Mass Effect 3 is a Bioware title that needs no introduction to RPG gamers — it is one of the biggest blockbuster games to come out in 2012.

It is the capstone to a stunningly envisioned sci-fi universe, and has legions of hardcore fans who love the lore and stories of the Mass Effect universe.

I consider myself one of them, having completed Mass Effect 1, 2 and now 3, spending in excess of 120+ hours finishing the main storylines and selected DLCs. This was an unmissable game for me.

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For extreme PC gamers who will only settle for the fastest graphics card, and those with three monitors running in a surround gaming mode, the first top-end cards sporting Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 680 GPU are going on sale now.

Indeed, some GTX 680 cards had appeared to already gone on sale on e-retailer Newegg earlier today, perhaps to catch the early demand for these cards.

Nvidia’s answer to AMD dominance for most of 2011, the GTX 680 is based on the much-touted “Kepler” architecture and is expected to uplift DirectX 11 gameplay performance for the most hardcore PC gamers. By this, usually you mean folks with more than one monitor, because even the most demanding games often run fine on 30-inchers now.

Cards like the Asus version (pictured above) will come with 2GB RAM and be clocked at a base 1,006MHz and a “sped-up” 1,058MHz when the performance is needed. The GPU is also expected to keep to a comparatively modest 195W TDP, which should prevent the fan from sounding like a vacuum cleaner all the time, like many top-end cards can.

[UPDATE: Asus has said their GTX 680 card will retail for S$869 in Singapore]

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Instead of a thin and light design, Sony last year came up with a tablet that had a book-like shape so users holding on to its Tablet S could easily imagine they were reading a book or magazine.

This year, the Japanese firm is looking to a unique clamshell design in its new Tablet P. In terms of looks, this tablet is one that will not fail to catch the eye if you see it at a shop front next to other tablets. …

A cool RM500,000 in cash prizes will be up for grabs in Malaysia as the country’s biggest e-Sports tournament begins in April. Organised by e-sports company Garena, the tournament is exclusive to Malaysians and will get players to pit their skills in the real-time strategy game Heroes of Newerth (screenshot above).

Qualifiers will be hosted in six different states – Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang, Perak, Johor and Sarawak – and played over a period of eight months, culminating in the grand finals in December at the Garena Malaysia Carnival. …

After a raft of “also-ran” tablets from the Android camp of late, here’s one from Sony that should get your attention.

The foldable Tablet P comes with not one but two 5.5-inch screens. That lets you play a game on one screen and use the other as a control pad, for example. Alternatively, you can have one screen play a video on YouTube while you tend to your e-mail on the other.

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Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is a good mashup of Fable spliced with Oblivion/Skyrim, flavored with God of War styled action.

Made by relatively unknown game studio 38 Studios, this RPG boasts an impressive pedigree.

Ken Rolston (Elder Scrolls series) designed the game, R. A. Salvatore (iconic author of many Forgotten Realms novels) created the game universe and lore, and Todd McFarlane (best known for art on Spawn comics) was in charge of art direction.

This all-star lineup alone intrigued me and based almost solely on that I got the game.

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My preference for games has shifted over the decades.

As I get older, I have less time to play games, and my attention span has gotten shorter as well.

I still play a ton of games, but I probably play as much casual and indie games — like niche titles like Sequence and Runespell Overture — than triple-A PC titles.

However, I still keep an eye out for triple-A titles that I am interested in. 2012 is a bumper year for some highly anticipated titles for me, and below is a list of the top five PC games I’ll definitely try out this year.

5. Bioshock Infinite

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Imagine mashing up a RPG with a poker game.

This, in theory, shouldn’t work.

But with Runespell Oveture by Mystic Box, it does.

This oddball game melds Yahtzee-style poker (an interesting variant called Mystic Poker) with a good old fantasy RPG story set in the Nordic eras. As the story progresses, you “level-up” by unlocking collectible spells and allies, which help you in battle.

And how do you battle? By playing poker, of course.

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The Nintendo 3DS not the handheld gaming console of your choice?  Take heart, for Sony’s newest handheld PlayStation Vita will be heading over to our sunny shores on February 22, in less than 2 months’ time.

Retailing at S$399 for the WiFi-only version, the PS Vita will be accompanied by 27 launch titles, including Uncharted: Golden Abyss and FIFA Soccer.  However, the connectivity-junkie will have to wait longer for the 3G version, as there is no word on when that will be released.

The price is definitely quite surprising, given the challenges that the 3DS faced at a similar price point. But unlike the 3DS – which is too similar to its predecessors to generate a high-level of excitement – the PS Vita is a completely different beast that previous PlayStation Portables. …

It’s that time of the year again.

Christmas is a time of giving and receiving, and every year at Techgoondu we want world peace and justice. This year I want to add to the list a fairer society, better public transport, and affordable public housing.

And in case those big dreams fall a little short of our lofty naive ideals, well, there’s always geek toys and gizmos that we can console ourselves with. And still keep dreaming big dreams — they are worth fighting for, aren’t they?

In the meantime, here’s what the goondus would like this Christmas:

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