Eidos today sent out word that the Xbox 360-exclusive downloadable content “Beneath the Ashes” episode for Tomb Raider: Underworld will not make its February 10 release date.

An “unexpected technical issue” is blamed for the delay. No release date was mentioned, though they assured us that it will be released soon.

The expansion, which would cost $10, takes place after the end of the game, offering new levels and enemies. Another add-on is promised – “Lara’s Shadow” – for release on March 10.

Responding to a community request, the upcoming patch for Far Cry 2 will add a new “hardcore” multiplayer setting to the open-world shooter. All versions – PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 – of the game will receive the update.

Apparently some players were “seeking and expecting a more realistic experience,” hence the update. Changes include a new damage model with increased damage for all weapons; rebalanced weapons; enemy names disappear after spawning invincibility period is over; the ability to tweak spawning time and more.

No release date for the patch was given.

While the rhythm game is an interesting genre, most games have you playing guitar or drums or the like, essentially keeping the rhythm for its own sake is the ultimate goal of the game. One game that took the rhythm genre in a different yet extremely addictive genre was Patapon for the PSP. You took control of a tribe of cutesy yet fearsome eyeball creatures called Patapons on their quest for the “IT at Earthend”. By drumming different songs in different rhythms you could instruct them to advance, attack and various other actions, including creating rain and other miracles.

With the ending of the first leaving a sequel possibility wide open and the title having performed well both critically and financially it’s no surprise that a sequel has been announced for later this year. As with the original the sequel is being developed internally by Sony and will build upon many of the features of the original. The press release boasts 200%+ more content for the sequel, with new units including bird riders, magicians and robots, more bosses, minigames and songs. There will even be a fully customizable ‘Hero Patapon’ who can be outfitted with a variety of weapons and equipment. The sequel also adds multiplayer capabilities to the game which will be releasing Spring or Summer of this year.

Zombies are incredibly popular lately. It might be in part that of all the archetypal horror monsters they have by far the largest horror to cost ratio. Get some extras, pillage a thrift store for expendable clothing and add creepy makeup and gallons of fake blood. Instant creep-out. It comes as no surprise then that Dead Rising is getting a sequel.

It is set in the aftermath of the events in Willamette. Unfortunately the zombie outbreak wasn’t entirely contained so the game begins years later in a world where zombie outbreaks continue to crop up. The game is set in the ‘gambling paradise’ of Fortune City and will of course feature hordes of zombies (tens of thousands according to the press release) and even more items that can be used as weapons. A handful of screenshots have been released and it seems that there’ll be a new, sandier-haired and camera-less protagonist.

The sequel is being developed in partnership with Canadian studio Blue Castle Games. Working along with them will be members of the original Dead Rising team including Keiji Inafune who is the producer on the project. The title will be going multiplatform with it being released for the PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.

Discussions of the sequel to popular sci-fi action RPG Mass Effect are already happening. What consoles it will be released for has come under discussion. The title has been around for quite some time and last year a downloadable content pack was released called Bringing Down The Sky, where the protagonist embarked on a mission to save a planet from a rogue asteroid. To the disappointment of many fans of the game this was the only DLC to be released.

At least until now. In a discussion this weekend at New York Comic Con Jay Watamaniuk let it slip that a second DLC episode is in the works. Unfortunately as you might expect he steered any further questions about the DLC towards a different topic. Details will likely be forthcoming as soon as they’re available since many gamers have probably already sold/traded in their copies.

Fallout 3 as with most open-ended RPGs offers a wealth of things to discover and places to explore. Outside of the main quest there are dozens of side quests to be undertaken, unique weapons to be collected and bobbleheads to be found. Throw in the different approaches to the game and the various choices you can make along the way and you end up with countless hours of possible gameplay.

As if you couldn’t sink enough hours into the Capitol Wasteland already Bethesda is putting out several DLC packs for the game. The first, Operation Anchorage, is already available. Unfortunately it’s being reported that the next two download packs, The Pitt and Broken Steel are getting pushed back a month. The Pitt will now be available in March and Broken Steel in April.

Sony is not in the best of positions right now. The company announced its first loss in over a decade and the gaming division had income come down by quite a big margin. Sales of the PS3, PSP and PS2 were also down, but that hasn’t put SCEE boss David Reeves down. In fact, he made a rather silly boxing analogy in this interview, but he also said some interesting stuff – namely, the PS3.

Reeves disclosed that the Cell processor running the PS3 will soon be shrunk down. The current Cell chip is a 65nm one and will soon be replaced by a 45nm chip which will require less power and make the machine run cooler. So, when is this coming? “Probably in [the] middle of the year,” said Reeves.

That would bring down production costs for the PS3, and also might mean a price cut, which is always good for the consumer and the product in question.

While it has been known for some time now, Infinity Ward community manager Robert Bowling officially confirmed that the studio’s next Call of Duty title will indeed be subtitled Modern Warfare 2.

“Reviewing some radio-chatter VO we just finished recording for Modern Warfare 2 today,” read Bowling’s Twitter. “‘Cujo Two-One this is Vulture, solid copy on all.’”

The subtitle was officially unveiled by Activision, but the company later labeled the reports speculative.

Platforms, release details and other details are still unknown.

Harmonix is on a roll: first they get the whole “Chinese Democracy” album from Guns n’ Roses, and now they announce next week’s batch of Rock Band downloadable content – three songs from Scottish indie rock group The Fratellis. The songs are “Creepin Up the Backstairs”, “Flathead” and “Henrietta”.

All the tracks are master recordings and will set you back for 160 Microsoft points ($2) a piece; they can also be bought as a pack for 440 points ($5.50).

Xbox gamers get it February 10 and PS3 users two days later.

Following confirmation of Battlefield 1943 earlier this week, Kotaku has had the chance to actually play the upcoming download-only game, offering up some details of the multiplayer shooter.

The game will be priced somewhere between $15 and $20 and will feature three classes: Infantry, Riflemen and Scout. Players will be able to fight in any situation regardless of the chosen class, so each of them has weapons that could take down a tank.

It will feature support for 24 players and offer unlimited ammunition and automatically regenerating health. There will be destructible environments in the same vein as Bad Company, and the game will ship with three maps, though more maps will be available post-release.