Blizzard has moved to fix a game breaking Diablo 3 bug encountered following the action RPG's release last night. According to multiple reports on the official Diablo 3 forums, trading a shield with a Templar follower encountered early in the title results in being booted from the game with an error 3006 message displayed.
Victims of the bug are reporting that they're unable to log back into Battle.net. Reports seem to suggest the issue may be tied to the Demon Hunter class, so if you've picked that class keep your gear to yourself for now.
Blizzard has said it's looking into the issue and has advised players to steer clear of the Templar while it works on delivering a hotfix.
The fix follows statements made by Blizzard this morning in which it urged Diablo 3 players to be patient after a rush of players attempting to activate their copies online crippled the servers.
PlayStation 3 gamers will soon be able to stream a huge quantity of BBC Sports coverage from their console's desktop.
The BBC Sports app will provide coverage of "key sporting events during the summer and beyond", according to the EU PlayStation blog.
This will include the London 2012 Olympics, Wimbledon and Formula One.
Over 2500 hours of content will be broadcast during the Olympics alone, with up to 24 simultaneous events shown in HD.
No exact release date has been announced, but BBC promises the app will be available by the start of Wimbledon - that's the 25th June.
Time-travelling tie-in Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock launches on PlayStation 3 next Wednesday, 23rd May as a digital download from PlayStation Network.
UK gamers will also be able to buy a boxed version of the game, available the following Friday, 25th May, according to the EU PlayStation blog.
Eternity Clock's digital Vita release won't arrive until 13th June, however. When it does launch the two versions will be able to share saves between platforms.
The game follows the Eleventh Doctor and sometimes-companion River Song on a new adventure independent from the TV series.
Both Matt Smith and Alex Kingston have been recruited to voice their characters, while a menagerie of familiar monsters will appear - the Daleks, Cybermen, Silurians and the Silence.
"All in all it's a smart and thoughtful handling of the source material, and one that's born from a passion for the licence at Supermassive", Martin Robinson wrote in Eurogamer's Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock preview last month. "It's a bit low-budget, its sets a little creaky, but it's got some big ideas and an even bigger heart. A little like the show itself, then."
A PC version is set to follow later this year.
Wait, the PC format - home of the FPS - STILL hasn't got DLC for Modern Warfare 3 yet? Nope. No joke. Well, it is a bit of a joke. Just not a funny one. But there is now a light at the end of the long tunnel of negligence. Content Collection 1 will hit PC on May 8.
It bundles together the Elite Premium content released in January, February, and March on Xbox.That includes four multiplayer maps, Liberation, Piazza, Overwatch and Black Box, along with new Special Ops Missions Black Ice and Negotiator.
The pack costs $14.99.
The development team behind S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 tried unsuccessfully to win the rights to the franchise after GSC's closure last year so it could continue working on the stalled sequel at new start-up Vostok Games.
Vostok's Oleg Yavorsky has revealed that it had hoped to save the follow-up to the cult 2007 PC shooter from the scrap heap but unfortunately that proved impossible.
"In December 2011 Sergiy Grygorovych - the owner of GSC Game World - decided to close down the company, for his personal reasons as he explained to the team. Effectively, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 development was stopped therefore," explained Yavorsky.
"The team was at a choice of either going to seek employment opportunities elsewhere, or stick together and try to attract external funding and secure the IP rights to be able to complete S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. We chose the latter option and this is how the new studio ultimately emerged.
"As developers of the game, we were certainly eager to continue with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 and finish the project. However, after a month or so of negotiations, we did not reach agreement with the rights owner to continue developing under the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. brand. Alas."
He added that all work on S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 has now stopped and the rights remain with what is left of GSC.
Yavorsky confirmed that Grygorovych has no involvement with Vostok, but everyone remains on good terms.
"We are communicating with him though and have parted as friends," he insisted.
Although the Stalker franchise now seems dead and buried, Vostok hopes that its spirit will live on in its first game, Survarium, which is expected to launch some time in 2013.
The Xbox 360 version of Mass Effect 3 was the top-selling game in the US and the UK during the first three months of the year. That's according to Chart-Track and NPD data revealed by Nintendo during a financial briefing for investors.
In the US, BioWare's title charted ahead of Just Dance 3 for Wii, Modern Warfare 3 for 360, NBA 2K12 for 360 and Modern Warfare 3 for PS3.
In the UK, FIFA 12 for 360 took second place, ahead of Just Dance 3 for Wii, FIFA Street for 360 and Battlefield 3 for 360.
One Piece Pirate Warriors for PS3 was the top-selling title in Japan during the first 16 weeks of 2012, according to retail monitor Media Create. Mario Kart 7, Super Mario 3D Land, Monster Hunter 3 and Dai-2-Ji Super Robot Taisen Z saisei-Hen rounded off the top five.
Nintendo also told investors that that PS3 is the top-selling console in Europe so far this year, while Xbox 360 is No.1 in the US and 3DS is the frontrunner in Japan.
Former GSC Game World boss Sergei Grigorovich has dismissed rumours that Fallout and Skyrim developer Bethesda has acquired the rights to the Ukrainian dev's STALKER series. The rumours were shot down on the series' official Facebook page: "There is no truth to the allegations that the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. rights have been sold to Bethesda. The rights belong to Sergiy Grygorovych, the founder of GSC Game World."
Rumours that Bethesda had swooped for the IP following GSC Game World's closure earlier this week originated from a Russian fansite.
Although the latest official statement seems to clear things up, we wouldn't be surprised if a deal was being hammered out behind-the-scenes. As expected, Bethesda is remaining tight-lipped.
While STALKER 2 has been cancelled, much of the development team has reformed as Vostok Games. It's working on Survarium, a free to play PC title billed as the "evolution" of STALKER.
EA shares have risen $1.22, or 8.1 percent, to $16.23 following reports that South Korean developer and publisher Nexon has made a takeover bid for the company. Bloomberg said in a video report: "According to a South Korean newspaper, the online gaming company Nexon Japan has contacted EA about making an offer. We have no idea how Electronic Arts may have responded to this reported offer."
Forbes reports that EA's stock has recently been trading close to a 52-week low, as it continues to struggle through a transition from a packaged goods firm to a digital-focused publisher.
EA has a market capitalisation of around $5 billion.
Nexon, which is headquartered in Japan, specialises in free-to-play MMORPGs like MapleStory. Our friends at GamesRadar recently named Nexon's Vindictus and Atlantica Online as two of the best free MMORPGs.
In keeping with the times, reincarnated S.T.A.L.K.E.R. dev Vostok Games will openly develop new game Survarium hand-in-hand with the community.
Survarium is a post-apocalyptic, free-to-play MMOFPS for PC.
"Stage by stage we will be actively involving the gaming community," said co-founder Oleg Yarovsky in Vostok Games' first developer diary. "We will be communicating, posting regular updates."
"We intend to establish a very open dialogue," added project lead Ruslan Didenko, "up to the point of posting ideas we are considering so that fans can influence it, telling us what would be more interesting for them.
"We are making world-class game, and with your help, with your ideas and feedback, we really are going to deliver a product of extra class."
Survarium will be set in a world - not a single region as S.T.A.L.K.E.R. was - ravaged by an "ecological catastrophe". Creepy creeping vines!
"The S.T.A.L.K.E.R. game series always carried an ecological context and was a kind of warning game," explained Didenko.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. developer GSC has officially closed its doors and cancelled the development of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, it has announced. The writing was seemingly on the wall for the post-apocalyptic shooter sequel, when GSC looked to be heading towards oblivion in December last year.
The developer pledged to "do its best" to carry on at the time, but now it's officially closed its doors and the dev team has spawned spin-off studio, Vostok Games, reports MCV.
Vostok is currently developing a free to play MMO FPS called 'Survarium', also set in the iconic 'Zone' of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series.
"The concept of Survarium is a next evolution step for the idea of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. we've been working on for the last ten years," said project lead Ruslan Didenko.
"Survarium will go way further forcing mankind to fight for survival not only within the closed area of Chernobyl zone, but also far beyond."
Australia's strict classification laws for video games have once again stopped a game coming to our shores, only this time the publishers didn't even bother going through the classification process. The video game adaptation of the Walking Dead has been on everyone's lips, however the game won't be sold in Australia or New Zealand.
On Telltale Games' official forum, a member asked about the release of The Walking Dead in Australia. An employee of Telltale replied with the following: "Sorry, but due to the OFLC ratings laws in Australia and New Zealand, and the fact that this is a mature game, we do not currently have plans to release the game there on consoles."
So there you have it: presumably because they expected to be refused classification, Telltale Games has opted to not submit the game at all.
Does this set a precedent for all games that contain mature content? Could Australia see more developers and publishers not releasing games here because of the hassle that comes with classification?
The Kickstarter drive to fund a full remake of smutty 1987 adventure game Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards has hit its $500,000 target.
The project currently rests at $506,072 from 11,235 backers with another six days of fund-raising still left to run.
Developer Replay Games marked the occasion with a succinct "Thanks gang!" on its Twitter feed.
With original creator Al Lowe on board, Replay is aiming to launch the game on PC and tablets with completely new visuals and user interface. If the new version proves successful, the rest of the series will likely follow.
PC gamers get a complimentary taste of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's multiplayer modes this weekend, Activision has announced.
The game's online component is free to play on Steam from 6.00pm Thursday evening, UK time.
Should you like what you see, the full game is currently priced at £39.99.
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Diablo 3 had over two million pre-orders, a record for Blizzard Entertainment.
The PC game launches today amid huge interest from players - so much so that servers are at capacity and thousands are unable to log in.
Blizzard's eye-watering pre-order figure takes into account units pre-ordered as part of the World of Warcraft Annual Pass promotion, as well as retail and digital pre-orders.
Diablo 3 is now available in shops in the US, Canada, Europe, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. It's available digitally in all of the above territories, and in Mexico, Argentina, Chile and Brazil.
There were over 8000 midnight launches across the world last night, including our own at HMV's flagship Oxford Street store. A video of the event, which showcases host Iain Lee's talents, is below. From Blizzard were lead technical artist Julian Love and senior world designer Leonard Boyarsky, who answered fan questions and signed swag. Also, some pictures of people dressed up as wizards.
Blizzard boss Mike Morhaime said: "This launch is a culmination of many years of hard work by our development team, and many years of passionate, dedicated support from gamers around the world.
"We're grateful for the enthusiasm of our players, and for the help of our beta testers in getting the game ready for release. Now that Diablo 3 is live, we hope everyone's ready to have a hellishly good time slaying demons and collecting loot in Sanctuary."
Treyarch's studio head Mark Lamia has dismissed criticisms that Call of Duty needs a new engine to power graphical improvements. Despite this year's Black Ops 2 running on the same engine engine as 2005's Modern Warfare, Lamia says extensive improvements made to that 'foundation' have resulted in significant advances without the need for an entirely new engine.
"People always ask me, 'Is this a new engine?' I liken it to people who live in an older house that has been remodeled. Just because you're remodeling the house and it will look new or it will have a new kitchen, you don't tear out the foundation, or break out some of the framing," said Lamia.
"Engines, each time they get touched, they change. The creators alter them; they don't modify what they don't need to, and then they alter what they need to. You can't make a competitive product if you're not upgrading that engine along the way.
"I think what people are asking for is for us to push. They want us to make a better-looking game," he went on.
"We asked ourselves that very same question - we wanted to advance the graphics. I think the questions are valid. The answer may not need to be an entirely new engine, but you might need to do an entire overhaul of your entire lighting system.
"The trick is, we're not willing to do that if we can't keep it running at 60 frames per second - but we did that this time. So this is the Black Ops II engine," said Lamia.
The system for giving video games age ratings in the UK has been revamped, with the government promising that non-compliance will be more thoroughly policed.
Games will now be rated by the Video Standards Council in line with Europe-wide standards, rather than the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC).
The VSC will rate games to PEGI specifications and then ensure retailers are abiding by them. For the first time, any retailer selling a game to a child under the advertised age restriction can face time in prison.
However, the new ratings only apply to games bought on the high street - online purchases are exempt.
"It will give parents greater confidence that their children can only get suitable games while we are creating a simpler system for the industry having their games age-rated," explained Creative Industries Minister Ed Vaizey
The move was met with enthusiasm by the various industry bodies.
UKIE stated that the new system offers customers "much needed clarity".
"We are also in the planning stages of a major awareness campaign to help the public understand the system and other aspects of responsible gaming as soon as PEGI becomes law in the UK," said CEO Jo Twist.
TIGA exec Richard Wilson said that the new system is a necessary evolutionary step for the industry.
"The fact there are criminal sanctions in place will mean that retailers will want to train and support their staff," he added.
The new system is expected to be in place by July this year.
In this latest Lollipop Chainsaw trailer a man gets his head cut off and hung on a belt buckle. And he is still alive. At first you'll probably think 'WTF?' But, you see, he had been bitten by a zombie and his girlfriend Juliet was simply severing his head to prevent his complete zombie transformation.
And so it actually all makes perfect sense...
Check out the trailer below.
PlayStation 3 owners of Mass Effect 3 are now able to take part in the game's multiplayer events.
The fortnightly events regularly grant players in-game items and upgrades for taking part - limited, until now, to PC and Xbox 360 gamers.
PS3 players can take part from tomorrow, when latest event Operation Exorcist goes live at 2am UK time (6PM PST). You'll need to enable the game's "Upload Gameplay Feedback" feature to take part.
"By now it is no secret that the Reaper War has had its share of logistical SNAFUs," someone pretending to be Mass Effect 3's Admiral Hackett wrote on the official BioWare blog. "Unfortunately, the diversity of equipment sources meant our allies ran into hardware and software incompatibilities."
"These brave men and women have been fighting beside you and, in doing so, have gone above and beyond normal duty. Because their units were not properly tracked, they fought without pay and sometimes without proper training, equipment, even rations.
"It is time to honor their service. A volunteer task force has fabricated the necessary hardware and is rolling out compatibility software. When these installations are complete, these soldiers will benefit from being properly equipped and combat-ineffective troops will get off the bench. We'll all have more comrades watching our backs, and we're now watching theirs."
Google is well known for its love of gaming Easter Eggs, with Pac-Man and the ZX Spectrum referenced on its home page in recent years. But the latest search engine secret has to be its best yet; head over to Google.com and search for 'Zerg Rush' for a brilliant homage to Blizzard's StarCraft series. Amazing stuff.
Last month the search giant announced Google Play, the "new home of Android Apps" and games.
Nintendo will showcase the final Wii U hardware at E3 and also reveal details of the system's software line-up for 2012. What won't be revealed until a later date, Nintendo boss Satoru Iwata told investors, is the console's price.
"We will showcase the final format, and discuss the details and the software line-up for this year at E3 2012, which will be held in Los Angeles in the United States in June this year," the exec said.
"Also, in the week after the E3 show, we would like to organise an opportunity where we can showcase the same to the Japanese wholesalers and financial analysts who cannot attend the E3 show. The people in our appropriate sections will let you know as soon as we have settled on further details.
"Please also be advised that, as we did for previous platforms that were launched in the year-end sales season, we will announce the launch date and price in each market sometime after E3."
Iwata also reiterated that Wii U "will be launched in Japan, the US, Europe and Australia in the year-end sales season", before outlining a beefed up digital strategy which will see Wii U titles released digitally on the same day that they hit retail. Many 3DS games, beginning with August's New Super Mario Bros. 2, will also be available as downloads.
Amazon has leaked a 25th May release date for the Xbox 360 4GB Celebration Pack. 
It's identical to the Xbox 360 Family Kinect Bundle that was announced back in February.
Bar for one thing: a Union Jack skin for console, Kinect and controller.
Amazon's listing has since disappeared.
Max Payne 3's Cemetery multiplayer map is exclusively available at GAME and Gamestation, the retailer has announced.
Buying the game there isn't enough - you need to pre-order Max Payne 3 in-store (putting down a £5 deposit) or online to secure the extra content.
GAME boasts that the pre-order incentive is already proving to be a "hit", and promises midnight openings for Rockstar's latest launch.
"We are delighted to be Rockstar Games' partner for the launch of Max Payne 3," said GAME marketing director Anna-Marie Mason. "They have been a true supporter of our business."
Rockstar returned the love for the recently-revived retailer. "GAME and Gamestation have worked together with us to launch many successful games over the years," Rockstar exec Neil Stephen said. "Their strong fanbase of loyal customers make them the perfect partners for this opportunity."
Max Payne 3 launches in the UK on 18th May.
Star Trek Online and Champions Online maker Cryptic Studios has only now discovered evidence of "unauthorised access" to game accounts from December 2010.
Cryptic Studios broke the news to gamers overnight.
"As part of our ongoing efforts to monitor and enhance security, we recently detected evidence of an unauthorised access to one of our user databases," the company revealed. "The unauthorised access occurred in December 2010, and evidence of this has just been uncovered due to increased security analysis.
"As part of our ongoing efforts to monitor and enhance security, we recently detected evidence of an unauthorised access to one of our user databases," the company revealed. "The unauthorised access occurred in December 2010, and evidence of this has just been uncovered due to increased security analysis.
"The unauthorised access included user account names, handles and encrypted passwords for those accounts. Even though the passwords were encrypted, it is apparent that the intruder has been able to crack some portion of the passwords in this database. All accounts that we believe were present in the database have had the passwords reset, and customers registered to these accounts have been notified via e-mail of this incident."
"While we have no evidence that any other information was taken by the intruder, it is possible that the intruder was able to access additional account information. If they did so, the first and last name, e-mail address, date of birth (if provided to Cryptic Studios), billing address, and the first six digits and the last four digits of credit cards registered on the site may have been accessed.
"We have no evidence at this time that any data other than the account name, handle, and encrypted password were accessed for any user."
Cryptic pledged to investigate further and and to "strengthen our systems and redouble our security vigilance and protections". Cryptic restated familiar line of 'we will never contact you asking for these kinds of personal details'.
"While we have no evidence of unauthorised use of personal information as a result of this incident," Cryptic closed, "to protect against any possible identity theft, we encourage you to remain vigilant, to review your account statements and to monitor your credit reports.
"We apologise for any inconvenience this unauthorised access may have caused our customers."
UK gamers will be able to get their hands on glossy white Xbox 360s from May 25 when in the 'Celebration Pack' bundle hits UK retail. The new bundle, which arrived in the US in February (as the 'Kinect Family Bundle'), packs a 4GB console with a Kinect sensor and a controller - all in a nice glossy white plastic.
It also includes a union Jack skin set, three months of Xbox Live Gold, and two titles; Kinect Sports and Kinect Adventures.
The bundle has been listed on Amazon UK for £250 for release on May 25
The first episode of Telltale's The Walking Dead video game tie-in arrives on Xbox Live Arcade on 27th April, the developer has announced.
It will set you back a mere 400 Points.
The game launched on PC, Mac and PlayStation 3 earlier today.
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Wednesday, 16 May 2012 10:36
