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I’ve never been completely down-in-the-mouth about the rise of casual gaming, but I’m sure I’ve said some snarky things on the topic in the past. A new study makes me feel bad for the things I’ve said. The Information Solutions Group conducted a survey of casual gamers and found that disabled people have embraced these games as a source of relief or distraction.Of the 13,296 casual game players polled,2,728 respondents indicated that they were disabled in some way....

Dramatic much? Sales are down, apparently. You and I probably had no idea, but games analyst Michael Pachter is freaking the freak out about it. Apparently the dollar sales level for last month is the lowest since May 2007, and is the weakest April since 2005. I’m not sure why that’s cause for concern, though. Can’t we just have a down month in games? Pachter does say that the game line-up was weak last month....

According to Sony, the PS3 will soon generate review from “paid subscriptions” on the PlayStation Network. This news comes courtesy of a recent Media/Investor conference, where a subscription servicewas revealedduring a slide presentation. The slide outlines the five key advantages of the PlayStation 3 and mentions that the PSN is due to gain a “new revenue stream from subscription.” Whether this means MMO-style content is coming to the PlayStation Network, or whether it means the PSN itself will soon offer its own “gold” style service, remains unclear....

It’s with squeals of delight that I present to you the floor plan for this year’s Penny Arcade Expo, set to take place August 29 through August 31. Go look at the calendar … that’s soon! Looking at the map, I have to wonder — who’s not going to be there? I spy with my little eye Sony, Microsoft, The Behemoth, Rockstar Games, Bungie, Electronic Arts, Harmonix …phew. Bethesda Softwork’s booth is almost as big as Microsoft’s; can we ever really get enoughFallout 3, though?...

The 2010 Penny Arcade Expo has not started yet, but we’re all here anyway. Nothing happened today, but we thought we’d share a gallery of pictures taken of nothing happening anyway. Anyway. Here’s us running around Seattle, and then later at Gameworks. Excuse the drunk faces and inappropriate poses. Also, Chad called my flower photography “fu*kin’ gay.”

Capcom is inviting their fans out to their London offices to playResident Evil 5next month. All you need to do to get in is go over tothis forum threadover at Capcom’s Europe Web site and let them know that you want to go. Just make sure you have February 11 and 13 free before you put your name down! There are about seven slots left open so you better be quick about it....

Arcades have been experiencing a slow, painful death all across the country for more than a decade. Now, you have the opportunity tohelp save onewith Stride Gum’s “Save the Arcades” promotion. People who visit the Stride Gum website and playZapataur, a simplistic, flash-based shoot-em-up, will be given the opportunity to award their score to one of four arcades. After October 6th, the arcade which has accumulated the highest score from players will be awarded $25,000 to help keep their doors open....

This week’s episode is so named because I screwed up the episode number in our intro. Seems to happen with alarming regularity, these days. This week, the regular cast minus Sterling discussedBorderlands‘ similarities to drugs and pornography, the leakedModern Warfare 2gameplay video, Netflix on the PS3, and a bunch of random listener question-related stuff.

The GameStop Exclusive train keeps on rolling. For a limited time,every person who reservesThe Transformers: Revenge of the Fallenwill receive an additional downloadable skin for Megatron and Optimus Prime. And yes, that header image is no lie — the skins are golden.Whoa.(You can view more picshere.) The offer is available for online and in-store pre-orders. You’ll get a keychain containing the code or codes whenever you recieve the game. So, if you ordered off the Internet, it’ll come in the packaging on June 23 (hopefully)....

I feel sorry for the PlayStation 3. It’s always getting a bum rap, from being photoshopped as a barbeque grill to constantly complained about as too pricey. It seems like the abuse will only go on, as Famitsu’s latest sales numbers estimate that the PS3 sold almost 1500 units less than it did the previous week. Ouch. Things look a bit better for the PSP, as PSP hardware family sales boosted from23,901 last weekto 156,000 for the week ending October 17th....

Here’s some off camera footage ofResident Evil: Mercenaries 3Dfrom this year’s Wondercon, featuring a currently unannounced character, Ms. Rebecca Chambers. You know what that means, right? We’ve almost got a full onResident Evil 1reunion here. All we need now is Barry Burton, and the whole gang will be back in action, just like they were inResident Evil 5: Gold Edition. How touching. This video also shows that the traditionalResident Evil 4/5over-the-shoulder camera is back as well, even when aiming....

If you pre-ordered the Deluxe Edition ofRed Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad, you can finally play the beta. This goes for anyone who has already purchased the game, and anyone whobuys itbefore launch. This first wave of beta testing will include three different game types and a variety of maps, so you will get a sample of the game’s different aspects. You’ll also be able to host your own server, meaning you can pick which maps you want to use and change the rules to your liking....

Gameloft’s me-too survival horror iPhone gameZombie Infectionhas you going up against an evil corporation as a one-man army. Sound familiar? Don’t worry about that. I remember saying the same thing about Gameloft’s excellent space marine first-person shooter, N.O.V.A. Yes, that game reminds one of Halo, but it’s a still a great game. I have only played a bit ofZombie Infection, but I feel about the same way as I did withN....