Epic Games' Cliff Bleszinski says company has "huge responsibility" to "drag this industry into the next generation" with Unreal Engine 4.

Epic Games is calling on Microsoft and Sony to offer bleeding-edge visuals with the next wave of consoles, and it believes the Unreal Engine 4 can spur such an advancement in fidelity. In an interview published today at Wired, Epic Games design director Cliff Bleszinski said the company's proprietary Unreal Engine 4 needs to be at the forefront of next-generation technology.

The next wave of consoles are going to offer impressive visuals, if Epic has its way.

"There is a huge responsibility on the shoulders of our engine team and our studio to drag this industry into the next generation," Bleszinski said. "It is up to Epic, and [CEO] Tim Sweeney in particular, to motivate Sony and Microsoft not to phone in what these next consoles are going to be. It needs to be a quantum leap. They need to damn near render Avatar in real time, because I want it and gamers want it--even if they don't know they want it."

Why should Microsoft and Sony listen to Epic? Sweeney says his company has a more intimate relationship with manufacturers than others do.

"We're much more in sync with the console makers than any other developer is," he said. "That means we can give detailed recommendations with a complete understanding of what is going to be commercially possible."

A preview of the Unreal Engine 4 was offered to select licensees, partners, and prospective clients during the 2012 Game Developers Conference in March, with those parties required to sign a nondisclosure agreement.

As for advancements of the Unreal Engine 4 over its predecessors, Sweeney said the new framework includes tools that allow for shortened production cycles and lower development costs. In terms of technical specifics, the new engine includes a new dynamic lighting system, which operates based on calculations of objects' inherent properties, as opposed to being dictated by preprogrammed effects. This technology will supposedly allow for more realistic lighting, where "colors mix, translucent materials glow, and objects viewed through water refract."

For more on the Unreal Engine 4, and to see images rendered by the technology, check out the full Wired interview.

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US retailer sees digital, mobile revenues rise, but not enough to offset dipping total sales and profit; Guild Wars 2 won't ship until after July.

GameStop's mobile and digital businesses are growing, but not enough to make up for a shrinking market for packaged games, the company revealed today as part of its latest financial report.

Digital and mobile sales were bright spots on GameStop's spreadsheet.

The company did not provide a specific figure for digital sales, but noted this sector was up 23 percent year-over year, while mobile raked in $12 million for the period.

In all, for the three months ended April 28, GameStop posted total global sales of $2 billion, down 12.2 percent from the $2.28 billion recorded during the same time last year. Net income for the period hit $72.5 million, a dip from the $80.4 million notched a year ago.

New game software was the biggest contributor to GameStop's bottom line during the period, accounting for $731.1 million and 36.5 percent of total sales. The next most significant contributor was used software and hardware sales, which accounted for 30.9 percent of total revenue, or $619 million. New game hardware sales for the period hit $348.6 million, and made up 17.4 percent of total revenue. GameStop's "other" category, which houses its digital and mobile businesses, accounted for the smallest piece of the pie, representing 15.2 percent of total sales with a haul of $303.5 million.

Looking to its current fiscal quarter, GameStop said it expects store sales to fall 11 percent to 5 percent, with full-year revenue expected to range from down 5 percent to flat. Additionally, in a postearnings financial call, CFO Robert Lloyd revealed that ArenaNet's long-awaited massively multiplayer online role-playing game Guild Wars 2 has slipped out of the company's current quarter, meaning it is now expected to arrive sometime after July.

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Debut episode in Telltale Games' new adventure series hits platinum status in two weeks, becoming company's fastest-selling series to date.

Telltale Games' new The Walking Dead episodic adventure game series has started off on a high note. The developer announced today that the first episode--A New Day--was downloaded over 1 million times across PC, Mac, PlayStation Network, and Xbox Live in two weeks.

The Walking Dead sprinted to 1 million in sales.

TellTale Games has adapted a number of popular franchises into episodic adventure games, including Back to the Future and Wallace and Gromit, but none were as immediately successful as The Walking Dead. The company said today that The Walking Dead is the fastest-selling series in company history.

The next episode in the Walking Dead series, titled Starved for Help, is expected to launch across PC, Mac, and consoles in June. Additionally, the season's first episode--A New Day--is scheduled to hit iOS devices next month. A total of five episodes are planned for the series.

Telltale's Walking Dead is a single-player episodic game based on Robert Kirkman's comic book series. It stars Lee Everett, a man convicted of a crime but given a chance to redeem himself, albeit in a world infested with undead. For more on the franchise, check out GameSpot's review of episode one.

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Fable developer staffing up to bring new role-playing game with massively multiplayer online qualities to future-generation technology.

With Fable Heroes out the door and development on Fable: The Journey coming to a close, what will developer Lionhead Studios build next? According to a job listing at the United Kingdom developer, the studio is staffing up to create an all-new next-generation title with massively multiplayer online genre qualities.

Is Microsoft making a console MMO game?

The job ad (which has since been removed) was spotted by indefatigable Internet sleuth Superannuation and reported on by MCV. According to the description, the title will be a role-playing game designed with a "radical take on how cooperative and multiplayer gameplay feeds into the experience." Additionally, the title will blend single-player and multiplayer into one experience, claims the ad.

On top of that, the new game will boast a "complex progression system, multiple routes through the campaign, and an MMO-like multiplayer experience that will affect the outcome of the player experience, and many other attributes surrounding their profile (such as the environment and outcome of certain actions)." Further specifics were not offered.

While the job ad in question is no longer available, a Lionhead Studios requisition for an experienced server programmer seeks a person with knowledge of MMO titles.

Lionhead Studios is familiar with role-playing games, having created the Fable franchise, but the company has never built an MMO game. As of press time, Microsoft had not responded to GameSpot's request for comment.

If Lionhead Studios is in fact working on an MMO game, the company will do so without Peter Molyneux. He left Microsoft in March and is currently heading up 22 Cans, a new independent developer.

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2K Games and Gearbox Software confirm $100 Deluxe Vault Hunter's edition and $150 Ultimate Loot Chest version for upcoming shooter sequel.

Come September, gamers yearning to pick up a premium bundle for Gearbox Software's new shooter Borderlands 2 will have two options to consider. 2K Games and Gearbox Software today confirmed the game's two special editions: the $100 Deluxe Vault Hunter's collector's edition, and the $150 Ultimate Loot Chest edition.

For $150, this can all be yours.

The Deluxe Vault Hunter's limited edition includes a Marcus Kincaid bobblehead doll, as well as a hardbound Inside the Vault: The Art & Design of Borderlands 2 book. Additionally, the premium bundle packs in a collectible sticker set, a map of in-game world Pandora, a digital comic download code, and downloadable in-game content.

Gamers looking to spend even more can pick up the $150 Ultimate Loot Chest limited edition of Borderlands 2. This bundle packs in all items within the Deluxe Vault Hunter's edition, as well as a scaled loot chest replica, a steel book case for the game, and a "Creatures of Pandora wide-format ID chart." Additionally, this version includes a lithograph postcard set, field notes from Sir Hammerlock, a cloth map of Pandora, and a certificate of authenticity.

Both special editions will be available for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC editions of Borderlands 2. 2K Games and Gearbox Software also today announced that those who preorder either bundle will score access to the Borderlands 2 Premiere Club, which grants users a range of in-game content, as well as the previously announced fifth character class, the mechromancer.

Borderlands 2 is due out in North America on September 18 and will ship internationally on September 21. For more on the title, check out GameSpot's latest preview.

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Developer offers apology for server issues on the game's launch, says it will continue to monitor and improve services; real-money auction house delayed as a result.

Blizzard has issued an apology to Diablo III players affected by the game's technical issues, including the discovery of a game-breaking bug.

Posting on the Diablo III forums, Blizzard said that its preparations for the launch of the game "did not go far enough."

Evil has returned…it's just a little slow.

"As many of you are aware, technical issues occurring within hours after the game's launch led to players experiencing error messages and difficulty logging in. These issues cropped up again last night for the Americas and Europe servers. Despite very aggressive projections, our preparations for the launch of the game did not go far enough.

"To that end, we'd also like to say that we've been humbled by your enthusiasm--and we sincerely regret that your crusade to bring down the Lord of Terror was thwarted not by mobs of demons, but by mortal infrastructure."

Blizzard announced that it has been monitoring the game around the clock and said it has applied several optimizations to help the servers deal with the global rush. According to the publisher, all systems are now back online and "running relatively smoothly." The company said that it is also investigating a fix for a service issue linked to the achievement system, which saw achievements not being earned properly or not being saved between multiple log-ins.

As a result of the technical difficulties, Blizzard has decided to push back the target launch for Diablo III's real-money auction house, originally estimated for May 22. The company said it will post further information about this in the near future.

The publisher stated that it would continue to monitor global performance of the servers and will be taking further measures as needed, including maintenance to improve each region.

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Call of Duty publisher allegedly launched a secret internal investigation against Jason West, Vince Zampella; EA settles out of court with Activision.

A number of unsealed documents from the upcoming trial between Activision and a group of ex-Infinity Ward developers have revealed a testimony that alleges the publisher launched an internal investigation against lead plaintiffs Jason West and Vince Zampella.

A new testimony alleges Activision tried to spy on ex-Infinity Ward developers.

The documents--made public this week by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Elihu Berle--contain the testimony of Activision's former senior director of information technology, Thomas Fenady. As reported by Giant Bomb and The Los Angeles Times, Fenady's testimony alleges that Activision's in-house lawyer, George Rose, asked him to spy on West and Zampella by accessing their work emails, voice mails, and computer files.

According to Fenady, who left Activision in 2009, Rose told him the decision to investigate West and Zampella came from Activision CEO Bobby Kotick. The testimony also alleges that the objective--known as Project Icebreaker--was begun with the aim of building evidence against West and Zampella but that efforts to monitor the personal correspondence of the developers, which included using outside parties, were unsuccessful.

Other documents unsealed by Judge Elihu Berle in the case include a plan documenting bonuses from West and Zampella's initial agreement in 2003, as well as a memorandum of understanding from 2008, explaining the extension of the developers' initial contract.

According to the LA Times report, the documents form part of the contract that Activision had with West and Zampella and the 40 other game developers involved in the lawsuit, laying out the money that Activision owes the developers in royalties and bonuses.

Activision claims that it fired West and Zampella because they were secretly planning to start their new studio with the help of Electronic Arts, while still employed by the Call of Duty publisher. West and Zampella claim that the real reason they were fired was so Activision wouldn't have to pay them millions of dollars in royalties associated with Modern Warfare 2. Beyond the performance-based payout and any other court-awarded monetary damages, West and Zampella are seeking to gain co-ownership of the Modern Warfare brand. If successful in court, West and Zampella would have the right to create and release both old and new instalments in the Modern Warfare franchise.

According to a recent report from Bloomberg, Activision has dropped the $400 million claim against EA, which originally made up part of its lawsuit against West and Zampella.

Although the terms of the settlement were not disclosed, Bloomberg reported that EA will now be removed from the upcoming trial, set to take place on May 29.

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Studio founded by former Call of Duty developers not unveiling first project at next month's Los Angeles trade show.

Gamers yearning for the first proper look at Respawn Entertainment's first game won't get it at next month's Electronic Entertainment Expo. Speaking to Joystiq, Respawn community manager Abbie Heppe said, "We won't be showing anything or doing any press related to the game" during the annual geek gala. Heppe confirmed this statement to GameSpot this afternoon.

Respawn's first game isn't coming into focus at E3.

This year's Electronic Entertainment Expo will be the second straight that the company has opted out of public activities. This time last year, the San Fernando Valley, California-based studio announced it would skip the industry's big summertime event.

Respawn has kept its first project out of sight thus far. Outside of a blurry screenshot and news that the game will be published by Electronic Arts, no further firm information is available concerning the studio's maiden title.

Speculation on the project has suggested it will be a first-person science-fiction shooter that may support 3D and could ship by March 2013. Respawn Entertainment was founded in 2010 by fired Infinity Ward developers Jason West and Vince Zampella and is currently staffed by a host of Call of Duty developers, among others.

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Capcom taps Monster Hunter producer to lead development on beginner-friendly shooter EX Troopers for Sony's console and Nintendo's portable.

Capcom will launch a Lost Planet spin-off title for the PlayStation 3 and 3DS called EX Troopers, according to the latest issue of Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu (translated by Andriasang). Development on the game will be led by Monster Hunter series producer Shintaro Kojima.

Lost Planet will be found on the 3DS and PS3 this year.

According to the report, EX Troopers will take place in the same world as Lost Planet, but that will be the only main similarity to the series. EX Troopers will sport an anime visual style and will tell a "school-themed story," says the magazine.

More specifically, EX Troopers will recount a battle between snow pirates and the indigenous Akrid aliens on the planet EDN-3rd. Gamers will suit up as Bren Turner and will be introduced to female snow pirate TeeKee, who has the power to communicate with the Akrid.

Kojima explained that EX Troopers was designed with the intent to be a beginner's action shooter, but did not offer more details. The game is reportedly 60 percent complete and is due to ship later this year, ahead of 2013's Lost Planet 3. That game is a prequel to the original Lost Planet and is currently in development at Spark Unlimited.

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$100 premium edition of upcoming sci-fi shooter to include nine maps, early access to six specializations, live-action film; Spartan Ops mode detailed.

Gamers looking forward to restarting the fight have a new option to consider, as Microsoft today announced Halo 4 Limited Edition.

Halo 4 Limited Edition will set you back $100.

The premium bundle includes access to the War Games map pack, which includes nine new environments spread across three future multiplayer add-ons. A release schedule for the map packs will be unveiled at a later date.

A Microsoft representative told GameSpot this afternoon that the map packs will be available for purchase separately after launch through Xbox Live. Pricing information was not made available, but the company said this will be announced later.

Additionally, Halo 4 Limited Edition grants gamers early access to six specializations, which unlock additional customization options. The six specializations available in Halo 4 Limited Edition will be made available at a later date to all gamers.

On top of that, Halo 4 Limited Edition packs in the UNSC Infinity Briefing Packet, which includes an armor customization diagram, a blueprint of the Infinity ship, and additional "insight" into what it means to be a Spartan-IV soldier.

The premiums don't end there. Halo 4 Limited Edition also includes various digital content offerings delivered through Xbox Live, as well as the special edition of the upcoming 90-minute live-action film Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn.

On top of announcing Halo 4 Limited Edition, Microsoft today formally took the wraps off Halo 4's Spartan Ops offering. This mode will offer a weekly series of episodes through Xbox Live that tells the story of the UNSC Infinity and its crew after the events of Halo 4. The episodes will also introduce players to a new team of Spartans called Majestic Squad.

According to Microsoft, the episodes will provide a backdrop for the Spartan Ops game missions, which will also be released on a weekly basis. Gamers can take on these objective-based missions either alone or with up to three friends. Further specifics were not offered.

Halo 4 is due for a worldwide release exclusively on the Xbox 360 on November 6. It is a sequel to 2007's Halo 3 and takes place nearly five years after the events of that game. Halo 4 is currently in development at Microsoft's new Halo label 343 Industries, the shop that recently took over for series creator Bungie.

For more on Halo 4, check out GameSpot's latest coverage.

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Volition dev LinkedIn page indicates studio has three unannounced titles in the works for current-gen platforms and "mysterious next generation."

Saints Row developer Volition may be headed to the next generation, according to a LinkedIn profile page spotted by Internet supersleuth Superannuation. The profile page of a staffer at the outfit indicates the Champaign, Illinois-based studio has three unannounced projects in the works for current-generation platforms, as well as "the mysterious next generation of consoles."

Volition is gearing up for the next generation, it seems.

The profile had no other details on the projects. Already confirmed upcoming Volition titles include the company's InSane collaboration with filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, as well as Saints Row 4.

Additionally, a second Volition staffer published (and has since removed) a listing for Saints Row 4 on his LinkedIn resume, indicating the project is presently in development for current-generation platforms including the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC.

Publisher THQ confirmed Saints Row 4 last year, with company executive vice president Danny Bilson saying the madcap sequel will be even "wilder" than Saints Row: The Third. That game launched in November and has been the biggest contributor to THQ's bottom line.

As of press time, THQ had not responded to GameSpot's request for comment on the matter.

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Multiplayer expansion for space-bound RPG due as early as this week said to bring two fresh maps, three more weapons, and six new classes.

The next Mass Effect 3 downloadable content has been revealed, according to a report on Kotaku. According to the site, Sony's Hong Kong website posted (and then removed) a listing for Mass Effect 3 Rebellion, a new multiplayer expansion for the role-playing game.

Gamers may get new Mass Effect 3 DLC as early as this week.

According to the description, the Rebellion multiplayer expansion will bring two new maps to Mass Effect 3 titled Firebase Jade and Firebase Goddess. Additionally, the content will bring three new weapons and six more classes, as well as fresh equipment and consumables.

The site reports that the Rebellion DLC will be released this week, but no official announcement has been made. An Electronic Arts representative told GameSpot, "We have nothing to announce at this time."

If the Rebellion DLC for Mass Effect 3 is real, it will not be the only add-on headed to BioWare's new role-playing game in the coming months. In April, the developer announced Mass Effect 3: Extended Cut, a free piece of content due out this summer that will expand the space-bound RPG's endgame through "cinematic sequences and epilogue scenes."

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Various LinkedIn profile pages indicate DICE may be at work on third entry in shooter franchise, sequel to 2008 free-running game.

Battlefield: Bad Company 3 and Mirror's Edge 2 have been spotted on various profile pages at professional networking site LinkedIn (tracked down by GamerZines), indicating DICE is possibly at work on sequels to its shooter and free-running franchises.

Is DICE reenlisting Bad Company?

The Bad Company 3 reference comes from a user who said he "provided video game prototype, design, and demo feedback on various AAA titles including Battlefield: Bad Company 3, Dead Space 2, Devil May Cry 5, and other unannounced titles" between 2009 and 2011.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 shipped during March 2010, and to date, no mention has been made of a follow-up. A sequel to that title would not come as much of a surprise, as it won warm reviews upon launch, and sold nearly 6 million copies. A spin-off to the core Battlefield franchise, the Bad Company series launched in 2008 with the well-received original.

As for Mirror's Edge 2, the profile page of an ex-EA software engineer says he worked on that game between July and August 2009, creating the "wandering of crowd system within the Unreal 3 Engine." Yet another former EA employee's page says he built "new gadget and interactive features" for Mirror's Edge 2, as well as leaderboards and a minigame inside the Mirror's Edge story.

A sequel to Mirror's Edge has not been formally announced, but in June 2009, EA Games Europe vice president Patrick Soderlund confirmed a follow-up was in the works. At the time, he said, "You will see another Mirror's Edge for sure. It's just a matter of when that time is and what we do with it. We have a small team on it, and I'm excited about what we do."

An EA representative told GameSpot, "We do not comment on rumors or speculation."

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Setbacks for latest game from Tomonobu Itagaki have THQ looking to hand off the project to another company as publisher cites profitability concerns.

THQ is distancing itself from Devil's Third. In an investor conference call today, the publisher confirmed that it was talking with other companies about taking the maiden project of Valhalla Game Studios off its hands.

THQ is looking to make a deal with Devil's Third.

"The profitability of Devil's Third was not competitive with our other releases," explained THQ CEO Brian Farrell.

There were two major reasons given for the project's change in status. First, the third-party company Valhalla had been using to make the game engine went out of business. Considering also the strengthening value of the yen against the dollar, THQ decided that the game no longer met its profitability profile.

Devil's Third was announced at the 2010 Electronic Entertainment Expo and made a splash as the first project for Valhalla Game Studios, the new developer founded by Dead or Alive creator Tomonobu Itagaki in the wake of his acrimonious parting with Tecmo. While Itagaki continued to do interviews to promote the project, little else was seen of it beyond the original trailer. Last year, Itagaki explained why the game was a no-show at the Tokyo Game Show but said to expect more information on it in early 2012.

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Obsidian-developed role-playing game pushed to next year as THQ posts $239.9 million loss for fiscal year; Saints Row: The Third ships 4.25 million, expansion coming in September.

South Park: The Game will not ship this fall as was previously announced. THQ today announced that the Obsidian Entertainment-developed role-playing game has slid to a release date of sometime during the first three months of 2013.

Cartman and pals aren't making it out this year.

The publisher did not provide a reason for the delay, and as of press time, the company had not responded to GameSpot's request for comment.

The news comes as part of THQ's latest financial report, which saw the company's net sales for the 12 months ended March 31 rise to $830.8 million, up from the $665.3 million recorded a year ago. It wasn't all rosy for THQ, as the company posted a net loss of $239.9 million for the period, worse than the $136.1 million hit the firm took the year prior.

The company's digital business was a boon for THQ, as revenues in this sector for the year spiked 62 percent to $59 million.

THQ also parsed statistics and let loose some new information for some of its biggest brands. The company said Saints Row: The Third has shipped more than 4.25 million units since its launch in November. Additionally, THQ revealed that the Enter the Dominatrix expansion for Saints Row: The Third will arrive this September. Previously, it was expected sometime this fall.

The company also broke down shipment figures for its major fighting games. THQ said WWE 12 has shipped more than 2.2 million units since its launch in November 2011, up about 20 percent over the previous year's game. Additionally, UFC Undisputed 3 has shipped 1.4 million units since it debuted in February, the company said.

In terms of platform revenue, the Xbox 360 proved most successful for THQ. Microsoft's home console accounted for 36.7 percent of total sales, generating $306.42 million in the process. The PlayStation 3 came in second place, accounting for 27.4 percent of the share, totaling $229.2 million. The Nintendo Wii (14.3 percent share, $119.5 million) and the PlayStation 2 (.4 share, $3.3 million) rounded out the rest.

THQ unveiled a new, streamlined business strategy earlier this year, and today, the company said when the plan is fully realized in fiscal 2013, it is expected to result in a reduction of costs totaling $180 million. Additionally, THQ said it has reduced its commitments to children's licensed properties by about $30 million and reiterated that it is no longer creating software or hardware for the uDraw GameTablet.

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Reports claims Call of Duty publisher awarded the sum to former Infinity Ward members following an evidence review; trial slated to start May 29.

Reports have surfaced today on both Polygon and Gamasutra claiming that Activision has paid a sum of $42 million to a group of 40 former Infinity Ward members implicated in an upcoming lawsuit with the Call of Duty publisher.

Activision wants to focus its efforts entirely on ex-Infinity Ward heads West and Zampella.

According to the reports--both of which cite an anonymous source close to the case--Activision paid the $42 million to the group representing former Infinity Ward heads Jason West and Vince Zampella after reviewing the evidence for the ongoing lawsuit over West and Zampella's 2010 firing, and subsequent establishment of Respawn Entertainment with Electronic Arts.

Both Polygon and Gamasutra reported that the sum paid by Activision is not part of a settlement.

Instead, the sum is what the publisher believes the former employees are owed after reviewing trial evidence and reportedly finding that it does not implicate the group's 40 members. It is reported that Activision will now focus its legal efforts entirely on West and Zampella.

In March this year, Activision scored a partial victory in the suit, when a judge dismissed one of two fraud claims brought against the publisher by West and Zampella.

Activision claims that it fired the pair because they were secretly planning to start their new studio with the help of Electronic Arts, while still employed with the Call of Duty publisher. West and Zampella claim that the real reason they were fired was so that Activision wouldn't have to pay them millions of dollars in royalties associated with Modern Warfare 2. Beyond the performance-based payout and any other court-awarded monetary damages, West and Zampella are seeking to gain co-ownership of the Modern Warfare brand. If successful in court, West and Zampella would have the right to create and release both old and new installments in the Modern Warfare franchise.

According to the reports, the trial is set to take place on May 29.

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Open-world Xbox Live game goes platinum in first five days; 5.2 million hours spent mining, 4 million multiplayer sessions recorded thus far.

Minecraft for the Xbox 360 was a breakout success. Microsoft announced today that Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition has sold more than 1 million copies since it launched May 9. This follows news from Minecraft creator Markus Persson last week that revealed the game sold 400,000 copies in its first 24 hours, becoming profitable in just one hour.

Minecraft has already brought in $20 million in sales on Xbox Live.

On top of announcing sales for Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition, Microsoft parsed additional statistics regarding the $20 (1,600 MS points) downloadable game. More than 5.2 million total hours have been spent mining, 4 million total multiplayer sessions have been logged, and more than 2.4 million multiplayer hours have been recorded.

Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition was developed by 4J Studios, the Scotland-based shop that built Xbox Live Arcade titles Perfect Dark, Banjo-Kazooie, and Banjo-Tooie. The game will add Kinect support at a later date via a patch and was the last title in Microsoft's Arcade Next promotion, which also saw the release of Trials Evolution, Bloodforge, and Fable Heroes.

For more on Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition, check out GameSpot's review.

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Epic Games design director Cliff Bleszinski says lack of multiplayer in Vanquish was a "crime," praises Demon's Souls and Dark Souls as being innovative.

Epic Games design director Cliff Bleszinski has made a living from multiplayer in the Gears of War franchise and others, and now he is calling on Japanese developers to follow suit. Asked by Gamasutra about what Japanese developers can do to boost their business, Bleszinski said the key is implementing multiplayer options.

Vanquish would have benefited from multiplayer, says Bleszinski.

"My advice to Japan is that in a disc-based market right now, you cannot [ignore multiplayer]," he said. He went on to qualify that thought, saying, "I'm not saying tack multiplayer onto every game."

He later explained that he found Grasshopper Manufacture's Shadows of the Damned to be a "wonderfully crazy adventure," but lamented its lack of multiplayer.

Bleszinski does not think Japanese developers are universally ignoring multiplayer. He cited From Software's Demon's Souls and Dark Souls as examples of "innovative" titles that offer "mingle-player," where the lines between single and multiplayer are blurred.

Bleszinski also shared some cutting words about Platinum Games' well-received third-person shooter Vanquish. He said it was a "crime" that Vanquish did not have a multiplayer mode where he could perform the high-flying and fast-paced actions found in the game's campaign.

He said whatever reason Platinum Games had for not including multiplayer in Vanquish was "paved with good intentions" but at the same time made the game "[handicapped] by the fact that it was seen by many gamers as a campaign rental or a used game, and not the $60, day-one, gotta-have-it game."

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Japanese publisher cites major new releases as significant contributors to the company's increased net sales and profits for 2011.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Final Fantasy XIII-2 helped publisher Square Enix swing to profit for fiscal 2011, the company announced today. For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012, the company's Digital Entertainment business (which houses the firm's gaming endeavors) saw net sales surge 11.9 percent to ’71.9 billion ($897.5 million) while operating income jumped up 11.7 percent to ’12.6 billion ($157.3 million).

Adam Jensen to the rescue.

Square Enix did not offer specific sales figures for either game, but after shipping in August 2011, Deus Ex: Human Revolution was the top-selling game of the month and went on to ship 2 million units. Final Fantasy XIII-2 launched in North America on the last day of January and was February's second-best-selling title, beat out only by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

In total, Square Enix reported full-year net sales of ’127.9 billion ($1.6 billion), up 2.1 percent year-over-year. Profits for the period came in at ’6.1 billion ($76.1 million), up significantly from the ’12 billion ($150 million) in losses tallied the year prior.

Square Enix also today delayed Crystal Dynamics' upcoming Tomb Raider reboot from a fall release to the first quarter of 2013. Of the delay, studio head Darrell Gallagher said, "I guarantee it will be worth the wait."

Making predictions about its current fiscal year, Square Enix president Yoichi Wada said the company will focus on improving the quality of its online games, which will in part lead the firm to improved earnings by the end of the year.

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Japanese publisher cites major new releases as significant contributors to the company's increased net sales and profits for 2011.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Final Fantasy XIII-2 helped publisher Square Enix swing to profit for fiscal 2011, the company announced today. For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012, the company's Digital Entertainment business (which houses the firm's gaming endeavors) saw net sales surge 11.9 percent to ’71.9 billion ($897.5 million) while operating income jumped up 11.7 percent to ’12.6 billion ($157.3 million).

Adam Jensen to the rescue.

Square Enix did not offer specific sales figures for either game, but after shipping in August 2011, Deus Ex: Human Revolution was the top-selling game of the month , and went on to ship 2 million units. Final Fantasy XIII-2 launched in North America on the last day of January, and was February's second best-selling title, beat out only by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

In total, Square Enix reported full-year net sales of ’127.9 billion ($1.6 billion), up 2.1 percent year-over year. Profits for the period came in at ’6.1 billion ($76.1 million), up significantly from the ’12 billion ($150 million) in losses tallied the year prior.

Square Enix also today delayed Crystal Dynamics' upcoming Tomb Raider reboot from a fall release to the first quarter of 2013. Of the delay, studio head Darrell Gallagher said, "I guarantee it will be worth the wait."

Making predictions about its current fiscal year, Square Enix president Yoichi Wada said the company will focus on improving the quality of its online games, which will in part lead the firm to improved earnings by the end of the year.

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