Video Games Today

With the opening of the World of Warcraft Cataclysm Beta, we have opened the VGToday World of Warcraft Pandora's Box, beta. All joking aside, Max of VGToday has finally got his hands on vanilla World of Warcraft. And as comes with all new console purchases on VGToday, we start our reporting frenzy! We have also added a new section to the staff info images, a World of Warcraft Main section. All staffers will have their Main's name, realm, and faction available to your friend requests! Look forward to some reaction posts to WoW (Yes, we are 6 years late to the party), news, and our struggling with leveling!

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

PS: I'm a Night Elf Resto Druid.

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Earlier this week, we reported a rumor that Gears of War 3 would be announced on CliffyB's late night appearance. Well, Clffy's been rescheduled to this upcoming Monday...but I guess someone forgot to tell the Inside Xbox crew. The Xbox team prematurely put the release date of Gears 3 on the Xbox Dashboard of Xbox Live members, because CliffyB was supposed to announce it the night before. This "leak" has now been removed from your Xbox, and Microsoft is refusing to comment. But we'd say it looks like our rumor was true. The "leak" does not mention specific dates, besides April 2011; but it is safe to assume, since our sources have been right so far, that April 11th, 2011 is the EPIC date.

Source: http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/09/gears-of-war-3-announced-by-your-xbox/

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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There are still three more days left in the Xbox Live Arcade Inventory Blowout Sale! There are ten full arcade games with as much as 53% off the regular price. And we'd like to say, most of these games are some of our favorites! Hit the jump to check out all the sales.

South Park - 400 MSP - 50% Off
Super Street Fighter II HD Remix - 560 MSP - 53% Off
Defense Grid - 400 MSP - 50% Off
Rocket Riot - 400 MSP - 50% Off
Mad Tracks - 400 MSP - 50% Off
Track & Field - 240 MSP - 40% Off
Lumines Live - 400 MSP - 50% Off
Age of Booty - 400 MSP - 50% Off
Schizoid - 800 MSP - 50% Off
Wallace & Gromit episode 1 - 400 MSP - 50% Off

Get all the links to download these games here:
http://majornelson.com/archive/2010/04/01/xbox-live-arcade-inventory-blowout-sale.aspx

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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One of our favorite XBLA games is this week's Deal of the Week for Xbox Live Gold Members. You can grab this awesome game for only 400 Microsoft Points! Just click the download link below to get playing!

http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/games/offers/00000001-0000-4000-8000-0000584108ff?cid=SLink

Update: We've heard reports Geometry Wars 2 is still priced at 800 MSP on Xbox.com, but via the Xbox 360 is is now 400 MSP. We are contacting Microsoft support now! Update soon!

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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Wondering when your favorite chainsaw wielding friends will be returning? Well, we might have a clue. According to "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon", EPIC Games' game developer Cliff Bleszinski will be appearing this Thursday night to announce "his next game". Could this be Gears of War 3, or is this bogus? Hit the jump to find out!

First, let's start out with a quote from the Kotaku article on this appearance on "Late Night":

The host of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon writes that the design director for popular Xbox 360 exclusive Gears of War will be on his show next week to debut his next game.

Game developer Cliff Bleszinski, who worked on both Gears of War and Gears of War 2, has not yet talked about when the final game in the trilogy will hit the Xbox 360. And it may not be Gears of War 3 that Bleszinski will be talking about.

Reached for comment this evening, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon producer Gavin Purcell told Kotaku that Bleszinski's appearance will include a chat with the show's host. He declined to say what game they would be talking about, but said it is very exciting.

In addition, we spotted this on Jimmy's twitter:

Game designer Cliff Bleszinski (@therealcliffyb) debuts his new game on Late Night next Thur. Set your TiVos! And your Xboxes.

This could spark some interest? Notice how Fallon specified "Xboxes", and how Gears of War has been an Xbox Exclusive game thus far. Now, we'd like to mention that it seems only natural that Bleszinski's next game is Gears of War 3, because of the current Microsoft release schedule. Normally, Microsoft likes to spread out it's exclusive games, and have one major one a year. Here's how it's went so far:

• November 7th, 2006 - Gears of War
• September 25th, 2007 - Halo 3
• November 7th, 2008 - Gears of War 2
• September 22nd, 2009 - Halo 3: ODST
• -[?]-, 2010 - Gears of War 3?
  

So, you see how it makes sense to release Gears 3 this year, maybe on November 7th like the other two. One problem, Halo: Reach. Does it seem likely that Microsoft would release a Halo title, and a Gears of War title in the same year, or even in Q4 together? Very unlikely.

On to evidence #2. Edge Online reported in March that EPIC would release a trailer for Gears 3 on April 8th. April 8th? Yes, that is correct. That is the night CliffyB is expected to be on Jimmy Fallon. Interesting?

Well, Edge also continues to say that "Gears Of War 3 Releasing April 2011", and:

We understand that the game could be completed as early as this year, but that Microsoft is keen to release it during a different window to Halo: Reach – rumoured to be launching in September 2010 – and Natal, which is set to arrive this holiday.

“Microsoft’s keen to avoid a clash with Halo: Reach and wants Natal to own Christmas. That’s why we won’t be seeing Gears Of War 3 until next year, but expect a major marketing push ahead of its release,” said our source.

So now this is starting to make sense, to avoid the Halo and Gears collision in Q4 2010 (Like we described above). This evidence is also supported by what EPIC's Vice-President, Mark Rein, had to say to G4TV:

"We don't have any games coming out in 2010," said Rein, "so from a games standpoint, it's more about our customers' games, right? Already this year we've seen some pretty great games this year...so that'll be kinda cool."

So, to us, it seems like Gears 3 will have to wait until 2011 to make it's bloody debut. Although, these are just rumors. Don't take all of this like it's confirmed. We are just giving you the information out there, you make your own conclusions! But just in case, set your calenders for April 11th 2011!

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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Now that we are returning to a full week schedule of posting, we need writers! Please make a comment on this post if you are interested in any of the following positions. Thanks!

• News Breaker: Cover the latest daily breaking news. Most demanding job on VGToday, as you must write many articles EVERY day!
• Reviewer: You help review the latest games every week and tell our readers whether to buy it, rent it, or skip it.
• Podcaster: You participate in our multimedia projects, like video reviews, our podcasts, and Gamerscore Weekly.
  

You must have proper grammar, spelling, and good communication skills to be accepted. You may be asked to submit a writing sample before being added to staff. It is preferable that you have a Windows Live Messenger account for quick staff communications.

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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Now that we're back, we need a new official schedule for our features each week! We have comprised a small list of special posts that will occur weekly, in addition to our regular daily news. Check them out!

• Monday: VGToday-cast! Starting soon, we will have our very own, weekly 30-min. podcast! We will discuss news from the previous week, what we've been playing, and anything else!
• Tuesday: Gamerscore Weekly! Yes, our popular Gamerscore Weekly video podcast will be returning to it's weekly achievement hunting!
• Wednesdays: Outside the Box! Every Wednesday we will have a featured article that does not directly relate to video games. It could be tech talk, current events, etc. that we find interesting and note worthy.
• Thursday: Rumor Thursday! Every Thursday we will investigate a popular video game culture rumor, and bust it or confirm it!
• Friday: Freebie Friday! Everyone's favorite day of the week! Everyone friday, starting soon, we will be giving away free prizes. These can range from Microsoft Points/WiiCash/PSN Credit to Full Retail Games!

We hope you all like the looks of this new schedule! So be sure to visit us every day for our exclusive content!

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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Need more incentive to download the free Lost Planet 2 demo? Well, earlier today Capcom confirmed that the "MG SP" gun, which is available in the demo, is only unlockable in the demo and will carry over, to the retail game, for folks who manage to unlock it in the demo. According to Joystiq, "...the MG SP could stagger opponents with a single shot and prevent them from squeezing off shots of their own with subsequent hits -- sounds useful."

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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According to Major Nelson's blog, the title update which will allow for USB storage on your Xbox 360 console will be hitting on April 6th. Microsoft is offering their own "brand-name" Flash drives for 39.99$ (8GB) and 69.99$ (16GB). Now, before you go and spend all your money on a third party 1 TB drive, remember you can only use drives of 16 GB or less. We suggest looking at ebay, amazon, and newegg for two cheap 16GB drives, one for each USB port on the 360.

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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The second VIP map pack for Battlefield Bad Company 2 has hit XBLA, the same day as the Modern Warfare 2 map pack. The map pack turns Arica Harbor possible to play in Conquest Mode and Laguna Presa on Rush mode. There are no "new" maps, but its free and adds maps for players who only play rush or conquest (not both). If you are a "VIP", or you bought the game brand new, you get the pack for free. If not you must buy "VIP" access, for 15$ (1200 Microsoft Points), to get any of the free VIP map packs (currently 2 available). Check out a tour of the two new maps, and a link to purchase the map pack after the jump!




Buy "VIP" Access: http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/games/offers/0ccf0001-0000-4000-8000-0000454108a8?cid=SLink

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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The long awaited Modern Warfare 2 map pack has finally hit Xbox Live shelves. The map pack, which costs a staggering 15$ (1200 Microsoft Points), includes three new maps, along with two old favorites (Overgrown and Crash) from Call of Duty 4. Personally, we will be waiting until the price drops (or it is a deal of the week) to be joining in on the preadolescence fun. Hit the jump to see what we mean.

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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...Could this be true? Indeed it is, VGToday is returning to giving you a daily dose of all things Video Games, today. We know you've heard this before, but we're serious this time. We will be posting up our new schedule of posting soon, as well as our new schedule for giveaways and the like. So remember to enter your email to the right (into the "Enter your email address:" section) to subscribe to our posts, and get email updates on our giveaways!

Enjoy!
The VGToday Crew

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