Starhawk open beta dates revealed, starts next week for Plus subscribers

SCEA senior producer Harvard Bonin just announced on the PlayStation.Blog that Starhawk will transition into open beta starting next Tuesday, January 17 for PlayStation Plus members. This is also the same day that private beta participants can play, so long as you didn't erase your original private beta files, that is.

Two weeks later, January 31, those with vouchers from purchasing Uncharted 3 can finally redeem them. Finally, on February 21, the Starhawk beta will be completely open, allowing anyone on PlayStation Network to play. If you don't want to wait that long, and don't have a voucher, the PlayStation.Blog also mentions that visiting GameStop and PlayStation on Facebook on February 7 could provide the opportunity to join the fray a bit earlier. 

For an in-depth look at how Starhawk's private beta went, check out our interview with Harvard Bonin. 

A new Medal of Honor becoming more apparent

UK retailer GAME pulled an oopsie on Twitter today, revealing that both a new Medal of Honor and Need for Speed were mentioned at a recent EA presentation. The tweet has since been pulled, but not before VG247 was able to jot it down.

"EA presentation was great, had mentions of a new Medal of Honour and Need for Speed 13! EA have an exciting year ahead."

We first saw a new Medal of Honor teased via a flyer found inside the box for Battlefield 3, so with it being presented in a closed-doors environment pretty much solidifies its impending release. But, after writing this post, I can't deny that the real news here is that Need for Speed is up to its thirteenth release! Seriously? Thirteen Need for Speeds?! 

Armored Core V slated for March 20 in US, 23 in EU

Armored Core V, the latest mech-based shooter from From Software, will release in the US on March 20 and in Europe on March 23, publisher Namco Bandai announced today. Coincidentally, that's exactly five years after Armored Core IV released. Fancy that!

As usual, GameStop nabbed a pre-order exclusive: The "Heavy Assault Pack" contains extra parts and weapons for you to outfit your mechanized robot death-dealer, which, obviously upsetting to many, can also be used in online multiplayer. GameStop pre-orders should now just be called, "Day-One Advantage in Multiplayer."

Vita's data service is locked by AT&T

Yeah, this isn't really surprising to say the least, but those who were pondering the idea of swapping out SIM cards to get 3G service on the PlayStation Vita may as well stop now. The Verge reports that the PlayStation Vita is carrier-locked with AT&T, and inserting, say, a T-Mobile SIM card in hopes of obtaining data won't work. 

And as announced earlier in the week, 3G service for the Vita come in two flavors: $14.99 for 250MB, and $25 for 2GB. The PlayStation Vita launches February 22. 

The Darkness II demo is on the way

Starting next Tuesday, January 17, Xbox Live Gold members will be able to demo 2K's The Darkness II, the sequel to the 2007 comic-based first-person shooter. The following Tuesday, January 24, all Xbox Live members will be able to queue up the demo, in addition to Steam users and North American PlayStation Network users. Lastly, the following day, Wednesday, January 25, the demo will be available to PSN users in Europe and Asia. 

This should be plenty of time to make your purchasing decision before The Darkness II releases on February 7. 

Unit 13 makes Vita launch window, releases March 6

Sony just announced at CES 2012--via the PlayStation Twitter account--that Zipper Interactive's Unit 13 will launch for the PlayStation Vita on March 6. Unit 13 is, of course, shaping up to be the Vita's first AAA shooter, and being developed by the team that brought the world SOCOM and the very under-appreciated tactical shooter, MAG, it's hard to think anything less. 

Unit 13 is a tactical shooter that has you completing multi-layered, bite-sized missions and competing against your friends with online leaderboards by taking down HVTs, or High Value Targets. There will be a total of 36 missions spanning nine locations. 

Original Killzone invades PSN January 24

While it was a rumor earlier today, Sony confirmed to GameInformer that the first Killzone title will be releasing on the PlayStation Network on January 24 for $9.99. Don't get your high-definition hopes up, however, as this re-release is a straight port of the PlayStation 2 shooter. 

Although the original Killzone might not meet the graphical fidelity of its modern day brothers, it's still good that many can now see how the fight on Helghan began. 

Binary Domain delayed two weeks

In addition to the new "Bigger than you think" trailer, SEGA today revealed the news that upcoming third-person shooter from the Yakuza team, Binary Domain, has been delayed two weeks. The game will now hit shelves on February 28. Binary Domain was originally slated to release on February 14 and 17 in US and EU respectively. 

Unlock Mass Effect 3 gear by playing Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning demo

By playing the upcoming Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning demo, which releases January 17 on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC, you'll unlock two items for use in Mass Effect 3. Likewise, playing the Mass Effect 3 demo, which comes out later this month, will unlock gear for Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning.

The Mass Effect 3 unlocks are detailed below, and it's also good to note that they were both designed by Spawn creator, Todd McFarlane, which is why the armor in the header pic looks so great.

Mass Effect 3 releases on March 6, 2012.

• Reckoner Knight Armor:  This armor will maximize damage done in close-quarters combat while a beefed-up power cell feeds energy into the weapon systems to increase projectile velocity.
• The Chakram Launcher: This weapon uses a fabricator to manufacture lightweight, explosive ammunition discs. This weapon is earned after completing the Reckoning demo and watching the trailer at the end. 

CES 2012: "Project Fiona" is Razer's new PC gaming tablet concept design

Professional gaming hardware manufacturer Razer today unveiled "Project Fiona," the company's latest PC gaming tablet concept design. In contrast to other gaming tablets which are designed around the casual gaming market, Razer aims to deliver a tablet that will provide a "phenomenal on-the-go gaming experience" by allowing users to play current-generation PC titles. "Project Fiona" is slated to launch Q4 2012 with a price range of $1,000.

"Project Fiona" is powered by the third-generation Intel Core i7 processor, and features a hybrid control user-interface complete with dual controllers with "ultra-precise" analog controls, "ultra-precise" accelerometers, and a highly-sensitive multi-touch screen. Razer hopes "Project Fiona" will provide game developers with "new game experimental opportunities to develop around the hybrid game control experience." Additionally, Razer states the hybrid controls ensures that both popular PC games and touch-based games run on the tablet.

"While multi-touch screens have become the de facto user-interface for tablets, they are not the fight interface for serious PC gaming," said Min-Liang Tan, CEO of Razer. "The user-interface we have designed for 'Project Fiona' allows all existing PC games to be played right out of the box and also provides game developers new opportunities as they develop next-gen games on a highly-intuitive platform. Both developers and gamers are going to love the new user-interface that combines the best of a gamepad, multi-touch screen and accelerometers for an all-new gaming experience on-the-go."

For more on "Project Fiona," check out Razerzone.com.