“Starhawk” Senior Producer Harvard Bonin Jr. explains exactly what he does, and gets his very own Spoof Ad.

Back in September, we previewed StarHawk for the first time on UFreqTV in PlayStation Home for our fans. Even before this, right away Jack (UFreqTV’s Host) pointed out at E3 that we need to keep an eye on this game. He talked about how the “Build & Battle” would bring a whole new element to our tournaments when the time comes.

Then came the Private Beta in November, and boy Jack was not kidding. Right out of the gate we were ecstatic when we saw that a user could create a Sever/Lobby with a custom title. We had not seen this in a game since Socom: Confrontation. Though many will say, so what, that is not any thing new or special.

Well they are correct  it isn’t anything new, the ability to create a custom lobby was all but a tail from the past until now. Clans putting up Recruiting Rooms, Practice Rooms and Tournament Communities having the Room labeled “UF Blue RVN vs 101″ showing the world the clans were battling in a tournament.

And though the Private Beta is a very slim view of what is yet to come, it already has all that is needed for Urgent Fury to launch a full Tournament Offering. The tactical requirements that a team will have to use in this game will make for some nail-biting matches. Throw in the Urgent Fury TacMap element where clans are competing over territories for 13 to 24 weeks to become the champion and you have a recipe for “EPIC”!

We are pleased to present the 2012 Tournament Title of the Year to StarHawk, exclusively on PlayStation 3. Be sure to stay tuned as we begin to announce tournament details and how to sign up.

On top of all the great tactical play LightBox Interactive and SCEA Santa Monica Studios are actually involved with the community responding to bugs, suggestions, gripes and praises. Not only that as one fan pointed out, there were more updates in the Private Beta than in the entire Call of Duty Series. Now we cannot confirm if that is correct, but I will say we saw updates daily and even multiple updates in a day when there was an issue.

The public beta will being on January 17th, 2012 and you can find all the details on the PlayStation Blog. And rest assured you will see at least one UrgentFury.com server up and running almost daily.

Also keep your eye out for Episode 93 of Urgent Frequency as Commander Fury is joined by Sr. Producer Harvard Bonin as they sit down via SatCom and discuss StarHawk and what Harvard’s job really is in the grand scheme of things. This episode is due to release on January 15th.

Recently Santa Monica Studios and LightBox Interactive launched the StarHawk Private Beta and after getting a code from GameSpot, I decided to try it out.

My initial reaction can be summed up in one word, AMAZING. Over the last couple of weeks we have put up an UrgentFury.com Server/Lobby, yes I said lobby, in which some epic battles have been witnessed on several occasions. I have no clue how many hours I have logged so far, but three to four hours at a time, you will find me in an endless battle on StarHawk.

In the beginning I was a total noob trying out the different buildings, driving the Razorback like a beast and flying the hawk like a two year old crashing dad’s car. Little by little I got the feel for the rifle that requires you to shoot in bursts if you want accuracy. Who would have ever thought that Spray and Pray would not work in a shooter, hehe.

Next up, I mastered the sniper rifle with a laser from Weird Science. That thing is true to any laser, no matter how far away, you are going to get that red dot and “Boom HeadShot!” Now once you put a supply bunker down, you are now truly prepared to battle with a Rocket Launcher and a Shotty. These are essential if you want to make it more than a couple of minutes against the Hawk attacks and Razorback assaults. Get a couple of rockets into the Razorback and boom. And if the driver is crazy enough to jump ship then bust a few buckshots in them and down they will go.

So let’s talk about the modes, Team Death Match and Capture the Flag… Initially the beta only launched with CTF which forced players to traverse the maps to capture the flag to win. In Acid Sea the flags are located on top of a structure and this became a wall building extravaganza. It did not take long to learn if placed correctly you only had to build three walls on each side encasing the ladders. But even that is not full proof, all you have to do is wisely park a Razorback next to a corner and jump over.

The true trick to CTF is to do a quick grab as soon as the match launches, unless the team is well prepared you can run in and snag a flag with the Razorback within thirty seconds gaining the lead.

Now in Space, the flag is sitting on the deck and if you build three or four walls you can trap the flag, just make sure you build the walls with the ladders facing out. If you do it this way, once the play gets the flag they are stuck unless they are in a hawk. The hawk is able to jump over the wall. Of course it does not take much to blow up a hawk when it is on the ground, so you better have a backup plan ready.

Team Death Match is a well-known mode to all gamers alike and StarHawk is no different until you factor in that you have Hawks rivaled by Beam Turrets, Snipers in Towers behind a Force Field and players owning their area from a Supply Bunker.

TDM can become chaotic very quickly with a little team work. I have seen a team immediately take hold of the center of both maps with a Spawn Beacon, Supply Bunker and Force Field. And unless you are downright crazy, you are lucky to ever recapture the center. But the true key is to take the left or right areas on both maps. This gives you access to rift barrels for easy fortification.

Adding the Build and Battle element makes StarHawk an ever evolving game. You never know what you may be up against when you get to the enemy base.

We can only commend the community support we are seeing from the gang over at Santa Monica Studios and LightBox Interactive. They are truely responsive to bugs, suggestions and complaints. Updates roll out quickly, even within hours as was the case just this week. Keep up the Great work fellas!!!

Overall we give StarHawk’s private beta 5 Fists of Fury out of 5!!! The private beta has been extended through January 3^rd so forget the family. Lock your doors and man up. Get that rift and build your foothold. StarHawk is going to be an Epic win for PlayStation in 2012, and you can bet that a Tournament or two will be announced by Urgent Fury.

Watch for the UrgentFury.com server and jump in, we always set it to All Mic and Randomized Teams making for some great times, see you on the battle field.

Story by Seeson @ blogs.battlefield.ea.com.

Thank you for playing the Open Beta and making the final game better!

We are very excited to see so many gamers join our Battlefield 3 Open Beta. Here’s an update on the Open Beta from DICE General Manager Karl Magnus Troedsson.

I want to give you an overview of how the Open Beta is helping us shape a fantastic final game, what we are implementing based on your feedback, and how the Open Beta will help us deliver a robust gaming environment from day one.

The Open Beta is a true Beta

The Battlefield 3 Open Beta is based on software that is more than one month old. We need to test the new back end dedicated server structure we’ve built. Not only have we built a new game engine, but an entirely new back end system so that everyone can enjoy the benefits of dedicated servers on all platforms.

Just like normal procedure when releasing a game, the Open Beta has had long lead times due to testing, certification, and setting up. This means that the code you are now playing is actually quite early and not representative of the final game.

We had to do this in order to have as many people testing as possible, in order to ensure a top quality experience when the game is released. However, we’re confident in the Battlefield formula and confident that our fans will support us in order to make Battlefield 3 better.

Dedicated servers require dedicated testing

The biggest reason for running the Open Beta is to stress test our servers and back end. Already, we are seeing 6 times the number of simultaneous players in the Battlefield 3 Open Beta compared to the Beta for Battlefield: Bad Company 2! The fact that Battlefield 3 is clearly our biggest game launch ever by a magnitude of 6 makes it doubly important to test everything.

We are constantly updating the News section on Battlelog with information on what we are fixing from Open Beta to final. We appreciate your time and your feedback. The data and feedback from the Open Beta will not only directly affect the final game of Battlefield 3, but its future development and support.

We’re heading out on the road this week to let journalists experience all aspects of Battlefield 3. Stay tuned for their previews, and stay tuned for the final game on October 25th. The final game will look, play and sound better than the Open Beta. You have helped making sure of that.

Karl Magnus Troedsson

General Manager, DICE

Story by Owen Good @ Kotaku.com.

About a week before the Battlefield 3 beta began, the game’s community manager had decided he’d heard enough shrill complaining about the fact that “Operation Metro” and not some other map would the only one playable. And so he went off.

Rewind: Operation Metro was revealed to be the beta map on Sept. 20. Apparently, large numbers of forum goers thought some other map would be used, like one that allowed up to 64 players. The choice of Metro did not sit well with many, and the Battlefield forums were filled with great anger and profound disappointment. This is what Daniel Matros, DICE’s global community manager for Battlefield 3, had to confront at the end of the day.

“Right now, I am not in the mood to even browse in here and check out most parts of the forum,” Daniel Matros began on Sept. 20. Saying that “the beta is a privilege, not a right,” unless you got a key with a pre-order, Matros ripped into the whiners, still with a measured tone that suggests he had to choose his words carefully.

“The vibe I’m getting now is just that tons of ungrateful people don’t understand how much work we are putting on this game how many overtime hours we are doing and also how many meetings we are in to ship a game like this.”

Matros thanked those who did provide constructive feedback. “To the rest of you—grow up.”

Two replies later, proving his point, someone wrote: “Why aren’t you releasing Caspian Border in the beta?”

It should be noted that although this thread no longer exists (a cache of it does) even a cursory Google search of the forums turns up threads backing Matros.

As for why they went with Operation Metro, not something else, well, it’s a beta. “We have already showed this map and made some big changes to it to enhance gameplay as well as get it more fluent than in the Alpha,” Matros explained later. “Lots of new things have been added in closer to launch. Our rank progression system as well as customizations have made their way into the beta and it´s very important for us to test these things before we launch. That is the purpose of the Beta as well as combining it with Battlelog and all of the features there. If you feel that this isn´t the right map for you, then perhaps we don´t really agree on what maps we want to see.”

It is indeed hard not to be sympathetic. These games are not made by elves. We’ve heard plenty about “crunch” at the end of a development cycle, I’m sure the last thing anyone wants to deal with, amidst all of that, is inconsiderate sniping and snide questions from some entitled dickbag who is unhappy that the free thing he’s being given isn’t optimized for his comfort.

It is, however, rare to see this kind of thing play out, probably why the thread is gone. The Battlefield 3 beta runs until Oct. 10. I hope everyone survives.

Story by Brian Crecente @ Kotaku.com.

Battlefield 3′smuch-anticipated open beta starts on Thursday, Sept. 29, the publisher said this morning.

The beta will run until Oct. 10 and will give players a chance to check out the game and the social platform Battlelog, according to the post on the official website for the game. The beta is set in Paris on the Operation Metro map playing the game’s Rush mode.

If you pre-order the PC digitial version of Battlefield 3 on EA’s Origin store before Sept. 25, or if you bought Medal of Honor: Limited Edition/Tier 1 Edition, you will get 48 hours early access to the Beta, meaning you can start playing Tuesday, Sept 27.

For Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, the open beta will be visible on the consoles’ digital marketplaces under Battlefield 3. For PC, you need to install Origin and download the Open Beta from within the Origin application.

Story by Fahed @ MP1st.com.

I don’t think we can wait any longer for the Battlefield 3 Beta, and DICE has just hinted at a big announcement coming tomorrow.

After weeks of denying many beta rumors, DICE has stirred up the pot with 3 hints. On the official Italian Battlefield page, DICE teased “guys, tomorrow follow us, there is news about something you have been waiting for a long time.” However, the teasing didn’t stop there. Dainel Matros, Battlefield’s global community manager, tweeted “this week is going to be off the hook BF3″, and his coworker, David Goldfarb, reassured that this week is “gonna be a great week. BF3″. 

My guess is that the long-awaited Beta will go live tomorrow or will be announced tomorrow to go live next week.

If you were wondering whether you’re going to get a taste of the singleplayer in the upcoming beta, DICE’s Ian Tornay re-clarified “BF3 beta is multiplayer only. There are some rumors to the contrary circulating.” 

Story by Liam Dunne @ XboxDailyNews.

THE BUZZ: Several people (Including myself) are being sent virus e-mails claiming to contain a beta code for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

The e-mail seems to of come from Microsoft, with Call Of Duty: Mw3 Beta in the subject line. You can view the e-mail here:  http://i.imgur.com/DnNXC.png and here: http://i.imgur.com/E9T01.png

If you click on any one of one of these links your information will be sent to the people who sent the e-mail.

GamerJunkie.net also wrote about this e-mail, however they called Microsoft and got several pieces of information backing up the fact that this is a phishing attack.

1. Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 Beta Codes were sent in June.

2. The email is sent from an address that has been hacked.

3. All of the links in the email are to phish your information.

4. The bottom of the email mentions Treyarch which has nothing to do with MW3.

5. The beta ends September 31st 2011. September 31st 2011 does not exist.

EGM’S TAKE:  While Phishing attacks are common nowadays, these hackers may come across someone who so desperately wants to play Mw3 they might click it, or they might come across a person who doesn’t know what’s going on, click the e-mail then get their info taken. We would just like to warn you if you get a message fitting this description don’t open it, just delete it straight away.

Story by Kirk Hamilton @ Kotaku.com.

In preparation for the November 15th launch of Ubisoft’s upcoming open-world stealth/action/swarthiness-simulator Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, the publisher will be running a multiplayer beta for the game from September 3-11th. However, the beta is exclusive to Playstation Plus members as well as “select Playstation 3 Uplay members.”

Multiplayer in the new title will be much the same as the surprisingly enjoyable cat-and-mouse of last year’s Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, though with the expected number of new modes and maps. More information can be found at Ubisoft’s official Revelations beta webpage.

Story by Stace Harman @ VG247.com.

The US PlayStation blog has details of the content that PS Plus subscribers can expect over the coming weeks. Betas and discounts ahoy.

Confirmed via the US PS blog is PlayStation Plus subscriber access to the Resistance 3 multiplayer beta on August 23, featuring access to two major maps in the game: the Seaside of Glamorgan, Wales, and the Trainyard in Bogota, Colombia.

A special PS Store update a week and a half later on September 3 will bring with it access to the Assassin’s Creed: Revelations multiplayer beta. PS Plus-ers can expect “3 maps, 9 characters, and 4 modes of undercover assassin action.”

Elsewhere, the bonus content keeps on coming with a 20 per cent day-one discount for Street Fighter III: Third Strike Online Edition, as well as pre-order discounts for The Baconing, BloodRayne: Betrayal and Renegade Ops. All three are available under the PSN PLAY banner, which grants its own added extras in addition to rewarding pre-orders of digital titles.

Check out the US PS blog for full details of the offers available.

Story by Brenna Hillier @ VG247.com.

Monolith and Warner Bros. have opened beta sign-ups for Gotham City Impostors, the downloadable multiplayer title set in the Batman universe.

The beta is due to begin in September, and you can sign up on the game’s official website.

Gotham City Impostors highlights the adventures of a bunch of Joe Blows living in Gotham City, who get their kicks by doing bad cosplay of Batman canon heroes and villains, and taking to the streets to duke it out.

It’s expected to release for PC, the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live in northern winter, and will go for $15 or 1200 MS Points.

You can see a pretty mental trailer here.

Thanks, Joystiq.

Story by Stephany Nunneley @ VG247.com.

Ubisoft has released a video showing a chronological wrap up of all the Assassin’s Creed products that have been made so far along with news that on September 3, a multiplayer beta for Assassin’s Creed Revelations will be made available as a timed exclusive for PS Plus and Uplay members.

From September 3-11, Plus and Uplay members get exclusive access to the multiplayer beta on PS3, which offers access to nine characters: Sentinel, Vanguard, Guardian, Vizier, Thespian, Deacon, Bombardier, Trickster and Champion.

It will also include the maps Knight’s Hospital, Antioch, and Constantinople, with four playable modes: Wanted and Manhunt, along with the new modes Deathmatch and Artifact Assault.

No word just yet when the beta will go public.

In the trailer, also posted below, you’ll see clips from the first game, ACII, Bloodlines, Brotherhood, Discover, Chronicles, the comics, and even the upcoming Revelations, which is out in November on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360.

Story by Stephany Nunneley @ VG247.com.

One of Swords has posted a video walkthrough for Call of Duty Elite, which debuts in November and the public beta taking place now. The video below features team leaders at Beachhead, Chacko Sonny the studio head, and Noah Heller Elite’s product director.

Story by Stephany Nunneley @ VG247.com.

Naughty Dog has said since the multiplayer beta for Uncharted 3 opened to the masses on Tuesday, it has garnered one million unique users, and the number is growing by the day.

The MP beta ends on July 14, so you only have a few more days to “hit the requirements,” the developer has laid down in order to receive active rewards for the retail version of the game.

The full requirements and unlocks list is below:

• Download the Uncharted 3 Beta and receive the exclusive UNCHARTED 3 PSN Beta Tester Avatar!
• Complete 10 matches in every Gametype of Competitive Multiplayer and receive the Exclusive Beta Decal Pack 1!
• Complete 5 matches in every Gametype of Co-operative Multiplayer and receive the Exclusive Beta Decal Pack 2!
• Complete 4 Treasure Sets and receive the Treasure Hunter’s Starter Pack!
• Rank up to level 25 in the Beta and receive a handsome reward of in-game cash on day one!

Starting tomorrow, Naughty Dog will update the beta with the Yemen map and co-op.

Yesterday, the firm also patched the game by releasing update 1.04, which fixes issues with the Facebook friends list, and an issues with gaining XP and cash during the playback of some Cinema files.

Uncharted 3 is out November 1 and 2 in the US and UK, respectively.

Story by Brenna Hillier @ VG247.com

Now in its second week, the Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception multiplayer beta has been updated with two new gameplay modes.

As of an unspecified time on Tuesday in the US, the beta will be thrown open to the public, Naughty Dog reminds us on its blog, which means you no longer need a PS Plus subscription or entry code to try it out. Head into the PS Store and await it with glee.

The client has been updated, too. New in 1.00.647 are two of the more unique game modes, Team Objective and Co-op Hunters. No word on fixes for the buggy invite system though! If only.

Naughty Dog has also added new content to Uncharted TV, the neat video roll you can browse through while waiting for matchmaking – although with more players, those wait times will hopefully go down.

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception releases exclusively for PlayStation 3 in early November.

Urgent Fury Directors L to R…CIO Shane Bell, CFO Armond Compton, & COO John Ostrow at PAX East 2011.

The official attendance count for PAX East 2011 was 69,500. Breaking last year’s attendance of 52,290.

Brink TM from Splash Damage &  Bethesda shows off it’s final build of the game before it’s scheduled

launch on May 17th, 2011.

Don’t worry little buddy….the wait is almost over.

SOCOM 4 launches on April 19th, 2011.

Zipper Interactive’s Kevin Scmitt (Lead Designer, SOCOM 4) gives his Zipper colleagues a

crash course in the mysterious art of Parkour.

Urgent Fury covered the PAX East 2011 SOCOM 4 tournament.

Where 64 fans got to compete for a very nice trophy.

This guy has his sights set on victory. And a shot at SOCOM superstardom.

Shane Bell on the PAX East 2011 SOCOM 4 tournament…

“it  had all the intensity of classic Urgent Fury tournaments”.

The team of 8 shooters who won it all, are scheduled to be featured on a future episode

of Urgent Fury’s podcast Urgent Frequency.

This is just one of the reasons that Urgent Fury has plans for several

“live” tournament events in the coming year.

Stay tuned for more on PAX East 2011!!!

Urgent Fury CFO Armond Compton gets a hands on sample of Zipper Interactive’s SOCOM 4 at PAX East 2011. (Inset) Urgent Fury Media Assistant Will “disfsk3x14″ Pulistar gets some stick time on SOCOM 4 as well.

He says…Meow!

Stay tuned for continuous updates from the expo.

Urgent Fury CIO Shane Bell stops by for a very “loosey goosey” episode of Urgent Frequency.

An episode that features the usual Urgent Fury SITREP, a complete PAX East 2011 Preview, a surprise guest, and Charlie Sheen. WINNING! Duh!

With all of the questions that surround the next title in the SOCOM:U.S. Navy SEALs franchise, Urgent Fury decided to do some forward RECON to get some real answers regarding what some are saying, is the most important release in the franchise’s long history.

After being invited to participate in ZIPPER INTERACTIVE’S SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs “MEDIA DAY“ event in Redmond, WA…..Urgent Fury immediately deployed UFreq correspondent Brian “Inadub” Carey, and he joins Commander Fury with a full report which includes the official SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs press conference.

All that…plus UF gets a new “home”.

Heads up guys we got so much intel, its going to take a few podcasts to do it… Ohh and there are prizes too…

Click the image

Vouchers available while supplies last.