Archived News:
Computer Artworks has released a playable demo of their tactical genohunting action game Evolva on the official German Evolva site ( Flash required). The demo, which is multi-lingual and not just in German, is available on the download page (no Flash) in two flavors: one 30.3 MB regular demo without cinematics ("allerdings wurde sämtliche Movies herausgenommen"), and another 120.9 MB version that includes various cinematics ("hier sind Movies integriert"). Thanks 3DFiles, who has a mirror here.
GA-RPG interviews Niklas Weidel
about Archaean, a "massively
multiplayer online RPG in progress that they refer to as a second generation MMORPG.
According to the article, Archaean aspires to add a TLA called MOW, which stands
for Massive Online World, and the Q&A looks to uncover what this all means.
The intriguingly-titled chUmbaLum sOft
page (pAgE?) has a new version 1.2.0 of the MilkShape3D modeling program.
The new release offers full Quake III Arena .md3 export, while support for
importing the .md3 format is still in the works.
The release of the first episode of the Dawn of Darkness
TC for Quake II is now available, a free public release that is a
continuation of a project that was originally intended for commercial release.
There's not much news with the release, but according to the
about page, DoD offers "Seven versatile new weapons, four powerups,
more than 12 all new enemies, and unrelenting combat that's in your face and
up-close!" Thanks Linny Amore.
A new version 1.2 of T.E.C. for Quake III Arena
is now available fixing some bugs, including the one that could cause all the
techs to spawn on the same spot, and adds a few new features like a new hook,
team colored grapple trail, and more (thanks The Oxygen Tank).
The new version also includes some changes intended to make gameplay smoother.
The page also has an update about a bug that effects running mods under Quake
III Arena: There is a bug with id's code that causes a double startup
when running mods. It not only affects T.E.C., but other mods as well. There is
a way to get around this annoyance by creating a shortcut (Windows only) to the
game which has fs_game already set to tec. This problem can be annoying but
isn't going to cause you any problems with playing the game. We'll release
something that you can use to launch T.E.C. with the next patch.
The first public release of the Loaded Q3A
mod is now available. Loaded offers a load of new features and over 115(!)
new configuration commands. All of the mods features can be individually toggled
on and off, among the options offered are an enhanced message of the day, an
advanced high scoring system, respawn protection, "absolute" item
banning and replacement, and more.
A post on DiabloII.Net has some
commentary on the RPG Gamer
Diablo II beta story mentioned earlier ( story)
saying that its reference to this being an open beta is incorrect, and they have
some doubts about some release date speculation they've seen, as well, saying:
"If you're puzzled, it is indeed the Closed Beta Test that is being
finalized, rather than the Open Beta Test that is mistakenly cited in the
article. And we must comment that rumours of a summer/early fall release date
are definitely not confirmed by Blizzard at this point." Some of this seems
to be semantics, since the earlier report refers to sign-ups for the open beta,
which on some level is contradictory. Thanks The Oxygen Tank.
Work on an official Quake III Arena mission pack from id Software is underway,
this having been revealed at the Game Developer's Conference. There are a
few shots in GameSpy.com's GDC Coverage
showing off models created by id's Paul Steed for the pack. The shots aren't
actual screenshots, but are photos of a monitor displaying the images, though
the quality is not bad.
The Mortyr Website
has posted some new images calling them "three fresh screenshots coming
from our latest project." There are no more details on what game the shots
are from, though it has previously been announced that the Mortyr engine will
power an upcoming first-person shooter titled Warhammer 40,000: Agents of Death
based on the Warhammer 40,000 franchise.
There are two new Soldier of Fortune screenshots on SOFNews.com,
saying "These things are like Chicklets(TM) you just can't have enough SoF
Screenshots." While I won't argue with the latter, I'm guessing it's
actually not that hard to have too many Chicklets.
A report called Diablo II Beta News
on RPG Gamer gives word of an announcement out of the Game Developer's
Conference that an open beta of Blizzard's highly-anticipated Diablo II is
nearing completion, and to watch their site
for information on how to sign up for the open beta, which should appear within
the next few days. Thanks GreasyPete.
Pandemic
Discusses Dark Reign 2: Part 1 on The Adrenaline Vault with a look ahead at
the sequel to Dark Reign, Pandemic's RTS offering. The article talks with Greg
Borrud, a director at Pandemic, about progress on the game, and offers up
several screenshots to show off the 3D effects of its new engine.
There's a Force
Commander Preview on Games Domain Review talking with Garry Gaber of
LucasArts about this Star Wars RTS that is due in stores March 20. The Q&A
gives a rundown on gameplay, and features some screenshots.
Hentai, who says "I coulda SWORN I'd stomped out all the bugs...," was
obviously mistaken, as he sends word of a new version 2.3.6 of the Viz mod for
Quake III Arena on the El Niño Quake Extensions
page, hot on the heels of version 2.3.5 ( story).
The new release fixes behavior of how your weapon appears from your point of
view.
Another rapid-fire new release comes from Alfred's Page
where there's a new version 0.67 of the Admin Mod for Half-Life, which comes
quite soon after the release of version 0.65 ( story).
The Admin Mod allows limited administrator access to selected players on a
server, without giving them access to that dangerous console. The new version
adds a new "admin_help" command, as well as a new WIN32 version.
Making Animation Child's Play
on Wired looks at the art of making motion pictures using game engines, also
known as Machinima by the strange folks
at Strange Company, who are a
primary focus of the article, dedicated as they are to making movies using
Unreal and Quake. Speaking of game movies, Unreal Movie Studio News
has a new version of Unreal Movie Studio that supports Wheel of Time for making
game movies, as well as Unreal and UT.
The Synergetics Entertainment website
has a new public beta 2 of the DarkEdit level editor for Quake I & II, Hexen
I & II, which also offers limited Half-Life support. DarkEdit is based on the
BSP level editor, developed by Yahn Bernier, who is now developing tools and such for
Valve Software. The new version offers improved reliability, improved
performance, and full support of the Genesis3D engine version 1.0 and 1.1.
Support for Heretic II, Sin, and other Quake-engine games is in the works. Also,
Cambone's Crypt has a new
alpha version 0.85 of the Unreal Script Editor that adds a few nuances, like
auto-indent and smart-tabbing, and fixes a few bugs. Finally, a new coding
tutorial on Quake3mods.net
shows how to add your own menu commands to the Q3A UI.
Playing games with ‘box specs’
on MSNBC points out that on occasion, what the box can tell you about a
game's minimum system requirements can be an outright lie, saying: "One of
the most agonizing torments in computer gaming is to tear the shrink wrap off
the title you’ve been drooling about for months, do the monster install and
find that the game runs like a slide show — or, worse yet, not at all."
Thanks Conan Ford and Hanson.
Well it was two down and one to go until yesterday, when Frans' cable modem went
belly up last night leaving all three of us off line from our digital connections. Whee!
Fortunately, even as I type these words, he's popped back online, which is good
news indeed, as this is certainly a misery that needs no company. Now loony and
I can look forward to the resumption of regular business hours tomorrow, when
the folks looking into the problems with both of our ISDN lines can resume
shrugging their shoulders and scratching their heads (among other body parts).
Link of the Day: Target1,
which allows you to play Quake III Arena using Flash, although you must follow
the strict newbie method of not moving. Thanks Ant
and Ryan Stotts.
Story of the Day: Iranians buy Soviet 'killer' dolphins
(London Times). Ripped right from the pages of Day of the Dolphin.
"Ma love pa!" Thanks Dr. Will Vuong and the Rogue Spear Retreat.
A new beta 17 of Qtracker 2.3 is now available on the Qtracker Homepage.
In addition to its original use as a game server browser, Qtracker also serves
as a server launcher, a streaming .mp3 browser, and an HTML server list
generator for Windows 95/98/NT/2000. Here is the description of the new release
from the page: "This is a maintenance release which fixes several bugs,
including a large memory leak which was introduced in Beta 16. New to this
release are Half-Life (and any half-life mod) remote server administration, 3
server full sounds provided by Sanctum6, and ICMP trace route
functionality."
TeleFragged
interviews Doug Avery of BioWare about Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn,
their upcoming sequel to their AD&D role-playing game. The Q&A gives
background on the game, and offers an ETA of third quarter this year for its
release.
The Legend Entertainment Website has
been updated with a new shot of a model of a Skaarj warrior from Unreal II to
whet appetites for the official GT Unreal II website which, according to the
accompanying blurb, will open this summer. Thanks Unreal Universe.
Actiontrip previews RUNE
looking ahead at the Unreal-engine Viking game in the works at Human Head
Studios. The article offers quotes from Ted Halsted, a level designer and
concept artist at Human Head.
WarCentral.com
interviews Kenn Hoekstra talking with the project manager on Soldier of
Fortune, Raven Software's upcoming Quake II-engine mercenary shooter about
progress on the game, talking about the possibilities of a sequel, multiplayer
options, and more.
The El Niño Quake Extensions page
has a new version 2.3.5 of the Viz mod for Quake III Arena, following what
author Hentai describes as a "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" theme, offering
enhanced server-browsing, a new UI, and "a bunch of new uses for old id
models."
A new beta 2 build 454 patch for the Quake 3 System Management Server
is now available, updating this replacement console for Quake III Arena
dedicated servers. The new version kills off a couple of bugs, adds a new GUI,
new local stats support, and more.
Though not yet available on the PQ
version of ShellShock's Crater, the old, unassimilated ShellShock's Crater
has a new version 00.03.11.00 of Q3Offline, the program that allows you to play
single player Quake III Arena matches against user-created bots. The new version
primarily offers bug fixes.
Alfred's Page has a new
version 0.65 of the Admin Mod for Half-Life, which allows server operators to
give others administrative access to their server without allowing access to
rcon. The new version fixes "numerous crash issues," adds "admin_vote_map"
and "admin_vote_kick" commands, and is now Counter-Strike beta 6.0
compatible.
A new beta 0.5 of the Counter-Strike Alias Binder
is now available, which is required to create binds for the new beta 6.0 of
Counter-Strike for Half-Life. The new version also offers a new interface, with
a visual representation of keyboard.
There's a GDC First Look at PS2 Unreal Tournament
on ps2.ign.com giving first impressions from seeing a demonstration of a
version of Unreal Tournament running on a PlayStation2 at the Game Developer's
Conference. On the subject of the PSX2, 20
Questions About The PS2 on The Mushroom's Legit Section gives hands-on
impressions of a Japanese version of the system.
A second part of ShugaShack's
Q&A with George Broussard is online, peppering the part-owner of 3D
Realms with 10 more questions about 3DR's upcoming Duke Nukem Forever. These
second-string questions and follow-ups include 'leet intellectual ditties like:
"will duke4 EVER COME OUT?," and the soon to be set to music: "Will
Duke4 be 3dfx's Bi@tch!?"
Newly opened HaloPlayers.com has posted a new screenshot of, you guessed it, Halo, the impressive looking 3D action game from Bungie. The image shows off the sniper rifle. Thanks halo.bungie.org.
An update to the official American McGee's Alice site brings a description and a concept image of a new enemy character, the Boojum, which apparently will not be hostile unless provoked.
Daily Radar has posted an interview with Jamie McNeely, producer at Strategy First on their upcoming space-based RTS, entitled O.R.B. The discussion covers the story, gameplay and mission structure, the inevitable comparison to Homeworld, and more. Here is how Jamie McNeely describes the game himself:
O.R.B is a real-time 3D strategy game in space with full 3D movement in all directions so
you can control fleets of ships in battle against each other. The O.R.B is the Offworld Resource Base, which plays an important part in the game. You need to collect
resources from the asteroid belt to build your fleet and upgrade your fleet as well. Get the resources and half the battle is won...
If you're participating in the Star Trek: Armada multiplayer beta test, you'll want to get hold of the final beta patch. You can apply this version 0.6 patch only if you're already patched up to version 0.5.
CamelotVault, a site covering Dark Age of Camelot, has posted a new screenshot of this upcoming massively multiplayer online role-playing game (or MMORPG for short) from Mythic Entertainment, which is being developed with the NetImmerse 3D engine.
CombatWorld has posted part two of a Q&A with NovaLogic, in which the company addresses common support questions from DF2 players regarding their tactical first-person shooter (thanks SpecForce). Part one is also still available, and there's a promise of even more in the future.
There's an interview on Shadowbane online at VR Magazine, discussing this upcoming MMORPG from Wolfpack Studios, which aims to bring more tactical, social and political interaction between players than previous offerings. The article is illustrated by a bunch of screenshots and concept art.
GameSpot has posted another
one of their Vampire Character features. This week's installment focuses
on Wilhem Streicher, and there are five screenshots of him, and two MP3 files
with dialogue clips.
If you're having trouble downloading Counter-Strike Beta 6 which was released last night ( story), here's a list of
mirrors that should help you out:
The Wheel of Time Movie Studio
has been released, and is available for download at
Machinima.com. The WoT Movie Studio is essentially a Wheel of Time port
of the Unreal Tournament Movie Studio, and allows you to create in-game movies
using a director-style layout.
Origin has updated their official Ultima Online
2 site with new questions in their FAQ, part one of their "Meer Serial
legend" and new comments from the development team about the game (thanks
Voodoo Extreme).
Version 0.03 of the Oni Bot for Quake
III Arena is available for download at
its official site. It's still an early release, but the bot now recognizes most
of the items in the game, and the author says, "deathmatching with 4 or
more bots in small arena-type maps is starting to become more fun."
LucasArts' official
Force Commander site has posted the second part of their "Officer's
Training Guide" (a beginner's strategy guide) for this soon-to-be-released
3D strategy game (thanks Force Commander
Outpost).
Sick of the X-Box yet? Don't worry, there are only 18 more months until its
tentative release date! Here's the roundup of today's X-Box stories:
- PC.IGN has posted their detailed
write-up of Bill Gates' keynote address from GDC, as well as an
interview with Microsoft's Kevin Bachus, Director of Third Party Relations,
and Donald Coyner, Director of Marketing.
- The biggest news yesterday (besides the official announcement, of course)
is that the processor will be manufactured by Intel, and not by AMD (as many
people were expecting). ZDNet
has an article up examining how Intel beat out AMD for this key role in
the X-Box' rollout.
- ZDNet also has a
report from GDC up, where they quote Bill Gates as saying the X-Box is,
"three generations beyond the graphics that PCs are capable of today."
- Well-Rounded News has posted screenshots
from the "giant robot" X-Box demonstration movie, for those
of you who haven't seen it in motion.
- How four
renegades persuaded Microsoft to make a game machine is the name of an
article at MSNBC's site that covers the announcement, but also features a
close-up shot of the demonstration hardware and controller that were on-stage
with Gates (thanks Wipeout).
- Daily Radar has posted their
impressions of the system, which are remarkably levelheaded and coherent
(they don't fall for the hype, instead focusing on facts).
A new edition of PC.IGN's Baldur's
Gate II Journal has been posted, featuring BioWare writer/designer Lukas
Kristjanson discussing his day-to-day tasks working on Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn, including
how he implements a "satisfying" plot into the game.
A whopping 18
new screenshots from Shogun: Total War, a real-time strategy game that lets
you control an enormous 16th Century Japanese army, have been posted at AVault. The shots show
off the truly massive playing field, with hundreds of combatants on-screen.
Everlore, an EverQuest fan site, has posted footage
from the upcoming Ruins of Kunark expansion pack for EverQuest, which was
taken at the Saint Louis Everquest Gathering II LAN party. The files are available
in either Quicktime or AVI formats, and there are quite a few of them.
New screenshots and information
from Icewind Dale, the upcoming RPG from Black Isle (the same people who brought
you Planetscape: Torment) are up at PC.IGN. There are details about 4 of the spells
in the game, as well as word that there are a total of over 180 spells to be
learned.
- The PC Gamer Championships
web site is live, featuring info about this upcoming Unreal Tournament LAN
tournament with £5,000 in prizes at stake.
- Gib-O-Rama is the name
of an upcoming LAN party/tournament in Houston, Texas, where you can win a
Razer Boomslang mouse or a Voodoo 3 3500 from amongst other prizes.
Well, at long last, Microsoft has made their X-Box announcement...and being
the huge fan of both PC and console games that I am, I'm certainly excited about
the prospect of a new system, although there really hasn't been anything shown
that has blown me away as of yet. The demonstration movies certainly were impressive,
no question about it, but they were pre-rendered, "using the specifications
of the system" (according to this
Q&A on PC.IGN, anyway). I'm not sure what that really means, but to
me, that big robot demo looked like an ad for Character Studio (I was waiting
for the dancing baby to come grooving in). Also, since Microsoft has literally
just decided on their final specs, there's no physical hardware yet. Once I
see an actual X-Box, even if it's just running a looped demo, I'll be totally
psyched to get my hands on one. Until then, I suppose we'll just be subjected
to the usual round of hardware sites pitting press releases against each other
("Dolphin vs. X-Box vs. Playstation 3! Which one should you buy?").
Link of the Day: Raising
Nancies. A bizarre fable for anyone that's ever owned Sea Monkeys - or wished
they did.
Story of the Day: Korean
Man Dies During Marathon Gaming Session (thanks Harold Ernst).
|
Twitter 
