MI-80

Company considered removing the harddrive in favor of remote storage.

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/105/1055085p1.html

While it hasn't quite reached Duke Nukem Forever status, Polyphony Digital's full-fledged Gran Turismo follow-up for PlayStation 3 is a long-time coming. But according to SCEA Associate Producer Chris Hinojosa-Miranda, the wait is nearly over.

http://www.destructoid.com/gran-turismo-5-gets...

In a tersely worded press release, ZeniMax Media – parent company of Fallout 3-dev Bethesda Softworks and, as of June, FPS hall-of-famer id Software – has "announced today that it has picked up the publishing rights for Rage, the video game under development at id Software." First announced in July 2008 during Electronic Arts' E3 press conference, Rage was to be published under EA's successful EA Partners program, home to other major titles from outside developers, like Rock Band, Left 4 Dead 2, and Brutal Legend.

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/15...

Valve, creators of best-selling game franchises (such as Half-Life, Portal, Team Fortress, and Counter-Strike) and leading technologies (such as Steam and Source), today announced the first game add-on for its co-operative zombie thriller, Left 4 Dead 2 (L4D2), is in development and targeted for release in early 2010.

http://store.steampowered.com/news/3237/

It’s okay; I know what you’re thinking: The title of this feature alone has “troll” written all over it, and I’m just another PC gaming zealot who’s somehow deluded his blinkered bundle of synapses into believing that console gaming is about to join the dodo’s ranks. So, before I start, I’m going to anticipate any potential flamewar by laying my gaming cards on the table.

http://www.bit-tech.net/gaming/ps3/2009/12/14...

BioWare, a division of Electronic Arts, and TransGaming, Inc. today announced plans to release Dragon Age: Origins for the Mac on December 21. The critically acclaimed, dark fantasy epic will be available to Mac Players as a digital download where they can choose between the Standard or Digital Deluxe version.

http://news.ea.com/portal/site/ea...

We've already reported that Cryptic Studios and Atari will have a special retail box Collector's Editon of their upcoming MMO Star Trek Online. Now comes word that there will be a Digital Deluxe edition of the game specifically for download services like Direct2Drive, Steam and Atari's own online site. The Digital Deluxe edition will cost $59.95.

http://news.bigdownload.com/2009/12/11/star-trek-onlines-digital-deluxe-edition-lets-you-emote-like-sh/

The latest issue of Gamasutra sister publication Game Developer magazine includes a postmortem of Double Fine Productions' Brutal Legend, written by studio executive producer Caroline Esmurdoc.

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/25799/Postmortem_Behind...

Atari today announced a change in management at the top. David Gardner, who had been serving as CEO of Atari worldwide, will step down but retain his Director functions. Taking his place as CEO will be Jeff Lapin, who joined as Chief Operating Officer (COO) in May 2009 and has been a Director of the company since December 2007. Lapin's experience prior to Atari includes various executive functions at RazorGator Interactive Group, Take-Two Interactive Software and THQ.

http://www.industrygamers.com/news/atari-appoints-jeff-lapin-to-ceo-replacing-david-gardner/

Ironclad Games and Stardock Entertainment are pleased to announce Sins of a Solar Empire - Trinity today. Trinity is a compilation bundle which includes the award-winning Sins of a Solar Empire along with the Entrenchment and Diplomacy micro-expansions. As a special incentive, those who pre-order Trinity will gain access to the current Diplomacy beta via Impulse.

http://pc.ign.com/articles/105/1053910p1.html

The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned is the first Add-On for Borderlands featuring 5 new areas to explore, dozens of new missions, and all new enemies!

http://store.steampowered.com/news/3214/

Updates to Left 4 Dead 2 have been released. The updates will be applied automatically when your Steam client is restarted. These and all previous fixes will be coming to the 360 later this month. The major changes include:

http://store.steampowered.com/news/3217/

Everyone's favorite episodic adventure game series about anthropomorphic detectives (we assume!) is returning in 2010! Telltale Games just put up a teaser site for something Sam and Max-related happening in 2010, featuring concept art hidden within the Sam and Max constellations (which we've placed in our gallery for your convenience).

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/09/telltale-teases-new-sam-and-max-in-2010/

John Riccitiello, the gaming-savvy head of Electronic Arts, doesn't want anyone to pirate games. But those who do, he told Kotaku, present a new market that EA needs to make money from.

http://kotaku.com/5421466/ea-ceo-i-think-of-pirates-as-a-marketplace

Much like the dreaded Kobayashi Maru, there really is no right answer to the question, "Where should I pre-order Star Trek Online?" In its ongoing mission to make games as hard to purchase as possible, Starfleet has issued different pre-order bonuses to each major American retailer. Want to pilot the Enterprise? You'll have to order from GameStop. Need a pet Tribble? Best Buy. How about a gun that beams projectiles directly to their intended target? Target. That "Liberated Borg" bridge officer you always wanted? Amazon.

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/07/no-win-scenario-star-trek-online-pre-order-bonuses/

Pandemic's swansong has done nothing for their reputation with PC gamers, featuring a particularly nasty freezing issue that affects most ATI users when opening menus and the quest journal, and transitioning between areas. Some ATI gamers are able to play using Windows XP, but even then there are often problems.

http://ve3d.ign.com/articles/news/51853/Serious-Saboteur-ATI-Crash-Issue-Being-Investigated-Workaround-Offered

Today BioWare released Patch 1.02 for the PC version of Dragon Age: Origins. The update includes many issues with quests and game balance that are already live for the PS3 and Xbox 360. Here is the full list of patch notes, straight from BioWare.

http://www.cinemablend.com/games/Dragon-Age-Patch-1-02-Released-For-the-PC-21547.html

Confirming our earlier post, Blizzard poster Zarhym has just announced the release of Patch 3.3: Fall of the Lich King today on the official WoW forums. The complete patch notes are available here on WoW.com or on Blizzard's patch notes page.

http://www.wow.com/2009/12/08/official-patch-3-3-confirmation-and-patch-notes/

Sequel to Award-Winning Horror Game Delivers Intense, Personal Saga That Sends Chills Through Deep Space

investor.ea.com/releasedetail.cfm

Wielding the banhammer on Xbox Live and other static virtual communities (like this little blog here) can be a strangely disconnected experience. One second you're here, the next you've vanished. Not so in Aion: Tower of Eternity.

http://kotaku.com/5419109/aion-banhammer-behind-the-rabbit-it-is-the-rabbit