When IO Interactive released Hitman: Codename 47, the first in the extremely popular action series, it didn't exactly get top billing. Released in November 2000, the game received lukewarm reviews and sold just enough copies in the initial run to not sink the series before it really came into its own. Now the Hitman franchise is one of the most popular video game series of all time. Without a doubt, this is because of its sequel's strong showing in the console market. So, if it was such a buggy, poorly planned game, how exactly did Codename 47 spawn such an successful line?

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The business of video games is a precarious one, especially as technology has improved and standards have risen. Multi-million dollar budgets often result in a lot of meddling by the game publishers, eager to release their products in time for major purchasing seasons and generally acting like focus-group-influenced movie studios. Not surprisingly, a lot of great games get stepped on in such an environment. The business has become so stifling that a lot of programmers and designers have turned to independent outlets for the sake of creative control, resulting in new classics like Braid and an endless supply of Internet browser games. In the past decade, perhaps no major studio game was more unjustly hurried, and thereby crippled, than Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines.

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The 1990's were some of the best years for PC gaming. The first-person shooter especially took significant strides in that era. I wrote about one of the best from that period, the Star Wars themed Dark Forces. But there were plenty of other amazing FPS games produced between 1990 and 2000, some of them world-renowned, others merely appreciated. Let's take a look at a few.

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It's time once again to look at some of the best browser games available on the Internet today. June was an especially good month for more involved games. While the heart and soul of browser gaming is a quick, pick-up-and-play sensibility, there's also a strong appeal in games with a learning curve and a longer play time. Last month's entries demonstrate just how far games in Flash and other platforms have come since the infancy of the medium. Rooftop Skater, these ain't.

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DamnationThere are few things more annoying than buying a new full priced game on the day of release only to find out it is a big fat turkey. Damnation from Blue Omega Entertainment is just such a game. It was heavily hyped by publishers Codemasters who described it as a steampunk shooter set to take things vertical. The gamble to buy a game before the reviews come out is always a risky business and in this case it proved disastrous. Damnation racked up a Metacritic score of 42 out of 100.

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Where is the line between what is and what is not a video game? As fascinating as all the complex, cinematic games of the past few years can be, some of the most engrossing games out there are the ones that are so simple they barely qualify as games. Of any gaming company in the history of the industry, none have been better than Maxis at releasing titles that can easily occupy four hours of play-time before the player knows it. What's more, they've managed to do this with extremely simple games.

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Megan FoxIt's all true. Meagan Fox, super-hot babe and actress, has a passion for the Wii.

No, not for your wii, or any of your other equipment. However, if you should ever meet the stunningly beautiful actress in person, your mutual passion for all things Wii will at least give you a starting point in any conversations you may have with her....for the record,

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Do you love the night? Are you a night walker or want to transform into a vampire and engage in the mortal quest against the werewolves and slayers or join a powerful vampire clan to become the most feared force around? Then check out these great vampire RPG's that you can play any where, any time because not only are they free to play but best of all they do not require you to download or install any software, so you can play from any location or computer that has a compatible browser.

Bloodletting:

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It's time once again to take a look at some of the best video games released for in-browser play. The following three are excellent time-wasters that came out in May, 2009.

Crush The Castle

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Zeno ClashIf you are looking for a game that offers something a little bit different then you simply have to check out Zeno Clash. This is a first-person action game set in a fantasy punk world which challenges you to fistfight a range of bizarre aliens. It is fresh, original and loads of fun.

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