The Best of Big Download: September 1-7

After a long dry spell for major PC games this summer, we are looking forward to playing a lot of cool titles in the next three months. In the meantime let's look on the first week of September and see what we can come up with for news, downloads and our exclusive features:
Exclusive features

• Spore: It ships to stores today in the US so make sure you check out our coverage of Will Wright's magnum opus, including our five reasons we thing we will love this game, our first out of the box experience and some interesting Spore related advertisements.
• Champions Online: We get a hands-on look at the Snake Gulch zone for Cryptic Studios's upcoming super hero MMO title.
• Reviews: Our latest review takes a look at the next chapter for American McGee's Grimm, Godfather Death.
• Team Fortress 2 Comprehensive Achievement Guide: If you want to see detailed descriptions of every achievement in Valve's multiplayer shooter there's no better place to look.
• Big Ideas: Our latest column on game themes takes a look at being a hero in an MMO title.
• MacMonday: Our latest column on Mac gaming takes a look at the action horror game Larva Mortus.
• Alt-Tab: Our latest feature gallery column takes a hands-on look at Gas Powered's upcoming title Demigod.
• Freeware Friday: Our latest look at free games checks out the recent adventure game remake Quest for Glory 2.

Downloads

• Death Track demo: It's the first playable demo for the car combat game from 1C Company
• Spore prototype programs: We've added all of the small prototype programs released by EA to show the development of their alien evolution sim title
• Fallout 3 movies: Check out not one, not two but five new gameplay movies from Bethesda Softworks' upcoming RPG title.
• Deathspank trailers: It's the first three teaser trailers to Hothead Games' first original project from adventure game great Ron Gilbert.
• Mercenaries 2: We have the full "Oh No You Didn't" song from the recent TV commercial to Pandemic's action game.
• S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky patches: Its both the retail and the digital download patch to the recent FPS from GSC Game World.
• Battlefield Heroes trailer: We have the new trailer to the upcoming free-to-play shooter from DICE and EA.

News

• Activision Blizzard hopes Starcraft II shows up in 2009
• Penny Arcade Expo 2008: 58,500 attendees
• Unreal Engine 3 to be used for newly revealed Sky Gods
• GOG.com to open up for early access next week; free Interplay game offer
• First Spore reviews are predictably mixed
• Entire X-Com series now available on Steam
• Over 500,000 total Sins of a Solar Empire units sold
• Age of Conan now available via Steam
• Former Games for Windows magazine editor to work on The Sims
• EA could license Spore engine to third parties
• Far Cry 2 gets final release date and Collector's Edition