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BioShock 2 Special Edition vinyl-y announced
by Randy Nelson 
{ Nov 19th 2009 at 1:19PM }
Click to Big Daddy–size
If you find yourself enraptured by everything BioShock, you're really going to love this. 2K Games has disclosed details on the BioShock 2 Special Edition release, limited to one production run and set for retail on February 9 alongside the slightly-less-special edition we saw the cover art for on Tuesday.
If you're prepared to sink $99 into the set ($89 for PC) you'll be the proud (but poorer) owner of the game, a 164-page hardcover art book, three posters, the orchestral score on CD and the most special goodie accompanying this edition: the orchestral score on a vinyl 180g LP. You know ... a record. You know, big black disc DJs use? Yep, one of those.
This is great news for audiophiles and those who refuse to own a CD player because lasers are obviously some kind of witchcraft.
Gallery: BioShock 2
BioShock 2 cover is familiar, absolutely filthy
by Randy Nelson { Nov 17th 2009 at 6:00PM }
Not to be overshadowed by BioWare's latest effort to depict Mass Effect 2 in one epic cover, 2K Games has released the box art for BioShock 2 -- and it doesn't win any points for originality or cleanliness. Just like the first game's cover, it features Big Daddy (this time he's you!) and Little Sister (not you). Only now, everything's behind cracked, grimy glass and the logo's covered in barnacles. Eww.
You can lay your eyes on high-res versions of the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC covers for the sequel in the gallery below. You might want to put on some rubber gloves and grab a can of Scrubbing Bubbles before you click on 'em, though.
[Thanks, Geoff]
You can lay your eyes on high-res versions of the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC covers for the sequel in the gallery below. You might want to put on some rubber gloves and grab a can of Scrubbing Bubbles before you click on 'em, though.
Gallery: BioShock 2 box art
[Thanks, Geoff]
Hands-on: BioShock 2
by Randy Nelson { Oct 29th 2009 at 12:00PM }
Having already taken a brief tour of Rapture through the eyes of a Big Daddy a few months back, we were okay with the fact that BioShock 2 looked and seemed to play very much like the original game -- only this time encased in a huge pressurized diving suit. Now that we've played through a full area of the game, our initial assessment more or less holds up, but that's not to say there aren't several noteworthy -- and even surprising -- changes and additions to expect when the game arrives next spring.
Warning: We've done our best to keep what you're about to read as spoiler-free as possible, but the extremely sensitive should tread cautiously beyond this point.
Warning: We've done our best to keep what you're about to read as spoiler-free as possible, but the extremely sensitive should tread cautiously beyond this point.
Gallery: BioShock 2 (10-29-09)
BioShock 2's 'Capture the Sister' mode isn't kidding around
by Randy Nelson { Oct 28th 2009 at 8:20PM }
As the above first look at the mode explains, the "attacking" side's goal is to return the girl to a Little Sister vent. The defenders -- well they defend, of course ... but one of them gets to be a Big Daddy. We'll have our hands-on impressions of BioShock 2's single and multiplayer modes tomorrow, so look for more details then.
New Gay Tony in-game anime is all too familiar
by Richard Mitchell { Oct 26th 2009 at 6:23PM }
In Rockstar's own words, "Princess Robot Bubblegum" features the hallmarks of more than a few animes: "Incomprehensible narrative, wretched dialogue and creepy, misogynistic sexuality." See it all in the trailer above.
Latest BioShock 2 trailer stomps around 'Siren Alley'
by Ben Gilbert { Oct 26th 2009 at 3:35PM }
Even if you don't watch the video above, you should take one thing from it: The "worldwide embargo" gets lifted this Thursday and a flood of information on the game is sure to follow. If you're really trying to remain spoiler-free on BioShock 2, now may be a good time to go dark.
Gallery: BioShock 2
Gearbox admits Borderlands PS3 friends list glitch, fix coming 'as quickly as possible' [update]
by Randy Nelson { Oct 21st 2009 at 5:20PM }
Update: That was quick! Gearbox's Steve Gibson sends along word that the dev has already fixed the problem: "We are very pleased to report that using PSN friends lists with the game should now work properly for all PS3 customers. The fix has been released invisibly and should work automatically for all PSN users on the PS3 platform. No special action is required by PS3 customers to apply the fix - just play the game and you'll find that everything works fine now. We thank you all for your patience and for making us aware of the issue!"
Original: There's been a bit of a kerfuffle on the official Borderlands message boards over the PS3 version of the freshly released "RPS" not displaying players' online friends properly. In fact, it's reportedly keeping a lot of folks from being able to buddy up altogether. Fortunately for them, Gearbox dev staff have taken notice of the S.O.S. thread and are working on a solution.
"We've identified the problem and are working on a fix," Gearbox software engineer Scott Velasquez wrote in response to nearly 200 posts detailing the issue. Velasquez also noted that "the friends feature was heavily tested by Gearbox and 2K. However, this particular issue we found could have never manifested itself in our or 2K's test environments."
Gearbox is hoping to fix the problem before the game launches in other territories -- which, in Europe's case, is tomorrow -- with Velasquez promising that "We are doing everything we can to get this problem addressed as quickly as possible."
Original: There's been a bit of a kerfuffle on the official Borderlands message boards over the PS3 version of the freshly released "RPS" not displaying players' online friends properly. In fact, it's reportedly keeping a lot of folks from being able to buddy up altogether. Fortunately for them, Gearbox dev staff have taken notice of the S.O.S. thread and are working on a solution.
"We've identified the problem and are working on a fix," Gearbox software engineer Scott Velasquez wrote in response to nearly 200 posts detailing the issue. Velasquez also noted that "the friends feature was heavily tested by Gearbox and 2K. However, this particular issue we found could have never manifested itself in our or 2K's test environments."
Gearbox is hoping to fix the problem before the game launches in other territories -- which, in Europe's case, is tomorrow -- with Velasquez promising that "We are doing everything we can to get this problem addressed as quickly as possible."
Borderlands shortages reported, Gearbox responds
by Richard Mitchell { Oct 21st 2009 at 2:44PM }
Gearbox's Steve Gibson has contacted Joystiq regarding the matter, noting that the shortage is mostly limited to the Xbox 360 version, particularly on the east coast. Gibson states that Gearbox is "working with production and distribution at ramping up to catch up with demand," adding that fresh copies should hit "as early as Thursday or Friday."
Meanwhile, the PS3 version has run into supply problems on the west coast, but Gibson says these "are mostly regional and can be addressed by reallocation." Gibson notes that this should happen "quickly."
So, how about it? Have you had trouble snagging a copy of Borderlands?
[Thanks, Nick W.]
Borderlands 'Zombie Island of Dr. Ned' DLC hits this year
by Randy Nelson { Oct 15th 2009 at 9:30PM }
click to make big-grrr!
Gearbox and 2K Games have wasted no time in announcing the first DLC for Borderlands. Heck, the game itself won't even be released until October 20. Still, we now know that, later this year, players will be able to set out for new (but unlikely to be fresh-smelling) adventures on ... The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned.
Admission to this delightfully named locale has already been priced at $9.99 for PS3 and Games for Windows, 800
($10) on the Xbox Live Marketplace. Given 2K's timing, we fully expect Borderlands 2 to be announced next Monday.
Update: Fixed Zed to Ned. Dr. Zed is another character in the game.
Admission to this delightfully named locale has already been priced at $9.99 for PS3 and Games for Windows, 800
($10) on the Xbox Live Marketplace. Given 2K's timing, we fully expect Borderlands 2 to be announced next Monday.Update: Fixed Zed to Ned. Dr. Zed is another character in the game.
X3F TV -- XBLA in Brief: Sam & Max Season 2, Axel & Pixel
by Richard Mitchell { Oct 14th 2009 at 4:00PM }
No, they cost real money. 1600
in the case of Sam & Max, and 800 for Axel & Pixel.Download the trial version of Sam & Max Beyond Time and Space
Download the trial version of Axel & Pixel
[iTunes] Subscribe to X3F TV directly in iTunes.
[Zune] Subscribe to the X3F TV directly.
[RSS] Add the X3F TV feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically.
[M4V] Download the M4V directly.
PSA: GTA IV is now available on demand, $30 in US
by Alexander Sliwinski { Oct 13th 2009 at 1:15PM }
Oh, wait, that was a missed opportunity for a "steal a car" joke, wasn't it?
These new Red Dead Redemption screens aren't horsing around
by Randy Nelson { Oct 8th 2009 at 5:00PM }
click to redeem for a larger screenshot
From the first trailer, we've been hankering to see more from Rockstar's open-world treatment of the Wild West, Red Dead Redemption. That said, there was considerable hootin' and hollerin' around the 'Stiq when the dev dished out these latest screens today.
As good as RDR looks, its gameplay sounds equally impressive given the demo we got during PAX 2009. The ability to kill everything in the game (well, with the exception of things that aren't alive in the first place -- you win this time, rock!) is perhaps overshadowed only by the fact that you'll be able to tan your own leather and sell it, fulfilling a life-long dream for at least .01% of those who'll play it.
Yip-yip yee-haw your way through the new shots in the gallery below, pardners.
As good as RDR looks, its gameplay sounds equally impressive given the demo we got during PAX 2009. The ability to kill everything in the game (well, with the exception of things that aren't alive in the first place -- you win this time, rock!) is perhaps overshadowed only by the fact that you'll be able to tan your own leather and sell it, fulfilling a life-long dream for at least .01% of those who'll play it.
Yip-yip yee-haw your way through the new shots in the gallery below, pardners.
Gallery: Red Dead Redemption (10-08-09)
New 'Ballad of Gay Tony' trailer's got the (action movie) look
by Randy Nelson { Oct 7th 2009 at 4:00PM }
Oh, it has more of Luis parachuting into Liberty City and even confronting (then riding with) members of The Lost motorcycle club -- you know, from the previous DLC, The Lost and Damned. All of this paired with Roxette's "She's Got the Look." You've got to look!
Game Developer Research's 'Top 20 Publishers 2009' stays the same
by Griffin McElroy { Oct 6th 2009 at 12:40PM }
The full, totally unsurprising list -- which was calculated based on number of games released, average review scores for said games and estimated revenue for each company -- can be found after the jump. Comments stating why Publisher A is still infinitely better than Publisher B can be found further below.
[Via Gamasutra]
Axel & Pixel hit XBLA Oct. 14, trailer is wonderfully weird
by Randy Nelson { Oct 2nd 2009 at 8:10PM }
Along with the launch date, 2K has also released the first gameplay trailer, so we can finally see Axel the artist and his dog, Pixel, traversing the very weird game world. We're quite fond of it -- what do you think? Also, is it just us, or is Axel speaking Simlish?
