Rus has written for EA, Ubisoft, Square Enix, Electronic Gaming Monthly, GamePro, The Escapist, and IGN, plus a few non-gaming companies like Shutterfly. In his spare time, he enjoys being hunted like a circus creature by pitchfork-toting fans of his editorial columns. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/rusmclaughlin.

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stories by Rus McLaughlin

ROUNDTABLE’D! Game characters red-ring the Xbox One!

It's the best thing since the invention of trees -- the Xbox One! But its immaculate perfection won't stop our panel of iconic game characters from ripping it an even bigger One.

Steven Spielberg’s Halo: The Television Series coming to Xbox One

Halo: the video game is about to get a live-action component with Halo: The Television Series, backed by no less than Hollywood legend Steven Spielberg.

Full (red) circle: Twitter shares its #XboxMemories

Eight years of broken hardware and stellar gaming leave a lot of great memories, and the industry took to Twitter to give the Xbox 360 its due send off.

Batman: Arkham Origins’ senior producer on how — and when — to move the needle (interview)

Batman: Arkham Origins senior producer Ben Mattes and his team inherited one of the top-rated game franchises of all time. All they had to do was figure out where they could leave their own stamp on the winning Arkham formula ... and what they had to leave alone.

Batman: Arkham Origins hits the repeat button hard (preview)

Batman: Arkham Origins rewinds the Arkhamverse to early in the Dark Knight's career while carbon-copying the gameplay from its predecessors. It's a combination that might just work.

EA’s ulterior motive behind killing the Online Pass

Electronic Arts ended the unpopular Online Pass program aimed at cashing in on the used-games market, but the reason may have more to do with Sony and Microsoft's new consoles than customer dissatisfaction.

Scribblenauts Unmasked contains the entire DC Universe (preview)

Scribblenauts' once-innovative gameplay might not feel so innovative anymore, but throw in every DC Comics character ever created, and it's suddenly cool again.

Watch Dogs’ lead writer talks anti-heroes in the hackable city

Kevin Shortt, the man behind Watch Dogs' narrative, discusses the art of keeping secrets, the thrill of exploiting secrets, and the choices a cyber-vigilante must make in a completely connected world.

Watch Dogs creates an open-world morality (preview)

We've roamed plenty of open worlds, but Watch Dogs gives you the freedom to be any kind of vigilante you want to be ... and the information to make those choices wisely.

Splinter Cell: Blacklist’s co-op mission feels more like a solo op (Preview)

A previewed co-op side-mission from Splinter Cell: Blacklist brought together the classic elements fans love. It just didn't feel like a two-person operation.

Splinter Cell: Blacklist sneaks in new and classic Spies vs. Mercs modes (Preview)

Splinter Cell's acclaimed multiplayer returns in not one but two different versions, and while they play the same, they feel very different.

ROUNDTABLE’D! Game characters objectify Dragon’s Crown’s female anatomy!

The female anatomy in Dragon's Crown needs a lesson, and our panel of gender-sensitive game characters steps up to ride its controversial art style hard.

Fighting the robot wars: Mechwarrior Online vs. Hawken vs. Heavy Gear Arena

Giant mech games have migrated from retail releases to the free-to-play multiplayer arena. We break down three heavy hitters to help you determine which walking tank is right for you.

The playable races Kickstarter backers created for Stardrive

Ever wanted to create your own Star Trek alien race and see it become integral to the series? A few Kickstarter donors got that opportunity when they backed space-strategy game Stardrive.

Call of Juarez: Gunslinger doesn’t do the Wild West justice (preview)

The latest Call of Juarez features of who's-who of historical outlaws and lawmen, but despite a few neat narrative tricks, it's still missing the essentials for a great American western.

10 better-than-Hollywood video game cosplayers

Pay attention, Hollywood. "Amateur" cosplayers can teach you a thing or two about bringing our favorite video game characters to life.

Racing with friends: PS4′s DriveClub vs. PC’s Auto Club Revolution

Evolution Studio's likely PlayStation 4 launch title DriveClub makes social interaction into a core pillar of racing games. Only Auto Club Revolution got there first and might do it better.

Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon is ’80s stupid awesome (preview)

Blood Dragon takes Far Cry 3's mechanics and throws them into a cheesetastic B-action movie from the '80s. The result so far is insane, stupid, and glorious.

BioShock Infinite’s extreme violence is completely valid

A growing number of industry voices claim BioShock Infinite's extreme, gory violence hurts the game, but it's integral to the message Infinite wants to send.

Transistor takes the high road to revenge (preview)

Supergiant Games' creative director Greg Kasavin talks about the themes and motivations behind the robo-busting action of Transistor.