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In the midst of an industry that primarily focuses on big budget PC games that push hardware limitations, it's always refreshing to see a game that focuses purely on gameplay. Such was the case with Din's Curse, a Diablo-esque game developed by Soldak Entertainment that we reviewed quite favorably in 2011. The game was light on the plot, graphics, and sound, but it gave the user a load of options to customize the randomly generated content of the game. Drox Operative, Soldak's latest release, continues this tradition of providing an interesting and engaging experience that manages to impress without requiring an expensive gaming rig.

Earlier this year, a mysterious trailer was revealed for a game known as The Phantom Pain. Following a mysterious interview, fan speculation, and some unanswered questions, Hideo Kojima has finally announced that it is Metal Gear Solid V, which is being developed for the PS3 and 360. The trailer, as well as some gameplay footage, was shown yesterday at a GDC panel. Kojima has stated that The Phantom Pain has a prologue, which is the previously announced Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes. He has stated that these are both separate games. In addition, MGS series veteran David Hayter, the voice of both Solid Snake and Big Boss, has stated that he is not involved with this project. Check below for the trailer from Konami, as well as the gameplay footage, courtesy of Gematsu!

2013 holds a lot of great games for us to look forward to, but now’s a better time than any to look back at 2012. Since it’s a new year, we felt that it was obligatory to make this kind of list. I present to you, leetNEET’s favorite games of 2012! All games have been chosen by yours truly, in no specific order. Let’s begin!

The long awaited North American version of Shin Megami Tensei Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers (such a long title!) has finally been announced. The game will be released on the 3DS in the spring of 2013. Soul Hackers was originally released for the Sega Saturn well over a decade ago, and never saw the light of day in North America. This game is a first person dungeon crawler with visual novel elements, similar to Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey for the DS. While no further details of the release have been announced, Atlus always releases new games with lots of bonuses, so fans should be excited. Check back later for more updates on this game!

Today is the 25th birthday of the world's most famous blue robot, Mega Man. Capcom is collaborating with fans by releasing a free fan-made 8-bit tribute game, Street Fighter X Mega Man. In addition, they've announced that the original Mega Man for the NES will be re-released on the 3DS eShop on December 27th. The rest of the NES Mega Man games will be released there in early 2013. While it's nice to see that Capcom is celebrating the anniversary of one of their most beloved franchises, after seeing the collector's set released for Street Fighter's anniversary, I feel like this celebration is a little disappointing, especially after the cancellation of Mega Man Legends 3. Maybe there will be a surprise at the end of the day! Check out the link to Capcom's community website below for more anniversary info, including a download link for Street Fighter X Mega Man.

 via Capcom-unity

Earlier today, Nintendo of America released a new video on their Nintendo Direct service. This video announced that Fire Emblem: Awakening, one of the 3DS's most anticipated games, is being released in the USA on February 4th of next year, and in April for European territories. The game has been out in Japan for quite a while, and they even got a special Fire Emblem-themed 3DS, but there's no word if that bundle will ever come out on our shores. Check back for more Fire Emblem news!

Earlier today, Rockstar Games released a long-awaited trailer for their new blockbuster game, Grand Theft Auto V. The trailer introduces players to the three main characters, Michael, Franklin, and Trevor. These three characters are all different types of criminals, and according to Rockstar, players will be able to switch between them ingame to finish missions in interesting ways. Check out the trailer after the jump!

Bethesda has announced a brand new DLC pack for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim today. This new pack, dubbed 'Dragonborn,' brings players back to Solstheim, the island players visited in the Bloodmoon expansion for The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. In addition, it seems like players can now mount dragons, a long requested feature. Skyrim was our Game of the Year in 2011, so we're definitely excited about this pack. Dragonborn will be released on December 4th on Xbox Live, and later on for Windows and PS3. Check out the trailer after the jump!

Earlier today, Sony launched a new service that allows users to buy cross-platform games for their phone and Vita. This service is called PlayStation Mobile, and it was promised a while back when the Xperia Play was first hitting store shelves. The PlayStation Mobile Store will contain affordable titles that only need to be purchased once, and can be played on both Android phones and your PlayStation Vita. As for compatible phones, the PlayStation Mobile Store is currently compatible with HTC and Sony models. Hopefully, more phones will be added in the future. 

Earlier this week, Sega re-released Jet Set Radio, a beloved Dreamcast era gem, on the PSN and XBLA in full HD. On the heels of that release, they have announced that they are also releasing HD remakes of fan favorites Sonic Adventure 2 and NiGHTS Into Dreams. Both games will be released on October 2nd for PSN and October 5th for XBLA for $9.99 each. In addition, Sonic Adventure 2 will be getting DLC that adds the extra battle content from the Gamecube version. The DLC will be available for $3.00 on both platforms. Finally, there's a rumor going around that both games will be released for PC on Steam. This rumor is likely, since Jet Set Radio is confirmed for a Steam release in October.

Stick with us! We'll have more details as they emerge.