In both civilian and military communities worldwide, the world of video gaming is expanding more and more, especially with popular massive multiplayer online titles. MMO games such as World of Warcraft, War Hammer and Call of Duty 4 have become a way of life and provide people with ways to meet other people who share their love of interaction through gaming.

One of the major fascinations of MMO games are the teams and communities players form while online, and a kinship a soldier often has to leave behind when he deploys. Ed Hale, a former member of 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, now a corporate executive officer for CompeteSoft, Inc., offers free online gaming servers to Soldiers across the globe.

Hale, who graduated from West Point in 1971, said the idea for the community gaming concept came to him after finishing his five-year enlistment.“The people I worked with at Fort Bragg forged some of the most vibrant memories I carry with me, even today,” Hale said.

But after leaving the service as a ranger and infantryman, he said trying to find a career in an unstable computer industry made it hard to maintain a career, with one job layoff after another…

BlizzCon 2008 is offering a free pay-per-view package to new DirecTV subscribers for its upcoming World of Warcraft tournament starting at 1:30 p.m. on October 10, 2008, and 2 p.m. EST on October 11, 2008, broadcasting live from the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, CA (USA).

The DirecTV special promotion can be subscribed to only through the BlizzCon website and is available only to those living in the United States that subscribe to service before September 30, 2008, and activate it before October 9, 2008.

Current DirectTV subscribers can…

Title: Game Boys (aka Game Boys: Professional Videogaming’s Rise from the Basement to the Big Time)Author: Michael KanePrice: $24.95 (hardcover)Release Date: June 23, 2008Publisher: Viking (part of Penguin Putnam, Inc.)Pros: Conveys the excitement, personality and seriousness of competitive gaming in a readable tone. A good book for gamers and pro gaming skeptics.Cons: Starts a bit slow and has some overly simplified explanations of gaming and gaming terms.Overall Score: Two thumbs up; 90/100; A-; * * * * out of five.

Kane’s Game Boys is so much better than the pop-catchy name implies. It is instead a well-formed, personal and serious look into select groups of pro gamers.

Click through for the full review…

The American leg of US World Cyber Ggames 2008 will take place at the Samsung Experience in New York, NY, on May 31, 2008, and June 1, 2008. At stake are cash and prizes worth more than $20,000 along with a place in the WCG USA National Final. The first leg or the WCG 2008 US Open will include some of the best gamers in America who have their sights set on qualifying for the WCG 2008 Grand Finals in Cologne, Germany, in November 2008.

The Grand Finals will have…

Titanstrike online is proud to host this year’s Miss Video Game 2008 (MVG 2008) online tournament.

I recently caught up with Francisco Diaz the co-founder of TitanStrike to find out what it is about all about.

“Titanstrike, a platform for gamers that seeks to blend the best of social networking with cutting edge gaming services including a tournament engine that allows sponsors to create and manage events,” Diaz explained. “The Titanstrike platform also has flash forums, gamer profiles and instant chat to power interaction within the community. The goal of Titanstrike is to provide an ideal environment for online competitions so the Miss Video Game event was a natural fit…

Professional gaming buffs take note: the Championship Gaming Series (CGS) has just announced its list of North American franchise players. Franchise players are the cream of the proverbial crop in the CGS world – above the other tiers of players on CGS teams. The franchise players were selected to represent each team – from San Francisco Optx, Chicago Chimera, Los Angeles compLexity, Carolina Core, New York 3D, and Dallas Venom; before the rosters become filled with pros drafted in the March 7-9, 2008 CGS combine and draft.

Looking at the announced players, it looks like competition will be quite stiff in the 2008 season. Read on to check out player bios from the press release.

According to GameDaily, pro game organizer Major League Gaming (MLG) has just signed a contract with “real” sports network ESPN to provide professional gaming coverage. The pact includes a multi year deal to cover MLG competitions on ESPN’s sites, which will include the games-only ESPNVideogames.com. ESPN will launch its own competitive gaming portal (complete with more »

Starting December 6, 2007, game fanatics worldwide will be able to watch the highly anticipated Championship Gaming Series. The nine-day event will be broadcasted on television via DirecTV in the US; BSkyB’s Sky One, Sky Two and Sky HD in England; ESPN STAR in Asia; SKY in Mexico and Brazil; DirecTV throughout the rest of more »

Due to high cost of hosting, the World Series of Video Game series has reached its toll and has been shut down as of September 13, 2007. All remaining events scheduled this year have all been canceled by its organizer Games Media Properties who posted the following statement on the WSVG web site:

“Effective immediately, Games Media Properties will no longer produce the World Series of Video Games. The remainder of the 2007 season in Los Angeles, London and Sweden is canceled…

HOOAH! A warcry for paratroopers and a way of life for the United States Army. I should know … I work with them every day. I may not wear the digital patterned Army Combat Uniform but I do know a majority of them are gamers. It was no surprise when recruiting game America’s Army was featured on the list of games for the Summer 2007 CPL Championships being held Aug. 30, 2007, to Sept. 2, 2007, at the Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas.

According to Cyberathlete Professional League registration site, gamers can compete on America’s Army PC game stations and America’s Army: Rise of a Soldier on the Xbox game station during the four-day event. Gamers will get a chance to play with the America’s Army Future Soldier Trainer which is similar to the virtual trainers already in use on military installations. It uses real weapons modified with…