Left 4 Dead 2 will be entering into its Linux version very shortly, integrating it with Valve’s ongoing “Extended Mutation System” beta. What is EMS exactly? Essentially, it’s an easy way for modders to change various scripts within the game, totally customize them however they choose, and so much more (not to be confused with the Steam Workshop). Up until now, this system has only been available in very small testing groups, but that’s about to change very soon.

Did you hear? The good folks at Trion Worlds will be conducting another beta event for the upcoming MMO shooter, Defiance. Judging from the Co-Optimus community's response to our beta key giveaway, plenty of  you want in on the action.

For hardcore gamers, Free To Play, has an almost negative stigma associated with it.  Combine that with the word "Facebook" and you're looking at the double whammy of disgust.  It's not hard to see why, with titles like Farmville begging for social sharing and clicks and other titles cheapening the experience by asking you to pay for gratification.  But there are some gems out there that are bucking the trend, the latest is a game from Rumble called KingsRoad - a hack and slash RPG that's playable via Facebook or Rumble's website.

This past weekend, SimCity held a closed beta test for a select group of individuals to test out some very basic features of the game and give EA's server infrastructure a good ol' workout.  While the beta didn't feature any of the multiplayer functionality, there was plenty of opportunity to see just how cooperative play is going to work when the title is released on PC on March 5th.

Digital Extreme Development Team members casually discuss two more of Warframe’s upcoming, epic characters, Loki and Mag, while drinking delicious coffee. After we watched this video, we immediately saw the similarities between Loki and Mag with their Borderlands 2 counterparts, Zero and Maya, and got extremely excited for its release day.

Remember the old-school days where Action RPG’s ruled the gaming world? Well this game aims to bring that back with some modern day swag. Indie developer Pixel Ferret’s new title, Secrets of Grindea, looks to make a name for itself in the gaming scene through Steam Greenlight and Desura PC platforms.

Just last week, Happy Wars, one of the only two games to be a part of the first free-to-play program to be experimented with by Microsoft, has opened up its beta for those looking to take on gobs of players in one, giant, co-op brawl. What’s more awesome to hear is that anyone who is an Xbox LIVE Gold member can go on a download the title (along with Ascend: New Gods) absolutely free and play with others online. Micro-transactions will be available, however, in both games, but you won’t have to purchase anything to enjoy this co-op game.

The developer responsible for Darkness 2’s and Bioshock 2’s multiplayer gameplay, Digital Extremes, has announced its next PC title, Warframe, as a free-to play third-person shooter. Just like everyone else, we like free things too, so we got curious.

Good morning! You're about to call in sick. It's really happening. An open beta for Blizzard's highly anticipated Diablo 3 will kick off at noon. That's right, a public beta open to anyone with a valid Battle.net account will begin today, April 20th, at 12:01 p.m. PST. The beta will run through Monday, April 23rd, 10:00 a.m. PST. You should be able to begin downloading the client now. Blizzard needs your help assaulting their servers in this three day stress test. Here's a link to the Diablo 3 website with instructions on how to enter the beta and other FAQs.

With only a few weeks away until its release, Blizzard will be initiating another huge release of Diablo III beta keys, giving the lucky beta-testers a chance to play the game before its upcoming May release.

Blizzard is giving away beta keys to Diablo 3 every Monday on the game's official Facebook page.  Entering is as simple clicking a button and each week they'll be drawing 200 winners.  Every fourth winner will receive two keys - one for you and one so you can co-op with a friend.  

Nanny Ogg sang that a Wizard's Staff has a knob on the end, and nothing could be truer.  Another truism is that co-op games should encourage more than just gamers running around the same environment.  If full co-operation and teamwork is your bag, then this 40 minutes of beta footage for Trine 2 will appeal.  

Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One is out on 18th October, but members of the EU Playstation Plus can download an exclusive open Beta to try out the 4 player co-op first.  Recent releases have shown that a beta phase can be the difference between glitchy gaming and smooth sailing. 

Sully in 'da House

The Gears of War 3 multiplayer beta came to an end on Sunday.  The sudden stoppage of shotgun pwnage left Gears fans with a long summer wait for the early autumn retail release.  I, myself, was disenchanted with the beta, (I'm extraordinarily bad at Gears multiplayer, like, patheti-sad) but many, many gamers were not.  1.29 million players joined the beta.  Epic and Microsoft also announced that there have been over 1 million pre-orders for Gears of War 3, "making it the fastest pre-ordered Xbox exclusive title to reach this milestone in the history of the platform."  This may have to do with the fact that pre-ordering Gears of War 3 was one of the few ways to access the multiplayer beta.  Xbox LIVE's Major Nelson has all the stats you could ask for: