Video Game Saga *

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1)  Fable 3 Coming to PC and Steam

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From Digitalspy.com:

Lionhead Studio's fantasy-adventure title will be available from retail and digital distribution services Steam and Games for Windows Live from May 20.  Also revealed were several pre-order bonuses. Users who order the game from Games for Windows Live will receive a free copy of Fable: The Lost Chapters.

Elsewhere, Steam users will receive an exclusive Rebel's Weapon & Tattoo pack, featuring four weapons and tattoo sets.  Confirmed for release earlier this year, the PC version of Fable III will offer a new hardcore difficulty mode and support for stereoscopic 3D.

 

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2)  Shadows of the Damned Official Release Date

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At a recent event in San Francisco, Suda 51 from Grasshopper Manufacture announced the new launch date for Shadows of the Damned: June 21. That gives it two weeks to get out of E3's way (the game was originally scheduled for June 7).

Shadows of the Damned is a bizarre, horror-themed third-person shooter coming from EA Partners and a trio of well-known Japanese developers. If the names Shinji Mikami (Resident Evil), Suda 51 (No More Heroes) and Akira Yamaoka (Silent Hill composer) don't ring any bells, then you really have no idea just how weird this game is going to be.

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3)  Portal 2 Gel Could Make You Throw Up

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From Joystiq.com:

Portal 2's combination of slippery, bouncy, and portal-enabling gel was more than enough to keep our brains confounded during our second rendezvous at Aperture Science, but apparently yet another gel was planned for the game's many puzzles. Valve lead writer Erik Wolpaw reveals as much to EA.com in a recent interview, detailing "a new Gel that allowed players to walk up the side of walls."

During the game's testing, Wolpaw says, Valve concluded that the gel's use was so "disorientating that it made people nauseas [sic]." Inadvertently imparting nausea is a constant concern when designing a first-person game, he explains.

As a result, Valve "made changes to frame rate and movement that will help anyone play Portal 2, even if they do experience a feeling of nausea while playing other first-person games." As evidenced by that feeling in the bottom of our stomach, however, it's clear that Valve did little to mitigate the sheer terror felt when plummeting hundreds of feet.

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4)  Gamestop Stops Sellin DS Lites

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From GameInformer.com:

According to Go Nintendo, GameStop stores recently received an internal memo telling employees that, “New DS Lite systems have been discontinued and stores will no longer be replenished on this product.”

With the release of the 3DS many gamers are moving on. But Nintendo’s original dual screen system isn’t completely finished; gamers will still be able to buy DSi and DSi XL hardware.

Let me know what you think in the comments, and see you next week!