Steam is pretty much the de facto standard for PC gaming these days. Even the most retail-loyal PC gamers likely have used it in some way, shape or form. Valve's Steam-powered empire also dominates the digital distribution landscape. Brad Wardell of Stardock (which owns the Impulse digital platform) estimates that Steam has roughly 70% of market share.

But it's one thing to be the big kid in the playground. It's another to start locking the other kids out. PC gamers may recall a brief dustup over the sale of Modern Warfare 2, wherein Direct2Drive, Impulse and other digital vendors refused to stock the title due to its native use of Steamworks, which would require the installation of the Steam client, and thus the Steam storefront. 

I can see things from their point of view, certainly. Why sell a game that, once installed, provides a back door for the competition? Valve has also been lobbying hard for third-party publishers (like Activision and EA) to start including Steam's native DRM solution, which again could shut out competing services (like Impulse's Goo DRM).

Then again, the ever-outspoken Derek Smart published a very detailed counterargument on Gamasutra as to why the boycott itself was rather foolish, essentially making Modern Warfare 2 a Steam-exclusive title. The "problem," Smart claimed, was that Steamworks, as a unified suite of services for multiplayer, auto-patching, storefronts, and authentication, offers much more value to the publisher and developer. Essentially, Steam rules because it's simply better. Steam boss Jason Holtman showed the same sentiment on Gamesindustry.biz:

To our minds, we think that if you're making a good game and it's got the services a customer wants it should get out in as many channels as possible. If you have a good portal and you're good at collecting money from folks, and attracting them, there's no reason why you shouldn't be.

And I think he's right, in that sense. I choose Steam because it's awesome, and the closest PC gaming has ever come to a platform like PSN or Xbox Live, with the added advantage of there actually being competition. While the potential for abuse is there (as Randy Pitchford complains), there's always an alternative. Should Valve start to throw its weight around too much, I might just choose Impulse, since it has Sins of a Solar Empire on it. Just, for God's sake, don't sell it on Games for Windows Live. Please.

We're pretty excited about Raskulls here at Destructoid, for more than one reason. One reason we cannot yet reveal, but a more obvious reason is this -- it's just too cute! If you don't believe me, check out this fat wad of screenshots and character artwork. If you disagree even after looking at that, you're clearly mentally subnormal.

We have exclusive gameplay footage coming soon, where you get to see Rey Gutierrez and myself take this game out for a test drive with Halfbrick's Phil Larsen. Do make sure to check it out, as this mixture of 2D multiplayer racing and Mr. Driller block smashing is really worth checking out. Of this I can assure you.

[Weekend Destructainment is a collection of funny videos brought together from all across the Internet to bring you entertainment on these slow and boring weekends.]

The second episode of Machinima's new series, Critical Flaw, went up not to long ago and it sees the two main stars playing Modern Warfare 2 with Jesus. As it turns out, Jesus is a big fat cheater. What a jerk.

First up after the break is Team Fortress 2 in real life. Then see how you can beat Modern Warfare 2 in 20 seconds. Next, Mega64 travels through time to show off New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Then see how much Mr. T loves himself.

Next up is an old ad for Donkey Kong 64. Followed by an awesome 8-bit cover of "Thriller". Next, 20 Coaches rampage through Left 4 Dead 2. Then it's an old ad for the PlayStation One. The Destructainment ends with a really horrible ad for the Xbox 360.

Someone should charge Gabe Newell and Valve with conspiracy -- conspiracy to relieve PC gamers of their hard-earned cash, since the third day of Steam’s “Five-Day-Long, One-Day-Only” sale offers some more kick-ass, can’t-miss deals. Of course, you can still get the LucasArts Premier Pack and the THQ Complete Pack for $49.99 each; those prices will be in effect through Monday.

But if you missed Wednesday’s and Thursday’s deals, don’t fret -- today’s sale has games set at prices so low, you won’t be able to resist whipping out your credit card. Here are the highlights:

• Trine for $9.99 (50% off)
• Borderlands for $33.49 (33% off)
• Ghostbusters: The Video Game for $9.99 (50% off)
• Resident Evil 5 for $24.99 (50% off)
• Left 4 Dead: Game of the Year Edition for $7.49 (75% off)
• Spore for $19.99 (50% off)

Boy, Randy Pitchford wasn’t kidding when he called Steam a “money grab.” I succumbed to a few of Wednesday’s sales, so I’m going to do my best to hold off on any more Steam purchases, lest I go into debt. I’ve got to save my money for Q1 2010, which may even be more jam-packed with must-have games than this fall was.

By the way, these sales expire at 10 AM EST tomorrow -- in other words, they’ll only be valid for another 17 and a half hours. Go, go, go!

In gaming we are often (if not always) tasked with taking on the role of someone else. We put ourselves into a virtual representation, an avatar. Sometimes we're forced into a certain avatar and other times we're left alone to decide what kind of avatar we want to be in. According to a recent study the avatar we choose to play as both says something about us and can also affect how we act.

Jorge Pena, a University of Texas communication-studies professor, conducted a study called “The Priming Effects of Avatars in Virtual Settings” and concluded that if you're avatar is negative then your actions become negative as well. After having a group of gamers play Jedi Knigh II, some on the dark side and others on the light side, he also had them play in a virtual museum with some dressed as KKK members and others as doctors. After the gameplay he asked participants to write a story about an ambiguous picture or to make decisions with virtual team members dealing with problems that arose during the game. Those who played with negative avatars "consistently exhibited negative, aggressive and antisocial behaviors."

The fact that these avatars were randomly assigned means that even people who aren't normally showing those kind of negative behaviors do when they play with negative avatars. Pena is hoping that his study helps game designers make smarter decisions when creating avatar options, especially in children's games where cooperation can be taught. He also notes, quite fairly, that it isn't just videogames that can prime people like this, but all sorts of environments.

[Editor's Note: We're not just a (rad) news site -- we also publish opinions/editorials from our community & employees like this one, though be aware it may not jive with the opinions of Destructoid as a whole, or how our moms raised us. Want to post your own article in response? Publish it now on our community blogs.]

I’m a very non-confrontational person. Whenever I’m presented with a moral choice, regardless of the game, I usually end up taking the moral high ground; even when the NPCs turn out to be complete and utter dicks. Worse still, I do it even when I have irrefutable proof that the other party will screw me over once I’m done with their little favor; yet I endure whatever inconveniences it may cause me, only because I know I remain a hero in the eyes of the people that I protect. In the game, everyone likes me because I uphold an image of all that is supposedly good in the world, and for that, I feel a rewarding sense of acceptance that eludes me in the real world.

But this isn’t my story. This is a story about the other end of the spectrum, about those who take the moral low ground, those depraved souls who only gain pleasure from spreading human misery. Moral ambiguity is all the rage these days; although in most games, we’ve always had the opportunity to be jerks. The problem was, it was always detrimental to the player’s cause. “Shoot a hostage, you lose health.” Well, what if the dumb civvie just happened to run into your line of sight? “Tough Luck, aim better next time.”

Nowadays, if you want to shoot that hostage, the game will step aside and simply say “Go Right Ahead! You’ll just be awarded negative karma/dark side points/etc.” Which is fine and dandy, but it still raises a question in my mind: what happens when you get all the points you could possibly get? What if, let’s say in Fallout 3, merely completing the evil-themed side quests just wasn’t enough? 

With games costing between five and ten bucks, it seems that many developers have missed the point of PSP Minis. Really, it feels no different than the regular PlayStation Network Store, lacking those cheap, bite-sized games that the App Store has spoiled its users with.

Fortunately, not all developers have missed the point. Halfbrick's Echoes is a game that seems to understand the best type of PSP Mini. It's easy to get into, simple to control, potentially addictive and, above all, it's cheap.

Of course, just being able to "get" what a PSP Mini is does not automatically qualify a game as good, so read on as we review Echoes.

You could be forgiven for thinking that Mai is the only character in the King of Fighters series, given that her massive chest-tumors are pretty much all anybody thinks about when the fighting game is brought up. Nevertheless, Mai is being given a break in this latest figure from A-Label, a 1/6 scale model of Vanessa.

Vanessa may not be Mai, but she still brings the boobage regardless. Our sister site Tomopop has asked for a more modest figure, but I say she can lack as much modesty as she needs. In fact, that shirt she's wearing really ought to be off. Like, now. Like, right now.

Pictures of statues of breasts is erotic.

Sony seems to be finally pulling out of the slump they've been in since about two months after the PS3 launch. With the system now selling at a price point that people seem to be willing to pay, an amazingly strong holiday and Q1 line up and an ad campaign that actually makes sense they've seen PS3 sales "skyrocket" over the past few months. And remember this life lesson, boys and girls: when you're doing well, no one else can.

Such seems to be the feeling of SCEE boss Andrew House, who subtly ripped into the Wii in a recent GI.biz interview. "I think at a time when we're seeing one of the major competitors somewhat losing a sense of momentum - at least in many of the markets I've looked at - it's gratifying to see a platform that's always had a very significant share of sales go to third party publishers capture that momentum again," he said.

"The knock-on effect can only be a positive one if publishers are making up 75 percent of the sales on a particular platform, as opposed to a much smaller share elsewhere, then that's the platform I think it's in their interests to see succeed - and I think that's the dynamic we're seeing return right now."

Now, he didn't say Wii specifically so they asked him to clear that up. "From data that we're starting to see, in some of the publicly-released figures, we're seeing a significant year-on-year downturn for the Wii. I think that's just a factor of this Holiday season."

OK, so it's a really wishy washy insult with plenty of half commitments to cover his ass, but hopefully this little bit of smack talk isn't a sign that the old, arrogant Sony who thinks they can do anything is coming back. That didn't work out so well for them, and it'd be a shame to see them once again shoot themselves in the foot because they think they're still top dog.

3D entertainment may have been a throwaway gimmick of the nineties, but it seems that the game industry is convinced it's here to stay this time. Among them is Ubisoft, a company committed to investing in the technology and convinced that 3D gaming will be something we can't live without.

"3D is to pictures what Dolby Stereo was to sound," states Ubi executive Yannis Mallat. "No one wants to go back to mono."

James Cameron's Avatar will release next month as an Ubisoft-published title, and it will be able to support 3D visuals. The movie will also be jumping on the 3D craze.

What do you make of this recently returned interest in 3D gaming? I can't say I've ever really been interested in the gimmick, but I guess if this is the way the industry is headed, I'm going to have to start caring. Do you believe this will be as important as stereo sound, or is it merely hyperbole cooked up by a publisher who wants you to be excited about an upcoming game?

It may be a while before Uwe Boll completes Bloodrayne 3, but that doesn't mean we have to suffer rejoice through another season without any Boll action. Often times the United States is neglected by film companies as they don't think they're movies will succeed in this area of the world. In 2008 this occurred with the sequel to one of the worst film's ever made, Alone in the Dark. Yes, there is an Alone in the Dark 2 and finally everyone in the United States will be able to watch it as it comes to DVD at some point this winter.

I know what you're asking yourselves: "Why would I want to watch a sequel to a terrible Uwe Boll film?" There are a few reasons. The first one is you're really and truly desperate to watch every videgame movie ever. If you fall into this category then the fact that it was only produced by Uwe Boll and not directed by him might also help. You may also be curious how Christian Slater (who played the lead role in the first film) has not only turned into another actor, but an entirely different race as Rick Yune takes over the role. Finally, it has to be better than watching the Uwe Boll directed FarCry movie that landed on DVD last week, right?

Ah, mandatory installations. They're a necessary evil most PS3 users have gotten used to, and all too common in many unoptimized multiplatform titles.

While a relatively minor gripe, it's always nice to see a game whose developers have gone the extra mile to make everything work smoothly, and that seems to be the case for Final Fantasy XIII's PS3 incarnation.

At least, if a supposedly leaked scan of the game's case art is confirmed. The game will have no mandatory (or optional) hard drive installation, and even its save data will take up a piddling 500kb (with 1.9mb extra for Trophy data).

Better still, the game will support loss-less 5.1-channel audio, and its gorgeous FMV cutscenes will be rendered at up to 1080p. Mmmm, juicy HD.

Nothing's been said so far about the Xbox 360 version, seeing as Final Fantasy XIII is still a PS3-exclusive in Japan. Perhaps more information will be available as Square Enix's international marketing engines rev up.

A question comes to mind though, for you dual/console 360/PS3 owners: were FFXIII PS3 to offer these features, and the 360 version not (perhaps due to some Blu-ray snafu), would it influence your choice?

I don't really expect any of you to care about this, since it's a new IP from an untested studio. Nevertheless, no other blog will deign to talk about it, so we're duty bound to give it some attention. You're just doing to have to deal with that.

In case you missed our previous coverage, which is hardly surprising, Hellion: Mystery of the Inquisition is a first-person-shooter set in the 13th Century. Players are charged with tackling the enemies of God, smashing apart heretics and demons in what is undoubtedly a more interesting concept for a shooter than the usual space marine nonsense.

Until recently, all that existed of the game was talk. Now there are screens, although only a handful. The game is to be shown off in more detail next month in Lyon, so hopefully we can get some footage of the game in action soon.

Full from leftovers and bored out of my feeble mind, I did what I always do: scoured the Internet for free, no-nonsense videogames. You know, substance over style. Indie games and the like. That sort of thing.

Thankfully, the hunt was off to a great start once I remembered that IGF's student entries were still relatively fresh, and just begged to be lovingly inspected. Many of the more intriguing games aren't available in a playable form yet, which is admirable.

One game in particular, Cave, both scratched my "hmm, that looks interesting" itch and offered itself up as a download. Score! It's an exploration game in which you play as a boy and a girl, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. There's more to it than that, obviously, but the less I reveal, the better.

Since your sight is extremely limited, and Cave is presented in such a minimalistic way, you often have no idea where you're headed, or how to get back to where you came from and risk trying a different path; I say that as a compliment. Cave knows it's a game about exploring, and it embraces that fact.

Without spoiling anything, I'll say this: damn. More specifically: unless there is only a single ending, and it's an unpleasant one at that, I need to run through the game a second time. Here's the download page again (PC and Mac). Try it out.