March has been a great month for gamers.  So far we have gotten our grubby needy hands on Final Fantasy 13, God of War 3, and Battlefield: Bad Company 2.  Out of all these hot new games, only Battlefield can claim sales chart dominance.

So far, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 has pumped out an amazing 2.3 MILLION units and has become the best-selling game this month.  Want even more staggering numbers.  Check these out:

• 81 Billion (that is with a B folks) points have been earned in online multiplayer sessions
• 43 Million weapons and gadgets have been unlocked in online multiplayer
• Over 6 Million video views on YouTube
• 2.9 Million hours have been spent playing online in the last 24 hours alone
• 230,000 peak-concurrent-users (PCUs)
• Over 44,000 Twitter fans (the most of any EA title)

You people are addicts.  Congrats to EA and the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 crew!

2k Games has taken up a partnership of the ages.  Good ‘ol Hugh has granted the people working on Mafia II fifty vintage Playboy covers to be used in the game.  These covers will be from the same timeline that Mafia II is based.  Don’t get overly excited to see the wrestler known as China sitting on the coffee table next to the scotch.

We will assume that these will all be PG-13 type covers.  No matter, this is a huge win in the realm of making the game that much more authentic.  We are that much more excited to sink our teeth into this sequel!

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is the first major multiplayer focused shooter to hit store shelves since Modern Warfare 2 was unleashed last November. Fortunately, a multiplayer beta has given those who were most interested in the game a look of what is coming. At first glance, it looks like more of the same… but a lot more. Not only are there more game modes, but there is even more customization and destructibility than the first game. There is nothing quite like blowing up a building that gets in between you and your objective.

As far as the single player experience, you can still expect plenty of humor from Company B and their misadventures. Squad mates will still keep up some witty banter, although the overall craziness will be toned down a little from the first game. Also, the missions won’t be as open ended in an effort to add some structure. Speaking of structure, the overhauled “Destruction 2.0″ tech will improve the games trademark destructibility to the point that, given enough firepower, you can even knock down buildings. The destruction will also have an effect on a smaller scale, as any cover you hide behind can eventually be chipped away to nothing.

EA DICE has done a good job listening to participants in the BETA. Hundreds of tweaks have been made based on feedback, including a hardcore mode which gets rid of the HUD, boosts weapon damage, and allows friendly fire. Modes such as squad rush and squad deathmatch are sure to distinguish Battlefield from other first person shooters. Squad based combat, vehicles, destruction  and character classes make sure that this game includes the best of everything out there.

First person shooters are a dime a dozen these days, but Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is a well rounded game that stands above the noise. If you want something more strategic then Modern Warfare 2 but not as overwhelming as MAG, then this could be your game.

Platform: PC
Developer/Publisher: Cryptic
Genre: Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG)
Verdict: A solid MMO even if you aren’t a trekkie.
Pros: Excellent combat. It also allows for soloing.
Cons: It can be overwhelming at times. No story for the Klingons
Acquired: Developer Provided
Price: $49.95, $15 per month

Before diving head first into this review, it’s worth noting that I’m only lukewarm on the MMORPG genre. I played some Everquest back in the day, and I have taken advantage of the free trials of both Final Fantasy XI, and WoW, but none of them ever really sparked a true love (or addiction for that matter) in me. Star Trek Online, however, does an amazing job of scratching both my itch for more stories from the Star Trek universe, as well as my itch for solid, addictive gameplay.

While you can play STO as either a Klingon or Federation officer, the latter is the only choice available when you first fire up the game. Once your faction is selected, you’ll then have to choose a race. Unless you have some hardcore explosive memory loss, you probably remember that bit at the top of this review where I say STO can be overwhelming at times. One of those times is the character creation process. With a wide variety of races to choose from, and the ability to create your own alien species, getting started can be a daunting task. Each species has a set of traits inherent to them that effect either your ability to captain a starship, or your effectiveness in ground combat. Next up, you’ll have to choose a specialization for your character. You can choose Tactical, Engineering, or Science. Your specialization will determine what sort of abilities and items your character will be able to use as you make your way through the game.

Depending on which faction you chose, you’re going to have one of two very different experiences with this game. Federation players will be treated to a story that feels like a proper part of the Star Trek universe. While the PvE missions can be a little repetitive, the stories driving them feel like they could have been ripped from the pages of the script for an unaired Star Trek series.  Klingon players, on the other hand, will be met with no story, other than “Hey, you should go kill some Federation jerks… you know, for The Empire”. Playing as a Klingon puts the focus almost entirely on player VS player (PvP) matches, having you either fight your Federation enemies, or other Klingons over matters of honor… and whether abbreviations count in Scrable. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the Klingon side of things being PvP heavy, but it would have been nice to see the various events that take place in the Federation campaign from the Klingon point of view.

Both Federation and Klingon players will notice a lack of content once they hit higher levels. Cryptic is poised to correct this issue over the coming weeks with new quests and “raid episodes” that will be added to the game over time.

Combat comes in two flavors: space, and ground. Ground combat is pretty standard – select an enemy, and attack until they drop dead. Space combat on the other hand is a little more complicated. Each weapon on your ship has it’s own arc, forcing you to adjust where your ship is facing depending on which weapon(s) you want to fire. For example, most cannons only have a 90 degree arc, so if you have a cannon mounted to the front of your ship, and your enemy is facing the side or rear of the ship, you won’t be able to use the cannon on them. In order to fight effectively, you have to stay in constant motion, all the while firing weapons, and making sure your shields are in good condition.

When you’re not flying around the galaxy fighting Klingons and Borg, you can partake of any and all of the social activities you would expect to find in an MMO. You can hang out in massive public areas, start your own fleet (aka guild), sell your junk at the auction house, or just start a dance party at Quarks bar in DS9. The only problem with all of these delightful activities is that the social areas tend to get all laggy during times of heavy traffic. Cryptic has been releasing patch after patch, and adding servers in order to correct the problem, but the game still chugs from time to time during peak hours. For the record, I’m on a 20mbps connection, so no, it’s not my internet causing the problems.

Cryptic has a great track record when it comes to addressing customer complaints, and updating their games with new content, but I can’t judge the game on what Cryptic will or might add to it. In it’s current state, Star Trek Online is a lot of fun, and it definitely scratches my itch for more stories from the Star Trek universe, however, the lack of a story to tie the Klingon missions together, and the sparse content available to high level players makes the game feel unfinished. If you need a little more Trek in your life, this game is a great way to get it, just bear in mind, it’s a work in progress.

Its not often that two completely different intellectual properties mix together so well. On paper, Aliens vs. Predator sounds like a winning combination. Sadly it didn’t take long for Hollywood to shake our confidence in this galactic struggle. Before this dark time, Monolith Productions and Rebellion Developments showed us that the combination could work with Aliens vs. Predator and Aliens vs. Predator 2.

Its been about a decade since these classic PC shooters, and it is about time the series gets a reboot. Rebellion Developments is back and hoping to breathe some life back into the franchise. Alien vs Predator gives gamers the unique opportunity to play as three completely different creatures, each with a different play style. Humans are standard soldiers, equipped with guns and power armor. Aliens are fast, can run up walls and regenerate, but only have melee attacks. The Predator is a solitary super soldier that can cloak to get in position to use its powerful wrist blades or shoulder cannon.

Unlike other games that focus on the Marines blasting apart hordes of enemy aliens, Aliens vs. Predator tells the story from all three points of view. That means three campaigns and three different multiplayer teams. The multiplayer modes made previous iterations stand out and will be what makes or breaks things this time around as well. With modes such as Infestation, Predator Hunt and Survivor, I would say that there is great potential.

If you enjoy shooters, then keep an eye on Aliens vs. Predator. If executed well then this could be a refreshing change from your run of the mill space marine frag fest. After all, what is better then sneaking up on an unsuspecting marine and ripping his spine out? Oh. Yeah, this game is gonna get gory.