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Normally, we wouldn't write a story simply stating that a developer's next, unannounced title will include some form of online multiplayer support -- however, based on the cliffhanger ending from InFamous (and the apparent re-casting of Cole MacGrath's voice actor) it would be completely logical to assume that Sucker Punch is working on a sequel to its electrified superhero sim. Therefore, one might also assume that the company's recently posted job listing, which requests the services of a network programmer who has "experience building on-line components of video games," means InFamous 2 will have some form of online mode.

We know, we know -- that's a whole lot of assumptions. Still, we're sticking to the old adage of "when you assume, you make an ass of you and me, but sometimes, you can totally predict things before they happen by simply making an educated guess." We'll contact someone over at Sucker Punch to try and help our chances.

[Via CVG]

Capcom recently fired off a fact sheet in our direction for Super Street Fighter IV and while most of it talks about the stuff we already knew -- additional fighters, online lobbies, car punching -- it did inform us of two new online modes for the expansion to this year's excellent brawler and hook us up with some screens of the updated lobby system.

Teams of two, three and four will be able to see who's the best Hadoukener around in the new Team Battles mode, which is a "round-robin elimination" mode where "one man stays until beaten, next team member rotates in," Capcom's Chris Kramer told Joystiq. So players will be able to either control a team themselves or assign slots to other players in the room. Just don't go expecting any tagging in and out -- that only happens in other Capcom games.

The other new mode is Endless mode, a one-on-one elimination mode where two players duke it out and the winner stays in the hot seat and fights the next individual queued up. If you've had any experience with DOA 4, then Endless mode is kinda like that game ... sans the ability to be a chicken in a sombrero running around a martial arts dojo.

Capcom was also kind enough to include some new videos, strictly for training purposes. You can check out newcomer Juri fight T. Hawk above and, if you want some MAXIMUM gameplay footage, head past the break to see her fight Deejay.

Just as Veteran's Day comes to a close, it appears Infinity Ward has finally been able to get the online infrastructure stable for the PS3 version of Modern Warfare 2. It appears the third party-powered servers simply couldn't handle the overwhelming demand following the game's launch. Makes sense: it did sell close to a zillion copies. "We expect smooth skies ahead," IW's Robert Bowling stated in a recent tweet. That is, unless all of you rush to your PS3s again now that multiplayer is working yet again. Remember, though: this is simply a server-side fix that allows you to play multiplayer. The party system still won't work until a patch, planned for release on Friday.

Like many Joystiq commenters have pointed out, we're hoping this closure means the end of Modern Warfare 2 stories for a while. Hopefully we can keep this tag closed for at least a few days, before people start murmuring about the inevitable DLC to come.

Update: The PS3 patch for party invites has also gone live. More info can be found here.

[Thanks to everyone that sent this in!]

The MAG beta program is getting one final, well-timed push before Zipper Interactive gears up to launch the impossibly oversized shooter. The game has officially moved onto Beta Phase 4 -- a shift which not only makes 6,000 changes within the game (including modifications to the skill tree and an increased level cap), but also makes the beta exclusively available to those who've pre-ordered the online FPS at GameStop.

Yes, if you've been playing the beta using one of the other promotional access codes, you'll be shut out of the proceedings. However, as a side bonus, Zipper is now keeping the game's servers open all day, every day. That's right, you no longer need to sacrifice your nightly Murder, She Wrote viewings to adhere to the beta's odd schedule. Thanks, Zipper!

You likely spend a great deal of your time on Facebook informing your so-called "friends" that, no, you don't want to see their farm, or join their mafia, or become a vampire, or fight their superhero, and so on. We're afraid you'll be adding a new form of denial to your repertoire: "No, I don't want to birth a species from the loam, and force it to fight against your species in an adorable Flash-based display of survival of the fittest." It's a tad verbose -- but if you're not interested in EA's Spore Islands Facebook app, you're going to be saying it a lot in the coming weeks.

If genetic engineering is your bag, Spore Islands sounds like a fairly robust offering -- well, as robust as games built into social networking sites get, anyways. Players can create a species, plunk them down on an island, watch them fight for territorial dominance, improve their stats through evolution, then move them to a friend's island to attempt a hostile takeover. You can check out the game for free on EA's Facebook page -- just go easy on the invites, okay?

Those of you taking your King of the Iron Fist Tournament fighters to the internet have been experiencing some major issues, notably: when trying to compete online in any sort of meaningful way, you're met with acute, game-ending connectivity issues. Namco recognized that today and issued a response, stating, "To improve the online game experience for players ... Namco Bandai games is developing a downloadable update which will be available as soon as it has passed rigorous testing procedures."

Unfortunately, no date for the patch has been given, though the publisher does add, "This is separate from the online co-op Scenario Campaign mode update." We've pestered Namco for more details on exactly what the patch will aim to fix and when we might hear more about it but, until that time, know this: something is being fixed at some point.

We'll start with the good news about the upcoming Western release of Monster Hunter Tri: according to statements given to MTV Multiplayer by Capcom Community Specialist Shawn Baxter, the North American version of the game will use Capcom-hosted servers, like the Japanese version does, enabling players to connect and play online, free from friend codes.

The other part isn't necessarily bad news, but it could be in the future: Capcom still hasn't decided whether to use the pay-for-play model found in all online Monster Hunter games in Japan, or whether to make online play free like it has for those same games in North America so far. It's likely that Capcom will do things the same way as before (which means free online), but with the company not saying anything, we can't be sure yet.

Looks like a certain beta testing community hasn't neglected its duties as a stalwart lookout for bugs, errors and other unsavory in-game snafus. This morning, Zipper Interactive launched a patch for the MAG beta client which includes over 8,000 updates and bug fixes. The patch will be automatically downloaded and installed next time you hop into the Shadow War.

A brief synopsis of the important changes can be found after the jump. We elected to not include the full list of 8,000 updates, as it would have delayed this post until mid-April, at which point it would have been fairly useless to you.

Ubisoft must have found TrackMania creator Nadeo to really be speaking its language, as the French publisher has acquired the, uh, French developer in a bid to drift into the online gaming sector. "Through Nadeo, Ubisoft will gain an expert team, one of the best online technologies around as well as a flagship multiplayer game that enjoys an unrivaled reputation among a loyal and committed community," Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot observed.

The acquisition of Nadeo comes just weeks after the developer announced a true TrackMania sequel, TrackMania 2, at the Paris Games Festival.

We know that Namco Bandai is expanding further into the west, hiring three new North American executives, but apparently the company's extending its tendrils in all directions. According to Siliconera, the company has just opened a division to focus on online gaming with its sights set on conquering the rest of Asia.

Will you see the fruits of the new division coming westward, as well? Well, considering that the company's current online properties include Gundam Network Operation 2 and Pro Baseball Famista Online, we wouldn't cancel our WoW subscription just yet.

EA and DICE's free-to-play online shooter Battlefield Heroes is getting some TLC in the form of "Heroes of the Fall," a series of updates and changes that will presumably be released this ... fall. The game's official blog has news about the update coming in a slow drip -- for now, we know the Gunner class will be getting some major improvements, and all players will receive military rankings to go along with their current levels.

Also getting a revamp is the game's social networking functions, making it easier to keep track of your in-game friends. Just make sure you don't befriend any of those dastardly Nationals. They simply cannot be trusted!

[Via Big Download]

Making online, 256-player battles unfold without lag or disconnection issues is nothing short of pure techno-wizardry. However, according to producer Alan Van Slyke, who recently spoke with us at a PAX preview event, that's exactly what MAG will bring to the table thanks to a groundbreaking new form of server architecture.

"Before we started working on the front-end client technology, we started building the servers. We wiped the slate clean and asked 'what do we need to do to scale to these numbers to make sure it's not laggy, and make sure people can't exploit,'" Van Slyke explained. What they decided was that peer-to-peer hosting was insufficient -- instead, the MAG team created their own networking solution which would host and authenticate game data from a (presumably beefy) central server.

Van Slyke couldn't reveal the specifics of the technology (the patent for which is still pending), but promised that it would reduce latency and completely eliminate connection griefing which has plagued other multiplayer shooters in the past. In addition, he said Zipper's not worried about having its servers crushed by a day-one rush of new recruits, explaining that "we've invested a lot in our server technology and our load test harnesses and the things we can do to replicate the scalability of it to ensure that it's stable and rock solid."

To put it lightly, online play in The King of Fighters XII sucks. It's broken, regardless of which platform you play it on. Weeks after the game's release, SNK Playmore has finally released a patch for the PS3 version. According to the press release, the update "fundamentally changes the way game data is processed and synchronized during online matches, placing greater importance on the game's response time and allowing for much smoother play." Online battles should be improved, especially for those with less-than-ideal internet connections.

An Xbox 360 version of the patch is also in the works and should be available "very soon." SNK Playmore issued an official apology with the release, promising it will "strive to improve their system of quality control for future titles," but we're wondering how the fighting community will response. For some, this patch may be too little, too late.

Blizzard finally unveiled the much-hyped new version of Battle.Net at BlizzCon and, as expected, it's a huge leap forward from the service that was first introduced with Diablo in 1996. Although, in typical Blizzard fashion, this is still a work in progress and could change by the time it eventually comes out. In 2013. (We kid, we kid.)

Everything shown was modeled from inside of Starcraft 2, which Blizzard is calling the Battle.Net 2.0 launch title. The developer will be working to expand it to older titles, possibly including legacy games like the original Starcraft and Warcraft. It's also safe to say that Blizzard must be working on a client-only version of Battle.Net, so you don't have to be inside a game to see when your friends are on.

Check out the gallery below, and you can read about all the new details of what Blizzard wants to be the "premiere matchmaking service out there," after the break.

Though it was beaten to the punch by the budget re-release of the original Phantasy Star Portable, and then by a Famitsu article released shortly thereafter, Sega has officially confirmed the existence of Phantasy Star Portable 2 -- a sequel not only imbued with a brand new story and gameplay features, but also with the oft-requested addition of online multiplayer support.

The game's official site lists a December 3 launch date for the latest installment in the PSO franchise. It also gives some insight into the new features present in the game -- you can check out a translated version of Game Watch's PSP2 coverage here. We've sent an email to Sega in an attempt to find out if and when the game will be localized for U.S. release. We've got our Meseta-hungry fingers crossed for a favorable response.