R.U.S.E Public Beta Now Available For Pre-Load

If you’re looking for some hardcore RTS fun on that PC of your’s then you might be interested to know that Steam has now made available the R.U.S.E public beta for pre-load.

All you have to do to join in on the fun (well, in 19 hours anyway) is go to this link and download the public beta. You will then be ready to play the beta straight away from tomorrow, meaning you don’t have to sit and wait for the download to complete.

R.U.S.E is a World War II based RTS coming to the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 sometime next year.

New Fallout: New Vegas Screenshots Released

Some new Fallout: New Vegas screenshots were released by Bethesda today, and we’ve got the full gallery below.

The game uses the same engine as Fallout 3, hence the similar look, although apparently the game will have more varied plant life.

Now you can be gay on Xbox Live

Marc Witten just posted a new letter regarding an update to the Xbox Live Code of Conduct. Previously, they had restricted certain words from being a part of your online identity despite even video games having those words in the title (Ballad of Gay Tony). Now though, if you feel like it, they’ve allowed a handful of new words allowing you to declare your sexual orientation.

You may use the following terms to express your relationship orientation in your profile or Gamertag:

• Lesbian
• Gay
• Bi
• Transgender
• Straight

Other terms regarding relationship orientation are not allowed. In addition you may not use these terms or any other terms regarding relationship orientation to insult, harass, or any other pejorative use against other users. 

Trouble at Infinity Ward?

Infinity Ward president Jason West and studio head Vince Zampella appear to have been sacked by the studio’s owner Activision amid dramatic scenes and claims of breach of contract and insubordination.

G4 reported late yesterday that “bouncer-type” security had showed up at the offices of the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare developer following a meeting between the two studio heads and Activision, and that West and Zampella hadn’t been seen by staff since.

G4 then turned up a Securities and Exchange Commission filing by Activision earlier in the day indicating that the publisher was investigating senior staff at Infinity Ward, and expecting to sack and sue them.

“The Company is concluding an internal human resources inquiry into breaches of contract and insubordination by two senior employees at Infinity Ward,” the filing read. “This matter is expected to involve the departure of key personnel and litigation.”

Meanwhile, Kotaku turned up a Facebook status update from West that read, “Jason West is drinking. Also, no longer employed.” His profile on the professional networking site LinkedIn also appeared to have been updated, showing his role as “President/Game Director/CCO/CTO at Infinity Ward” as a “Past” employment.

Zampella’s status at the moment is unclear. Neither Activision or Infinity Ward has offered an official comment as yet. Infinity Ward’s vocal spokesman Robert Bowling simply said “I have no info” on his Twitter.

Zampella and West were among the founding members of Infinity Ward who had previously worked on Medal of Honor: Allied Assault for EA. At their new studio, they created the immensely successful Call of Duty series of first-person shooters for Activision and continued to develop key entries in the series, culminating in the recent smash hits Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Modern Warfare 2.

West is credited as the director of Modern Warfare 2, which was 2009’s best-selling game worldwide and which racked up a billion dollars of sales in two months.

Game creator Tim Schafer, whose Brutal Legend was dropped by Activision before being picked up by EA, commented on his Twitter: “Getting mad at Activision for this kind of thing is like getting mad at an ape for throwing feces. It’s just how the beast communicates.”

PS3 Still Has 6+ Years Left According to Sony US CEO

The CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America, Jack Tretton has dismissed any claims that there will be a follow-up to the Playstation 3 anytime soon.

He said that he believes that we are still currently “in the first 25% to 30% of this generation”. Agreeable, given that Sony and Microsoft are still to release their motion controllers that should add another few years to their respective lifespans.

This is what he told Fast Company:

“I would say we’re sitting in the catbird seat. We’ve just passed the third year of the PlayStation 3 and we’re just hitting our stride. And I don’t think anyone is saying, ‘This is a five-year cycle; what’s new on the horizon?’ I can’t even imagine what can be done technically beyond the PlayStation 3 in the near future.

I can’t say that I have even really given a thought to what or when the next generation will be yet. I suppose that the motion controllers the two companies are coming out with could almost be said to be generation 7.5 as it will add so much to both systems. But they have both said before that there is still a long way to go in this generation. Personally, I’m in no rush to move on just yet…

Love Star Wars? Well That Avatar Of Your’s May Look Better As a Stormtrooper

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed may have come out a while back now, but that doesn’t stop some items for the game coming to the marketplace anyway. So if you want to dress that Xbox Live avatar of your’s as a stormtrooper then now you can – provided you spend between 80-400 MS Points anyway.

There’s also some props, such as the light sabre, which are guaranteed to up your nerd cred.

Come to think of it the timing of these is probably due to the release of the Hoth DLC pack for SW:TFU, which is available now for 800 MS points.

New Screens for Red Dead Redemption

Rockstar has released five new shots for the upcoming westerner Red Dead Redemption. They show some of the characters you will meet during the game, including Jonah the deputy and a teacher from Mexico, Luisa.

I simply can’t wait for this game, and every little shot, video and piece of information released just makes me drool for it even more. Lets hope Rockstar can meet my expectations, although I’m pretty sure they will.

Read Dead Redemption is out April 27 in the US and April 30 in the UK for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.

New Borderlands DLC Delayed Until Tomorrow

Yesterday we mentioned that the new Borderlands DLC, The Secret Armory of General Knoxx, would be out on Xbox Live today. Unfortunately this is no longer the case, with the release date instead being moved to tomorrow.

No reason has been given, but AceyBongos announced the move on his Twitter.

So looks like the new Borderlands DLC will be hitting tomorrow after all – keep an eye on the man himself over at @GeneralKnoXX – @AceyBongos

General Knoxx himself also had this to say:

Well, time tables got all moved around. Looks like the invasion is on tomorrow. Be seeing you (and killing you!) then. – @GeneralKnoXX

24 hours is no big deal, and you can look forward to some mid-week Borderlands fun sometime tomorrow. The PC and PSN releases are still set for Thursday.

This Week’s New Releases (21 – 28 February)

I and the monkey finally made up this week, and as I write this he’s currently enjoying a cigar and listening to Mozart. He’s a cultured monkey at heart, it’s just that his natural tendencies took over whenever I’d absent-mindedly left a Word file open on my computer. We now enjoy each other’s company while watching Frasier repeats on Comedy Central.

So, enough about the monkey, what’s out this week? There are two big games of interest; Heavy Rain and Silent Hill: Shattered Memories. The former makes me long for a PS3, and just might make me buy one, while the latter might actually make me turn on my Wii again; although I’m not too sure if I’ll be able to find my Wii under the mountains of dust.

Here are all of this week’s releases:

• Heavy Rain (PS3)
• Silent Hill: Shattered Memories (PS2, PSP, Wii)
• Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess (PSP)
• Superstars V8 Next Challenge (PC, PS3, X360)
• Bit.Trip Void (Wii)
• Theatre of War: Afrika 1943 (PC)
• Water Sports (Wii) – The…temptation…to…make…a…pun…too….strong!
• The Farm (PC)
• Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing (DS, PC, PS3, Wii)
• Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing with Banjo-Kazooie (X360) – Like that’s going to tempt me to buy it!
• Sail Simulator 2010 (PC) – Game of the year!
• Adventures to Go! (PSP)
• Lips: Party Classics (X360)
• Puzzle Chronicles (DS, PSP)
• Gamehits (DS)
• Echoshift (PSP)
• Safar’Wii (Wii) – So apparently this didn’t come out the other week after all.
• Pop’n Music (Wii)
• Undead Knights (PSP)
• Casual Mania (DS)
• Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes (DS) – When I was at school I knew someone who loved this series. He looked like an Orc. True story!
• Napoleon: Total War (PC)
• White Knight Chronicles (International Edition) (PS3)
• Way of the Samurai 3 (PS3, X360)
• Crash Time III (X360)
• Dawn of Discovery: Venice (PC)
• Driving Simulator (PC) – Game of the year runner-up!
• The Stronghold Collection (PC)
• The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces (Wii)
• Dante’s Inferno (PSP)
• Blue Toad Murder Files: The Mysteries of Little Riddle – Episode Three (PS3)

First Ten Minutes of Final Fantasy XIII In English Now Available to View Online

If you’re not too bothered about having the first 10 minutes of Final Fantasy XIII in English spoiled for you then you’ll be pleased to know you can now watch it online.

I know that some people are still undecided on whether or not to buy the game, so the intro may grab their attention. For everyone else I’m not sure why you would want it spoiled, as the games out on March 9.

I won’t be watching it, but my obsession for blogging compels me to post about it anyway. Happy viewing!

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