For as long as games have been a popular form of entertainment, they have always had to have a special trick. Sure, we don’t want to call it a “gimmick,” but there will ideally be a “special something” in a game to make it stand out from the pack. Almost four years ago, Eidos released a game calledJust Causefor the Xbox 360, Xbox, and PlayStation 2. Back then, the big selling point was the parachute mechanics coupled with the stunt system and the goal of overthrowing a corrupt island government set in the tropics....

But if you’d like to remain shrouded in secrecy, there’s also the option to block your friends list from wandering eyes. If that sounds like something you’d like to do,go hereto make the necessary adjustments. It’s going to be pretty exciting to see what’s included in the full dashboard update come December 4. We already know aboutXbox Originals, thefamily timer, and now the Friends of Friends. What do you think Microsoft has in store for us?...

If you’re able to’t remember what went down ininFAMOUS, Sucker Punch is here to give you a refresher and get you up to speed. This new trailer details what happened in the last game, and bridges the gap between it andinFAMOUS 2. Despite my long list of problems withinFAMOUS, I’m looking forward to checking out the sequel. The series has so much potential and it sounds like Sucker Punch is really going to capitalize on it this time....

God of War.Sly Cooper. Both Sony franchises that have gotten the high definition makeover treatment. With Sony’s“Classics HD” brandingand its talking heads already saying they’d like to see more, it’s not likely to stop there. Sony has a nice cache of franchises to dig into, among them, Insmoniac Games’Ratchet & Clank. While Insomniac is all about it, it’s not likely the studio would be involved in bringing its older titles into the high definition era....

You know,Jim Sterling is right. The Wii really has become a hardcore, go-to console for some very interesting titles. This includes games like epic JRPGs, so it’s not surprising that the Wii is now home to many upcoming titles of that genre. One isArc Rise Fantasia, a JRPG through and through. I had a chance to play the game recently, all the way to the first major boss fight, and it was an interesting experience....

IO Interactive has announced the release date forKane & Lynch 2: Dog Daystoday, and that date is August 24 for North America and August 27 for PAL territories. Along with the announcement,the official Web site has updatedwith a “Welcome to Shanghai” trailer. That’s a still from the trailer up there. It’s not safe for work, but I think given the gritty nature ofDog Days, that should go without saying. I chatted up IO’s Karsten Lund today about the game, so check back tomorrow as I dig a little deeper into the trailer, and the story that drivesDog Days....

This weekend,Killzone 2was treated to Update 1.20, a new patch intended to fix a number of issues that players have complained about since the game launched a few weeks ago. As always, a number of complaints have surfaced around the Internet that this new patch has “ruined” the game, although personally I’ve not felt too much of a difference. If you want to know exactly what’s been fixed, Guerrillahas listedthe rather large amount of tweaks made....

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoningis still not grabbing huge amounts of attention, despite being one of 2012’s most promising new IPs. Obviously, the reason for this is that it hasn’t been given any pre-order incentives yet. Let’s fix that! There are three in-game content packs to be made available, although which stores they’ll be obtained through is yet to be determined: Kingdoms of Amalurlooks pretty great, in my opinion, and I’m looking forward to Electronic Arts showing off a bit more before release....

Many game developers, both Eastern and Western, have commented on the state of the Japanese games industry, and most of them lack favorable words. Iconic director Hideo Kojima has added his two cents to the pile with his own idea on where Japan is going wrong. According to theMetal Gear Solidcreator, it’s a problem of motivation. “The West is very motivated. The younger generation of Japan is losing,” states Kojima. “The designers and to-be-designers in the West have the focus, ambition, and ability to make their dream become true....

Left 4 Dead 2: It sold a lot of copies. Valve’s co-op zombie apocalypse simulator has been a great success, shifting over two million copies in just two weeks. The game has doubled the sales of the original title, and that doesn’t even include purchases made via Steam. These are all retail numbers. Doug Lombardi has also confirmed that the first batch ofLeft 4 Dead 2DLC will be announced very soon....

We’re all for charity, but we have to wonder if putting fliers in video game boxes is the best way to go about it. For some reason, this whole thing vaguely offends me, but then, we have robotic hearts uncapable of your human emotions. So we leave it to you guys. Is this a great way to help kids out or is it pandering to a target audience already predisposed to giving by packaging a bit of salvation in with a game that blatantly tells you “if you’re bad, you will burn in our hell and be shot with our machine guns”?...

Pfft, you didn’t think Traveller’s Tales was done pumping out LEGO-themed games, did you? Yeah, I thought so. The company’s latest project (that we know about) is none other thanLEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues. As expected, the game is coming to all platforms under the sun: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, DS, PSP, and PC.LEGO Indiana Jones 2retells all four of the films, because TT knows how much you desperately wanted to playThe Kingdom of the Crystal Skullin LEGO format....

We already kind of knew about this, but today Mad Catz makes it official. They’ve officially announced a relationship with Capcom to produce a line based on the upcoming Wii releaseTatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars. This gives Mad Catz the North American rights for the Wii, which they will be using to produce controllers and accessories based on the fighting game that makes me love my Wii. “As we have with our very successfulStreet Fighter IVaccessories, we look forward to bringing fighting games fans on the Wii platform a range of distinctive, high-quality accessories that enhance the game-playing experience ofTatsunoko VS....