Siren

Things just keep worse for the electronic's company who admitted to a security breach one week after it actually happened, leaving millions of user's credit card information among other personal information out in the open. Sony was slapped with the Class Action Lawsuit by the Rothken Law Firm in California. "We brought this lawsuit on behalf of consumers to learn the full extent of Sony PlayStation Network data security practices and the data loss and to seek a remedy for consumers. We are hopeful that Sony will take this opportunity to learn from the network vulnerabilities, provide a remedy to consumers who entrusted their sensitive data to Sony, and lead the way in data security best practices going forward," - Attorney Ira P. Rothken stated and co-counsel J.R. Parker followed with, "Sony's breach of its customers' trust is staggering. Sony promised its customers that their information would be kept private. One would think that a large multinational corporation like Sony has strong protective measures in place to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of personal information, including credit card information. Apparently, Sony doesn't,". If things could not get any worse publicly for Sony, a Conneticut Senator has also made his outrage known about the recent breach by sending Sony CEO Jack Tretton an email demanding answers that was made public for all eyes to see. via IGN Click here to view the article

During GDC 2011, Gamasutra Editor in Chief, Brandon Sheffield and Game Developer Magazine held a discussion with some of the most successful Xbox Live Indie Game developers including James Silva, Robert Boyd, Nathan Fouts, and Ian Stoker. They all provided insight and a little bit of ranting about the games that they create for the indie lineup. According to James Silva who created the 2009 successful indie title, I MAED A GAM3 W1TH ZOMBIES 1N IT!!!1 which has sold 308,000 copies since it's release in 2009, the developers are not allowed to create games involving killing things like Nazi's and hunting people. "That's like an inherent human right that's been taken away from us. We grew up on killing Nazis." According to Joystiq, Silva later talks about a game concept he had that was not allowed, because you played a "burly mountain man" who hunts people. Whoever gets to publish their game on the indie network receive 70% of revenue, while Microsoft keeps 30%. This has helped to provide Silva with the ability to pay his three person staff which includes his girlfriend, a regular salary. A topic that all of the developers are united on is the lack of support on Microsoft's end for advertising. They claim that most if not all of the advertising is done by themselves through Youtube trailers, press releases, and even making wiki pages and finding advertisers for their games themselves. Both Robert Boyd and Ian Stoker have created their own promotions for their games and even got together to do a cross advertising of Cthulu Saves the World and SoulCaster II. To read more of the excerpts from the panel including what the developers were doing before they started developing the Indie Games for Xbox Live, on Armless Octopus. Click here to view the article

According to Major Nelson, Borderlands has received a huge discount of 30-50% off on DLC and other related items in this week's Deal of the Week. Next week's Deal of the Week is themed and will feature "hack and slash" style games including Torchlight, Dungeons and Dragons Daggerdale, The Baconing, and Warhammer 40,000 Kill Team at 50% off their original prices. Out in the Xbox Live Arcade this week is Ubisoft's I Am Alive. Next week's arcade offerings include Shoot Many Robots and Defenders of Arcadia. Other downloadable content out for the current week is Mass Effect 3 From Ashes, Forza 4 March Pirelli Car Pack, and for Elite premium Call of Duty subscribers only, Modern Warfare 3 Map Pack that includes Black Box, Black Ice, and Negotiator. Games on Demand will be adding Carnival Games and Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 to the list of downloadable titles this week. Next week, Brink and The Gunstringer will be available. One demo will be releasing this week for Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13. A demo for Dead or Alive 5 will be out in two weeks. There will also be a handful of Avatar items added to the Avatar Marketplace. MLB 2K12 and John Carter of Mars will be getting avatar items this week and next week will see Shoot Many Robots, an update to the Marvel Collection, and College Game Day avatar items. via Major Nelson Click here to view the article

Upcoming MMORPG The Secret World has gotten a pre-order trailer. This gritty and interesting video game on dark fantasy and mythology is releasing for the PC on June 19, 2012. A date for the Xbox 360 version has not been revealed yet. http://youtu.be/tj2pvmtcNYU via Click here to view the article

You now have until April 2nd to pre order the $100 special edition version of Max Payne 3. Rockstar made the announcement shortly after the delay of the release of the game was announced. The fancy pants special edition of Max Payne 3 comes with a collectable statue of Max, copper and brass bullet shaped keychain with a screw off back, original still life art prints, classic multiplayer character pack with characters from previous Max Payne games, mulitplayer weapon pack, the soundtrack to the game, and of course one copy of Max Payne 3. The multiplayer classic character and weapon packs you will not be able to get anywhere else other than the special edition. Max Payne 3 is set to release on May 15, 2012 here in the US and on May 18, 2012 in Europe. via CVG Click here to view the article

The man that has enforced Xbox Live's policy to millions has decided to leave his 17 year position at Microsoft. Stephen "Stepto" Toulouse made the announcement on his website saying that Febraury 15th will be his last day on the job. "Despite the wonderful ability in Microsoft to change careers pretty dramatically inside the company, I’ve been there nearly 18 years and it’s the only world I’ve really ever known. I feel too strangely comfortable, and too strangely tied." Further on in his blog entry, Stepto says that he will not comment on specific personal changes, honoring Microsoft's "no comment" rule. via Stepto Click here to view the article

Peter Molyneux will be leaving Lionhead and Microsoft for a new company, 22 Cans after he is finished working on the Kinect friendly entry into the Fable series, Fable: The Journey. Molyneux made the statement earlier today stating that he is leaving Microsoft on happy terms. Molyneux's departure might be causing fans of the Fable series to jump for joy after expressing their disappointment in the turn that the series has taken with the release of Fable III. No news on his replacement will be. via Joystiq Click here to view the article

Microsoft has finally responded to the many rumors and speculations that they were planning on surprising the industry by releasing a console later this year by stating nothing new is coming in 2012. The announcement came from Microsoft France's marketing director Cedrick Delmas who also stated during an interview with french website Lepoint.fr, that it's still too early to say what Microsoft will be unveiling at E3 2012. "We're in an industry that talks a lot, that likes telling stories. I am not convinced that things will happen this year. The Xbox 360's cycle is not over at all. The proof is that we haven't price cut this year. Afterward, what will happen at E3, it's still too early to say. What's certain is that there will be nothing new in 2012." Delmas also commented on Nintendo's upcoming console release with the Wii U by saying "we're not here to counter Nintendo and they're not here to fight the other manufacturers. Nintendo has put itself in a different cycle. It's going forward to its own rhythm, with success as we have seen with the Wii, and now it's their turn to present their innovation." via IGN Click here to view the article

EA's next entry into the Medal of Honor series has been ousted by Game Informer's Jim Reiley over Twitter. Game Informer is claiming that Danger Close will be working on the game and also handling the online multiplayer instead of DICE. The gaming mag is also claiming that the game will releasing this coming October. EA has not confirmed anything, however we do know that an announcement is coming regarding the Medal of Honor series at GDC on March 6th. via Game Informer and Joystiq Click here to view the article

EA has sent out their press invites to an upcoming announcement regarding the Medal of Honor series that will take place at this year's Game Developer's Conference. The announcement is set to happen on March 6th and the masses are predicting the reveal of Medal of Honor 2. Not too shocking, but at least it does not contain Call of Duty. via CVG Click here to view the article

Bioware and Microsoft are granting you silvers out there a change to check out and play the online multiplayer in Mass Effect 3. The limited time Gold subscription will be including upon the download of the Mass Effect demo which will be available to those of you who used an online pass to play Battlefield 3 on Valentines Day, Febraury 14th. The rest of you will have to wait until February 17th to join in on the action. The demo also includes one single player mission where the Reaper's invade Earth. via Bioware Click here to view the article

Here is a gimpse at the classes and races that you can choose from the Special Forces multiplayer mode in Bioware's upcoming and final chapter in Commander Shepard's storyline, Mass Effect 3. What will you be? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h254YRtQoJUvia Bioware Youtube Click here to view the article

Sega games on a Nintendo console here in America? That is correct. The ESRB has rated two Sega Game Gear games for Nintendo's 3DS. The Game Gear games are Sonic the Hedgehog Triple Trouble which happens to be a favorite of mine and Shinobi. Both have received an "E" for "everyone" rating. For those of you that are not up on your handheld knowledge, the Sega Game Gear was Sega's take on the handheld craze that released here in the states in 1991. Sega officially dropped support of their handheld in 1997 after an unsuccessful shelf life in Japan and issues with the handheld's battery life became more prominent. The original model would only last for about 4 hours. Sega Game Gear games are available in Japan for the Wii through the Nintendo E-Shop. via Tiny Cartridge and Game Gear wiki Click here to view the article

New downloadable content has been made available for gamers who's RPG of choice happens to be Square Enix's followup to Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII-2. For 640 MS points, gamers can get their hands on the Fight In Style pack which includes new coliseum opponet Omega and two outfits for both Serah and Noel. For 80 MS points each you can purchase four new weapons for Serah and Noel. For Noel, you will find Catastrophe Blade which increases the ATB gauge recharge rate and the Muramasa which helps to increase your chain bonuses. Serah gets a Seraphic Wing that increases your HP as you damage an enemy and then there is the Genji Bow which like Noel's Catastrophe Blade will increase the rate that your ATB gauge recharges. This new content also joins the recently released Sazh add on Head or Tails which you can also nab while you are checking out the new items for 400 MS points. via Electronic Theater Click here to view the article

Do not call the upcoming Playstation 3 and Vita Final Fantasy X a "remake", because Square's Shinji Hashimoto will be the first to remind you that it is a "remaster". During the Taipei Game Show the media asked Hashimoto if the popular love story of Tidus and Yuna was going to be a remake or remaster and Hashimoto quickly responded with "remaster" citing the HD overhaul and according to Joystiq, Hashimoto is claiming the HD "remaster" is prettier than the original that released in 2001 with cutscene graphics that would rival many games to this day. No release date has been given yet for the FFX remaster however as Andriasang points out, there was a mysterious Twitter message posted on Square Enix's Twitter that talks about "X" being next. Could this mean that a release date will be announced soon? via Joystiq Click here to view the article

Before the Kinect friendly Fable: The Journey releases this fall, Lionhead has announced the Xbox Live Arcade will be getting some Fable action before hand. Fable Heroes will be launching prior to Fable: The Journey and will feature four player co-op and will also tie in with Fable: The Journey by using unlockables and avatars. Fable Heroes has been in development by Lionhead since last April. No specific date or price has been announced for the downloadable title. via Eurogamer Click here to view the article

Hopefully you do not have your Mass Effect 2 game saves floating around in a cloud save, because EA has confirmed that cloud saves will not carry over into Mass Effect 3. EA also stated that local save files that were moved between consoles using cloud saves will not work either. For those of you that have your Mass Effect 2 save files in a cloud save, you will have to import your save onto an original Xbox 360 hard drive and then transfer it manually to a new console with a USB cord or transfer cable. If you don't have your original hard drive, you are out of luck. via IGN Click here to view the article

We interrupt our regularly scheduled news posting to bring the earth shattering news of the day. The social app makers behind Farmville, Petville, and anything else ending in "ville" and "wars" has announced that they will be partnering with the "Born This Way" singer Lady Gaga for a new game that will be a relative to Zynga's successful Facebook game, Farmville. "Gagaville" will debut on May 17th and Zynga announced via their the Gagaville Facebook page that the game will have sheeps on motorcycles, unicorns, and all other things that are in Lady Gaga's world including songs from her new album, "Born This Way". "In a new deal with Zynga — the biggest name in casual games — the edgy pop starlet will appear in ...her very own hamlet within the Zynga universe. On May 17, you can virtually visit GagaVille, a digital farm that's decked out in Gaga's trademark outlandish vibe, which naturally means it will include "crystals, unicorns and sheep on motorcycles. The partnership is a Facebook-centric promotional tie-in for her upcoming album, Born This Way" - Zynga via Gagaville Facebook Now that the life changing announcement has been made, we will resume regular posting in 3, 2, 1. via Gagaville Facebook Click here to view the article

It appears that Marcus Fenix will be searching for his scientist father in the highly anticipated final chapter where the Fenix story unfolds in the upcoming shooter from Epic Games, Gears of War 3. The full trailer will air on May 28 during the Champion League's Final after the final whistle. If you can't wait an extra week to see the campaign reveal trailer, then feast your eyes on a tiny bit of a teaser. http://youtu.be/1Prqt6Qv60Q via Joystiq Click here to view the article

Earlier this week Alan Wake 2 rumors were stirring around the internet and Remedy has confirmed to Eurogamer that the next Alan Wake will not be a retail version of Alan Wake or DLC. "Fans of the franchise will be excited to learn that yes, more Wake is coming! But to be absolutely certain to avoid confusion, this next Wake instalment will not be Alan Wake 2. And neither will it be DLC,” - Oskari Hakkinen, Head of Franchise Development Instead Alan Wake: Night Springs is rumored to be an Xbox Live Arcade release and according to Eurogamer Remedy was hiring for motion controller experts last year making some wonder if Alan Wake: Night Springs will be Kinect enabled. via Eurogamer Click here to view the article

If you are finding yourself heading off to college later this year and need a computer or maybe you are already taking classes and need a new computer, now would be the time to make that purchase. Microsoft announced that beginning on May 22 until September 3 if you purchase a new Windows 7 PC that is valued at $699 or more you will receive a free 4 GB Xbox 360 S model at participating retailers. All you have to do is show your proof of college student ID or make a purchase online using your .edu email. The offer is only valid in the United States, however this deal will be coming to France and Canada soon. via Windows Team Blog Click here to view the article

Jumping on the service pass bandwagon this week is Warner Bros and NetherRealm Studios. Both companies have announced the "Mortal Kombat Season Pass" which is exclusive for Mortal Kombat fatality loving players on the Xbox 360. Included in the pass are the downloadedable characters Skarlet, Kenshi, Rain, and a yet to be named character. As each character becomes available on Xbox Live you will have to download a free compatibility pack that allows you to use each character in your online multiplayer fights. The "Mortal Kombat Season Pass" will put you back 1200 points. If you do not want to purchase the pass, do not worry. These characters along with the klassic skins that they come with will be available for purchase individually at 400 MS points each. The first downloadable character Skarlet will be available on June 21. via Joystiq Click here to view the article

Next time you go to turn on your Xbox 360, you will be prompted to download a new update. Relax, there are no new features. According to Major Nelson, this "update is preparation for additional system enhancements coming to Xbox 360 later this year." Click here to view the article

Hello Gamercide, As the title implies we here at Gamercide are looking for more talented writers to join the Gamercide News Team. We have a few spots open and if you think you can write about gaming news, then prove it! Choose a current news story that is going on in the gaming industry and write a small, but to the point news article that shows your creative and unique writing style. All submissions must be received by Sunday, August 21. Anything received after that will be deleted. Please send all submissions to siren@gamercide.org. Please include in the subject line, "Gamercide News Entry". Include all links where you found the information for your news article. Plagiarism will not be tolerated. Remember writers, we are looking for creative and fresh, not some cookie cutter writer that you can find on every website. Once the submission period is over all entries will be judged and those that are chosen will notified by email. Keep in mind that if you are chosen, you are not a full fledged staff member...yet. There will be a probationary period where your writing skills will be throughly examined and critiqued. Only after the probationary period and with approval from all of the Gamercide Staff will you then be welcomed aboard the news writing team. xOxO, Chastity "Siren" Gamercide's Senior Writer Click here to view the article

That is at least in the form of the Call of Duty fan convention that is being held next month in LA. Activision made the announcement today regarding the controversial rapper closing out the Call of Duty XP event at 8 pm on the final day on September 3rd. "We promised our attendees and fans around the world a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the first Call of Duty XP, so we're thrilled to have Kanye on board," Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing Call of Duty XP begins on September 2nd and lasts until September 3rd. 100% of the proceeds from the fan event will go towards the Call of Duty Endowment fund veterans of the armed forces who are returning home and need help adjusting back into their role from soldier to civilian. via IGN and Call of Duty XP Click here to view the article