Halo 4 Forge Island Released for Free March 30, 2013

In a move that a lot of Halo players are going to enjoy, 343 Industries and Microsoft have released Forge Island as a free download for all Halo 4 players.  It can be used by anyone with an interest in Halo 4’s Forge mode, and can be modified by user interaction with it through Forge.

I can’t wait to see what new kinds of multiplayer maps get created from this new template.  This is sure to cause a ton of entirely new user-created multiplayer arenas in Halo 4’s War Games mode.

Forge Island is a free download through Xbox Live Marketplace.  The file size is about 158MB.  Halo 4, which is out now exclusive to the Xbox 360, is required to play.

The Phantom Pain IS Metal Gear Solid V March 27, 2013

The internet called it.  Enjoy.

Nintendo 3DS Firmware Updated, Save Game Transfer Added March 27, 2013

Put down your copies of Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity, Nintendo has released a new update for the Nintendo 3DS for everyone and it brings a few new features that gamers might be interested in.

Many gamers have chosen to buy new 3DS games online through the Nintendo eShop and download them to their internal SD card.  The problem is, up until this point, there was no way to share game saves between a copy of the game on a physical game card or a downloaded copy.  The new firmware will allow 3DS players who have a physical copy of a new game to transfer their game’s save from the game cartridge to the 3DS’s internal SD card.  This will allow you to transfer your save to use it with a downloadable version of the game.

The downside is this new transfer feature is a one way street and there currently isn’t any way for someone to transfer a save from a downloaded game to an identical version of the game on a physical game card.

The patch may install automatically when your 3DS receives the notification of its release, or you can follow these instructions on how to perform a manual update.  You will need to have your 3DS connected to a wireless internet connection in order to update it.

God of War: Ascension 1.03 Patch Notes March 27, 2013

The third patch for God of War: Ascension has been released, bringing the game up to version 1.03.  The patch is a bit controversial as it tweaks the difficulty of the Trials of Archimedes segment in the single player campaign.  There were some people complaining online about how difficult that particular section was, especially on the higher difficulty settings, and so the patch tweaks that segment just a bit.

The patch is small and shouldn’t take too long to install if you’ve already installed the previous two patches.  It will download and install automatically the next time you play the game, provided your PS3 is connected to the internet when you load the game.

God of War: Ascension is out now exclusive to the Playstation 3.

Halo 4 Multiplayer: Past, Present and Future PAX East 2013 Panel March 25, 2013

For those unable to go to the Penny Arcade Expo in Boston, MA this weekend, here’s a small piece of that event that you can check out.  Several members of 343 Industries, Certain Affinity and Rooster Teeth did a panel on Halo 4’s Multiplayer.  Just like the title says, they talk about its past, present and its future.

If you are a fan of Halo and are interested to hear all about Halo 4’s multiplayer, give it a watch!

Halo 4 is out now exclusive to the Xbox 360.

Bioshock Infinite Launch Trailer March 25, 2013

One day away from it’s launch, Irrational Games has released the official launch trailer for Bioshock Infinite.  The early reviews are in for this game and it’s looking that this will be one heck of a release to cap off the past two months of non-stop major game releases.  If you needed one last major look to hold you over before this game comes out, here it is.  Take a look for yourselves.

And if you wanted to see just what goes into making a character like Elizabeth so realistic, here’s a short featurette on all the women it takes to bring Elizabeth to life.

Bioshock Infinite is coming March 26th, 2013 to the PC, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.

Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon Launch Trailer March 22, 2013

Two days away from its launch, Nintendo has released the official launch trailer for the 3DS exclusive game, Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon.  The game is a 3D sequel to the Nintendo GameCube title Luigi’s Mansion.  In it, the player takes control of Mario’s brother, Luigi, who has to investigate a spooky mansion haunted by malevolent and mischievous spirits while armed with the most powerful ghostbusting equipment he can get his hands on, a Nintendo DS and a Vacuum Cleaner.

Here’s the game’s official TV commercial.  I thought it really harkened back to some of the great Nintendo commercials of the past twenty years.

Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon is coming March 24th, 2013 exclusively to the Nintendo 3DS.  If you’re checking out PAX East 2013 this weekend, I have heard that convention goers have a chance of picking it up a few days early.