Now that June is pretty much coming to a close, it's about time to put all of our grades together and write up a report card for the second quarter of 2011. After the year got off to a pretty solid start, the second quarter really picked up the pace and hosted a bevy of games that made these past 3 months a special time for gamers. With mulitple titles that could be in the running for Game of the Year, the second quarter has a good shot at being the best quarter this year will see.

The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) welcomed the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark ruling that underscored constitutional protections for video games, developers, and video game industry artists. At issue was a 2005 California statute restricting the sale and rental of computer and video games. The ESA, the lead party in the case Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association/Entertainment Software Association, argued that the statute presented unconstitutional limitations on expression, and the U.S. Supreme Court agreed, holding the California law unconstitutional under the First Amendment.

Life as a police detective can be incredibly mundane, looking for clues in the latest robbery or murder. Every so often, a case emerges that proves to be much different than any other, making the day a little more interesting. Certainly at this point, you may have this same notion as you assumed the role of Cole Phelps and donned badge number 1247 in L.A. Noire. This list will look at the top 5 cases in the game, the ones that stood out whether for standout moments in the gameplay or really intriguing stories. Any of the DLC cases have been dismissed in this list, as not everyone may end up playing them. Also, be warned that there are spoilers ahead!

Many people draw inspiration to draw from various things in life, whether that be a beautiful view of nature or key moments in their lives. A select few artists are, in fact, doing the same but it's video games they look to for inspiration on their latest works. Square Enix will be holding an art exhibition in New York where several well-known artists will create their own works based on Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

Gamers won’t have to wait until next year for a new BioShock adventure. Sure, Ken Levine and his team at Irrational Games are developing one of the standout titles from this year’s E3 show. But John Shirley, the Bram Stoker-award winning author of Black Butterflies, has finished a brand new BioShock: Rapture novel.

Valve, creator of best-selling game franchises such as Half-Life, Portal, Left 4 Dead, and Counter-Strike and leading technologies like Steam and Source has teamed up with popular recording artist The National for a new contest. They announced a music video making contest based on The National's song "Exile Vilify," which is featured in Valve's bestselling game, Portal 2.

LOS ANGELES -- Telltale Games and Robert Kirkman have entered into a long-term agreement to produce games based on The Walking Dead. The developer was on hand at E3 to discuss the first details on the new game, which can be seen in the exclusive video interview below.