Quick, Help Fund Gaming Grindr!

I'm a bastard, and have had my head so close to the grindstone, so to speak, that I didn't get to the fabulous Jaime Woo's Gaming Grindr indiegogo as quickly as I should have. Please, watch this vid and if you like, give! There are 9 hours left, because I'm an asshat.

Baldur's Gate Series Coming To iPad

More good news for anyone excited by Overhaul Games' amazing, amazing, a-frakking-mazing plans to revisit/remake/remodel BioWare's beloved Baldur's Gate series: publisher Beamdog announced that an iPad version of both Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition and Baldur's Gate 2: Enhanced Edition will be arriving this summer, alongside their PC counterparts.

Add this to Beamdog's previous statements about making Baldur's Gate 3 one day, and fans of the brilliant RPG series, set in the Forgotten Realms and filled with the very best of D&D goodness, have plenty to smile about.

Minsc and Boo included.

[Via Shacknews]

Blizzard President Apologizes For BlizzCon Video Insult

I just received the following from Blizzard HQ regarding the outcry over the use of an insensitive video at BlizzCon. Blizzard president (and Level 90 Elite Tauren Chieftain band member) Mike Morhaime expressed his apologies for the incident:

Dear members of the Blizzard community,

I have read your feedback and comments about this year's BlizzCon, and I have also read the feedback to the apology from Level 90 Elite Tauren Chieftain. I'd like to respond to some of your feedback here.

As president of Blizzard, I take full responsibility for everything that occurs at BlizzCon.

It was shortsighted and insensitive to use the video at all, even in censored form. The language used in the original version, including the slurs and use of sexual orientation as an insult, is not acceptable, period. We realize now that having even an edited version at the show was counter to the standards we try to maintain in our forums and in our games. Doing so was an error in judgment, and we regret it.

The bottom line is we deeply apologize for our mistakes and for hurting or offending anyone. We want you to have fun at our events, and we want everyone to feel welcome. We're proud to be part of a huge and diverse community, and I am proud that so many aspects of the community are represented within Blizzard itself.

As a leader of Blizzard, and a member of the band, I truly hope you will accept my humblest apology.

- Mike Morhaime President, Blizzard Entertainment

Thank you, Blizzard, for a quick and sincere apology. And thank you Mike, for making it personal: your willingness to take personal responsibility for this snafu transforms the event from an insult to a teachable moment, and those are hard to come by.

To those of you who sometimes wonder if, in the course of our pursuit of equality, we sometimes come across as overly sensitive - this is why. To encourage leaders to speak out on our behalf. It does not happen in vacuum, and it does not happen when we are silent. To that end, and if you still have doubts about the relevance of this entire discussion, I'd like to link to VorpalBunny's astoundingly brave self-portrait, also hosted as a guest editorial at Kotaku, and which was written in response to the discussion following BlizzCon.

Anti-Gay Speech At BlizzCon 2011?

Yesterday I was contacted by our friends at GLAAD, who had some questions to ask about this video and the uncensored original that you'll find below the cut. It seems that Blizzard decided to close out this year's BlizzCon with a performance from Cannibal Corpse Level 90 Epic Tauren Chieftain, with a guest singer - and showed a lead-in video featuring said singer, George 'Corpseater' Fisher, from Cannibal Corpse, talking about his love for the Horde.

The problem? His hate for the Alliance. Specifically, the anti-gay language used to describe them. Though bleeped-out, Fisher's diatribe calls Alliance players a number of anti-gay slurs, and declares that they should die.

(No need to watch the original beyond a minute or so - after that it's just gamer death metal.)

The resulting outcry not only erupted in Blizzard's forums, but has prompted GLAAD to initiate an outreach to Blizzard. Many are disturbed that a senior Blizzard employee endorsed a video saying that players of one faction should die - and still more are outraged that anti-gay speech was used in the promotional video, without regard for LGBT players and despite the fact that gay kids are killing themselves.

So far the response from Blizzard seems to be of the minimizing 'it was a joke' variety. I'm not sure that's going to be enough this time. Find the original video below.

PAX East 11: 'One Of Us' Panel Video

Shalom gaymers! I took a break from my extradimensional exile last weekend to go to PAX East and A) get engaged and B) speak on the IGDA's One Of Us diversity panel. I joined Mark Barlet of AbleGamers and Alexandra Raymond and Regina Buenaroba of The Borderhouse, as well as moderator Alex Horn of Big Huge Games, as we shared our experiences of living on the edges of the gaming world.

Apologies to everyone for the fact that I sound like Charlie Sheen. Tiger blood aside, this was a great experience - I hope you enjoy watching it!

Happy New Year & A Call For Writers!

Hello GayGamer.net readers, we'd like to wish you the very best in 2011, and we hope that you'll all be ringing in the New Year with class, dignity and grace.

...Just kidding!

But we do hope you'll put down your bathtub gin cocktails and vuvuzelas long enough to consider whether or not you'd like to write for GayGamer.net! Now, we know we've had calls for writers in the past, but we've beefed up our back end (really, we have. Ahem.) and will be finally rolling out the big redesign that was scheduled for our fourth birthday this past July, but which was set back quite a bit by the evil schemes of some hackers with small penises bad attitudes.

So if you think you'd make a good fit with the site, even if you've submitted an application before, please consider answering this, our latest call for intrepid internet writing-type adventurers:

• Firstly, this is a volunteer position - meaning there is no pay. We all do this out of the love of the games and the desire to provide a LGBT-safe space for gaming.
• You must be able to commit to doing at least one article a day.
• We are looking for all kinds of writers: male, female, trans... gay, straight, bi... all are welcome and encouraged to apply.

Should you find yourself yelping "Yes! Yes, please! Yeah, I love doing fun stuff for free! Yay!" then please, dear one, apply:

• Send in one or two samples of your writing here with the subject "GayGamer Writer's Application". The best bet would be to write two original pieces (one news item, one opinion piece) as if you were writing something for the site.
• The subject line of your email should read "GayGamer Writer's Application"

Everyone please have the very best New Year possible, and we'll see you in The Future!

GayGamer Of The Week: Rich P.

Name: Rich P.

Forum Name: Keebler Fudge Packer

Age: 27

Location: St. Louis, MO (Go Cards!)

Astrological sign: Pisces (love fishing, hate "fish")

Straight or gay: Queer

Relationship Status: Proudly taken by another Gay Gamer!

Consoles/handhelds you own: PS3, PS2 Slim, PSP, Wii. I have an NES, GameBoy, Sega and Game Gear in retirement at my parents' place. Can't wait for Nintendo 3DS...

Final Fantasy XIV Open Beta Down, Account Management To Blame

Attention Final Fantasy XIV beta testers - I've just heard from our inside source that the Final Fantasy XIV open beta, scheduled to begin at 7pm PDT today, will be postponed until tomorrow. Moreover, previous beta testers will now need to acquire a new key for the open beta.

Square's official word on the situation:

Acquisition of Registration Code for the Open Beta Test

We have an important announcement to the testers who have participated in FINAL FANTASY XIV Closed Beta Test.

Between 19:00 and 19:50 (PDT) on Sep. 1, 2010, an incorrect notice saying "Participants of closed beta test do not need to obtain new registration code for the open beta test." was being made on FINAL FANTASY XIV Open Beta Test Application Site.

Participants of closed beta test also need to obtain and register dedicated registration code for the open beta test. Please follow the directions listed in the mail "Guide to the FINAL FANTASY XIV Open Beta Test," which was sent to the participants of closed beta test on Aug. 31, 2010, and obtain the registration code from FINAL FANTASY XIV Open Beta Test Application Site.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

Though you won't hear this from Square, I hear that a snafu occurred while updating the back end of the Square Enix account management system that rendered every current or previous beta access key invalid and is preventing the issuing of new beta keys for the open beta, already delayed from its intended launch on September 1.

More publicly, eager beta testers overwhelmed the beta test site, rendering it inaccessible to most - Square has now temporarily stopped accepting beta applications. Our insider expects the process to resume more smoothly sometime tomorrow. Follow the Twitter feed for the North American beta test for word of a fix.

E3 '10: Dungeon Siege III

While "We're not talking about that just yet" was the chorus of Square's Obsidian-developed Dungeon Siege III, shown briefly in pre-alpha, the verses were mighty impressive. (I say that as an RPG nut who liked the first few hours of the hours of the original game... and then loathed the rest of it, and the sequel, for being utterly linear and horrendously repetitive.) Obsidian has taken their enormously talented RPG pedigree, inserted the concept of quest hubs, side quests, and nonlinearity to break up the long, long Dungeon Siege highway, and given the series a makeover to be appropriate to the Xbox 360 and PS3.

Only two classes have been revealed, the tank/melee Guardian and the sexy angelic she-warrior Archon. No mention of party size in either solo or local multiplayer - or of online multiplayer - but by the sly grins on the faces of the developers I'm guessing we'll have at least the genre-standard four, perhaps even the much larger parties favored by the previous Dungeon Siege games.

Another Obsidian hallmark is storytelling - not historically the strongest point of this series, but Obsidian is injecting plenty of story and personality with on-the-fly dialog and cutscenes: they won't stop the game or slow down the fast-paced action the series demands, but will enliven the Dungeon Siege universe by spinning a richer yarn as you hack, slash, and cast.

Loot is color coded by rarity and tagged with its value in gold, so you won't waste inventory space picking up that worthless halberd when you could sell that class-specific weapon you can't use for megabucks. No mention of the inventory-expanding tag along mule, although the developers mentioned that they knew it was a fan favorite. I'm hoping they don't include him/her: the animal lover in me doesn't like being violent near my furry friends like mules and musclebears!

E3 '10: Deus Ex Human Revolution

Eidos Interactive and Square Enix showed off a pre-alpha build of Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and I got a chance to see their footage - and was heartily impressed. Eidos has developed a living world that, in the brief bits they showed, wove a story that would make BioWare green with envy - the game that redefined the modern science fiction RPG looks set to do it again with the tale of Adam Jensen, a security agent at a powerful biotech firm embroiled in a global conspiracy. It's 2027 - 25 years before the original game - and augmentations are widely available: cybernetic limbs, skin, and other organs are a regular sight on the streets and in combat, so expect hands that turn into gatling guns, elbows that sprout grisly spears, and other neat stuff.

Those augmentations were part of what made Deus Ex and Deus Ex 2 so memorable, but there are changes - notably regenerating health, although there are the equivalent of med packs for those who don't want (or can't afford) to wait for their HP to regen. The scope of the game is suitably epic, and while being able to interact with every NPC both directly and indirectly does indeed contribute to a living world, the combat/stealth/augmentation aspect plays a greater role in helping Deus Ex: Human Revolution stand apart from its scifi RPG peers. From a base of a clean shooter mechanic, Eidos Montreal has used augmentations and a truly imaginative array of human and cybernetic enemies to create combat situations that look set to raise the bar: you'll see through walls to find skeletons, punch through buildings with ease, and much, much more. You'll also be able to tackle obstacles with different tactics, if you prefer stealth or charisma over brute force.

The environments look simply amazing: think tiered island cities in which streets and buildings rest on the top of skyscrapers, golden sunlight, veils of smoke and over a hundred fictional brands with ads plastered everywhere, and a protagonist who's sexy as all hell. I mean, seriously, robot hands have never looked so hot (except maybe BSG's Anders).

Take a look at the trailer and you'll get a better feel than even during the demo - I have to say, it's one of the best trailers I've seen. Coming to PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 in early 2011.

E3 '10: Sony Presses Move

Sony's press conference this year was a sparkly affair, but little of substance emerged beyond the unveiling of their new subscription program, Playstation Plus, lots of Microsoft and Nintendo jokes, "PS2, still goin' strong!" and of course Playstation Move. Oh, and Kevin Butler came out to reprise his role as the face of the current Playstation ad campaign. But even where Move is concerned, Sony said rather little. Look out for Fruit Brute and VorpalBunny's coverage of their Sony booth tour later on for actual details about Sony's new dual-wielding Wiimote.

What we did hear about Move was largely confined to dollars, and awkwardly at that. Whomever scripted the announcement of the pricing for the Move motion controller... followed by the announcement of the pricing for the other Move motion controller (actual name: Playstation Move navigation controller) should be sent to Career Killing Bad Idea Camp. The crowd groaned, laughed, and generally agreed that it was borderline idiotic to fake-out their audience with a low price, then announce the actual price you'll need to pay if you want the full Move experience.

The pricing is $49.99 for the Playstation Move motion controller and $29.99 for the Playstation Move navigation controller, $99 for both and Sports Champions, Sony's equivalent of WiiSports, as well as a demo disc. Another option is $399 for the Playstation 3 Sports Champion Move Bundle, including a PS3 console, a Playstation Eye Camera, the Move controllers, and the two discs included in the $99 bundle. Check the jump for the official press release, including information about the official charging station.

E3 '10: Playstation Plus

Well, we knew it was coming eventually - Sony's need for revenue is legitimate, but their new subscription service, Playstation Plus, didn't seem like much of a great deal when Jack Tretton announced it today at the Sony press conference. Mostly because Tretton gave very few details - access to "designated" games free of additional charge, exclusive discounts, special content such as avatars, early access to betas; it's all pretty vague.

What's not vague is the $49.99 annual price tag, or the $17.99 three-month subscription. That's 49.99 and 14.99 euro, and 5,000 and 500 yen, for ye on distant shores. Here's the breakdown of Playstation Plus details, such as they are:

• Full game trial*3 - Members will have access to full versions of designated PS3® and PlayStation Network titles including PS one® Archives (PS one® Classics). The titles on offer will be available for download on PlayStation Store for a stated period and change every month. Members will be able to play the full version of the game for a designated period and even after the trial period expires, users will be able to continue playing the game by purchasing the game on-line*4.
• Games - Member will be able to play the full version of designated PS3 downloadable and PlayStation Network titles including PS one Archives (PS one Classics) and minis*5 with no limit of time as long as membership is effective. These games will become available exclusively for PlayStation Plus members at no extra cost.
• Special content - Content such as avatars and custom themes many of which are exclusive will become available for PlayStation Plus members at no extra cost.
• Discounts - Members will have access to exclusive discounts on designated PS3 and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) titles. Titles will vary every month on PlayStation Store.
• Early access - Members will have early access to designated new game beta trials, game demos and video content prior to public distribution.
• Automatic content downloads and updates - PS3 will automatically download and install designated game demos and game updates and also download the system software update data*6. PS3 will automatically start up at a designated time to download content and will turn off after the download has completed.