Sony is now offering the content previously detailed in its "Welcome Back" package in North America. Developing ...

Where does he get those wonderful toys? From any retailer that carries Power A controllers, this fall. The peripheral manufacturer has announced a Batman: Arkham City-themed "Batarang" controller for both Xbox 360 and PS3, which allows you to pretend you're playing games on the specialized Bat-style game console you know Batman keeps in the cave.

Both versions feature LED accents, that can light up in seven different colors. The PS3 version is wireless (with a receiver), with an internal rechargeable battery and motion sensors, and reversed analog stick placement. The Xbox version is wired, but comes with a 10-foot-long cable that may or may not allow the device to be used as a grappling hook.

We're still five days from E3 [nervous puke] but try telling Nathan Drake he needs to wait until the appropriate time to show-off Uncharted 3's co-op mode. Look at game's title, the silly goof doesn't even know where he's going, you think he can afford to be picky about when he gets there?

The reveal went down last night on GameTrailers TV where designer Richard Cambier said that the mode will dust-off some co-op partners for Drake that haven't made an appearance in the franchise in a while.

Also shown off in the footage is new, Dark Void-esque vertical gunplay which has corpses falling so close to our hero that you can practically hear them shout "Hey, I loved you guys in Mafia 2!" See for yourself right after the break.

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Namco Bandai has revealed exactly when it'll release Dark Souls, the next game to make you curse, cry, and glare at your cat like it's his fault you died. Yes, we know you do that.

From Software's Demon's Souls follow-up will officially hit North America on October 4, and Europe on October 7. Just in time for Halloween ... to pass you by as you chip away at the super-difficult RPG, completely alone except for your cat, to whom you'll have already apologized profusely. Before that happens, watch the new trailer (after the break) together!

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Microsoft announced sorta reiterated this morning that the company has sold over 55 million Xbox 360 consoles globally, along with 10 million Kinect sensors and more than 10 million standalone Kinect games worldwide. The Kinect stat was something the company shared in March and the console totals are slightly higher than previously reported figure of 50 million.

Microsoft's real reason for sending out a pre-E3 press release this morning was to show off the pictured graph. It reveals that the Xbox 360 is selling better with age, breaking the standard console cycle mold. The Xbox 360 has been the top selling console in the US for ten of the past 11 months and has seen a 29 percent year-over-year increase in 2011.

Microsoft's E3 press conference will be held this Monday, June 6, at 9AM Pacific. We'll be there with our liveblogging suits on to see if Microsoft can keep its green line pointed upwards.

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Nearly 20 years after acquiring legendary game developer Origin Systems, EA is dusting off that trademark with the launch of Origin, its not-really-new "direct-to-consumer gaming platform." You see, Origin is a rebranding of the unambitiously named EA Store and, like the EA Store, Origin's angle will be access to EA's own games. While the site is still under construction (it will be up at noon ET), EA says that more than 150 games are already available on the service. Origin will also host "exclusive limited edition copies" of EA titles like Battlefield 3, FIFA 12, Alice: Madness Returns, and Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. The biggest attraction for Origin, however, is likely to be Star Wars: The Old Republic, which is being offered in downloadable format exclusively on Origin.

In order to better compete with Steam, EA will be putting the Origin store into an application as well. Currently in beta, the Origin application will offer a familiar list of services, including the ability to "find and connect with friends, see what they are playing, and digitally download and play PC games." If this sounds like Origin is covering old ground, the good news is that it will be growing. "Today we're launching Origin.com and the Origin beta application. Over time, Origin will grow with new functionality and unique new content that consumers can't get anywhere else," EA CEO John Riccitiello said.

One major area that Origin differs from Steam is in the mobile space. The service will work on mobile devices, ostensibly integrated directly into EA's mobile games, including Scrabble and the upcoming mobile variant of Battlefield 3. If you've been wondering why EA's mobile games refuse to support Apple's own Game Center ... well, there you have it. Another mobile social gaming platform!

We expect to learn more at EA's press conference during E3 next week. Tune in at 12:30pm PT on Monday!

Paramount Digital Entertainment has announced a brand new Star Trek title starring Kirk and Spock as envisioned in J. J. Abrams' 2009 Star Trek film. Titled simply Star Trek, the game is under development at Digital Extremes (BioShock 2, Darkness 2) and takes place after the film, tasking Kirk and Spock with taking down "a legendary enemy race bent on conquering the galaxy." The story is being handled by God of War writer Marianne Krawczyk along with the film's writers Bob Orci and Alex Kurtzman.

The development team is "working closely" with Abrams' Bad Robot production company and producer Damon Lindelof, with Paramount promising co-op and "AAA production values, a wide variety of gameplay and all the action you would expect from the hit franchise." Star Trek is slated to materialize on PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2012. It will also be on display at E3 next week, and you can bet your space boots we'll be beaming down.

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We can understand your confusion, dear reader. "But, the Amy Grant platinum record Age to Age which featured the Michael Card-penned classic 'El Shaddai' was released to great acclaim in 1982! How can it be released on July 26 in North America and on Sept. 9 in Europe?" We love Contemporary Christian hits of the early 80s too, friend, but in this case the title refers to El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron, a video game with few narrative ties to the career of Mrs. Vince Gill.

Also this summer, look for Baby, Baby, a babysitting sim from Majesco and Nintendo's first application of the Vitality Sensor in Mario's Every Heartbeat.

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After months of secrecy, XCOM's release date has finally been declassified by publisher 2K Games. The first-person relaunch of the XCOM series will arrive on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC on March 6, 2012, according to 2K. The nearly nine month window between now and then does, of course, give plenty of extra time to delay it, should that be necessary. Not that we hope it gets delayed, but it does stand to reason that we won't see BioShock Infinite in the first quarter of 2012 if XCOM sticks to the release date, as 2K Games is unlikely to drop two major shooters so close to each other.

The game's E3 2011 trailer was also loosed, showing off a much more direct example of XCOM's first-person action gameplay. A press release accompanying today's release date news speaks to the game's setting as well, explaining that XCOM will put players into the shoes of Special Agent William Carter who, employing a crack team of veteran XCOM officers, will "strike surgically against the alien menace" in an effort to turn the tide of war against them. It's kind of like Halo, basically, except in 1950's America. And no Master Chief (as far as we know). And the aliens are way more inky, of course.

Okay, it's not that much like Halo. Fine.

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Last week, we got to spend some quality time with the first three acts of Shadows of the Damned. Rather than force you to sift through a mound of words, we've compiled our impressions into one convenient video. Check it out after the break. Keep in mind that, by the nature of the game itself, it's mildly not safe for work.

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Turning fighting games into movies is something that we actually appreciate quite a bit. These movies end up being so bad, they come all the way back around the spectrum to good. Films like Street Fighter, DOA: Dead or Alive and The King of Fighters will always have a special place in our hearts -- and now, with this latest trailer for the Blu-ray and DVD release (slated for July 19), it would seem Tekken: The Movie is on track to be on that list.

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X-Men Arcade is available now on iOS devices for $2.99. The 1992 beat-em-up classic supports drop-in multiplayer for up to four players, along with Openfeint (Leaderboard and Achievements), Game Center and Facebook Connect for publishing scores. The game appears to be the full experience, including the full campaign and all six playable X-Men (Cyclops, Colossus, Wolverine, Storm, Nightcrawler or Dazzler).

A word of warning: the game is designed for the 3rd generation iPod touch, the iPads, iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4. Although the requirement is mentioned in the press release, the App Store doesn't appear to note it. Reviews of the game in the store complain about it not working on the iPhone 3G or any 2nd generation devices.

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Square Enix has released this teaser trailer for the new Tomb Raider reboot on YouTube (after showing it on Spike earlier tonight), and boy is it purty. As promised by the game's reveal back in December of last year, the fully CGI trailer features a younger, (dare we say) more naive Lara Croft, given some slightly more savage and primitive tools by the end than we've ever seen before.

Sure, there's a Sully-esque old guy in there, but man, that setpiece at the end of the trailer more than makes up for any similarity to any other grave-exploring titles you may also be fond of. Stay tuned -- we'll have lots more information about this game for you as we head on into E3 next week.

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Along with the new denomination (basically, cash instead of "points") the 3DS eShop will use new prepaid cards. The designs for the Japanese cards have been revealed, and they're so cool, featuring Kirby, Famicom, Mario, and Zelda designs.

Only time will tell if the American cards will be available in awesome, Nintendo-themed variants. Actually, we can tell too. They won't. Just a guess. These are available now in Japan, and can be used for Wii or DSi Points, or 3DS eShop currency when that service launches.

Choplifter HD, which is more than a basic HD-ification of the classic '80s game, will also be available on Xbox Live Arcade -- the game was previously announced only for PSN and PC. Destructoid has a video showing off lots of gameplay, the zombie mode and a totally random appearance by Super Meat Boy.

The deeper look at the gameplay reveals that even after 20-something years some things in Choplifter just don't change. Like, squashing hostages, something that is sure to drive a whole new generation of the gaming population absolutely nuts! Also, when you aren't squashing hostages, it appears you'll still be waiting on them to get their butts in the choppa. Oh, how we long for a "move out of the landing zone and run to the chopper like your life depends on it" button.

While Sony is busy welcoming its customers back to PlayStation Network, some aren't celebrating just yet. Speaking to IndustryGamers, security expert Gregory Evans said that PSN still isn't safe because Sony is "relying on the wrong people to secure their system." Specifically, Evans believes that Sony (and most companies) use "IT managers" instead of true security experts or, to put it a different way, hackers.

IT managers, in Evans' estimation are "just book-smart people who went out and read a book and passed the test." He likened them to military infantry, trained only in basic skills, whereas hackers are more like highly skilled Navy SEALS.

Evans would seem to be something of an expert on the subject ... having been to federal prison for hacking major companies like AT&T, Sprint and Worldcom. Evans now runs a security company, helping companies build more secure networks. Sony isn't a special case, however, as Evans noted that any online-capable gaming console is potentially at risk and no network is completely secure. He added further that "these attacks will continue to happen." So, happy gaming, everyone!