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With StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm coming to stores worldwide in just two weeks, Blizzard has been hard at work finalizing the game and adjusting unit balances. The company has now revealed a character-intensive trailer, heavily featuring the obviously-strained relationship between Jim Raynor and the former Queen of Blades, Sarah Kerrigan. While the latest StarCraft 2 trailer borrows a fair amount of combat footage from the game’s opening cinematic, it also adds several lines of dramatic conversation between Raynor, Kerrigan and Warfield....

EA loves to drop surprises for users of its online distribution service Origin. Every so often, gamers can be treated to a free copy of a major title through ‘On the House’ specials — albeit for a limited time only. Previously, EA had released Plants vs. Zombies and Battlefield 3 through this service, and users can currently pick up addictive puzzler Peggle. However, EA has announced that another title is available for free through Origin — and not through the aforementioned ‘On the House’ service....

Lee Everett and the remaining survivors have come a long way since his initial police cruise from Atlanta. Having survived countless walkers, bandits, internal struggles and heartbreak galore, it seems almost fitting that The Walking Dead tries to make each of those issues re-appear during Lee’s conclusive episode. Entitled No Time Left, the episode throws small decisions out the window and larger choices have monumental ramifications. With time running out to save Clementine, Lee and the few remaining survivors (or possibly just Lee himself) embark on one last trip through the bloody streets of Savannah....

Every origin story is predicated on prying, on digging through a character’s modest, fresh-faced beginnings and exposing the man or the woman before they were the myth or the legend. Few, however, dig so deep as to hit rock bottom, and fewer still do so to a character who before has always seemed impervious to humility, let alone helplessness. But Tomb Raider is Lara Croft’s ultimate crucible. Shipwrecking the heroine on a majestic but maleficent island and forcing her to discover, not just her will to survive, but her strengths, her weaknesses and her calling as a Croft, the latest installment in the action/adventure franchise is the most significant narrative contribution to the canon to date....

It’s one of our most anticipated games of 2013 (and a godsend for the Wii U), and Ubisoft’s first venture into truly next-gen open world game design. And now, Watch_Dogs has a face to put to the name, as the official box art has been released. Unfortunately the platforms set to host the game are still not completely confirmed, as only the PC, Wii U and PlayStation 3 covers have been shown, meaning an idea of the PlayStation 4 case design is still elusive....

The Nintendo Switch has become a home to indie games all of sizes, styles, and genres. With most developers noting the Switch’s critical role in propelling the sales of their games to unimaginable levels, the wave of indie arrivals shows no signs of stopping. Switch gamers have a wide variety of indies to look forward to in the coming year. From RPGs to challenging boss rush adventures, there is something for every type of player coming soon to the hybrid system....

Playing games online is all well and good, but nothing can compare to local multiplayer. Sitting next to your friend while you beat or are beaten on various games is hilarious, and offers incredible trash talking opportunities. Sadly, pure local multiplayer games are something of a rare breed these days. In this list, we’re going to take a look at 10 of the best local multiplayer games available on the PS4 today, and explain just why they are worth your time....

Throughout its history, Nintendo has developed some of the most memorable games ever. From Super Mario Bros to Legend of Zelda, Nintendo publishes gems that have inspired and entertained gamers for decades. However, not all Nintendo games have received sequels. There are a number of reasons for this: a game might be poorly received, the developers might go bust or close down, or the game might not be marked well and end up selling poorly....

Pokémon might have the most well-known monsters and some of the cutest, but Kingdom Hearts players would argue that the Heartless, despite their dark origins, are pretty darn cute too. Some are menacing and some are just silly looking and some look like they belong in the store as plushies and not anywhere near a Keyblade. Born from the darkness in people’s hearts, Heartless are mindless, acting without emotion and only exists to kill anything in their path....

The Nintendo Switch has already built up an impressively robust and diverse lineup of software, despite its somewhat recent release and tepid support from third parties. Everything from quirky party games to gritty shooters; from modern titles to retro throwbacks, Switch has seemingly covered a vast area of gaming. Still, there are a number of absent franchises, both from the big N, and from elsewhere, that would seem to be a perfect fit on the console-handheld-hybrid....

With Marvel’s Avengers now being officially released, many Marvel and video game fans are desperate to explore every single nook and cranny available in the Avengers’ world. As with most superhero-related video games, it is packed with Easter eggs, hidden items, and collectibles galore. Square Enix has made sure that fans are not just restricted to a story mode but are able to explore the Avengers’ universe somewhat and discover some insanely cool items along the way....

It’s a good general rule of gaming that the stronger an attack is, the greater the cost associated with using it. Whether it’s a powerful weapon with limited ammo, a strong ability with a long cooldown, or a highly damaging move in a fighting game with a lot of recovery if you miss, that’s just the way things work around here. Yay for balancing. In the Pokémon series, some of the more damaging moves (and those with the most potent effects) are limited in a variety of ways....

Subnautica and sequel Below Zero are fascinating, fun, and challenging survival-based games, with hints of plot and lore scattered about their watery worlds. From the deadly Kharaa bacterium to the alien Architects and corrupt Alterra corporation, there’s more than meets the eye to this game. However, not all of this lore or plot makes perfect sense when looked at with a closer eye. Some things just don’t add up about Below Zero, when scrutinized....

Nintendo has created many unforgettable video game series with many popular mascots. Nintendo has done extremely well in this regard, but it’s a little shocking to look back to the beginning of series and realize just how much they’ve changed. The Super Mario series is still Nintendo’s flagship property and it’s a great example of a simple idea that’s been able to evolve with each new gaming generation. Mario is now the star of his own games, but many overlook that his start was back in the arcade classic, Donkey Kong....

Platformers have long been an entry point for new gamers. Video games may have greatly expanded in scope over the years and now offer so many different genres and experiences that it’s nearly impossible to keep track of them, but that’s actually a big part of the reason why it’s still so much fun to look back at these timeless games where the main objective was often to simply jump from one place to the next....

Nintendo is known for their successful consoles. They released the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in 1983 and ended the video game crash. Then they released the Super Nintendo (SNES), which was incredibly successful. However, their next console, the Nintendo 64 (N64), would revolutionize the gaming experience. The Nintendo 64 sold over 30 million copies for a reason. The console’s revolutionary controller introduced the now familiar analog stick. The console also featured some jaw-dropping titles like Super Mario 64, Conker’s Bad Fur Day, and the original Super Smash Bros....

It might be the latest installment in one of Ubisoft’s most popular franchises, but so far Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag has been a difficult game to judge, even with the heaps of trailers and gameplay footage that have been unveiled. Assassin’s Creed III divided many fans of the series, with some praising it for its authentic recreation of revolutionary America, and others criticizing it as dull and lacking proper story pacing....

It’s hard to catch with everything that’s going on in Fortnite’s new Party Royale trailer, but Kirby makes a super quick cameo and Sony and Microsoft were forced to censor him out. The new “experimental space” Fortnite developers created as a place for players to hang out and chill completely nixes competitive play. There’s mini-games, boat races, paint guns, and dance parties. Well-known DJs like Steve Aoki, Deadmau5, and Dillon Francis are featured in the Party Royal raves....

There’s nothing gamers love more than serious, no-holds barred, emotionally traumatic looks at the nuances of a zombie apocalypse - and that’s exactly what Dead Rising 3 is all about. Chronicling the struggles of Nick Ramos to battle the zombie outbreak of Los Perdidos (and the infection flowing through his veins), the Xbox One exclusive is anything but a laughing matter. Now that we’ve got that out of system, it’s time to ask ourselves the more important question: will Dead Rising 3 players choose to do their zombie slaughtering in an enormous cartoon shark costume, or dressed up as Mega Man?...

Despite a few successes peppered over the course of several decades, the general consensus is that video game movies are not only a risky proposition for studios, but most of them are lacking in quality. However, we might be in the midst of a changing of the guard, so to speak, as game developers take a more hands-on role in video game movie development (a la Marvel Comics). To that point, a panel was held at Comic-Con 2013 to talk about what could soon become “the Golden Age of video game movies,” as several projects with above average profiles are slated for the next few years....