Avalanche Studios co-founder Christofer Sundberg has voiced disapproval for publishers who ignore the PC because of piracy, claiming that they are merely surrendering rather than dealing with a problem and trying to find ways around it. “Avoiding a platform because of piracy rather than attacking the problem is just giving in,” explains Sundberg, “so I’d recommend finding smart solutions to allow players the freedom needed to play our games full out and the developers and publishers getting their return of investment....

A billion years ago, fans’ ofBattlefield: Bad Companywere give the opportunity to vote for two maps that would eventually be included in a free map pack put out by the developer, DICE. The choices were a span of single player levels that would be outfitted for the insanely solid, deep, and rich multiplayer environment thatBad Companyprovides. Today, the map pack has stumbled its way onto Xbox Live Marketplace. The two levels picked by fans were “Acta Non Verba” and “Par for the Course....

Talented Deviant ArtistMichael Casteelhas been busy making a zoologicalfield guideofPokémonin the wild. The field guide contains written accounts ofPokémonsightings accompanied by a scientific drawing of each one. Fans of thetraditionally drawnPokémon collection will find a lot to love here too. There are only 24 pages so far which leaves a lot ofPokémonleft to cover. Michael has also said that he’s interested in compiling the finished guide into a physical book. Having a Pokédex on my 3DS is novel, but an actual zoological tome would be something I would find hard to resist at any price....

TheBit.Tripseries proper may beover, but there is more in store for CommanderVideo. Taking a page out of the Square Enix playbook, Gaijin Games is prepping a direct sequel to the fourth installment,Runner, and it will be available on Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network some time in early 2012. EntitledBit.Trip Presents: Runner 2, Future Legend of Rhythm Alien(Wow! What a name!), the game promises a slew of new abilities, achievements, and… actually, there’s not that much info yet....

Kavcom, the publisher behindBurn Zombie Burn!for OS X, has released its “modern reworking” of the classic real-time-strategy titleZtoday. This release of the 15-year-old game includes the full campaign and a modified touch-based user interface. The oddly titled iOS version,Z: The Game, was produced by the aforementionedKavcom,Peter Harrap,TickTock Games, and the original developers, theBitmap Brothers. “It’s finally here, and I’m pleased to say thatZ: The Gameon iPad and iPhone is everything we wanted it to be,” said Kavcom managing director Tony Kavanagh....

Until I see a fully 3D represantation ofMidgaras my wedding cake, this wins as one of my favorite food interpretations of video games of all time. Apparently onLive Journalyou can make a community about anything from walrus zoo hijinks to the lace used on Japanese schoolgirl panty ruffles. The particular community shares bento recipes, and they featured a challenge for video game characters. Check out the gallery for a few more dorky dishes....

I don’t know about you, but whenever I hear distant, old music playing on the radio, I find myself wanting to take cover from an incoming Big Daddy. In fact, an incident from a couple of nights ago is a great example of howBioShock’smusical score and sound has scarred me for life. I shut down my Xbox 360 after an extended session ofBioShockwent into the wee morning hours. After the sound of my rig and Xbox 360 died down, I could hear a faint, scratchy song in the distance, and it scared greatly....

Trading card gameChaoticis going digital in a big way. UnlikeMagic: The Gathering,Chaotic: Shadow Warriorswill feature rendered monsters, attack animations, and possibly 3D exploration. Below the fold you’re able to watch the first footage of the digital translation in action. It features a few retarded monsters slinging spells at each other, as well as a teenager running around some sort of bland fantasy environment. Shadow Warriorsis being published by Activision and is slated to hit fairly soon....

In celebration of Talk Like A Pirate Day, Capcom is dishing out heaps ofAge of Bootyby way of an open beta, which can beaccessed over here. If you are using an older machine and don’t want to risk not being able to runAoB, look for the PC requirements after the break, even though they are pretty tame. Also beyond the jump are the achievements for the Xbox LIVE Arcade version, in case you’re into that sort of thing....

Resident Evil 5is getting some more DLC this week for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3! “Desperate Escape” follows Josh Stone and Jill Valentine as they assist Chris and Sheva. With the new DLC come some limited editionResident Evil 5shirts! The shirts depict a Chibi Majini as he’s on his way to chop up some poor human. We have five of these shirts to give out this week thanks to Capcom and all you have to do to enter is tell us which of theResident Evilgames is your favorite....

Uh oh — trouble in paradise! According to the buzz on variousCrackdownrelated message boards, some users are reporting some major issues after installing the latest batch ofmind blowingly awesome DLC. How bad could it be? How about game saves being deleted and progress being reset? If you’ve worked hard to get 499 hidden orbs, you might want to read what thisparticularly unhappy playerhad to say about his experience: I was playing co-op with a friend, he ended the game, and I jumped into a solo game....

There’s a virus circulatingDead Space 2‘s online multiplayer, but it’s one you might want to contract. The outbreak was started by executive producer Steve Papoutsis, who introduced a yellow “Viral Suit” to the game. Anybody who killed Papoutsis and another designer got “infected”, unlocking the suit for themselves. The Viral Suit is now spreading throughout the game, as more players are getting killed and “infecting” other players. If you see anyone with a yellow “urban camo” design, ensure you slaughter them and nab the suit for yourself....

We keep hearing aboutSpace Invaders Get Even, but we’re not hearing enough. Taito’s arcade classic gone 3D came out in Japan some time ago, but there’s been no mention of a North American release… until now. The fine folks atGoNintendotell us that Square Enix announced that this WiiWare title will be hitting the channel on December 1st. Set 30 years after the original, you become the invaders, controlling the UFO and attacking helpless citizens....