Slant Six's squad shooter sequel SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs: Fireteam Bravo 3 (PSP), once due this year, is now slated to hit North American shops on January 12, 2010. The developer had revealed a November 24 release date weeks ago, though the announcement was rather quickly removed with no explanation.

On the PlayStation.Blog, producer Mark Rogers explained that though "development is on schedule and we are extremely pleased with all aspects of the title," global marketing issues necessitated a delay to "allow time to get the word out to everyone."

The downloadable PC demo for Left 4 Dead 2 has been delayed to a Wednesday release for those that preordered, according to Valve.

"The Left 4 Dead 2 Xbox 360 Demo is now available for those who pre-ordered and obtained early access to the demo," read a release mailed from the company tonight. "The PC Demo is currently targeted for release on Wednesday, October 28."

The demo lets up to four online or LAN players sample the New Orleans-set "Parish" campaign, with "all the new melee weapons" and "all the new boss infected zombies." The Xbox demo also packs split-screen for two players.

Those that don't pre-order will gain access to the PC demo next week on November 3. The same day, the Xbox 360 demo will be released to Xbox Live Gold members, with the remaining Xbox Live Silver members getting access a week later on November 10.

While the PlayStation 3 of Dragon Age: Origins was looking to be delayed several weeks past the November 3 launch date, BioWare confirmed today that all three versions--Xbox 360, PC and PS3--will ship on the same day.

Three DLC packs--The Stone Prisoner, the Blood Dragon Armor and Warden’s Keep--will also be available at launch.

The company also announced that Dragon Age has gone gold and is now off to manufacturing. To mark the occasion, we've got a new trailer highlighting the character of Oghren, the dwarven gladiator:

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A lot can change across three and a half months. Such as, say, a release date. So when THQ announces a specific release date for a game more than six months in advance, it's not exactly shocking to see things shift a little bit further down the line. The point being, Vigil Games' apocalyptic action game Darksiders will no longer be hitting Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on January 1, 2010. Studio owner and publisher THQ now expects it to hit North America on January 5 and then Europe on January 7.

No reason was given for the ever-so-slight shift, but we did get new box art.

Once due sometime this year and then postponed to "early 2010" after developer BottleRocket was pulled off the project, Namco Bandai's Splatterhouse--a PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 revamp of the classic horror franchise--has been delayed again.

In issuing several new screenshots of the game, Namco today provided word that Splatterhouse is now slated to arrive in Q3 2010--a period that runs from July 1 through September 30. The reasons behind the delay were not specified.

Splatterhouse is now being developed internally at Namco Bandai. BottleRocket, the game's original developer, later shut down after "fighting to keep the doors open."

Mount & Blade's multiplayer-adding expansion 'Warband' has been delayed from late this year until March 19, 2010, publisher Paradox Interactive confirmed to Shacknews.

"March 19 is the date we are aiming for," Paradox executive vice president of publishing Susana Meza Graham told us. No explanation of the delay was provided.

As well as adding modes including team deathmatch and search & destroy for up to 64 players with Warband, TaleWorlds is overhauling the medieval PC action RPG's graphics, adding a new faction, as well as improving morale, faction and diplomatic systems.

While an Alpha Protocol delay has been rumored for some time, it took publisher Sega until today--October 6, the day that Obsidisan's espionage role-playing game was supposed to be on store shelves--to confirm that the title is now due in 2010.

Official word on the delay emerged via the game's official site, which lists the PC and Xbox 360 editions for release on May 6 and the PlayStation 3 version for "Spring." Amusingly, Joystiq notes that the site was briefly listing all three as "out now."

Update: The game's official site has once again been revised, with all three versions--PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360--now listed for "Spring, 2010."

This marks the second major delay for the game, originally due in February 2009.

"Johnny, we have to talk. I know someone said you'd get a pet this year, but I'm afraid it's just not possible. I don't know how to say this ...it's because you're North American."

"But Billy's getting one this year," he cried. "Billy is European," I responded.

As his muffled sobs and sniffles entered the third hour, I couldn't help but begin to blame Destructoid. Yes, the site was only passing along what it had heard from Sony, but ever since the fluffy puppy incident, the promise of a pet that lived inside his PlayStation 3 was all Johnny had. And at that age, next year sounds so very far away.

I tried to console him with a video of others playing with their pets... Read more

Age of Conan and The Longest Journey developer Funcom has announced that it intends to to reduce its workforce by 20% as part of a cost-cutting program.

The cuts will chiefly strike Funcom's Norwegian branch. Funcom employs over 300 people worldwide with studios in the USA, Canada, Norway, Switzerland and China. The US division was struck by a number of layoffs in November 2008.

Funcom also reveals that The Secret World has been delayed by "some months" to ensure it meets "the high expectations amongst fans and gamers," though there is still no indication when the MMORPG set in a fantastical version of reality will be released.

Development on Age of Conan's upcoming expansion pack Rise of the Godslayer "will continue as planned." No mention was made of whether the cuts will impact the fantasy MMORPG's Xbox 360 release, which was originally expected to arrive in 2008.

Indications are rising that Obsidian's "espionage RPG" Alpha Protocol may not arrive this year, with two major retailers now listing the game for release in mid-2010.

Updated listings on GameStop and Amazon.ca claim that all three versions--PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3--are now slated for June 2010. Both sites previously listed the game for October 2009--a timeframe announced earlier this year by publisher Sega.

Neither Sega nor Obsidian have yet to issue any comment--we've reached out to both.

With summer having drawn to a close and certain doom approaching, it's time for the enemies of Serious Sam HD to take one last look back at their seasonal shenanigans.

Some chose to spend their time at the beach. Others fulfilled their lifelong dreams of visiting Hollywood, that restaurant from Seinfeld, and the sidewalk. A few opted to run in a marathon, Carlton decided to LARP, and Susie, well, she finally got to go to prom.

Originally slated to hit Xbox 360 this summer Croteam's downloadable hi-def revamp of Serious Sam: The First Encounter will is now due on PC and the console this fall.

Once slated to arrive alongside its PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 brethren on November 17, the PC release of Assassin's Creed II has now been pushed into early 2010.

"Assassin's Creed 2 PC has moved to the first quarter of 2010," Ubisoft revealed via Twitter. "A bit more time for the dev team to deliver the best quality game to you."

The first Assassin's Creed also saw a later PC release, accompanied by the "Director's Cut" moniker and some new missions. No word if AC2 PC will get similar treatment.

The PC version of Gearbox's open-world RPG-shooter Borderlands has been delayed by six days to provide a little more optimisation time, according to an IGN report.

Borderlands will now hit PC in North America on October 26, back from the original date of October 20, while the international release will not arrive until October 30.

"We're optimizing the PC version which takes a few days longer than expected," Charlie Sinhaseni, senior PR manager at publisher 2K Games, told IGN.

Borderlands is still on course to hit Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in North America on October 20. PC gamers, drown your sorrows in our impressions and interview.

The holiday season continues to get less crowded, as publisher Activision today announced that Blur, once expected November 3, is now slated to arrive in 2010.

The delay of the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 racer, coming from Project Gotham Racing developer Bizarre Creations, is said to provide "more time to enhance the game's innovative and distinctive online multiplayer gameplay." A new date was not provided.

"The additional time will allow the studio to fully optimize the vision they set out to create for Blur including a distinctive and groundbreaking multiplayer mode that will appeal to a broad audience," explained Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith.

Months after dating Piranha Bytes' action-RPG Risen for October 2, publisher Deep Silver today revealed that the Xbox 360 edition has been pushed back to early 2010. Despite the unexplained delay of the console iteration, the PC edition will still make the promised October 2 release, with Deep Silver noting that the latest from the Gothic veterans has "reached gold status" following months of bug testing.

The digital version of the Persona PSP remake has been delayed to an October 1 release, according to Atlus.

Despite the digital delay, the UMD launch will still go ahead on September 22. The boxed version includes the game's full soundtrack at no extra cost, adding even more of an incentive to just pick up the disc.

The second episode in Telltale's Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures series won't be arriving on Xbox Live Arcade tomorrow after all, Microsoft has clarified. While the platform holder had initially slated the Xbox 360 download for release this week, the company has now revealed that Gromit "will release at a future TBD date."

The week's other XBLA release, Sonic & Knuckles, is unaffected by the delay.

While Microsoft retains the rights to the Ninety-Nine Nights franchise, it seems that it will no longer be handling publishing duties for the upcoming sequel, at least in Japan.

Third party publisher Konami has launched an official site with a few new screenshots (above) of the Xbox 360 hack 'n slash effort, which is being handled by feelplus instead of NNN1 developer Phantagram.

Alongside confirmation of the shift, Siliconera also points to Japanese publication Famitsu as reporting that the sequel's expected release has gone from 2009 to TBD. Thanks to valcan_s for the tip.

The PC release of DICE's World War II shooter-driver-flier Battlefield 1943 has again been delayed, producer Gordon Van Dyke told G4tv, now until the first quarter of 2010.

"This was a hard pill to swallow, but it was absolutely needed to ensure the features and functionality that PC players have come to expect from Battlefield on PC are not missing," said Van Dyke. Support for ranked server provider hosting, peripherals such as joysticks, VoIP, and the higher maximum player count of 32 were examples given.

"We haven't released a Frostbite built game on PC, so going into this project we lacked a starting foundation we had on console." Van Dyke explained. "It was and still is the absolutely right decision, for quality sake, to not release until it is ready."

Battlefield 1943 hit Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in July. The PC release was previously scheduled for September, potentially with gameplay closer in ways to Battlefield 1942.

The path to Mordor the holiday season is a long and treacherous one, with Aragorn's Quest now marking the latest of the increasingly thinning fall lineup to stumble.

Publisher Warner Bros. today confirmed that the family-friendly action-adventure, billed as "first videogame offering an authentic The Lord of the Rings gameplay experience designed for all ages to enjoy," is now due in the vague "spring 2010" window.

No reason was provided for the delay, with the push applying to both Headstrong's Wii version and the PlayStation 2, Nintendo DS and PSP editions in the works at TT Fusion.