Earlier this week I rewrote my Painkiller article to be consistent with the Cheap Gaming posts we write today. Have a look.

The first Cheap Gaming post that I wrote about an MMO will also be our first Cheap Gaming post to expire. This news is disheartening as Dungeon Runners is not a bad MMO, and worse games have succeeded. Dungeon Runners game servers will be on until the new year, so treat yourself to playing before it’s too late.

The skill-based progression Cryptic is describing sounds similar to how I remember Star Wars: Galaxies’ progression to be (pre-revamp). I didn’t play SW:G for long, but I admired its skill system for the freedom it gave players to gradually shape their character’s class.

It’s old footage that wasn’t meant for public view, but I am glad to know that a sequel to The Witcher is coming, however unceremonious the reveal was.

I didn’t buy Trine for $30 because I felt it was expensive and I wasn’t sure I would have fun playing it by myself. Now, a few days before its price dropped to $20 on Steam, there’s news that it will be a part of my GameTap subscription — and just in time for my transition to Windows 7 64-bit. Score!

Just as its predecessor in 2007, Skate 2 is on track to being my favorite game of 2009. It’s definitely the game I’ve played the most, so I’m predictably glad to hear of another sequel. Some are saying it’s too soon, but the release cycle is consistent so far — about 15 months between each game (Sept. 2007, Jan. 2009, May 2010). Unless you weren’t satisfied with Skate 2′s improvements on Skate, there’s no precedent for concern yet.

The big surprise of the week for me wasn’t Will Wright “leaving” EA or the surfacing of Assassin’s Creed 2. No, it was the announcement of a new Painkiller game. Though it isn’t being made by the original game’s developer People Can Fly (who are now owned by Epic Games), it’s hard to imagine that a team (albeit one with no trackrecord to speak of ) using the same tech and the same gameplay framework could go wrong. Add co-op to the mix, and I’m on board.

Here in this video is an invaluable look at what id Software was like in 1993. Doom development was wrapping up with sound creation and performance optimization. It’s surreal to watch this video with the knowledge of what the shotgun will really sound like while watching John Romero play with placeholder sounds from Wolf 3D SNES. They had no idea yet.

This is a list of all of the cheap games we’ve featured in the blog. Every game is under $10 — many are even free! Here they are in order of price (low to high):

Painkiller has all the qualities one would expect in a worthy successor to games like Doom and Quake: a constant sense of urgency driving the player forward; a powerful and satisfying arsenal including such mainstays as the shotgun and chain gun, as well as such exotic, proprietary creations as the Electrodriver and (my personal favorite) the Painkiller itself. With this adherence to tradition in mind, it’s only natural that Hell (and its denizens) would play a part in Painkiller’s narrative. The game opens with a cut scene showing the game’s protagonist, Daniel Garner, driving with his wife to her birthday dinner. It’s raining heavily, Daniel looks away for a moment, and they’re killed in a head-on collision. Although his wife was admitted to Heaven, Daniel has been relegated to Purgatory. After spending some time there, he is approached by a messenger and is given an opportunity for atonement, an opportunity to reunite with his wife. Here, the objective of the game is revealed: kill the four generals of Lucifer’s army, and on the way, “destroy everything that moves.”

Painkiller also has a strong multiplayer component that, for a while, was a pretty big deal in the competitive scene. Its popularity waned, however, so while sparsely populated servers can still be found, it can’t be counted on. Regardless, the singleplayer campaigns of Painkiller and its expansion are worth the $9.99 to Steam or Good Old Games.