Crysis developer Crytek is reaching out to the academic world in a big way, allowing the programmers and graphic designers of tomorrow to get an early head start on creating games powered by its latest cross-platform middleware — CryENGINE 3. As of today, the development solution is now available free of charge to any qualified educational institution, providing the tools necessary to create scalable experiences across all major platforms, namely PS3, Xbox 360, and PC.

Crytek director of Global Business Development Carl Jones shares his thoughts on the initiative: more »

Sony isn’t one to sit idle in midst of Microsoft’s social networking efforts, as the company has went ahead and announced that firmware 3.1 for PS3 will include Facebook integration. By linking up a PSN profile to a Facebook account, PS3 owners will able to automatically update their news feed with Trophy and PlayStation Store activity. You’ll never miss a beat. The initiative will also give developers the ability to publish game information to news feeds through Facebook’s API.

While Facebook integration is the main highlight of this update, Sony is squeezing in other noteworthy changes as well, including a revamped photo browser and the ability to change the font color of your PSN ID. Check out a video walkthrough of the soon to be released firmware above, courtesy of PSN director Eric Lempel.

Square Enix today finally stamped a date on the North American release of its eagerly-anticipated RPG Final Fantasy XIII. The title, which needs no introduction, is slated to hit Xbox 360 and PS3 on March 9, 2010. Fans can now breathe a sigh of relief.

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October NPD results are in. Nintendo had a strong showing, shifting 506,900 Wii units, no doubt thanks to the $50 price cut that went into effect late last September. Despite an overall slump in sales elsewhere across the spectrum, PS3 sales remained relatively brisk, edging past the Xbox 360 by around 70,000 in total unit sales.

All in all, it was a $1.07 billion month for the video game industry, a 13 percent drop from last year. Much of that decline can be attributed to the hardware sector. Expect things to perk up next month, though, evident by the blockbuster sales of Modern Warfare 2. Front-runner titles like Assassin’s Creed 2 and Left 4 Dead 2 will likely follow in its footsteps. See the full breakdown of hardware and software sales past the jump. more »

With an official count of 1.23 million units sold in the UK on launch day, Modern Warfare 2 is well on track to become this year’s biggest entertainment launch, just as publisher Activision said it would.

How is the proper sequel to 2007’s Infinity Ward-developed Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare stacking up in terms of worldwide sales? While exact figures are still unknown, Broadpoint AmTech analyst Ben Schachter surmises that 7 million copies went into the hands of gamers worldwide on day one.

It’s a lofty prediction, but very possible, taking the buzz surrounding this launch into consideration. If true, it’d mean that MW2 nearly doubled the units GTA IV sold on its first day. Quite an impressive feat.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Sold an Estimated 7 Million Copies Day One, says Analyst [GameDaily]

In a decision swayed by community votes, Capcom today confirmed that it will release the extra content contained within Resident Evil 5 Alternate Edition as DLC in the U.S. and Europe.

First revealed at TGS, this director’s cut version of the game features support for Sony’s upcoming wand motion-sensing controller as well as an extra segment of playable content starring Jill Valentine.

The content will be made available on PSN and Xbox Live Marketplace in Spring 2010. No word on price yet, but we’ll find out once the release date approaches. Additionally, Capcom has yet to detail its distribution plan for PC owners of the game.

Developer Gearbox Software today stamped a November 24 release date on the first batch of downloadable content for its open-world RPG Borderlands. Priced at $9.99, it welcomes players to Dr. Ned’s Zombie Island, an eery land inhabited by humans-turned-zombies following the breakout of a virus. It’s up to you to restore peace by finding a cure.

Note that this date only applies to PS3 and Xbox 360. There’s no word yet if PC owners will be able to access this content. We assume they will, but at a later date.

Valve has been quite vocal regarding its disdain for the PS3, but it seems a complex CELL architecture is not the only factor that’s driving the famed Half Life developer to keep its distance from Sony.

Speaking in a recent interview with CVG, Valve project manager Chet Faliszek took a sharp hit at Sony’s online community, proclaiming that Xbox Live is “head and shoulders above the PS3.” This apparently is a factor that weighed in heavy when deciding to keep Left 4 Dead exclusive to two platforms only, those being the Xbox 360 and PC. more »

It’s been a long time coming, but Jonathan Blow’s time-bending platformer Braid will finally make the jump to PS3 next week. Slated to hit the service on November 12, developer Hothead Games is handing the port. A European release is scheduled to follow at a later date.

The PSN version of Braid will be appropriately priced at $14.99, same as its Xbox 360 counterpart.

In what we presume is a last ditch effort to move copies of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and associated downloadable content in preparation for the release of its follow-up, Activision has slashed the price on Infinity Ward’s Variety Map Pack, bringing it down to $4.99, a 50 percent reduction. That translates to 400 Microsoft Points on the 360 side of things. The pack was released last year as the final piece of DLC for CoD 4 and features four additional maps, namely Broadcast, Creek, Chinatown and Killhouse. more »