NEWS: Warface Xbox 360 Beta Begins Today

Crytek has opened the beta doors today on the Xbox 360 to those who signed up through the game's website.

Whilst the beta is currently live, you can still sign up for your chance to get involved via the Warface website, those willing to participate must be from any of the following regions/countries - Germany, Spain, Nordic, United Kingdom, United Stats, New Zealand, and Australia.

Also, Major Nelson of Xbox has put up a competition which will allow a further 50 players into the beta - you can enter HERE.

Warface is a free-to-play (with the required Xbox LIVE gold subscription) co-op shooter, which heavily relies on team work taking advantage of the numerous classes that are available, including Rifleman, Medic, Engineer, and Sniper.

NEWS: Everquest Next Landmark Alpha Starts Today

Alpha stage will only be available to a certain amount of dedicated players.

Community Manager of Sony Online Entertainment 'Dexella' has posted numerous details regarding the alpha beta test through the Sony Online forums.

Dexella stated the alpha will open today with no exact time currently set, and that its advised to check your emails to browse through the instructions on how to gain access once the test goes live.

An important note is also given to those who buy the Trailblazer or Explorer pack - "If you buy a Trailblazer or Explorer pack today in order to access Alpha, you will likely not receive your e-mails until tomorrow, but your accounts will be flagged. We will post instructions in the Alpha forums (which will be open to Trailblazers and Explorers) once e-mails begin to be deployed."

If you have an interest in taking part, take the time to go over the system requirements, which can be seen below.

Minimum System Requirments

• OS - Windows 7 64 bit
• Processor - Intel i5 Quad Core or higher / AMD Phenom II X4 or higher
• Memory - 4GB RAM
• Hard Drive - 20GB Free
• Video Memory - 1,024 MB RAM
• Video Card - nVidia GeForce GTX 275 series or higher / AMD HD 4890 or higher
• Sound Card - DirectX compatible
• Internet - Broadband (3Mbit/sec or higher)

Recommended System Requirements

• OS - Windows 7 64 bit
• Processor - Intel i5 Quad Core or higher / AMD Phenom II X6 or higher
• Memory - 8GB RAM
• Hard Drive - 20GB Free
• Video Memory - 1,024 MB RAM
• Video Card - nVidia GeForce GTX 560 series or higher / AMD HD 6870 or higher
• Sound Card - DirextX compatible
• Internet - Broadband (10Mbit/sec or higher)

NEWS: Next-Gen Skyrim Rumour Debunked

Gamers were shocked recently with a possible release of Skyrim on both PS4 and Xbox One.

The Bethesda website recently listed the 2011 release; The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim as being available on the PS4 and Xbox One - however, PR and marketing vise president Pete Hines has fully debunked this possibility.

Hines said "a bug caused platforms that don't exist to show up for some games. Sorry for confusion."

In other Elder Scrolls news, Betheseda recently sent out beta invitations for their upcoming MMORPG; The Elder Scrolls Online. More here.

NEWS: Sony Closing Gran Turismo 5 Servers, Among Others

Sony UK has revealed a number of PlayStation exclusive titles will be going offline in the not too distant future.

It was revealed today on the official UK PlayStation site that a total of 7 games will have their online servers stripped away - with no specific reason as to why, it could be assumed these games aren't attracting a large enough population to keep the servers online.

The first games to go offline will be MAG, SOCOM: Special Forces, and SOCOM: Confrontation, which will take place January 28, whilst March 28 marks the decommisions of Gran Turismo 5, Resistance: Fall of Man, Resistance 2, and Resistance 3.

Sony said "after these dates, you will still be able to play these games offline, with the exception of MAG and SOCOM: Confrontation, which do not have offline modes. We would like to thank everyone who has taken part in these PlayStation online communities and hope you enjoyed them."

Resistance: Fall of Man was a launch title for the PS3 and initially saw large amounts of players battling it out online whilst boasting 16-player multiplayer matches - something of a milestone at the time, and now almost 7 years later, the online gateway will be closed.

NEWS: Lego Minifigures Online - Beta Sign Ups

Sign ups are now available to take part in the closed beta of Lego Minifigures Online.

Releasing in 2014, Lego Minifigures Online will allow its users to interact with each other in an MMO environment, giving the option to explore various worlds, all whilst building and smashing there way through the game.  

The official site describes the game as "an upcoming online game where you get to smash, build and collect your way through wonderful worlds together with other players." 

Developer Funcom want the game to be "as enjoyable as possible." - the beta will prove to be a "very important tool", which will acknowledge player feedback ahead of the game's launch.

You can sign up for the beta here.

PREVIEW: SoulCalibur II HD Online Gameplay

Fresh gameplay shows Raphael and Xianghua battle it out in classic SoulCalibur action.

Fan favourite SoulCalibur II will be re-released in HD with all-new online features, something the original release never had - understandable giving the time.

To give a taste of what the game has to offer, Namco have released a fight between two of the most well-known characters throughout the series; upper class sword-wielding Raphael and another sword-wielding specialist Xianghua.

You might remember exclusive characters being available depending on which version of the original SoulCalibur II you purchased - the PS2 had Heihachi, whilst Xbox got Spawn, both characters will be included in the HD re-release.

Another note - Nintendo's Link appeared in the GameCube version, but as this game will release only for PS3 and X360, don't expect to see him anywhere. The game is slated for an Autumn 2013 release - any time now then.

NEWS: Killzone Shadow Fall Multiplayer Trailer Released

New Killzone Shadow Fall multiplayer trailer shows promising and exciting gameplay.

PlayStation 4 launch title Killzone Shadow Fall will initially offer players 10 multiplayer maps upon release, whilst further DLC maps will be released further down the line - Guerilla Games state that DLC will be completely free of charge, whilst expansion packs must be paid for unless you have a season pass.

A new multiplayer trailer was released today, showing off some of the game's maps and some pretty interesting weapons. Personally, I'm really excited for this game. Watch the trailer below and leave your thoughts in the comments.

FEATURE: Keeping Halo 2 Alive!

Halo 2 has played a massive part in my social gaming life, it was one of the first multiplayer games I truly got into, and it is something that has a special place in my heart. When I found out in April 2010 the servers were going to be shut down for good, I was devastated. My all-time favourite online game would no longer be available to play, I know most people will say oh it's only a game but I was genuinely really sad about this.

That was until I found out the game would be released as part of the Games for Windows scheme, but I didn't have the appropriate specifications on my system, so again - pure disappointment. However, since then I have been able to install it on a better system, and it runs perfectly. When I plugged in my Xbox 360 controller, it felt just like the original Xbox version, and I was playing online constantly, having so much fun and relishing in the fact I can play Halo 2 yet again without any of that annoying Xbox Connect nonsense. 

It was reported that the PC servers would also be shut down in June 2013, which made me feel the same anger and disappointment I felt with the original servers, however they are still online and a big part of that is the support of the community, who have contacted 343 Industries themselves in order to keep the servers online, and being a part of a community like that makes me feel good as not only a gamer but part of a team that loves Halo 2 and wants to play it for many more years to come.

So, what am I actually getting at here? I'd like you to help me along with many others to keep Halo 2 going, to do this simply buy the game or download it legally (wink wink), and come play with the community, it is generally cheap to buy either way. From personal experience, I had massive problems with the downloaded version, so I would advise to just buy the disc instead, much easier and less hassle that way. 

You do need an Xbox LIVE account but it doesn't have to be gold, you can play Halo 2 PC for free which is something I really appreciate since I don't have gold any more. If you decide to join the community, please leave your GamerTag in the comments below and I'll be happy to add you and we'll run some games together. Don't hesitate to check out my YouTube channel with a ton of clips and gameplay HERE

Join for forum that helped keep Halo 2 PC alive HERE, really great community with a lot of passion for the game still. Feature1