Dragon Age II available for preorder, coming March 2011

If you're dying to slay more Darkspawn and catch up with your party around a virtual campfire, then we're pleased to inform you that a new installment of Dragon Age is only eight months away. Along with opening preorders for Dragon Age II today, EA promised a trailer for August 17 and revealed plans to ship the new chapter on the PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 next March. Additionally, the next issue of Game Informer magazine (208) will feature an exclusive 10-page cover story of the title.

According to the official game page, players will embark upon an all-new adventure that spans an entire decade, where they'll be "forced to fight for survival in an ever-changing world" and "gather the deadliest of allies" – just like the first title. You can also expect an emphasis on character interaction, with decisions greatly affecting the world. There's also talk of updated combat mechanics, revamped graphics and a "new visual style."

Dead Rising 2 launch bumped to September 28

According to Eurogamer, Capcom has postponed the debut of the sequel to 2006's sandbox-style zombie slasher Dead Rising by one month. Dead Rising 2 is now due on September 28 in North America and October 1 in Europe for the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 simultaneously. The developer hasn't provided any official reason for the delay, nor is there any information about whether it will affect the Xbox 360-exclusive "downloadable prologue" Case Zero.

The latest installment is set five years after the events of the original title and follows a "more interesting" protagonist, Chuck Greene, as he hacks his way through hordes of infected souls in the Las Vegas-like Fortune City. Dead Rising 2's gameplay remains largely unchanged, but there are various enhancements, such as new weapons including a lawn mower, missions (sans photography elements), and the max onscreen zombie count has been increased from 800 to roughly 6,000.

Razer preps Tron-themed keyboard and mouse

Children of the 80s: Disney is preparing a range of Tron-themed electronics to promote the launch of its new movie, Tron: Legacy. Among the companies partnering with the studio is PC peripherals maker Razer, who is working a new Tron-based mouse and keyboard.

The mouse features Razer's 5600dpi 3.5g sensor, which is the same technology found in the company's upper-scale products, such as the Mamba we recently reviewed. It's also described as "ergonomic," although that's not the first word that comes to mind when we look at the picture below.

The keyboard's highlights include a set of programmable keys, macro recording capabilities, and a detachable keypad, as seen on competing products like the Microsoft SideWinder X6. There's also talk of a "high precision mouse mat," to complete the set.

Razer's Tron product line will range in price from $79 to $139, while products from other manufacturers include iPod docks, iPhone cases, ear buds, as well as gaming controllers for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii.

GeForce GTX 460 on its way, overclocking friendly Fermi?

Earlier rumors had indicated that Nvidia was preparing a mid-range addition to its GeForce GTX 400 lineup that would arrive in time for Computex, but as we now know that didn't happen. We do know the GTX 460 is on its way though, and unlike the GTX 465 that is more of the same power hungry Fermi that we have come to love and hate at the same time, the GTX 460 will be based on a cut-down revision of that chip "GF104" that should address our concerns about power consumption and heat generation, particularly relevant for a mainstream priced product that is meant to reach the masses.

The latest tidbits of information come from german publication Heise Online who have disclosed some impressive overclocking results. They claim they were able to overclock a GTX 460 from its stock speed of 675MHz to 830MHz without much effort. Then further tweaking the card's voltage had them hitting speeds in the 900MHz range at which point they were matching the performance of the much more expensive GeForce GTX 470.

According to Heise, there will be two versions of the GTX 460, one that comes with 768MB RAM and a 192-bit memory bus that will sell for $230, and a slightly more expensive version that will carry 1GB of RAM and a 256-bit memory interface.

Maingear launches eX-L 17 desktop replacement notebook

Custom PC builder Maingear has launched a new 17-inch desktop replacement notebook, fully equipped with today's finest hardware. There are three base models of the eX-L 17, one which uses an ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5870, another with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 480M, and the last uses an Nvidia Quadro FX 2800M. All of the systems come with your choice of five laser-etched designs and are priced at $1,900, $2,500 and $3,000, respectively.

Besides the GPU, little if anything else varies between each model. They're all available with a 17.3-inch 1080p display, five Core i5 and i7 processors (i5-520M through the i7-820QM), 4GB or 8GB of DDR3 1333MHz RAM, up to two mechanical (750GB max) or solid-state storage (512GB max) drives, a DVD burner or Blu-ray reader, a 2.0-megapixel webcam, and Windows 7 Home Premium, Professional, or Ultimate 64-bit.

There is one thing that differs between the machines, which is that only the GTX 480M version comes with USB 3.0 ports. Other connectivity includes HDMI and DVI-out, IEEE-1394 Firewire, eSATA, S/PDIF-out, a 7-in-1 card reader, an ExpressCard 34/54 slot, a 56k modem, gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth, as well as audio jacks. All three variants of the eX-L 17 are available right now with an estimated ship date of July 7.

Activision CEO teases ''online world'' for Call of Duty

With Lucas Arts and Interplay readying their Star Wars and Fallout MMO titles, respectively, could Activision's Call of Duty franchise be next in line? The company has flirted with the idea in the past, as it looks at different business models to monetize online gameplay, and if recent comments from Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick are any indication then a Call of Duty subscription based game could indeed be in the cards.

His comments were made in a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, when asked what he would change about his company if he could make it happen with a snap of the fingers. Kotick mentioned the impressive response Call of Duty has received on platforms like Xbox Live, with around 1.7 billion hours of multiplayer gaming, and said an online subscription service for the franchise could really satisfy bigger audiences "with more inspired, creative opportunities."

He didn't get into details of how such an online world would work, so we can't say for sure if it's all wishful thinking, or if such a project is actually in the works. The company recently revealed it gets around 70% of its operating profit from non-console-based titles, which could be seen as a sign that they'll try to bring more of its properties to PC-based online models. When you consider the majority of that figure likely comes from the 11.5 million World of Warcraft players paying a $15 monthly fee, the idea of Activision spreading this model to other popular franchises sounds even more plausible.

Nintendo 3DS to launch by March 2011, design not final

Nintendo's new 3DS gaming handheld was one of the biggest hits of last week's E3 show. Though we have yet to see it in person, many of those that have came out impressed with the hardware, claiming it ends all doubts surrounding the possibility of creating 3D effects without the need for glasses. But for all the praise it received, what Nintendo failed to reveal at E3 was an actual release date and pricing details for its next-generation gaming device.

Today Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime killed all hopes for a holiday debut, though. Speaking in an interview with IndustryGamers, the executive confirmed the Nintendo 3DS is coming by March 2011 to major markets. He didn't specify who will get the device first and how much it will cost, other than it is still "making individual market decisions in terms of what's happening in Japan, what's happening in the Americas [and] what's happening in Europe."

The new handheld reportedly took two years to develop and has already won widespread support from Electronic Arts, Konami, Activision Blizzard and other major game publishers. During the interview, Fils-Aime also said that one of the reasons for showing off the 3DS last week was to gauge the public's reaction to everything in the device, from the button placement to the depth slider and analog-type stick. The design of the device seen at E3 is not final, though, so Nintendo could still tweak a thing or two by the time the final product hits stores.

OnLive debuts with 23 titles, free membership offered

It's been a long time coming but OnLive is finally ready to try and silence its critics as the on-demand gaming service makes its official debut today. To celebrate the launch, the company announced a partnership with AT&T to offer U.S. customers a free first-year membership, with an optional second year at $4.95/mo. -- down from the regular price of $14.95. Those interested can sign up to the Founding Member Program until July 15; they'll pick people on a first-come first-serve basis.

This won't get you complete and total access to their whole library, though, but rather access to the community, free demos and other content. Full games will cost from $9.99 to $49.99, depending on the title, while for those who don't want to pay for something they don't 'really' own, three or five-day rentals for five dollars will be available as well.

If you haven't been following the news, the idea behind OnLive is that instead of running a video game locally, players connect via broadband to a gaming system that runs and stores their data and the entire game itself. The service hopes to mark a big shift in the way gaming works. Not only it promises a fluid and lag-free experience on Windows and Mac OS X systems with very low hardware requirements, it also gets rids of downloads, patches and physical discs.

The service is launching today with over 20 titles available, including Prince of Persia, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell, and Mass Effect 2. A "MicroConsole" that can be attached directly to HDTVs will be arriving later this year.

Razer intros StarCraft II-branded gaming peripherals

With StarCraft's sequel just around the bend, Razer has expressed its love for the franchise by whipping up three new gaming peripherals. Hardcore SC fans will be able to Zerg rush unsuspecting combatants with a StarCraft II-emblazoned Spectre mouse, Marauder keyboard, and Banshee headset – all of which have lighting accents and an overall style inspired by the StarCraft universe.

Razer says the Spectre mouse is tournament-ready for StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty, featuring a lightweight five-button construction designed to "provide precision control for RTS gamers." Core specs include a 5600DPI Razer Precision 3.5G laser sensor, a 1ms response time, and a gold-plated USB head. It's priced at $80 in the US, €80 in Europe, and 94,800 WON in Korea.

Carrying identically-targeted features, the Marauder keyboard boasts elevated laser-etched keys optimized for rapid command input and improved gaming performance and a dedicated on-the-fly macro recording system. The Banshee headset is, well, a headset – albeit one decked out in StarCraft baubles. Both are priced at $120, €120, and 142,800 WON.

If that's not enough to satisfy your inner-RTS nerd, you can tote your StarCraft II-branded peripherals around in a "Zerg Edition Messenger Bag," which features a tear-resistant, weather-proof 1680D ballistic nylon outer shell, a laptop compartment, and a protective shock absorbent lining. That'll set you back $90/€90/10,880 WON. All mentioned products will ship worldwide Q3 2010.

Nintendo unveils 3DS with 3D camera at E3

If you had any doubts about the existence of Nintendo's glasses-free 3D-ready portable console, let the record show that it's very real. During its E3 press conference today, the company officially unwrapped its 3DS handheld, touting "a solution that lets you take 3D gaming along with you wherever you go." The device is known to come in two colors, red and blue, and features a 3.5-inch 3D display on top, which you can adjust (or disable) with a hardware slider.

The bottom half of the 3DS is populated with a touchscreen display (not 3D-capable), what appears to be an analog stick that Nintendo is calling a "Slide Pad," as well as a standard directional pad and action buttons. There's also a gyro, a motion sensor, two camera lenses for taking 3D pictures, and the new console compatible with DS games. Wi-Fi features were emphasized during the event, such as the ability to automatically seek out hotspots or other 3DS systems.

Software partners are aplenty, with Activision, Atlus, Capcom, EA, Harmonix, Konami, Sega, T2, and Ubisoft all supposedly working on projects. Games and franchises include Kingdom Hearts, Saints Row, Metal Gear Solid Snake Eater 3D, Madden, FIFA Soccer, Ninja Gaiden, Resident Evil Revelations, The Sims 3, Batman, DJ Hero 3D, Assassin's Creed, Ridge Racer, Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracles, Samurai Warriors, Battle Giants: Dinosaur Strike, and Hollywood 61.

EA launches "Gun Club" for shooter fans

During its E3 media briefing today, EA opened a new "Gun Club" for fans of shooter games. On the service's official website, EA says the Gun Club is a way of thanking its loyal shooter community by rewarding them for "doing what they love best" – purchasing EA shooters. Members of the Gun Club will be privileged with in-game content, early access to beta programs and demos, as well as exclusive access to events, information and development teams.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and Medal of Honor are already connected to the Gun Club. Players who own BC2 or preorder MoH will get advanced beta access to the forthcoming reboot, as well as early access to the M24 sniper rifle when the game launches this holiday season. More titles are set to join the Gun Club, such as Dead Space 2 (due early next year), Battlefield Heroes, and the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 "digital expansion" Vietnam.

New Xbox 360 shipping with 250GB HDD, Wi-Fi for $299, Kinect due Nov. 4 for $150

Microsoft today ended its E3 keynote with a bang, unveiling a leaner, meaner Xbox 360. The redesigned model occupies less space, runs "whisper-quiet," and gets some heavily upgraded accessories. We haven't spotted a specific name for the new iteration, but it's supposedly already shipping out to retailers and it should be on store shelves near you by next week.

Pricing will be the same as the old 120GB Elite model ($299), but the revamped unit has a built-in 250GB hard drive as well as 802.11n connectivity. Microsoft plans to keep selling the existing Elite Xbox 360 at a reduced fee of $199, while the basic Arcade system will sell for $149. It's unclear whether this pricing is permanent or if the company is just trying to gut remaining stock.

Additionally, Redmond has slapped a price tag and ship date on its motion controller. Kinect (formerly Project Natal) will hit stores on November 4 with a stand-alone cost of $150, which is in tune with previous rumors. It will be accompanied by at least 15 games when it launches, and you can take a look at that list after the break.

Crytek announces 360 exclusive title 'Codename: Kingdoms'

A rumor broke earlier this month which suggested that Crytek might have been secretly creating an MMO. The hearsay was partly provoked by the fact that Crytek recently began securing many "Kingdoms"-related website domains as well as a trademark for "Kingdoms" covering video games. As it turns out, the company isn't hording domains and trademarks for no good reason – they're working on a new title.

During Microsoft's E3 keynote, the company revealed that Crytek is whipping up a new game that will be exclusive to the Xbox 360. At this point, the title is being called Codename: Kingdoms and it appears to be set in some classical Roman/Greek period, featuring 300-style soldiers. According to folks onsite, the game is highly redolent of the PlayStation's popular God of War franchise, which is based on Greek mythology.

The folks on stage didn't mention what genre Codename: Kingdoms belongs to, but it seems unlikely to be an MMORPG if it's exclusive to the Xbox 360. No launch window was mentioned either, but it's said that no gameplay footage was shown, which suggests that the project isn't too far along yet, but we're excited nonetheless. After all, how bad can a Crytek-developed 300-like title be?

Project Natal to launch as Kinect, slimmer Xbox 360 possible

Microsoft has officially baptized its Xbox 360 motion-sensing system as Kinect, in a very unique press event yesterday night which included a jungle theme, Xbox Avatars wandering around on displays above attendees wearing white poncho throw-overs, and a Cirque du Soleil presentation. Using virtually no words, as usual, the French-Canadian circus troupe showed off the add-on formerly known as Project Natal and several titles through videos and live performances.

Aaron Greenberg, director of product management for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live, told that Sunday was all about entertainment, but they are prepared to give out more concrete details about Kinect at their E3 conference later today. Some of the news has already leaked early, with a list of games including Kinectimals (a virtual big-cat training sim), Kinect Sports (Microsoft's answer to Wii Sports with table tennis, boxing, bowling, soccer and more), Joyride (a kart-style racer), Kinect Adventures (a river-raft simulator), and dancing game Dance Central.

Other titles shown at the live presentation included a yoga trainer and a Star Wars game in which you play a light saber-wielding Jedi. If motion-controlled gaming is not your thing, though, don't fret. Microsoft also promised its conference will have a large emphasis on "core games" such as Halo: Reach, Gears of War 3, and Fable III.

Video chat is also on the menu, and it will apparently have support for up to four users at once. Perhaps more interestingly, rumors are abuzz that a slimmer Xbox 360 design might be announced at E3, with leaked ads and pictures of a new motherboard doing the rounds. The unit is expected to feature a 250GB hard drive and have built-in Wi-Fi.

MSI's 17-inch GX740 gaming notebook ships stateside

Another one of the gaming notebooks MSI unveiled at CES in January has crept onto the market, with units readily available on sites like Newegg. The 17-inch GX740 features a 1680x1050 resolution, Intel Core i5 and i7 processors (the model on Newegg packs a 1.60GHz i7-720QM), up to 4GB of DDR3 1066MHz RAM, and ATI Radeon HD 5870 graphics with 1GB of GDDR5 VRAM.

Hard drives range in capacity from 250GB to 500GB and some models are equipped with a Blu-ray drive, but the GX740 on Newegg only lists a DVD burner. A subwoofer accompanies the notebook's speakers and connectivity includes gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b/g/n, optional Bluetooth, VGA and HDMI-out, three USB 2.0 ports (one eSATA combo), a multi-card reader, and an Express Card slot.

The GX740 ships with a nine-cell battery and there's no mention of how far that'll get you, but battery life is mostly irrelevant when discussing a 7lb Core i7 and Radeon HD 5870-powered laptop. It's backed by a one-year warranty, has Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit preloaded, and the GX740-0749US listed on Newegg costs $1,400, so expect to see a similar price tag elsewhere.

Fallout: New Vegas will use Steam for DRM

A few weeks back Bethesda and Obsidian started taking questions for the next Fallout title. A staff member on Bethesda's forum posted answers to a dozen of those questions yesterday, revealing that Fallout: New Vegas will rely on Steam for DRM. After looking at other options, the developers decided that Steam is the "best, least intrusive experience for PC gamers." The use of Valve's platform is great news, considering the recent string of less-than-cherished always-connected mechanisms from folks like Ubisoft.

Offering his take on Steam, senior producer Jason Bergman said the platform is tightly integrated with New Vegas. Steamworks is implemented in "as light and unobtrusive away possible," and it will be mandatory to play the upcoming Fallout. That said, you can install the game on as many systems as you want, and besides the initial activation, an Internet connection isn't required.

Tight Steam integration also means that New Vegas will rely on the platform for friends lists, storing user preferences in the cloud, achievements and so on. Additionally, you can activate and download the retail boxed versions of the game via Steam, meaning won't have to lay hands on the DVD if that's the way you want to go.

Fallout: New Vegas is due in the third quarter and made our list of 2010's most anticipated PC games. It's a stand-alone installation in the series that follows three years after the events of Fallout 3 and although it shares a similar gameplay experience to the previous entry, there are no reoccurring characters.

Microsoft expands Games on Demand for Windows library

Microsoft is stepping up its efforts in the digital distribution market with a new deal that will bring titles from the likes of Capcom, Rockstar, THQ, Ubisoft and others to their Games on Demand for Windows platform "day-and-date" with their release in stores. This should give a much need boost to the service's games library, which is still fairly limited when compared to Valve's Steam and other online gaming venues.

Microsoft says that beginning today with the release of "Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands", new non-Live titles will launch on Games on Demand every week, with more than 100 new titles joining the portfolio by year's end. To celebrate their latest addition they are also offering Prince of Persia: Warrior Within and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, both for 75% off at just $2.49 each -- or 200 Microsoft Points.

The company opened up its Games on Demand digital distribution feature late yesterday as part of its Games for Windows Live platform. As the name suggests, Games on Demand allows users to purchase titles (using a credit card or redeeming Microsoft Points) and download them directly to their PCs. Prices are comparable to other digital distribution services, ranging from $9.99 to $49.99.If you are new to Games for Windows Live you can download the client here.

Crytek secretly toiling away on an MMO?

Here's a rumor to jumpstart your day: Crytek might be whipping up an MMO. The LinkedIn profile of Crytek senior IT manager James Dennett suggests that the Crysis developer may be working on an unannounced MMO. Dennett's profile lists experience "designing, testing and implementing as part of the development team the systems infrastructure for an MMO online game." Of course, that's hardly concrete evidence, but there's more.

Crytek recently purchased the following domain names: "codename-kingdoms.com, codename-kingdoms.net, codenamekingdoms.com, codenamekingdoms.net, kingdomsthegame.com, kingdomsthegame.net, kingdoms-thegame.com, and kingdoms-thegame.net." Also, about a year ago, the company filed several trademarks covering computer game software and electronic games, one being "Kingdoms." Noticing a trend?

This is nothing more than speculation, and Crytek could simply be adding MMO features to CryEngine – especially since the popular MMORPG Aion is already using the engine.

Asus lugs tons of ROG hardware to Computex

Asus is showing off plenty of ROG-branded hardware at this year's Computex, including a desktop, notebooks, motherboards, and graphics cards. The company's CG8490 PC features Intel's new six-core i7-980X processor, 12GB of RAM, and a pair of overclocked Radeon HD 5870 graphics cards. Mobile gaming rigs include the 15.6-inch G53 and 17.3-inch G73Jw, which support 3D Nvidia graphics, USB 3.0, up to 16GB of RAM, as well as Intel's Core i3, i5 and i7 processors.

Meanwhile, company has prepared two system boards: the Rampage III Extreme and the Crosshair IV Formula. The former is Intel X58/ICH10R-based and can be overclocked via ROG Connect, OC Kit, RC Bluetooth, and a new iPhone overclocking tool. The latter is designed for AMD-based rigs, supports dual-channel 2000MHz DDR3 RAM, and features Core Unlocker for accessing "locked" cores on AMD processors – a common feature with newer boards.

Asus' new graphics cards include the MATRIX5870, which brings more power efficiency, and the ARES, a dual Radeon HD 5870 with 4GB of GDDR5 RAM.

Microsoft to ship Project Natal October 26 for $149

A "trusted source" has informed Edge-Online that Microsoft will ship its Xbox 360 motion controller worldwide around late October, and it will supposedly cost more than expected. Based on current exchange rates, Edge reports that the standalone controller will retail for £103/€121/$149, while a console and Project Natal bundle will be £207/€243/$299.

That conflicts with previous talk of Project Natal launching for $80, and if true, it would make Microsoft's peripheral far more expensive than Sony's PlayStation Move, which is expected to be bundled with a PS3 game for less than $100.

The source also said that Microsoft plans to ditch the name "Project Natal" for something a bit more market-friendly. The controller's commercial name should be revealed next month during its world premiere on June 13.