2012 will see plenty of new video games, from sequels to popular franchises, to brand new IPs. On top of that, 2012 will also see the introduction of a brand new gaming console, the Nintendo Wii U.

Here’s a full list of major video game titles that are scheduled for release in 2012. We’ll be continuously updating this list as new information is released. If you have any suggestions to video games we might have missed, let us know in the comments section.

January

• Silent Hill HD Collection (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Final Fantasy XIII-2 (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Soul Calibur V (PS3, Xbox 360)
• NeverDead (PS3, Xbox 360)

February

• The Darkness II (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Grand Slam Tennis 2 (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Inversion (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Twisted Metal (PS3)
• Test Drive: Ferrari Legends (PS3, Xbox 360)
• SSX (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Syndicate (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)

March

• Mass Effect 3 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Ninja Gaiden 3 (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Ghost Recon: Future Soldier (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Mario Party 9 (Wii)
• Ridge Racer Unbounded (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Street Fighter X Tekken (PC, PS3, Xbox360)
• Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City (PS3, Xbox 360)
• The Sims 3: Showtime (PC)
• Dragon’s Dogma (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Sniper: Ghost Warrior 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)

April

• Prototype 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Armored Core V (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Xenoblade Chronicles (Wii)
• Risen 2: Dark Waters (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Alan Wake (PC)
• Aliens: Colonial Marines (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)

May

• Brothers In Arms: Furious 4 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (PC, Mac OS X, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Spec Ops: The Line (PS, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Silent Hill: Downpour (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Max Payne 3 (PS3, Xbox 360)

June

• DarkSiders 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• LEGO Batman 2* (PS3, Xbox 360, Mobile)
• Scrolls* (PC, Mac OS X, Linux))

July

• Diablo 3 (PC, Mac OS X)
• Hitman Absolution (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Prey 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Starhawk (PS3)

August

• Metro: Last Light (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Overstrike (PS3, Xbox 360)
• StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm* (PC, Mac OS X)
• DOTA 2* (PC, Mac OS X)

September

• BioShock Infinite* (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• FIFA 13 (PC, PS3, Xbox360, Mobile)
• Halo 4 (Xbox 360)

October

• Grand Theft Auto V* (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Tomb Raider (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• The Last Guardian* (PS3)

November

• Assassins’ Creed 3* (PS3, Xbox 360)
• Call of Duty 9* (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance* (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)

December

• DarkSiders 2 (Wii U)
• Metro: Last Light (Wii U)
• Guild Wars 2* (PC)
• Stalker 2** (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
• The Last of Us* (PS3)

* indicates unconfirmed date

** possibly canceled/pushed to 2013

BioWare has been a big name in the video game industry with several different titles that have turned heads. However, time and time again towards the helm of BioWare’s portfolio is none other than the Mass Effect franchise. This franchise currently includes two different titles appropriately dubbed Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2. However, it’s been known for quite some time that BioWare would get around to releasing the third iteration but when exactly we haven’t known.

Luckily during this year’s E3, which is still ongoing, BioWare has come forth to announce that Mass Effect 3 will in fact be dropping for the PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 on March 6th, 2012. During the conference there were some murmurs that the game may be making its way to the newly announced Wii U but we’ve yet to hear anything official in terms of this. We’ll keep you posted.

Blizzard is one of the most influential game studios on the market with titles like World of Warcraft and StarCraft never failing to impress in terms of sales numbers and gameplay. For Blizzard diehards, one of the most important events of the year is BlizzCon where Blizzard showcases their latest developments alongside a whole slew of fun including costume contests and game competitions.

In fact, Blizzard has just come forth today to announce that BlizzCon 11 will take place from October 21st – 22nd and will be held at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. Below Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime comments:

“We look forward to holding another exciting BlizzCon this year, filled with some great entertainment and competition, as well as the latest news about Blizzard games… BlizzCon is built from the ground up with our community in mind — we’re pleased to be able to host an event where players can come together to have fun and celebrate their passion for gaming.”

There’s no word on when exactly ticket sales will begin but if you’re looking to get down on BlizzCon 11 you better keep an eye out for an announcement as tickets have been known to sell out quite fast.

Check out more information regarding BlizzCon 11 in the press release after the break.

via blizzard

Something pretty serious has to go down in order for a game to get canceled. The most recent occurrence of this is with EA Sports’ NBA ELITE 11 which was canceled due to extremely poor reception. Duke Nukem Forever is one of the most publicized games thought to be canceled and then brought back from the dead.

It’s been nearly a decade since development began on Duke Nukem Forever so when a playable version was put on display at this year’s E3 gamers were shocked. Despite this, we haven’t been able to pin the game with a solid release date due to no official word being said. Luckily, our friends over at both Amazon and GameStop have pegged the game with a May 31st, 2011 release date for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.

Is this to be believed? Well, considering it’s coming from 2 major online retailers there is definitely some heat behind it but wait for an official word before getting too excited.

via crunchgear

Gamers may be more social than others might lead you to believe – at least, according to a survey commissioned by IGN, anyway.

The 3000 respondent survey was conducted by researchers at Ipsos, in which they found out that single gamers were twice as likely as non-gamers to go out on a date. Gamers were also by a slight margin more likely to be non-romantically social.

Interestingly, gaming households on average had substantially more money than non-gaming households – $79,000 versus $54,000 annually. Gamers also tended to be the cultural influence, reporting their family and friends on pop culture and technology.

"It’s obvious that the gaming market has outgrown many commonly held stereotypes about the relative homogeneity of video gamers," said Adam Wright, research director for Ipsos.