The beauty of the Mass Effect series is the choices that are offered to you and the simplest choice of all that you make in the series is whether Shepard is going to be male or female. Traditionally, BioWare’s promotion of the games in the past has focused solely on the male Commander Shepard, that all changes now. The latest trailer for Mass Effect 3, which focuses on Shepard’s reinstatement after getting in a world of trouble in the last game.

If this trailer doesn’t get you excited for Mass Effect 3, nothing will:\

Kickstarter and gaming came a long way few days ago when Double Fine went the crowd sourcing route in generating funds for one of their next games. How successful was Double Fine in garnering some capital to create their next game? Try $1 million in a day and counting. That's absolutely incredible..

Double Fine is using this tactic to create a brand new click and point adventure game. It's a genre that hasn't been really popular in the mainstream for a while, but here's the thing. If Double Fine went to a major publisher saying they wanted to do an old school style game, do you think they would be all in? Of course, the publisher would have a lot of reservations handing over money on something like that. Even to a very reputable development company, publishers want as much of a sure thing as possible in this day an age to recoup costs, turn a high profit, and pay shareholders.

So, Double Fine went with a new tactic to generate funds and it's become a smashing success. They initially wanted $400,000 in 30+ days. They shattered that mark in 24 hours.

Double Fine has shown that they have enough fans that believe in their venture to give them a few dollars here and there. This got me thinking on two fronts. Could Kickstarter be the next generation way to fund and purchase games and could Kickstarter also be a conduit in bringing back IPs that are beloved but have long been forgotten by the publishers?

Let's be honest, you're going to have to be a very reputable company to be able to get the funds like Double Fine has to make a new game. No one's going to hand over any money without knowing the company behind it or seeing a very polished demo of the product. That's not to say some new company couldn't go this route to try and get funds for their game. But unless you're a well known individual or development company, success stories like Double Fine's won't come easy. Still, I'd love to see companies old or new churn out new and interesting IPs with Kickstarter. We need more new and fun IPs rather than rehashes and sequels that seem to dominate the market. Kickstarter can be that way to start it all and it would be really great to see an IP hit it big starting out as a Kickstarter project from a larger studio.

Now, how about those IPs that you would love to see another installment of? For example, THQ and Volition has said they just don't see a market for another Freespace game even though fans have been clamoring for it. What if Volition did a Kickstarter project trying to fund a Freespace 3? If they went the independent route, they wouldn't have to need as much money to pay for overhead and release the title on Steam like Double Fine is. Don't you think they'd get enough capital to produce a solid sequel?

Think of all the old IPs that have a huge following, but won't get the funding from publishers because they think the risk is too great. How many great titles from the past would be brought back to life this way? Who knows until someone tries and Double Fine's experiment shows there's a market for crowd sourcing games and this could be a great way for a company to bring back a beloved IP without incurring as great of a risk.

With Kickstarter, we could be seeing the start of a new way for companies to fund gaming development. Yes, there are a lot of independent projects out there now, but bigger and bigger development companies could find this as a method to create new IPs when publishers balk at their suggestion. It could also lead to a resurrection of old IPs as well. I do hope Double Fine succeeds with their project and show to others that this is a viable way to go when developing games. If it does happen, let it be known that Double Fine was the company to be one to pull in larger studios in.

The DiRT franchise is rally racing at its finest, and DiRT 3 was a hit among gamers and critics alike.  If you haven't already checked it out, now is a good time.  Well, more accurately, March is a good time because Codemasters has announced that the DiRT 3 Complete Edition will hit stores in March.  The DiRT 3 Complete Edition will include the game (obviously) and more than $30 of additional content.  

You'll see tracks in Asia and Monte Carlo, along with those Gymkhana cars that seek to turn stunt driving into a martial art of sorts and more.

DiRT 3 Complete Edition hits stores next month.

• Double Fine turns to fans (and Kickstarter) to fund new video game
• Third content drop for Modern Warfare 3 hits Xbox 360 gamers on February 21st
• We all know about day one dlc, but day -27 dlc is just silly
• Seven Souls Online: Want in on the beta? We can get you there!
• Mass Effect is once again coming to the small screen - the really small screen
• You got your ESPN in my Grand Slam Tennis
• You've sunk my Battleship, in first person
• Americans, your PSP UMDs won't be transferrable to the Vita
• Depth Hunter: a different type of fishing game

Over at joystiq.com, a funny little picture was posted showing a receipt for a code to activate "Mass Effect 3 FromDust DLC"

What?  Isn't FromDust some other game that came out over the summer and that has nothing to do with Mass Effect 3?  And what kind of screw up, human or otherwise, allows the purchase of dlc almost a month before the game comes out?

Ha ha.  Obviously, it's some kind of mistake.  But it's a funny one nonetheless.  

Of course, if it turns out to be something more interesting than a funny mistake, we here at GN will let you, our valued reader, know.

Today EA released a trailer for Grand Slam Tennis 2 that shows how ESPN will be integrated into the their upcoming tennis sim. The most obvious is the inclusion of Pat Cash and John McEnroe as match commentators, but also Grand Slam Tennis 2 will feature "exclusive ESPN Grand Slam Classics mode."  This mode lets you relive some of the greatest matches in history.  If you wan't to know what some of those greatest matches ever are, you'll just have to watch the video.

Grand Slam Tennis 2 lands on store shelves on February 14, so hopefully you're dating a professional tennis player (and if you are, well done.)

To learn more, find you way to ea.com/grand-slam-tennis-2, or become a Facebook fan.

I know, I know... even mentioning a “fishing game” in the title is enough to turn people away, but don’t go so fast. Game developer Biart is currently marketing a new type of fishing game, one that I could actually see myself trying out. Say hello to Depth Hunter, a spearfishing game. That is right, think fishing and a first person shooter combined into one!

Currently available for the PC, Depth Hunter is headed to both the mobile, XBLA, and PSN platforms later this year. Judging from the trailer for the game below, this could be something I could get behind. There appears to be more to the game than just catching fish as there is treasure hunting and exploration, all while having the ability to mow things down with a speargun. The game will feature full 3D and motion support via peripherals such as the PlayStation Move and Razer Hydra system(s). I am going to have to keep an eye on this as it could have some interesting potential...

The first Remedy developer diary for the upcoming standalone title Alan Wake's American Nightmare discusses the premise and direction of the game. Instead of the Stephen King and Lost inspiration for Alan Wake, American Nightmare is more similar to the chaotic action of Quentin Tarantino and From Dusk Till Dawn. Described as featuring wilder enemies and wilder weapons, American Nightmare looks to be quite an adrenaline-filled experience of battling the darkness and hunting down the supernatural serial killer known as Mr. Scratch.

In addition to the "hefty" amount of content in the main story, gamers can compete for leaderboard high scores in the arcade survival mode titled "Fight till Dawn." Alan Wake's American Nightmare will be released as part of Xbox Live Arcade’s House Party on February 22 for 1200 Microsoft Points or $15.

Before viewing the video, be warned of some downright creepy activities occurring behind the developers.

So it looks like Hawken has gone from "the best-looking mech game you've never heard of" to the kind of game that makes people besides mech-fetishists sit up and take notice.  In the first 24 hours of availability, 100,000 people signed up for the Hawken beta (which, if you haven't yet, you can right now at playhawken.com).

Some other numbers showing the buzz Hawken has begun to generate include 1.9 million views of one trailer on YouTube, 1,400 Twitter followers, and 4,000 Facebook fans.

Hawken is developed by Adhesive Games and will be published by Meteor Entertainment.  The free-to-play title comes out on 12/12/12.

To learn more, you can follow the jump. [READ MORE]

Red Lynx doesn’t deny the fact that they had a hit on their hands with the XBLA version of Trials HD; surely the developers behind a title that racked up more the 2 million in sales has big plans for the sequel. Right? You bet they do!

Red Lynx is finally beginning to open up about their upcoming Trials Evolution after announcing the title at last year’s E3. The game is due out sometime this Spring on the Xbox Live Arcade courtesy of Ubisoft and a new trailer has surfaced which gives us our first glimpses of the new game. This may start off similar to the teaser trailer we saw for the game previously, but if you wait until the end you will get a few shots of what you can expect in the new game? Is that multiplayer races I see?!?!

Today is the day! 38 Studios highly anticipated action-RPG Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is now available on the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3. Fans of both the RPG and action genres are in for a treat as you will find out by either playing the game or checking out our full review.

EA and 38 Studios have also released a new trailer to celebrate the launch of the game which gives you an idea of just how much effect you can have on your own destiny in the world of Amalur! Check it out:

Not only does Hawken look amazing but the name is awesome, don't you think?  Anyway, it was reported by IGN.com today that Hawken was going free-to-play and it's set for release on December 12, 2012.  

Hawken is a multiplayer-only mech action game that was announced last year, but not a lot of information has been made available other than today's news.  Also of note is that PC gamers can sign up for the Hawken beta right now. 

Hopefully Hawken will be as much fun to play as the screenshots make it look.  It's disappointing that it's multiplayer-only, but mech game beggars can't be mech game choosers.

Earlier today, Verizon and Coinstar, owner of Redbox, formally announced a huge partnership that will bring physical and streaming videos to any consumer anywhere. The company will be 65% Verizon and 35% Coinstar, so there is a lot of clout behind it when it comes time to get those rights for digital and physical content negotiated. While the release doesn’t come out and state it, it is highly likely that the streaming service will be coming to at least the Xbox 360 (Verizon has the FiOS app already on the machine) based on Verizon wanting people to “enjoy the entertainment they want, whenever they choose, using the devices and media they prefer, at home or away."  The details were not released, with Verizon citing competitive concerns, but we will know more in the future.

This news is probably pretty disconcerting to Netflix, who has a presence on just about every digital device under the sun for years, but can't seem to get themselves over the top.  However, after several missteps in the last year (1, 2, 3, 4), Netflix seemed to level off (or at least, quit stepping on their own toes) but we still have no idea what direction the company will be going in and how successful they will be at renegotiating their digital rights contracts.

I personally loved this news, as it should make for an interesting battle that hopefully will lead to the consumers getting the win due to the competition.  If anything, maybe the Verizon/Redbox marriage will get us a complete streaming system that includes all movies and television shows that are current.