Human Head has not worked on Prey 2 since November, reports Shacknews citing a "source who asked not to be identified." According to their story, the developer on the first-person shooter sequel stopped working on the game as a negotiating ploy to get a better deal with ZeniMax, and that today's announcement that Prey 2 is delayed suggests a new developer may be announced for the project as a result. That would also explain why Human Head recently raised the possibility of developing Rune 2, and the Shack story indicates Human Head's negotiations to work on a high profile project are going well. They also have the following noncommittal response from ZeniMax to questions about all this: "we aren't commenting on the game's development beyond what was said in the statement that was released this morning."

The Sniper Elite V2 page on Steam now offers a playable demo for Rebellion's upcoming sharpshooting sequel. There's no word on what this sample of the game includes.

Paradox Interactive announces the release of Mount & Blade Warband: Napoleonic Wars, the latest DLC for Mount & Blade Warband, which brings the real-time combat of the series into 19th Century Europe. On a related note, there's also a new patch for Mount & Blade Warband to update it to version 1.151. The patch should be available automatically, and there are manual downloads on AtomicGamer and The Patches Scrolls, and this forum post has the patch notes. Back to Flying Squirrel Entertainment's new DLC, here's what Napoleonic Wars adds to the game: Continue here to read the full story.

A 0x10c teaser trailer sets the stage for Mojang's upcoming space adventure game, describing a far-flung future in a manner that's best described as awesome, in the most completely Sagan-esque sense of the word. Thanks VG247.Update: Apparently this is a fan-made trailer. Continue here to read the full story.

The Arma 3 Website now has a reveal for Stratis Island, one of the territories in Bohemia Interactive's upcoming first-person shooter sequel. Word is: "Situated in the North Aegean and stretching over 19 square kilometres, Stratis adds geographical variety and expands the game’s massive military sandbox. The reveal is supported by a brand new trailer, screenshots and info on the Community Alpha!"

The X-Motor Racing Website now offers a new version 1.36 of X-Motor Racing, the indie racing simulation. As usual, this is accompanied by an updated version 1.36 demo, which includes the following changes:

•  Improved RPM control code
• Added "No Steering Wheel" feature
• Added global FFB adjustment
• Added FFB adjustment for the each car
• Added TireLoad data to SDK

The Kickstarter Page for Shadowrun Returns follows up on the previous update about making a special level in the game exclusively for backers if they reach the $1.5 million level. As we noted at the time, not all the responses to the idea of exclusive content, and the new update says they've heard this, and changed the plan accordingly:

Your generosity of spirit and your support for people who aren’t (yet, we hope) involved in this Kickstarter really says something important about the Shadowrun Community and we’re proud to be a part of it. But we still want to say “thank you” to everyone supporting the project and putting their faith in us.

So here’s what we’re going to do: If we’re lucky enough to get to $1.5m, we’ll create that story and make it available only to backers but for an exclusive period of time. Then, we’ll open it up so that everyone can see how the dots between Jake and Harlequin are connected.

• Alan Wake on GameStop PC Downloads. Save 33%.
• Battlefield 3 on Amazon.com. Save 50%. Thanks BF3blog.
• Jagged Alliance - Back in Action on Steam. Save 40%.
• MacGuffin's Curse on Steam. Save 20%.
• Mount & Blade Collection on Steam. Save 75%.
• Runespell: Overture on Steam. Save 75%.
• Wargame: European Escalation on GameStop PC Downloads. Save 33%.

• Fez Complete Cube Guide.

• 3G and 4G Wireless Speed Showdown- Which Networks Are Fastest? Thanks Ant via Digg.

• Gmail hit by massive outage- Up to 35 million affected. Thanks j.c.f.
• Teletext, UK web precursor, dies with analog signals. Thanks Ant.

• Microsoft Beats Estimates With $17.4B In Revenue, $0.60 EPS. Thanks HARDOCP.
• MIT and others launch a tech education revolution.
• Yes, IT departments should worry about Google Drive.
• Top 5 ways high-tech can help curb crappy highway congestion.

Thanks j.c.f.

• McAfee sheds light on the Darkmegi kernel rootkit.
• Symantec: Flashback malware now down to 140K machines.
• TapLogger Android Trojan cracks touchscreen passwords using handset movements.
• Active fake AV spam campaigns hit Twitter.
• Google warns the operators of thousands of hacked web sites.
• Oracle patch day addresses 88 vulnerabilities.

• 15-year-old arrested for hacking 259 companies. Thanks HARDOCP.

• Gabe Newell Says Valve/Apple Meeting Didn't Happen. Thanks nin…
• Tim Schafer offers top five tips for Kickstarter success…
• Deus Ex -- JC Carries a lot of Junk. Thanks Ant…

Link of the Day: Forest Service may blow up frozen cows in cabin. Thanks Ant via Neatorama.

The Bethesda Blog has an update on Prey 2, Human Head's upcoming first-person shooter sequel that was rumored last month as having been cancelled. Word is the game is not cancelled, just delayed beyond the end of this year:

Development of Prey 2 has not been cancelled but the game will not be released in 2012 as planned. The delay is due to the fact that game development has not progressed satisfactorily this past year, and the game does not currently meet our quality standards. Prey 2 has shown great promise and we regret disappointing our fans. We have made a substantial investment in game development to deliver the experience fans want. We are determined only to release the AAA game that fans rightfully expect, and are unwilling to compromise our quality standards to meet a release schedule.

Codemasters announces a May 29th release date for DiRT Showdown, the continuation of their rally racing series that has been driving towards a May release since it was announced late last year. The game will be the first release under a new Codemasters Racing label, and the release will be supported by a playable demo on May 1st and RaceNet, a new online hub for Codemasters Racing games. Word is: "The demo will feature a solo and multiplayer event and will be available from Xbox Live Marketplace, PlayStation Network and Steam on PC." They also announce a special "Hoonigan" edition of DiRT Showdown is now available for pre-order from Walmart, featuring in-game bonuses items, and they offer a new Ultimate Hoonigan trailer to celebrate the news.

Syndicate developer Starbreeze plans to acquire Overkill Software, the fellow Swedish studio behind Payday: The Heist, reports GamesIndustry International, saying Starbreeze will be floating some new stock to fund this: "The acquisition is contingent on the sale of 200 million new shares in Starbreeze, which will be released on or about June 15 2012. Starbreeze will also implement an incentive program of 42.8 million stock options for employees of Overkill." They connect this back to their recent Starbreeze interview where CEO Mikael Nermark spoke of the company's goal of owning its own IP.

Splash Damage announces plans to develop free-to-play games under the label WarChest, saying the first such release will be an iOS RTS game called Rad Soldiers. Gamasutra reports on visiting the developer to learn about this project, and when they asked about the switch from PC shooters to mobile strategy game, Splash Damage's Paul Westwood explains that they plan free-to-play PC games under this label as well:

"It just happens that, as WarChest's first release, this game happens to be on iOS," he answers. In fact, the studio has a free-to-play PC title on the way later this year, and a free-to-play console game coming next year.

"The reason we chose iOS first for WarChest, and the reason we chose this genre first is that it's the most straightforward way for us to build multiplayer that is asynchronous," he continues.

"So in a first-person shooter, for example, it would be very difficult to create an asynchronous first-person shooter that was compelling, because part of what makes FPS compelling is that they have this very visceral feedback loop that happens - I shoot, I hit or I don't, if I hit you I get immediately rewarded. That's quite important."

Focus Home Interactive announces Pro Cycling Manager 2012 and Tour de France 2012, as Cyanide's bicycle racing simulation returns in June with Pro Cycling Manager 2012 for PCs and Tour de France 2012 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Here are some screenshots, and here's word:

Strengthened by the feedback and lofty expectations of last years’ players, the 2012 Tour de France console game is packed with improvements and new features. Improved graphics, new controls, realistic AI and, for the first time ever, a multiplayer mode awaits racing fans the world over. New models for riders, brand new teams and more beautiful scenery will grace both the PC and console games, which share top-notch graphics and production. To get a first look at the excitement, check out the very first screenshots of the games!

THQ Investor Relations offers the company's preliminary fiscal fourth quarter financial results, saying they will conclude the year with a $76 million cash balance they say "significantly exceeds prior guidance." They have also raised their net sales expectations to reflect stronger than expected sales of UFC Undisputed, "continued strong net sales" of Saints Row: The Third (which they say has shipped in more than four million units to date), and "higher-than-expected digital sales, largely driven by the robust digital content of Saints Row: The Third."

ArenaNet announces April 27-29 will be the first of their beta testing weekend events for Guild Wars 2, their upcoming MMORPG sequel. Here's word on the event, which is open to those who have preordered the game:

NCsoft and ArenaNet, the developers of Guild Wars 2, are excited to announce the first public Beta Weekend Event for Guild Wars 2. From 27th-29th April, hundreds of thousands of fans who have pre-purchased Guild Wars 2 will get their first chance to explore the world of Tyria.

The only way players can guarantee access to Guild Wars 2 Beta Weekend Events is to pre-purchase the Guild Wars 2 Collector’s, Digital Deluxe, or Standard/Digital Editions. In addition to access to our Beta Weekend Events, players will receive three-day Headstart Access prior to launch and the exclusive Hero’s Band in-game item. Pre-Purchase is available at buy.guildwars2.com or from selected retailers.

An interview on GamesIndustry International talks with Sledgehammer COO Michael Condrey about working on the Call of Duty franchise. He knocks a few softballs out of the park and offers reflections on working on such a huge franchise, his lack of concern that working on one series will pigeonhole them, and his belief that fans have an endless appetite for new CoD content, saying the game "sort of transcends entertainment in such a massive way."

Matrix Games offers a new patch for Gary Grigsby's War in the East, updating the World War II strategy game to version 1.06.06. Here's the deal on the new version: "The update brings with it a small batch of fixes to the AI and some data and scenario changes to continue to make War in the East one of the most engaging strategy games out there on the market. An updated English manual in the patch also includes all the rule changes since release. The patch also includes 1.06.05 changes to the Don to the Danube expansion scenarios. This latest patch will have to be run again if Don to the Danube is added at a later time."

• Reflexio on The Indie Mine.

• Sony announces God of War: Ascension.
• Doctor Who to get limited physical release on PS3.
• Sony patents PlayStation Move peripheral.
• Microsoft "not looking at anything like" free-to-play on Xbox Live.
• Win Access to the Ghost Recon Future Soldier with the multiplayer Beta.

• Microsoft releases Kinect Star Wars iOS app.
• PlayStation 3D Display arrives in the UK.

• DogTV picks up where Puppy Channel left off. Thanks Ant.
• The 50 best ‘bragging rights’ claimed on Google+.
• Tumblr to launch ads starting May 2.

• Hantol PSU: Fake PFC Made of Cement. Thanks HARDOCP.
• CCleaner version .17.1689 is now available. Thanks Ant.

• Copy protection means some DirecTV subs will need new gear to watch HBO. Thanks Ant.

• Apple prepared to go to trial in the US over e-book pricing.

• Coloropus on truepcgaming.
• Confrontation on GameSpot.
• Naval War: Arctic Circle on IncGamers.
• Wargame: European Escalation on truepcgaming.

• Crucial Ballistix Elite 16GB Quad Channel 1866 MHz RAM on HCW.
• Deepcool Gamer Storm Dracula Cooler on PureOC.
• FSP Aurum Pro 1200W PSU on Technic3D. In German.
• GIGABYTE HD 7950 WindForce & MSI HD 7950 Twin Frozr III Graphics Card on Hardware Canucks.
• HIS HD7770 iCooler 1GB (H777F1G2M) Graphics Card on Overclockers Online.
• HIS HD 7850 Graphics Card on Christ Centered Gamer.
• LD Cooling LD PC-V4 Bench Table im Kurztest on Technic3D. In German.
• Logitech G300 Mouse on PC-Luchs. In German.
• Mionix Zibal 60 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard on Pantheon E-Sports.
• MSI Radeon HD 7770 Power Edition 1GB Overclocked Graphics Card on TweakTown.
• Noctua NH-L12 CPU Cooler on Hardware Secrets.
• Plextor PX-256M3P 256GB SSD on CDRLabs.com.
• Reeven Six Eyes Fan Controller on ProClockers.
• Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus Android Honeycomb Tablet on MEGATechNews and TechSpot.
• Thermaltake Level 10 GT Case on pcGameware.

• Activision vets raise $5m for new digital studio…
• "Silent Hill" Sequel Hits At Halloween…
• Insane At Home Flight Simulator. Thanks Ant…

We recently found some ground Moroccan lamb at a local grocer, which put a bug in my ear to try this as part of a hamburger mix, as I usually use 100% ground beef. The result was mixed, but very interesting. The interesting part is the grilled spiced lamb created exactly the flavor I was expecting. The mixed part is how it was not mixed, as starting with ground beef and ground lamb made it hard to blend the two adequately without over handling the meat, and it seems clear that using different varieties in a ground meat situation would benefit from being ground together. In the end it turned out pretty much as I expected: I'll likely just stick to beef for the burgers, but I really want to find a use for that lamb... perhaps just as lamburgers.

R.I.P.: Men at Work musician Greg Ham found dead.

Lamby Links:	Thanks Ant and Mike Martinez and Acleacius.
Play:	Dash'n Knights.
Links:	Coachella announces all-hologram festival featuring only dead people. Thanks nin.
Stories:	Man protests airport security - naked.
Science:	LEGO's Used to Aid in Synthetic Bone Generation. Thanks Netta.
Media:	Epic Rap Battles Of History. NSFW. The Art of Film & TV Title Design. Remote Controlled Rat In Brazilian Clothing Store. Cammed dressing rooms?
Auction:	Tough Times: GSA Auctions Top-Secret US Navy Stealth Ship. Thanks Cog.
The Funnies:	Dilbert. Thanks dakslf.