Archived News:
The Bleem site has a new beta posted of their
PlayStation emulator for the PC. Thanks Zach at EmuHQ.
The new release offers "Paletted Texture Improvements," Final Fantasy 8 Support,
Gran Turismo Support, and speed limiter improvements.
Cowboy's Scripting
Page is at it again, this time releasing HUDTris for Starsiege: TRIBES.
What's HUDTris? It's an actual Tetris style game written entirely with the TRIBES
scripting system. A total oddity, and definitely worth a download.
A new beta 3 of the Game Explorer server
browser is now available. Game Explorer is a freeware program that can find Internet
Quake, QuakeWorld, Quake II, TRIBES, Half-Life and Q3ATest servers, and claims the
strongest Q3ATest support of any similar program.
A post to a thread called [g200-dev]G400
specs released gives John Carmack's take on what the newly-released specs mean for
Quake III Arena appearance and performance on Matrox G200 and G400 accelerators under
Linux, talking about the G400's standout performance on hi-resolution testing:
Very little has changed, so it should be easy to have the driver support both
G200 and G400 from the same binary. I want to set a good example for the windows vendors
and not proliferate lots of different driver versions...
Speaking of which, I do worry about all the configuration hassles with the current driver.
I would really like to see an option-free makefile. Even the MTRR issue could be dealt
with by just locally copying the necessary kernel header so any system could compile it
and let it fail at runtime.
What the g400 will give us:
stencil buffer support. This should be straightforward to add and get working.
multitexture support. If glx is extended for it (is there an official ARB spec for
multitexture over glx?) we can use it immediately. We could also do the "fake
multitexture" hack for the g200 as an option.
Anisotropic texture filtering. We need a new OpenGL enum for this, and I think it would be
worthwhile.
More texture filtering levels. Not a big deal until gigantic textures in huge open areas
are used more commonly.
"Bump mapping". This, along with some of the other texture combiner modes, would
need an extension to expose. I would not call it a high priority. Its not as usefull as it
sounds.
Depth buffer in AGP option. AGP 4x transfers. Doesn't help until we get good agp support
in the kernel.
It WON'T give us noticably better Q2/Q3 timedemo scores unless multitexture is supported,
because at reasonable resolutions we are currently not saturating the G200. You will be
able to run at your desktop resolution with all rasterization features turned on, though.
The G400 ran away from the field in our last high-res benchmarking.
There is a Rick
Nailer interview on GameSpot UK talking with the central product manager at Psygnosis
(US) about their upcoming dragon-riding third-person action game, Drakan: Order of the
Flame.
Activision's official Heavy Gear II FAQ is now online, answering all your FAQing questions about this now-available game of giant robot (gear) combat. The FAQ focuses primarily on
technical support issues, offering solutions for problems you may be encountering with your hardware. Thanks Frans at 3D Action Gamers.
Similarly Sierra's
official Starsiege TRIBES FAQ has been updated with more Q&A to help solve
problems running Dynamix' game of multiplayer first-person action and strategy. Again a
nod to Frans at 3D Action Gamers, who is
clearly feeling sharp this morning.
Westlake Interactive has
posted an Unreal 224 beta 3 patch. The new patch will only work if you already have
version 224 beta 1 or 2 installed. The read me has answers to
many frequently asked questions, and explains what's changed in version 224. The file
download page can be found here.
Thanks Apache.
Drakan.Net has word that there is a new version of the demo for Drakan: Order of the Flame, confirming Rex from the AVault's theory that
something had changed in the archive on The
Adrenaline Vault Downloads Demo page. Here's a bit from Drakan.Net on what's changed:
...some of the fixes/features include, refined AI (Especially the spiders), the
ability to pick up arrows (ultra cool idea, brought up by you wonderful Drakonians),
various design bugs were squashed, as well as programming-related ones. Also,
Arokh's lightning attack is in there, but this time you have to find it yourself!
Violent
Video Games Facing New Scrutiny is another New York Times article (from today's Sunday
edition) that focuses on violence in video games, specifically talking about Quake II
(though obviously mistaking the blaster for the hyperblaster in one segment where they
describe a player's affection for the blaster saying "It can just split people in
half."). The article discusses the effectiveness of software ratings (skeptically), and
discusses the possible impact of violent games on young children. Thanks Luka (speaking of
children and violence).
Tim made a big ole update to the Unreal Technology
page talking about Direct3D performance improvements he's worked on since version 225,
capping the update with an outline of a "Summary of things I learned about
Direct3D."
Datumplane::Starsiege's TRIBES 2
Linux Petition is looking to show Dynamix that there's support for a Linux client for
their upcoming Starsiege TRIBES 2. Often petitions can be a bit obnoxious, but in this
case, Tim Gift recently mentioned he was interested in learning the level of support for a
Linux TRIBES 2 client, leaving the door open for a project like this petition.
Speaking of TRIBES 2, the Glide Underground
interviews Nels Bruckner talking to the Dynamix programmer about progress on the
sequel to Starsiege TRIBES.
There's an
interview with Ken Miller on the Pandemic Studios site talking to the programmer on
BattleZone II talking about progress on the upcoming action/strategy tank game. Thanks Jeff Tom.
This X-Wing Alliance
update 2.02: page has a new patch for LucasArts' game that "includes further
enhancements to 3d sound support and is compatible with all foreign language
versions." Thanks A.T. Hun.
Another texture collection on the heels of yesterday's Unreal texture pack ( story) comes another one, this posted on Buzzsaw, offering over 6 MB of urban textures,
attributed to several different artists.
The Console Stats Web Page has a new version of
this analysis tool that can give statistical output from QuakeWorld and Quake II server
logs or demos.
Three MechWarrior 3 reviews among this morning's festivities:
- With Innovative
Pact, Video Game Makers Became Big Players is an LA Times report on Pandemic Studios'
"newfound clout" discussing their high-stakes deal with Activision. Thanks Natch
by way of BZ2.COM...
- Action
Xtreme Interviews George 'The Fat Man' Sanger who has created game music for a ton of
games, including Master of Orion, The 7th Guest, Wing Commander, Master of Magic, Ultima
Underworld, The 11th Hour, and Loom...
- Reality Team Fortress 2 is dedicated to all
things TeamFortress, and includes a clan listing if you want to add your clan, or track
someone else's down...
- The Tectonic page has the source code for this
Quake II front-end...
- Birdman's Lair has an unofficial Descent 3
SpaceOrb patch until an official one comes along. Thanks Frans at 3D Action Gamers...
Happy Father's Day to all you fathers out there (and all you mothers as well). On a sad note, Stephen King In 'Serious Condition' After Accident reports Reuters from out there in the real world. I'm not really a devotee of his work, but about everyone else I know is, and with his enormous popularity, I'm sure there are lots of thoughts and prayers going out to him and
his family, but certainly any more that we add can't hurt.
Link of the Day: All I
ever needed to know about life I learned from Team Fortress and Team Fortress Classic
by Amish Assassin.
Bonus Link: Speaking of Amish: American Assassin: The
Amish Conspiracy in 1999. Thanks Twisted_Cowboy.
GA-Source's
Star Trek Voyager Elite Force Q&A with Josh Weier talks with this programmer from
Raven Software about the scripting system they've added to the Quake III engine that
they've codenamed ICARUS, as well as some other twists they've added for this upcoming
Star Trek shooter.
Valve's Jenni Gant sent around this word that Half-Life owners who want to
try the Uplink demo can now access it from the mod browser: If you've
got Half-Life installed and haven't downloaded the Uplink demo yet, this message
is for you...
The Half-Life Uplink demo (which includes a mini-mission that's not in the original
game) can now be downloaded using the mod browser that we integrated with our
HL v.1.0.0.9 update. This version of Uplink is only 10.4 MB (versus the 50 MB
download for the original "non-mod" version) because it uses files
you already have installed with the full game.
To download Uplink:
1) Launch Half-Life.
2) Click on 'Custom Game'.
3) Click on 'Refresh list'.
4) Select the Half-Life Uplink demo from the list.
5) Click on 'Install'.
Have fun...
Jenni Gant
3D Palette interviews Eric
Turman talking to Raven Software's senior animator about the art in Raven's upcoming
Soldier of Fortune in a piece illustrated with a few images showing off how a motion
capture sequence becomes an in-game animation.
The Extreme Audio Reality site now has a WinDOOM in IAS (Interactive Surround
Sound) patch that provides simulated 3D audio placement even on "2D" soundcards
for the publicly available Windows version of id Software's Doom and Doom2. One warning is
that due to checksum problems, this patch will only work for a short time in multiplayer
play.
The Half-Life Beginners Guide is up,
offering help for those who are still new to Valve's already-classic first-person shooter,
ranging from an introduction to installing the game, all the way through multiplayer play
and TeamFortress Classic.
A new weekly screenshot has been posted on BZ2.COM with
another look at this upcoming action/strategy hybrid from Pandemic Studios. The new shot
shows off one of those "alien creatures from Mire."
GameFan Online previews N64
Quake II looking at the upcoming Nintendo 64 Quake II port. Thanks Apache.
GA-Source interviews Dave
Taylor talking to the ex-id Software and Crack dot Com programmer in an in-depth
conversation about his long-time support of Linux as a gaming platform.
A follow-up on Drew's announcement yesterday that Xatrix' Quake II-engine gangsta epic, Kingpin:
Life of Crime has gone gold ( story) comes in an update to Ryan "Ridah" Feltrin's .plan that gives word on a
fun-sounding CTF variant called Bag Man, which of course, contains the requisite criminal
twist:
Kingpin is done. Phew. It was a long 13 months, but I'm proud of the result.
Server Ops:
A linux port is currently in the works, and if things go according to plan, will be
available by the time the game hits the stores.
Gamers:
If you've been looking for something new to play on-line lately, let me introduce you to
"Bag Man". It might sound odd, but it's actually very addictive, and intense.
Take CTF, mix it with Mobsters. Stir.
The result, is a game revolving around cash. Both teams have a safe. Somewhere in the
center of the map exists a Cash spawning location (counterfitting machine outlet, if you
must..). The object being, to collect as much cash as possible, then return to your base
and lock it in the safe.
But, as the game progresses, it becomes highly rewarding to steal from the enemy safe,
hence the term "Bag Man". Anyone that has stolen from the enemy safe, has a big
sack over their shoulder, and can be carrying up to $200 in the sack, plus whatever cash
they've put in their pockets (picked up along the way). This makes them prime targets for
the enemy, and highly valuable friends.
At the end of the game, the team with the most Cash wins. Simple as that.
Kingpin ships with THREE BagMan maps, and FIVE deathmatch levels.
Enjoy.
A story on The
Adrenaline Vault News with the headline "Trouble in Mortyrville?" quotes
"an informed source close to the project that the title has had a history of
development problems it has not wholly overcome." The report, which as the
"informed source" bit indicates is not a confirmed fact, goes on to say that the
game "was in no condition to ship yet served to increase the paper value of the
CD-ROM side of IMagic’s business," and, "Now the future of the developer
(Mirage) is in question as the gaming community waits to hear who will publish the nomadic
title."
GameCenter
has posted a preview of Gearbox' upcoming official Half-Life mission pack Opposing
Force. The piece has no screenshots, but is still worth a read (again, thanks
Frans).
Anvil Studio has released DMRockNRoll and an accompanying texture pack with
a whopping 76 new textures. Both are available for download on their
site.
Next-Generation
Online has published an interview with HumanSoft's lead programmer Zoltan
Regos and CEO Gabor Kadas about their upcoming 3D title SEED. The game is described
as an oddball mix between a platform game and a first person shooter - all in
full 3D using their proprietary engine.
Beta 1 of CounterStrike, a realistic teamplay mod for Half-Life has been released.
This mod aims to provide "an experience that a trained counter-terrorist
unit or terrorist unit experiences." If that's your bag, swing
by and check it out.
Yep...it's a music video showing off Relic Entertainment's upcoming space sim.
The music is by Yes, and fortunately it's not Owner of a Lonely
Heart. You can snag it over at GameCenter
(thanks Frans).
The first beta of HexenWorld CTF
has been released, and can be downloaded over at HexenWorld.com.
Thanks to everyone that e-mailed me about my SlotKET problem ( story).
It turns out that there probably is a place in Manhattan where I could have
picked up one, and most likely in Queens. Oh well. Several people e-mailed saying
that there have been some problems with SlotKET adapters and overclocking, which
I've heard as well. I'm fairly positive that it won't be an issue, since I bought
mine from Alienware, and they recommended
the one I picked up. In the meantime, I've got a fully built PC sitting in the
corner of the loonyBin here with no processor, allowing for plenty of Frankenstein
references (I've got a monster with no brain...get it?).
Brilliant Advice of the Day: There's this warning label on KrazyGlue
that says "WARNING: AVOID CONTACT WITH SKIN." You better believe that's
there for a reason. Trust me here.
Link of the Day: PlanetQuack.com.
I don't know what it is, but it's brilliant. Heck, it's practically dada (thanks
squire).
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