Contest: Civilization: World Beta Codes, News from GamePro

Interested in Civilization: World, the in-development game fromlegendary Civilization creator Sid Meier? GamePro has three codes forthe closed beta to give away.

If you want in on the closed beta, for Civilization: World, we're holding three keys just for you guys. To win the codes, please respond with a short shout-out either onthe GamePro Twitter account,our Facebook page, orour thread on the GamePro forums-– we’re giving away one code through each channel. We’ll randomly pick the winner after 24 hours.

(Twitter) Example:"Hey GamePro, I want to play the @CivGame Civilization: World Beta because _______________"

Winners of the codes, however, will need to provide some information -– full names, e-mail addresses associated with Facebook, and Facebook IDnumbers –- to 2K Games in order to associate the beta with yourFacebook account. So keep this in mind if you’re not willing to partwith this information!

Good luck!

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Students: Buy a Windows PC, Get a Free Xbox 360, News from GamePro

Microsoft has announced a special offer for students looking to purchase a new PC for their studies -- a free Xbox.

Some students, yesterday. The guy at the back didn't get a free Xbox.

Microsoft announced yesterday via theWindows Blogthat it would be offering eligible high school and college students a free 4GB Xbox 360 with the purchase of a $699+ Windows 7 PC from participating retailers.

The offer starts on May 22, and Microsoft claims that"you can buy any kind of PC, although we recommend a few specifically for students."The company also offers a"PC Scout"app on Windows.com as a means of helping customers find an appropriate machine for them.

Customers with .edu email addresses can purchase online, while other eligible students simply need to walk into a participating retailer with their student ID and pick the machine they want -- so long as it's over $699, they'll be able to claim their free Xbox 360.

The offer is alsocoming to Canadafrom May 27, with the requirement being that the purchased machine is from a set range of HP PCs and it costs over CA$599.

Check back with Microsoft on May 22 for the full details -- including, hopefully, a list of participating retailers, which seems conspicuously absent from the announcement post.

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Arma 3 Coming Summer 2012, News from GamePro

Czech-developed military sim Arma II is a highly detailed, complex game that inspired a loyal following of fans. Developer Bohemia Interactive has announced it's working on a sequel.

Arma II is a different breed of military shooter to your average Call of Duty. Featuring 50-player battles, 225 square kilometers of open-world landscape modelled from real-world geographical data and a dynamic campaign that unfolds according to player actions, it's a game that is difficult to get into but has inspired one of the most dedicated communities of players out there. Today, developer Bohemia Interactive has announced that a sequel is on the way, scheduled for release on PC next summer.

The new game features an expanded story-driven single player campaign that promises to"evolve"the player"from a lone prey into a military commander."Taking the role of Cpt. Scott Miller who washes ashore alone in hostile territory, it's up to the player to muster the beleaguered and scattered NATO forces to drive back the Eastern armies.

The game features an enhanced version of the Real Virtuality engine the game is built on, with full support for NVidia PhysX. As with previous entries in the series, it's built for modding, too, with an"easy to use"mission editor included with the package to allow community members to create their own scenarios.

"Our ambition is not only to deliver the next generation of Arma with the improved engine, but also to fully exploit the potential of our new technology in the gameplay,"says Ivan Buchta, creative director of the game."You can look forward to the unique experience of blending sandbox-style combat with a rich story."

Bohemia Interactive will be showing off the new game in private presentations at E3 next month. To find out more, check out theofficial website. As a side note, the older gamers amongst us may be interested to know that Bohemia Interactive is also working on a quasi-sequel to 1988 Amiga action-strategy classicCarrier Command.

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The Witcher 2 Gets Free DLC, News from GamePro

The first piece of DLC for The Witcher 2 is out now, and it's completely free for registered players of the game.

Troll Trouble, the first piece of free DLC for The Witcher 2, is out now, and all you need to do to get your hands on it is to register your game and choose"Downloadable Content"from the launcher menu. The side quest sees Geralt aiming to help a community rebuilt its bridge and deal with a troublesome drunken troll who has been neglecting his duties recently. You can see a preview video for ithere.

Sure, it's a pretty shameless way to provide an incentive for people to register their product, but people probably aren't going to complain too much if it allows them access to free DLC, more of which is on the way in the future.

The Witcher 2 will also have larger"expansion packs"available further down the road, but these will cost money, unlike these smaller pieces of DLC which just include a single questline.

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Sonic Generations Coming to 3DS?, News from GamePro

A financial report from Sega lists the upcoming platformer featuring Sonic's"classic 1991 form"and his modern counterpart as coming to 3DS.

Sega's recent financial reports showed strong growth, with profits more than doubling since the last year. But one of the most interesting things on the report was the upcoming releases chart, reprinted above, with thanks toAndriasang.

The second entry down isSonic Generations, which had previously only been announced as a PS3 and Xbox 360 title. The chart, however, lists the game as coming to PS3, Xbox 360, 3DS and PC. Honest mistake? Or has an E3 surprise been let out of the bag a little earlier than intended?

Sega hasn't commented on the rumor as yet.

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UPDATED: Gotham City Impostors Announced, News from GamePro

Warner Bros. and Monolith just announced a curious-sounding downloadable multiplayer shooter featuring fake Batmen and Jokers.

File this one under"Umm... what?"

Warner Bros. and Monolith have announced that Gotham City Impostors is on the way. The game is a downloadable team-based multiplayer shooter that pits a team of"bat imposters"against a team of"Joker imposters."Both teams are, as their name suggests, dressed as Batman or the Joker, but in an obviously silly way -- they're wearing poor disguises such as masks.

The game will be multiplayer only as there won't be any bot support. Player gear will be customizable, however, including weaponry. So far it sounds as if the weapons involved will be guns, but this being (at least vaguely) Batman related it's possible there'll be some gadgetry in there, too.

UPDATE:It seems the game will be based around 4v4 multiplayer in a variety of modes, including conventional team deathmatch. One of the other modes is called Psych Warfare and tasks players with collecting batteries to put into a brainwashing machine. This, in turn, causes the other team to panic and lose the ability to use weapons.

Customization is an important part of the game, and includes a wide variety of costumes, body types and weapons that affect the way the game plays. Players carry two weapons plus a gadget and a support item. Weapons can be customized with skins ranging from realistic camo to outlandish pink animal-print paint jobs. Gadgets are"homebrewed,"in keeping with the"impostor"theme, and include everything from smoke bombs to roller skates. A progression system unlocks more weapons, items and costume pieces as your level increases, and your kill cam"signature move"can also be customized.

From the sounds of things, Monolith isn't taking things too seriously -- but anyone who ever played their early games such as No One Lives Forever will know that this is very much a good thing. And apparently comic book writer Jim Lee liked the concept so much that we can expect an Impostors storyline in print soon.

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Editorial: More Warfare, News from GamePro

A huge amount of Modern Warfare 3 information was leaked earlier today, making Call of Duty fans understandably excited. Pete Davison stands up for those of us who tire of playing soldiers.

So,Modern Warfare 3, then. I will unashamedly say at this juncture that despite the excitement the industry has shown over the leaked information released today, Modern Warfare 3 is a title which holds almost precisely zero interest for me whatsoever, and I know that I'm not alone in that, either amongst the staff here atGameProor in my wider circle of friends.

The trouble is fatigue. I've played two Call of Duty titles in my time -- Modern Warfare 2 and World at War -- and don't feel the need to ever play one ever again. The stories in both were utterly forgettable -- if spectacularly presented -- and the multiplayer was entertaining for a while, but I found myself pining for a more structured narrative experience after a while, much like the way I feel any time I try out an MMO. In short, the series just isn't for me -- and I'm fine with both that and the fact that there are people out there who enjoy it to the exclusion of everything else, too. The new game may well offer the most spectacular setpieces gaming has ever committed to an HDTV, but the sheer fact that it's another"soldiers and guns"game just a year after the previous one -- not to mention all the"rivals"that have come out in between -- makes me want to look elsewhere for my interactive entertainment.

But Call of Duty is profitable, and this leads to the"TV series"phenomenon, where franchises keep getting trotted out year after year so long as they make money. Eventually, the audience is left so resentful of the franchise that they wish it would just hurry up and finish so that"the next big thing"can come along and replace it. And it's not just Activision that is doing this -- Ubisoft announced this week that it's planning to take this approach with more if its franchises,not just Assassin's Creed. What we end up with, then, is an oversaturated market full of triple-A games with colons in their titles and an increasingly-embittered audience looking for something new to enjoy. Not only that, but once-beloved franchises such as Assassin's Creed become mere shadows of their former selves, the reasons why they were so great in the first place forgotten thanks to franchise fatigue.

But don't despair, because it's not as if there's nothing else to play. In just the next few weeks, solo players have The Witcher 2 and L.A. Noire to look forward to from the mainstream publishers, and this isn't even taking into account the indie market -- a market which is getting easier and easier to explore thanks to Steam and upcoming services likeLittle Indie.

In short, however fed up you may be of the"big name"franchises -- and the way the market is going at the moment, it seems there isn't one of them that won't be milked dry -- you willalwaysbe able to find something else to enjoy. So let the Call of Duty players enjoy their Call of Duty, and you enjoy whatever you want to enjoy. It's what I'm planning to do, and you should too.

So, then, fellow non-CoD fans: what's on your menu for the rest of the year?

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