This trailer shows off over a minute of in-game footage from the upcoming add-on for Sacred 2, Ice and Blood.

This weekend Xbox has hooked up with Linkin Park to offer gamers a shot at playing frontman Mike Shinoda at Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. For your chance to Game With Fame with Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park, Xbox LIVE gold members should send a friend request to Gamertag Mike Linkinpark and be online Friday June 26th 30 minutes before the 4:00 pm EST (1:oo pm PST) start time. You can also follow the game on Twitter.

Linkin Park contributed “What I’ve Done” off their Minutes to Midnight album to the original Transformers live action movie. Their new hit single “New Divide” is on the Revenge of the Fallen soundtrack.

More details from the press release follow the break.

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What if you could play as a walking war-machine construct? A golem of destruction with a pure heart and good soul? This concept might fit naturally into a modern sci-fi setting or even some good old space opera, but a number of years ago – in an attempt to spice things up and introduce some new ideas – Wizards of the Coast sponsored a contest to find its next D&D campaign setting.

Greyhawk, The Forgotten Realms, Planescape, Ravenloft and the various other settings apparently just weren’t as marketable. The company wanted some fresh, new ideas. This opportunity became a chance to let the amateur and professional developers compete to see whose concept would become the next official D&D setting.

The result of that contest was Eberron – a fantasy world in keeping with the core of Dungeons & Dragons, but one that turned things on its ear just a bit with concepts like – Halfling plainsmen riding dinosaurs, living constructs, shapeshifters as player races and adding a very Indiana Jones/Tomb Raider pulp feel to its core adventures placing players in a world that operates on magic, outside the fantasy constraints of pseudo-medieval Europe or even an Asian fantasy amalgam.

Eberron was built around a different mythology and cosmic organization. There exists magic powered public transportation, airships and great dungeons of fallen civilizations alongside an invading alien force and mysterious magical elf ancestors who refuse to go off into antiquities and instead guide the path of the entire elvish race.
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Guitar Hero Smash Hits brings out Guitar Hero’s Greatest Hits for your band. This one’s for the many GH: Would Tour fans of the series that have looked back at Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero II, Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s and Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock and thought man if only those tracks were out for the whole band! I’m really looking forward to my favorites from Blue Öyster Cult’s “Godzilla”, Queen’s “Killer Queen”, Heart’s “Barracuda” and Danzig’s “Mother”. Check out the full list of tracks to pick out your favorites after the jump. You can also visit the GH Smash Hits site to vote for Best Guitar Shred, Best Vocal, Best Bass Lick, Best Drum Fill and more.

While you’re out in stores grabbing GH Smash Hits make sure to pick up the new Guitar Hero On Tour: Modern Hits for your DS. There are 28 new tracks to be shared bringing the total to 75 for the GH On Tour series. Guitar Hero: never leave home without it.

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I’m not usually one to litter the site with “This Game has Shipped!” announcements but the news that the console conversion of CDV/Ascaron’s Sacred 2 is out gives me a good opportunity to talk a little about the game and sing its praises to our readers here at Gaming Today.

So.. first the news:

Sacred 2 will be in stores soon. Its available for the Xbox 360, PS3 and Windows PC platforms. It will retail for around $50 US and you should consider buying it, the folks at CDV would really like that. (Ascaron might also if it hadn’t gone belly up the same day the game went gold – poor developers.)

Now, to the reason why I recommend Sacred 2: Simply, Sacred 2 is like Diablo II on crack after its gone out and finished its Masters degree in Mathematics.

Kill stuff, get loot, power up, kill more stuff. You know the basic formula.. but add in hot hi-tech angels, undead champions and robot dogs to the character list and you have a game that will hold over action RPG fanatics until the eventual release of Diablo III for every system known to man – probably iPhone as well.

Initially Sacred 2 can be a bit intimidating – there is a lot to grasp beyond shooting stuff and collecting loot but the conversion from PC game to Console title went very smoothly for this title. Simply equip a skill or weapon, map it to one of the controller buttons and go to town. Earn upgrades, equip loot, learn new magic powers and go forth to purge the enemies of your character. The game features two main campaigns and each of the character classes has a unique starting point that leads players to wander the world of Ancaria in search of action, adventure and T-energy.

The Console version also supports co-op and online multiplayer too so there is no need to venture out alone. While the game features a lot of generic “step and fetch” quests every once in a while you’ll run across some seriously funny quests that poke fun at the conventions of action RPGs and fantasy games in general. The comments of the characters as they die also should not be missed.

If you’re looking for some great insight into why Sacred 2 is worth your time you can read through Tom Chick’s Sacred 2 Game Diaries over at Fidgit.com. Tom speaks a good deal about the problems that plagued the PC version but also manages to capture the fun of Sacred 2 that I share.

Ascaron and Deep Silver announced an extensive content update today for Sacred 2: Fallen Angel which includes the beta version of the Sacred 2 network.  The holiday update (620 MB) can be downloaded by hitting the badge below.

The update is packed with new features such as new armor, a brand new snow region, 20 new opponents and and some new weapons. In addition, a new series of quests provide a special set of armor specifically designed to get you into the festive spirit. Naturally, many game details were improved as well but details on what they are were not listed with the patch notes we received.

The first beta version of the Sacred 2 network includes a ladder and highscore ranking system allowing you to compare your own performance to that of other community members. You can even win ranks and orders, and legendary characters are immortalized in a Heroes’ Cemetery and a Hall of Fame. You can also use the social network to create your own profile then contact other users, make new friends, or arrange some multiplayer sessions.

The patch and content will be loaded into your game via the auto-update feature when the game is launched – or like mentioned above, you can get it by hitting the badge. You can also check out the screens of the holiday content here on the FileFront game page.

Electronic Arts is being targeted by another class-action law suit over the DRM included with Spore, SecuROM. This time, California resident Alex McQuown is hoping to use Spore to take down SecuROM once and for all.

The grievances listed in Alex McQuown’s class-action suit against EA are much the same as the other suits with three big differences. His lawyers at Finkelstein Thompson claim that SecuROM damages computers costing consumer time and money to repair the havoc caused by its installation. The suit also asserts that EA has needlessly caused its customers grief. The figures prove that piracy of games that carry SecuROM has risen dramatically. The biggest difference in McQuown’s suit is that he invites every U.S. citizen that has purchased an EA product with SecuROM to join the class.
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Here are some demos and patches that hit FileFront this week, and as usual, for the full list of demos click here and for patches click here.

Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals: Lighthouse Interactive released a playable demo for Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals. Paris, 2023: Ruled by a power-hungry dictator, a place where the fascist rich and the abandoned poor are separated by both a literal and figurative wall. As we join our hero Nikopol, the son of an astronaut frozen in space decades ago, we find that a floating pyramid inhabited by Egyptian Gods hovers above the city. As one of their leaders plots to take control of Paris and its people, word reaches Nikopol that his father may be alive and hidden in the city’s underground, a possible pawn in a looming battle. In the search for his father, Nikopol’s journey finds him entangled in political intrigue, caught between two worlds, one of anarchy and one of immortality.

StuntMANIA!pro v3.0.1 (Windows): What’s new in 3.0.1? Fixed: StuntMANIApro logo not appearing on main menu screen, Teleport and Powerup spawn position below ground in Sand Box level, added many more customizable keys into the Keyboard Input Manager, many speed optimizations for lower spec machines, and more. (Mac)

Pyroblazer: Eipix has released a demo for Pyroblazer, a futuristic combat racing game set amidst New Apeiron, players get the opportunity to race through a multitude of environments using a wide selection of anti-gravity craft known as Blazers. In their quest for glory, players can blast their way through the scorched valleys of Gnosis, the deserted cities of Haedra or the densely populated Underdome of Evelads.

Circuit Defenders v1.5.0 (Windows): Circuit Defenders is a fast paced Tower Defense style game, where your challenge is to defend computer circuits from attacking virus armies that are infiltrating the circuits via the BlueTooth port. You have an assortment of defense towers at your disposal, and the ability to upgrade them as needed to ensure you can withstand the enemy onslaught. (Mac)

The Rise of Atlantis (Mac): Find a way to bring the legendary continent of Atlantis back to the surface and restore it to its might. In this extraordinary puzzle game with spectacular new features, handy bonuses and explosive power-ups you set out on an adventurous quest around the ancient lands of Greece, Troy, Phoenicia, Babylon, Egypt, Carthage and Rome to gather the seven greatest powers of the patron god of the Atlanteans – Poseidon. With 77 captivating levels of fantastic game play, truly unique twists never seen before and the ability of continuous replay.

Brainisaurus: Whether you want to ace that standardized exam or beat your friends at Scrabble or Boggle, WordBrain will help you become the king of words with a Word Quotient scoring system, 50 Challenge Levels, Over 40,000 words and many different kinds of word clues.

Lost In Reefs: Rumbic Studio announces the release of a new casual game. Lost in Reefs 1.0 presents a fascinating story that will hold a player’s attention till the ancient city reveals its hidden mystery. It is not a usual match3 game: a variety of modes, options and tools, advanced graphics and the charming undersea world guarantee fun and delight. There are several types of items – gold, fish and tools. The player is to collect necessary resources for building the city. Each new building allows collecting another valuable resource. It is possible to look at what is already built – and to enjoy the special feature of Lost in Reefs: the animation of the undersea world and fishes of different types, swimming to and fro. The fishes are afraid of the cursor, and it is fun to chase them! There are twelve types of fishes that become available as the player advances in the game.The objective of the game is to build and explore the ancient undersea city, but not all the secrets of the older civilization are revealed at once. Only the most skilled and persistent players will discover the wonders of The Heart of the City.

Harvest: Massive Encounter (Windows): Take control of a space colony trying to survive hordes of aliens coming your way to destroy your base in this RTS game developed by Oxyeye Studios that requires an accurate planning of every single move. There are various modes available: Normal, Wave, Insane, Rush or Creative Mode. Each one offering a different kind of gameplay. (Mac)

Patches are listed after the jump.

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cdv Software has a limited collector’s edition for the action-RPG – Sacred 2: Fallen Angel up for grabs providing that you are currently in the possession of and extra $59.99.

The PC collector’s edition is available exclusively through Amazon.com for U.S. consumers and the collector’s edition is available in Canada through Amazon.ca, Future Shop and EB Games Canada.

This special edition of the North America retail version of the game will showcase unique packaging, and the following additional items:

• An extra DVD containing the “Elite Texture Pack,” a set of ultra-high resolution textures for users of high-end computers
• A code to unlock the Carrier Imp, a special “pet” that transports the player’s treasure and additional inventory to its owner whenever summoned.
• A four-song music sampler from Nuclear Blast records, whose artist, Blind Guardian, is showcased in the game’s soundtrack, and an exclusive audio interview with the band and the game’s developer, discussing their collaboration to feature the band in-game.
• A printed map of the world of Ancaria that doubles as posterAn electronic version of the Sacred 2 “Art and Vision” booklet.

The PC verions of the game was released on November 10, and the Xbox 360 version will land in stores on February 17, 2009.

Here are just some gaming related stories floating around on the web today.

• The Left 4 Dead demos for the Xbox 360 and PC are now live. If you are an Xbox 360 user, log into Xbox Live now and get to downloading. If you are interested in the PC version, head on over to Steam.

• Far Cry 2 has sold over 1 million units since it was released around the end of October. Seems like the demand for shooters is still going strong in this day and age–then again, it is the most poplar gaming genre out there, and who could blame gamers for that? What better way to let off a bit of frustration and pent up, pissed off rage than to shoot a bunch of dudes impeding your progress?

• Ascaron’s fantasy RPG Sacred 2: Fallen Angel has arrived in stores today for the PC and via Steam. The PS3 and Xbox 360 versions will be hitting shelves sometime around February 17, 2009 providing there are no more delays. We also have some pretty cool new trailers for you which can be viewed here and here.

• Epic Games president Michael Capps is whining about the used game market cutting into his wallet. “We don’t make any money when someone rents it, and we don’t make any money when someone buys it used — way more than twice as many people played Gears than bought it.”

• iPhone gaming is pretty damn popular. Apparently “NPD report shows more people playing than working with their smartphones”. Get back to work people, the economy needs you!

• Destroy All Humans: Path of the Furon – will release on December 1 according to IGN. Taking over where the last game left off, as Crypto you are sent to the 1970s to thwart a conspiracy that threatens the Furon race.

• Big Fable 2 announcement set to burn up the internet next week. Why even tease people with something like that and just fricking announce it already? Hasn’t Lionhead Studios done this before and it was just a silly bit of nonsense like new screens or something?

• Gene Simmons, ever the entrepreneur, is releasing a guitar peripheral that is a replica of his famous “Axe” guitar for $79.99. It is only for the PS2 and PS3 and should you purchase it, please feel free to send us pictures of you with it–providing you have a tongue as long as Gene’s, otherwise we could care less. Sorry, that’s just the way it is.

• Rock Band junkies can look forward to the Foo Fighters hitting Xbox Live today. “The Colour and the Shape” is an awesome album, and if you do not want the whole album for your game, you can get each song individually.

Here are some files that hit FileFront today:

• Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria– screens, trailers
• Fallout 3 Patch (actually hit over the weekend)
• A Vampyre Story: Halloween trailer–we really screwed up on this one. Sorry it’s so late.
• And for those of you who play or want to try out Mount and Blade, here is a patch and a new demo.
• Full list of trailers can be found here.
• Full list of demos can be found here.
• Last but not least, full list of patches can be found here.