After much anticipation, the game Mass Effect 2 was finally released in the United States last month, followed by its launching in Europe. Hailed as the first blockbuster game of the year, BioWare’s Dr. Ray Muzyka is confident that the game is bound to be one of the biggest in 2010.

According to the estimates of EA, the game sold a whopping 2 million units on its first week alone—sealing the second place in the list of the highest-rated games in Xbox 360 of all times.

So what makes Mass Effect 2 stand out from the rest of its competition? First, critics and players alike both agreed that some of the technical aspects of the sequel have definitely seen improvement since the first installment. Some of these technical features include loading time, graphic images as well as the shooting mechanics of the game. Another great thing about ME2 is that it can be enjoyed by anyone. If you never played the first Mass Effect, you don’t have to worry about getting lost in the game’s narrative. If you’ve indeed played the first installment, then your prior experience can come into play in this sequel.

So what about the game’s story? Although the storyline of Mass Effect 2 is not exactly Oscar material, dialogues and characterization take the game to the next level. Despite a predictable plot, the game features gripping dialogue and introduces multiple well-developed characters with detailed back stories. Surely, that’s already more than one would expect from your usual science fiction videogame.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock in the last several months then you’ve probably heard about Apple’s latest gadget, the iPad.

So what exactly is the iPad and what can it do? Basically, the iPad resembles a flat square dish. Measured diagonally, its screen is 9.7 inches. It weighs 1.5 pounds and is only half an inch thick. The iPad is just that—a flat lightweight screen. No keyboards, no mouse and no accessories involved. This is because the iPad utilizes Apple’s Multi-Touch screen feature. So basically, it is a computer and the Internet in the form of one incredible tablet.

So what does the iPad have in store for videogame fanatics? Well, the iPad happens to be able to let you play every single game that’s available in Apple’s AppStore. The iPad lets you download these games without a need for any modification. What’s more is that you get amazing quality when you blow up the game to the size of the 9.7 inch screen.

Perhaps this is why Mark Hickey, the senior manager of business development over at Gameloft, has also unveiled his company’s own product—Nova. This game consists of a first-person shooter and is created exclusively to be played on iPad. Excited fans may get their hands on the game later this year.

Other game development companies are also coming up with their own games that can be converted to fit the iPad. Travis Boatman, VP of EA, also recently presented an iPad-compatible Need for Speed: Shift.

Gaming enthusiasts all over the world, watch out: 2010 is about to be the biggest year that the gaming industry has ever seen.

At least, that’s what Peter Molyneux predicts. You may know Molyneux as the creative director over at Microsoft, but his name is also connected to many ground-breaking technologies in the gaming industry. With several of Molyneux’s projects set to culminate this year, techies and gamers may have reason to believe his prophecy.

So what has Molyneux been up to lately? Molyneux has actually been working on Project Natal, or to be more specific, in the improvement of a little boy named Milo. Known as the “human sim”, Milo was introduced to the world in June of 2009 to thousands of anticipating fans. Milo’s world may have seemed like an ordinary animated game but his interaction with the player is something that has never been seen before. Milo was actually able to recognize, not only the words of the player, but also her gestures—enabling him to interact with the player just like a real human. The motion-sensing feature of the game also caused much excitement among audiences.

Buyers of the new motion-sensing Xbox 360 will no longer have needs for consoles or any device to control the game. The simple gestures and movements of their hands will be sufficient.

Milo and the revolutionary version of Xbox 360 are set to launch on November of this year. As if these two are not enough to get gamers’ blood pumping, Molyneux is also getting ready to release the much-anticipated Fable III which he claims will be using Natal’s motion-sensing feature as well. And as if all these projects are not enough to keep him busy, Molyneux is also working on a new project that he is yet to announce.

It seems like 2010 will indeed be a spectacular year for Molyneux and the rest of the gaming industry.

One thing everyone knows about Video Games: they cost a lot of money. A truly great video game library is often out of reach. Despite that, you want a collection that covers everything: casual games, multiplayer games, challenging games, and time consuming games. Follow the steps outlined below, and a great library of video games will be yours.

First, check your games for the following things, on a scale of 1-4:

1.    Replay Value – If you have played the entire game, how fun is it to play again?
2.    Multiplayer Value – How many players can play at once?
3.    Time Played – How much do you play it? For casual games, an hour is quite a bit. For an RPG, an hour is practically nothing.
4.    Contribution to Collection – if you have all of the Final Fantasy games, but don’t like FF-V, it doesn’t make sense to get rid of it.
5.    Total Enjoyment – how much do you, personally, like the game?

If a game comes out between 5 and 10, you can probably get rid of it (unless it got a 4 in one of these categories). When you get rid of a game, trade it in somewhere so you can use it to get other games you want.

When you go to buy games, keep the above criteria in mind. In addition, consider the following:

1.    How old is the game? If the game is new, it doesn’t make sense to buy now. Wait, and get it when the price gets cut.
2.    Have you played the game? If you haven’t, rating Time and Enjoyment is difficult. Talk to friends who have played, or borrow it.
3.    What niche in your library will the game fill? If you already have six multiplayer games, but only one casual game, take that into consideration.

LAN parties, for the uninitiated, are when a bunch of gamers get together and play videogames. They each bring a console and set them up in different rooms all over the house (although as many as 4 can play on each screen). They put in a game, most often a First Person Shooter, and play competitively.
 
 There are a few important things to remember when planning a LAN party:
 
 Always have the basics on hand: Dew, plates, cups, forks. Don’t forget to stock your bathrooms with toilet paper and soap.
 
 Ask your guests to contribute: include it with the invitation. “Please bring snacks, drinks, or dessert for this many people. Finger foods preferred.” This way, you don’t have to bring them yourself, and it significantly increases the variety of snack foods at the party. This is one of the great keys to a party’s success; how much food is available will directly affect how long you can play.
 
 If you plan on having the party for more than three or four hours, you should probably also ask people to pitch in for pizza.
 
 Make sure you have enough cables, plugs, and televisions for everyone. If you don’t, either get them or make sure that a few friends are bringing them. Few things bring a LAN party down faster than having six machines but only being able to connect four.
 
 Set aside time for getting set up. Between everyone finally showing up and the errors that will inevitably arise, expect an hour between your scheduled start time and when you actually start your first round.
 
 Last but not least, clean up. Make your home a place where everyone can relax and enjoy themselves, and don’t have to pull old pizza crusts out of the couch to sit down.
 
 Finally, have FUN!