[WATCH] 'Meet the Pyro', Then 'Meet the Source Filmmaker'

The last of Valve's Team Fortress 2 shorts was loosed unto the world today, almost five years after the game's release. If you haven't watched the above video yet - WHAT ARE YOU DOING IT'S HILARIOUS. 

"Meet the Pyro" lives up to the reputation established by all the previous shorts - slick, quality animation, gut-busting laughs and a Pixar-esque attention to detail and facial expression.

"But the Pyro has no facial expression!" you're saying. That allows Valve a unique direction in portraying everyone's favorite monstrous, muffled mongoloid.

But there's one more surprise for TF2 fans today - hit the jump to hear all about it...

[OMG] Diablo 3's Dark, Disturbed Secret

See that image above? Fill your eyes. Cherish it.

Where we're going, the most depraved and desensitized are given cause to shudder.

User "Zerofire" on the European Battle.net brought this evil upon us. His mortal meddling in the demonic world of Diablo 3 has caused a rift, through which unspeakable horror creeps and threatens all.

Read on to see harrowing, unedited footage of Zerofire's discovery...

[FREE] One Weekend In The Old Republic

On tap for free MMO play this weekend: Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Starting Thursday, May 17 at 1:01 a.m. EST and ending Monday, May 21 at 3 a.m. EST, the Weekend Pass Free Trial allows previously unsubscribed players can play for free up to level 15.

From the SW:ToR website:

• No credit card is required to take part in the Weekend Pass Free Trial.
• You can play for up to four full days free.
• Characters you create during the trial will be saved to your account, so allowing you to continue on your journeys once you've purchased the game and redeemed the Game Product Registration Code at the Code Redemption Center.
• You'll be able to experience the first fifteen (15) levels of the game, allowing you to explore the Origin Worlds for each character class, as well as possibly seeing your faction’s Capital World.
• You will also be able to join other players take part in Player-vs-Player Warzones, or group with friends to take on one of the numerous Flashpoints in the game.

Perfect for the padawan on your Nubian cruiser!

SOURCE: Rock, Paper Shotgun via Bioware

[OH, INTERNET] The Diablo 3 Experience Thus Far

"Diablo 3's first level is a tough one" - Reddit user Flash_09

Reddit is aflame today, specifically /r/gaming, who had their sick days called and their Doritos in-hand in preparation for the Diablo 3 launch. Except, few have actually been able to play it, what with constant connection to the Battle.net servers a requisite for even single-player mode.

And with the hundreds of thousands frothing - no doubt, frothing - to get back to Sanctuary, it seems the Battle.net servers can't handle hundreds of thousands of near-simultaneous logins.

But seriously, how long have we been doing this first-day-of-an-online-game thing? How long, folks? And you didn't expect the developer of the most high-profile launch of 2012 to come out of this with egg on their face (or title screen, which is about as far as most got in the early hours of the morning.)

The good thing - at least for those who haven't gotten around to D3 yet - is that the outcry is hilarious.

Valve Settles With Blizzard, Retains DOTA Trademark

The legal kerfuffle over Valve's revived version of Defense of the Ancients ended today, with Blizzard surrendering commercial use of the "DOTA" trademark.

Blizzard released a short and somewhat cryptic press release that states they'll be allowed to use the name to refer to their version of the RTS on message boards, fan sites and the like, but the title will be officially called, "Blizzard All-Stars"henceforth.

... What's in a name?

[UGC] TES Online: Could It De-throne the MMO King?

[Editor's note: OMNIpixel has a new staffer... He's 21-year-old Michael Metroka IV - a.k.a. "MosquitoLemon" and he hails from sunny Florida. Currently kicking up his heels and racking up his headshots in sometimes-sunny Johnstown, Pa., he will be contributing to OMNIpixel as part of a regular pool of users, contributors and discerning fans of the vidya, like you, fair reader. Metroka enjoys writing - "and especially about video games." (So I put him to work - HA!) 

But srsly guyz, if writing about the industry we love sounds cool, send an email to omnipixel9000@gmail.com, subject header: "Contributor" and find out how you can help! We accept all kinds of submissions based on OMNIpixel's namesake: "OMNI" for "everything" and "pixel,"  so, "everything to do with pixels." 

You can send in a cool video, a review of whatever you're playing, a pensive reflection on the merits and woes between all your smartdevices - all sorts of things, really. Enjoy Mr. Lemon's inaugural post - a preview of Bethesda's recently announced MMO. I think you know which one...]

Whether you're a console gamer or a PC fanatic, you have probably played - if not then at least heard of - The Elder Scrolls series (TES), created by Bethesda Softworks and published by ZeniMax Media Inc.

Thanks to these two organizations, the average RPG genre has been moving in a new direction. A true role-player will always be satisfied with the standard features of the series. How many games can you switch from first to third-person in the middle of combat and truly become engaged in a lifelike world?

Anyone who has played the earlier TES titles - such as Arena or Redguard - were just scraping the tip of the iceberg, unconsciously part of a revolutionary movement. To back up the aformentioned information, I will provide a firsthand account I witnessed and was a part of in OMNIpixel's hometown of Johnstown, Pa...

MW3 Players Stage April 20 Blackout

The Call of Duty community is not happy. Gamers fed up with the lack of post-launch support for the blockbuster FPS have organized a blackout on April 20, 2012. The dissidents released a YouTube video with a storied list of complaints that Infinity Ward must appease.

Hit the jump for the full list demands and aforementioned video.

World Record Get! 1000-man FPS catches Guiness' attention

And now for something MuchDifferent...

Last Sunday, the Swedish non-profit tech firm MuchDifferent garnered worldwide interest when it hosted the first browser-based 1000-man FPS match.

Their title, "Man vs. Machine" will now be entered into the Guinness Book of World Records as having the largest team-based online deathmatch in history. 

MAG who?

Do you hear that? It's the tinny groaning of servers the world over when I type, "1000-man FPS." Read more to see video of this epic showdown.