The international award-winning "Halo 3" gets even better as the "Halo 3" Heroic Map Pack launches today on Xbox 360's Xbox LIVE Marketplace. After launching to incredible acclaim and fanaticism, more than five million "Halo 3" players worldwide can now enjoy a package of three all new multiplayer maps. The Heroic Map Pack is the first in a series of downloadable content from Bungie Studios. Available for 800 Microsoft Points exclusively on Xbox LIVE Marketplace, each map offers a unique experience. Standoff's symmetrical valley, with its entrenched bases and fields of boulders is ideal for mid-sized objective and Slayer game … Continue reading First Halo 3 Maps Extra Available →

If you are ready to rumble, then WWE Smackdown Vs. Raw 2008 has got your number. THQ has been nice enough to add the PS3 version of this classic wrestling monster of a game to the GiN prize pool, so one lucky reader has a chance to win it every week. And since subscribing to the newsletter is completely free, there is no reason not to Subscribe Now and get to wrestling. From the most successful wrestling game series of all time comes the next phenom in sports entertainment, WWE Smackdown! vs. Raw. Two worlds will collide as the most … Continue reading Smackdown Vs. Raw 2008 Added To Prize Pool →

By William Jackson Special to GiN Sony has donated a handful of PlayStation 3s to a professor at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth who has used the gaming consoles to build his own supercomputer. Prof. Gaurav Khanna is using a cluster of eight PS3s to do simulations of the gravitational waves emitted from supermassive black holes as they devour stars. It sounds like it could make a great game, but actually it is rocket science. Khanna's research supports a NASA project to study these "ripples in space time," and the home-brewed supercomputer is a big help in his work. "My … Continue reading Linked PS3s Become Supercomputer →

As in previous years, the National Institute on Media and the Family have released a list of ten violent video games which it says is harmful to children and should be avoided by parents. The report released today also claims that the ESRB is not doing enough to educate parents as to the video game ratings system and retailers are selling violent games to underage children. The ten games on the Institute's warning list, which are all rated M, are: Assassin's Creed, Call to Duty 4, Conan, The Darkness, Jericho, Kane & Lynch: Dead Men, Manhunt 2, Resident Evil: Umbrella … Continue reading Media And Family Institute Releases Ten Violent Games List →

It's a dangerous world out there for video game consoles and computers. Just plugging into the power network can spell doom when surges and brown-outs come calling. But one company is standing against the surges, and protecting the machines that bring us so much joy. If you are a subscriber to the weekly GiN newsletter, you can win that protection now from Zero Surge, since they have graciously donated several units to the prize pool. And since subscribing to the newsletter is completely free, there is no reason not to Subscribe Now and get your chance to protect the ones … Continue reading Zero Surge Power Filters Added To Prize Pool →

Activision and Blizzard announced that they will merge in a deal worth $18.8 billion. The new company will be known as Activision Blizzard. The deal brings Activision with game series like Tony Hawk and Guitar Hero together with Blizzard, best known for creating what is currently the popular MMO, Warcraft. Blizzard is owned by Vivendi. As part of the merger plan, Blizzard will invest $2 Billion in the new company, while Activision is putting up $1 Billion. The merged business will be called Activision Blizzard and its chief executive will be Activision's current CEO Bobby Kotick. Vivendi will be the … Continue reading Activision And Blizzard Merging Into New Company →

2K Play, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), and Endemol USA announced today that Deal or No Deal: Secret Vault Games, the next release in the popular Deal or No Deal PC game series, is now available at major retailers throughout North America. Based on the hit TV show, Deal or No Deal: Secret Vault Games builds on the success of the first Deal or No Deal game and features host Howie Mandel. "I'm thrilled to be bringing the franchise to the next level with Deal or No Deal: Secret Vault Games for the PC," said … Continue reading 2K Releases Deal or No Deal: Secret Vault →

1C Company, the leading Eastern and Central European publisher, is pleased to announce that it has acquired Akella's "Sea Dog" in-house development studio. The Sea Dog team is comprised of experienced developers who contributed to the creation of such hits as Sea Dogs, Pirates of the Caribbean and Age of Pirates: Caribbean Tales. Within Akella, this development studio has become one of the few Russian teams successfully developing games for the Xbox and Xbox 360. The team is currently working on the Age of Pirates: Captain Blood project that will be released on PC and Xbox 360. The acquisition of … Continue reading 1C Company Buys Akella →

CCP, one of the world's largest independent game developers, today announced that the highly anticipated EVE Online: Trinity expansion for its popular massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) will be available on December 5, 2007. Available as a free online download for all EVE subscribers, Trinity features a next-generation graphics engine that sets a new aesthetic standard for online games. This expansion comes on the heels of another important milestone: more than 200,000 players now subscribe to EVE Online. The release of the Trinity expansion fortifies EVE Online's position at the forefront of three-dimensional game graphics, creating a breath-taking cinematic experience … Continue reading Eve Online Launching Trinity →

I-play, the mobile entertainment company, has sealed a deal with Pandemic Studios, a leading console and PC game developer, to take the highly anticipated Mercenaries 2: World in Flames title to mobile phones worldwide. The mobile game will build on the success of the first console title in the Mercenaries franchise which sold more than 1.5- million units globally. 'Mercenaries 2' mobile will launch alongside the PS2, PS3, Xbox 360, and PC versions of the game early next year. In Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, the mercenaries return as a power-hungry tyrant makes a play for Venezuela's oil supply, sparking … Continue reading Mercenaries 2 Coming to Mobile →