We’re about two-and-a-half weeks from the start 
of E3, but if you weren’t able to get a pass to the video game industry’s annual trade show, you’ll still be able to see some of the big moments.
Spike TV and Microsoft have struck a deal for the network to broadcast the Xbox 360 E3 media briefing on June 6.
Blake Griffin has a lot going for him. He has 
endorsement deals with TV manufacturer Vizio, a multimillion dollar contact with the Los Angeles Clippers and sitting on his mantle at home are trophies for the 2011 NBA Slam Dunk Contest and NBA Rookie of the Year.
But what the guy really wants, it seems, is to fight mutants and in id Software’s upcoming shooter, Rage. And he’s making his case in a hilarious new video that includes motion-capture, dribble-drives and, yes, a tiger getting dunked on.
With the number of quality free-to-play 
online games growing almost daily, dropping $10-$15 per month in subscription fees is getting harder and harder to justify.
Walking away from a free online game, after all, is a pretty easy thing to do. There’s no nagging voice in the back of your head doing the math and informing you of how much money you’ve invested in a game you’re no longer obsessed with. When it’s free, the stakes are low, though often so is the payoff.
Barring any additional problems, Sony 
plans to bring the PlayStation Store back online next Tuesday, May 24, according to a memo sent to the console’s publishing partners.
The company has sent a tentative publishing schedule to partners detailing when their games, expansions and other releases will become available to players. In the memo, obtained by Gamasutra, Sony unveils plans to do two content pushes per week for the next two weeks to catch up with the backlog of content.
Sony has acknowledged another security hole 
in its PlayStation unit – and while it might not be as catastrophic as the recent security breach, it’s bound to be an embarrassment for the company – and another hurdle officials have to overcome as they work to regain consumers’ trust.
The company has blocked user logins on all PlayStation Websites after being informed of an exploit (or workaround) that could let unauthorized people take control of user accounts using the very same information that was stolen from Sony roughly four weeks ago.
The NBA finals won’t be held until 
early next month, but Chicago Bulls fans might want to start stockpiling the bubbly right now.
Award-winning b-ball sim NBA 2K11 has come out with its annual prediction of who will emerge victorious from the finals, saying Chicago will beat the Dallas Mavericks in seven games. In addition, the game predicts Derrick Rose will take home MVP honors after a tremendous performance in the final three games.
Burn it All – Journey to the Sun strives to 
follow in the footsteps of Cut the Rope, with a cute hero and a collection of unique puzzles, and it almost hits the mark. The game is certainly fun and increases difficulty at a very gradual and forgiving pace. And when players aren’t able to complete a level, it doesn’t mean they’re finished, as the game smartly includes the ability to skip areas that are proving too challenging. The controls, however, aren’t quite right, and the constant pressure to share your scores is a bit grating after a while. Still, for the price, this is a great way for puzzle fans to waste a few hours.
TallyTots makes learning fun for toddlers. Rather than making 
counting a chore, it walks them through the process, then rewards them with fun, interactive activities that reinforce the number. For example, if the number is 7, kids are encouraged to make a sandwich with seven layers. Kids may want to play it again and again — but it’s not perfect. Once an activity is completed, the app waits for you to pick another number, which requires selecting one from the top or bottom of the screen, then pressing it for 3-4 seconds. That’s nothing for adults, but kids may lose interest in having to touch the screen in a single spot for that long. It would be nice to see an option to advance to the next number once the interactive element had been completed (or after a period of inactivity). That’s a quibble, though. For parents looking to teach their toddlers how to count, this is a fine tool.
Just days after Sony brought its PlayStation 
Network back to life after one of the biggest online security breaches in history, the company may have another problem on its hands.
Sony has blocked user logins on all PlayStation Websites after reports began to circulate on gaming sites and on hacker message boards about an exploit — essentially, a hole or oversight in the system’s security that hackers can use to gain access — that could allow third-parties to take control of user accounts.
While Sony has been apologetic over 
the last month about the breach of its PlayStation Network (and subsequent personal data theft), CEO Howard Stringer is apparently adopting a new tone.
The head of Sony, who found himself personally under a lot of fire for his silence on the matter as it was unfolding, had angry words Tuesday for critics who have accused the company of taking too long to inform consumers that their data had been stolen.
Chris Morris: Journalist 