In one of the most brutal and honest interviews I've seen in a long time, Stardock CEO Brad Wardell lays out the state of PC gaming on the table.  You can tell the man has a chip on his shoulder, and he's not afraid to tell the world about digital distribution, Microsoft's shortcomings, and the fact that company's flat out lie about their sales.

With digital distribution becoming more popular, it seems that most have been clamoring that "retail is dead" - but that's simply not the case.  There's a reason we haven't seen numbers from Steam, Direct2Drive, Impulse and other digital platforms - they simply aren't as impressive.

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Stardock has announced that preorders are now being taken for the upcoming micro-expansion for Sins of a Solar Empire entitled Diplomacy.  The DLC adds faction status and trade pact options within the game, as well as the ability to issue new missions to other players.  The biggest addition is a brand new diplomatic skill tree which adds over thirty technologies.

Diplomacy will only set you back $10, and if you pre-order now you can get yourself into the beta when it launches soon.  Sins of a Solar Empire supports a variety of four player configurations in co-op, and DLC looks to add more missions perfect for conquering the galaxy with a friend.

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Stardock and NVIDIA have announced a brand new version of Impulse today.  Dubbed the "NVIDIA Edition," it will provide NVIDIA graphics card owners seamless driver updates and other optimizations for their PC.  

Impulse is Stardock's digital distribution platform for games and software, and is slowly evolving into a social and community hub as well.  The next iteration of the software even promises match making abilities across all games - not just Impulse games like Sins of a Solar Empire.  

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The next Sins of a Solar Empire expansion packed entitled Diplomacy is scheduled to hit a public beta this Fall, that according to a Stardock employee blog post.  Diplomacy will add new diplomacy features and new diplomatic tech-tree options to research, including the ability to form treaties with other alien races and trade treaties with other races.  

So instead of firing guns and blowing up star bases, your co-op sessions can be a little more peaceful.  But where's the fun in that?  Expect Diplomacy to be available next Winter after an extensive beta.

The PC is still the strongest platform when it comes to strategy titles, and a unique and incredibly deep title named Sins of a Solar Empire is no exception.  With nearly limitless possibilities at your fingertips and your friends by your side - there's plenty of strategy and fun to be had in this space sim.  But is it enough to satisfy our cooperative galaxy conquering cravings?  Read on to find out.

This month's Games For Windows Co-Op Night takes us into the vast reaches of the galaxy in Sins of a Solar Empire, a real time strategy game from Iron Clad games.   Read on to find out how to join!