Don't let my indifference deflate you, instead take pictures of whatever launch event you attend and post them here in comments.

And if you're really indifferent, you can always view this Modern Warfare 2 free version of Kotaku.

[Pic]

The beta testing is over, the Earth has been destroyed, and the monkeys are a great deal more intelligent now in Fallen Earth, the post-apocalyptic MMO that combines shooter style with RPG progression to create a persistent world title not quite like any other. The game is now available to purchase and play through Steam and other places like it, with a retail version recently added to the mix.

"The thoughtful development and diligence of our team is realized in a physical product, and that's exciting," said Jessica Orr, product manager for Fallen Earth. "We are pleased to add another avenue of purchase for our fans in conjunction with our existing digital sales."

Fallen Earth will be hitting store shelves on September 30th, or you can buy it right now at FallenEarth.com.

"There are more people waiting in cues to start the game than there are in the game itself," writes one tipster. "and this is just the people with pre-orders. This will be a nightmare when the game actually launches."

In that screen above, you see one poor guy is facing down a 7 hour, 30 minute wait at position 2994 out of 3188 in the queue. Others have sent in screenshots showing much shorter wait times. But wait times nonetheless. It seems fair to say NCsoft wasn't prepared for its Head Start campaign to get this much buy-in. I'm sure many are hoping that day one of the full release will open up some sort of extra server capacity, but unfortunately, I have no information. I'll update if I hear anything. Aion players, please do share your experiences in the comments.

Update: This is from Fahey, I'll quote him directly: "Might be worth noting that even with 10 instances of each starting area mobs are camped all over the place, and there's some horrible quest bottlenecking as dozens of players wait for quest objects to spawn."

It certainly says something about nProtect GameGuard when a major MMO developer out of Korea decides that removing it is the best course of action. Commonly used in Asian MMO titles as an anti-cheating device, GameGuard seems to cause more problems than it solves, crashing programs, not playing nice with Windows 7, and just generally behaving like a root kit, which no one enjoys. Odds are if you've had trouble running Aion, this little bastard is the cause. NCsoft recognizes this.

After analyzing our open beta test results Aion will not feature GameGuard at launch. We will however continue to pursue ways to effectively utilize GameGuard within Aion in the future. Right now we're focused on providing players with the best possible Aion experience.

Now the skeptic in me reads that as "right now we're focused on providing players with the best possible Aion experience, and we'll screw that up with GameGuard later," but hopefully NCsoft will step into the light eventually and just drop it altogether.

Aion Launch Version! [Official Website - Thanks Carlos!]

For an Eastern import, Aion has been making quite a lot of noise among MMO circles, taking the beauty of a Korean game and marrying it with a design meant to appeal to Western gamers. Judging from the preorder numbers NCsoft is definitely doing something right, though calling it the "biggest MMO launch of the year" isn't really saying much, considering the only real competition it has had is Champions Online, a superhero MMO from the same company that created the other superhero MMO currently on the market for NCsoft.

Each of the nearly 400,000 preorder customers gain access to server pre-selection tomorrow, as well as an early jump start that kicks off on Sunday, two days in advance of the official release. I have several different groups of friends who plan on playing, so I currently have no earthly clue which server or side I'll wind up on.

I've had issues with the controls in the past, and the multiplayer demo wasn't exactly thrilling, but put together a swinging montage set to some powerful music and I'm suddenly all excited that the game is coming out next week. The piano rendition of the stage one music from the original game at the end completely sealed the deal for me. Classy!

The trailer covers just about everything you need to know about the game. Choose good or evil, play through massive battles for the fate of Middle-Earth the way you wish to play, etc. It's actually not that much different from the trailer that ran back in October, only this time around there are helpful words to help you digest all of the epic they're throwing at you on the screen.

Still not sure if I should get this or not. Considering I would play the game online with you folks, I suppose the question I should ask is are you guys planning on picking it up, or would I be stuck with a bunch of snooty, non-Kotaku readers?

There were plenty of people to laugh at - some 500 people came and went from the site of the party between 8 pm and 11 pm. Strangely, less than 10 were in costume.

Party festivities included face painting, ice sculptures spouting chilled Rockstar, raffles and... the big one... a dance competition where contestants had to freestyle one of the six race dances based on routines from movies like Saturday Night Fever and Napoleon Dynamite.

Things started to get ugly around 10:30 when the dance competition sparked a noise complaint from a local resident. San Francisco police were slow to respond as they considered the event to be pretty well-behaved and had two officer stationed outside the store for the entire evening.

"I've never even heard of [World of Warcraft] until today," said one officer. "I had to ask some guys down at the station about it - they're into that stuff."

"That stuff" has already sold a ridiculous amount of copies in only a short amount of time. This may be due in part to 7-Eleven.

Hit the jump for more pics.

Servers are up, evil is rampant...it's a good day to be a bad person!

The Smashing Pumpkins either celebrated the launch or sullenly grumped their way through it, depending on who you believe.

Meanwhile, across America (well, in 3 cities) celebrity gamers descended on Gamestop stores to.. be celebrities. They performed well.

In New York, Blake Lively from TV's Gossip Girl turned up to buy a copy – apparently of her own volition. In L.A. crowds stood in awe as Zach Levi and Josh Gomez from off of Chuck joined 'others' and in Dallas, Texas several members of the Dallas Mavericks were accompanied by the Dallas Mavericks Dancers and the official team mascot, "Mavs Man."

Wait.. this just in. Yes, I can confirm it was a plethora.

WICKED INTERACTIVE'S ACE ONLINE OFFICIALLY LAUNCHES TODAY

The Free to Play Flight-Action MMORPG now features an Item Mall with membership bundles, character and equipment upgrades, power-ups, accessories and more—"Newbie" Item Packages Available for Free to New Players Until Oct. 3

Toronto, CANADA-September 26, 2008-Wicked Interactive (www.wickedinteractiveltd.com), a North American MMO publisher, today announced the official launch of ACE Online on the Suba Games platform. Starting today, all gamers can join the fast-growing ACE Online community by going to www.subagames.com and registering for a Suba Games account. To coincide with ACE Online's full release, Wicked Interactive is launching an in-game Item Mall, as well as offering exclusive launch promotions and bonuses to new players.

ACE Online's item mall will offer a wide variety of cool and helpful items for avid ACE pilots. These include fully-featured "membership bundles", which extend a character's abilities and options considerably for up to three months at a time! The item mall will also offer stat-increasing character and equipment modifications, basic items and power-ups, and accessories which allow players to customize their gear's appearance to their own personal tastes.

In honor of ACE Online's launch, and the grand opening of the in-game item mall, Suba Games is offering new players a special "Newbie Bundle". This bundle includes an assortment of five valuable in-game items with real cash value, including a "Power Leveling Set", which temporarily increases the amount of experience gained, items dropped, and money earned, by 30%. This bundle will be extremely helpful to new players in getting their "gear" off the ground. This is an exclusive promotion in commemoration of ACE Online's full release and will only be available until Friday October 3rd, 2008, so sign up now!

"The official launch of ACE Online is a milestone achievement for the Wicked Interactive team. It marks the first official release on the SUBA Games platform," said Stanley Yu, CEO of Wicked Interactive Ltd.
"With our new player package we are making it easy for new players to dive right into the game's burgeoning online community."

ACE Online is a 3D space shooter that combines action and MMORPG elements. Developed by MasangSoft, one of Korea's most renowned gaming enterprises, the game puts players in the role of fighter pilots and behind the controls of ships known as "Gears". As players traverse this intergalactic world at war, they will complete missions and engage other players in intense aerial dogfights.

ACE Online injects action and shooting elements into the traditional MMORPG formula. Players have complete control over their gear and must engage enemies directly in combat - relying on quick shooting and skillful maneuvering in order to survive. As players progress through the game, they acquire credits which can be used in the game's item shop to purchase hundreds of customizable weapons and add-ons for their "gear". Players can then fly their "gear" into immense online space battles as part of ACE Online's "Nation Wars" PvP system. These RPG elements add a layer of personal customization and multiplayer strategy to ACE Online's already action-packed gameplay. Through the blend of these two gameplay genres, ACE Online offers a fully unique and unrivaled MMO experience.

Key Features of ACE Online:

Free to download and free to play, no monthly subscription fee
Inventive mix of MMORPG strategy and social elements with action-packed aerial combat
Four unique "Gears" to choose from, each with its own unique strengths and weaknesses
Deep leveling and gear customization systems - literally hundreds of customizable weapons
and add-ons

Nations Wars PvP Combat - engage other players and nations in massive air battles
Voice Chat - communicate with squad-mates in-game

For more information about Wicked Interactive, ACE Online or SUBA Games, please visit www.wickedinteractiveltd.com or www.subagames.com.

The game is extremely family-friendly, right down to the pre-defined character name generator. Sure, my magical alter ego Fuckwad the Fantabulous can never know true life now, but if it means I'll never run across a Gandolff, Raestlyn, or Dughenning it's a small price to pay. Hit the jump for details on how to enroll.

KingsIsle Entertainment Launches Wizard101
Virtual Wizard School Now In Session

Plano, Texas — Sept 02, 2008 — Tweens are grabbing their best spell-casting gear and rushing off to school... wizard school, that is. Online entertainment company KingsIsle Entertainment, Inc. has officially opened the doors of its highly anticipated Wizard101 (www.wizard101.com) virtual world, a magical 3D environment where aspiring wizards gather to adventure with friends and save their world from creatures like a pumpkin-headed Harvest Lord and a zombie named Wormguts.

Michael Lafferty of GameZone commented, "The game is thoroughly delightful, exuding a youthful sense of fun and excitement... KingsIsle is on track to have a certified hit title."

Joe Blancato of GiantRealm said, "A kid-targeted [Massively Multiplayer Online Game] that's charming the beard off anyone who plays it, regardless of age."
Designed for pre-teens and attracting a wider audience of families and traditional gamers, Wizard101 features magical adventure and card style gameplay. Players enroll in the Ravenwood School of Magical Arts and begin a course of spell study. Immediately upon arrival at wizard school they are tapped by the Headmaster to help save the school from a renegade teacher who has disappeared but who seems to be behind some mysterious happenings.

Wizard101 features include:

* Extensive magical 3D worlds, each with its own creative theme such as a feudal countryside run by Samoorai cows, or an ancient Egyptian-inspired land where the treasured relics are being carted off by dogs from another world.
* More than 101 collectible spells that come to cinematic life as players learn to summon creatures such as Ninja Pigs and a Leprechaun that slides in on a rainbow and showers opponents with gold.
* Seven different schools of Magic, each with its own unique style and gameplay experience.
* The ability to adopt magical pets, like a flying dragon or a mischievous imp.
* A wide variety of outfits and accessories for customizable Wizard avatars.
* Puzzles and mini-games that challenge players and provide a place to rest and rejuvenate after duels.

Wizard101's collaborative play style supports an environment where players benefit from working together in adventure quests and lower level characters can play alongside higher level ones. A three-tiered chat system and pre-defined character name generator create a safe community for younger players. The game contains no blood, and characters don't die if they are defeated in a duel of spells-they simply go to a safe area on campus to regain health. An Arena provides a spot for more traditional gamers to show off their player versus player spell-casting skills. Wizard101 is free-to-play, with advanced play content available by subscription at the rate of $9.95 per month. Discounts are available for six-month and one-year subscriptions. For a limited time a 12 month subscription can be purchased for $60. Gift subscriptions are expected to be available online soon. To play, PC users may simply go to www.wizard101.com and download the game installer. A rating by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board is pending.

You can head over to the official website to download the game for free and check out the tons of new content Nexon has added in honor of today's official launch, including new weapons, a new map, and the addition of a new game mode, Capture the Flag. Wait, they've only just added Capture the Flag? This should be entertaining.

UPDATE: Nexon contacted us to clarify that while items will be eventually be available for purchase for Nexon cash, upgraded weapons never will. Hit the jump for the full "Free to Play Pledge".

The Free to Play Pledge

Combat Arms is Nexon’s free-to-play person shooter. Some games and companies do Free-to-Play games differently, so we’ll explain exactly what our mind-set is for this game.

First, Combat Arms will never cost a penny to play. Period.

Second, we believe that in any first-person shooter, being able to use real money to buy an uber gun sucks. It makes the game dependant on money and not skill (thus defeating the purpose of Free-to-Play), and skill is what a first-person shooter is all about. No point in competing if some new guy has a mystical weapon with magic bullets that always seem to find your head.

So, no weapons will be bought with Nexon Cash. Ever.

If you’re looking for the Golden Gun that will help you pwn everything with one shot, look elsewhere, because it’s not here. Skills are not bought, they are earned.

You want that new, awesome weapon? Keep playing, and you’ll eventually get it. All players will be on an equal footing weapon-wise (grenades included). We make money by selling the cosmetic items—stuff like shades, different uniforms, helmets, etc. Nothing game balance related is sold in the Cash Shop, and it’s going to stay that way.

You won’t have to pay a subscription fee either. Every single one of Nexon’s games are Free-to-Play, and subscription free. You need a free Nexon Passport to play, and that’s it. If you have one already, just download the client and start shooting people in the face. In addition, don’t expect to be bombarded with endless ads—we don’t expect you to pay not to see them. We want gun clicks, not mouse clicks.

That’s our promise to the player base, and we’re going to keep it.

See you on the battlefield!

Thanks to Nexon for clearing that up!

Combat Arms [Official Website]

This particular store sold all of its MGS PS3 bundles at 10pm to people who were waiting in line although the GameStop employee I spoke with refused to divulge how many systems they received. I asked him if they had received lots of pre-orders and he informed me once again that he was not allowed to talk about it. Given that the line was quite long and everyone there had to have a pre-order, I would guess that their list was rather extensive. A nearby Best Buy that was also doing a midnight launch sold out of their twenty five PS3 bundles within a a few minutes after announcing them around 11:30pm. Apparently their employees have no such non-disclosure rule when it comes to numbers.

There were three local outlets doing midnight launches, but one store was conspicuously dark. The Sony store in the Metreon Center didn't hold a midnight launch. This is due to the fact that it's in a mall and the cost of keeping it open past hours would make it not quite worth the while. So if you live in the SF area and are keen to get your hands on a bundle, all your hopes lie on the Sony Store's door. A door that will open at 10am PST Thursday morning. Good Luck!

Can't wait for September 7? Creature-only Spore to launch sooner [Joystiq]

Ben 10: Protector of the Earth Website

If you couldn't tell, Halo Fever is in full force right now. The game may not be perfect (sorry Eurogamer) but it certainly has its selling points and I think Microsoft's boast that they want to dethrone Spider-Man 3's mammoth opening weekend with a mammoth Halo 3 launch day aren't that outlandish.

We've sent our very own Fahey over to New York City to check in on the Halo-mania going on later on tonight. Remember at the stroke of midnight you can pick up a copy of the last in the Halo trilogy... unless you picked it up at one of the many places that seemed to have sold the game early. Once you play through the entire game I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

In the meantime sit back and check out these pictures from New Zealand, the first place in the world where Halo 3 launched. Nicole Sinclair and Ryan Marsden, both 19, were the first two in the world to pick the game up from a retailer.... who didn't break embargo.

New Zealand Microsoft also celebrated the launch by freezing 50 prize discs in a one ton block of ice. Gamers have until 6 a.m. to melt the ice with water guns and get the prizes.