Fallout fans jonesing for more time
in the wasteland are about to get their wish.
Bethesda Softworks has announced plans to roll out three new add-on packs for Fallout: New Vegas this summer. Each will come out simultaneously for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.
Odds are you’ve got certain days circled on your 
kitchen calendar. A birthday, an anniversary, perhaps the annual family trip to Disneyland — whatever it is, it’s something that happens the same time every year and it’s a day worth remembering.
Turns out the gaming world works in a very similar fashion. While the precise dates are a little more flexible, the industry has an uncanny knack for releasing new versions of hit games right around the exact same time each year.
Never underestimate the 
power of war and basketball.
Buoyed by strong performances by “NBA 2K11” and “Fallout: New Vegas,” the software side of the video game industry managed to push out of its slump in October.
While no one will mistake 
October as a joyous month for video game sales, there were a few nuggets of good news from NPD this month.
Retail software sales were up 6 percent – the first time the industry has seen growth since May. And the Xbox 360 saw hardware sales increase – the only console to do so. Otherwise… well, things weren’t so good.
Everyone suspected the follow-up to “Fallout 3” 
would be big – but numbers released by Bethesda Softworks this morning still managed to surprise onlookers.
“Fallout: New Vegas” has shipped more than 5 million units to retail so far, with sales of over $300 million – and retailers are demanding more. As an added bonus, digital sales have also been strong.
Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog
Investors in the video game space understandably focus a lot of their attention on the larger publicly traded companies.
Publishers like Activision, Electronic Arts and Take-Two Interactive, after all, have some of the biggest titles in gaming. Privately held publishers, on the other hand, tend to either be based outside of the U.S. or lack a major intellectual property.
There’s nothing wrong with tightly-scripted video games, but
sometimes, you just want to mess around without stressing so much about reaching the next level. If you’re looking for that kind of wide-open adventure — where gamers can explore and progress without restrictions — try roaming about in these terrific titles.
While they’ve always been interactive, video games began 
as very narrative forms of entertainment. After an initial cut scene, setting the stage for the game, you’d receive your first orders and set off on your first mission. From there, you’d be instructed to do something else – and the cycle would continue until you reached the end of the game.
Storylines are still a core part of titles, of course, but more and more, developers are letting you explore the worlds they create when and how you want – letting you roam at will, performing non-essential missions that boost your enjoyment of the game and extend your playable hours.
Chris Morris: Journalist 