The launch date for Leisure Suit Larry Reloaded is fast approaching — scheduled for May 31! — and Replay Games has provided some information about a new addition (as chosen by Kickstarter backers): Jasmine (pictured above).

Information from the official release:

Jasmine is in her mid-20s, making her the youngest of Larry’s love interests. Smart, witty and honest, she graduated college with a double major in Marine Biology and Interpretive Dance. Through her current employer, Caesar’s Phallus, she manages to combine both of her talents, swimming in Phallus’ enormous aquarium as a “mermaid” with Mr. Wiggles, the casino’s teenage sperm whale. Offstage, she’s responsible for Mr. Wiggles’s care and feeding, but Jasmine is more than just a marine mammal expert and underwater dancer. (more…)

Double Fine manages to make press releases fun to read. Uncut and unaltered, here is the announcement of the Double Fine’s Humble Bundle, which includes Psychonauts, Stacking, Brutal Legend, and Costume Quest:

SAN FRANCISCO – May 7, 2013 – Double Fine Productions exhibited a complete lack of humility in announcing the immediate availability of the Humble Double Fine Bundle, an incredible opportunity to receive four classic Double Fine games for—you aren’t going to believe it—the price of your own choosing.

Astonishingly, the Humble Double Fine Bundle includes Psychonauts, Brütal Legend, Costume Quest, and Stacking as completely DRM-free downloads for—get this—Windows, Mac, AND Linux. It’s the first time Brütal Legend, Costume Quest, and Stacking have ever been available for all three of those platforms. Incredible. Plus, we’re throwing in Steam codes for those who pay a dollar or more. Excellent.

“It’s true: We’re amazing,” commented Tim Schafer, president and CEO of Double Fine.
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Deep Silver and Techland announced today that the follow-up to Dead Island — Dead Island: Riptide — is now available for PC, Xbox 360, and Playstation 3. Details on the zombie kill-fest can be found below:

With invigorating new elements infused into a proven mix, Dead Island Riptide will reanimate the zombie terror in the original game. A monsoon has hit the once beautiful archipelago and heavy rainstorms have laid waste to large areas of the islands. The city of Henderson and jungle areas on the island of Palanai were flooded leaving boats as the only remaining way of transportation. Dynamic weather conditions will force the team members to adapt to changing visibility conditions.

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It’s a little mind-boggling that EverQuest is still going after 14 years! The game marks the event with its latest update, ”Shadow of Fear.”

From the official release:

Continuing the storyline from the Rain of Fear expansion (EverQuest’s 19th), players battle to restore balance to Norrath as the essence of fear rains down from the sky in the form of crystalline shards. Shadow of Fear features two new zones, challenging raid content, powerful spells, enhanced AA lines, and new quests and missions. (more…)

Make of this what you will, because this isn’t a true announcement for a “reset” of the Jagged Alliance series, but there are plans in the works by Danish developer Full Control to tap fans to crowdfund the next installment. From the release:

“Danish independent studio today announced that it has begun development on Jagged Alliance: Flashback. Based on the widely popular critically acclaimed Jagged Alliance series, Jagged Alliance: Flashback is not just a reboot, but a reset that returns the franchise to the tactical turn-based action of the original games.

Starting next week Full Control will turn to crowdfunding and launch a Kickstarter campaign to finance the project. Supporters of the project can get involved by pledging as little as $5.

Set in the mid-1980’s on the Caribbean Island of San Cristobal Jagged Alliance: Flashback transports players back in time to the cold war era.

Further details of Jagged Alliance: Flashback and the Kickstarter campaign will be announced next week.”

In case you missed it, Warner Bros. and WB Montreal have announced “Batman: Arkham Origins” set for release October 25, 2013 on PC, Xbox 360, and Playstation 3, along with a companion 2.5D game, Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate (3DS, Vita). The other item of interest for fans of Batman’s Arkham games is that development of his upcoming adventure is being handled by WB Montreal, not Rocksteady. (more…)

It’s a neat idea on the face of it — intertwining a TV show and a video game — so it’ll be very interesting to see how Trion and Syfy pull it together with “Defiance” an MMO shooter and television show, set to debut April 15, 2013.

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Mark your calendars! Sequel to Metro 2013, Metro: Last Light will be available “May 14, 2013 in North and Latin America and May 17, 2013 across Europe for PlayStation 3, the Xbox 360, and Windows PC.”

Some additional details from the official announcement: (more…)

This writer really wants to just cut and paste the entire press release announcing The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt because it sounds kind of bad-ass. Coming to all “high-end platforms” in 2014, The Wild Hunt will mark the last of the Witcher games from CD Projekt Red. Check our review of the original Witcher: Enhanced Edition then read the rest of the release:

CD Projekt RED has officially announced the title of their next upcoming game: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Further, they’ve announced that this, the ultimate game in the series, will also be the final Witcher game from the studio. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt combines CD Projekt RED’s trademark decision-based storytelling flair with a living open world larger than any other in modern RPG history. (more…)

Sega of America, in association with Double Fine Productions, has announced the release date for Ron Gilbert’s upcoming “The Cave.” Coming to Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC, and Wii “The Cave” will be available January 23, 2013 for $14.99 (and  1200 MS Points).

For fans of Saints Row, Company of Heroes, and Darksiders I’m not sure how you’ll take the recent new that THQ has filed for bankruptcy. It’s not all bad news. Apparently someone has already picked up the pieces, somewhat. Read on from the official release!

AGOURA HILLS, Calif., Dec 19, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) — THQ Inc. THQI -73.88% , a leading worldwide developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software, today announced that it entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement with a “stalking horse bidder,” affiliates of Clearlake Capital Group, L.P., to acquire substantially all of the assets of THQ’s operating business, including THQ’s four owned studios and games in development. The sale will allow THQ to shed certain legacy obligations and emerge with the strong financial backing of a new owner with substantial experience in software and technology.

To facilitate the sale, THQ and its domestic business units have filed voluntary petitions under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The company’s foreign operations, including Canada, are not included in the filings. The company has obtained commitments from Wells Fargo and Clearlake for debtor-in possession (DIP) financing of approximately $37.5 million, subject to Court approval.

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BioWare and Electronic Arts has announced the first expansion for Star Wars: Old Republic, titled “Rise of the Hutt Cartel” set for launch Spring 2013.

Try to follow the rest of the details from the official release:

“There is a new threat in the Star Wars™ universe and the future of the Republic, the Empire and the entire galaxy is at stake! Today, BioWare™, a studio of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA), and LucasArts announced that players will face-off against the ruthless Hutt Cartel in the first Digital Expansion: Rise of the Hutt Cartel, coming Spring 2013. Beginning today, Star Wars: The Old Republic Subscribers can Pre-Order the Digital Expansion: Rise of the Hutt Cartel for only $9.99, 50% of the regular price. Free-to-Play Players can purchase the Digital Expansion for $19.99. Any player who pre-orders before January 7, 2013 will receive five days of Early Access* to the new fully-voiced story-driven content. (more…)

Today GOG.com announced that the first two classic 2D action-platformers that started the Duke Nukem franchise (for better or worse) are now available for PC and Mac for $5.99US.

From the official release:

• Run-n-gun through 3 action-packed episodes in Duke Nukem, and 4 explosive episodes in Duke Nukem 2!
• Witness the makings of a true gaming legend!
• Over 30 levels of heavy-duty run-and-gun shoot-and-forget 2D platforming fun!

Activision has announced “according to Chart-Track retail customer sell-through information and internal company estimates” that Call of Duty: Black Ops II has topped $1 billion in retail sales in the last 15 days.

In the same paragraph the press release is quick to point out that the “box office record set for feature films in 2009 by “Avatar” was $1 billion in 17 days,” which is kind of a weird comparison. It’s a better comparison that Black Ops II crossed the billion dollar mark a full day faster than last year’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

One more stat is thrown into the release: Since the game’s launch, more than 150 million hours (or 17,112 years if it makes that number more understandabl) have been logged online playing Call of Duty: Black Ops II on Xbox® LIVE® and PlayStation Network.

Valve Software announced today that with the most recent selection of 13 games and 6 software titles (see list below), the number of titles “advancing through Steam’s Greenlight” has hit 50 titles, since the Greenlight launch in August 2012, “allows developers and publishers to post information and media about their game in an effort to convince Community members that their game should be released on Steam.”

“”In just three months, the community has helped us identify 50 new titles for us to offer via Steam,” said Alden Kroll of Valve. “With the help of Greenlight, the indie games market share of games sold on Steam has increased by 50 percent for a third consecutive year. That’s a stat we are proud of, but one we also hope to increase as we learn more about Greenlight and continue to refine it in the new year.”

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