bejeweled 2.

What I really want to talk about is Quest Mode, which is quite different from Puzzle Mode in Bejeweled 2. In Quest Mode, there five levels, with eight puzzles to solve in each level. As you progress through the levels, the nature of the quests remain pretty similar while the difficulty increases. The quests vary from clearing gems in a certain amount of time to matching 10 time bomb gems before they run out of time and explode.

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