But when you think about the progression – Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One – it just doesn’t feel right. It doesn’t flow. It doesn’t seem to follow or build upon its predecessors. PlayStation 4 by its very nature promises to be a better machine than the PlayStation 3. It simply wouldn’t exist otherwise. Calling the new machine the Xbox One seems more like a do-over or reboot. Generally, you reboot something only after what’s come before has grown stagnant and stale.

…are belong to us.

But who am I to say, other than some lowly internet journalist (and even calling me that is a stretch) – a video game fanatic who writes about them in my spare time. I spend my own money on games, I buy more games than I have any real need for, and I await each new console release with eager anticipation.

Oh yeah – I’m the core audience for the Xbox One. And that’s what I think about it…

As far as the machine itself?

At this point I’m a little underwhelmed. It’s a black box. I don’t have a Kinect, nor do I care about waving my hands at my TV or talking to it. I don’t want to use it for games either, so the fact that it’s “New and Improved!!!” does absolutely nothing for me. There’s also the fact that where Sony’s hardware kinda wowed everyone, Microsoft didn’t say much about theirs. They talked about ‘architecture’ that brings together three operating systems, and then talked about it making things simpler. Um, what? There doesn’t seem to be a real reason why the specs weren’t mentioned (the fact that it has BluRay and wifi don’t count as specs) other than the fact that they don’t hold up to the PS4. Sure, it’s got 8 cores and 8 GB of RAM, but REAL SPECS PLEASE!

The controller looks good, but I thought the 360 pad was near perfect to begin with so what little room for improvement there was certainly wouldn’t wow me all that much.

And yeah there’s games, and I know Microsoft was holding them back for E3, but they really should have shown something. Sure, some Forza 5 here and some EA Sports games there technically was something, so why didn’t it feel like it? And Remedy’s whatever-the-hell-that-was…I mean I’m at a loss for words. Real life actors, bad ones at that, juxtaposed with an in-game ship running into a bridge. Is it sad that I would have preferred in game characters? That they would have seemed less like cardboard?

I just. Don’t. Know.

And that right there sums up how I feel about the Xbox One. Microsoft, you have a lot of impressing to do. Better get started…

Well now I’m not just going to tell you to play the game, I’m going to show you exactly why you should…

As in, video time!

That’s one of my recent games, played in my A-class level 18 Berserker. I did decent, could have done better, but had a lot of fun playing the game. I think you would too, which is why I’m telling you about the game yet again.

You can sign up at the official Hawken website and download the client. Again, it’s free, and in this game you can really get anything and everything using only the in-game currency, which you earn at a fairly decent clip.

In a sense, it seems fitting that right now, as the NFL Draft is going on that we would get an announcement for another massive “non-sporting” sporting event. Say what you want about eSports but it seems to be a growing industry.

Valve being as awesome as they are and  with DotA 2 gaining popularity everyday. it makes sense to do the 3rd annual Valve hosted gaming tournament. The International 3 will have high expectation this year. Valve has been setting the bar higher with each of their tournaments. The main event at The International is going to be held from August 7th – 11th, 2013.

Valve produced a great documentary last year to relive The International 2012 tournament. Check out this video to watch behind the scenes of what goes on for the gamers partaking in the event and what its like to put on and host such a huge tournament.

You might not understand exactly what is happening here but you can definitely feel the vibe of the crowd in this milticam video of “The Play” from the International 2012. Amazing plays such as this aren’t guarenteed but as an avid sports fan, I love to see when big, game-changing plays are made when the stakes are high and the game is on the line.

Source:[International Announcement]

But what about the rest of you? There’s a reason the game has sat atop the charts for weeks – it’s because it’s amazing. It doesn’t even matter if you’ve played the other games in the series. Infinite stands just fine on it’s own, and you’ll probably have the urge to play the originals after you’re done.

Sure it’s not perfect – some flaws relegate it to being just really, really good, instead of the greatest of all time. I can live with that. And besides – that’s what Bioshock More Infinite is for…

Here’s a pic that accompanied the email Razer sent out:

“Unlock the communication abilities of your Razer Naga and Phone in the Own with the new Synapse 2.0 Naga Phone Update. Through a simple firmware update, you can now unlock the ability to transform your Naga into a communications device. Utilize VOIP functionality and even tie into your existing phone # to keep your friends and family as close as your enemies.

With the Naga Phone, communication is always in the palm of your hand. You won’t have to dig through your pocket mid-game to answer that important call. And after taking out a couple of n00bs, you can even order take-out.”

Head over to their site for more hilarious info abut the firmware update that turns any Razer mouse into a phone!

Transistor features the same action-RPG elements that worked so well in Bastion, but also has a new strategy angle to it that seems pretty cool. You can see it for yourself in the video below.

The game doesn’t have a release date yet other than “early 2014″ but when we’re talking about these guys we’ll take pretty much whatever we can get. Oh, and Logan Cunningham returns to narrate the game, so in case you actually needed something to really get you excited, well there you go.

Bastion came out of nowhere to really win people over, which means this time Supergiant Games doesn’t have the element of surprise on their side. We know them, we like them, and this time we’re expecting big things from them. Supergiant things even.

We’ll keep you up to date with any new info that we can find, but in the mean time enjoy the various artworks for the game, and head over to the Supergiant Games website for even more info.

John Riccitiello, CEO of EA, will become the former CEO of EA effective the end of this month.

Riccitiello was originally hired by the company in 1997 before taking over as CEO in 2007. JR (as he’ll be known henceforth since his name is a pain in the you know what to type) is the man responsible for splitting EA into the four separate divisions we have today – EA Games, EA Sports, EA Casual, and The Sims. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, I just hate how EA Casual’s microtransactions have spread like a virus to the other divisions. JR will be replaced on an interim basis by former CEO Larry Probst, the man who hired JR way back in 1997.

Now before you go and applaud this, JR saw the company release such original titles as Dead Space and Mirror’s Edge. He tried to make the company respectable as far as overtime pay and somewhat reasonable workloads. Sure he was there when Origin was unleashed upon us, but if that’s the worst thing he did then I’d call his time with EA a success.

So the numbers don’t back it up. It’s like that for a lot of companies right now. What happens next year when the new consoles are out and Madden Whatever They’ll Call It sells a bajillion copies? What happens when Battlefield 4 finally overtakes CoD as the most popular console FPS? Technically it’ll happen after he’s gone, but it’ll have his fingerprints all over it. I’m not saying I love EA mind you, but at the very least I appreciate what John tried to do while he was there. Here’s hoping the next CEO will carry on in his footsteps.

Full Press Release:

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)— Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) today announced that John Riccitiello will step down as Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Board of Directors, effective March 30. The Board has appointed Larry Probst as Executive Chairman to ensure a smooth transition and to lead EA’s executive team while the Board conducts a search for a permanent CEO. The Board will consider internal and external candidates with the assistance of a leading executive search firm.

Mr. Probst has played a leadership role at EA since 1991. In addition to serving as Chairman of the Board since 1994, he previously served as the Company’s CEO from 1991 to 2007. As CEO, Probst successfully grew the Company’s annual revenues from $175 million to approximately $3 billion, led EA into new platforms such as mobile, online and other emerging markets and expanded its international presence to more than 75 countries.

“We thank John for his contributions to EA since he was appointed CEO in 2007, especially the passion, dedication and energy he brought to the Company every single day,” said Mr. Probst. “John has worked hard to lead the Company through challenging transitions in our industry, and was instrumental in driving our very significant growth in digital revenues. We appreciate John’s leadership and the many important strategic initiatives he has driven for the Company. We have mutually agreed that this is the right time for a leadership transition.”

On behalf of the Board, Lead Director Richard A. Simonson stated, “As we begin the CEO search, we are fortunate that Larry, who has a proven track record with our employees, partners and customers, has agreed to assume a day-to-day leadership role as Executive Chairman. He has 16 years of experience as CEO of EA and a deep understanding of the Company’s strategy, management team, business potential and industry trends.”

Mr. Riccitiello stated, “EA is an outstanding company with creative and talented employees, and it has been an honor to serve as the Company’s CEO. I am proud of what we have accomplished together, and after six years I feel it is the right time for me pass the baton and let new leadership take the Company into its next phase of innovation and growth. I remain very optimistic about EA’s future – there is a world class team driving the Company’s transition to the next generation of game consoles.”

Titled The Knife of Dunwall, the game’s newest content will see you take on the role of Daud, the assassin who kills the Empress in the opening moments of the game. Oh come on! It’s not a spoiler if it happens in the first few minutes and pretty much the entire game is based around it!

Daud will play similarly to Corvo, sneaky assassin that he is. Of course you’ll be introduced to some new locations and powers along the way – it wouldn’t be worthwhile DLC otherwise.

The Knife of Dunwall is out on April 16 for $10 on your system of choice.

This is something new I’m going to try out. This is going to be my rant on why you don’t own this game. Yeah, you.

If you already own the game that I’m about to talk about, you are beyond awesome and you should be out doing awesome things that people like us do. If you are the person who can watch LOST and understand every minute of it or if you can chug Diet Coke with Mentos, then you are probably the person who has already bought Trials Evolution: Gold Edition on Steam.

I’m not here to give a review about the game, I just need to know why you don’t own it. Trials Evolution is just that type of game that will infuriate you and make you fall deeper in love with it every time you press that ‘start game’ button.

Anyways, that was nearly beginning to get ‘review-y-ish’… So I heard you like features in games that you buy. How do these features sound to you?

• Global Leader Boards
• Local and Online 4-Player Multiplayer
• Robust and Powerful Track Editor
• Indoor and Outdoor environments
• Bike and Rider customizations
• More than 120 Tracks in all!

What’s that you’re saying now? It looks, kinda appealing?! Umm… Let me further explain.

It is 2 (TWO) games in one. Does that sound any better? Its Trials Evolution, but guess what? Just like Billy Mays would say, there’s more. Because, in addition, all of the single player tracks and skill games from Trials HD will be found in Trials Evolution. Boom.

Sold yet? No? Wow, what does it take to sell you an awesome game? It has tons of features and it is practically two games in one. You’re a tough cookie to crack.

Here, check this out. Since you’re a PC gamer and you love how awesome your life is being an awesome gamer, you’ll be pumped up to know that Trials Evolution: Gold Edition will be optimized and enhanced for the PC gaming platform. All of the features of its forerunners – from the in-game editor, player sharing of tracks, and global Leader Boards, will be re-integrated into the game in a way that fits the new platform. Did I ever mention that you can upload your awesome ‘runs’ to YouTube with a click of a button?

Now that I know you’re going to buy it, check out the details and the fun video:

Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: RedLynx
Platform: PC
Release Date: March 21st, 2013

This isn’t a review. Or even one of my famous first impressions.

No. This is just me taking a moment to point out that the new Tomb Raider is pretty awesome.

You should play it, and on PC if at all possible, where it looks downright gorgeous. If you’re a fan of the original games, then you’ll probably find a lot to like here. It’s a bit more action-y, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Decent story, decent acting. But most important is that it’s just a ton of fun to play.

Of course the full review will be forthcoming, but I can tell you right now that there’s no point waiting for it. Just buy the game and have fun. Even BurlyBro is having a ball, and we haven’t heard from him in what, a year?

Go. Play. Have fun.

Props if you can tell me where that’s from.