Another New F.E.A.R. Map Pack on Live

Sierra scares up more summer content for Xbox 360 shooter

When Sierra unleashed a pair of free multiplayer modes for F.E.A.R. in late June, the publisher promised a series of premium maps over the summer to best utilize the new gametypes. Four of those maps popped up a week later for 500 Microsoft points, and today, we have five more maps, this time for the oddly numbered price of 550 points ($6.87).

Major Nelson brings word of the Synchronicity Pack, which includes three multiplayer maps (Dead Wood, Depot, and Labs) designed for Conquer All and Capture the Flag, along with two (Stockpile and Waterworks) intended for use with the Control and Deathmatch gametypes.
Those seeking synchronicity can now find the pack on the Xbox Live Marketplace.

Heavenly Sword demo on PSN this week

Sony has confirmed to Pro-G that a playable demo of Heavenly Sword, one of the PS3's most anticipated titles, will be released on Thursday, July 26. PS3 owners will be able to grab the demo from the PlayStation Network and sample the action ahead of the game's scheduled September release. Sony tells us that the demo will feature a rope sequence as seen at Sony's Gamers Day which took place in May.

'The Darkness' has too many demons

With all the heat placed on the banned “Manhunt 2,” it's a surprise that "The Darkness" is even on the shelves. It's unrepentantly violent, soaked in obscenity, and stitched to its skin with the occult. Blood goes flying as you summon demons to massacre anyone in your way. To gain power, you devour human hearts. Oh, and did I mention that you also play a Mafia hitman?

"The Darkness" (Rated M), is a new shooter from 2K Games based on the comic book of the same name . The comic — and the game — stars Jackie Estacado, a hitman possessed by an evil entity. Typically, video games based on comic books are botched affairs. Also typically, shooters that pack the dialogue with obscenity fall apart because of cheap attempts to shock.
But give "The Darkness" credit. This game, which is available for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, is bloody yet absorbing — despite a shoddy multiplayer experience and a too-short story. It also looks and sounds great, from the lighting and demonic effects to the gestures of your goodfella buddies. And the wielding of dual pistols (fired with each trigger on the controller) feels perfect.
"The Darkness" starts with young Jackie on his way to do a job for his “uncle” Paulie, head of the Franchetti crime family. It turns out Paulie has other plans for him: The police, who Paulie supposedly bought off, are gunning for Jackie and his mob buddies. To top it all off, Paulie has decided to celebrate Jackie’s 21st birthday by having him shot and blown up. And his is only the pre-credit sequence.

What follows is a blend of “The Sopranos” meets the Devil. You play Jackie, who has even more problems: The Darkness (which sounds like Gollum swallowing Tom Waits) has awakened inside him – and it wants control. With The Darkness, Jackie can sprout jet-black demon heads on tentacles, summon small demons with specialized skills (suicide bomber, gunner, etc.), toss heavy objects, and even open black holes to swallow his enemies. It's good to be evil — and satisfying when you throw down a black hole and make a SWAT team disappear.
Amid your own dark awakening, the Mafia is heading for a civil war. Paulie has stepped on too many toes, and the old timers recruit you to take Paulie out of the picture for good. To do so, you'll carve a bloody swath through New York City, with a couple stops in a frightening netherworld where World War I is constantly refought. This nightmarish no-man’s-land, where the secret of your curse is revealed, is the highlight of the game.
Of course, there's a drawback. Lampposts, flood lights, barrel fires, anything that exudes light will wither your powers. You'll need to shoot out light bulbs more than gun-wielding foes. Tedious, but worth it since The Darkness acts as your regenerative health and armor. You can upgrade your Darkness ability by eating the hearts of the people you've killed. Gruesome? Yeah, but, remember, Jackie is a contract killer, and nobody has the moral high ground in this game.

But for all the fun to be had, “The Darkness” takes only 8-10 hours to finish. That’s far too short when dealing with subjects like a brewing mob war and a generational curse of damnation. Second, there are too many load screens interrupting the action. And when you travel throughout New York, you’ll find that one of the greatest cities in the world is reduced to a handful of bland square blocks. Compare this to the “Spider Man” titles, where all of Manhattan was at your fingertips.
Let’s not forget the multiplayer feature, which can only be described as an abomination. With a choppy frame rate and choking lag, thehe gameplay is reduced to a drunken simulator where you randomly slam into walls and fire your weapon at the ceiling.
If you have to play online, opt for Shapeshifter matches. It's a weak, yet entertaining clone of "Alien versus Predator" where humans battle skittering little demons that can run up walls and tear flesh from their opponents. The twist here is you can morph between human and critter on the fly, making combat a pleasant kind of unpredictable.
Three or four years ago, "The Darkness" might have been better received, but with a short single-player mode and an awful multiplayer, "The Darkness" suffers from too many demons to be recommended as anything except as a rental.
That said, this is the first game ever where you can earn an achievement (or accomplishment on the PS3) for sitting with your girlfriend and watching "To Kill a Mockingbird" in her apartment. So, there's that.

Video game's secret sex scenes spark outrage

The National Institute on the Media and the Family (NIMF), a media watchdog group based in Minneapolis, Minnesota issued a "nationwide parental alert" today. This came after finding out about hidden sex scenes in the popular video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
The game also has been criticised as being too violent. This is not limited to San Andreas: the entire series has come under fire for its content, mostly the last two games, Grand Theft Auto 3 and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

The sex scenes come in the form of a "mini-game" in which the player controls the male with the task of maximising his cohort's "excitment." The hidden game in GTA: San Andreas is not advertised or easy to find but can be unlocked by modifying the game using a program which has been widely available on the Internet for weeks. But for NIMF and the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB), the organization which rates video games and rated GTA: San Andreas 'M' for Mature, the hidden mini-game came as a surprise. As such, the ESRB has launched an investigation into the matter.

To unlock the hidden sex mini-game on the Playstation 2 requires an Action Replay or Gameshark. These devices cannot transfer new content to a console but can enable content already contained on the game disc. The presence of this minigame on an unmodified retail version implies that it was created by the game's creators rather than hackers or the mod community.

Rockstar Games, the game's publisher, refused to comment on whether the sex scenes were inserted by their programmers. Rockstar Games has also said, "We thoroughly support the work of the ESRB, and believe that it has an exemplary record of rating games and promoting understanding of video game content. We also feel confident that the investigation will uphold the original rating of the game, as the work of the mod community is beyond the scope of either publishers or the ESRB."

In the game the character may have girlfriends, and at a certain point in his stats he can entertain his girlfriend with some "coffee". However, the "hot coffee" modification unlocks the secret sex scenes after the two share a drink.

The sex scene portrays oral sex and coitus, but genitals are not shown. A video of the secret sex scene can be found here[1] (warning: contains mature content).
It's interesting to note that modifying a video game's source code is a violation of the software licensing agreement. Rockstar announced that it may pursue legal proceedings against Action Replay, whose device enables the hacking of the console version of San Andreas. When it comes right down to it, its much easier (and quicker) to find free adult content on the internet, or download pornographic movies from a P2P network, than it is to crack a video game.
Rockstar Games may be subject to a Mandatory Recall.