The video itself isn’t too action-packed, but it gives you an idea of what a game like Skyrim would look like through a pair of Oculus Rift virtual reality goggles. Gallizzi used Vireio Perception drivers to make the port possible, which are a set of drivers that also support Left 4 Dead, Mirror’s Edge, and Half-Life 2.

Gallizzi said that he tested out the port for around eight hours and didn’t experience any problems along the way, proving that triple-A video games are certainly ready for the virtual reality treatment. As far as his experience with the Oculus Rift itself, Gallizzi said he did get vertigo for a short while when dealing with high altitudes in games, but he notes that he’s “a believer” when it comes to VR.

Gallizzi says that the Oculus Rift is a “step in the right direction,” mentioning that it “brings something new to the living room that was only joked about in sci-fi novels.” With modern video games involving only sitting on the couch and moving your thumbs (or just standing and waving your arms with Kinect or the Wii), the Oculus Rift certainly does add a new element to the video gaming experience.

[via Kotaku]

In this trailer you’ll see what’s essentially a terror only seen previously in films such as Hellraiser. Bloody monstrosities emerging from the muck-like blood of the innocent. Spiked wires wrapped around the wrists of the decrepit death-spawn of the most evil pits of darkness our eyes are allowed to see. Stuff like that – you know?

If you’re the type to freak out at the sight of quick flickering images of massacred flesh, we don’t recommend you see the video above. If you’re all about a gaming experience that’ll take you to a new universe of pain, please feel free to join in on the fun! You’ll be glad to know that you’ll experience such eye-pain as you’ve ever before seen!

This game is directed by no less than Shinji Mikami, the man behind the Resident Evil series – imagine that! You’ll find that this game will be bringing on a whole new era of exhilaration and flip-outs on your part, and we’re expecting to see some real gameplay sooner than later. Unless, of course, what we’re seeing here comes straight from the game. You never know!

[via IGN]

It’s actually kind of creepy, like something out of the Saw movies, but we’d probably feel a bit more comfortable if we knew what the teaser was about. The LP is of The Moonbeam Trio, directed by George Shackley, called “Planned program service program no. 416.” We’re not sure what connection this had to Bethesda, but we’re guessing it means something.

And if you’re guessing Fallout, then you better “guess again,” according to Pete Hines, Bethesda’s vice president of public relations and marketing, who says that the Vine teaser is related to Fallout. Then again, it could just be misdirection on Hines’s part, and maybe it is a new Fallout game we’re expecting.

It honestly could be any number of things. Maybe a new Wolfenstein? Who knows, but it seems the developer is looking to gain some attention by teasing a new game, now that they discontinued support for Skyrim and won’t be releasing DLC for it anymore. What do you think the teaser is all about? What game is Bethesda teasing us? Let us know in the comments.

[via PC Gamer]

The new trophies include: “Just Business” where you have to collect the information needed from the Rothwild Slaughterhouse, “Missing Pieces” which requires you to obtain Delilah Copperspoon’s identity from Thalia Timish, “Well Connected” which requires you to purchase all of the Favors in the new DLC, “No Regrets” which is awarded when you to complete the DLC on High Chaos mode, “Redemptive Path” which is awarded when you to complete the game in Low Chaos mode, “Whisper Ways” is achieved if you complete the DLC without alerting anyone, “Cleaner Hands” is achieved if complete the DLC without killing anyone, “Rats and Ashes” requires you to kill someone using a combination of an arc mine and a rat, “Message from the Empress” requires you to perform a drop assassination from the top of the Empress statue, and finally “Stone Cold Heart” is achieved when you speak to the statue of Delilah.

A couple of the trophies, mainly Whisper Ways and Cleaner Hands, will prove a rather difficult challenge, especially for those of you who enjoy assassinating the enemies. For those who don’t know, in Dishonored, you play a bodyguard-turned-assassin after being framed for murdering the empress. You take on missions that will help you get revenge on those who’ve wronged you. You can kill everyone in your way, or you can choose to put them out non-lethally. Each of your actions, good or bad, will ultimately change the course of the game.

There still isn’t a release date for “The Other Side of the Coin”, but it should be coming out soon seeing as the trophies have been leaked, revealing that the story and missions are already created. Dishonored has received great reviews from a huge list of game critics, and these DLCs should provide this game with much-wanted longevity. We’ll keep you posted when the DLC is released.

[via Game Trailers]

This means Dragonborn will go live on February 13, with Hearthfire and Dawnguard following afterward with respective release dates of February 20 and February 27. That isn’t very bad at all, provided you can ignore the fact that Skyrim DLC was missing from PSN for months while Xbox 360 and PC players enjoyed it. Unfortunately, Bethesda says those with German, French, Italian, or Spanish editions of the game will have to wait a bit longer, as its currently finalizing a few things with Sony.

We still don’t know the exact cause of these delays, but we do know that Bethesda struggled quite a bit in bringing Skyrim‘s DLC to PS3. This, naturally, got a lot of fans upset, with many continuously asking Bethesda and VP of PR and Marketing Pete Hines when the DLC was going to arrive. Until just recently, Bethesda wasn’t able to provide answers to those questions, making fans even more angry.

For now, these problems seem to be solved, but if there’s more DLC on the way, there’s no telling if Bethesda will experience the same problems. In any case, it’s good that Bethesda finally figured out its issues, since at one point it was suggesting that PS3 may never see Dawnguard if it couldn’t figure out how to get the DLC working. Are you going to buy Skyrim‘s DLC when it releases on PSN, or is this a case of too little, too late?

[via Bethesda]

Bethesda will release Hearthfire, the DLC that tasks players will buying up a plot of land and collecting the materials to build a house, one week later on February 19. The trio of releases wraps up with the launch of Dawnguard on February 26. Dawnguard was the first Skyrim DLC to launch on Xbox 360 and PC, giving players a chance to join up with the vampire hunting group of the same name or throw in with the vampires instead.

Of the three, Dragonborn is the largest and seems to be most popular. Perhaps the only proper expansion to Skyrim, it adds the island of Solstheim to the game, and takes players through a story line that involves meeting the first Dragonborn. All of that extra content comes with a pretty hefty price tag, however, with Dragonborn costing a pretty significant $20.

Bethesda has struggled in bringing Skyrim DLC to PS3, leaving players to wait months while those on Xbox 360 and PC received regular DLC releases. Possibly as a way to make peace with understandably angry PS3 owners, Bethesda has announced that each DLC will be 50% off for the first week after release. Unfortunately, the dates announced today are only for North America, with Bethesda saying it’s working with Sony Europe to “finalize certification.” We’ll let you know when Bethesda announces those European release dates, so keep it tuned here to SlashGear for more.

[via Bethesda]

Therefore, it’s really only worth pre-ordering if you’re sure this is something you want to buy anyway. Dragonborn will set you back $19.99, and though that price seems a little steep, Xbox 360 players have said plenty of good things about the expansion. In it, you’ll be leaving the lands of Skyrim and adventuring through Solstheim, an island located to the north of Tamriel (specifically, Solstheim is north of Morrowind, where the third game in the series takes place).

While there, you’ll come face-to-face with the first Dragonborn, collecting new weapons and items and fighting new enemies along the way. If you’re a big Skyrim fan, many will tell you that Dragonborn is worth the rather steep cost of admission. At the very least, it seems to be a more worthwhile add-on than Dawnguard and Hearthfire were.

Dragonborn will be available for PC on February 5, 2013. After months and months of waiting for some kind of DLC offering, Dragonborn will also be releasing for PS3 next month, along with Hearthfire and Dawnguard. Are you planning on picking up Dragonborn when it becomes available on PC?

[via Steam]

The beta is of the closed variety, which means that you’ll need to sign a non-disclosure agreement to participate. There isn’t any word on when the beta will officially kick off, which means that it might be a little while before players find out if they were accepted. While you won’t know if you got in right away, there is a little sidebar that pops up on the side of the application that gives you an idea of your chances of being accepted as you fill in information. You probably shouldn’t take that assessment as truth, but it’s a nice feature to have anyway.

Today also saw the release of a new cinematic trailer for the Elder Scrolls Online, this one coming in at nearly six minutes long. Being a cinematic, the trailer naturally doesn’t show any gameplay, but instead a massive battle scene. The battle is certainly impressive, but at this point, we have a feeling that fans are craving more gameplay footage. In any case, have a look at the latest Elder Scrolls Online trailer below.

If you’re interested in signing up for the closed beta, you can head over to the Elder Scrolls Online official site to do so. Keep in mind that there are a lot of people looking to sign up, so you may not be able to submit your application right away. Did any of sign up for the Elder Scrolls Online beta today?

[via Eurogamer]

In addition to the DLC release, Bethesda will also out the 1.8 update for Skyrim on PS3 next month, just ahead of Dragonborn’s launch in February. While no specific release dates for any of the expansions were disclosed, PC gamers will get the Dragonborn DLC on February 5. However, all of the expansions will be 50% off during their launch on the PlayStation Network.

It’s important to point out that the Xbox 360 has had all three DLC packs for some time now. Dawnguard was released in June, Hearthfire in September, and Dragonborn in December. Bethesda said that the delay for PS3 was completely their fault, and while they didn’t mention any specifics about the problem, they were destined to fix it and make things right for gamers.

We are curious to know just how many gamers are still loyal to a game that hasn’t seen any new content in over a year, but the developer’s heavy discount of the DLC packs when they eventually release will hopefully spark the fun back into the game, and we’ll hopefully see more PS3 gamers get back into the groove of things.

[via Eurogamer]

First and foremost, we have the obvious question about new hardware. With Nintendo releasing the Wii U back in November, it’s now up to Sony and Microsoft to really get the next generation of gaming underway. While I’ve been convinced for a while that Microsoft is plotting to reveal the next Xbox sometime this year, to be honest with you, I couldn’t figure out whether Sony was going to announce the next PlayStation this year or wait for 2014. Then Sony started sending out press invites to an event it’s holding at the end of February.

The immediate thought is that Sony will officially pull the veil off the next PlayStation at this event, and that could very well happen. I think Sony wants to get the jump on Microsoft in the next generation, and I also think neither company wants to leave Nintendo alone as the only company with a “next-gen” console on the market for very long. Sony as a whole has been struggling a bit lately, but its games division has been performing relatively well – getting a new console on the market before Microsoft does could mean great things for Sony’s pocketbook. Does this mean that Sony will reveal the PlayStation 4 (or whatever it’ll be called) at this event? I’m not willing to call it either way. Here’s what I am willing to say, though: by the end of the year, both Sony and Microsoft will have revealed their next consoles, and we’ll have one (maybe both) available by the time 2014 rolls around.

While a new PlayStation reveal seems likely for this event, there’s something almost certain to happen there. I think Sony will use this event to announce a price drop on the PlayStation Vita. The Vita hasn’t been performing well at all, and Sony needs to do something if it wants to have any hope of competing against the 3DS. If no one is buying the handheld, no one will want to develop games for it, which in turn means that there’s only one thing to do: cut the price. A Vita price cut has to come this year if Sony wants to stay relevant in the handheld space, the earlier the better. So, it makes sense that Sony will announce such a price cut at an event where its bound to get a lot of press attention.

If announcements of new hardware are coming this year, then it stands to reason that we’ll see a bunch of new properties revealed as well. Of course, 2013 will be chock-full of sequels just like 2012, 2011, and 2010 were, but I think a lot of the big studios are going to step up to bring us exciting new games to play on the new hardware. If you’re suffering from sequel fatigue like so many of us are, just hold on, because once those consoles are revealed, we’ll more than likely see a whole bunch of new IP that we can really sink our teeth into.

Now for game-specific predictions: I think Nintendo isn’t going to waste any time introducing the world to a brand new 3D Mario game for the Wii U. New Super Mario Bros. U is great and all, but it doesn’t exactly serve as a worthy replacement to the likes of Mario 64, Sunshine, and Galaxy. The Wii U has been performing well, but if Nintendo really wants to see consoles flying off the shelves, it will use 2013 to reveal a new HD Mario adventure, preferably before Microsoft and Sony can get their next consoles to retail. I’m hoping that we’ll see the reveal of a new Zelda game for the Wii U, but with Skyward Sword only hitting at the end of 2011, that may be nothing more than a fool’s hope.

Just as well, I have a feeling that 2013 will be the year that Bethesda reveals Fallout 4, complete with the Creation Engine it used in Skyrim. This one is actually a pretty tough prediction, as I think the reveal of Fallout 4 relies heavily on when Sony and Microsoft’s next-gen consoles launch. If we see a new Xbox or PlayStation this year, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Fallout 4 following closely behind. Bethesda put Oblivion on the Xbox 360 early in the console’s life, and by doing so, Bethesda became a much more common name in the gaming community. If it can use Fallout 4 to show off the tech behind these new consoles, I have a feeling it will.

Sadly, 2013 isn’t going to be an all-around great year for Bethesda. The Elder Scrolls Online is scheduled to launch early this year, but I have no problem predicting that it’ll be dead on arrival. Don’t get me wrong, the game looks great and it’s finally giving us a multiplayer Elder Scrolls experience, but I don’t think it’s the multiplayer experience many players wanted. It’ll also come with a subscription fee at launch, which we know now is only something a select few MMOs can pull off. If Star Wars: The Old Republic can’t make it as a subscription MMO, I sadly don’t think The Elder Scrolls Online can either. I hope I’m wrong, because it does look beautiful and I’m excited to finally have a chance to explore all of Tamriel in one game, but I think history shows that it’s going to be an uphill for the battle for the title, and one that’s going to be nigh impossible to win.

Even though I’m beyond excited for the return of SimCity, I don’t think that’s going to be a success either. EA’s insistence on using always-on DRM will be what ultimately kills SimCity, as I have a feeling many SimCity players will experience launch problems very similar to the issues Diablo III had. Fans didn’t like Diablo III for many other reasons, but Blizzard’s use of always-on DRM got things off to a very rough start. I just don’t think a game can survive if it sports always-on DRM, so sadly, players might lose interest in the game only a few short months after its release.

On the other hand, I think DmC: Devil May Cry is going to hit a sweet spot with critics, despite the fact that fans have thrown a fit over the changes being made. Change is always a difficult thing to accept when it comes to gaming, but I think that DmC might just offer the shake up the long running series needs. Early impressions have been good, and while I may end up eating my words sooner rather than later (DmC is out in just a couple of weeks, remember), the game could be the start of something great for the franchise.

2013 will also be the year that Kickstarter proves its worth to the gaming world. A lot of the projects that were funded in 2012 will be releasing in 2013, and while there will be some failures, there will also be some smashing successes. Some games will fail to find an audience outside of backers, sure, but that’s okay – the developers get to make the game they wanted without relying on funds from publishers, and those who were truly interested will get to play it. Unless a studio needs to use some of its own funds to further fuel development, a game funded through Kickstarter doesn’t necessarily need to make millions after launch. In any case, 2013 should be a pretty inspiring year for the game projects that found funding success in 2012.

There is one Kickstarter project from 2012 that might struggle a bit after it’s out of the gate: OUYA. The tiny little Android console has a separate problem from simple games that were funded using Kickstarter, in that it needs support after launch. Yes, it’s an inexpensive console, but I’m still having a hard time seeing how there’s going to be any sort of large-scale success outside of the initial Kickstarter campaign. We shall see soon enough, as OUYA is scheduled to launch in just a few months, and while I don’t think it’ll fail outright, I think that 2013 is going to be a much harder year than OUYA’s makers were anticipating.

So there you have it – some of my gaming predictions for 2013. There’s no guarantee that any of this is going to play out as I’ve predicted, but looking at the lead up to 2013, this is where I feel the industry is headed this year. What do you think? Am I completely missing the mark here, or do you think some of these predictions will play out in the year to come? We’ll find out whether I’m right or wrong soon enough as 2013 is already underway, but in the meantime, leave a comment with your own gaming predictions for 2013 below!

If you already have those games and are just looking for some DLC action, there are plenty of deals to take advantage of. Dawnguard is currently 800MSP (50% off), and while Hearthfire was supposed to receive the same 50% off treatment and go down to 200MSP, that hasn’t happened yet. Major Nelson tells users to check back later if they aren’t seeing discounted prices, so it sounds like Hearthfire is still in for a discount at some point today.

Sadly, there aren’t any Dragonborn discounts to partake in today, probably given the fact that it’s brand spanking new. If you’re shopping for Oblivion DLC instead of Skyrim DLC, Microsoft and Bethesda have you covered. The game’s stellar Shivering Isles expansion is being offered for 600MSP (50% off), while Knights of the Nine is also half-off to come in 200MSP.

There you have it folks – the final day of the Countdown to 2013 sale on Xbox Live. These are some pretty excellent deals to wrap-up with, but the entire promotion has been great for players looking to save. Did you pick up anything during the Countdown to 2013 promotion?

UPDATE: Hearthfire’s 50% discount has gone into effect, meaning that you can nab it from Xbox Live for 200MSP right now. Go crazy and build your dream home, folks!

What’s surprising, of course, is the fact that the DLC has been confirmed for PS3. Bethesda’s struggles with Skyrim DLC on PS3 have been well-documented, with PS3 users receiving none of the DLC Xbox 360 and PC players have. That looks like it’s all going to change with Dragonborn, which is arguably the most exciting expansion released for Skyrim so far.

Sadly, Bethesda’s announcement didn’t give any updates on the progress of Dawnguard and Hearthfire on PS3, which makes it seem like the studio will give those two a pass and jump straight to Dragonborn. As far as content goes, Dragonborn is apparently the expansion to have, but we know plenty of PS3 owners who would love to have Dawnguard and Hearthfire, just like their Xbox 360 and PC counterparts.

At least Dragonborn has been confirmed for PS3, which is much better than nothing. Perhaps this means Bethesda has worked out the issues it’s having with PS3 and that Dawnguard and Hearthfire are coming to the console after all? It’s hard to say, but we’ll let you know if Bethesda says anything else regarding PS3 Skyrim DLC. Stay tuned.

Update: Bethesda has explained why it’s skipping straight to Dragonborn on PS3 in a statement to Eurogamer. “We think Dragonborn is our best add-on for Skyrim yet, and we didn’t want fans to wait long, so that’s our current focus. Each platform takes a lot of time and attention.” When asked about the fate of Dawnguard and Hearthfire, Bethesda replied, “As noted in our blog post, we’re not done with content for Skyrim. When we’re ready to share more details, we’ll update everyone.”

So, it looks like Hearthfire and Dawnguard may still come to PS3 eventually, but don’t expect to hear anything new about them until we’re into 2013. It isn’t the most desirable of situations, but at least Bethesda has confirmed Dragonborn for PS3, which is much better than nothing at all.

[via Bethesda]

Now that the spoiler warning is out of the way, let’s jump in. Naturally, Dragonborn adds a bunch of new achievements, the descriptions of which give us clues as to what to expect in Dragonborn. There’s an achievement named DragonRider that requires you tame and ride five dragons, while another called Solstheim Explorer tasks you with discovering 30 locations on the island of Solstheim, where the expansion is set. It appears that Solstheim will be packed with things to do and places to visit, which is only a good thing.

There will be new shouts players can learn, including one named Cyclone (which is pretty self-explanatory – you summon a small tornado), and one named Bend Will that forces a dragon to fight alongside you. Dragon Aspect is one of the more interesting shouts added in Dragonborn, as it will outfit you in dragon armor, buff your shouts and melee attacks, and summon an ancient Dragonborn who will help you fend off attackers when your health is low. Dragon Aspect can only be used once a day, which is understandable considering how awesome it sounds.

Bethesda has added new dragon types to vanquish in Dragonborn, and it seems that the Morag Tong from Morrowind will be featured as well. There are new creatures called Lurkers that apparently put up quite a fight, and you’ll also encounter a werebear or two during your time on Solstheim. No one is sure if players can become werebears, but don’t be surprised if something along those lines is possible (or added later on).

New weapons and armor include the Chitin and Bonemold armors that were previously revealed, along with Deathbrand and Morag Tong armors. We heard that spears will be added in Dragonborn, but sadly, it seems that players can’t actually use them, as they’re added to the inventory as arrows when you loot them from enemies. The much-loved Waterwalking spell is making a return in Dragonborn, with Bethesda also adding staff enchanting and a new summoning power that the unnamed beta tester didn’t want to spoil.

Finally, players will be able to buy houses in Raven Rock and Tel Mithryn, with all sorts of new imperial forts, caves, landmarks, and Dwemer ruins to explore on the island of Solstheim. The tester reckons players can blow through Dragonborn‘s main storyline in about 10 hours, but for what it’s worth, he says that after 30 hours of playtime he still hasn’t finished it. It looks like Dragonborn will be the expansion players have been waiting for, and it’s out on Xbox 360 tomorrow. Are you ready?

[via Eurogamer]

While there isn’t too much given away in these screenshots, there are enemies that we’ve never encountered before, which is certainly exciting. We get a glimpse at the new armor types that are being added in the expansion – Chitin and Bonemold – and also get to look some of the new weapons that we’ll be collecting in Dragonborn. The screenshots certainly give it that Morrowind feel, so we’re thinking that Morrowind fans will be pumped to pick this up.

As stated above, Dragonborn takes us out of Skyrim and to the island of Solsteim, which was the focus of Morrowind‘s Bloodmoon expansion. It’s there that players will come face-to-face with the first Dragonborn, learning new powers along the way. It certainly sounds like the Skyrim expansion players have been waiting for, so here’s hoping that Dragonborn doesn’t disappoint when it finally arrives on December 4.

Sadly, the Skyrim PS3 DLC situation isn’t looking much better. Bethesda said last week that it will soon share information on additional Skyrim content for PS3, but at the time of this writing, nothing has been revealed. Could it be that Dragonborn will be launching on PS3 before the year is out? We suppose anything is possible, but we’ll just have to wait for more details from Bethesda before we know what’s truly going on. In the meantime, have a look at the new screenshots in our gallery below and let us know if you’re excited for Dragonborn!

Take, for instance, the fact that Dragonborn takes place on the island of Solstheim. The island, which lies off the northern coast of Tamriel, was already the setting of an Elder Scrolls expansion in the past: Morrowind‘s Bloodmoon. Right off the bat, we have our first evidence that Dragonborn will be a beefy expansion rather than a simple piece of new DLC – if Solstheim was big enough to take center stage is a previous expansion, it’s more than big enough to be the setting of a true-to-form Skyrim expansion.

Next we come to dragon mounts. It’s important to keep in mind that Bethesda hasn’t confirmed dragon mounts for Dragonborn, but the trailer for the DLC sure seems to suggest that players will get the chance to ride and control a dragon. If players can do so, that’s a huge feature – one that seems well-suited for an expansion but not a one-off piece of DLC like Hearthfire. That players can do something so epic is another thing that leads us to believe Dragonborn is the expansion we’ve all been waiting for.

In the trailer, we also get to see new enemy types, new weapons, and new armor. Naturally, that’s a no-brainer given the fact that Dragonborn takes place in an all-new setting, but the fact that we’re getting new enemies, weapons, and armor suggests that there’s plenty of content for players to devour. We also have the price to consider – 1600 MSP or $20. That certainly isn’t chump change, and even though Bethesda charged the same amount for Dawnguard, we’re thinking that the studio wouldn’t have an easy time getting away with charging much more. Therefore, $20 is about as much as Bethesda can charge for DLC, and it’s given Dragonborn such a price tag.

Finally, we’ve got the introduction of a new villain. If this were some paltry DLC offering, we wouldn’t be going toe-to-toe with the very first Dragonborn. We’ll have to wait until more details are released before making the final call, of course, but at the moment, Dragonborn is looking like the big Skyrim expansion we’ve all been hoping for.

Of course, dragon mounts haven’t been confirmed yet, but the trailer posted below clearly shows the player character getting onto a dragon and then flying off. This could still be a scripted event, but due to the fact that Bethesda has mentioned dragon mounts in the past, we’re thinking that they might actually be a full-fledged feature in Dragonborn. In the DLC, players will be going toe-to-toe with the Dragon Beast, the very first Dragonborn who is now plotting a return to devour the power of the dragons in Skyrim.

That’s certainly exciting, but we have a feeling that players will be even more excited about the return to Solstheim, an island in northern Tamriel that was the focus of the Morrowind expansion Bloodmoon. The visuals seen in the trailer are certainly reminiscent of the environments in Morrowind, so that should be more than enough to get long time Elder Scrolls fans to hand over their money. We also catch a glimpse of some new armor types in the trailer, as well as some new weapons. Check it out below.

The Xbox 360 version of Dragonborn will be available on December 4 for 1600 MSP. Bethesda hasn’t given a release date for the PC and PS3 versions yet, and sadly, the chances of a PS3 release seem slim considering that Bethesda is still having issues bringing Dawnguard to the console. We’ll be sure to update you once we have more information on Dragonborn, but for now, let us know if you’re planning on picking it up.

Bethesda didn’t confirm any other details, but the listing on Amazon Germany shows a number of goodies included alongside the base game. Those who pick up the Premium Edition will be getting a map of Skyrim, a T-shirt featuring the insignia of the Empire, a handful of postcards featuring Skyrim concept art, and an Elder Scrolls novel dubbed Hell City. If you’re buying on PC, you’ll be treated to a bonus disc that features all sorts of content, including trailers, walkthroughs, a copy of the soundtrack, and a 600-page eBook that we’re assuming is a strategy guide.

The listing gives Skyrim Premium Edition a launch date of December 7, and says that the game will be available for Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. Hearing that, it’s no wonder Bethesda has opted not to include DLC, considering that PS3 players haven’t received any yet. Bethesda’s struggles with bringing Skyrim DLC to PS3 have been well documented, and at the moment it’s unknown if PS3 players will ever get Dawnguard and Hearthfire.

As far as we can tell, this release hasn’t been confirmed for the United States yet. We’ve contacted Bethesda to see if Skyrim Premium Edition will be coming to US shores, and we’ll update this post if we hear back. Keep it here at SlashGear for more details!

We heard that there could be as many as 24 different iPad Mini models when Apple finally gets around to revealing the device, and we got to see the insides of the new iPod Nano thanks a teardown from iFixit. Excited for the Padfone 2? If you are, you’ll be pleased to know that its tablet dock can stand up to some abuse. We found out that Intel’s Q3 profits were negatively influenced by slowing demand for PCs, and heard that the average screen size is on the rise for all types of devices except for “mobile PCs.”

A mysterious Texas Instruments-made chip was found lurking inside Apple’s Lightning cable today, and Verizon is catching some heat for monitoring user activity. PlayMG revealed a dedicated Android gaming device called the MG, and AVADirect put a number of Windows 8 PCs up for pre-order today. We heard that T-Mobile might be getting the iPhone 5 early next year, and were told that LTE customers in the US pay 10 times more than LTE customers in Sweden. If you’re a hardcore gamer, you might be pleased to find out that the rechargeable battery in the Wii U Pro controller could potentially last up to 80 hours on a single charge, and you also might want to check out this snazzy Black Ops II launch trailer.

Bethesda might be working on a new piece of Skyrim DLC called Dragonborn, and controversial company Foxconn admitted to hiring underage workers today. The Xbox 360 was given a new dashboard update, Beats Audio unveiled a new portable speaker that has been aptly named “The Pill,” and Boxee announced a new service called Boxee TV. Finally tonight, we have a review of the LG Optimus G and the Motorola DROID RAZR HD, both by Chris Burns, and Vincent Nguyen talks with Microsoft to get the inside scoop on what makes the Surface such a game-changer. That does it for tonight’s Evening Wrap-Up, enjoy the rest of your night!

Specifically, we’re talking about Solstheim, a rather large-looking island that lies just north of Morrowind and northeast of Skyrim. There are other locations mentioned too, including Raven Rock, Castle Karstaag, Miraak Temple, Telvanni Tower, and the Standing Stones. Even better? It looks like players will be riding dragons at some point in this DLC, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that there will be dragon mounts – Eurogamer points out that it could just be a scripted event.

Still, we know that Bethesda has played around with the idea of dragon mounts, so it may not be long before you can summon a dragon from the skies and fly over the lands of Skyrim on its back. In any case, there were other goodies spotted in the code for beta update 1.8, like mounted spell casting, new armor types, and a few new creates and items that Mardoxx claims are “not that interesting.” PS3 players take note, as PS3 DLC was also specifically mentioned in the code. We’re not sure what the mention of PS3 DLC means, but it may just be a glimmer of hope for players who have been waiting a really long time for Skyrim DLC with nothing to show for it.

It’s been a while since we last visited Solstheim, which was a location in the Bloodmoon expansion for Morrowind. If all of this is legitimate – Mardoxx warns that it could be an elaborate prank on Bethesda’s part – then there is definitely reason to get excited. For now, however, we wait for something in the way of official confirmation from the studio. Stay tuned.

That probably won’t come as a shock to most, considering that Bethesda is responsible for such single player epics as Skyrim, Fallout 3, and Oblivion, but often times publishers will look at a new IP like Dishonored and will decide that they’re not willing to take the risk unless the game can meet a list of desired features. Bethesda, apparently, is not one of those publishers. “I’ve been at a lot of publishers,” Smith said in the interview. “I’ve worked in games for 18 years. I’ve worked independently at times; I’ve worked in big teams, small teams. And I can honestly tell you, no smoke, that this is the smartest group of executives I’ve ever worked with.”

Smith continued by saying that at some points during Bethesda’s talks with Arkane, it was obvious that Dishonored was doing some things that fell outside of Bethesda’s comfort zone. Despite that, Bethesda allowed Arkane to keep its creative vision for Dishonored intact. “And at every step along the way those guys have supported us… This is as close as you’ll get to me saying that I have not had that experience with other publishers I’ve worked with, who forced us to bolt on multiplayer, or who said inane things like ‘First-person perspective doesn’t sell!’ or ‘RPGs don’t sell!’ I can tell you from the inside, 18 years, that this is a crazy, crazy business.

“Long story short: No one ever pressured us to do that. We told them that this was an aggressively single-player game, and they said alright, we moved forward, and that was it.”

It’s great to hear that Arkane wasn’t pressured into doing anything it didn’t want to with Dishonored, and that approach to development seems to be paying off, at least as far as review scores are concerned. The PC version of Dishonored currently holds a 92 out of 100 on Metacritic, while the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions boast aggregate scores in the high 80s. Dishonored is definitely one of the coolest games to launch this year, and we’re happy to see that at least some publishers still know that a single player game can do well in this market that’s dominated by titles with a focus on multiplayer.

Google is said to be looking to the Nexus 7 for inspiration for the next Nexus smartphone, while AT&T was seen touting the fact that it will be offering both the Samsung ATIV smart PC (complete with Windows 8, mind you) and the all-new Samsung Galaxy Camera, which comes packing Android. Earlier today, we reported that Facebook has been auto-liking pages without users’ permission, but it wasn’t long after that Facebook got back to us with a statement telling us its side of the story.

Google finally settled its long-running lawsuit with US publishers today, and Intel announced a new Atom-based storage platform. We had a fair amount of video game news today, with EA and Maxis sharing a new 9-minute gameplay video of Sim City. Nintendo held another Nintendo Direct live stream today, during which the company announced that the special edition Pikachu 3DS XL will be launching in Europe and that a number of its 3DS games were going live on the eShop. Bethesda released Skyrim: Hearthfire on PC today, we caught a glimpse of a tech demo for Notch’s new game 0x10c, and learned that Mists of Pandaria sales are lagging behind launch sales for Cataclysm.

NASA gave us an update on Curiosity’s mission today, and we were introduced to the new PadPivot NST tablet holder. ASUS announced the VivoTab RT for AT&T, and we heard whispers that Logitech is working on a new wireless webcam for Macs. Hitachi announced a new airport gate prototype that quickly sniffs for bombs, and the iNUKE BOOM Junior speaker was revealed (though it’s still pretty big as far as iPhone/iPod speakers go). Microsoft announced it’s acquisition of PhotoFactor this evening, and finally tonight, our own Chris Davies asks if Google+ can eventually replace Evernote.

That does it for tonight’s Evening Wrap-Up, enjoy the rest of your night folks!

That’s all well and good, but while Xbox 360 and PC players are enjoying both Dawnguard and Hearthfire, they’re still nowhere to be seen on PS3. Unfortunately, it looks like that will remain the case for a least a while longer, as Bethesda VP of PR and marketing Pete Hines says that there isn’t anything new to report as far as PS3 DLC is concerned. “I don’t have any info on Hearthfire, Dawnguard, or DLC in general for PS3,” Hines said on Twitter. “We’re still on it. Will share update when I have one.”

Bethesda’s issues with Skyrim on PS3 have been well documented. First, there was that particularly nasty save bug that bloated save files to the point where lag made the game unplayable on PS3, and now, the studio is having some issues porting its Skyrim DLC to the console. Bethesda stays away from specifics when talking about its DLC problems on PS3, so we’re not sure exactly what the studio is dealing with, but we do know that the problems are severe enough that Sony had to step in to lend a helping hand.

Sadly, it’s looking increasingly likely that PS3 players won’t get any Skyrim DLC at all. Bethesda said that it won’t release Dawnguard or Hearthfire on PS3 in a broken state if it can’t solve these issues, and the lack of significant updates suggests that progress is slow-going at best. We’ll be keeping our fingers crossed and watching for more updates from Hines and Bethesda, so keep it tuned to SlashGear for more information.

In other news, it turns out that AntiSec may not have stolen all of those Apple UDIDs from the FBI like the group originally claimed, and the LG Escape was leaked shortly before being confirmed by the company. Toys R Us has a new tablet on offer, and it’s aimed directly at your children, while TTP is looking to give Google Glass a run for its money with some new specs of its own. Speaking of Google Glass, the headsets made an appearance at Fashion Week, with designer Diane von Furstenberg sending her models onto the runway while wearing them.

The FBI has rolled out a $1 billion facial tracking initiative, and it seems that GoDaddy’s network of hosted websites has been taken down by a lone hacker associated with Anonymous. Google says that 180 “fiberhoods” qualify for Google Fiber service after a lengthy preliminary sign-up period, and a new Samsung Galaxy Note II leak suggests that the new phablet will be launching at Verizon. The founder of The Pirate Bay has been deported to Cambodia, while Samsung’s hopes for a 13-megapixel camera in the Galaxy Note II were dashed when LG bought up most of the stock from suppliers.

Sony is launching the first installment in its new Wonderbook series in November, and today is the day that the Steam Big Picture Beta comes to televisions everywhere. Bethesda’s Pete Hines doesn’t see the need for a new generation of consoles just yet, some scientists are now thinking that Mars was too hot to support life in the past, and Nielsen has discovered that the number of teenagers who own a smartphone is on the rise, climbing faster than any other age group.

Finally tonight, we have a few original articles for you to check out. Chris Davies examines the LTE situation with the incoming iPhone 5, while Chris Burns makes the distinction between tablets and laptops when it comes to work and play. Finally tonight, we have a hands-on with the upcoming LG Intuition, so if you want a phablet-like device that isn’t the Galaxy Note II, you might want to take a look at that. Enjoy the rest of your evening, everyone!

When asked if the industry needs a new round of consoles, Hines started by outlining what’s good with the current generation hardware we’ve been using for years. “I don’t think the current generation of consoles are holding us back,” he said. “There is still plenty that we are able to do visually, technically and from a story-telling standpoint. And there’s this huge built-in audience now.” Hines then went on to outline a couple of problems developers face when manufacturers introduce new consoles.

According to him, the problems are “two-fold.” The first is that it can be hard for developers to make games for new consoles when the dev kits they receive typically aren’t a snapshot of the final product. The internal hardware almost always changes from the time developers receive their first dev kits to the time the consoles actually launch, which results in the developers trying to “hit a moving technical target.” This, obviously, can cause some problems for developers who are trying to have a game out the door at the same time new consoles launch.

The second problem Hines has with new console generations is that “your install base always starts at zero.” It’s true that a lot of people buy new consoles immediately after launch, but many consumers also stick to their old consoles for a while, leaving developers to decide between making games for the new consoles exclusively or for both new and old hardware. That seems like it would complicate things a bit, at least until more people start upgrading to next generation consoles.

To be fair, however, these are problems that every developer faces at the beginning of every generation. To hold off on the next generation because developing for constantly-changing hardware can be a headache or because the split in audience forces a developer to choose who to cater to doesn’t make much sense, as those problems are inevitable regardless of when the next generation arrives. In any case, if the rumors are true, the folks at Bethesda could be facing these issues as soon as next year, so the next generation may be launching sooner than Hines would like. Stay tuned.

Boyes says that Sony has been working with Bethesda to get Dawnguard in a playable state, but warned that he couldn’t guarantee that Dawnguard will eventually see the light of day on PS3. “We work with all of our partners to try and solve their problems,” he said at the New York Gaming Conference. “We have a big, broad dev support team that works closely with Bethesda—and with all of our partners — to work with them to solve any sort of issues they have along the way.”

“Of course, I always want everything to work always for everyone. I can’t promise any kind of resolution or timeline but can say that everyone involved is trying their best to get this stuff working.”

Sadly, it seems that Dawnguard missing PS3 entirely is still a possibility. Bethesda first told us about its PS3 issues last week, and since that update was delivered, the studio hasn’t made another official statement on the matter. Bethesda did take some time to assure PS3 users that Dawnguard wasn’t delayed on PS3 because of Hearthfire‘s development on Xbox 360, but other than that, updates on Dawnguard have mostly come from Bethesda’s Pete Hines replying to angry players on Twitter.

Hopefully that isn’t the case, as PS3 players have already experienced a number of headaches with Skyrim. The game was particularly buggy on PS3 after launch, leaving some very unfortunate gamers with unplayable saves. That problem seems to have been fixed for the most part, but this new set of DLC obstacles might prove to be too much for Bethesda to overcome. Stay tuned.

Speaking of the iPhone 5, Apple has prepared itself for the lawsuit Samsung promised should the iPhone maker release device with LTE functionality. iPhone 5 nano SIM cards were also spotted today, leading us to believe that the next iPhone will be launching shortly after it’s revealed. Apple isn’t the only one with an event incoming though, as HTC also started sending out invitations for a September 19 event of its own today. The Galaxy S III has knocked the iPhone 4S out of the top US sales spot, and we enjoyed a rather colorful Nokia Lumia 920 leak today.

After seeing it pop up a few times, Verizon announced the Samsung Galaxy Stellar today alongside the new LG Intuition, and Nokia has teased that some of its Windows Phone 8 Lumias might come complete with wireless charging. The FBI fell victim to a massive AntiSec hack today, and after the FBI agent targeted in the attack called for hackers to help the FBI fend off these kinds of breaches, the FBI called out AntiSec and said it wasn’t involved in any such attack. The Panasonic Toughbook 19 has been reintroduced with new third-generation Intel Ivy Bridge processors, and we caught a glimpse of the Nokia N9, which will sadly never see the light of day.

JXD has a very familiar-looking Android gaming device on offer, and today the Angry Birds spin-off Bad Piggies was given a release date. The Pantech Flex is heading straight for AT&T with a budget price tag, and Syabas has announced the next iteration of its popular Popcorn Hour media player. Bethesda released Hearthfire on the Xbox 360 earlier today, a spec list for the (hopefully) upcoming Panasonic GH3 was leaked, and Huawei has finally given the Ascend D1 – its new flagship device – a release date. Finally tonight, Square Enix has a new Final Fantasy collection for die-hard fans, but you better be ready to hand over a stack of cash if you want to get your hands on it.

That does it for the SlashGear Evening Wrap-Up for this Tuesday. Now, go out and enjoy the rest of your evening!

After buying up a plot of land and gathering the raw materials needed to build a house, players get to choose from a variety of rooms for their home. These range from enchanter’s towers and stables to greenhouses and an armory, and once the house is finished, players will be tasked with defending it from the beasts of Skyrim. These features first made an appearance in the Skyrim Game Jam video Todd Howard showed off at DICE 2012, and at the time Howard said that some of the Game Jam content could make it into the actual game as DLC. Hearthfire was announced only last week, making the lead up to this DLC pleasantly short.

While PC players can probably expect this DLC to land in about a month – give or take a week or two – PS3 players may never see it. Bethesda is currently struggling with the PS3 release of Dawnguard, Skyrim‘s first DLC, telling us last week that it may not be able to fix the problems its facing. If that happens, then Dawnguard may not see a release on PS3, and since Bethesda seems to be expecting the same problems with the PS3 version of Hearthfire, it stands to reason that the home-building DLC might not either.

This, obviously, has some PS3 players up in arms while Bethesda works with Sony to try to come up with a solution. It would be a shame if the PS3 missed out on these two Skyrim DLC packs, but some argue that cancelling them outright would be preferable to releasing them full of bugs. Are you buying Hearthfire today? If you’re playing Skyrim on PS3, what’s your take on this whole DLC situation?

We also got to have a look a bunch of interesting devices and accessories today, ranging from the Lifeproof case for the iPhone4/4S and the Jarba Soulmate to the E-Ink concept phone and the iRobot Scooba 390 and 290. It was definitely an exciting day for new gadgets and devices, so be sure to look through all of those hands-on posts.

The next iPhone made an appearance in some new images today, and in them we get an idea of its measurements. Speaking of rumored iDevices, the iPad Mini has apparently popped in one app developer’s device files, and Apple may eventually face an iPhone 5 stock bottleneck due to a shortage of screens at Sharp. The Nokia Lumia 920 PureView and Lumia 820 Windows Phone 8 handsets suffered a leak today (complete with images of the Lumia 820 Arrow later in the day), and Facebook had to revise its profit forecast by slashing $1 billion from it.

We were introduced to a slew of Windows 8 products today, most of which belong to Lenovo. This includes the Lenovo IdeaCentre A520, the IdeaPad Z series of notebooks, the IdeaPad U510 ultrabook and the Lenovo IdeaCentre B340 and B545 all-in-one PCs. Acer got in on the Windows 8 action as well, introducing the world to the Acer Aspire M3.

It may not be long before your Samsung device can react to your body language, today we seemed to get confirmation that the iPhone 5 is on the way with a new iPhone “recycling” program, and a round of Xbox-branded games have been confirmed for Windows 8 PCs. On the same day that reported images of the next Kindle Fire leaked, we get word that Amazon is planning to announce two new Kindle Fires at its press conference on September 6. The Samsung Galaxy Stellar appears to be hitting Verizon on that same day, and finally tonight, Bethesda has hinted that Skyrim‘s first DLC, Dawnguard, may not make it to the PS3.

That’s all for tonight’s Evening Wrap-Up! Enjoy your weekend folks, and be sure to keep checking back with us here at SlashGear for more news from IFA 2012!

Bethesda doesn’t say flat out in the statement that Dawnguard PS3 has been canceled, but it sure sounds like the studio is struggling in a big way. The studio also points out that even if it manages to get Dawnguard working properly, it will still probably go through this with future content releases such as Hearthfire, which heads to Xbox 360 next week. Have a look at Bethesda’s statement in full:

Earlier in the month, we provided an update on Dawnguard’s status for PS3.

It’s been a few weeks, and we wanted to make sure everyone knows where we’re at with Dawnguard. Skyrim is a massive and dynamic game that requires a lot of resources, and things get much more complex when you’re talking about sizable content like Dawnguard. We have tried a number of things, but none of them solve the issue enough to make Dawnguard good for everyone. The PS3 is a powerful system, and we’re working hard to deliver the content you guys want. Dawnguard is obviously not the only DLC we’ve been working on either, so the issues of adding content get even more complicated. This is not a problem we’re positive we can solve, but we are working together with Sony to try to bring you this content.

We wish we had a more definitive answer right now. We understand the frustration when the same content is not available on all platforms. When we have an update, we will certainly let you know. We deeply appreciate all the time and support you have given us, and we’ll keep doing our best to return that.

So, it appears that the fate of Dawnguard on PS3 is currently up in the air. There is some reason to hope though – when asked on Twitter if the expansion was playable in its current state on PS3, Bethesda VP of PR and marketing Pete Hines responded by saying “Yes, it’s just doesn’t perform well in all scenarios. Some folks would be fine, some would not.” He followed up by pointing out that “every save game is different.” That’s been a big problem for Bethesda on PS3, so it isn’t a surprise that the studio is going through it again with Dawnguard.

Perhaps Bethesda will still get all of the kinks worked out? That’s what a lot of people are hoping for, but the studio has been trying to fix the PS3 version of Dawnguard for a number of weeks now, so things are starting to look a little bleak. Stay tuned to SlashGear for more information, as we’ll have it for you once Bethesda gives more details on the situation.

According to Bethesda’s VP of PR and marketing Pete Hines, that isn’t the case. When asked on Twitter if the delay of Dawnguard had something to do with the production of Hearthfire, Hines replied with “No, they are separate things.” When another fan expressed their disappointment in the fact that Xbox 360 players were getting their second DLC offering while PS3 owners have yet to receive their first, Hines said “We are working on multiple projects, even beyond those two things. The entire team doesn’t work on one thing at a time.”

So there you have it – multiple teams at Bethesda are working on both Dawnguard for PS3 and Hearthfire for Xbox 360. When the PC version of Dawnguard showed up a few weeks back, many were surprised to see that the PS3 version didn’t launch alongside it. At the time, Bethesda said that it wasn’t satisfied with the performance of the PS3 version, and wouldn’t be releasing it as expected. We’re still waiting for that PS3 release date, unfortunately, and Hines even said today that he didn’t have any new information to give.

Let’s take a step away from this Dawnguard debacle for a moment though and examine Hines’ words more closely. While he said that both Hearthfire and Dawnguard PS3 are in development at the moment, he also said that there are other projects in the works at Bethesda. We know that Bethesda isn’t developing the upcoming Elder Scrolls MMO, so Hines’ comments lead us to believe that Bethesda is also working on Fallout 4. DLC woes aside, that’s pretty exciting, wouldn’t you say? Keep it here at SlashGear, as we’ll update you once Bethesda spills more details on the missing PS3 version of Dawnguard.

In Hearthfire, players gain the ability to purchase a plot of land and then use raw materials to begin building their dream home. Judging from the trailer below, there seems to be a number of options for home building, ranging from kitchens and bedrooms to enchanter’s towers and greenhouses. Interior workbenches can be used to fill these rooms with craftable items, and once you’ve finished your house, you can move your spouse in and begin adopting kids.

Bethesda says that you’ll also need to defend your home from monsters, which suggests that there may be some tower defense elements to be found in Hearthfire. Players have the option of hiring a steward to purchase building materials and furnish their homes for them. Stewards can also hook you up with some transportation options, and even bring in a bard to stay in your home and sing songs about how awesome you are.

Hearthfire will be launching for Xbox 360 on September 4 and will cost 400 MSP. We would typically assume that it’s coming to PC and PS3 a month later, but that didn’t happen with Dawnguard, which PS3 players still haven’t received yet. Are you excited to play the role of homeowner, or does Hearthfire leave something to be desired?

As with most Doom-related media, this trailer can get pretty terrifying at times. We’re promised that Doom 3 BFG Edition will include more horror effects than the original did, so the hope is that this new edition is a bit more horrifying than the game we got in 2004. In The Lost Mission, players return to Mars as the last surviving member of Union Aerospace Corporation’s Bravo Team. Naturally, that isn’t a setup for a flowery story, and it isn’t long after arriving that we discover the minions of Hell are there in force.

It appears that this battle won’t only be fought on Mars, as the trailer gives glimpses of what looks an awful lot like Hell. With updated graphics for the current generation, Doom 3 BFG Edition is definitely a game to pay attention to. It also comes packed with copies of the original Doom and Doom II, so if you’ve never played a Doom game before (is that even possible?) Doom 3 BFG sounds like it’ll be a good place to start. Check out the new trailer below.

Doom 3 BFG Edition is coming to Xbox 360, PS3, and PC on October 16, and afterward we imagine id Software will ramp up work on Doom 4. At least, that’s the hope. We’ve known about Doom 4 since 2008, so it can’t be much too much longer until it’s finally released. Still, the team at id is taking Valve’s famous “when it’s done” approach to Doom 4‘s development, so we could be waiting for some time yet.

Unfortunately, PS3 players still have a bit of a wait ahead of them, as Bethesda says that the PS3 version still isn’t up to the company’s standards. There wasn’t any kind of time frame given for its release, and Bethesda apologized to players for not being able to launch the PS3 version alongside the PC version. Have a look at the full statement below:

We are not satisfied yet with Dawnguard’s performance on the PS3. We would like for everyone to have a chance to play Dawnguard, but we aren’t going to release it for PS3 knowing that some people’s experience in Skyrim will be worse. We do everything we can to have our content available to all; from our free updates, to user mods, to paid DLC. We’re as disappointed as our fans when that isn’t the case, but we’ll continue to push for that reality.

Those players have been waiting quite some time for Dawnguard to arrive. Thanks to an exclusivity deal Microsoft struck with Bethesda, Dawnguard has been available on Xbox 360 since June 26. With most fans figuring that the exclusivity period was only 30 days, we were all surprised when July 26 showed up without the release of Dawnguard on PC and PS3 to accompany it. Outrage followed, as those eager fans took to Twitter and bombarded Pete Hines with angry tweets and endless questions about the ETA of the no-show DLC.

Now those questions have been answered, at least partially. To be completely honest, it doesn’t surprise us one bit to hear that Bethesda is having problems with the PS3 version of Dawnguard, considering the PS3 release of Skyrim was filled with some rather nasty bugs. Here’s hoping that the wait for Dawnguard isn’t too much longer for PS3 players, and that when it finally does arrive, it comes free of game-breaking issues.

So, it doesn’t look like it’ll be too long before anxious PC and PS3 players finally have a release date for Dawnguard. Of course, there’s also the possibility that Bethesda will announce that the PC and PS3 versions of Dawnguard have been canceled entirely, so watch out for that. Many were expecting news of its multiplatform release date last week, when the 30-day exclusivity deal with Microsoft was lifted, but such news never showed up. When fans found out that Dawnguard had never technically been announced for PC and PS3, they treated Hines to a barrage of angry tweets. Now that we have the promise of additional information coming sometime in the near future, Hines might finally get to take a break from dealing with upset Skyrim players.

All of this fuss over the PC and PS3 versions of Dawnguard makes us wonder if the outrage is worth it. Skyrim was met with critical praise upon release last year, but with Dawnguard it’s a different story. Skyrim‘s first DLC only managed to garner middling reviews, but to be fair, it seems that a lot of critics had a problem with its steep price more than anything else. Still, it would be a bit unfair for Bethesda to deliver DLC to only one platform and leave the other two in the dust, so we suppose that the angry tweets are at least somewhat justifiable in this case.

Bethesda has said in the past that it’s planning to release multiple pieces of expansion pack-like DLC for Skyrim, but just how many the studio is planning remains unclear. We’re now 8 months out from Skyrim‘s release date, so it seems unlikely that we’ll be getting more than one more piece of DLC for ol’ Skyrim. Bethesda may surprise us though, so keep an ear to SlashGear – we’ll be sure to let you know about this additional Dawnguard information once Bethesda shares it!

Among the updates are what Bethesda calls “general memory and stability optimizations.” More specifically, it fixes the following: crashes related to new water shaders, a rare crash event related to dragon landings, and problems with the loading screens on Xbox 360 that occurred after players purchased an add-on. Other Xbox 360-specific tweaks include Kinect patches for international languages as well as improved English recognition.

In addition, Bethesda said, “Using vampiric grip and swimming no longer prevents swimming animation from playing afterwards.” This update is now in queue for the PS3 and Xbox 360. There is a queue of game patches, and the console manufacturer needs to verify the file before it pushes it to system owners. Now it’s just a matter of playing the waiting game.

[via Examiner]

Doom 3, Resurrection of Evil, and The Lost Missions will all be receiving a graphical makeover to bring them up-to-date with modern day console capabilities. On top of that, audio will receive a boost to 5.1 surround sound, and there’s support for Xbox 360 Achievements and PS3 Trophies. A new checkpoint system has been worked into the game to allow for smoother progression.

One of the sticking points of the original game was the inability to use the flashlight and weapons at the same time. That’s something that has been fixed in this new BFG Edition, with a new “armor-mounted flashlight, allowing players to illuminate dark corners and blast enemies at the same time.” The cherry on top? Doom and Doom 2 will also be included in the BFG Edition.

The Xbox 360 and PS3 versions will be available in the United States on October 16th for $39.99, while the PC version will be slightly cheaper at $29.99. Europe gets in on the action a few days later on October 19th.

This Elder Scrolls Online world will bring the social scale aspects of the best MMOs on the market to the already massively popular world made gigantic most recently in the console-based game Skyrim. The plotline will be set 1000 years before the age of Skyrim and will bring the realm of Tamriel into danger via the daedric prince Molag Bal, who of course will be attempting to pull the world into his demonic realm without pause.

Have a peek at the initial trailer for this game and get ready for the logo, because that’s all you’re going to see!

Game Director Matt Firor, also known for his work on Dark Age of Camelot (another powerful MMO with thousands of dedicated players), spoke up on the project with Game Informer:

“It will be extremely rewarding finally to unveil what we have been developing the last several years. The entire team is committed to creating the best MMO ever made – and one that is worthy of The Elder Scrolls franchise.” – Firor

Sound like the game for you? Or will you be sticking with the undeniable powerhouse that is Diablo III, coming to your living room on the 15th of May? Elder Scrolls Online is still in development and will be released in 2013 for both Mac and PC environments.

The Kinect update will also add voice commands for hotkey equipping, follower commands, and all the menu items. Not only that, you’ll be able to quickly load and save games, as well as access your inventory.

Bethesda has teased the update with a video showing off exactly what you can expect. The full list of voice commands, meanwhile, will be revealed “in the coming weeks.” The studio also says that they’re working on additional add-ons for the Xbox 360 that will be exclusive to the console, which includes new quests, locations, and features.

Bethesda admitted it knew the PS3 could be a problem before the game even launched, but it figured it would be able to eventually patch the title later, so it released the game anyway. Well, that time has finally come. The problem is that as players delved further into the adventure, their save files became unwieldy and caused the game to have extreme lag. The 1.4 update addressed that issue to some extent, but Bethesda still conceded that it wasn’t perfect.

The 1.5 update went live on PC last week, because there is much less red tape if you want to push a download file on a computer than if you want to do the same on a console. Bethesda had to go through the typical Microsoft and Sony hoops for the console version. Nevertheless, it’s finally out now, and players on all platforms are happy. From here on, game updates will be focused on enhancements rather than bug fixes.

[via Ubergizmo]

That is, of course, because as players delved further into the adventure, their save files became unwieldy and caused the game to have extreme lag. The 1.4 update addressed that issue to some extent, but Bethesda still conceded that it wasn’t perfect. Version 1.5 would, hopefully, further address that issue. In fact, developers said that even when they released the game, they already knew the PS3 version might be buggy but they released it anyway.

The 1.5 update is able to go live for PC gamers right away because there is no red tape. The update is also ready to go for PS3 and Xbox 360, but the process of patching a game on either console requires the publisher to go through Sony or Micosoft, respectively. There is a queue of game patches, and the console manufacturer needs to verify the file before it pushes it to system owners. According to Bethesda, the patch was submitted to both Sony and Microsoft 10 days ago. Now it’s just a matter of playing the waiting game.

[via Kotaku]