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Latest by M. Rougeau

‘Mass Effect 3’ could have had a very different ending

Former BioWare writer Drew Karpyshyn describes a 'Mass Effect 3' ending that might have been, had he stayed with the studio, in an appearance on a gaming-focused radio show.

EA’s Online Pass stays dead despite Xbox One DRM reversal

Electronic Arts re-confirms that the company has no plans to revive its Online Pass system in light of Microsoft's license transfer policy changes from earlier this week.

Ubisoft, EA cite low hardware sales as cause of flagging third-party Wii U support

Key executives from Ubisoft and Electronic Arts cite the low sales numbers for the Wii U as the main reason for their flagging third-party support of Nintendo's latest gaming console.

PS4 players can prioritize what sections of a game to download first

Sony released a video showing off the PS4's interface that also shows a user telling the console to download the multiplayer portion of 'Killzone: Shadow Fall' before the single player version. It's unclear if all games have this option. The video also shows off some messaging and sharing capabilities.

Rhode Island establishes plan to repay 38 Studios’ loan debts

The state of Rhode Island sets a plan in motion that will see the $89 million loan debt left behind by the now-defunct 38 Studios paid back over a period of years.

Xbox One pre-orders now sold out at GameStop retail locations

GameStop says demand is high for Microsoft's new Xbox One console and that brick-and-mortar stores nationwide are sold out on pre-orders, though PlayStation 4 pre-orders continue to be available.

Steam beta update code reveals possible game sharing feature

Several lines of code discovered in Valve Corporation's latest beta update for the Steam client suggests that a game-sharing feature may soon be implemented for users of the service.

‘Black Ops 2’ DLC ‘Vengeance’ adds multiplayer maps, more zombies, and a Ray Gun

The third downloadable content expansion for 'Black Ops 2' is out on July 2 with four new multiplayer maps and one new Zombies level. As usual, the Vengeance DLC launches first on Xbox 360, with other platforms to follow.

Nintendo 3DS in top sales spot for May 2013, ending Xbox 360’s 28-month reign

For the first time in over two years, the Xbox 360 is not the best-selling console, according to NPD's May 2013 sales charts. Instead, the Nintendo 3DS takes the top spot, something that few would have predicted just one year ago.

‘Hitman: Absolution’ developer lays off half its staff, refocuses on the future of Hitman

Square Enix-owned IO Interactive is hit with "significant changes," including layoffs and game cancellations. The studio's new and sole focus is on the Hitman series, with a "triple-A Hitman project" current in development.

Dead Space may live on, but Visceral is working on a different ‘passion’ project

EA Games Label head Patrick Söderlund revealed at E3 that Dead Space as a franchise is not dead. That said, 'Dead Space 4' is not currently in development, as Visceral is working on a passion project.

More than 50K people have signed a petition to bring ‘The Division’ to PC

Ubisoft''Tom Clancy's The Division' is scheduled for release next year on next-gen consoles, but not everyone is happy with the company's choice of platforms. A petition to get the game released on PC as well is gaining steam.

Sony’s hopes for the PS4 are increasing, and it expects partners to follow its lead with DRM

Sony had a great showing at E3, and following positive reception of the PlayStation 4 its internal sales predictions have reportedly increased. Sony also said that it doubts third party publishers will try to enforce any unpopular DRM on the next-gen console.

Ubisoft bringing Watch Dogs, Far Cry and Rabbids movies to the silver screen

Ubisoft announced that three more movies based on the Watch Dogs, Far Cry and Rabbids franchises, are in the works at Ubisoft Motion Pictures. That brings the total up to six Ubisoft films in development.

Ubisoft has three ‘Assassin’s Creed’ games currently in development

Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot tells Kotaku that there are three 'Assassin's Creed' games in development right now. The company hopes to continue to avoid franchise fatigue by giving its studios the time and freedom to innovate within the series.

E3’s 48,200 attendees brought $40 million to Los Angeles; next year’s date set

The Electronic Entertainment Expo generated $40 million for the city of Los Angeles and attracted 48,200 industry professionals and other attendees, the Entertainment Software Association revealed.

EA confirms ‘Medal of Honor’ studio Danger Close is no more

The studio behind the last two 'Medal of Honor' games, including the failed 'Medal of Honor: Warfighter,' is dissolved, EA confirmed at E3.

Ubisoft snags Michael Bay and Warner Bros. for a Ghost Recon movie

The director of the 'Transformers' films and the production company behind 'Lord of the Rings' and countless others will collaborate with Ubisoft on the project. Ghost Recon looks great on the silver screen, as Ubisoft proved previously with 2012's 'Ghost Recon Alpha.'

‘Dark Souls II’ hands-on preview

We went hands on with From Software’s Dark Souls II, the sequel to one of the most difficult games in recent years. And we’re happy to report we died a lot.

Amazon expands digital game marketplace with ‘Indie Game Store’

Amazon aims to help independent game developers get exposure while providing consumers a hub on which to find new games with the new Indie Games Store category of its digital download marketplace.

Nationalist Chinese paper publishes game in which players reclaim Japanese island

'Recover the Diaoyu Islands' is a browser game published by one of China's most prolific nationalist newspapers, the Global Times. In it, players board a People's Liberation Army ship and dodge attacks from Japanese opponents while launching bombs to defeat them.

Watch the biggest and best games streamed live from E3 starting Tuesday, June 11

The annual E3 show for 2013 kicks off on Tuesday, June 11, and Twitch will be there live on the show floor with a running stream of the big reveals and blockbuster first looks.

Microsoft and Sony may not explain next-gen used games policies at E3

Analyst Doug Creutz predicts that Microsoft and Sony will focus on the games at E3, once again choosing not to address the growing questions about their new consoles' used games policies.

Man under house arrest gets sick of Xbox and chooses jail instead

A New Zealand man chooses jail over Xbox when he calls police and threatens to break his house arrest 10 months in if they don't cart him off to prison. The police happily complied.

‘Metal Gear Solid V’ brings in Kiefer Sutherland as Snake

'24' star Kiefer Sutherland provides voice acting and facial motion capture for the next 'Metal Gear Solid' title. Series creator Hideo Kojima says he wanted a more subtle performance to match the game's 'darker' tones of race and revenge.

‘Diablo 3’ confirmed for September release on Xbox 360 and PS3

Blizzard's console version of Diablo 3 will appear on Xbox 360 as well as PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. The console version of the game was previously announced only for the PlayStation consoles.

PlayStation 4’s F2P launch lineup adds ‘Warframe,’ ‘DCUO,’ ‘PlanetSide 2’

Sony's free-to-play games offering on the PlayStation 4 grows, with three more titles headed to the console at or close to launch: Digital Extremes' 'Warframe,' plus 'PlanetSide 2' and 'DC Universe Online,' both from Sony Online Entertainment

‘Dragon’s Dogma Quest’ revealed as free-to-play RPG for PS Vita

The next chapter in the Dragon's Dogma series is Dragon's Dogma Quest, a free-to-play 2D role-playing game that is coming exclusively to PlayStation Vita in fall 2013. Only confirmed for Japan right now.

Microsoft’s Ballmer and Tellem reportedly meet with TV execs in Hollywood

Microsoft execs Steve Ballmer and Nancy Tellem reportedly meet with key figures in Hollywood's TV biz to discuss the non-interactive entertainment possibilities for the Xbox One and show off the hardware.

‘Deus Ex: The Fall’ revealed as a mobile game due this summer

'Deus Ex: The Fall' is not a sequel to 'Deus Ex: Human Revolution,' but rather to the 2011 novel 'Deus Ex: The Icarus Effect.' It's coming out exclusively for smartphones and tablets this summer.

Omni brings full-body VR gaming to Kickstarter, reaches funding goal in hours

The Omni follows the lead of the Oculus Rift, with a newly launched Kickstarter campaign for a treadmill-like device that is made to work with standard game controllers and other peripherals. The campaign reached and then doubled its funding goal in a matter of hours.

‘Shadow of the Eternals’ crowdfunding campaign temporarily shut down, pending ‘new developments’

Precursor Games' crowdfunding campaign for 'Shadow of the Eternals' shuts down this week, unfulfilled, but the studio promises that 'exciting new developments' will surface soon and the campaign will be restarted.

Double Fine’s ‘Massive Chalice’ crushes its Kickstarter goal, and still has 23 days to go

Double Fine's 'Massive Chalice' Kickstarter reach its funding goal of $725,000 after less than a week. It's Double Fine's second successful Kickstarter campaign, after the one for the adventure game that became 'Broken Age' earned many times its original goal last year.

The HD remake ‘Fable Anniversary’ coming to Xbox 360 (but not Xbox One) later this year

Microsoft revealed the game Lionhead has been teasing all week, an HD remake of the original 'Fable' called 'Fable Anniversary.' Curiously, it won't appear on Xbox One, despite the fact that both the game and the console are expected to launch by the end of the year.