The guilty pleasure that was is PAIN for PS3 is finally getting some substantial new content. By "substantial" we mean a new level – which will join the game's only level – called "Uncle Jimmy's Fun Spot Amusement Park." Sony and developer Idol Minds reckon it's more of an abusement park (their pun, not ours) and it's bringing more than just fresh scenery to the game.

Slated to arrive "this summer," the PAIN Amusement Park add-on will introduce new player-requested features, including online multiplayer and PlayStation Trophies. These are in addition to the abundance of added moving set pieces you can see in the above video. Looks like in the case of PAIN and new content, it does hurt to ask.

News

• WWI attendees get their own pet, Archangel Tyrael
  Turns out the folks at WWI were even luckier than we thought.
• Rumor: Wrath of the Lich King box revealed
  See what the game you'll be buying later this year actually looks like.
• US registration for Wrath beta now open
  Blizzard has opened up an opt-in for players in the US and EU, and we're that much closer to release.
• Rumor: Wrath of the Lich King collector's edition box
  But what we really want to know is what's inside it.
• Kisirani implies the return of the Scourge Invasion event
  Looks like Arthas and his cronies will step foot back in Azeroth at least once more.

Features

• Things that annoy me
  Allison Robert open up a legendary can of rant for the Fourth of July weekend.
• Ask a Lore Nerd: The swirling vortex of death
  The Lore Nerd ruins his cool forever by knowing so much nerdy history about Azeroth, but you get to reap the benefits!
• The Creamy GUI Center: Big bag blowout
  Our UI column tells you how to make the most of those bags in your inventory.
• WoW Crossword
  We premiere a brand new Sunday morning feature on WoW Insider for you xword fans.
• Archangel Tyrael pet revealed
  The world of Diablo visits the world of Warcraft yet again.

Not too long from now, at a Media and Business Summit not all that far away, LucasArts may be announcing a new game in the Star Wars Battlefront series. Online shopping megalith Amazon.com has added listings for Star Wars Battlefront III ... for no less than six platforms. The game is available for pre-order and has what we can only imagine is a tentative March 15, 2009 release date.

A new game in the series is hardly surprising; after all, Battlefront is the best selling Star Wars video game franchise of all time. Reports of it being in development also popped up following LucasArts' recent layoffs, though the company would not comment on it or any other unannounced titles at the time.

Amazon has Battlefront III slated for availability on PS3, 360, Wii, PS2, PSP, and DS. If this holds true, it would certainly debunk an old rumor that the game might only hit Xbox 360. Now there's the matter of a developer. With Pandemic – the studio responsible for the first two games – now owned by EA, and internal development slowing down at LucasArts, a new hope must arise. Our best guess at the moment is the rebel forces at Rebellion, the UK-based studio responsible for the generally well received Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron on PSP.

[Via GoNintendo]

Yeah, we figured the Zero Punctuation would do well in the webcomic wrapup, by a large margin. Here's how it breaks down, with and without the Yahtzee factor:

With the Yahtzee Factor

• Zero Punctuation (65.3%)
• (TIE) Monday Night Crew (9.2%)
• (TIE) Castle Vidcons (9.2%)

Without the Yahtzee Factor

• (TIE) Monday Night Crew (26.5%)
• (TIE) Castle Vidcons (26.5%)
• PVP Online (17.6%)

Thanks to everyone voted. We'll be going Yahtzee-less from now on; be sure to let us know of any game-related webcomics you stumble upon this week!

Many moons ago we heard of Ratchet: Quest for Booty due to a leaked PSN list, and now the ESRB has rated a very similarly named title. Although Sony hasn't officially acknowledged the game's existence, Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest for Booty is pretty much an open secret now following the software ratings board's listing.

The ESRB rating doesn't explain whether this a retail follow-up to Tools of Destruction or a standalone PSN Ratchet & Clank game. With E3 next week we're not even going to try and pull speculative answers out of Clank's metal heinie; a little bit of patience should result in answers shortly.

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

Electronic Arts is looking to take on the biggest Scrabble clone on Facebook with -- what else? -- an officially licensed version of Scrabble. A free online edition of of the bombastic board game is available now on Pogo, with a Facebook version coming "later this month," according a press release. The application would go up against reigning champ Scrabulous, which despite litigation threats is still alive and kicking.

The press release also confirmed that "many more Hasbro game properties in development and slated to launch on social networking sites later this year." Boggle knockoffs, beware!

Online mega retailer Amazon.com has listed a standalone wireless drum set and wireless guitar for Rock Band 2 on Xbox 360 for $90 and $70, respectively. Of course, the bundled Xbox 360 guitar with the original Rock Band was tethered to the console and the drums were wired on all platforms, so we're hopeful this means the instruments included in Rock Band 2's big bundle will all be wireless. A Harmonix representative informs us that no prices, shipping dates, colors, astrological signs, or further details concerning Rock Band 2 will be released until next week's E3.

[Via X3F]

Source - Rock Band 2 wireless drums
Source - Rock Band 2 wireless guitar

Max Schaefer, co-founder of Flagship Studios, admits that things didn't go exactly as planned with its first title Hellgate: London; however, he believes the developer's sophomore effort, Mythos, is coming together much better. Schaefer tells Eurogamer (via GI.biz) that Flagship was "probably biting off too much" as a new developer with Hellgate and was rushed at the end, but with Mythos it's focusing on core features and taking time to polish.

Schaefer hopes Mythos can "put a dent" into some of the big MMOs out there and he believes the free-to-download-and-play model of the game -- with item sales bringing in money -- gives the developer a chance against the boxed subscription-based MMOs.

Just a friendly reminder that today (July 7) is Bungie Day, which means free Bungie-related gamerpics and themes available on Xbox Live today (and only today). Additionally, the new Halo 3 map Cold Storage is also available free of charge for today. As for that announcement that was teased over the weekend, we've heard nothing so far. Trust us, though, if and when Bungie announces something, we'll let you know.

[Via X3F]

Metal Gear Solid 4 may be in the can, but development of Metal Gear Online continues. When we last spoke with Kojima Productions associate producer Ryan Payton, he confirmed that the MGO team would be busy for some time expanding and patching the multiplayer Metal Gear experience. Today July 4 saw the release of one of the fruits of its labor: a new game mode.

Called "Team Sneaking," the mode is similar to "Sneaking" in that one team – not just Snake as in the latter mode's case – is invisible until detected and must hide from the opposing team until the Caution expires. The sneaking team also has an objective to complete inside their opponents' base.

Today's update also adds a "Headshots Only" option for game hosts. As the name implies, games with this modifier will only reward points for headshots. (Kills from shots to the body will actually subtract points from players' scores.) The update is live now and free of charge. Just fire up MGS4, head into MGO, and you're good to "Go! Go! Go!"

In our interview with Diablo 3 lead designer Jay Wilson, it was explained that there were no plans to bring the long-awaited title to any platform other than PC and Mac. However, in the six days that have passed since said interview, a couple of Blizzard higher-ups weren't quite as dismissive of the possibility of the dungeon crawler making an appearance on our primitive gameboxes -- though the language used to describe this possibility hasn't exactly given us high-apple-pie-in-the-sky hopes.

When asked about a console rendition of the third entry in the Lord of Terror-slaying franchise, Blizzard COO Paul Sams gave an inconclusive "I don't know yet," though Vice President of Game Design Rob Pardo suggested a console port was "theoretically possible," as out of all of Blizzard's franchises, Diablo would be the most console-friendly. We guess a theoretical "yes" is better than an actual "no", or a metaphorical "maybe", but we're still not holding our bated breath for a non-compy version of Diablo the Third.

Given the subject matter of this week's Zero Punctuation, we thought we'd throw Yahtzee into the webcomic poll to see how he fares. Also, we're looking for the best gaming webcomic (strip, not series), so let us know your all-time favorite in the comments below.

Here are our picks for the week's best game-related webcomic. Polling after the break; be sure to vote for your favorite!

Dark or Not ... (MNC)
Third Time is a Charm (Extra Life)
010 (Super Effective)
Welcome Back (PVP Online)
How to Make a Gaming Webcomic (Zero Punctuation)
Weather or Not (8-bit Theater)
Restoring Past Glory (Castle Vidcons)
Baddest Company (2P Start)

Whether calling it out for being too colorful or even too conservative, Diablo 3 naysayers have certainly not lacked for ammunition to sling at the action RPG since it was made all official like late last month. Now pessimists can add another rock to the pile, with Blizzard poster Bashiok writing on the official World of Warcraft forums that the Diablo 3 devs are working to discourage online skullduggery, and that multiplayer will focus primarily on cooperative play.

Explained Bashiok, "We have a large focus on cooperative play for Diablo III, and the mechanics and design decisions related to multiplayer are likely going to be based on supporting and encouraging it as much as possible, and not breaking it down." However, PvP will apparently have its place in the game, as Bashiok baited forumers by adding, "That doesn't mean that PvP won't have its own focus, but those are details and features we aren't yet discussing." So for now it looks like PKers will need to find another outlet for their griefing ways, perhaps by venturing outside into the sunlight for a rousing game of Freeze Tag.

Blizzard has opened US registration for the Wrath of the Lich King beta. American World of Warcraft players should probably head over to this page now and register for a chance to opt in. Two helpful reminders:

1. Registering for the beta does not guarantee you a chance to play. It just adds your name to a pool of potential players that Blizzard will choose from.
   
2. Beware of e-mail scams. This is the official URL: https://www.worldofwarcraft.com/account/beta-opt-in.html

Whether or not you get into the beta, be sure to check out WoW Insider for up-to-date coverage.
[Via WoW Insider]

The notorious Fruit Fucker in cake form from Clever Cake Studios. (Thanks, John) Check out the highlights for today:

Joystiquery
Joystiq interview: Treyarch's Jeremy Luyties on James Bond
Ticket to Ride vs. Ticket to Ride vs. Ticket to Ride
X3F Week in Review: June 27, 2008 - July 3, 2008

News
Electrifying new inFAMOUS screens surface
Former Atari CEO received $4.76 million parachute
Warcraft 3 patched to 1.22a
HMV (finally) embraces used game sales
See Resistance 2's Leviathan boss
Mega Man 9 dated for September in Japan
Reuters: PlayStation 3 catching up to Wii in Japan; Us: not really
Sony to launch slimmer, sleeker PS2 in India, Europe this year
Midnight Club: Los Angeles bumped a month to October 7th
GameTap Thursday: Descent Freespace and Off-road Redneck Racing
Little Big Planet beta growing, Trophies teased
Animal Crossing teased in UK's Official Nintendo Magazine
Guitar Hero: On Tour a hit, 300k sold in first week
BioShock being 'optimized' for PS3 by Digital Extremes
Capcom sets up le shoppe in France
We'll Halo there: 'Cold Storage' map free on July 7
VP says Gametap's troubles are 'greatly exaggerated'
More N+ on the way to XBLA
PS3 Trophies not guaranteed for 'every game'
PSN boss disses Xbox Live's interface, game delisting
Mega-new Mega Man 9 details, screens, hands-on
Rock Band Weekly: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rush
Viva Piñata sequel busts open in early September
McFarlane Toys takes on Call of Duty: World at War
Prizefighter dev counted out, Take-Two 'assessing' staff
XNA's Satchell: Microsoft experimented with 3D gaming display
PSN Thursday: Qore delivers episode two
No player-created tracks for Rock Band 2
Video: GoldenEye 007 running on Wii 'Homebrew Channel'
Latest Darksiders trailer is artsy, open, adventurous

Rumors & Speculation
Rumor: Ninja Gaiden II receiving Mission Mode July 25
Rumor: More Rock Band 2 tracks listed

Culture & Community
Zero Punctuation draws out the webcomic template