This Week in Gaming - July 30th

Each week I plan to cover the past week's latest news surrounding the world of gaming, including major tournament results, headline gaming news & headlines and notable games releases and updates.


Gaming News
The Summer period is typically a quiet time for gamers and developers alike - the calm before the storm of the Autumn/Winter gaming blitz. With that event on the horizon, Blizzard has taken this time to announce the official release date of the latest instalment of the World of Warcraft universe. World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria’s release date is September 25th! You’ve got a few months to prepare before Wow’s next big expansion arrives. Mists of Pandaria introduces a new race, the Pandaren, a new starting zone based on the back of a huge turtle, new mounts, new quests, new skills, a new class. PC Gamer wrote an excellent What you need to know article back in March, so make sure you check that out.

The game is available for pre-purchase now. The standard edition containing the expansion alone costs £29.99 / 34.99 Euro / $39.99, but there’s also a digital deluxe edition for £39.99 / 49.99 Euro / $59.99 and a Collector’s Edition which will cost £59.99 / $79.99. The standard and digital deluxe editions can be bought now, the Collector’s Edition will be available in retail stores.

Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition has also been given a release date - September 18th. If you were a big fan of the original way back in 1998, then you might very well be interested in the modern remake of the classic RPG.

Another big gaming release has been announced, that of Farming Simulator 2013! The game is set for release this October. To quote Gaming Illustrated:

Quote

The original Farming Simulator utterly surprised the gaming community in 2011 by becoming a sleeper hit worldwide and a best seller in some main European countries. The game became known for its simple and accessible gameplay. It managed to sell over 500,000 copies in France and Germany alone.

The sim gave players a chance to own their own farms and operate numerous farming vehicles and machines, making it a unique title that stayed true to its straight-forward name. Farming Simulator 2013 has promised to keep all the options their dedicated fanbase knows and loves, but will spice it up with a “crop” of new features.

eSports
The most prestigious SC2 tournament in the world, the Korean hosted GSL, held the 2012 GSL Season 3 Grand Final last week. The final saw two Protoss players, SK-MC and LG-IM Seed, do battle for the coveted championship trophy. Going into the final MC was the second highest earner in SC2 history, winning over $300,000 in the past 2 years, and regardless of the result he would overtake MVP to be the highest earner.

As it happens, MC wound up on the wrong end of the build-order matchup that is PvP, losing convincingly 4:1 to Seed. Seed's victory is yet another GSL success for his team, Incredible Miracle, meaning they are the first team to have a GSL winner of each race and takes their overall tally to 8 individual victories - they have truly dominated the SC2 scene from start to present.

Releases
Orcs Must Die 2 was released earlier today and I personally can't recommend the game enough. In the words of Total Biscuit, the game is a Co-op-3rd-person-action-tower-defence. (You can check out his WTF is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXkK4LCO2dg). The original Orcs Must Die was a success, offering wonderfully smooth and action packed gameplay. Unlike it's genre rival - Dungeon Defenders, which was released around the same time - Orcs Must Die did not offer co-op or online play. The sequel has resolved this by offering you and a buddy the chance to slaughter the waves of Orcs together.