BioWare Backs Down From Draconian Mass Effect Authentication

When Mass Effect comes to the computer it will not use SecuROM which require 10-day periodic re-authetication and instead will rely on a one-time online authentication, Bioware announced today.

The developer said the decision came after listening "very closely" to its fans and that the new system will also allow gamers to play the game without the DVD in the drive.

The system will allow gamers to authenticate their game on just three computers, but EA does have the ability to give additional authorizations if they are warranted.

Hit up the jump for the official FAQ and to let us know what you think about this change of heart.

Burnout Paradise Coming to PC

Burnout Paradise is coming to the PC, Electronic Arts announced today.

The game, the first ever in the franchise to come to the PC, is being "rebuilt specifically for the PC" and will include expanded multiplayer, enhanced online feature and new "community driven content."

Criterion will be holding a press conference on their website later today to talk more details about the upcoming game. Hit up the jump for the full release.

Criterion Games

Earlier this morning Electronic Arts officially announced the long-rumored Lord of the Rings meets Battlefield title, Lord of the Rings Conquest.

The game, under development by Pandemic Studios, will give gamers a chance to fight some of Tolkein's greatest battles as either the good guys or the bad when it hits this fall.

“We’ll freely admit that we’re rabid fans of The Lord of the Rings fantasy,” says Josh Resnick, co-founder and general manager at Pandemic Studios. “Our experience creating massive, rich, action-packed games means that The Lord of the Rings: Conquest will give fans exactly what they want: full control of the blade, bow and magic to fight its epic battles any way they want – even if they choose to play from the evil side.”

Hit the jump for the official press release.

The Sims Is Not A Casual Game, Buster

I don't think of it as casual. We were one of the first games that started to attract a broad audience. We were one of the first games that bought in women... To some degree The Sims is more of a toy than a game. People want to create characters, tell stories and explore relationships in a way that is maybe different from their real lives.

Wii Fit's a guaranteed hit. In no way will it not sell millions of copies. So competitors (or imitators, if you're not feeling so kind) are bound to spring up. First off the bat? EA, of course, with EA Sports' boss Peter Moore identifying a gap in the market Wii Fit may not be addressing: bored women.

We're watching very closely what the Wii Fit board does. We think we have to have a role to play with that mum - the kids have gone to school, she's got 45 minutes on her own, the Wii is there, it's the first console she's ever liked because she can do things herself. And we're working on stuff, trying to work out how we can use EA Sports applications there.

EA making Wii fitness game [Eurogamer]

Mike Tyson Returns In Fight Night Round 4

Fight Night is back! And so is Mike Tyson! The ear-chewing ex-convict who hasn't made a video game appearance since Codemasters largely reviled Mike Tyson Heavyweight Boxing will be featured in Fight Night Round 4, now in development at EA Canada. Said to sport a "re-written gameplay engine" and "all-new physics-based animation system that recreates the full spectrum of true-to-life punch impacts, giving boxers a devastating arsenal of punches, blocks and ring movement" Fight Night Round 4 is planned for a 2009 release on the Xbox 360 and PS3.

This is exciting stuff. I used to kick Iron Mike's ass pretty regularly—as Lil' Mac, of course—but was terrified when I ran into him last year at a party. I shall take my revenge on him next year for giving me such a fright. I may even go so far as to say that his heart/children will be eaten, should the game allow it. You hear that, Tyson?!

Analyst: Record GTA Sales Change Nothing For EA's "80/20" Take-Two Bid

Record-setting launch numbers for Grand Theft Auto IV had no significant impact on Take-Two's stock price this morning, lending credence to analyst views that the share price already included the expectation of extraordinary first-week sales of the title.

What does this mean for EA's ongoing bid for Take-Two? Cowen and Co. analyst Doug Creutz said this morning that even the GTA IV launch couldn't have elevated the share price from January's 17 dollars per share to its current 26-dollar range, and that right now the elevated price is due to investor eagerness for the sale.

"Take-Two's self-imposed moratorium [on negotiations] is over," said Creutz. "We haven't heard anything out of either company in the last week. They could be talking... I still think the odds that the deal happens that are very high... I don't think GTA changes that at all."

EA Announced E3 Plans

Not a whole lot of substance here, but Electronic Arts today confirmed their continuing support of E3 by announcing their official show press conference.

The publisher plans on taking over LA's Orpheum Theater on Monday at 3 p.m. For those of you keeping track, that's technically the day before the show starts.

Take-Two Confirms GTA's Half a Billion Week

Last night the New York Times let slip that Grand Theft Auto IV pulled in more than $500 million in its first week, selling an astounding 6 million copies globally, 3.6 million of them on the first day alone. This morning Take-Two confirmed the report, adding some well-deserved back-patting to the numbers.

To put it in perspective Halo 3, the previous record-holder, earned $300 million in the first week.

"We knew Grand Theft Auto IV would break new ground in terms of the player's experience, with its compelling story line, extraordinary gameplay and action that ranges over a broad urban canvas. Now, it has broken sales and rating records as well. Grand Theft Auto IV's first week performance represents the largest launch in the history of interactive entertainment, and we believe these retail sales levels surpass any movie or music launch to date. We congratulate the entire Rockstar team on creating a must-have experience that takes the legendary Grand Theft Auto franchise to a new level," said Strauss Zelnick, Chairman of Take-Two.

"Rockstar's goal is to make each new title in the Grand Theft Auto franchise even better than those that preceded it, and Grand Theft Auto IV is a smashing success on that score. Grand Theft Auto IV makes full use of the power of next generation technology, and offers players an experience unique in the interactive entertainment medium. This game sets a new standard in the industry, with critics hailing it as both an artistic and technological masterpiece," said Ben Feder, Take-Two's Chief Executive Officer.

The real question now is what this record breaking, Halo 3-smashing game will do to the EA/Take-Two talks.

Peter Moore Wants More "Shallow Pool" Wii Games

It's like how swimming pools have a deep end and a shallow end. EA Sports has really only built a swimming pool with a deep end. It's intimidating for a lot of people to jump right in the deep end. With All-Play, we're building a shallow end.

Spielberg Afraid of Over-The-Top Game Violence

...some games are so over-the-top violent and so extraordinarily interactive that I am even afraid of them. I am not going to name names... My kids will never go in and take an R-rated DVD and play it. But there is something very compelling and different about the artwork on the box of what might be an M game that could tempt my kids... There are games that are taboo. And I won't have them on the premises. I don't want my kids saying, 'How come Dad is playing that and we can't?'

Dead Space Devs Talk Story

EA Sports Kicks It Freestyle

Electronic Arts announced today the latest "sub-brand" of its EA Sports label, a division it calls EA Sports Freestyle. Freestyle is described as representing the "lighter side" of sports, with "no rules, just fun." Yes, I know what you're thinking, "I liked it the first time, when it was called EA Sports BIG." But this is slightly different!

Freestyle is pitched as a more casual, more inclusive, pick up and play brand, one that Peter Moore says is "an easier entry point into EA Sports." Brilliant! Look at Peter shakin' things up!

The first title to fall under the EA Sports Freestyle sub-brand will be Facebreaker, EA's take on Punch-Out!! and Ready 2 Rumble. Two more titles are planned as Freestyle releases in the next year. Press release proof is right after this.

Boom Blox is an odd creation. It's a casual game created with the help of a director known for the stories his movies tell. So what happens when Stephen Spielberg teams up with Electronic Arts to make a game for the Wii? Lots of explosions of course. The game has you throw, grab, shoot and explode "blox" in such a myriad of mind-bending puzzles that you might actually forget you're playing a "casual" game. Boom Blox includes ways to play with friends or on your own, through a story or just for fun.

But is it all of that enough to shake off the stink of Wii shovelware and live up to the expectations of a game created by the man behind E.T., Jaws and Raiders of the Lost Ark?

You'll have at least two more options for getting your hands on free tracks for Rock Band, as a pair of new promotions from Best Buy and Comedy Central promise to boost your song collection for "free." As Shacknews points out, Disturbed fans can get access to a pair of the band's downloadables by pre-ordering their latest opus via Best Buy, songs that the public won't get until June. It looks like this particular promotion is limited to Xbox 360 owners and fans of intolerable music.

Later this year, folks who buy the South Park season 11 DVD set will be treated to a trio of unspecified Rock Band tracks alongside top shelf poop and dick jokes. Details? Scant! All this cross selling makes us wonder: Could Rock Band be the greatest cross promotion tool ever to grace the video game medium?

Best Buy Promoting Exclusive Rock Band X360 DLC; Tracks Will Be Publicly Available in June [Shacknews]
South Park - Interesting Bonus Item, Early Box Art forThe Complete 11th Season: Uncensored [TV Shows On DVD]

Maybe you've noticed, maybe you haven't, but it seems Activision CEO Bobby Kotick has been taking quite a few little digs at its fellow giant Electronic Arts these days — perhaps coincidentally, the same digs many of you have been taking at EA in the comments of my recent stories on the company's bid to purchase Take-Two.

On his Level Up blog, Newsweek's N'Gai Croal decided to go right to EA's Jeff Brown and see what the company had to say in its own defense. The logo you see here is Level Up's own design for the EA Empire — think they should adopt it officially?

PlayStation 2 Rock Band owners have to be sick of playing the same songs over and over again by now, and with Wii owners eagerly awaiting the June 22nd release of the game, the question of delivering downloadable content to the online-handicapped systems is finally being addressed - offline.

MTV Games, Harmonix, and EA will be releasing the Rock Band Track Pack Volume 1 for the PS2 and the Wii on July 15th. $29.99 at your local game purveyor nets you an additional 20 songs for the game, chosen from the DLC already available on the PS3 and 360. It's an okay mix I suppose, with some of my favorites - NIN's "March of the Pigs", Faith No More's "We Care A Lot", and Weezer's "Buddy Holly", but I much prefer being able to pick and choose my songs rather than be handed a chunk all at once.

I am going to assume these packs are standalone, going by the size of the files and both systems lacking a hard disk. Still, more Rock Band fun is more Rock Band fun, right? Hit the jump for the full track listing, and see where you fall between delighted and disappointed.

The Sims & IKEA Are An Exercise In Tasteful Product Placement

Indulge your Sims with an office that is sure to promote order and productivity with its elegant Vika Hyttan desk, inspiring Kila desk lamp, bold Helmer drawer unit, and Lack zigzag wallshelf.