These Worlds Are Mine!
Worlds.com is suing the makers of the superhero massively multiplayer online game City of Heroes and they say that Second Life and World of Warcraft are next on their list if their first suit is successful. If you're thinking that this sounds like a hit list of MMOs, you're correct. Worlds.com claims that they have a patent on virtual worlds and they want licensing dollars from all of the big money makers.

The two big releases for this week, Resident Evil 5 and MadWorld, have enough gore to keep the most bloodthirsty of gamers happy. But if that's not your style (or if you're a horrified parent), there are wholesome educational DS offerings to act as an antidote, like My English Coach and Learn Math. So what else is out this week?

Man, compared to last week's enormous release list, this one looks a little tepid. There's something here for everyone, sure, but the real winners are people playing Rock Band on the Wii -- they get the lion's share of new releases this week.

This situation may be unfortunately familiar: You sit down to play a game with a loved one or friend, but you can't find a title that both of you will enjoy. While you might want to play a round of Call of Duty, it's a little too advanced for your partner, while that copy of Wii Music in their hands has you bored before it's even out of the case. Or perhaps you can't get your significant other or friends to stop shooting things and join you on the Wii. Finding something that will appeal to both of you is no easy task, as most developers create games to appeal either to hardcore or casual gamers, but not both at the same time.

With Resident Evil 5 and MadWorld hitting store shelves this week, and with the news that games were discovered on the computer of the German school shooter, it's entirely possible that there will be a resurgence of hysteria about video games in the mainstream media. Any time there is a new avalanche of reports on video games and whether or not they permanently harm those who play them (if you're curious, the most recent studies indicate they don't), it results in another slew of people in a tizzy about the scary unknown world of games. Which is ridiculous, given that they're getting most of their information from reporters who don't know any more about games than they do.

Who doesn't enjoy grabbing the nearest shovel and ensuring the latest outbreak of the undead are sent back to the piles of dirt they came from? Even in these trying economic times, fighting through a swarm of brain eating zombies is an activity we can all get behind. Luckily, there are plenty of video games to help you get your zombie fill, whether you're looking for something serious and scary, a pass-the-Wiimote party game, or even a bizarre retelling of a classic fairy tale that's…full of zombies. Take your pick; there are plenty of the virtual undead to go around.

The first Puzzle Quest brought an unexpected marriage of different kinds of fun -- it was an enjoyable puzzle game, but it had a story, battles, and quests too. The next game in the franchise, Puzzle Quest: Galactrix, uses that same formula: give a Bejeweled color-matching type game a story, mix in more strategy, and you've discovered new habit forming flavors. However, the developers didn't recycle the same game either -- Galactrix sports improved gameplay and a greater variety of puzzle types.

An angry troll, a couple orcs, and a few imps walk into a bar. Just kidding; they’re actually lumbering across the screen towards you menacingly. With nothing standing in their way to prevent them from dispatching you with fanged glee, you’d better hope your magic prowess -- and typing ability -- is up to snuff. Mixing just the right amount of educational value and old-school Dungeons & Dragons charisma, Typomagia! takes word wizardry quite literally.

Last week was a big week for the used games market. Amazon, Best Buy, and Toys R Us, all announced a plan to trade used games, a space that has been dominated almost exclusively by the retailer GameStop up to this point. For consumers, this is great news because as competition moves in on GameStop, gamers will likely begin to receive more money for the games they trade in. Who wants to argue with better trade in values and cheaper games? You might be surprised, actually.

The Wii may have revolutionary controls, but that doesn't matter if you don't have anything to play. Unfortunately, that's the position a lot of Wii owners, many of whom are new to gaming, find themselves in once they're sick of bowling and tennis in Wii Sports. So we've compiled a list of the 10 games that every Wii owner should have. This list doesn't include downloadable games at all (otherwise we'd include titles like World of Goo and Tetris Party), and it's limited strictly to Wii-exclusive titles (which doesn't mean we don't think that you should buy games like Okami, Sam & Max, and Rock Band 2 as well). If you're wondering what to play next -- or if you know of someone else who is -- this list should have you covered.