We're going to try and release these updates weekly to keep you informed about what's happening behind the scenes at Strategy Informer, and to answer any questions that you in regards to the site or the content that is published.

Richard is going to be attending a secret PS3 event tonight, I can't tell you anything more about this at the moment. We've got an embargo in place, but keep your eyes on the site for more on this soon. Richard is also working on a review for Assassin's Creed 2, this should be published by the end of the week.

Has anyone been playing Torchlight? We've just published our review, and was given a score of 8.5/10 from Manny. Haven't had a chance to personally give this a try yet, but I'm a Diablo fan and have heard lots of great things about it. Hopefully I'll get a chance to try it out over the weekend. Would love to hear your thoughts on it too.

Some of you have been asking about more Blu-ray reviews on the site, and I can confirm that we have reviews coming for Moon, Year One and Terminator, all from Sony Home Entertainment. Look out for Moon, this is one that I would recommend to any Sci-Fi fanatic.

Looks like I'm going to have to see 2012 tonight, although I'm probably going to be very disappointed with it. Anyone else seen it yet? Was it really bad? I'll let you know what I think when I get back.

If you've got any questions please shoot them across, and thanks for reading.

Microsoft has issued an official press release that confirms the existence of the new parental control feature, the Xbox 360 Family Timer.

Press release:

Microsoft Corp. today unveiled a new parental control feature, the Xbox 360 Family Timer. The Family Timer will enable parents for the first time to set the appropriate amount of gaming and entertainment time for their kids, on a daily or weekly basis.

“As a leader in interactive entertainment, it’s Microsoft’s responsibility to provide parents with tools they can use to manage their children’s video gaming and online experiences, and we have made that a priority from the very start,” said Robbie Bach, president of the Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft.
The Xbox 360 Family Timer is an addition to the console’s existing set of industry-leading parental control features. Similar to its Windows Vista counterpart, the new Xbox 360 Family Timer can restrict children’s activity time and can be set on a per-day or per-week basis. Helpful “notifications” will appear to warn the gamer that the session is nearing the end and the feature will automatically turn off the console when a pre-determined time limit has been exceeded. The Family Timer feature will be available for download via Xbox LIVE in early December.

Xbox was the first video game and entertainment system with built-in parental controls for both online and offline use. Known as Family Settings, these controls allow parents and caregivers to set guidelines for which games work for them, make informed choices about content, and decide who their children can play with online. Earlier this year, Windows Vista launched with a set of similar parental controls that allows parents to guide children's game playing, web browsing, and overall computer use. These controls help parents determine which games their children can play, which programs they can use, which websites they can visit—and when.

According to Bach, with more than 13 million Xbox 360® consoles sold worldwide, the company’s drive to empower parents is a core Microsoft responsibility. “We’ve seen a tremendous response to the robust parental controls offered on Xbox 360 and Windows Vista, and the Xbox 360 Family Timer will continue to deliver on our promise to provide safer, balanced and fun entertainment for everyone,” said Bach. “Professionally, I am proud of my division’s work in this area, and personally, as a parent of three school-age children, I know how important it is to be engaged in an ongoing dialogue with my family in order to uphold our household screen time rules.”

NCsoft announced this morning that they've acquired the intellectual and proprietary rights to both the City of Heroes and City of Villains franchises from Cryptic Studios.

From the press release;
Cryptic Studios™ announced today that the development house has sold its intellectual and proprietary rights to both the City of Heroes® and City of Villains® franchises to publisher NCsoft. As part of the agreement, NCsoft is licensing Cryptic’s engine technologies for use with future games.

“City of Heroes and City of Villains players should be assured that Cryptic Studios will be working closely with NCsoft to ensure a smooth, seamless transition,” said Michael Lewis, President and co-founder of Cryptic Studios. “City of Heroes was Cryptic’s flagship product and we are proud of this title and the many millions of characters that have entertained over a million people worldwide. The decision to sell the franchise allows us to focus resources on our soon to be announced first-party projects.”

Petroglyph Games have updated their careers page with information that reveals that they are currently looking for a MMO Game Designer to help them with an upcoming Massive Multiplayer Online game that is currently in development.
Details are:

The MMO Game Designer is responsible for understanding, refining, maintaining, and disseminating the game design vision, game design, mission building, gameplay balancing, and game proposal development of a Massive Multiplayer Online Game. Typically reports to Lead/Sr. Designer or Producer.

Duties include:
* Responsible for designing and developing project story lines, including writing proposals, treatments, levels and scenarios on a console project
* Develops concepts and treatments for products
* Creates game and AI scripts using LUA, or similar C/C++ structured languages
* Works with the team to define the creative vision and fun factor, as well as product content and schedule
* Writes and maintains design documents for the MMO project
* Works closely with members of the production team to execute design and work through revisions as needed
Qualifications:
* Minimum of 3 years game design experience in the game industry, with design credit on at least one shipped MMO title
* Bachelor's degree or equivalent work experience
* Exceptional organization, communication, and writing skills
* Expert knowledge of game design trends
* Self-directed, detail oriented, problem solver with a burning desire to contribute to a uniquely creative environment
* Knowledge of scripting languages such as LUA and C++ structured scripting languages
* Experience and a thorough knowledge of how the major game design elements all work together
* Proven success in creating compelling game-play, scenarios, activities, and encounters
* Strong organizational skills: ability to keep track of minute details as well as the big picture while multitasking
Ability to both conceptualize and implement game ideas using various tools and technologies
* An avid gamer with a strong interest in pushing the industry forward creatively Send your resume to careers@petroglyphgames.com. No phone calls please.

Hopefully we'll learn more about this MMOG soon.

Sony Computer Entertainment America confirmed this morning that God of War III is currently in development for the PlayStation 3 at SCEA's Santa Monica studio. Although this is great news, there was some bad news to go along with it.

Cory Barlog, game director for the God of War series will be leaving the company, so his skills won't be available for the production of GOHIII which could lead to some noticeable changes in the series, but we'll have to wait and see how God of War: Chains of Olympus for the PSP turns out to get an idea of this effect.

Sony's statement stated; “We can confirm that Cory Barlog, game director for God of War II, is leaving the SCEA [Santa Monica] Studio and we are grateful for his work and creative vision for the critically acclaimed God of War franchise.

“Moving forward, we are confident in the God of War team, as they are an extremely talented group of people that are passionate about the franchise and dedicated to creating even more epic content with God of War: Chains of Olympus for the PSP and God of War III for PS3."

Check back in the future for more details on God of War III.