CD Projekt RED, developer of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, released REDkit, the tool behind their acclaimed RPG.

Now in open Beta, REDkit allows players to return to The Witcher 2 to create their own mods and "non-linear RPGs."

"For CD Projekt RED, RPGs are all about telling amazing stories," said Adam Badowski, head of CD Projekt RED. "We want to give players the power to tell the same kind of non-linear, branching stories that made The Witcher games so popular. Our fans have helped us for years to make our games the best they can be, and REDkit is part of embracing our community as a partner in game development."

The developer kit allows players to create new characters, place cameras, create dialogue, and create a dynamic day/night cycle to make the world more believable.

To download REDkit, head here.






 

So much for the top secret concept as 2K Games and 2K Marin are showing off quite a bit of official gameplay footage of their upcoming game The Bureau: XCOM Declassified. The pacing definitely appears to be picking up in the new game as it shifts to a third-person, squad based shooter. THe action looks a lot more intense as you are right in the thick of things this time rather than playing out as a strategy game.

You can check out the new footage below. The Bureau launches on August 20, 2013 for the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3.

Finally, NVIDIA's Shield is an official product and today they've announced the pricing information and pre-order option. For $350, you can own this 5" IPS Tegra 4 hand held that can play Android games and stream Steam games when it comes out in June. Pre-ordering starts May 20th.

Seeing it at CES, I was really impressed by it and was hoping the pricing wouldn't be too bad. At $350, it's at the upper echelon of what I would pay for, but the package is pretty cool. 

Shield will be coming out with Android 4.2.1 and NVIDIA promises monthly updates. We'll see how that goes, but I would love it if they kept up with any OS improvements that Google releases. Apps that don't support landscape will be an issue. When I talked with NVIDIA at CES, I was told this would be unlocked out of the box so if that's the case, I can't wait to see what some hackers can do with it.

I know a lot of folks are going to be interested to see how Shield does. It's a brand new type of product for NVIDIA and it's going to compete with plenty of smartphone options out there. It'll be the first product, if I am not mistaken, to use Tegra 4 and I think it'll be a good example of how powerful the mobile chip can be from Team Green.

We told you last week that the dry spell wouldn’t last long! This week hits the ground running with a bunch of titles for fans of all genres. I will be honest, it is hard to just pick 3 recommendations for this week. There area bunch of great choices out there but since I must limit my selection, I will go with the following trio of sequels:

Anomaly 2: It is time to go back on the tower-offense as the sequel to Anomaly Warzone Earth finally makes its way to the PC. Things are getting really interesting this time around as part two introduces players to the world of a versus tower defense / offense game. Let’s see how you stack up against not only the computer, but your friend.

Sanctum 2: First person-tower-defense at its finest returns in Sanctum 2! If you never played the original, you definitely missed out. The game meshes together two of my favorite genres for an completely original experience. This time around you will get to choose from multiple character classes and a variety of enhancements for both your towers and your character.

Metro- Last Light: This is, without a doubt, THE big title for the week in my books. The original Metro 2033 was such an amazing experience and a game that I consider to be one of the finest of the current generation. After spending countless hours with the sequel, I have no doubt that Last Light will continue in that tradition. From developer 4A Games, the new chapter continues the adventures of Artyum as he learns to live with his decision to wipe out the Dark Ones at the end for the first game. Keep an eye out for our full review VERY soon and just know ahead of time that you are definitely in for a treat with this one.

This week’s full lineup:

• Anomaly 2 for PC
• DUST 514 for PlayStation Network
• Hunter’s Trophy America for Xbox Live Arcade
• Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery for Vita (via PSN)
• Metal Gear Rising Blade Wolf DLC for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3
• Metro: Last Light for PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3
• Sanctum 2 for PC (Steam), Xbox Live Arcade, and PlayStation Network
• Thunder Wolves for PC (Steam)
• Rune Factory: Tides of Destiny for PlayStation 3
• Star Wars Pinball (standalone) for PlayStation 3 and Vita
• Tiny Token Empires for PlayStation Network

Wargame Airland Battle is one heck of a niche game, mostly because it combines two other niche genres into one of the niche-iest strategy titles out there. It works as a standard wargame strategy sim but you set up your units by literally building a deck out of them. For all of its strategic granularity the game also looks pretty too. Check out the trailer below to get a look at the graphics and deck-building mechanics. The game will be out in the next couple weeks on May 23rd.
  [READ MORE]

2K and Firaxis Games have recently released the first video in a new series for Civilization V's next expansion Brave New World.  In this video, we get a sneak peak at how culture and tourism can help lead you to victory.  You can meet new people and obtain famous works of art and music, plus the new Archeology system helps boost tourism as well as you dig up stuff from past events.  If you're a fan of Civilization V, get ready to Enter a Brave New World in July 12th.

GameStop stops taking your PlayStation 2 as a trade-in next month, EVE Online shared its tenth birthday with Orson Welles, and EA just announced The Sims 4 for 2014. By the way, if you were to buy The Sims 3 plus all of its expansions right now, it would cost you $539.78.

What are you playing this weekend?

Russell Archey | staff writer | Twitter @neoscyther
I'll be spending more time with Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move. So far I'm kind of liking it as it doesn't control like the past games. In fact, it's kind of like Pipe Dream, of all things. It's a different way to play the series and requires a different strategy than the past games.

Sean Cahill | staff writer | Twitter @seancahill2
Now that my semester is over and I have a lot more free time outside of work, I'll be kicking Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen into high gear. I've been going back to Tomb Raider to try and knock that off the list (47 percent complete) so it can go on the completed stack. Outside of that, I might indulge in some World of Tanks while testing out a couple new mice and a headset.

Nathan Carter | staff writer | Twitter @natedoggcata
I’ll be putting in some more practice with Injustice: Gods Among Us. I started playing Hawkgirl who is now my anti-Solomon Grundy, Deathstroke and Aquaman spam weapon, and I have Green Arrow and Harley Quinn as my backups. I’ll probably be playing some more Zombie Tycoon 2, which is a really fun real-time strategy for consoles. I have never been a fan of RTS because, for me, it’s usually clicking a bunch of boxes that fill your screen and I have no idea what is going on. Zombie Tycoon 2 simplifies all that, and what you have is a very fun and addicting game. Finally, I am about two years late to the party but I actually picked up and started playing Dragon Age 2 which I really enjoy. Now, I never played the first game. Why does everyone hate Dragon Age 2 again? Doesn't seem like anything is wrong with it to me. 

Nathaniel Cohen | staff writer | Twitter @seven_hells
I'll be spending some relaxing time on Far Cry 3’s Rook Island, stabbing dudes, getting inked, and popping hallucinogenic substances. Other items on my to-do list include more Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, and spending some quality time with System Shock 2.

Sean Colleli | staff writer
I'm in full-on review mode for Zeno Clash II, so I'll be exploring the world of Zenozoik for the most part. I'm also wrapping up my reviews for all the cool tech Nyko released for the Wii U, so I'll be revisiting my modest Wii U library for some final testing.

Jeremy Duff | senior staff writer | Twitter @duff3c
Along with Mike, you can make that two for Metro: Last Light. I love this franchise so much. And Mike, the second one is just as lovely. I have a preview build on the debug Xbox 360 with the first couple of hours of the game on it. You're in for a treat.

Travis Huinker | staff writer | Twitter @travishuinker
I plan to spend some quality time with Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon and hopefully set some time aside for playing the recently-released Neverwinter with John.

Charles Husemann | editor-in-chief | Twitter @chusemann
Another week a bunch more MechWarrior Online to play. I've gone whole hog with a long-range missile boat build and I'm working on tweaking it so that I can safely deliver the "rain of pain" from a distance without taking any direct fire.

Randy Kalista | staff writer | Twitter @randykalista
One of two things is about to happen. Either 1) I square away my EVE Online account and start turning Gaming Nexus into gameEVE nexONLINEus as far as coverage is concerned--John loves this idea--or 2) I flip through my recent shopping spree of Xbox Indie Games and start bashing them into my face one at a time: Snops Attack! Zombie Defense, qrth-phyl, Kodu Game Lab, radiangames Fluid, Arcadecraft, and Quiet, Please! I somehow managed to avoid the top 20 most downloaded, all of which have the word "miner" in the title.

Mike Mahardy | staff writer | Twitter @mmahardy
I'll be playing Metro: Last Light. Metro 2033 is one of my favorite shooters of this generation, so I can't wait to dig into 4A's sequel, especially since they have creative license to deviate from the book's story now. Other than that, I'll be putting more time into Injustice: Gods Among Us and Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon.

And so the march of "get a free game with an Anomaly 2 pre-order" continues.  This time, however, if you pre-order Anomaly 2, you'll receive a free copy of the not-available-anywhere-else Anomaly Korea.  You'll have to visit anomaly2game.com and pre-order it there, but - worst case scenario - typing a new URL into you address bar seems like a small price to pay.

So if you want a second copy of Anomaly 2, maybe to give away to your newborn nephew or brother as a "welcome to Earth" gift, AND a copy of the otherwise unavailable Anomaly Korea then you better get to anomaly2game.com and get to pre-ordering.  It's all only $14.99. [READ MORE]

Stardock has announced that real-time strategy game Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion will be receiving its first downloadable content titled Forbidden Worlds next month. Set in the depths of Trader Space, players will experience a new sector of the galaxy with planets that contains far more variety than previously found in the Sins of a Solar Empire series. The complete list of features include:

• Four new planet types to colonize and exploit (Barren, Ferrus, Greenhouse, Oceanic), each created with beautiful high-res textures.
• New Planet Specialization System: Dedicate your worlds to either social or industrial output. Devoting your planet to social improvements will increase its population and culture, at the cost of trade income and ship production. Choosing an industrial path will limit your growth and culture, but make your planet a trading and ship building powerhouse.
• 15 new research subjects allow the races to conquer and expand onto the forbidden worlds.
• Discover 40 new planet bonuses during your exploration of the galaxy, unlocking the dark past of the Sins’ universe.
• Unlock five new Steam Achievements and display your mastery of forbidden space!

The Forbidden Worlds downloadable content for Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion will launch on June 5 for Windows PC and retail for $4.99.

What's old is hot again it seems as we have another company doing a remake of an old game. Shadow Warrior was a FPS using the Duke Nukem 3D engine from 3D Realms that tried to do an Asian themed Duke. It wasn't bad as I had some fun with it, but it never really took off.

Well, Flying Wild Hog's going to try and bring that IP back to life with a re-imagining of the series. Not much is known yet, but there's a teaser site. I'm guessing we'll hear more about this project in a month or so, maybe at E3.

In the meantime, check out the game as it was back in the day.
 

Techland Games, the developer behind open world survival title Dead Island, recently announced Hellraid, a medieval hack-and-slash game with cooperative mechanics.

Aside form the melee combat, Hellraid showcases magic attacks and weapons in its new teaser trailer. The world and enemies are reminiscent of Bethesda's Skyrim, but the gameplay mechanics look just as crisp as they are in Dead Island.

Techland is also promising strong cooperative aspects, something they excel at, so be sure to check back at GN this summer for more news regarding Hellraid.
 

In a move that certainly left me stunned, our review copies of Fuse were given to us without an Online Pass. Thinking this was some kind of horrible joke I looked underneath the help document that told me the manual was included on the disc, checked behind the cover art, even tried entering the serial number from the Microsoft Authenticity label. Imagine my further surprise when the game didn't even prompt me for an Online Pass. 

In all seriousness this is pretty interesting that EA would skip the Online Pass for such a multi-player heavy game. Our upcoming preview will cover some of the online play along with the game's 'Echelon' mode, and early reports are that it looks pretty good.