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Sure it has been a little while since Comic-Con and news has been dead but we’re here to kick game back up a little while we wait for the latest info from Valve. Unfortunately future play testing for us does look limited. I managed to get a hands on at E3 and at Comic-Con, but I don’t think we’re going to see a preview build in our Steam list this year as the game has so much attention already. We will have a review once it lands though.

Anyway, lets jump into some fun media. First up the Left 4 Dead 2 E3 trailer:

At E3 we hit the French Quarter with guns blazing, health packs equipped and fire axes ready to rumble. The game was fast paced with large swarms operating from multiple angles. The melee option was troublesome and slow with large groups making it hard for one to pull their own weight in a fight. One false move and a player was zombie bait hoping to escape to their friends before they got mowed down.

At Comic-Con things spiced up with the “I hate you so much for this” Mudmen, why do I hate them so much? The reason is simple, Mudmen attack with melee and eventually clog up the screen with a film making it incredibly hard to figure out what you’re doing and in the event of a swarm this means the player has to shove like crazy hoping that in the end their friends will have protected them and that they don’t get mauled in the process as the screen clears up. For some this may feel like a move out of an arcade shooter but really it works in the moment. The other big shift was that the melee in the game seemed to take a back seat, weapons were there but the swarm response seemed slower and staggered for those packing melee special items to allow players to have a chance while maintaining their rules about recharging energy. Lesser attack groups and a focus on accuracy to survive works for the game but really I could do without it, in a zombie outbreak I think it would be funner to let the silly person with the frying pan get eaten while the survivors escape loaded to the teeth with ammo and grenades.

Let’s hope we see some more news for Left 4 Dead 2, right now Crash Course is slated to arrive this September to hold Left 4 Dead players over until the sequel hits this November.

It is in the books, the PS3 went on a diet.

Starting tomorrow, you can get a slimmer PS3 without leaving your wallet anorexic. New price of $299.99 cuts the price by $100. Done away are the hdd options as the 120gig becomes the standard.

The only person not on the guest list, are PS2 games. The backwards compatibility sadly doesn’t survive the slim and sexy makeover.

For PC gamers beta testing is a way to evaluate the value of a game before it hits retail and it’s just a chance to try out cool things for free on the side. Namco has a unique pool of 50 spots open right now on their website for those interested.

Namco PC beta application

Rare is it we get to see dedicated rally racers taking to the digital realm, sure they sim their own stuff on the side but it’s always a treat to actually see it. Codemasters broke out some DiRT 2 footage of Ken Block having a ball on a machine I think many of us wish we could try one day.

MMO games… you do tease me so well, unfortunately for a game like Aion I’m a bit jaded after playing Guild Wars to death (which seems to be a backbone engine for the company now) and getting a lackluster performance from Tabula Rasa. Aion seems to be a new shift for the company but will the intense color and soft shimmer be enough?

We’ll find out when it arrives it seems as most of us were stuck in Champions Online for beta play the past months.

For those who have been following Aion and want to see some of the new shots check out our images here.

The Beatles are blowing up with more info for Rock Band fans this week, 19 new tracks on the upcoming themed game arrive with matching venues for the tracks.

* “Boys” / Cavern Club
* “A Hard Day’s Night” / Ed Sullivan Theater
* “I’m Looking Through You” / Shea Stadium
* “If I Needed Someone” / Shea Stadium
* “Ticket to Ride” / Shea Stadium
* “Drive My Car” / Budokan
* “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “Getting Better” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “Good Morning” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “Hello, Goodbye” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “Hey Bulldog” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “Dear Prudence” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “Helter Skelter” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “Something” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “Come Together” / Abbey Road Dreamscape
* “Don’t Let Me Down” / Rooftop Concert
* “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” / Rooftop Concert
* “I Me Mine” / Rooftop Concert

The game itself is stacking up to be a great experience, people can team up in game for up to 6 players including the three way vocal section of the game. Personally it would have been great to see a full band setup with Lead / Rhythm and Bass as well as drums since that’s how they did it as a band but I guess we’ll have to wait until Harmonix finds a way to make it work. Unfortunately Guitar Hero 5 will be featuring just that which is a bit disappointing.

The game is almost set to launch this September, hopefully we’ll be able to do some impressions on the game when it arrives.

Mass Effect 2 is coming along strong this year, today we get a new character reveal of the Grunt a blood hungry Krogan ready for battle. EA / Bioware drop the full word in this release

Once players have assembled their squad from amongst the galaxy’s most powerful mystics, geniuses, and convicts, they must lead them on a suicide mission to discover why humans are vanishing from the galaxy. The success of the mission hinges on the squad recruited and their loyalty to the mission. Shepard’s future depends on it.

“The Mass Effect trilogy is an epic saga with consequences that will carry through from chapter to chapter” said Dr. Ray Muzyka, GM and CEO BioWare, VP EA. “Building out a diverse and loyal party is one of the features that makes the Mass Effect series unique. “The characters Commander Shepard recruits are not only pivotal to the storyline but essential to the players overall success.”

The new character revealed in the Mass Effect 2 squad is ‘Grunt’. A violent and unpredictable Krogan fighter, Grunt has never faced true defeat. His unsurpassed physical strength makes him a strong asset to Commander Shepard’s team, if he can be tamed, and if he can be trusted.

Grunt is the second party member to be revealed in the Mass Effect 2 universe following ‘Thane’ a deadly assassin who was first introduced in June. More details about the rest of Shepard’s crew will be revealed in the coming months.