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Depending on what would be done with Mirror's Edge 2, I could see it being more expensive to develop than another Dead Space. If I remember correctly, one of the things reviewers and most players took issue with was the fact that Mirror's Edge gave the impression of a little more open-world parkour, when it was really pre-defined paths with maybe one or two branches. Mirror's Edge 2, if and when it happens, should be open-world parkour with no right or wrong way to get from Point A to Point B. Doing so would require enough variation among structures without being repetitive if done in stages (and multiple times), or, if done in a sandbox style (a la GTAIV), rendering an entire city with different neighbourhoods and sectors. Then they'd have to think of enough paths that connected every building without becoming repetitive. If it could be done, it would be glorious. Running from residential areas, to century-old structures, to modern skyscrapers. Throw in some ground-level parkour, too! But then the aesthetic that worked in the modern setting with the first Mirror's Edge might have to change. The whitewash worked with the modern designs and allowed them to colour code your paths and what you could interact with. The cost of a sandbox experience might be on par with development costs of GTAIV or Oblivion. If that is the case, Mirror's Edge 2 would be a huge financial risk considering EA thought the first didn't sell well.

Zero was used in place of Megaman because the producer/director felt that the former had more potential move variation. Not sure I agree, considering how many alt weapons Megaman earns throughout the series.

I picked up my special edition of MvC 3 today and if I understand correctly, there is no day one DLC. Jill and Shuma-Gorath aren't available until March 15, which I assume is the release date for PSN/XBLA, and the code is to get them free. Not sure about costumes or shadow AI. Some characters already have alternate costumes in place of alternate colours, like Spiderman and Iron Man. I never played the second one enough to comment on the differences. I only played two player against my sister when I got home, and it still retains its chaotic fun, but I think I might have to sit down with it for a while if I want to get anywhere in arcade mode. I've never owned a fighter that relied so much on combos, so I guess I'm in for a real lesson/headache. EDIT: Costumes and Shadow Mode are out March 1st.

Though I don't use the Flamethrower either, I consider it and the Pulse Rifle to be crowd control weapons. The only time they're really handy is for dealing with the young necromorphs and the floppy goo-like things that come out of the fatties, otherwise I have no use for them. Personally, I use the Force Gun to deal with those enemies since it is just as useful against larger ones. As for the the Mine Gun, while it does seem made for one enemy, I can see it being used defensively. If you really want to take the time you can set them up near air vents behind you as you press forward, but then you'd have to diffuse them all if nothing happens. On an unrelated note, I know I'm being nit-picky here, but is anyone else bothered by questionable light sources? I can't help but passively scan every light source as I play and I notice a number of them aren't coming from anywhere that make sense. I know its for the horror aspect of the game, but a number of these light sources are solely for the purpose of being dramatic. Some are too strong for being a reflective light, and others, while direct, provide almost no ambient lighting whatsoever.

I was disappointed by the news, but I am not without hope. EA projected about 3 million in sales, but the game has sold 'only' 2 million. I think it will be a matter of time, maybe when the market is right for it. Perhaps they want to test market reception with a few more hand-held titles? At least that's what the side-scrolling version on Apple platforms is leading me to think. Seeing EA trying out a decent number of new IPs in 2008 (Mirror's Edge, Dead Space, Spore, Army of Two) made me hopeful they're willing to take risks more often. I just hope they give Mirror's Edge one more chance.

I've been to the thread, thanks; it saved me some time. Once I started giving up on Kotaku, Rock, Paper, Shotgun was one of the first sites I went to without thinking about it. Kotaku named some articles as a series, like Total Recall, and I thought they were actually links. I'll have to unlearn some sites, too, it would seem.

@Deanb (long post; not hitting "Reply") Thanks for the brief history. I started a summer job with no internet connection the very day that "Kotaku D-Day" happened, and I was in the dark for the following two months. By the time I got back I guess the dust had settled, though I do remember times in June when you were talking about the site. I knew Crecente really brought down the banhammer at times, but your links have made me see him in an entirely new light. I think I have a little more resolve to get some websites they link to and just leave Kotaku behind for good.

After the change to Kotaku, someone linked to an article that noted all Gawker websites had a 25-33% drop in visitor count, and I've also noted the lower article viewcount. Even though I think the new layout is discouraging to newcomers, I think things will eventually be back on the upswing. I go there to see what they're posting, but then I'll go elsewhere to read about it. I'll probably make a list of all the sites they link to and just make them my homepage. There was an article from the head of Gawker about why they changed everything, and he made a lot of comparisons about the success of advertising and programming on TV and how that should work out for the new look. I wonder if the change never would have happened if maybe Gizmodo or io9 were the original founders that started the Gawker sites.

I finished the first game barely two weeks before starting the second, and I definitely remember it being brighter. Maybe playing on a back-lit LCDTV had something to do with it, but I'm doubtful. I just finished chapter seven in DS2, and I can see what you mean by some parts being brighter, but I don't find that the brightness settings changed much (the logo is "barely visible"). DS2 has what I can only think of referring to as "hard darkness", where ambient light won't affect it, only Isaac's flashlight will. Thanks for the weapons and stasis tip. I always carried four just to be prepared for more situations. I can't believe I never bothered with the force gun in the first game. It turns children and babies into pinatas.

Ah, indeed. My experience with heavy armour and weapons is just dabbling before I store them. They've always been too heavy for my characters. Though I've never tried it, I've read that the protection heavier armour provides isn't worth the trade-off for the stamina penalty it incurs. But in theory, if you have the stats to use the armour without being bogged down, you probably have the stats for a more powerful weapon, too. In that case you wouldn't need to dodge more than a couple times to take down most enemies.

Sometimes I felt as though some editors were writing certain things just to start arguments. One Mike referred to Zelda as an RPG, and Crecente's points about why Black Ops should be game of the year were pretty weak. His rebuttal at the end gave me the impression he took some things personally. And Plunkett often spun headlines pretty badly. I'm a little surprised to see a lot of dislike for Ashcraft's writing. The sense of humour he included in his articles was different, and I liked him for it.

If you're royalty, and you mentioned the usefulness of the souls arrow, I'm going to assume you're using a little more magic than melee. If such is the case, a shield/spear combo is best because you can do melee damage with a little more distance from your target, and you can block with the shield while you attack. I believe the Winged Spear has a little more reach than the Short Spear, but you'll need a little more strength to wield to without any disadvantages. For a shield, I always went with the Dark Heater Shield; I believe because anything larger won't allow you to roll. Heavy armour isn't quite as advantageous as just dodging, what with the clunky roll, weight, and stamina penalty. You've got Wizard's Robes, but if you're mostly worried about physical damage you'll want the Leather Armour. It will give you a slightly higher stamina penalty, however, but if you're not too skilled with dodging yet, it might be worth it just for the extra protection.

I'm somewhere in chapter 7 right now. Its good, but I think I'm liking the first one more. I think a part of it had to do with the enemy being an unknown at first, and the whole experience just felt more..cohesive? Issac's purpose on the Ishimura was very clear: he is there to find out what happened, keep the ship from falling apart, and not die in the process. I know why Isaac is at the Sprawl, but I often forget why I'm trying to get from one place to another. I also feel less certain about what weapons I should be using. Like I bought the proximity mine weapon just for one kind of enemy in a warehouse and the assault rifle just for the school. Some weapons seem to be made for a specific enemy and are useless otherwise, and I can't picture myself ever using the sniper rifle. Unless there are some later parts in space, when will you have that kind of distance and time to make a steady shot? The game is giving me the impression that its trying to be more scary by just being darker. I think the lighting certainly is more dramatic in many places, but there are many places that should really be brighter due to ambient lighting. Lastly, I think this game needs to be played on a widescreen. I have to play on a CRT monitor, which makes using the in-game UI a little claustrophobic and I feel like I have tunnel vision when dealing with enemies. P.S. The developers admitted it with the first game and I think it applies here, too: this game was made with a gamepad very much in mind. Maybe its because I don't play as many PC games as I used to, but I often find myself tripping over trying to use stasis and forgetting about alt-fires.

Hey guys, I'm another migrant Kotaku regular who isn't happy with their changes. There was a link for this board in the TAY that was posted today, so I decided to hop in. Once I started thinking about my history at Kotaku, I realised that participating in online discussions has actually improved me as a person in some regards, like looking at things objectively, hearing out both sides of an argument before judging, and making better arguments myself. I hope to continue with that here, even if the feeling of a dedicated forum is very different and is something I haven't regularly visited in over five years. I guess I'll see everyone in the forums, and I hope everyone here hopes to meet or surpass the sense of community that Kotaku had. I'll continue to contribute as before with that intention, myself. EDIT: And hey, if the size of my avatar compresses the text of the posts, let me know and I'll make it smaller.