Rebellion have been forced to revoke access to their new game Snipe Elite 3 for a number of Steam users after it emerged that the keys they purchased might have been stolen.

The developers have said that it appears one of the PC retail distributors who had acquired a set of keys for sale noticed that a number of them had been stolen and it is thought that the keys were then sold on to a number of third-party retail websites, with none of the money going to Valve or the original distributors of the keys. Valve have now been notified and revoked access to the game for all of the ‘stolen’ keys.

“We have been saddened to learn that some fans have been caught out by companies selling unlicensed or stolen Sniper Elite 3 Steam keys,” Rebellion posted in an update on Steam to inform of the events, urging all those who had been affected to seek refunds from the place they purchased their key. They have stressed however that they don’t wish to discourage anyone from buying from any legitimate third-party seller of keys, acknowledging that it isn’t the fault of the retailers who couldn’t have known the keys had been taken illegally.

Although a full list of the third-party retailers thought to have unwittingly purchased the stolen keys for further sale has yet to be published, some such as CDKeys.com are already actively refunding all the customers caught out while others have removed the keys from sale on their websites.

Rebellion are also making their pre-order bonus, ‘Target Hitler’, available to all those affected provided they e-mail sniperelite3keys@rebellion.co.uk by July 4^th with proof of purchase and a record of the original Steam key they purchased.

The Sims has been with us now for what seems like forever. There’s been 3 main titles and plenty of DLCs to support the growth of the game’s community and some features of the simulator that allows you to build a life for your Sims that you can only dream of are pretty much a game standard by now. So much so that you’d imagine there couldn’t possibly be a Sims game without them.

Seems swimming pools aren’t one of those things though. At least, according to Maxis and EA.



The news that the new Sims 4 game will not include the swimming pools that are a long-stayed feature of the game has met with some understandable ire from the community on Reddit. Sims Team producer Ryan Vaughan tried to cool the fury by reminding them that many new features to better allow you to customise the houses you build.

“While we recognize that some of you will be disappointed…You should know that we’re building an incredibly strong foundation that is capable of fulfilling every one of your desires in the years to come” he wrote.

The Sims 4 game will include a new ‘fountain’ tool to help create landscapes along with wall height adjustment, dynamic foundation sizing and something called Smart Windows. It’s hoped by the team that these will make up for the removal of things such as the swimming pools and also the toddler stage of a Sim’s life-cycle. The game will be released on September 2nd.

Focus Interactive dropped a new Space Hulk: Deathwing trailer!
The First-Person Shooter set in the famous universe of Warhammer 40,000 from Games Workshop, can now reveal its summer trailer!

Still not showing gameplay footage, but damn, the CGI looks cool.  Check it out below:

This first in-game video, created using the game engine (Unreal Engine 4), plunges you headlong into a Space Hulk, with the game’s main character – a Librarian of the Deathwing,and a squad of Deathwing Terminators, in their a head-on confrontation with the merciless Genestealers. A clash that will prove deadly for the elite warriors of the Dark Angels and the outcome of which has a HUGE surprise in store.

 

This explosive video showcases the amazing work and meticulous attention to detail by developers Streum On studio. Theelite squad of the Space Marines repels the attacks of the Genestealers with heavy fire from their Storm Bolters and Assault Cannons, destroying the most reckless creatures with crushing blows from Force Swords and Power Fists. You can see the incredible level of detail on the smallest game elements: the Tactical Dreadnought Armour of the Deathwing Terminators, their weapons, the Genestealers, and the backdrop are all rendered with a care that will astound any fan of Warhammer 40,000!

Looking forward to this game, lets hope we get some gameplay footage soon!

The first major event for Wildstar is coming up in early July, and it looks to be rather interesting. Wildstar already has a rather tongue in cheek sense of humor built in, and the Strain looks to push that even further. According to Carbine:

“Born in the depths of a mysterious Eldan laboratory, the Strain is a virulent biological anomaly that has begun to spread across planet Nexus. With the power to change lifeforms into terrifying, mutated abominations, the Strain is an unimaginably dangerous threat.

All efforts to fight this nightmarish plague have met with failure. It is only a matter of time before it destroys all life on Nexus and beyond.

Who created the Strain, and for what purpose? Does it have anything to do with what happened to the Eldan? And can the universe be saved, or is already too late?”

If this wasn’t enough to get you excited, then the promise of shiny new loot and even more housing options certainly should be. Want to put a lab of biological horrors next to your humble abode? You can do that now. Giant purple eyeballs on tentacles? Check. How about a sarlacc like maw in the lawn? Yup. New emotes, mount customizations and more are all part of the Strain Ultra Drop. In addition two zones will be available, one of which promises shiny new loot and challenges for max level players.

As someone who has burned through a ton of monsters on the way to level 50, I find myself particularly excited about this event. Not only is it the first one we get to participate in on Nexus, but Carbine seems intent on providing not just new challenges and monsters, but new areas and tons of new ways to customize our houses. Given that housing decor is not only a fun way to spend time, but also has a huge impact on your Rest XP, this is a promising sign of things to come.

What do you think? Are you ready to go kill some freaky purple space monsters? Let me know in the comments below.

Destiny’s closed beta will land on Xbox One and Xbox 360 in “late July”, a trailer for the game has confirmed.

The date suggests that the beta will arrive on Xbox platforms 1-2 weeks after it hits PS3 and PS4 on July 17.  To access the beta you’ll need to pre-order the game and register the code supplied by participating retailers.

Destiny releases on Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4 and PS3 on September 9 alongside a fancy new white PS4.