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Treyarch could have done the typicalCall of Dutycampaign and multiplayer combo withBlack Ops, and that would have been perfectly fine for the majority of players. Instead, they’re throwing in crazy extras likeDead Ops Arcade modeand nowZork. Yes, thatZork. Similar to the aforementioned bonus, this one is unlocked by going to the in-game terminal and typing in “Zork.” There’s even an “Eaten by a Grue” Achievement! Even if only a tiny fraction of the overall userbase ends up finding out about this and then proceeds to learn aboutZorkfor the first time, that’s pretty neat....

Boros Battalion Wizards has let it slip that Twitch Prime members will be getting yet another freebie: aMagic: Arenadeck. How was this plot uncovered? Well, yesterday a bunch of streamers (part of Wizard’s huge push for the game includes paid and unpaid partnerships) got early access to the War of the Spark build ofArena, and one of them (Merchant) noticed a banner stating “Twitch Prime users receive a deck in MTG Arena!...

The other side of the rainbow It’s been a while since any region outside of Japan received a new 3D Classics touch-up on the 3DS eShop. You may think that the only difference between the originals and their 3D remakes is the added stereoscopic effect, but the changes often go beyond that. For instance,Kid Icarusgot colorful new backgrounds as well as the choice between classic controls and much improved ones....

Tencent joins as well TheEntertainment Software Associationjust sent word that mega companies Activision Blizzard and Tencent have joined their group. They’re now 37 strong. I’m sure you’ll remember thatActivision bailed in a big way back in 2008, but now they’re back, giving strength to the association. Having the biggest on board is a big deal. “We are excited to join ESA,” said Chris Walther of Activision Blizzard. “ESA has a long track-record of supporting its members and the video game industry, and we look forward to sharing our unique perspective and experience with them....

Doom: The Dark Agesofficially became available to play on May 12 for anyone who purchased its Premium Edition, with its full standard and Xbox Game Pass releases following days later. To celebrate the occasion, id Software and Bethesda are hosting a Twitch Drop campaign, letting you receive a free Doom Slayer skin. How exactly do you obtain this skin? How do you link your accounts to claim it after watching some live streams?...

AT&T has changed some of the pricingfor their 3G data plans for the PlayStation Vita, set to release next month. They first announced a 250MB a month plan for $14.99 and a 2GB a month plan for $25. The top plan now has a larger limit, 3GB, and a larger price tag, $30. If you’re going to get a 3G model, at these prices it seems silly to get the 250MB plan....

A batch of new screenshots taken from theBack to Karkandexpansion forBattlefield 3has been sent out by Electronic Arts and DICE. The destruction on display today is from “Strike at Karkand,” one of the four resurfacingBattlefield 2maps. Can’t say I have as much of a personal attachment to this as, say,Wake Island, but the injection of visual stimulation into my eyeballs is appreciated nonetheless.

Now coming in January 2014 Bad news for those of you who wanted to playHearthstoneas soon as possible without an invite — Blizzard has delayed the open beta until January 2014. Blizzard notes in a blog post that they don’t want to rush the game, and want to be double sure that it’s ready for wide testing. If you opted into the beta before December 16th however, they’re apparently sending “everyone” invites, so check your spam folder if you haven’t gotten one yet....

Remote play makes it the definitive version CastleStormhas hit the Wii U, and if you haven’t picked it up yet, this is a great chance to do so. Some people have described it as “Angry Birdswith Vikings,” but that’s doing it a bit of a disservice. Yes it has a mechanic similar toCrush the Castlein that you’re throwing projectiles at structures, but the other half of the game is pure castle defense, similar toSwords and Soldiers....

What a fantastic night to have a sale Today’s Xbox Live sale is just like your old drinking buddy that got a girlfriend and can’t be bothered to make time for you anymore — totally whipped. ThreeCastlevaniatitles and a whole lot of downloadable content make upday fourof Microsoft’s offerings. On discount areCastlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate HDfor $7.49,Castlevania: Symphony of the Nightfor $3.39, andCastlevania: Harmony of Despairfor $5....

Knockout savings You don’t need a Core i7 processor to run the games in Green Man Gaming’s new Intel-inspired sale, but the promotion reminds you games run better with it (we guess?). Now through Sunday, September 4 several recently released AAA titles are receivingdiscounts up to 79 percent off. All games listed in the sale are at or near their all-time lows. Basically these are all summer sale PC gaming prices, though only on a handful of titles....

Ah, a new year, a newWWE legend being featured on the coverof the next installment of THQ’s wrestling games. All is well in the universe. Now, I don’t claim to know anything at all about wrestling, but I’m assuming this year’s announcement is a pretty big deal. I mean, they did make a flashy trailer and everything. Appearing onWWE ’13‘s “Austin 3:16 Edition” will be none other than Stone Cold Steve Austin....

Mind your wings, folks We’ve got a limited Switch edition ofClose to the Sunup for grabs in today’s contest! Alright, I’m a happy camper today. This contest combines three of my favorite things — spookery and atmospheric storytelling, cool limited releases of games, and of course, physical prizes. Any of the three would be a good one to me, but all three together of course means it’s just that much better....