Microsoft is running an "Extended Play Download Days" promotion between now and the end of October, with select downloadable content discounted for six Xbox 360 titles. Sure, half of the promotion consists of Beautiful Katamari accessories and stages, but we've also got Forza Motorsport 2, Mass Effect, Guitar Hero 3, Lost Odyssey and a deep discount for Oblivion Shivering Isles (from $30 to $20). Not coincidentally, today also marks the first day of the new Xbox 360 price drop.

As much as we'd like to get totally pumped by the revelation, we're going to withhold pumpitude until we see how Sonic turns out. But hey, don't let us rain on your parade: Which BioWare franchise do you hope goes DS first?

BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk was talking to MTV Multiplayer about the company's upcoming Dragon Age, when he took a left turn at Alpha Centauri and discussed future Mass Effect DLC. He tells the site that it's still a trilogy and that the company is "looking at some other post-release content." He won't confirm anything, but says the company is "talking about" more DLC.

The space opera has only had one episodic DLC adventure with Bring Down the Sky, which was made available free for PC purchasers of the game. Since then, the space around The Citadel has been pretty quiet ... but not in that normal space sort of way ... you know what we mean.

PC gamers have long had to deal with the problems of their platform of choice (frequent upgrading, higher price, etc.) but they've also reaped the rewards: Namely, a lot of crap for free that their console-wielding brethren pay for. Just a few days after Microsoft of all companies finally realized that, PC gamers get another dollop of free content with the "Bring Down the Sky" DLC pack for Mass Effect.

To get it, just boot up Mass Effect and look for instructions at the launch screen. Alternatively, hit up Big Download to grab the BDtS update and 1.01 patch before heading to BioWare's site to get yourself all registered up. Then, just focus not on how long ago the 90 minutes of content came to 360 (spoiler: four and a half months ago) but rather just on how very, very free it is.

"Dude, I totally heard that Mass Effect 2 is going to be an Xbox 360 exclusive. Not only that, but my friend's brother's girlfriend's chiropodist who worked with guy who played a BioWare game with me says that the entire trilogy will be exclusive to Microsoft and will eventually cross over with the Halo and Viva Pinata universes. It's going to be an awesome dose of rad-tacular sweetitude." - Hypothetical Joystiq tipster.

While there's no question about the rad-tacular sweetitude that's bound to emanate from BioWare's future entries in the Mass Effect franchise, it's time to hang up on another telephoned rumor -- this one has the unannounced trilogy locked into Xbox 360 exclusivity. According to the eloquently named Australian blog, XboxOZ360-gamer, BioWare bigwig Ray Muzyka told Australian 360 magazine that the RPG developer was committed to bringing the Mass Effect trilogy exclusively to the Xbox 360. Yeah, not so much.

Speaking to Joystiq, a BioWare representative deemed the information "incorrect," noting that Muzyka has "never confirmed any plans of Mass Effect exclusivity for the trilogy." So ... there is a trilogy, right?

[Via X3F]

Ask a hundred PC game developers about piracy, and you're likely to come away with at least as many ideas on how to keep games from being flown beneath the Jolly Roger. There's even those who have thrown up their arms already, sailing instead for calmer console waters or opting just to keep piracy 'in perspective.' However, when it comes to Mass Effect dev BioWare, fighting piracy is as trivial as simply making games that people want to buy by nurturing customer fidelity through DLC and engaging multiplayer options.

"That's ultimately the best, most successful path to prevent piracy," noted BioWare's co-CEO Ray Muzyka, "to have players that want your games, want to believe in them and think they're high-quality and realize they're going to get a lot of value out of them as platforms for long time afterwards." It's a great theory, though we imagine that getting players to want your game isn't exactly the problem; it's getting them to open their wallets for them that's the trick.

Speaking to MTV Multiplayer, the developer of such epics as Mass Effect and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic confirmed that it is looking into games of a much smaller (physical) scale. Specifically, BioWare co-CEO Greg Zeschuk states that he finds Apple's iPhone "intriguing" as a games platform. Mind you, he's not saying development is underway, but he is a fan.

"Something that's as big a cultural and technical success as the iPhone is something you've really got to take a close look at," explains Zeschuk, adding that, "We've got a lot of folks looking at it." Zechuk's statements come just a few days after the project lead on BioWare's Nintendo DS RPG, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood, revealed that the company is also investigating Wii and PSP dvelopment. Now BioWare just needs to look into developing for those LCD games you see at mall kiosks and it'll have all bases covered.

When we first reported on EA's reworked DRM scheme for Mass Effect PC – one that removed the onerous 10-day re-validation process but now only allows a maximum of three activations – we teased that we were ready to "pick up our torches and pitchforks and join the mob outside."

Now, a little over a month later, that mob has grown to some considerable size, spurred on by a forum thread on BioWare's site being referenced on consumer-advocacy blog The Consumerist. The problem: some confusion over whether or not uninstalling the game reinstates one of your three activations. After some wrangling (you know how support centers can be) EA confirmed that "unfortunately, you will not gain an activation by uninstalling the game." So, be stingy with those installs, gamers.


[Via Consumerist; thanks, Eric]

Thrifty (and, if you've yet to play either of these, add negligent to this list of adjectives) gamers take note: Amazon's offering two great Xbox 360 games at a pretty steep discount. Both Mass Effect and Gears of War are only $35 (that's down from $60, people!) just for today; keep in mind, both of these games were amongst Joystiq's favorites in their respective release years.

Now, if you want our advice, we're gonna say to hold off on Gears of War – what with the two-disc special edition being released later this month for just $40. Don't care about all that "special" crap, just want to shoot bug monsters in the face? Then place your order, friend. We like your style.

[Thanks, Curtis]

Mass Effect PC players will soon have a chance to "Bring Down the Sky" (did you see what we did there?), as BioWare has announced that the free downloadable content will be available very soon for the PC version of the giant space epic.

The content -- available on the Xbox 360 since March -- includes a brand new uncharted world, and the inclusion of the ass-ugly Batarian race. And did we mention that it's free? That's incredibly good per-eyeball value.

We always thought BioWare's galaxy-spanning RPG, Mass Effect, was just a teensy bit too epic to fit into that whirring beige box beneath the TV. Now, the game has been enhanced -- improved inventory, expanded squad control and less clunky interface, all check -- and released roughly six months later on a computer that doesn't sound like it's constantly sawing the disc in half. The first batch of reviews seem to approve.

• IGN (92/100): "This is easily one of the best RPGs on the platform in recent years, delivering a terrific new universe, a fun blend of action and role-playing, and a deeply satisfying story. If you have any love of science fiction or space opera, then you owe it to yourself to check it out. There are hours upon hours of joyful discovery here, and an undeniable love for science fiction, as well."
• GameDaily (90/100): "Although the game suffers from a few minor bugs, including a small number of missions that don't show as completed when finished, some computer controlled teammates that have trouble following orders and occasional glitches when switching between movement and hacking mode, the PC version of Mass Effect is superior to the Xbox 360 release. The mouse and keyboard controls are so natural that they improve the game's performance at practically every level."
• Eurogamer (80/100): "It's an incredibly ballsy game, not afraid to take on any of its competitors, in any field. Story-lead games? Shooters? Even genuine, non-game populist sci-fi? Mass Effect has a try at them all, and leaves more wounds in them than they leave in it, before blasting off into a space all of its own."

Much like they did with Penny Arcade Adventures, the mouse-loving folks at BigDownload have pitted both version of Mass Effect – Xbox 360 and PC – against one another to see which is the best portrayal of Prothean technology. The verdict is probably unsurprising, given the new version came out some six months after the original (and with a vastly improved inventory system). Head over to BigDownload for all the details.

Each week Jeff Engel and Geoff Brooks contribute Counting Rupees, a column on the business behind gaming:
When EA announced that Spore and Mass Effect (PC) would have a DRM program that did performed online verification every 10 days, it generated a massive backlash amongst the gaming community. Many people, who were originally excited about Spore and Mass Effect, now claimed that they would not purchase the games, solely because of the DRM. To be honest, I'm no fan of DRM either. It basically treats all legal customers as potential criminals, and seems futile anyway, as anyone with an internet connection can typically find ways around the DRM. The only people it probably deters are those with little technical savvy and who just want to share a game they bought with their friends and family. The amount of actual sales that would be lost to this is probably pretty limited. With all that said, I'm glad that EA has backed off this new DRM and scaled it back to just an initial online verification. Given the current state of PC gaming as well as the traditionally more "accepted" versions of DRM (like the initial online verification), however, I didn't find this new DRM to be all THAT much worse, particularly with some slight improvements to it, such as allowing a manual verification and extending the timeframe for re-verification slightly (say, to 30-60 days instead of every 10).

The reason for this has a lot to do with what's been going on with PC gaming in the last few years. While the "death" of PC gaming has been talked about for years, it isn't quite here. The landscape is just shifting. While the total NPD sales for each year has been decreasing, other avenues of making money have been developed. For instance, subscription-based games (mostly MMOs, but also games available on GameTap), cheaper more casual downloadable games (eg, PopCap Games), and even free, ad- or feature-driven games (eg, Dungeon Runners, Battlefield Heroes, Quake Zero) make up an ever increasing portion of PC-based revenue. Thus, the actual retail sales are taken up mostly by a few casual games, MMO starter kits or expansions, and maybe the occasional shooter or RTS game. Take, for example, the most recent NPD PC numbers for the week of May 4-10:

This was a close call this week, because the offerings are very ... how to put it politely? ... Porty. Which is to say, if you were interested in them, you've probably already played them. There's even Lost Planet: Extreme Condition Colonies Edition, which is a port onto the SAME SYSTEM! C'mon, feel the synergy!

But we decided to go with Enemy Territory: Quake Wars largely because it's on two platforms this week instead of one like Mass Effect PC, and we're all about pleasing the masses. Check out the full list after the jump.