Mario Tennis has almost become an institution for Nintendo, in a way.  First introduced years ago on the Nintendo 64, it has since become an infatuation with Nintendo players, an accessible tennis game with multiplayer appeal and plenty of mini-games to keep players intrigued.  Now that tradition continues in the 3D realm, as Nintendo is bringing the series to the 3DS this May.

Game Developers Conference 2012 is just about to kick off here in San Francisco, but Electronic Arts started the party off right last night with a private event.  Not only did the company show off some promising new maps for Battlefield 3, but it also stunned the audience with the first official gameplay footage from Medal of Honor: Warfighter, which wages war on store shelves this October.

SAN FRANCISCO -- With mobile gaming a major theme at this year’s Game Developers Conference (GDC 2012), Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCE) today announced that it will release the open beta version of PlayStation Suite SDK to content developers in April 2012 and the official version later this year.  Through the introduction of these SDKs, SCE will offer a more streamlined content development environment for content developers — from large game development companies to small, independent shops — and further expand the world of PlayStation® to open operating system based portable devices.

The Game Developers Conference is literally hours sway from kicking off, but the fun has already begun down here in San Francisco.  Monday night, Warner Bros. Games hosted an event for Lollipop Chainsaw, its upcoming action game from Suda 51, the creator of such games as No More Heroes and Shadows of the Damned.  If you remember how crazy those games got, you’ve probably got a rough idea of what Juliet brings to the picture – including her heart-encrusted chainsaw.

SAN FRANCISCO -- According to Canadian hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, “a good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.” And that’s exactly how the game is being played in the thriving Ontario Technology Corridor, as evidenced by “hockey stick” expansions by companies including Google Inc., Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), Gameloft and Arkadium.

Zipper Interactive has been in the military shooter market for quite some time, tearing up system after system with SOCOM U.S. Navy Seals exploits.  We thought that the team would continue said exploits on the PlayStation Vita, but apparently it had a different approach in mind for it with Unit 13.  Instead of taking you through a full-fledged campaign with objectives that span across huge levels, it instead takes the “bite-sized” approach, going with smaller, more intense missions.  And surprisingly, this works for the better.

It’s been nearly five years since fans last saw Master Chief helm the "Halo" saga, but things have sure changed since then. Bungie, the original creators of the franchise, are no longer working on the game. 343 Industries is now helming the project and is shaping the next generation of "Halo" saga with all the games shifting from the Forerunner saga to the Reclaimer saga.

Steel Battalion was a rather quirky game for its time.  Unlike any other?  Sure.  But it also came with the most realistic vehicle play you could imagine, thanks to a deluxe sized controller that featured literally dozens of functions, ranging from various settings to an eject button, when things got too hot under the collar.  It was definitely an acquired taste, especially with its $200 price tag.  But Capcom is ready to bring this series back for a whole new audience, as it’s doing away with the controller in favor of Kinect-supported controls.  Will that be enough?

The 2012 Game Developers Conference is just about ready to kick off, and while it won’t quite be the equivalent of the Electronic Entertainment Expo, there’s no question that several exciting game projects will be revealed.  But the hype may have began just a wee bit early, as a Microsoft racing project called Forza Horizon has started to make its way across the Internet.

People could argue for hours on end about which Metal Gear Solid game was the best.  Some would say that the original PS One release can’t be beat; others feel that Peace Walker was a significant move forward for the series; and some will even swear up and down about Sons of Liberty rocking hard, even with the odd inclusion of a nude Raiden.  However, most of the consensus believes that Snake Eater, the third chapter in the series, is truly significant, if only because it takes place in a different time, telling the story from a new point of view.  And if you somehow missed this story, you have another chance to catch it, this time on the Nintendo 3DS with Metal Gear Solid 3D: Snake Eater.

Electronic Arts has been expanding its EA Sports brand over the past few years into more mainstream areas. The latest initiative for EA Sports is a partnership with the world’s largest cruise line, Carnival. Starting with the newly redesigned Carnival Liberty ship, EA Sports Bars are changing the way people interact at sea. The EA Sports Bar features two Xbox 360 consoles, two HD TV gaming areas and an entire wall of big screen TVs for watching sports or playing any of a full library of EA Sports games like Madden NFL 12, NCAA Football 12, FIFA Soccer 12 and Tiger Woods PGA TOUR Golf 12. Eric Merz, director of guest technology at Carnival Cruise Line, gives a tour of the EA Sports Bar aboard the Liberty in this exclusive video below.

Johnathan 'Fatal1ty' Wendel and Fatal1ty Brand Partner, Creative Labs, announced today that they have joined forces to produce a series of online gaming tournaments that will be streamed live.  League of Legends, as one of Fatal1ty's must-play games, was chosen to kick off these multi-title, multi-platform video game tournaments. The inaugural event will run from March 9, through March 18, 2012.