Peter MolyneuxFor better or worse, game designer Peter Molyneux knows how to get people talking about his work.

The creator of legendary franchises like Populous, Black & White and Fable has a knack for making big, crazy promises that pique gamer interest and turn his games into significant events. And while the final product often comes up a bit short of his dreams, it's always fun watching him aim for the stars.

For his next trick, however, he's aiming for your wallet by releasing a piece of downloadable code that costs a cool £50,000 -- or roughly $77,000.

(Credit: Reddit user Lycerius)Think you spend too much time playing the same video game?

Try playing it for a decade.

In an impressive display of dedication, Reddit user 'Lycerius' claims he has been playing a single game of Sid Meier's classic world-ruling strategy game Civilization II for nearly 10 years now. But sadly, the future world he's dealing with is "a hellish nightmare of suffering and devastation."

E3 2012 (Reuters)It's a tradition at the end of every E3: the Entertainment Software Association hangs a banner on the last day of the show, thanking attendees and simultaneously announcing the dates of next year's event.

But as people limped out of the Los Angeles Convention Center last Thursday, that banner was noticeably missing.

Why? Because currently, the ESA doesn't know exactly when the next E3 will be held. It's not even sure where.

Microsoft's SmartGlassIt may not have quite lived up to its "Innovation Unveiled" billing, but E3 2012 still managed to do what it was supposed to: give us a glimpse into the future of video games. No, we didn't hear about any new consoles from Microsoft and Sony, but we were treated to a wealth of polished, solid games and a few surprising new bits of tech. What's the Next Big Thing in gaming? Perhaps one of these:

(Credit: CNET)The J.K. Rowling's "Book of Spells" aims to bring a magical book to life on the PlayStation 3 via augmented reality, but is it really a "reading experience?"

by Scott Stein, CNET

LOS ANGELES--Call it a toy, call it an experience, but I'm not sure you should call it a book. The J.K. Rowling-created "Book of Spells," the launch title for Sony's Wonderbook platform announced at E3 2012, was originally touted during the kickoff Sony press conference as being a way to bring reading to life.

I had a chance to check out the Wonderbook at Sony's E3 booth, and I'm not sure reading really entered that much into the equation. It is, however, a fun augmented-reality toy with some beautiful animations.

(Credit: James Martin)Surprise, surprise: new technologies and one of the best uses of the Kinect I've ever seen made Madden one of the stars of the show.

by Scott Stein, CNET

Normally, a new version of EA Sports' Madden Football is an E3 non-event. Not so at E3 2012: in fact, it became a sort of poster-child for future-forward gaming.

Admittedly, the second-screen Madden prototypes on Xbox SmartGlass shown briefly at Microsoft's press conference aren't real (yet), but Madden 13 does feature integrated Kinect features and completely new player physics, dubbed Infinity Engine. (more...)

New Super Mario Bros. UWii U, we hardly know you.

Of all the companies showcasing new games and hardware at the E3 video game convention this week, none face as much pressure as Nintendo. The once -mighty Wii may have left an indelible mark on the game industry by broadening the very definition of a gamer, but it's been on a downhill slide for years now. After toiling away in its top-selling shadow, Microsoft and Sony's more mature consoles are now proving their worth in terms of sheer staying power, trouncing the Wii on the charts month after month. (more...)

Due out next spring, the game bridges the gap between the 2009 film and its upcoming sequel

Star Trek

by Randy Nelson, Tecca

The idea of a video game based on the classic sci-fi series Star Trek is nothing new; In fact, they've been produced since the early 1970s. What makes the new Star Trek game from Namco Bandai — due on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC in early 2013 — different is its third-person shooter gameplay and, as we saw during a theater presentation at E3 2012, its two-player cooperative aspect. (more...)