Modern Warfare 2 Stimulus Maps Priced at $15
(via 1Up) - After being revealed earlier today, Infinity Ward's Robert Bowling made an appearance on Major Nelson's weekly podcast earlier this evening to discuss the upcoming Stimulus map pack. On it, Bowling confirmed that the pack will be comprised of five maps (three new maps and two "slightly reworked" maps from Call of Duty 4) and also announced the price: 1,200 Microsoft Points, or $15.
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Ensemble, Pandemic Blame Company Cultures for Studio Closures
(via 1Up) - When a small studio is shut down by their big publishers, it's easy to jump to a reactionary conclusion that the big publishers are to blame. But speaking at the Game Developers Conference (via Eurogamer), staffers from two recently shut-down studios didn't blame their owners -- they blamed themselves.
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Modern Warfare 2 Stimulus Package Adds 5 Maps, 2 from MW1
(via 1Up) - Thanks to an early posting on the Xbox Live Marketplace website (via Joystiq), we now know what to expect from the upcoming Modern Warfare 2 DLC add-on, apparently called "Stimulus Package." The DLC will add five maps, but only three are actually brand-new -- the other two are returning favorites from the original Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
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Ex-Infinity Ward Heads Join Hollywood Talent Agency
(via 1Up) - After being unceremoniously fired by Activision last week (and responding with a lawsuit alleging breach of contract), what's next for now-former Infinity Ward heads Vince Zampella and Jason West? To find that out now, you might have to have your people call their people.
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How To Get Your Student Game Signed
(via 1Up) - At a discussion panel at the Game Career Guide seminar during the last day of GDC 2010, developers who worked on Flower, The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom, and Portal discussed how they got their college student games noticed enough for publishers to give them jobs and put their games out commercially.
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Insomniac Games Going Multi-Platform?
(via 1Up) - The Game Developers Conference is proving to be ripe with juicy rumors, and here's another to add to the collection: IGN reports that, according to an anonymous "trusted source," Insomniac Games has become a multi-platform developer, currently working both on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
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Nintendo Would Be Embarrassed to Be in Sony's, Microsoft's Position
(via 1Up) - Sony finally showed off their PlayStation 3 motion controller (dubbed "Move") and sub-controller at GDC this week, and let's be charitable by saying it looks in a lot of ways pretty similar in concept to Nintendo's Wii remote and nunchuck.
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See How the N64 and XBLA Versions of Perfect Dark Compare
(via 1Up) - After seeing screenshots or video of the Xbox Live Arcade version of Perfect Dark, you may not have been blown away. Coming just weeks after the release of the gorgeous Battlefield: Bad Company 2, not to mention the myriad of other great-looking FPS games that have been released in recent years, it's easy to be underwhelmed.
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DICE Takes a Shot at Mapathy, Free BFBC2 Maps Coming Soon
(via 1Up) - While Infinity Wars appears to have some premium downloadable maps coming on March 30 for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, DICE, too, is at work on new maps for Battlefield: Bad Company 2 that are set for release on the same day.
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Sid Meier's Keynote Discusses Cheating And Dancing Bears
(via 1Up) - Legendary game designer Sid Meier gave a keynote talk Friday at the Game Developers Conference, explaining to his fellow game designers how to trick players into having a good time. "If you play Civilization, you are an egomaniac," Meier joked at the beginning of his talk.
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Torchlight Headed for Consoles Soon?
(via 1Up) - Torchlight was the toast of the dungeon-crawling crowd when it released on PC last year, but what if your rig just doesn't cut the mustard? No worries -- word on the street suggests Runic Games' debut could be headed to a console near you.
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BioShock 2 DLC is Already On the Disc
(via 1Up) - Trouble is brewing in Rapture. The recently released Sinclair Solutions multiplayer pack for BioShock 2 is facing upset players over the revelation that the content is already on the disc, and the $5 premium is an unlock code.
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Rock Band Offers Three Doors Down, Mute Math Next Week
(via 1Up) - In addition to the Lady Gaga DLC that was announced earlier this week, Harmonix has revealed four more Rock Band tracks scheduled to become available next week. Songs by Three Doors Down, Mute Math, and The Subways are all queued up for the Rock Band music store next Tuesday, May 16 on Xbox 360 and Wii, with a PlayStation 3 release planned for Thursday, May 18.
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Mass Effect 2 Bringing Kasumi's Stolen Memory DLC in April
(via 1Up) - Though BioWare has been providing a steady stream of free content for Mass Effect 2 for Cerberus Network members, their plan has always been to introduce paid downloadable content as well. We'll be seeing the first of it on April 6, when "Kasumi's Stolen Memory" hits the Xbox 360 and PC.
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Gabe Newell: Portal 2 is The Best Game We've Ever Done
(via 1Up) - Following this year's Game Developers Choice Awards ceremony, we were able to grab Valve's Gabe Newell for a brief chat about Portal 2, wherein he mentioned that he thinks it is the best game Valve has ever created.
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Gabe Newell Teases New Song for Portal 2
(via 1Up) - In an interview with 1UP after accepting the Pioneer Award at tonight's Game Developers Choice ceremony, Valve's Gabe Newell offered a few details about his company's upcoming Portal 2. When asked if he could provide a piece of trivia about the game that people wouldn't know, Newell mentioned, "Jonathan Coulton is awesome -- he's just brilliant; he's a joy to work with," referring to the songwriter behind the now-famous end credits song in the original Portal.
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EA Seemingly Drops Dragon Age 2 Release Date
(via 1Up) - EA and BioWare are supporting the Dragon Age franchise with ambitious downloadable content plans and even an expansion. On top of that, we may have just discovered the release date for the upcoming sequel.
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John Cleese Voicing Butler in Fable III
(via 1Up) - Comedy legend John Cleese will soon be lending his voice to Fable III. The actor best known for his work on Monty Python and Fawlty Towers will be serving as the main character's butler. Lionhead's Peter Molyneux dropped word of Cleese's inclusion during his GDC session.
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Green Day: Rock Band Coming June 8
(via 1Up) - Harmonix and MTV Games announced today that Green Day: Rock Band is set for a worldwide release on June 8, 2010. The game features over 47 tracks, including "Brain Stew," "Jaded," "Hitchin' a Ride," "American Idiot," "Wake Me Up When September Ends," and "Boulevard of Broken Dreams.
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Final Fight: Double Impact Gameplay Footage
(via 1Up) - Capcom recently dropped off their upcoming downloadable double-pack that includes Final Fight and Magic Sword, so we went ahead and put up some gameplay clips for your viewing pleasure. The entire package is slated for an April release and a price point has yet to be announced.
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Final Fantasy XIII Ships 5 Million Copies Worldwide
(via 1Up) - Square Enix has shipped over five million units of Final Fantasy XIII globally, according to a report from Adriasang. This includes three months of availability in Japan, during which the company apparently shipped about two million units.
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All about Japan's Anti-Violence Game Rating System
(via 1Up) - In Japan, the equivalent of the ESRB is the Computer Entertainment Rating Organization (CERO), the industry outfit responsible for giving content ratings to every console game released in the country.
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Japan Review Check: Yakuza 4, Bad Company 2
(via 1Up) - A recap of the best games due to hit Japanese shelves next week, courtesy of Famitsu magazine's review pages: - Yakuza 4 (9/10/10/9, 38 points): We haven't gotten Yakuza 3 quite yet, but the sequel's already out in Japan, and it's apparently a scorcher.
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Capcom Reveals Final New Character for Super Street Fighter IV
(via 1Up) - Curious what tricks Capcom has up their sleeves for the final additional character in Super Street Fighter IV? Wonder no longer, because IGN got the first glimpse at Hakan -- a totally original brawler created specifically for the updated version of Street Fighter IV.
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Final Fantasy XIII Launch Party Photo Gallery
(via 1Up) -- Final Fantasy XIII Launch Party Photo Gallery A celebration in San Francisco bringing the cast and creators of Final Fantasy XIII out for the game's launch. The red carpet entrance to Regency Hall, and the start of the festivities.
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More Need For Speed: Shift DLC On The Way
(via 1Up) - With Ferrari having finally returned to the Need for Speed stable of automobiles, Electronic Arts is releasing even more DLC for last year's Shift. The new Exotic Racing Series Pack will be launching next week on Xbox Live Arcade and the PlayStation Network, and will run you 800 Microsoft Points ($10.
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Infinity Ward Teases Modern Warfare 2 DLC with Mapathy Site
(via 1Up) - We wouldn't fault you for getting a little sick of the default maps in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, and neither would Infinity Ward, apparently. The developer began teasing new multiplayer levels today by posting Twitter links to Mapathy.
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Black 2 Previously Existed, Ended Up Being Canned
(via 1Up) - The newly-announced Bodycount could be considered a spiritual successor to Black, but not too long ago the real thing was under development. Speaking with GameSpot, designer Stuart Black said that Black 2 was being worked on at Criterion, but was ultimately shelved.
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Arc Projector Arrives on Mass Effect 2 Cerberus Network
(via 1Up) - For those of you still tromping around the galaxy in Mass Effect 2, BioWare is giving you a helping hand with a new toy. The Arc Projector has been released over the Cerberus Network, the latest piece of free DLC for those who purchased a new copy of the game.
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Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 Will Support PS3 Motion Controller, Launching June 8
(via 1Up) - Moving beyond the tabloid fodder of the past several months, Electronic Arts has a series to market. EA Sports has started spinning up the hype machine for Tiger Woods 11, announcing that will feature support for the PS3 Motion Controller as well as the inclusion of the Ryder Cup.
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