Also known as Borderlands 2 to some. I don’t know what Gearbox’s President has got against midgets, but his team certainly knows how to make a pretty looking game. The “toon-shaded” style introduced in the first game seems slightly more pronounced here and the greater, more colorful vistas just give it more opportunity to show off some of the most satisfying visuals in video games. Add in some improved AI path-finding, more crazy guns, and a villain by the name of “Handsome Jack,” and you’ve got the ingredients for an awesome looking game.

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With the debacle that Duke Nukem Forever turned out to be, I wouldn’t blame you for thinking that the developers at Gearbox have their heads up in the clouds. But thankfully, they’re fully grounded and listening to your pathetic cries for a good Aliens game. Obviously, it’s pretty impossible to judge a game based on one trailer, but this look at Aliens: Colonial Marines does have aliens in it. That’s half the battle in making a good game, right?

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Nobody likes a tease. We should fill this mook full of toon-shaded lead until he comes back with some gameplay! Now the only way I can tide myself over ’til 2012 is by dreaming of a fight between this new fellow and Brick and hoping that some industrious young animator out there decides to turn my dream into a Team Fortress 2 style short. You can do that for me, can’t you, industrious young animator?

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I'm putting all my points into the beard stat!

I’ve got some good news and some bad news folks. We’ll get the unsavory business out of the way first: the Xbox 360 version of CD Projekt Red’s acclaimed The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings has been delayed from Q4 2011 to Q1 2012. The reasons for the delay were cited as a need for extra polish and, more importantly, a legal dispute between CD Projekt Red and Namco Bandai over international distribution rights for the 360 version. Can somebody please just cast a charm spell and get this game in my hands as soon as possible?

But now the good news! 2K Games has officially announced Borderlands 2 for the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC and it’s due sometime in the company’s 2013 fiscal year (April 1st, 2012 – March 30th, 2013). According to 2K’s press release, the highly anticipated sequel “features all-new characters, skills, environments, enemies, weapons and equipment, which come together in an ambitiously crafted story. Players will reveal secrets, and escalate mysteries of the Borderlands universe as they adventure across the unexplored new areas of Pandora.” If I were a betting man, I’d say we’ll probably get to experience whatever Gearbox is dreaming up sometime in Holiday 2012. If you need something to tide you over, Gearbox will be showing the game off for the first time at this month’s Gamescom and PAX Prime following that.

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And it’s got a launch trailer to prove it…an appropriately crude launch trailer. I’ll give the Duke this: he’s probably the only video game character who could make Billy Squier’s “The Stroke” work in a trailer. And all polygonal titties aside, DNF seems to have all the ingredients that made the series fun in the first place.

And yeah. Just to reiterate, in case you’re reasonably skeptical about the reality of DNF coming out, 14 years after development initially began, it really has gone gold. Discs are printing and making their ways to stores for the June 14th release. Seriously.

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News Links (That’s right. They’re back.):

New Brothers In Arms Game to be Announced Soon

I Am Alive and BG&E2 not cancelled

Details on Rayman Origins

SoulCalibur V Announced

Video Games Eligible for NEA Grants

We might have talked about something else in this absurdly surreal podcast that I might have missed…

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"Gather 'round, children."

You know how these compilation posts are usually reserved for moderately interesting news that you could take or leave? Not the case this week. There’s really just an insane amount of substantial news flying around right now, and I’ve gathered it all in one place for you to enjoy. Now read!

New Brothers in Arms game to be announced “very soon” – Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford confirms that the title is in development as we speak. It’s like he’s been reading this site and seeing how badly I want a new Brothers in Arms game! No real details yet, but E3 happens to be “very soon,” so I’d count on a big reveal then. Modern setting perhaps? I don’t really care as long as they maintain the tactical squad-based gameplay.

Xbox World Magazine ME3 info (***********ULTRA Spoilerific***********) – There really is a boat load of info here, so if you don’t care about some minor spoilers you should go read this. If you want to keep your experience pristine, then just trust me when I say that Mass Effect 3 is going to be bigger, better, and more bad ass than ME 2, it’ll have smooth and dynamic combat where different enemies actually have different roles, and the scale of things is going to allow for a boss fight with a 60ft Reaper. Oh, and the squad will be smaller than ME 2‘s 12 mates in the name of deeper, more personal relationships.

Ubisoft: I Am Alive and BG&E2 safe – Ubisoft recently canceled some games after a tough financial quarter, so people started to worry about these two promising games that haven’t seen the light of day in some time. But have no fear! Ubisoft has confirmed for Eurogamer that I Am Alive and Beyond Good & Evil 2 are both “safe and still in development.” This, my friends, is good news.

Game Informer 218 details (Assassin’s Creed, Rayman Origins) – InsaneBear has already got you covered on the Assassin’s Creed story, but you may be interested in learning that Rayman Origins, a gorgeous looking Platformer from the mind of Michel Ancel, has evolved from a downloadable title to a full retail game due out this Holiday. Follow the link for more gameplay details. Ancel also confirms that Origins is the result of a little break the team took from developing Beyond Good & Evil 2.

SoulCalibur V coming to Xbox 360, PS3 in 2012 – Yup. Announcement trailer in the link.

Ghost Recon: Future Soldier mobilizing in early 2012 – The gameplay doesn’t resemble what the series is known for in any way, shape, or form, but if you’re interested in a streamlined, action-packed monument to the generic, then this article is for you.

Well, I certainly hope you’ve enjoyed all of this news as much as I have. It’s always good to be reminded that there are some games that actually strive to do new things and push the medium forward.

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Don’t shrink too much, Duke! We might not be able to find you on release day and everybody will think you’ve been delayed again.

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But the bad news is a little more bearable after watching the video, right? Right? God damn you, Duke Nukem Forever! And what’s up with the international release (June 10th) coming before the North American release (June 14th)? It’s un-American, and if I know one dude who represents America, it’s the Duke.

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Yeah, you read it right. May 3rd, 2011, the King returns. And you thought you’d only see pixelated boobies in GTA trailers for the rest of your life.

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