We're sending out word that the PC version of America's Army: Special Forces has recently been updated to build 2.8.3.1. This new update will address several bugs and issues that were present in the game's previous version. More details are available in the full article.

Looking for some hardcore gaming competition? If you are, then you might want to check out the Army Gaming Championships. This U.S. Army-sponsored event is one of the world's largest online video game competitions, and entrants stand to win their share of US$ 200,000 in cash and prizes.

The qualifiers for the Army Gaming Championships begin on July 4, so you might want to hustle if you're looking to join the competition. Those interested can sign up on the event's official website, which you can access via the "Read" link below. Finally, here's a list of titles that gamers can compete in:

• America's Army
• Battlefield 2142
• Call of Duty 2
• Call of Duty 3
• Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars
• Counter-Strike: Source
• Gears of War
• Halo 2
• Resistance: Fall of Man
• Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas

Remember "The Last Starfighter"? The premise for that particular 1984 movie was based on the urban legend that video arcade games were in fact being used by the military to test for suitable recruits. Well, right now, the U.S. Army is currently under fire for bringing that very same urban legend to reality.

According to Yahoo! News, anti-recruitment groups are slamming a US Army deal to sponsor a computer war game channel at the Global Gaming League website in June. The centerpiece for the channel will be the five-year-old FPS title America's Army, a game that's based on the army training manual.

The Army aims to use the channel to find potential soldiers among gamers in the cherished recruiting age range of 17 to 24. Playing at the channel will be free, but players who sign up will also have to agree to "additional contact from the Army." Those who oppose the Army's move said that it's "wrong for military recruiters to use technology and pop culture to entice young people to enlist without showing them the ugly sides of service."

Oskar Castro of the "admittedly anti-war" American Friends Service Committee, who said he had played America's Army before, also recounted meeting young gamers inspired to be soldiers by their love of playing the game. "It was really bizarre to actually see that," Castro said. "They had every plan to go into the military and they didn't have a full vision of how the military works."

"If you are going to show what war is like you should show what war is like," said Castro. "You don't have 'game over' and start again. 'Game over' means you come home in a body bag and a casket."

Sports builds, aside from muscles, camaraderie among players. Kidding aside, at the core of every competition is the desire to unite each and every participant. The Global Gaming League (GGL) together with its partners were probably thinking along this line when they launched the Professional Baseball Videogaming League (PBGL).

PBGL aims to enable online gaming competition between actual major leaguers and fans. Aside from GGL, the concept was approved by the Major League Baseball Advance Media, Boras Marketing and New York Yankees outfielder Johnny Damon. Also, Damon will serve as the league's first ever commissioner. He announced:

Both baseball and video games play a huge role in today's culture in the US and around the world, and the PBGL is doing a great job of bringing these two communities together. More importantly, the PBGL is allowing me to invoke another passion of mine.

The Wounded Warrior Project raises funds and awareness for wounded veterans. As Commissioner, I'm proud to add former U.S. Army Sergeant Steven Andrew Robison of Kansas City, Missouri, to this season's PBGL line-up.

Well, that's hitting two birds with one stone! Anyway, PBGL for its first season will be employing Project Gotham Racing 3 on Xbox 360. PBGL has a lot of in store for everyone. For details regarding these activities and how to join, refer to the Read link below.

America's Army, the training game that became a hit. Well, for all you fans of that game, here's some good news. The U.S. Army and Pragmatic Solutions today announced the release of Mission Depot for America's Army. Mission Depot is the official server map submission site and repository for the AA game community.

Now, unlike other user generated content sites, your submitted content, in this case your map and mission, can be approved by the America’s Army panel of experts (we assume that they're affiliated with folks in the Army) and deployed on Official Honor Servers.

You think you're a tactical genius? Get the v2.8 Mission Editor and brag away.

One could never get enough of FPS games for the PC. This may be the words etched in the minds of Bohemian Interactive and 505 Games when they decided to come out with an FPS game for the PC called Armed Assault (ArmA). Those guys who daydream about being a war hero is sure gonna get a kick of this game as this promises realistic combat simulation based on technology used to train U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Army and Australian Defense Forces.

But PAL gamers are really lucky! 505 and Bohemia just gave word that the PAL release of ArmA will feature exclusive weapons, vehicles, and mission content when it reaches European shores on February 16, 2007. Just what exclusive items are in store for European gamers?

For starters, the exclusive content will include two new aircrafts, the Su-34 Fighter and Su-34 Bomber. Two new motorbikes, TT650 and M1030 military motorcycles, were also thrown in the package. Four new weapons, the Russian rifle AKS74PSO, KSVK, the US-designed M107, and US rifle variant the M16A4 are also exclusively for Euro gamers. Aside from that, the PAL version of the game will also launch an exclusive mission called "Blood, Sweat, and Tears".

Lucky, lucky PAL gamers!