You've run out of new stories to read, listened to the latest episode of Weekend Confirmed, and still want more Shacknews? While these threads have expired, you can join thousands of other gamers as we discuss everything from videogame industry news to politics in the Chatty. Make sure you log-in and check your filters if you can't see the following:

Firefly1985 plays a bit of Sins of a Solar Empire from Ironclad Games and has some thoughts on the game mechanics. How does it compare with Endless Space, which looks somewhat similar from the outside? dfay wants to know. If you were to only purchase one of these two great titles, which would it be? My vote goes to Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion so far, as Endless Space still needs a tad more polish. Both are excellent games, though!

Interested in game design or game code? Check out the five-part Quake III source code review with manero, which goes indepth into the architexture behind the classic title. Be warned though, it's pretty deep stuff. My eyes glazed over by part-two.

Need a way to spend the weekend? Start looking up the sound effects in this thread from Wikus Van De Merwe. You might lose the rest of your summer in this thread if you aren't careful. One of my all-time favorites is the deep bass echo of the sniper rifle in the original Mass Effect. The Robco Pip-Boy bootup noise from Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas also stands out.

Supine wants to see your best Diablo III loot. Show off your best stuff, Real-Money Auction House worthy or not! Is the loot you've found so far enough to keep you playing the game? Shacknews Managing Editor John Keefer has had enough, and is ready to move on. Check out his article, and see if you agree with him.

MOOMANiBE wants to know what you think about this article on the state of AAA games, particularly concerning piracy and its impact on the industry. Do you think these views have any evidence behind them? Check it out, and let Chatty know what you think!

The Warp Zone

Welcome to The Warp Zone, where the posts are crazy and the lols don't matter.

San Diego goes on a rampage and annihilated the fourth of July sky with a metric ton of fireworks in one shot. Check out the full video, which shows 15-minutes worth of fireworks exploding in 15-seconds, posted by foo.

Do you have a burning IT question? Or just something stupid you think a Shacker might know? Check out this huge questions and answers thread with gimpness.

helvetica and her piggies wish you a happy fourth of July. Along with a very merry Shackcon.