Archived News:
The Linux downloads page on the official Counter-Strike site now offers the release of the dedicated Linux server for Counter-Strike version 1.3. There is a 30.7 MB upgrade from version 1.1 as well as a 85.8 MB full install so that server admins can update in time for tomorrow's client releases. (Story intentionally backdated by 30 minutes to maintain the site layout.)
- Armada II
Mad Doc Software has opened its Star Trek: Armada II product page which is illustrated with six new screenshots and a ditto number of ship images in their upcoming space-based strategy game.
- Myth III
There are eight new Myth III: the Wolf Age screenshots on Myth Wolf Age.com, offering new scenes in the 3D real-time strategy game in the works at Mumbo Jumbo Games.
- DarkSpace
Half a dozen new DarkSpace screenshots are online at the official site for the massively multiplayer space combat sim being beta tested at Palestar.
id Software designer Graeme Devine updated
his .plan with word of a new build b3 of the OS X Wolf client available for,
presumably once again "experts and desperate types," (and presumably
once again in his graemedevine iTools public folder), along with word that a
more public release may be on the way soon. Here's the skinny: Mac News
UPDATE:
my iTool folder is overloaded!!! Please download the build from:
ftp.idsoftware.com/idstuff/wolf/osx (ftp.cdrom.com mirror)
There's a new OS X build of WolfMP up (build b3). This fixes issues with dual
monitors and some ATI Rage cards. If it goes well I'll make up a full installer
and we can get everyone in on the fun.
My heartfelt thanks to everyone out there who downloaded and tested these
builds. The reports and encouragment have been excellent.
Not a single email asking for Classic support though. I thought that was
interesting (I'm sure they will flood in now).
There's a Team
Factor Interview on GameSpyDaily talking with 7FX project manager Pavel
Sinagl and Singularity Software in a Q&A that also features a brief cameo by
CEO Noel Hargrave. The Q&A covers several aspects of the upcoming teamplay
shooter, including bits about the character classes, the weapons, equipment,
skills, how the recent terrorist attacks will not impact the game, and more.
Eidos sent along a press release about the Commandos 2: Men of Courage movie we
posted news of last night, and included is word that the game should be
available at retail Thursday, saying: "If you need an immediate gameplay
fix, just head out to your local retailer on 9.20.01...Commandos 2: Men of
Courage PC is shipping today and will be present in force."
Anarchy Online Center's
Anarchy Online Interview talks with Anarchy Online lead designer Tommy
Strand. the topic at hand is the upcoming storyline that the game will follow,
describing how characters can have an increased chance of being included in the
"book" when it is written. There are also vague references to their
upcoming expansion pack, something they were not discussing in detail (the
interview seems to have been conducted in early August), as well as a bit about
some of the problems users of the game are/were encountering.
There's an Interview with Erik Johnson
on Speakeasy's Game Page talking with the project manager at Valve Software
about changes in the upcoming version 1.3 of Counter-Strike, due for release
tomorrow. The main thrust of the Q&A is how these changes will be received,
also touching on Valve's relationship with the CPL. Thanks Shacknews.
Fishtank Interactive Begins Second Stage of Beta Testing for Etherlords
is the press release announcing that a second phase of beta testing is underway
for Nival Interactive's upcoming turn-based strategy/RPG. Word is that this
round of testing includes over 100 players worldwide, and that a third, and
final, stage of beta testing will begin in a couple of weeks. Applications to
test the game are no longer be accepted, but the game is still on track for a
November release.
An update on HomeLan
has word from a Sierra PR representative saying the new levels in the No One
Lives Forever Game of the Year Edition announced below are "not the same
new levels that will appear in the upcoming Playstation 2 port" of NOLF,
and that the new levels "will also be available for download for owners of
the original game at their No One Lives Forever web site around the same time as the game ships in late September."
Chances are you've already received at least one email provoked by this worm,
but if you haven't, be warned: Major new worm poses serious threat worldwide
is the Infoworld article on the subject of a new Email worm called Nimda (admin
spelled backwards), that "can spread via e-mail attachments, HTTP, or
across shared hard disks inside networks." The article goes on to quote a
security expert calling the worm as like "a Swiss Army knife," saying:
" The worm can infect all 32-bit Windows systems -- Windows 98, 2000,
Millennium Edition, XP, NT -- because it scans systems for between 10 and 100
different vulnerabilities and exploits them when found." Thanks Jamie
Fullerton.
Sierra and Fox Interactive Announce The Operative No One Lives Forever Game of the Year Edition
has word on plans for a reissue of the LithTech powered spy shooter as one of
those Game of the Year editions. The GOTY version will include the original No
One Lives Forever along with an all new mission, new textures, a new model, a
bonus music CD, and the Prima strategy guide. Word is this release will be
available later this month at an MSRP of $29.95.
There's a Patrician II Preview
on Gamer's Pulse, featuring a hands-on look ahead at what they describe as a
"combination of a trade sim, a builder, and even some RTS elements"
set in and around northern Europe during the 1500s. Calling their incomplete
preview version "alarmingly addictive," they offer a feel for the
trading, sailing, and building that comprises Patrician II gameplay. Also
included are five new screenshots.
A report on HomeLan
indicates that Majestic, EA's conspiracy game, is back online after temporarily
suspending service last week. Word is the billing date for EA Platinum Service
subscribers will be adjusted forward to account for the downtime.
Polish developer Tannhauser Gate has released a new movie trailer of Mimesis Online, available for download from likewise Polish site Strefa. The movie requires a 13.0 MB download in DivX AVI format ( RAR compressed) and sports some two minutes of gameplay footage from this upcoming fantasy futuristic MMORPG. Be warned that the download server is very slow, but there's a mirror on FilePlanet (registration required).
There is a new video of Command & Conquer Renegade on Italian site Multiplayer.it, demonstrating the first- and third-person shooter that is in development at Westwood. The ShakyCam movie was captured at ECTS early this month, and offers some three minutes of action-packed gameplay footage for the price of a 15.8 MB download in DivX AVI format.
Graeme
Devine update his .plan, the id Software designer offering the latest news
on the wayward Mac version of the Wolfenstein Multiplayer test, which includes
word on how both "experts and desperate types" can snag a
"BLEEDING edge" copy of the client before the public release. Here's
the scoop: Mac stuff.
The OS X build is looking good. On my G4 dual 800 with a GeForce 3 card I get
90fps in game, while on my P3 dual 800 with a GeForce 3 I get 30fps on the same
settings.
I've been running it on my machine without problem, in game and out. However,
I'm using a developer build of 10.1 (5G48), and I've not tested across anything
else. I'll continue to do that tomorrow before putting out a general public
release.
Meanwhile, if you want to play the BLEEDING edge client, you can grab it from my
iTools public folder (graemedevine). You'll need to have downloaded and
installed a full PC build because this is just the app, so this limits the # of
you that can play it to experts and desperate types.. I've been updating the
build here for people to test on since I only have a few OS X machines here to
play with.
Please ONLY send bug reports on this build to me (zaphod@idsoftware.com) and try
to include a clear step by step way to replicate the error you have. Please also
include the OS X build you have running and what kind of video card you have
installed.
HomeLan's Deadly Dozen Interview
talks with nFUSION's Steve Ellis and
Jason Zisk about their work on this upcoming "budget price" first
person shooter where players control "a squad of Allied soldiers who
perform missions against the Axis forces in Europe and North Africa."
Topics include possible inspiration found in the similarly titled film The
Dirty Dozen, the storyline, the types of missions to be included, and more.
On a related note, the official Deadly Dozen
website has opened for business.
GameSpy.com Previews Project Nomads,
dusting off some of their notes from ECTS to recall what they saw of Radon Labs'
upcoming action/RTS game. Describing Project Nomads as "part of the new
wave of games coming from Europe that offer much more innovation than the plague
of clones we saw at the beginning of the year," the preview offers
impressions from some hands-on time with the game, describing the storyline, the
game's proprietary engine, and giving their impressions of gameplay. The preview
also includes quotes from developer Bernd Beyreuther.
GameSpy.com's
Etherlords Developer Diary Etherlords Volume 11 features lead programmer and
game designer Eugeny Ivanov and lead artist Oleg "Glazz" Glazounov
discussing the difficulties of creating automatic camera modes for Etherlords.
The diary goes into why Nival interactive felt the need to put an automatic
camera in their upcoming turn-based strategy/RPG, the unpleasant side effects of
the first attempt at an auto-cam, and the ultimate decision to use scripted
camera paths.
The Arx Fatalis Interview on Blue Monday
is the English-language version of their Q&A with Raphael Colantonio discussing progress on this upcoming RPG. The interview is also available in the site's native Spanish.
The Star Wars Galaxies Online
website has word of a chat on Thursday September 20 at 8:00 PM EDT at Sony's
Station.com. In attendance will be developers
Raph "Holocron" Koster, Haden "Shug Ninx" Blackman, Rich
"BoShek" Vogel and Kevin "Q-3PO" O'Hara "fielding your
questions on a variety of topics, including the soon to be released footage from
the E3 demo!" In another note, that E3 footage is slated to be released
sometime tomorrow afternoon.
- Yoinked
Link removed as this site was linking to leaked files.
An update to the Westlake Interactive
website has news that the Macintosh version of Age of Empires II, which
recently began beta testing, is now slated to include The Conquerors Expansion
pack, resulting in an Age of Empires II: Gold Edition for Macintosh, which
"will contain the same elements as its Windows counterpart and retail for
the same price."
EA Games Fits Bond ... James Bond Into the Palm of the Hand
with the announcement of the GBC version of The World is Not Enough. Speaking of
Bond, James Bond, GameSpot's
Agent Under Fire Q&A discusses this upcoming PS2 007 game with Jon
Horsley, Scott Blackwood, and Brad Gour. There are more GameCube launch
impressions on Cube.IGN.com
(spoiler alert) and GameSpot.
Pirates of Skull Cove Renamed
on FGN has word that the game's new title is "Pirates: Legend of Black
Kat."
Sony Online Entertainment Launches EverQuest Trilogy
announces EverQuest: Trilogy, an anthology that includes the original game and
two expansion packs, now available in stores everywhere for an MSRP of $39.99.
A public beta of GamersTV is now
available, offering the first release of the Quake III Arena-compatible version
of this "software which allows 1000s of people to watch Quake 3 matches
live."
There's a Linux Return To Castle Wolfenstein FAQ
offering tips from id Software on installing and running the Linux dedicated
server software for the Return to Castle Wolfenstein multiplayer test.
There's a
Western Quake III interview on Jolt.co.uk discussing the upcoming beta 2
release.
Version 2.02 of the Black and White Express Map Editor is available on Black & White Center.
NeverWinter Haven's
Neverwinter Nights Modeling Lesson 5 is now online. No Starch Press
is holding an SDL game programming contest.
If you had trouble accessing the site yesterday, or are trying to access
something in our archives using the Search! function, you are already aware that
we were experiencing what are known as technical difficulties. We were
experiencing huge load surges on the server, a problem we'd experienced in the
past, but not in some time. A couple of blammo functions have been disabled,
primarily the search and the archives, and this seems to have significantly
eased, if not out-and-out solved it, leading to both a resumption of a speedy
responsive website, and a bit of encouragement that a solution can be found,
since these are not the most heavily used scripted elements on the site. We'll
keep you posted on progress on this situation, but in the meantime, if you had
difficulty over the last couple of days accessing the messageboards, they are
once again ticking along nicely.
Wild Science: Intel chips nearly equal of ant's brain
(The Inquirer). Thanks Ant (who
else?).
Media of the Day: Rabbit
Pancake? Thanks EvilToast.
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