Early this morning a delivery person showed up at my door with shocking news: HITLER BEGINS WAR ON RUSSIA. Either that was the world's most delinquent paper boy, or THQ really wants us to get excited about Company of Heroes 2.

Not only did THQ send me a FedEx wake-up call at 7AM, they also got me to translate Russian. The card accompanying this poster-sized piece of World War II nostalgia reads "Briefings begin May 7", indicating we're just three days away from the big reveal of the sequel to one of the greatest real-time strategy games of all time.

Well, aside from what's already been revealed via magazine scans.

I just wish THQ hadn't gone the newspaper route (*rimshot*) with this initial tease. It's not that I don't appreciate the significance of June 22, 1941. It's not that I hate history. It's the fact that the obsessive compulsive collector in me now feels I need to collect the entire set of 1941 cover sheets from The New York Times.

Note to insane PR people: That was not a request.

Relic's popular Company of Heroes will be out next year, according to scans of PC Gamer magazine posted at Polygon. This confirms rumors of its development and will make Mr. Luke Plunkett one happy camper.

The first Darksiders won a loyal following of fans for its badass remix of the Legend of Zelda's dungeon-crawling gameplay. But you couldn't really differentiate the way that main character War played. He was a bruiser with weapons that worked the same way for everyone. But Death will be more individualized, once players get their hands on the new lead character.

I got my hands on a build of Vigil Studios' action-adventure sequel yesterday. Some of the changes coming to Darksiders II—like the size and scale of its levels—come across immediately. The entirety of Darksiders 1 would fit in the Foundry section I was playing, I was told.

Storywise, Darksiders II happens in the same chronology of the first game, taking place when War was unjustly imprisoned for starting the Apocalypse. Death's mission is to clear his comrade's name by reaching the Tree of Life and winding back time so that Armageddon never happens. In the Foundry level I played, Death needed to awaken a giant Guardian to take time to the Tree of Life. To do that, I had to find three Heartstones through the level and implant them into the massive but inactive automaton. The bulked-up anime fantasy feel of Joe Madueira's art style still comes through all the character designs, even if Death himself is a slimmer, more sinewy character model.

As his looks imply, Death differs from War in his movement and fighting styles. He's a lot more agile and acrobatic, with wall runs and dodges playing a big part of locomotion and combat. He gets a grapple move, too, and will also be accompanied by NPC characters that help him work through puzzles in the game. Death wields a pair of scythes as his main weapon and carried a huge warhammer as his secondary while I played with him. You'll be able to tweak stats on these implements thanks to the game's all-new Loot system.

Randomly generated loot drops when you defeat certain enemies and you can start using new gear right away by pressing a button, which keeps you out of the game's menus. You can only hold but so many items and it's a person's style of play that will influence decisions about what to keep. Any items you equip will also show up on Death's character model during cutscenes, too.

Another RPG element that you'll come across in Darksiders II are branching skill trees You'll have two skill sets, with Harbinger representing combat and Necromancer representing magic. I got to use two spells in my time with the game: Exhume, which summons corpse allies to attack enemies and Murder, which launches a flock of crows at antagonists.

When I finally reached the Guardian, I found that the corruption unleashed by the apocalypse had made him evil. Of course, this meant that I had to fight him. Elements of the modern Prince of Persia games showed up in Darksiders II's traversal, and the imprint of Shadow of the Colossus showed plainly in the fight against the Guardian. I circled the giant boss with riding Death's ghostly horse Despair, making it swing and and lodge its giant hammer in the ground. Then I targeted the giant enemy's upper arm portions with the pistol, blasting away the explosive shadows. This severs the arm and let me climb the massive limb to grab a Heartstone. The next phase of this fight had me running from huge magical boulders that tracked me. Shooting at them breaks a protective shell and the then the orbs hover in the air right before flying at me. The trick here was to run underneath the Guardian and have the boulders attack the giant who shot them in the first place. Once he got hit by his own projectile, the boss battle ended and a cutscene full of exposition unfolded.

Darksiders II improves on the formula of the first game by making it faster and more flexible. The introduction of RPG elements might make it a game worth playing more than once. You'll get the chance to become Death and kill those who stand in your way exactly how you like when Darksiders II comes out on June 26th.

This week, Ubisoft Shanghai's I Am Alive finally comes to the PlayStation 3, which is cool. I liked that game, as did Tina in her review—it's its own thing, and worthy of your time.

The scads of Mortal Kombat DLC characters are all on sale, so if you're still playing that game (like I am), you can now flesh out your ranks for cheaper than ever. Also, if you'd like to give Warp a test run, you can. Nothing much new for the Vita.

So okay, yeah, not the most exciting week ever on the PlayStation store, but not every week can be a home run.

Read the full list below:

PS Vita Add-Ons

MotorStorm RC (x4) (free – $2.99)
Blazblue: Cse – System Voice Arrange Kokonoe Type-A, Type-B (Vita Dlc) (Cross Entitled With PS3) ($5.99)
Ridge Racer Music Pack 16 & 17 "Variety #1 – #2" (free)
Army Corps Of Hell – Bunny Ears Equipment Set (free)

PSN Games

Wheels Of Destruction ($9.99)
The Price Is Right Decades ($9.99)
I Am Alive ($14.99)

Game Demos

Warp Demo
Time Machine: Rogue Pilot Demo
I Am Alive Demo

Add-ons & Expansions

EyePet & Friends (x10) ($0.69 – $2.99)
LittleBigPlanet 2 (x5) ($1.99 – $5.99)
MotorStorm RC (x4) (free – $2.99)
Blazblue: Cse – System Voice Arrange Kokonoe Type-A, Type-B (PS3 Dlc) (Cross Entitled With Vita ($5.99)
Asura's Wrath – Additional Episode 15.5 ($1.99)
Street Fighter X Tekken (x46) (free- $12.49)
SSX: Eddie And More (free)
Soulcalibur V (x5) (free – $2.99)
Tales Of Graces F (x11) ($0.99 – $3.99)
Hyperdimension Neptunia Mk2 DLC (x4) (free – $1.99)
Ninja Gaiden 3 (x7) ($1.99 – $9.99)
Rocksmith – Bring Me To Life By Evanescence ($2.99)
Rocksmith – Pumped Up Kicks By Foster The People ($2.99)
Rocksmith – This Love by Maroon 5 ($2.99)

Updates

Mortal Kombat – Warrior Kenshi (Spring Fever Sale) (now $3.49, original price $4.99)
Mortal Kombat – Dlc Warrior Bundle (Spring Fever Sale) (now $10.49, original price $14.99)
Mortal Kombat – Freddy Kreuger (Spring Fever Sale) (now $3.49, original price $4.99)
Mortal Kombat – Klassic Skins Pack 1 (Spring Fever Sale) (now $3.49, original price $4.99)
Mortal Kombat – Warrior Skarlet (Spring Fever Sale) (now $3.49, original price $4.99)
Mortal Kombat Warrior Rain (Spring Fever Sale) (now $3.49, original price $4.99)
Prototype (Price Change) (now $19.99, original price $29.99)
Mortal Kombat vs. DC (Spring Fever Sale) (now $13.99, original price $19.99)
Mortal Kombat Arcade Kollection (Spring Fever Sale) (now $6.99 , original price $9.99)
MotorStorm RC – BONUS Supermini Duckie (PS3/PS Vita Cross Entitled add-on) (now free, original price $0.49)

Rock Band 3 tracks

• "Everybody's Fool" – Evanescence ($1.99)
• "Lithium" – Evanescence ($1.99)
• "What You Want" – Evanescence ($1.99)
• EVANESCENCE PACK 02 ($5.49) – Build your Rock Band library by purchasing this song game album: EVANESCENCE PACK 02. This pack includes "Everybody's Fool", "Lithium", and "What You Want". By Evanescence.

File size: 24-27 MB (singles), 74 MB (track pack)

Rock Band Network v2.0

• "Do the Donkey Kong" – Buckner & Garcia ($1.99)
• "Indiscriminate Murder is Counter Productive" – Machinae Supremacy ($1.99)
• "Over the Top" – White Wizzard ($1.99)
• "Starlight Speedway" – Rocket Ship Resort ($0.99)
• "Tear It Up" – Jerry Naylor ($1.99)

Game Videos

Bioshock Infinite – Heavy Hitters: Motorized Patriot Trailer
Journey Story Trailer
Journey Launch Trailer
The Tester Season 3 Episode 9

Themes

Hyperdimension Neptunia Mk2 Custom Theme (free)
Abstract Ocean Flight Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Abstract Firework Symphony Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Ups and Downs by Jody Barton Theme ($1.49)
Elements by On Repeat Theme ($1.99)

Avatars

Escape Plan Avatars (x6) ($0.49 each)
Unit 13 Avatars (x5) ($0.49 each)
Devil May Cry Avatars (x30) ($0.49 each)
Z.H.P. Avatars (x3) ($0.49)

PS Home

PlayStation Home Companions Pack
PlayStation Home Female Hairstyles Pack
PlayStation Home Furniture Pack 2
PlayStation Home Neon Pack
PlayStation Home Combat Armored Suit Pack

Apps

Amazon.com (free)

PlayStation Store for PSP

PSP Minis

Canabalt (Minis) ($2.99)
Farm Frenzy 2 – Minis ($4.99)

Game Videos (Free)
The Tester Season 3 Episode 9

PSP Themes
Lake Of Sorrows by Jasper Goodall PSP Theme ($1.49)
Collide o'Scope by Luke Insect PSP Theme ($1.49)

PlayStation Plus

Free Games:	Shank 2 Shift 2 Unleashed Canabalt Farm Frenzy 2 Silent Hill
Free Avatars & Dynamic Theme:	Escape Plan Bakuki Avatar Escape Plan Laarg Avatar Escape Plan Lil Avatar Escape Plan Logo Avatar Escape Plan Triangle Avatar Stripe Shift 2 Dynamic Theme
Discounts:	Wheels of Destruction (20% off, PS+ Price:$7.99) Mortal Kombat Vs DC Universe Digital (50% off, $9.79) Mortal Kombat Arcade Kollection (50% off, PS+ Price: $4.89) Mortal Kombat – DLC Warrior Bundle (50% off, PS+ Price:$7.34) Mortal Kombat – Freddy Kreuger (50% off, PS+ Price:$2.44) Mortal Kombat – Klassic Skins Pack 1 (50% off, PS+ Price:$2.44) Mortal Kombat – Warrior Kenshi (50% off, PS+ Price:$2.44) Mortal Kombat – Warrior Skarlet (50% off, PS+ Price:$2.44) Mortal Kombat – Warrior Rain (50% off, PS+ Price:$2.44)
Exclusive Avatar Bundles:	Devil May Cry 3 Avatar Bundle (PS+ Price:$0.99) Devil May Cry Avatar Bundle (PS+ Price:$0.99) Devil May Cry 2 Avatar Bundle (PS+ Price:$0.99)

While Nintendo has yet to release the full specs for its upcoming Wii U, you can guess by its launch lineup that its capabilities are probably in line with the Xbox 360 and PS3, something Vigil Games are now backing up.

"So far the [Wii U] hardware's been on par with what we have with the current generations," Vigil's Marvin Donald told Game Reactor.

"Based on what I understand, the resolution and textures and polycounts and all that stuff, we're not going to being doing anything to up-res the game, but we'll take advantage of the controller for sure."

Remember he says "so far" there, so while early dev kits for a launch title might not push the system to its limits, there might still be room under the hood for the Wii U to run games at a clearly higher level than the consoles of today.

GRTV: Darksiders II-intervju [GameReactor, via Develop]

In this adorably gory trailer for THQ's Darksiders II, our hero Death finally runs into a creature he can't take out with a single savage slash. We're going to need a bigger scythe.

Ah springtime, when young men and women's hearts are filled with Death and dismemberment. Darksiders II hits retail on June 26. Shortly after that gamers will face off against whatever the hell the gigantic thing in this video is—some sort of guardian or something.

Will Death survive the fight? Of course he will, it's his game. How? We'll have to wait for part two. Until then enjoy some seemingly unrelated screenshots.

The Legend of Zelda is great. And if somebody compared your game to Zelda, then you'd be pretty happy, no? No?

While he is a Zelda fan, Darksiders II Creative Director Joe Madureira apparently doesn't want his game, with its dungeon-based gameplay, compared to Zelda. That's understandable, I guess—he wants Darksiders to have its own identity.

Though, if everyone comes up to you and says your romantic interest looks like a supermodel, you should be happy!

"I'll be curious to see who we're compared to this time, but the only game we want to be compared to is the original Darksiders," Madureira told Official Nintendo Magazine. "We want people to say it's like the first one but 10 times bigger and better."

Don't compare Darksiders 2 to Zelda - Creative Director [ONM]

Further distancing the company from rumors that its 2014 lineup had been canned, today's third quarter 2012 financial results from THQ list inSANE, Warhammer 40K: Dark Millennium Online, and several more unannounced core titles that should be showing up over the next couple of years.

Warhammer 40k fans in particular should be pleased that the upcoming massively-multiplayer game based on the beloved universe is still slated for release somewhere in fiscal year 2014 and beyond. The fate of the MMO project was still up in the air following THQ's assurance that its 2004 lineup was not cancelled.

During the fiscal announcement conference call it was revealed that THQ is currently seeking a development partner for the MMO.

The report lists four games slated to be released in fiscal year 2013, which begins in April: South Park: The Game, the annual WWE game, Metro: Last Light, and Devil's Third. Titles slated for release in fiscal year 2014 and beyond include an unnamed title from Turtle Rock Studio, Dark Millennium Online, inSANE, Homefront 2, and the unnamed project from former-Ubisoft beard Patrice Désilets.

Note that Metro: Last Light has been pushed back from its original summer release. During the conference call it was explained that this was in order to facilitate a strong marketing push, something the original lacked. It's all part of THQ's new plan to deliver strong core titles with aggressive marketing strategies.

THQ also indicates that there are four unannounced core titles in development for fiscal year 2014, one of which is likely the long-rumored new Company of Heroes game.

Death and his pal War team-up to save the day this year in Darksiders: The Abomination Vault, a series prequel that takes place a millenia before the opening credits of the first game.

Death might be a new player in Darksiders II, but he's been around as long as people have been dying, giving author Ari Marmell (The Conqueror's Shadow, The Goblin Corps) plenty of material to work with. In this particular heroic tale of anti-armageddoning, Death and War (buddy cops) team up to thwart an evil plan to resurrect ancient weapons of mass destruction and thus plunge the universe into a horrific conflict.

You know, now that I think about it, the entire Darksiders series seems to be about the great length the apolcalyptic horsepersons will go to avoid doing their actual jobs.

Darksiders: The Abomination Vault will release alongside the eagerly anticipated Darksiders II later this year. Random House is handling publishing duties, while Random House Worlds, the publisher's intellectual property building division, will be responsible for developing the series bible for the Darksiders universe.

Following the failure of its uDraw tablet for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 and December's shutdown of it's children's game division, THQ has officially announced today that it's focusing on its core franchises. So Spongebob is out, UFC, Darksiders, Company of Heroes, inSANE, Saints Row and Warhammer 40,000 are in.