Kip Katsarelis on designing the next SimCity (interview)
Kip Katsarelis is lead producer for the new SimCity game Electronic Arts’ Maxis studio is developing. We recently made the trek to Emeryville, Calif.,...
GamesBeat Weekly Roundup
Here are some of the stories that ran on GamesBeat this week. We’re running more articles exclusively in the GamesBeat section of VentureBeat, particularly...
EA server shutdowns another example of why online passes are a bad idea (editorial)
Video game publisher Electronic Arts recently announced it is pulling the plug on servers for nearly a dozen games whose player base has shrunk....
What does $100 buy you in Mass Effect 3 multiplayer?
Mass Effect 3’s multiplayer mode employs a trading card-style unlock system, where you purchase “packs” of mystery items that include one-time-use boosts, new weapons,...
Gamers who customized Shepard in Mass Effect 1 may have trouble importing into ME3 (update)
Update (3/9/12): BioWare Community Coordinator Chris Priestly has acknowledged the face-code error in a post on the game’s official forum. In that thread, Priestly...
Check out this printable Mass Effect 3 voice command “cheat sheet”
Microsoft suspects there may be a few gamers getting ready to save the universe from the Reapers come March 6. To help fight off...
Tips and tricks: Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
At the very beginning of the game you will be given the choice of four different “races,” which are basically just two elves or humans with varying skin colors. However, each race comes packing three racial bonuses, granting an immediate bump to specific skills.
How shame and anger aided the development of Star Wars: The Old Republic
Bioware‘s Emmanuel Lusinchi’s seven “lessons learned while designing an AAA” massively multiplayer online (MMO) game included an explanation of fan irrationality, the social benefits...
Which anti-SOPA game companies are fighting back, and how
The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA) have definitely gotten the Internet’s attention, but not in the good Elmo orders...
Surprises abound as Amazon reveals its 10 best-selling games of 2011
Amazon has released its top-selling digital and physical game titles from 2011. The online retailer has quickly become the quintessential center of great gaming deals, release-day shipping,...