Video Games: PC, PSP, PS3, xBox, and Wii Gaming News

Battle.net has launched an electronic games distribution system to rival competitor Valve’s Steam platform. If you head over to Battle.net and sign up for an account, you’ll find a gorgeous online registry for storing your games and serial numbers:

If you click on one of your games, you are presented with the CD key and download options to download the game for Windows or the Mac:

Currently, the Battle.net game management platform supports World of Warcraft accounts and StarCraft, StarCraft Battle Chest, StarCraft Anthology, Warcraft III, Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, Warcraft Battle Chest, Diablo II, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction, and the Diablo II Battle Chest.

I don’t see a way to purchase games directly from Blizzard, but it’s obvious next step. Once you can buy Blizzard games online at the Blizzard Store and have them automatically populated into your Battle.net account for download, I’ll be happy. For now, Battle.net provides a nice backup system in case you lose or damage the game discs. No more mailing for replacements!

It’s been a while since we’ve posted on Dota (or anything for that matter), so it seems like an appropriate time to catch up.  Dota 6.58 ushered in some deep revisions to items and heros alike.  Dirge and Storm Spirit have been completely reworked, and key items like the basher, blade mail, and heart have also undergone substantial alterations.  Several new commands have been added, notably “-mines” so that techies can now count how many mines he has laid, and “-switch” so that games that are plagued by leavers can be balanced.

Although the “-switch” command is a useful tool (since there are so many leavers), it creates the wrong incentive.  People that are prone to leave a game have even less reason to stay because they know that others will compensate for their actions.

Dota 6.58b, like most “b” versions, suffices to correct a plethora of bugs in the latest version.  The changelog is as follows:

* Fixed a rare bug introduced last version with Nevermore’s ultimate
* Fixed a bug with Cranium Basher
* Fixed a suicide bug with Heartstopper
* Fixed a bug with Overload
* Various tooltip fixes
* Fixed some rare glitches that could cause some abilities to malfunction
* Fixed various -switch related bugs
* Switch now works if all but one player votes for it, instead of requiring 100%
* Fixed truesight on The Frozen Throne
* Decreased Undying’s model size a bit
* Fixed conflicts between Viper Strike and Venomous Gale
* Fixed Soul Rip targetting problems on Tombstone
* Fixed -mo/-ro in -gameinfo
* Fixed a bug when picking up invisibility rune while under the Phase effect from Phase Boots
* Fixed -mr failing to be recognized as a gamemode
* Fixed Rapier damage values when being carried by a non-owning player

It’s official! Our favorite (read: most hated) anti-gaming, anti-happiness attorney Jack Thompson has been disbarred in Florida. That means he can no longer practice his frivolous brand of lawsuits in the state, a big win for your right to play whatever video game you want.

John Bruce Thompson
Disbarred Not Eligible to practice in Florida
ID Number: - 231665
Address: 5721 Riviera Dr, Coral Gables, Florida 331462750, United States
Phone: 305.6664366
E-Mail: amendmentone@comcast.net
County: Miami-Dade
Circuit: 11
Admitted: 05/31/1977

You can read the official document on the Florida Bar’s website. You may also want to consult the Wikipedia entry for Jack Thompson (attorney), which highlights his failed career as a right-wing hack:

Thompson came to national prominence in the controversy over 2 Live Crew’s As Nasty As They Wanna Be album. On January 1, 1990, he wrote to Martinez and Reno asking them to investigate whether the album violated Florida obscenity laws. Although the state prosecutor declined to proceed with an investigation, Thompson pushed local officials in various parts of the state to block sales of the album, along with N.W.A’s Straight Outta Compton.

Goodbye Jack, we won’t miss your attacks on our rights to freedom.

Fable 2 just came out for the xBox 360, but there are already great sources of Cheats, Secrets, Exploits, and hacks out there. You just have to know where to look, and that’s something we do best!

Check out Gamespot’s Fable II Hints & Cheats guide, it includes:

• A list of unlockable achievments

There’s also IGN’s Fable II Game Profile, which is currently empty:

• A review of the game

If you know of any Fable 2 cheats, leave a comment or a link below and we’ll update this post to keep track of the latest ones!

A Christian video game maker, who makes Christian-themed clones of Dance Dance Revolution, plans to introduce Guitar Praise, a Guitar Hero clone, for the PC platform.

Grab the guitar and play along with top Christian bands! Shred those riffs or blast the bass…you add a unique sound to the solid Christian rock. But watch out: if you can’t keep up, the artists will take a break and stop the music. Crank it up and try again - you’ll soon be rockin’ with the best while praising the Lord!

I find the following BoingBoing comment relevant:

Christianity has always been useful as a social barometer to tell me when something I liked was no longer cool. It happened to etheral gothic pop (Evanescence), it happened to Dance, Dance, Revolution, (Dance Praise!) and Guitar Hero is next on the godly chopping block.