One of the big surprises of the THQ fire-sale was that no one stumped up to save Vigil, creators of Darksiders. A sad end to the company though that was, not all of Vigil's staff did so badly, with many of the refugees reforming as Crytek USA. Now their CEO David Adams has announced an ambition to buy back the Darksiders name, tweeting that he'd "put 7 years of heart and soul into that franchise" and that "it belongs at home with its creators."

Good news for undernourished-horse fans everywhere!

Darksiders and its sequel were imperfect games but not unambitious ones, mashing together a Zelda-ish lite-RPG structure with a gratifyingly deep combo-brawler and Prince of Persia-style environmental acrobatics. What appeared initially to be a rather adolescent fiction about the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse took some genuinely weird turns, as the roving eye of the developers flitted across styles and settings, all brought into lurid detail by an extremely accomplished art team. Even Jesper Kyd's score for Darksiders 2 is an overlooked gem.

I know the game has carved a little home for itself in the heart of several PCG staffers - and we'd love to see where the Darksiders team's talents take them next.

Thanks, Reddit.

Saints Row 4 debuted last week with all the subtlety one might expect from a game with dubstep guns and rocket-launching guitars, and it's eyeballing an August 20 release. That sets up a scant month-long gap between it and Grand Theft Auto 5's planned September launch, and Rockstar's titan has both years of success and a heavy fanbase to bring to bear. Speaking to Eurogamer, Volition Producer Jim Boone says the team isn't worried in the slightest and feels Saints Row is unique enough to stack up to its giant competitor.

"Obviously, when announced its date and it was so close to us, that was an interesting phenomenon," Boone says. "But the thing we feel good about in general is that we're such a different game to what they are. If we were stylistically similar to the first Saints Row, I'd be horrified right now. Saints Row: The Third came out the same time as Assassin's Creed, but the games are so different in terms of what they do."

Saints Row 4 certainly departs heavily from its original predecessor (remember when you were fighting gangs?), adopting a chaotic grab-bag of wacky antics such as superpowers, alien invasions, and pedestrian-firing cat cannons. Grand Theft Auto 5 is much more narrative-focused by comparison, weaving a more serious tale of crime and redemption connected across multiple main characters.

For Boone, open world games have come along far enough for both styles to co-exist peacefully. "The genre's matured enough where you can have all these different styles and still be an open world game and be different," he states. "So I look at GTA 5 and think there's this massive game coming out, but I don't think that with our superpowers and alien invasions, no one will compare us to them."

After the controlled implosion of THQ, you may have been wondering what would happen to the original Company of Heroes, now that Relic and COH2 have been safely gobbled up by Sega, and its chilli-dog scoffing CEO Mr Hedgehog. The imminent shutdown of Quazal, who handled the game's online, hardly helped matters - but thankfully, Relic have come to a solution. Rather than leaving their six-year-old game to die, they're thoughtfully transferring the original Company of Heroes to Steamworks - you'll be able to 'opt-in' to the new service from April 8th.

Relic have teamed up with Smoking Gun Interactive - a studio made up of former Relic staff who worked on the original game - to bring COH to Steam "with as many of the original online features working on the new platform as possible." That means that the full suite of online options likely won't be available right at the start, but in the blog post Relic talk of a "roadmap" for COH1, so hopefully the game will be back to full strength in the coming months. Heroes' old, Quazal servers are set to close on May 7th.

Sadly, the years of accumulated online data won't carry across to the Steamworks version, but Relic are "investigating the possibility of creating an online archive of all the final data from the leaderboards, statistics, etc, to honor the gamers who have played so much for the last 6 years."

As for the sequel, well that's heading for Steamworks too. Company of Heroes 2 is out June 25th, while the date of its closed beta will be announced early next week.

It isn't often we see the words "Origin" and "sale" next to each other, but this week is the exception: EA is running a week-long Player Appreciation Sale which discounts some pretty hefty games in the publisher's lineup—titans such as Mass Effect 3, Crysis 3, and Battlefield 3.

Here's the full list of games on sale and their prices:

Battlefield 3 Premium—$25
Battlefield 3—$12
Battlefield 3 Premium Edition—$30
Crysis 3—$30
Crysis 3 Digital Deluxe Edition—$40
Crysis 3 Digital Deluxe Upgrade—$10
The Sims 3 Seasons—$20
The Sims 3 University Life—$28
The Sims 3 Supernatural—$15
Dead Space—$6
Dead Space 2—$6
Dead Space 3—$30
Resident Evil 5—$10
Mass Effect 3—$10
The Walking Dead—$10
Batman: Arkham City GOTY Edition—$12
FIFA Soccer 13—$20
Command & Conquer Ultimate Collection—$15
Hitman: Absolution—$15
Saints Row: The Third Full Package—$25
Assassin's Creed 3—$35
Assassin's Creed 3 Deluxe Edition—$56
Darksiders 2—$18
Dead Island GOTY Edition—$10
Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City—$25


Normal and special editions on sale? And they're big games? I don't want to spoil this rare opportunity to enjoy a good Origin sale with cynicism, but it's hard not to chortle lightly at the convenient devaluing of nearly half the games EA offered SimCity players for free earlier this week.

The mutants in Metro 2033 were objectionable enough, but the guys that really took the biscuit were those underground Nazis, who appear to have returned in full force for Metro: Last Light. The following trailer shows a terrifyingly well-equipped subterranean army training for war - presumably a war against returning hero Artyom, and his plucky chums from the Metro 2033 station. Last Light, you'll remember, is out this May, so old Arty doesn't have much time to prepare.

Here's the trailer. After you're done, be sure to check out our recent preview.

How silly is Saints Row IV going to be. Well, let's look at what's inside its announcement trailer.

A guitar-shaped rocket launcher. This is quite silly.
Superpowers. This is very silly.
A head-expanding laser beam. Positively batshit.
A skyward launching nutshot. Just... ouch.
A giant, mutated, rampaging mascot. I think I'm becoming desensitised.
An announcement date of August 20th for the US, and August 23rd for the UK. More informative than silly, really.

There's a definite pattern emerging.

Frankly, I'm delighted. Saint Row: The Third was one of those games so unapologetically ridiculous that it snapped back on itself and became a uniquely warped kind of genius. It's nice to see Volition and Deep Silver really test how far they can push that.

4A's Metro: Last Light escaped being lost forever in the murky tunnels of development limbo after Dead Island publisher Deep Silver picked up the game when THQ's light sputtered out. Its original March release date took a bump into May after the sale, but in an interview with VG247, Deep Silver Global Brand Manager Huw Beynon says the delay is purely because of administrative busywork and not a snag in the game's actual formation.

"Obviously the release date has been pushed back a little bit as the studio re-engages with a new publisher and tries to figure out QA, submissions and all the stuff you have to do behind the scenes," he explains. "But we’ve not lost too much time on the development of the game, and it’s essentially going to be the same product we planned to release in March. We’re just really excited it’s not been too traumatic for the studio, and I am confident that when the game comes out it’s going to be great."

That's a relief to hear, especially when Last Light looks poised to bring more of the bleak, atmospheric scurryings and shootings of a ruined Moscow's surviving populace first seen in Metro 2033. Metro: Last Light launches May 14th in America and May 17th through Europe. We'll have more to share soon—a new demo of the game is being brought by the PC Gamer Tower tomorrow.

Company of Heroes 2 was due to come out around about now, but then THQ folded and developers, Relic, were auctioned off to Sega. This has pushed back the World War 2 RTS by a few months. It'll now arrive on JUNE 25, long before Russian winter sets in.

“We hate to disappoint our fans with a later than expected date as we know they are eager to play but we feel that the additional time will help the team deliver the high quality sequel fans deserve” - thus spake producer Greg Williams into the press release robot's listening hole.

“However, the wait won’t be long as players will soon be able to help us test and balance multiplayer in the upcoming Closed Beta.

"Details will follow shortly," he adds.

Exciting news, no? I liked what I played of Company of Heroes 2 very much, because I like Company of Heroes 1 very much, and the sequel seems to be clinging very close to the ideas that made the original great.

And sigh of relief. While the various new owners of THQ's properties were always going to forge ahead with those games already close to completion, there's something about seeing a firm, solid release plan that takes the edge off the uncertainty that's plagued the period. Today, Deep Silver announce that Metro: Last Light will launch May 14th in America and May 17th through Europe.

While any release date is great news, it's still a delay from the original planned March launch. Koch Media CEO Dr. Klemens Kundratitz explains the delay: "The new release date is the ideal way to strike the balance between bringing the best out of Metro: Last Light and not keep the fans waiting longer than necessary. We won’t leave that time unexploited and will work closely together with 4A Games to make the game even better. It will receive all the attention it deserves."

I've got big hopes for this. Despite some rough edges, it was an excellently bleak and atmospheric shooter - a sort of linear S.T.A.L.K.E.R. with some great pacing and enough variety to keep it consistently engaging. Judging from the game footage 4A dropped back in December, Last Light should be a faithful follow-up.

The date's been set for the final court-supervised auction of THQ's remaining properties. Those titles not bought in January's fire sale have been divided into lots, with initial bids due in April 1st. Final bids are required by April 15th, then, pending court approval, THQ expects to sell the remaining vestige of its existence by mid-May. *Sniff*

While the tastiest morsels have already been picked away, there's still some meat clinging to the THQ bone. Darksiders, Homeworld and Red Faction are all looking for a new home. In an ideal world, the Homeworld license will be picked up by someone who'll actually use it, and Red Faction will end up somewhere that recognises the brilliance of Guerrilla over the mediocrity of Armageddon.

Here's the full list:

Lot 1: Red Faction
Red Faction
Red Faction Armageddon
Red Faction 2
Red Faction: Guerrilla

Lot 2: Homeworld
Homeworld
Homeworld 2

Lot 3: MX
MX Alive
MX vs ATV Untamed
MX Superfly featuring Ricky Carmichael
MX vs. ATV Alive Tournament
MX Unleashed
MX vs. ATV Unleashed
MX vs ATV Reflex
MX vs. ATV: On The Edge

Lot 4: Darksiders
Darksiders
Darksiders 2

Lot 5: Other Owned Software
All Star Cheer Squad
Elements of Destruction
All Star Cheer Squad 2
Fantastic Pets
All Star Karate
Frontlines: Fuel of War
Baja: Edge of Control
Full Spectrum Warrior 1
Full Spectrum Warrior 2: Ten Hammers
Battle of the Bands
Beat City
Juiced
Juiced 2: Hot Import Nights
Big Beach Sports
Big Beach Sports 2
Lock's Quest: Construction Combat
Big Family Games
Neighborhood Games
Crawler
Pax Imperia
de Blob
de Blob 2
Stuntman: Ignition
Summoner
Summoner 2
Deadly Creatures
Deep Six
Terranium
Destroy All Humans!
Destroy All Humans! 2
Destroy All Humans! Big Willy Unleashed
Destroy All Humans! Path of the Furon
The Outfit
Titan Quest
Titan Quest: Immortal Throne
uDraw
Dood's Big Adventure
World of Zoo
Drawn to Life
Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter

Lot 6: Licensed Software
Costume Quest
Stacking
Scripps Spelling Bee (Scripps)
Daniel X (SueJack)
Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of Osborne House
Deepak Chopra's Leela (Curious Holdings)
Fancy Nancy: Tea Party Time! (Harper Collins)
Supreme Commander
Supreme Commander Forged Alliance
Jeopardy
Jeopardy 2
The Biggest Loser
Journey to the Center of the Earth
Truth or Lies
Let's Ride Best of Breed
Vampire Legends: Power of Three (dtp)
Marvel Super Hero Squad: Comic Combat
Marvel Super Hero Squad: The Infinity Gauntlet
Marvel Super Hero Squad: The Infinity Gauntlet 2
Wheel of Fortune
Wheel of Fortune 2
World of Zoo
Nancy Drew: The Hidden Staircase
Worms 2
Worms Battle Islands
Worms Open Warfare
Worms: A Space Oddity
Worms: Open Warfare 2 (Team 17)
Nexuiz
Paws & Claws Marine Rescue
Paws & Claws Pampered Pets Resort 3D
PurrPals 2
Rio
You Don't Know Jack (Jellyvision)
Rocket Riot
Screwjumper (Frozen Codebase)

Wow, that's a mixed bag of Other and Licensed properties.

Wishful thinking time! Who would you like to see bidding on the various series?

Thanks, GI.biz