Gears of War creator Cliff Bleszinski calls it quits

There aren’t a lot of celebrity game developers. The profession, by and large, isn’t one that lends itself to the limelight. But Cliff Bleszinski has been a rare exception to that rule.

Camera-friendly, highly energetic and never at a loss for words, the design director for such titles as Gears of War and the Unreal franchise was a natural on talk shows like Jimmy Fallon. Yesterday, though, he shocked the industry by announcing plans to leave Epic Games, his video game home for the past 20 years.

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Critics take aim at underwhelming Resident Evil 6

It might have morphed into a lucrative film franchise, but the game that put survival horror on the map is returning to its roots.

Releasing Tuesday, Resident Evil 6 lets gamers fight off undead beasts as multiple characters from the franchise’s 15-year history. It’s the largest Resident Evil game yet — and it’s gotten a significant push from both publisher Capcom and partners like Microsoft, who put it center stage during its E3 press conference earlier this year. In a holiday season filled with huge names like Halo and Call of Duty, it still manages to stand out.

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Big name games turn 25 this year

1987 was a landmark year for pop culture entertainment. It was the first time we heard Capt. Jean-Luc Picard tell the crew of the Enterprise to “engage.” A dysfunctional yellow family called The Simpsons debuted in a series of shorts on “The Tracey Ullman Show.” And “Dick Clark’s American Bandstand” took its final bow.

The video game universe saw some pretty dramatic events as well, as several of the industry’s biggest franchises got their start in 1987 — and some 25 years later, they’ll still kicking.

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EA cancels NBA Live 13

Despite several promises that its flagship basketball franchise would return after a three-year absence, EA has decided to once again bench NBA Live.

The decision is likely to disappoint fans who were hoping to see some competition in the NBA field once again, but is terrific news for 2K Sports, whose NBA2K 13 will once again have the court to itself.

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Critics: ‘Bad Piggies’ is… not bad

Bad Piggies, Rovio’s first truly original game since Angry Birds, hits app stores everywhere today, putting the focus on the light-fingered, egg-loving pigs that have long tortured the feathered protagonists.

It’s a blend of familiar territory and new mechanics for the developer, blending well-known characters from its hit series with the building elements of Amazing Alex (the company’s rehashed version of Casey’s Contraptions that came out earlier this year). Players must build a craft out of the inventory they’re given at the start of each level to let the pigs complete their goal.

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Is video game baseball doomed?

It’s the bottom of the ninth for fans of baseball video games.

While baseball used to be a viable market segment of the video game world, times have changed. Take-Two Interactive, publisher of the MLB 2K baseball game series, confirmed in May that they won’t renew their exclusive contract with MLB and has strongly indicated that they won’t field a player at all next year.

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Old-school exposé: Blowing on NES cartridges did more harm than good

If you owned a Nintendo Entertainment System back in the day, you probably had a game seemingly crap out on you at some point. Perhaps the game wouldn’t boot  up correctly, or would suddenly stop working in the middle of a loading screen.

For millions, the solution was clear: Remove the cartridge and blow into it again and again until it worked. It was the mid-80s version of wiping a DVD on your shirt — and it seemed foolproof.

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World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria launches

World of Warcraft might be dealing with a subscriber downturn these days, but nothing draws the crowds back like a new expansion.

World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria, the fourth expansion for the hit MMO, releases today, bringing with it a higher level cap, a new character class and a new race — pretty much catnip to lapsed WoW players.

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The many Easter Eggs of Borderlands 2

Regardless of whether or not you’re a fan of Borderlands 2’s over-the-top combat and loot gathering (we definitely are), you have to give the game credit for one thing: It refuses to take itself too seriously.

Not only do the game’s characters spout hilarious lines as they mercilessly mock the player, enemies, and even gaming in general, but the game is loaded with winks and nods to an untold number of other pop-culture icons.

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