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The Metal Gear series is 25 while its creator, Hideo Kojima, is now 50. Spending half of your life devoted to a single series takes commitment, and indeed Kojima has frequently expressed a desire over the past decade to part with the franchise that made his name. And yet, he keeps coming back. Again and again. After a while, you have to ask why.

You can't always rely on a hostile tractor beam to guide you in, as they say - you're going to have to learn how to dock yourself one day.

Amazon's new gaming and media controller has been revealed online in a new set of photos.

Microsoft has quietly killed off its offer of a cheaper Xbox 360 console when bought with a two-year Xbox Live subscription.

Predominantly retro download-game shop GOG is having a big old sale in celebration of St Patrick's Day and also just because.

Last week, Electronic Arts contacted us asking whether we'd be interested in talking with Respawn lead engineer Richard Baker to discuss the more technical elements of its new gaming behemoth, Titanfall. It's sort of opportunity we can't ignore for obvious reasons, but as well as tackling the key technological issues, this was a chance to find out what went on behind the scenes in one of the year's most high-profile gaming events - the release of the Titanfall beta. Our vision of a networked hub flooding with incoming data turned out to be just one element of the developer's surveillance - Respawn was literally watching people playing its beta with an unexpected use of a recent revolution in gaming.

This is what Syndicate Wars spiritual successor Satellite Reign looks like in action.

Sometimes this job can be just hell. Take poor Ian Higton's task today - he's going to be playing Titanfall from 12pm and through until 8pm. He'll be playing across all platforms - the Xbox 360 one aside, natch, as that's still being kept under lock and key.

PlayStation 4 was way ahead in the US at the start of the year, but the gap seems to have closed.

Peggle and Plants vs. Zombies developer PopCap Games has let go an unspecified number of staff.

Sony is currently testing the option to rent certain games from the US PlayStation Store.

The Last of Us' creative director Neil Druckmann has confirmed that his treatment for the recently announced The Last of Us movie will in fact follow the game's storyline.

Generally speaking, I don't get excited for games that end in numbers. Sequels, prequels and spin-offs can be good - great even (hi, Uncharted 2!) - but the sense of awe is often dulled the second time around. Dark Souls is the exception. I recall playing through the first one and thinking, "This might be my new favourite game of all time. I could play these forever." Two years later my sentiment hasn't changed.

After what feels like a lifetime spent wandering the strange depths of Lordran, it's hard to believe that Dark Souls 2 is only a matter of weeks away from launch. From Software's sequel is a prospect as terrifying as it is exciting: how can you possibly go about topping one of the greatest games of all time? No matter what happens, opinions and passion for the original are so strong that there's likely to be delight and disappointment in equal measure.

I couldn't kill the shopkeeper. I tried everything, from quick knives to slow broadswords, from dull clubs to a bright, ethereal shower of lightning bolts fired from a splayed palm but, regardless of the weapon of choice, she merely laughed her witchy laugh and asked me once again if there was anything in particular I was after. It's this sort of observation that marks video game players out to non-video game players as closet psychopaths and weirdoes. But you can tell an awful lot about a video game from the characters you are forbidden to kill.

UPDATE: A new nine minuted gameplay video has emerged showing off Peter Serafinowicz's role as Mild-mannered Pate.

On the steps outside an east London church there's a smiling PR checking names off a list. Next to her, in the early twilight shadow of a late January evening, is a hired hand dressed head to toe in clunking steel armour. He guides us down the steps and through the courtyard, flaming torch held out ahead of us, as we all exchange an awkward smile with the PR on our way into the catacombs. Inside, Peter Serafinowicz - the gravelled voice of Darth Maul, and Spaced's Duane Benzie - tells us how he's played the original Dark Souls for some 1800 hours, how excited he is to be playing the part of mild-mannered Pate in its sequel, and how proud he is to be providing the grunts and groans of the suffering player in From Software's game.

Out with the old and in with the new, Dark Souls 2 offers up the biggest technical overhaul to the series so far. With a new directorial team at the helm and a purpose-built engine bringing the eerie world of Drangleic to life, developer From Software uses the opportunity to trial new rendering techniques on PS3 and 360 in advance of their appearance on next-gen platforms. But while we're left with a string of upgrades in physics, lighting and effects, there are also some cutbacks we hadn't expected to see.

"This is the third time I've been able to beat him," says the Namco rep after defeating a boss at the tail end of a 15-minute E3 demonstration of the forthcoming action-RPG epic Dark Souls 2.

"Joel took his last breath at 1.52am."

The new San Francisco-based outfit Campo Santo's staff reads like an A-team of indie talent with a couple of The Walking Dead: Season One leads, Sean Vanaman and Jake Rodkin, joining Mark of the Ninja head honcho Nels Anderson, Gone Home and Gravity Bone composer Chris Remo, and astounding artist Olly Moss. Now, Campo Santo has finally revealed its first game, Firewatch, a single-player only "first-person exploration mystery."

Sega has launched a new charity fundraising Humble Bundle that lets you pay what you want to receive Steam keys for Alpha Protocol, Company of Heroes, Rome: Total War and Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit.

UPDATE 13/03/2014: We've heard back from Bossa about Surgeon Simulator's multiplayer. According to the developer, this new mode has two players compete with each other to complete a surgery the fastest.

Encouraging news for struggling real-time strategy studio Petroglyph today, as its PC game Grey Goo is announced, due this autumn.

Creative Assembly has released an Alien: Isolation video showing clips of gameplay that capture the tense, threatening atmosphere of the new survival-horror game.

In light of Nintendo's recent travails, concern about its reliance on treasured brands is understandable. In these circumstances, it's worth thinking of the company not as a creator of games, but as a maker of premium toys. Viewed this way, the aim of its output is clear: its focus is not on past buyers, but on a new generation of players who won't mind that they're getting something similar to what their parents or older siblings played with.

Ever since its announcement three years ago, fans have been clamouring for Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney to get a western release. While developer Level-5 is still remaining cagey about it - despite its Japanese release last November - it's strongly suggested this enchanting crossover could make its way to European shores.

Epic Games and Firefox maker Mozilla have showcased Unreal Engine 4 running straight out of a browser.

Respawn has said it is working to "root out" Titanfall cheaters just days after the game's North American release.

BAFTA game nominees and winners are discounted on Steam at the moment.