The Best Of Big Download: May 8 - May 15, 2008

Howdy folks! I'm John Callaham, one of the lead writers at the new Big Download site. As some of you may know we had a "soft launch" last week for both the main site and the related Joystiq-powered news blog that's dedicated to all things PC gaming. We are still in beta mode, so that means we are in the process of squashing a few remaining bugs, but we are making great progress in that area. Despite our "beta" status, we ran a ton of terrific original features this week, and as we get ready for our full blown "hard launch" you can expect even more original features and exclusive news from Big Download. In the meantime here are our highlights for our debut week:

Exclusive features:

• PvP vs PvE: Blizzard on World of Warcraft: Big Download chats exclusively with Blizzard team members on their plans for tournament play features in World of Warcraft.
• In-Depth: Galactic Civilizations 2: Twilight of the Arnor: It's our detailed look at Stardock's just released second expansion to their hit space strategy game.
• Guide to Team Fortress 2 Medic Achievements: Check out the first four parts of our extensive look at the various achievements for the Medic class in Valve's multiplayer shooter. Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four
• Casually Speaking: Evolving the casual game: Our first entry in our new weekly look at casual games asks the question, "What is a casual game, anyway?"
• Freeware Friday: Cave Story: Our weekly look at free games for the PC checks out an unusual title made by one Japanese man that our columist calls "quite possibly the best freeware game of all time."