Id UnHooked is a story on GameSpot quoting "a reliable source" saying that Brian Hook's plans after leaving id Software will be to move to the San Diego, CA headquarters of Verant Interactive (makers of 989 Studios' EverQuest). A confirmation or a denial of this report is not going to happen right now, as Mr. Hook's reply to a request for comment was simply, "Naw, I'll let people conjecture away. =)"

Bits and bytes, including new Canopus Spectra drivers, and Linux NVIDIA drivers:

• The Spectra Software Download Page has new drivers for both the Spectra 2500/3200, Canopus' TNT-based boards. Thanks Billy "Spectre" Wilson.
• NVIDIA's Software Drivers page has new Riva 128 & Riva TNT drivers for Linux/XFree86, OS/2 Warp and BeOS (thanks Riva Extreme). NVidia releases Linux drivers for X and GL (Slashdot) helps explain (thanks Harri Ilmari Heinonen), as does the NVIDIA Linux FAQ.
• The PCG White Paper Report explains the upcoming tech in AlienWare's new dual-video card systems.
• This should have been an AM bit: Tom's Hardware Guide has posted some test results of the leaked Q3 IHV, while an update by id's Brian Hook to his .plan says: "irrespective of legal issues pertaining to his possession of the IHVTEST, it is not a valid benchmark program since the code in it is radically different than the code used in Q3TEST. So if you want to know how fast your card runs with IHVTEST, then use his numbers. If you want to know how fast your card will run with Q3TEST, use ours."
• Overclocking V3 on the Net, is a use-at-your-own-risk utility for Voodoo3 owners.

The DiabloII.Net Network has posted an AVI-format video showing off gameplay from Diablo II showing off about 50 seconds of gameplay footage featuring the first look at the Barbarian in action.

Monolith has given their home page a swanky new redesign, and to celebrate they've slapped up a new mini-site for their upcoming title, No One Lives Forever (thanks PlanetShogo).

id's Graeme Devine updated his .plan with word that there will be a new Q3Test update ("soon" but not now) as well as some thoughts on Red Hat 6.0 (which he says is his new desktop environment) and Brian Hook's departure.

Update: The 4CDs.com & Activision Promotion mentioned earlier (story) has been amended to no longer include pre-orders on any non-shipping products, having replaced the list of all Activision titles with a list of eligible ones (though the text at the top of the page still says "Take 50% off the purchase price of any Activision product..." as of this writing). We contacted 4CDs and it turns out the unreleased products were included due to a misunderstanding between their marketing department and Activision, but orders placed before the offer was amended will be honored at the sale price.

Next Generation has posted a follow-up to the Unreal Tourney movie they posted yesterday (story) which seems to have been a corrupted binary the first time around. The new version is no longer zipped, and apparently can be downloaded successfully now. Cliff Bleszinski's .plan also mentions this alternate download location on the GameSpy network.

GA-Source interviews Ken Levine, president of Irrational Games and lead designer on System Shock 2 talking about what this upcoming first-person sci-fi RPG has to offer. If you're into SS2, there are some new screenshots online as well mentioned earlier (story).

An update to Jason Leighton's Ramblings page offers four new screenshots from Descent 3, which just went gold (story), all showing off the view from inside the Phoenix. Thanks Descent3D. Also, Beta Bites' Rogue Spear contest page mentioned earlier (story), has five new shots from the Rogue Spear beta, showing off this sequel to Rainbow Six. Thanks Rogue Spear Retreat.

Update: this sale is no longer being offered as described (see follow-up). Original story: Retail promotions don't usually make the news, but this seems worth mentioning: 4CDs.com & Activision Promotion offer "50% off the purchase price of any Activision product at 4CDs.com from June 2 through June 9, 1999 (does not include shipping and handling), in a promotion that includes Quake III Arena for half off $48.99. Thanks BraFish and Desvon. Also included are all Raven's Activision titles (as noted in Kenn Hoekstra's .plan), including Soldier of Fortune and Star Trek Voyager Elite Force.

Yesterday's edition of The Guardian (a UK newspaper) featured a story on Doom, John Romero, and the Colorado shootings. It's been reprinted on their website in its entirety, and features a rundown of several shooters based on the level of violence in each. If the piece looks somewhat familiar, it's because the article is actually a slightly different version of the one that recently appeared in the New York Times Magazine. Thanks to Pete Hawley for the tip, and John Callaham for the clarification.

The official Wheel of Time page has undergone its weekly update with the latest news on the project, as well as a handful of new screenshots from the pre-rendered intro movie (which I got to see at E3, and does indeed rule). Thanks BlackWind.

System Shock II screenshots on PC Zone give nine new screenshots showing off action from Looking Glass Studios' upcoming System Shock II. Word is these shots are a prelude to an extensive SS2 preview they will be posting sometime this week based on hands-on play with an alpha version of the game. Like many of their recent stories posted here, that URL has a generic PCZone login built-in to prevent troubles with registration at the site.

Clinton orders entertainment marketing probe is the report recounting yesterday's speech by the US president announcing that he's "directed the Federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department to investigate the marketing practices of the film, recording and videogame industries." The report quotes FTC chairman Robert Pitofsky, saying "that investigators will have the power to subpoena internal documents at movie studios, as well as recorded music and videogame companies." Word is the goal of the joint FTC-Justice Dept. inquiry, which is expected to last 12 to 18 months, is to determine if there is any evidence that the entertainment industry is marketing violent products, especially those rated for adult content, to children, quoting Clinton as saying "Don't make young people want what your own rating system says they shouldn't have."

U-games' Unreal Tournament screenshots offers new screenshots from UT from GT Interactive UK to go along with their Unreal Tournament preview.

The usual load of morning hardware scoop, including some poop straight from Taiwan about the NV10:

• Sharky Extreme's Computex '99 Show Floor Report Part 2 quotes "several sources close to NVIDIA" saying "that the NV10 would first and foremost be manufactured on a .18micron layer process (a further die shrink down from .25)." They expect a confirmation or denial from NVIDIA on Friday.
• RIVA 3D has word of a new BIOS patch for ALI chipsets that solve many problems, including the dreaded Blue Screen o' Death for Socket7 TNT2 users.
• 3DFiles PowerStrip-GX page has a new version of this beta of the next release of Powerstrip (this version includes a full installer so Powerstrip 2.5 is not required).

TacticalPlanet interviews John Williamson, co-producer/designer of Spec Ops 2, Zombie's upcoming sequel to Spec Ops.

RPGTales interviews Nihilistic talking about their upcoming action/RPG. Vampire: The Masquerade.

The newly opened QERadiant interviews Rob "Robs" Selitto talking to this Rogue Entertainment level designer (and member of my Clan!) about his work and QERadiant, the Quake-engine level editing program.

Glide Underground interviews Creative Labs discussing the RIVA TNT2 chipset, and the Glide compatibility offered by Creative's beta Unified drivers.

Game-Interviews.com interviews Olivier Masclef, project manager at Appeal, talking about what to expect form Outcast, their upcoming voxel-engine third-person action game.

Gameguides' Half-Life-Team Fortress Classic Game Guide Package offers GameSpot's guide to the Team Fortress Classic multiplayer add-on for Valve's Half-Life. Thanks RL. Also, Gamers Extreme's TFC Guide is up, also offering help with Team Fortress Classic tactics and strategy.

Loki's Missions have released The Xeno Project, offering 15 maps and some custom sounds for single-player Half-Life (also on the site is a preview of an upcoming Quake II project called "Escape"). Also, The Scientist Killing Club's very-mini Half-Life mod is out. No word on what it involves, except that it does feature scientist killing, which makes the SKC happy.

Act Three Screen Shot 12 is Blizzard's 13th weekly Diablo II screenshot showing the Barbarian surrounded by Imps and the brand new Bleeders (described as a particular nasty breed of mosquito). Planet RIVA has posted a bunch of D2 shots, as well, but I'm not sure they are new. Meanwhile, Gamers' Crypt's Sanity screenshots offers four new shots from Monolith's upcoming LithTech-engine action/RPG in the Diablo vein.

A couple of Q3A competitions getting underway. Remember, please no wagering:

• European Quake 3 Arena Con is getting organized, with sign-ups underway for this get-together in Belgium for European Q3A fans which will include a tournament.
• Quake3 Listie Tourney Homepage has the skinny on this online Q3ATest competition.
• Multiplayer United Sydney LAN Gamers is opening up registration tomorrow at midnight for this Australian event (last year the 160 available slots were snapped up in about 10 hours).
• Beta Bites' "Why I Got Pimped in the Rogue Spear Beta Contest" offers six CDs of Rogue Spear when it's released.

Three AvP reviews and a pair on the Phantom Menace game:

• Three Aliens versus Predator reviews: Diversions of Technology reviews AvP, the Line-up reviews AvP, and GamesMania reviews Aliens vs Predator, as well.
• A pair of these, too: FullOn3D Games reviews Star Wars Episode 1 Phantom Menace, and NeoNews's TPM review is up as well.
• Gamezilla reviews Starsiege TRIBES (thanks Frans at 3D Action Gamers).
• Thresh's FiringSquad Viper V770 Ultra review looks at this TNT2-Ultra-based offering.

• Exscape's Five Days of id - Quake II finished off this retrospective with a look at id's most recent shipping product, Quake II, also their Doom/Doom II retrospective has been updated with reader-submitted corrections...
• Strange Company has released version 1.0 of StrangeSaver, their screensaver that plays Quake, Quake II, or Half-Life demos when your machine is napping...
• The Actor's Guild has posted their second model pack for Action Quake 2...
• Censors Struggle To Master Computer Games is an odd note coming out of the new attempts to censor violent games in New Zealand. Thanks enkafan...
• BT Internet is offering untimed Internet access for UK customers via an 0800 number (thanks Blackbadger). Meanwhile, a thread called EX-TREME BULL on PlanetCrap suggests there is more to a similar sounding offer from a different firm than meets the eye (the original phrasing of this story was wrong, I'll mention that tomorrow for those who missed the amended story)...
• On a related note to the above, The Campaign for Unmetered Telecommunications is still holding an Internet strike for concerned Europeans, the site has all the details...

June is here, marking the other season here in NYC, the groundhog saw his shadow this year, so spring was one hour instead of two, and now it's summer. For the record, Fall is scheduled for October 31 from 10-10:30 AM this year, to be followed by a traditional six month winter.

There's another one of those gaming news site polls up, I've gotten a few emails asking me to bust out the pimping stick to flood the ballot box, but as previously noted here, the cheating and other unethical behavior associated with the last go 'round on one of these polls, lead me to decide not to play along any more, since that takes the fun out of something that's supposed to be just that.