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This week is a special episode as Jonah Falcon cooks up a true videogame roundtable and is giving away three Steam codes for the latest third person shooter, Spec Ops: The Line, while Paul Nowak reads this week’s gaming flashback Wally Bear and the NO! Gang.

The videogame roundtable has the crew discussing two topics: videogame violence and “play to win” premium game portals.

All that plus Reader Feedback.

To find out how to win a copy of Spec Ops: The Line, listen to the podcast and find out how!

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In this episode of Gaming Podcast, Daniel Quick discusses how to become a true Canadian, while Jonah Falcon talks about making blond, green-eyed characters. There’s no Gaming Flashback this week, but plenty of news items.

This week’s discussion:

• Nintendo announces XL version of Nintendo 3DS
• Dev claims Microsoft killed XBLA version of Stranger’s Wrath
• New users must now pass “review process” to unlock full Diablo III
• Dragon’s Dogma getting sequels after shipping 1M
• Valve and Cartoon Network collaboration hints at Team Fortress 2 show

All this, and the Question of the Week is “What weird rituals do you do when playing videogames?”

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This week the guys relax after the hecticness of E3, and get on to some of the major post-convention news. As Paul S. Nowak struggles with connection issues, Gaming Flashback returns with the original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater.

This week’s news:

• Microsoft unveils new tablet
• Rumor: Leaked doc claims 720 launches in 2013, 3D Kinect in 2014, OnLive acquisition
• May 2012 US sales down 28% over last year despite Diablo III
• Australian gamers get adults-only R18+ classification

All this and Reader Feedback. This week has no Question of the Week – just ask the crew some questions.

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Jonah Falcon and Paul S. Nowak return from the magical E3 2012 videogame convention and everyone has their own opinions on what they thought were the highlights and lowlights of E3. They also make their own predictions, as Dan Quick contemplates writing hate mail to Jonah for having access to SimCity and Need for Speed: Most Wanted.

The podcast also features some great news, including:

• THQ closes their San Diego Studio, sells the UFC license
• Ubisoft states annual Assassin’s Creed releases funded AC3
• Vivendi may sell Activision-Blizzard

There’s also some Reader Feedback, as well as the new Question of the Week, “What did you take away from E3?”

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This episode is a little late due to the holiday, but at least it’ll give everyone something to listen to when there’s no episode next week due to Jonah Falcon and Paul S. Nowak heading to E3.

In the meantime, the gang covers the following news:

• THQ: “Linear is not a dirty word for an FPS”
• Pachter decries on-disc DLC as “just plain greed”
• Crysis 2 returns to Steam
• The Old Republic still has one of the biggest dev teams in industry

Along with the usual Reader Feedback, the crew this time asks the readers to ask some questions, instead of the other way around. Let us know what you want to know.

The 265th podcast will be a little delayed, as it will be recorded on Wednesday, the day the podcast is usually released.

There will be one this week, though, so keep your eye on the iTunes RSS feed.

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This week is full of gaming goodness as E3 slowly creeps up like kudzu, but there’s still plenty to talk about this week. For one, the Gaming Flashback is the classic Infocom game Planetfall.

The news for the week:

• DICE has Frostbite-powered titles for 2013 that “will require a 64-bit OS”
• Actors confirm return to recording booth for Mass Effect 3
• CD Projekt RED: The truth is DRM does not work
• Potential $1 billion suit against EA by former student-athletes moves forward

All that and Reader Feedback. This week’s Question of the Week, “Have you ever wanted a game but didn’t buy it due to DRM?”

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This week lacks Paul, but has plenty of good show, as Jordan refuses to believe in the magic of the old adventure game Alter Ego. This week’s game of the week is inspired by the Kickstarter reboot, as the gang discusses the classic Battle Chess.

As for the news:

• Aussie Diablo III preorders not getting refunded from GAME
• CliffyB praises Dark Souls multiplayer, urges Japanese devs to take notice
• Atari: Eden Studios not closed, Test Drive Unlimited 2 support still ongoing
• Bach: Sony’s mismanagement of PS3 led to Xbox successes
• Report: 38 Studios fighting to stay solvent

All this, plus Reader Feedback and the Question of the Week, “What is your favorite free-to-play game?”

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Episode 262 may be a week late, but it’s definitely chock full ‘o podcast goodness, as the full crew rambles on and off subject about this and that. This week’s Gaming Flashback is the old coin-op arcade game Star Castle while begat Yars’ Revenge, with a twist ending to the classic game’s tale.

This week’s news items include:

• EA deals with Rock Band iOS debacle
• Microsoft “banned” in Germany
• Analyst predicts 3.5M sales of Diablo III in first year of release
• Report: Next Xbox already in production

All that, plus Reader Feedback and the Question of the Week, “What Kickstarter project have you backed or are most interested in buying?”

Sorry, no podcast this week due to time constraints. See you next week.