Here’s a good 
way to ensure your kid gets his lunch money stolen on a regular basis.
Meet Dovahkiin Tom Kellermeyer. That’s right, Dovahkiin. As in, the protagonist of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Born 11/11/11 — the same day that the game was released — he’s made his family the winners (?) of a contest that ensures free Bethesda games for life.
Critics aren’t 
the only people falling in love with the latest installment of The Elder Scrolls.
Bethesda Softworks says it has shipped 7 million copies of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim to retailers, with about 3.5 million copies being sold through in the first 48 hours. Making that number even more impressive? That was just for the Xbox 360 version.
Oh PETA, you 
crazy kids. First, you get the gaming world up in arms by squaring off against one of its most-loved characters. Then, when the backlash hits, you quickly claim the whole thing was “tongue-in-cheek.”
After slamming Nintendo icon Mario for wearing a ‘Tanooki’ suit in his latest game, the animal rights organization says the outcry, which included the creation of a disturbing parody video game called “Super Tanooki Skin 2D,” was just a publicity stunt.
The initial criticisms 
surrounding Nintendo’s 3DS handheld were pretty straightforward: The price was too high and there was a paucity of good games.
Nintendo took care of the pricing problem in August. Now, it’s taking on the quality concerns.
Super Mario 3D Land, which hit shelves earlier this week, combines elements from the classic 2D side-scrolling Mario games as well as more recent free-roaming 3D Mario titles, plus it brings back the much-loved Tanooki suit from Super Mario Bros. 3. And critics are cheering.
Twenty-eight 
years ago, Rob Gerhardt set a high score of 33 million in a single game of Q*bert. And while countless gamers have set their sights on topping that in the following decades, they’ve all fallen short.
The latest attempt came this weekend, when one gamer spent 59 hours playing the platform jumper, but still fell far short, racking up a total of just 28 million.
With mature titles 
like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3 dominating retail shelf space, it might be a little difficult finding the right gift for the younger gamer on your list.
Fortunately, there are loads of great game choices for kids this year. Even better, there are some new, very cool kid-centric gaming systems that cater to the young ones, as well as some wonderfully creative selections for your geek-in-training.
Playing video games 
can be a punishing hobby. From the grueling difficulty of old legends like Contra to the fiendish trials of new nightmares like Dark Souls, gaming is rife with moments that make even the most dedicated player wonder why, for the love of Mario, they put themselves through this.
That doubt, of course, is erased the moment you make it through a seemingly impossible segment or unlock an achievement that few others can manage. It may be fleeting, but that natural high is the stuff gamers live for. If you’re looking for such a rush — and believe you have the skills to handle any game — try testing your might against these seven insane challenges.
For a detective 
whose star is rising at a phenomenal rate, Cole Phelps sure is angry.
There’s no crime in L.A. Noire he can’t solve, but his people skills are a bit lacking. Even when a witness is cooperating with his investigation, he’ll inevitably start shouting at them, a behavior that always mystified players.
It’s a three-peat.
Modern Warfare 3, the latest installment in Activision’s juggernaut shooter franchise, has set a new entertainment industry record for the biggest product launch of all time, selling 6.5 million copies in the U.S. and U.K. in its first 24 hours and earning $400 million in the process.
Blizzard’s cash cow 
is starting to produce less milk.
Subscriptions for World of Warcraft fell to 10.3 million at the end of September, the company announced in its quarterly earnings call Tuesday. That’s a drop of 800,000 subscribers — or more than 7 percent of its customers — in just three months.
Chris Morris: Journalist 