The bigger title roll-out for 2012 is almost upon us, with a handful of big-name games dropping soon such as The Darkness II, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning or UFC 3 Undisputed, to name but a few, but that hasn't stopped smaller, independent titles from charging forward.

Today James "Jickle" O'Connor takes us through Quarrel, a strategy/puzzler that has made its way from mobile devices to digital platforms like Xbox Live Arcade and, as he confesses, being given the expanded option to include a proper multiplayer component, Leaderboards and the like has helped the game immeasurably.

Click here for his review.

In addition to this morning's news about the upcoming Enhanced Edition of the Witcher 2 -- coming to Xbox 360 on April 17, 2012 with a few hours of extra content and 30+ minutes of new cut-scene footage (as well as that sweet CG trailer) -- we neglected to mention that during the same conference, developer CD Projekt also revealed that all of these new features would also be coming to the PC, and that it would be a free upgrade for existing The Witcher 2 PC owners.

It's not a huge surprise, as the original The Witcher received a similar free bonus months after launch, but that doesn't make it any less utterly awesome of them. You can watch the conference in its entirety embedded below, which outlines the contents of the Enhanced Edition and features a good chunk of gameplay from the Xbox 360 version

Lastly, The Witcher 2 is now on sale on the equally awesome DRM-free distribution service GOG.Com for only US$33.99 -- a fantastic price for what we feel is one of the top PC games of 2011. The Xbox 360 version can also be pre-ordered with a whole bunch of bonus kit via the official Witcher website.

The Witcher: Enhanced Edition arrives on both platforms on April 17th 2012.

The Gearbox Software-developed Aliens: Colonial Marines has been lifted from its initial Autumn release bed here in Australia, to some time in Spring later in the year.

Apparently the FPS-heavy developer wants more time to polish the game, claiming in a statement regarding the delay that "[Aliens: Colonial Marines] is a process of creativity and invention", and that that in itself leads to deadline and goals being "subjective".

The team are also hard at work on Borderlands 2 and Brothers in Arms: Furious 4, plus whatever they have in the Duke Nukem pipeline.

"We don't want to sacrifice the creative process just for the sake of following a blue print," continued the statement. "We prefer to have the creative discovery shape that blue print because our goal is to make a great game, and we are prioritising this goal over the previously targeted date."

Source: Eurogamer.

Capcom have announced two new characters that will be exclusive to the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita versions of the game and they're a little out of left-field. Joining the already exhausting line-up comes Namco's Pac-Man and Capcom's Mega Man. Mega Man has had a rumble or two in the Marvel vs Capcom games, but never like this -- it's bad box art Mega Man, the ugly incarnation of the iconic character, as seen on the 1980s NES box of Mega Man 1.

Check out a video of these guys -- as well as the previously announced Cole (from Sony's Infamous), and Sony Japan mascots Kuro and Toro -- embedded below, or click here for the HD video page.

Street Fighter X Tekken hits PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on March 8th 2012, with a PlayStation Vita offering still to be dated.

Another day, another matinée - here are all the gaming-related videos that have crossed our desktops since the last screening:

• Dead Island "Ryder White" DLC Trailer
• The Darkness 2 "Executions - Torn Apart" Trailer
• The Secret World "Blue Mountain Location" Trailer
• Resident Evil 6 "Developer Message" Debut Trailer
• Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Online Gameplay Teaser Trailer
• Gotham City Imposters "Simple Math" Trailer
• Soul Calibur 5 "Meet Agol, Edgemaster & Soul of Devil Jin" Trailer
• Soul Calibur 5 "Collector's Edition Unboxing" Trailer
• Final Fantasy XIII-2 "Further Gameplay Variety" Trailer
• Binary Domain "Assassination Cut-Scene" Trailer
• Asura's Wrath "History - Part1" Trailer
• Forza Motorsport 4 "CJ Wilson - King of the Track Challenge" Trailer
• Kinect "Star Wars Duel" Trailer
• Blacklight: Retribution "Heavy Weapons" Trailer
• MLB 12: The Show "First Look" Trailer
• Armored Core V "Extended Walkthrough" Gameplay Trailer
• League of Legends: Clash of Fates "Zigg Art Spotlight" Trailer
• Mario Party 9 Gameplay Trailer
• The Sims 3 "Master Suite Stuff Pack Trailer
• MicroVolts "Knox Pow Wow Update" Trailer
• Blazblue: Continuum Shift Extend "Relius Clover" Trailer
• Battlefield Heroes "Vehicle Mayhem" Trailer
• Margaritaville Online "Overview" Trailer
• RISK: Factions "Official" Trailer
• Puddle Gameplay Trailer #2
• Quarrel Xbox Live Launch Trailer
• Crusader Kings 2 "Seven Deadly Sins - Pride" Live Action Trailer
• Crusader Kings 2 PIC 2012 "Developer Interview" Video
• Crusader Kings 2 PIC 2012 "Overview" Trailer

As always, stay tuned for the latest game videos as we get them online!

Michele Ancel's critically acclaimed side-scrolling platformer, Rayman Origins, is finally making its way to PC, with Ubisoft confirming the game will hit retail at the end of March.

Interestingly, Joystiq points out that a bit of Twitter banter has revealed the the game will not be as DRM-heavy as many other Ubisoft games - something the French publisher has been scolded for being aggressive over in the past.

We're announcing Rayman Origins for PC right the hell now! Also, retail versions will have NO DRM. None, zero, zip. Ohemgee! - @NateHawke

Yes, Rayman Origins PC should be available on all e-shops including Steam; and no, it won't include any "complicated" DRM. - @RaymanGame

Of course it will still require online activation, and Steam has its own security features, so "no DRM" is still a bit of a stretch, but it's nice to hear they know there's a consumer issue with Ubi's DRM habits as they currently stand. You can check out our review of the game as played on Xbox 360, right here (9.2/10).

We all knew CD Projekt RED were hard at work porting their PC hit, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, exclusively (for the time being) to the Xbox 360, but today new details regarding the release have emerged alongside a pretty freaking epic trailer, if I might say so.

According to reports, the game will be arriving at Xbox 360 retail April 17, and will feature around four hours of extra content including a new intro cinematic and another 30+ minutes of new cut-scenes. The game also features a lock-on targeting system for combat to take full advantage of the controller. On PC, we scored the game a very respectable 9/10 - check out our review right here.

Watch the announcement trailer embedded below (we don't have a local, unwatermarked version yet), and stay tuned for more info as it become available.

Amidst reports of significant losses for the Q3 fiscal year (ending December 31st), Nintendo of Japan boss, Satoru Iwata, has promised investors the gaming giant will bounce back, reiterating their next home console, Wii U, is on track for a 2012 Holiday release.

While traditionally Nintendo's handhelds have had something of a staggered release; usually dropping in Japan first, followed by North America, Europe and then finally Australia, their home consoles tend to be much closer, with Wii U reportedly arriving in all major retail areas at the same time in 2012.

No other information was revealed, though it's expected Nintendo will divulge all at this year's E3.

Ubisoft took us out to a special event last week at the Sydney International Shooting Centre to showcase their upcoming title in the ever-popular Tom Clancy series of games, Ghost Recon Future Soldier (and they even let us fire off a few rounds while we were there). A tactical shooter with a focus on really capturing the special forces vibe and a healthy dose of cool sci-fi-esque technical tools to expedite the dealing of digital death, it is shaping up to look pretty sweet indeed.

The game is currently scheduled for a May release on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 - and a PC release was recently confirmed as well (although unfortunately we weren't able to get too many details about the PC version just yet). Check out our in-depth preview now for a closer look!

Valve has released a new beta of Steam - this time for mobile, bringing chat and other community features to iOS and Android:

With the Steam app, gamers around the world may chat with Steam friends, browse community groups and user profiles, view screenshots and user-generated content for their favourite games, read the latest gaming news, stay up to date on unbeatable Steam sales, and more.

"The Steam app comes from many direct requests from our customers," said Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve. "Seeing which of your friends are online and playing a game, sending quick messages, looking at screenshots for an upcoming game, or catching a sale - these are all features customers have requested. Mobile is changing way people interact, play games and consume media, and the Steam app is part of our commitment to meet customer demands and expand the service functionality of Steam to make it richer and more accessible for everyone."

Interested parties can check it out now; it is free of charge although it sounds like you might not be able to join immediately. promoted/edited forum item

Blizzard have just announced via their official page that this year they will be hosting a new event, titled "2012 Battle.net World Championship Event".

In light of this new event, Blizzard have decided to withhold the annual Blizzcon event for this year only, which is quite sad as this is usually the time of new announcements and juicy info.

Blizzard Entertainment is proud to announce the 2012 Battle.net World Championship, a major global eSports event featuring some of the best pro-gaming competition in the world.

Slated to take place in Asia toward the end of 2012, the Battle.net World Championship will host this year’s StarCraft II and World of Warcraft Arena World Championship tournaments.

Blizzard gamers and eSports fans from around the world will be invited to attend and witness some of the most skilled pro players on the planet battle it out for cash and glory.

It's no wonder that with 3 major title releases coming out this year (Diablo 3, World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria and StartCraft II: Heart of the Swarm) that it would be wise to give full concentration to these titles.

Let's just hope that with this new event that we can still get some new gossip about any of Blizzard's projects, especially the next-gen MMO, Titan.

The nice chaps over at Green Man Gaming in the UK have remembered that tomorrow is Australia Day, and in addition to sitting around listening to the Triple J Hottest 100, barbequing, and imbibing a few quiet drinks (or quaffing many noisy ones, as the case may be), many people might also like to kick back with a new game. So they are offering 50% off on the recently released Saints Row: The Third (8.5/10 in our review).

The sale kicks off at midnight AEDT; the price dropping 50%, all the way down to AUD$19.99. If you're looking for a fun sandbox game, go buy it!

Following the most recent Australian parliament cabinet reshuffle, there was a bit of uncertainty around the future of the proposed introduction of an R18+ rating for videogames in Australia. Previous Minister for Home Affairs Brendan O'Connor had been a driving force in advocating the change, but we had yet to hear the new guy's thoughts on the matter and it's been quite some time since we've heard of any new developments at all.

GameSpot-AU have reached out to the office of the new Home Affairs Minister MP Jason Clare (formerly Minister for Defence Materiel) for an update on proceedings and have learned that the bill is currently planned to land in the House of Reps in parliament's first session, commencing early February.

According to Gamespot, Clare's office explained that the bill would require support of cross-bench MPs in the lower house, but did not elaborate on why they expected that the Federal Opposition would vote against it. Should the bill pass the lower house, it will then require support of either the Greens of Coalition to succeed in the Senate.

As a somewhat trivial issue among more important topics currently circling Australian parliament, it's not likely that we'll get much more indication as to which way each of the parties and independent MPs might lean until the debates actually happen, but stay tuned for any more significant developments in this tired tale as they develop.

Trion World's well-received 2011 MMO Rift has become the latest third party title to grace EA's download service as the Steam-competitor announces that eleven more publishers have signed on to deliver their digital goods.

EA’s direct-to-consumer gaming platform, will soon feature PC downloadable games from Trion Worlds, Robot Entertainment and nine other game publishers. Starting today, Trion’s MMORPG Rift™ is the first new title added to Origin for purchase and download by PC gamers, with many more titles coming soon.

Additional titles from publishers CD PROJEKT RED, Freebird Games, Recoil Games, Autumn Games, 1C Company, inXile entertainment, Paradox Interactive, Core Learning Ltd. and N3V Games will be available on Origin in the coming months.

EA's persistence with Origin has been met with mixed emotions from gamers as some malign the need for yet another account and location for their online games, while others have been greatly impressed by the download speeds courtesy of EA's liberal use of the Akamai peering network.

This latest batch of smaller independent and niche publishers follows a previous announcement that Ubisoft, WBIE, THQ and Capcom will soon be distributing some of their games on Origin.

Anyone who has been keen for a taste of Gotham City Impostors will be pleased to hear that the PS3 beta has finally begun. Beginning on January 24, 2012, and ending on February 6, 2012, PS3 players can join in the beta with no special code required, just simply follow these steps and you'll be on your way to kicking virtual butt.

1. Create a PlayStation® Network Account (or log in using an existing PlayStation® Network account)

2. From the PlayStation® Network icon on the XMB, select the PlayStation® Store

3.Search for Gotham City Impostors and follow instructions to download; no special code required!

Gotham City Impostors will be available for download on the PC, PlayStation Network and Xbox LIVE in February 2012. Let us know your impressions with the beta, and as always, check out our game page over here for more info.

Last week AusGamers was living it up in rainy old San Francisco where we were invited to check out the latest happenings in the world of Darksiders II, now known as Darksiders II: Death Lives.

We've been talking this game up a fair bit since its unveiling last year, a lot of which has to do with just how awesome the original Darksiders was, but more because upstart developer, Vigil Games, continue to outdo themselves with every piece of media we see for Darksiders II, and the event they invited us to attend really left us wanting more.

Check out our full preview of Darksiders II: Death Lives.

Late last year Sony's hardware division revealed a new device that piqued the interests of the tech-enthusiast community -- a wearable display packing two HD OLED screens and surround sound for head-mounted 3D HDMI-connected viewing. The HMZT1, marketed as the "Personal 3D Viewer" launched in Japan in November and was more recently priced for a US launch in February, but Sony have now let us know that it is actually coming to Australia soon as well.

The HMZT1 boasts a wide horizontal viewing angle of 45 degrees by incorporating an optical lens that suppresses unwanted aberration and distortion. This puts a cinema style virtual screen in front of the viewer’s eyes, creating the equivalent of a 750-inch screen (virtual viewing distance 20m).

The design of this device is such that it results in a feeling of deep immersion with any information unrelated to viewing being isolated. Light from below the HMZT1 can also be intercepted by using the accompanying light shield (shade plate), thereby further enhancing the feeling of being in a movie theatre for the viewer.

Sony have set the Australian RRP at AUD$899 (in contrast to the USD$799 North American RRP) and will be accepting pre-orders from January 27th 2012 via the sony.com.au online store -- no other Australian retailers were mentioned in the media release.

We're yet to try one out for ourselves, but the device has been receiving some warm welcomes from the gadget and games community, including id Software programming legend John Carmack who tweeted "Sony HMZ-T1 OLED displays are excellent:1280x720 real pixels with no resampling, great color, response so fast I notice new artifacts".

Another day, another matinée - here are all the gaming-related videos that have crossed our desktops since the last screening:

• The Darkness 2 Launch Trailer
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 "Liberation & Piazza Maps" DLC Trailer
• Assassin's Creed: Revelations "The Mediterranean Traveler Map Pack" DLC Trailer
• I Am Alive Launch Trailer
• Ninja Gaiden 3 "Weight of the Sword" Dev Diary #1 Trailer
• Darksiders 2 "Death Eternal" Cinematic Trailer
• Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning "Inside Reckoning - Music & Sound" Trailer
• Red Orchestra: Rising Storm "Iwo Jima" Teaser Trailer
• League of Legends: Clash of Fates "Rise of the Bot Army" Preview Trailer
• League of Legends: Clash of Fates "Sivir Champion Spotlight" Trailer
• Rise of Immortals "Ukkonen Spotlight" Trailer
• Heroes of Newerth "Count Dampeer" Teaser Trailer
• SSX "Uber Mondays - Eddie Wachowski" Trailer
• Carrier Command: Gaea Mission "E3 2011 Encore" Teaser Trailer
• Napoleon's Campaigns 2 Debut Trailer
• Warlock – Master of the Arcane PIC 2012 Gameplay Trailer
• Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 "Kinect for Xbox 360 Demo" Trailer
• Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 "Tiger Woods on Kinect" Trailer
• Jagged Alliance: Back in Action Gameplay Trailer
• Gemini Wars "Multiple Star System Maps" Trailer

As always, stay tuned for the latest game videos as we get them online!

Digital Extremes' quad-wielding sequel, The Darkness II, is essentially the first major release of the year and follows in the footsteps of the highly acclaimed, and much loved, The Darkness from Starbreeze.

Today's launch trailer for the game, which arrives at retail on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC February 10, gives potential players a glimpse at the title's mature themes and familiar setting, though avoids the touted visual shift to a more comic-book art style by being presented as a traditional CG trailer. There's also an emphasis on the Darkling, who now plays a bigger part in the game, as well as the varied, and challenging, enemy types you'll be facing.

Watch the full launch trailer embedded below, or click here for the direct page, and be sure to stay tuned for AusGamers' full review coming soon.

Mass Effect 2's DLC roll out was a much more digestible affair than that of the first game. For one, the content was actually pretty damn good, and two: it lengthened the life of the product just enough to keep fans playing much longer than most might have expected. It was also decently priced, as far as this type of thing goes.

Mass Effect 3, however, might very well undo all of the above, as Gamespot points out that a new DLC strategy tied to the game's questionable multiplayer addition (IMO) has downloadable content packaged in with four collectible figurines based on the Miranda, Legion, Mordin and Garrus characters from the game.

"This product contains a code that can be redeemed for bonus content for Mass Effect 3 multi-player that could include powerful weapons to take on the Reapers," reads information on the promotion via toy site Bigbadtoystore.com. "The pack could also include character boosters, weapon modifications, and weapon upgrades to make your multi-player squad stronger. (Content applies to multi-player mode on PC and XBox only.)"

You can buy the four figures as a set for US$80, or US$20 individually, according to the report, though Gamespot are quick to point out that BioWare or EA are yet to officially respond to the find. And if it's true (which it looks like it is), hopefully any single-player or campaign-specific content post-release is much more robust and far less gimicky.