"It has been nearly two years since the release of Dominions 3: The Awakening.  Two years post release can be a desolate time for most games.  Patches dry up.  Developers have moved onto their next project.  The community ends up a shell of its former glory.  And the games themselves at that point?  Forgotten, their ghosts occasionally conjured on a forum, gone as quickly as they come.
Most games.  But Dominions 3: The Awakening isn't most games. "
OK well the press release is a little over the top (waaaay over) but it gets to the point. After two years developer Shrapnel Games is still releasing patches for Dominions 3:The Awakening. Of course this is good news for fans of the game and if you have never heard of Dominions 3 then by all means CLICK HERE and download theDEMO. Or if your already sucked into the fantasy world that is Dominions then CLICK HERE for the PATCH [READ MORE]

Okay, it looks like Richard Garriott's "Immortality Drive" stunt is starting to scrape the bottom of the barrel.  Not that I've personally been invited, so perhaps this barrel goes deeper.  But instead of high-profile names putting their digitized DNA into the drive, we've got a smattering of nine script writers for sci-fi films, television shows, and comedies.  Among them is Heather E. Ash, television writer for the Stargate SG-1 series; Melvyn B. Sherer, television and comedy writer with credits that include Married with Children and Happy Days; and Daniel Fiorella, longtime contributor to both Mad Magazine and Cracked.

Lord / General / Astronaut British is still scheduled for an October 12th flight to the International Space Station (ISS).  Provided there are no delays.  Which there always are.  And, as a whole, if this mad-scientist scheme doesn't get you to play Tabula Rasa -- nothing will. [READ MORE]

Ever since BioWare released the Neverwinter Nights toolset in 2002, they've brazenly put the power of creation in their community's hands, and have never looked back.  BioWare is following that fine tradition by revealing details on their upcoming Dragon Age: Origins toolset at PAX this Sunday.  Here's some bulletpoints to tantalize, however:

• Create Original Adventures -- Using the rich set of Dragon Age assets and locations as starting blocks, users can modify these stunning areas by adding new quests, characters and scripting to craft their own adventures, fate-defining conversations and cut-scenes.  [Notably less Tolkein-y, let's hope. - ed.]
• Powerful Script Editor -- Users can fully customize combat and creature AI, allowing them to create detailed action sequences full of heart-pounding party-based tactical combat.
• Content Creators Community -- BioWare plans to have a dedicated community are online where content creators can share content easily and get content updates for the toolset.
• Ongoing Toolset Content Updates -- BioWare plans to release additional assets and features for the toolset in the future, allowing for expanded creation of new areas.

Well, well.  That certainly takes care of Gamer Bill of Rights #3 from StarDock.  Here's some screenshots (not new) that gives a hint at what the Dragon Age toolbox can dish out: [READ MORE]

Poor Lara Croft, she's always exploring new places, meeting new animals, and then being forced to kill them.  Here's a new trailer from Tomb Raider:Underworld that has  Ms. Croft exploring a Thai temple and having to take on a pair of tigers.

Added to the Rock Band Music Store is one of Rolling Stone magazine's "25 Best Bands on MySpace":  the Brooklyn-based Locksley.  Locksley contributed a three-pack of songs from their 2007 album Don't Make Me Wait, to include the rollicking drums of the title track, the rollicking guitar licks of "All Over Again," and the rollicking, semi-screamy hooks of "She Does."  It's definitely some tweenie, Generation Y garage pop rock that won't leave Gen X too embarrassed to download it too.

Each track is $.99 (80 Microsoft Points) for one month, but doubles to $1.99 per track (160 Microsoft Points) after that. [READ MORE]

Sins of a Solar Empire was one of the more original strategy games of the year (see Tyler's review) and the folks at Stardock are going to be expanding the series in a unique way.  Instead of larger expansion packs they are going to be rolling out smaller "micro-expansions" over the next year or so.  The first pack, Sins of a Solar Empire: Entrenchment is slated for release later this year and will only set you back $10.  The new pack will add a new Starbase defense platform that you can upgrade over time and allow for a lot of cheap Deathstar jokes.

The other two packs will focus on diplomacy and ship enhancements.   No details on their release were provided.  [READ MORE]

The folks at Stardock released their Gamer Bill of Rights which addresses everything from the purchase experience to the ownership rights and everything in between.  It's a good list of items and I'm interested to see if more PC developers jump on board this or not.  Here's the full list:

1) Gamers shall have the right to return games that don’t work with their computers for a full refund.
2) Gamers shall have the right to demand that games be released in a finished state.
3) Gamers shall have the right to expect meaningful updates after a game’s release.
4) Gamers shall have the right to demand that download managers and updaters not force themselves to run or be forced to load in order to play a game.
5) Gamers shall have the right to expect that the minimum requirements for a game will mean that the game will play adequately on that computer.
6) Gamers shall have the right to expect that games won’t install hidden drivers or other potentially harmful software without their consent.
7) Gamers shall have the right to re-download the latest versions of the games they own at any time.
8) Gamers shall have the right to not be treated as potential criminals by developers or publishers.
9) Gamers shall have the right to demand that a single-player game not force them to be connected to the Internet every time they wish to play.
10) Gamers shall have the right that games which are installed to the hard drive shall not require a CD/DVD to remain in the drive to play.

These are especially important as we move toward digitally distributing games but it's going to require a lot of honesty on the part of gamers and I hope that we can live up to our part of the bargain. [READ MORE]

Here are a few things I missed while marking my territory:

• Gal Civ III is coming, just not any time soon
• Bethesda releases a ton of new Fallout 3 vids in case you're not going to PAX this year
• Valve walks through the evolution of the Demoman class, otherwise known as the bane of my TF2 existence
• Flickr + Wolfenstein 3D = tons of potential for abuse
• Is there a Game Informer cover curse or do they just pick the wrong companies to accept money from?
• Gears of War 2 team over twice the size of Gears of War team
• Yes Variety, Devs should talk to the press, they just shouldn't be asses about it
• 1Up's score inflation called out
• More ink on Billy Mitchel

PATCHES

• Dominions 3: The Awakening v3.20 Windows Patch, Mac Patch, Linux Patch
• Empires in Arms v1.03.14 Patch

VIDEOS

• Dead Space Animated Comic Episode 5 (QT)
• Blackstar Chronicles Teaser
• X3: Terran Conflict Think (MP4)
• Zubo Horror (QT)
• Unsolved Crimes Trailer
• Strange Attractors 2 Trailer (QT)
• Tomb Raider: Underworld Thailand #2 (MP4)
• X-Blades GC 2008 (QT)
• Runes of Magic Housing (WMV)
• Mercenaries 2: World in Flames Launch, Dev Diary #3: Characters (WMV)
• Silent Hill: Homecoming GC2008 (QT HD) [what's new: HD format]
• Aliens: Colonial Marines The Jace Hall Show

SCREENS

• X-Blades (360, PC)
• Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball (Wii)
• Raven Squad: Operation Hidden Dagger (360, PC)
• Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3 (PS2)
• Defense Grid: The Awakening (PC)
• SBK 08 - Superbike World Championship
• RocketBowl (360)
• Ninjatown (DS)
• Supreme Commander (360) [Cybran Base Defense]
• Aion - Tower of Eternity (PC) [Asmodian Ascension Quest]
• Star Wars Galaxies Trading Card Game: Champions of the Force (PC)
• Silkroad Online (PC)

ARTICLES

• Samurai Shodown II, Y's Book I & II, and Castle Crashers.  Defunct Games is happy.
• For a counterpoint to the 9800 GTX+, here's ATI's Sapphire Radeon HD 4850 512MB Toxic Video Card.
• NVIDIA enables SLI on Intel X58 Chipsets for a fee.
• For a full-size solution, universal PC builders will want to read about the Gigabyte MA78G-DS3H Motherboard.
• AtomicGamer forces together a preview for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed on 360.
• Techgage also wrote up an article on the latest announcement from NVIDIA to enable SLI on Select X58-based Motherboards.

Thanks to Defunct Games, TheTechLounge, AtomicGamer, Crackle, Digit-Life, and Techgage for today's News Roundup.

Find the boy, save the town.  Silent Hill: Homecoming switches up an old horror archetype by using a disturbed little boy instead of a disturbed little girl for that added creepy factor.  This video is about a kid named Josh.  Finding him will change everything.

Wired Blog Network's Geek Dad has a review up for Super Swing Golf Season 2 for the Wii as part of his Parents' Guide series. He gives a detailed break down of what, where, why, how, when, who for the title and compares it to two other golf games: We Love Golf and Tiger Woods PGA Tour '09.

Geek Dad describes how the game handles using the Wiimote to simulate swinging a club. The only thing I would add is that as with bowling it's imperative to use the strap, unless you really wanted to buy a new television anyway. Geek Dad also gives gamers a heads up that playing 18 holes can take an hour or more playing solo and potentially much longer with a bunch of friends. Apparently it could be time well spent as you'll actually learn a little about the sport.

While Super Swing Golf doesn't quite have the level of detail of We Love Golf, and lacks the serious weighty proceedings of Tiger Woods, it still manages to provide the majority of information the player needs to make their shot selection.

Ultimately experts looking for a hardcore golfing experience are better off sticking with Tiger Woods. For kids and amateurs, it's a solid pick. If you've been looking for a golf videogame, check out Geek Dad's review of Super Swing Golf Season 2 before making your final decision.

Heads up all you Fallout and Penny Arcade fans. Your favorite web-comic artists have taken time out from prepping for PAX to upload a sixth strip to their Penny Arcade Comic on Bethesda's official Fallout website. The strip tells the tale of one lonely vault dweller and a crate of puppets.

The site is age gated due to the game's rating but well worth the small hassle for the wealth of Fallout 3 information within. Make sure to check out any strips you missed in the Vault.

Yesterday's offering was Escape from the Mindmaster on the Atari 2600. What was unique about this game was it came on a tape and you had to use a special cartridge called a Supercharger to play it. There were some awesome games made for the Supercharger and Mindmaster was one of the best. It had a 3D feel way back then and the mini puzzles scattered throughout the maze were a nice addition.

So what do we have for today? Well, as you can see below, it's an RPG that looked very similiar to a classic Origin game. This game had a really unique end fight and a pretty cool ceremony in the middle of the game.