…What? No movie news today? What a joy! Join the celebration with a wild Borderlands 2trailer, some anticlimactic Grand Theft Auto V screenshots, and the gaming sale we’ve all been waiting for.
- The Last Story, that long-awaited Wii JRPG looking for localization, has finally received a North American release date of August 14. Need something similar to play now, though? Turn toward Xenoblade Chronicles, but not before reading our review.
- Diablo III is all the rage. World of Warcraft is the go-to title for massive online interactions. Yet according to Forbes, League of Legends is the most played PC game in all the world. Oh, and it’s free, so why aren’t you in on it? Join the crowd.
- Everyone’s favorite turn-based 2D strategy invertebrate slaughterfest Worms iscrawling to Facebook later this year. I couldn’t care less for Facebook games, but I could play rounds of Worms for ages. Let’s war.
- Yesterday’s cuckoo-crazy announcement that Metal Gear Solid 4 will be getting Trophy support was strange enough, but it looks like the rerelease will also feature the option for a one-time install rather than waiting around to do it piecemeal before each chapter. Any guesses on how many cigarettes Snake will go through on that super-long load screen?
- BioWare is dishing out a bunch of free Mass Effect 3 multiplayer DLC to everyone on July 17th. Good thing, too, because we know no one bought the game for the single-player story anyway, right?
- Want more BioWare bits? The company is resurrecting the once-legendary Ultimaseries with Ultima Forever: Quest for the Avatar. Cross-platform between PC and iPad, expect this online action RPG to only be free-to-play in the same pay-to-win sense that EA loves so dearly.
- LucasArts’ Creative Director Clint Hocking left the company and sought refuge at Valve Software. Maybe that upcoming LucasArts shooter isn’t such a good idea after all…
- Likely looking to get ahead of Sony’s acquisition and eventual implementation of Gaikai, game streaming competitor OnLive will be built in to all second-generation Google TVs. Welcome to the digital future. — Games Industry
- Usually video game trailers are neat and all, but other than for full reveals, they’re not very news-worthy. Still, Gearbox is having way too much fun with Borderlands 2 to pass up on this one. Try to keep your Ace Ventura sex flashbacks to a minimum, please.
- Rockstar is being quite coy about anything related to Grand Theft Auto V, and therelease of but two out-of-context screenshots is no change in attitude. Still, as aKingdom Hearts fan, I know that any sign of progress is a good sign of progress.
- Ubisoft announced Spartacus Legends as a video game adaptation of the successful Starz series revolving around gladiators and arena combat. Like Lost: Via Domusbefore it (also by Ubisoft), don’t expect better treatment with this cash-in than the usual movie-/tv-to-game affairs.
- Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs has been pushed to 2013, meaning you’ll at least live through this year’s cheery holiday season before meeting your terrifying demise.
- Rare is reminding everyone that the developer still exists by posting openings for engineer and lead producer positions, as found by Kotaku. Cross those fingers for a proper Banjo Threeie.
- As the apex of our news this afternoon, know that that Steam Summer Sale is officially up and running through July 22nd. We won’t even feel bad if you don’t come back until after it’s over.
I’d write a nice little wrap-up, but I have a wallet to empty, straight into Steam.
PS: I’ll be MIA for the next week or so, so you might not see another edition of the Afternoon News until…July 22nd. Hopefully I’ll post a recap next weekend to bring me back on top, but until then, amass an amazing Steam collection for me.
