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Archived News:
Steam News
offers details on the release of the Source Software Development
Kit (SDK) Tools via Steam, described as the precursor to the release of the full
SDK. Also,
Steam News also details preloads of more Half-Life 2 content. Here's the
deal on the SDK: Valve has released the Source Software Development Kit
(SDK) Tools via Steam. A precursor to the release of the full SDK, which will be
released shortly after Half-Life 2 is made available, the Source SDK Tools
release offers a comprehensive toolset for starting production on Source-based
MODs, including Hammer, XSI EXP for Half-Life 2, compiling tools, the Source
Model Viewer, documentation on programming, modeling, building materials, and
more. For more information, please visit
www.valve-erc.com/srcsdk/
A patch for Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War is now available, updating Relic's
real-time strategy game to version 1.1. In addition to bug fixes and balance
changes, the patch also adds five new multiplayer maps, and word from THQ is:
"There are two versions of the patch. The English patch works on English,
Traditional Chinese, Russian, and Polish versions of Dawn of War, and the
International version works for all other languages." One or both patches are
available on 3D Gamers,
FileFront, Gameguru Mania,
GameSpot DLX (registration required), and
Worthplaying.
NovaLogic
has released a new patch for Joint Operations: Typhoon Rising, updating their
multiplayer shooter to version 1.4.17. The 24 MB download is also available on
3D Gamers,
GameSpot DLX (registration required), and
Worthplaying.
A new Psychotoxic: Gateway to Hell movie is now available, showing off
the shooter that's still headed to other territories after its German release.
The movie is a 40 MB download, available on
3D Gamers,
Gamer's Hell, and
Worthplaying.
Also, a new The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-Earth movie is
now available in two resolutions, the eighth installment in the Inside the
Battle series features some multiplayer combat and features commentary from
executive producer Mark Skaggs. One or more editions of the movie can be found
on 3D Gamers,
Gamer's Hell, and
Worthplaying.
- Neverwinter Nights 2
The
Neverwinter Nights 2 Q&A on ActionTrip converses with Ferret Baudoin,
lead designer on Obsidian's upcoming D&D RPG sequel: "Dungeons and Dragons
has a wide variety of monsters that prowl on the unwary. Neverwinter Nights
2 will include a healthy smattering of all the players' favorites, plus some
more of the cult classics. Some monsters types are featured more prominently
in the story - including undead. Throughout the story ghouls, ghosts,
vampires, zombies and more will be popping up. So make sure those holy
symbols are polished and have a few vials of holy water handy."
- PoP: Warrior Within
The
Prince of
Persia: Warrior Within Q&A on Worthplaying hears from Jonathan Pilon,
audio designer on Ubi's upcoming PoP game: "The idea came at the beginning
of the game, while searching a new direction in term of music for the game,
one of Godsmack title was used as a reference in an action sequence. But
listening to what was only a reference, a lot people internally say: ‘that’s
exactly what we want for the final game’. So we contacted Godsmack, and they
knew us and were excited by the project. Eventually, 2 pieces from Godsmack
are used in the game, in game play situations."
- Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich
RPG
Vault's Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich Team Q&A #1 hits the
developers at Irrational up for their answers to a couple of group questions
about their upcoming superhero follow-up.
- Officers
The
Officers
Q&A on Gamer's Hell interrogates Nikolay Demchenko of Factory
Interactive about their WW2 RTS game: "Firstly, you don’t manipulate every
soldier individually. Instead, you control whole platoons, squads,
companies, etc. depending on your rank. The latter will grow depending on
your performance on the battlefield. Then there is the nonlinear storyline.
It allows the player to achieve objectives in different ways instead of
having to follow a pre-designed path. The game also boasts the dynamic
generation of objectives. To put it simple, losing a battle doesn’t end the
game for you. This is when the saying 'sometimes you have to loose a battle
in order to win the war' kicks in."
- Children of the Nile
The
Immortal
Cities: Children of the Nile Q&A on PlanetNile (thanks Frans) talks with
David Beebe, associate producer at Tilted Mill about their city construction
game: "The editor allows you a lot of leeway in creating scenarios. The
scenario designer gets to decide where the river will be, how much
floodplain for planting crops is available, how accessible resources will be
both on the city level and on the world level. The scenario designer can
pre-place buildings, and create scripted events. The designer can even
forbid the building of certain buildings, prevent some of the standard
events from occurring, and limit the scope of allowable gods. This is the
same editor, in every way, that we used to create the scenarios & campaign
that shipped with the game."
- Guild Wars
The
Guild Wars Q&A on GameSpot talks with Jeff Strain about ArenaNet's
upcoming MMORPG, coincidentally focusing on the
upcoming GameSpot-exclusive weekend test session.
- Rubies of Eventide
The
Rubies
of Eventide Q&A on GamerGod
talks with Julia Howe, project manager for Mnemosyne, about their free
MMORPG: "PvP on the public servers and semi-private RP servers is consentual
[sic] only. Meaning, when a player selects another player and chooses to PVP
them, the targeted player gets a chance to accept or decline the challenge.
Only on the proposed PVP server will this be the exception."
- EverQuest II
Cruel
Intentions - Christopher Lee Embraces Evil in EverQuest 2 on 1up is Q&A
with the actor about his participation as voice talent in the imminent
MMORPG sequel.
SOE sends words that the EverQuest II beta is getting set to wrap up tomorrow,
as the MMORPG sequel is set to roll out on Monday: On behalf of the
entire EverQuest II team, I want to thank everyone who has participated in our
beta test over the last several months on the English, French, and German
servers. Your feedback has been immeasurably valuable throughout the testing
process by helping us find bugs and polish our gameplay. EverQuest II wouldn't
be what it is today without your involvement.
We're very excited that EverQuest II will be launching on November 8. In
preparation for the release of the game, our beta test will be concluding Friday
night, November 5. At midnight PST, we will be shutting down the beta servers
and deleting all characters and items. Our official forums will be temporarily
closing at the same time so that we can restructure the boards and be ready for
a fresh start when the game goes live.
EverQuest II will begin shipping to retailers in the US on Monday, November 8,
with dozens of servers awaiting the arrival of thousands of players into a brand
new world. The European versions of EverQuest II will begin shipping across
Europe on November 11, with French and German language servers ready for play.
Update: Due to overwhelming demand, the EverQuest II Beta will be
extended for an additional 12 hours, until Saturday, November 6th at noon
PST
The release date has been updated to "Out Now" on the
FlatOut Website (thanks Frans, indicating the green flag has been waved for
BugBear's racing game today, just as promised when
the game went gold
( story). Here's a bit on the game: Developed by Bugbear
Entertainment, FlatOut is one of the most spectacular Racing games you'll ever
see! Experience the drive of your life as you throw yourself around 45
challenging tracks in one of 16 fully upgradeable cars.
The track environment is subject to the all-encompassing physics system that is
unique to FlatOut, and is set to define a new standard in racing games. Fences
will shatter, tyre walls will explode, water tanks and barrels will fly across
the track into other cars. Every time you lose control, you will truly feel the
weight of the car as it collides with and destroys a barn, or smashes into the
pack of cars ahead of you, and with 40 deformable pieces on every car sparks are
guaranteed to fly!
Anything you destroy or alter stays a part of the race, increasing the carnage
to unprecedented levels! Broken fences, free rolling tyres, and even mangled
parts of cars are left scattered around the track, increasing the mayhem with
every lap.
Digital Jesters announces that The
Moment of Silence has shipped to stores in the U.K. Here's the description
of House of Tales' mystery adventure: "The Moment of Silence follows Peter
Wright as he uncovers the mystery behind the sudden arrest and disappearance of
his neighbour and sinks into a conspiracy that is a lot deeper that anyone could
imagine."
The official FUEL Website has had an oil
change, and has been relaunched as the home to Firetoad's upcoming off-road
racing game (thanks Frans). The site includes 24 new screenshots of the game,
which is due on the PC this holiday season. Here's a bit: "FUEL's designers
ensured that they were simulating multiple vehicles, so much so that Fuel could
be released as three stand alone racing games. Whether you are taking mad air on
tricked out ATVs, or pulling off crazy water stunts on the PWC -- Fuel's
attention to detail will keep you wanting more all the way till the end."
Atari Reports Fiscal 2005
Second Quarter and Six-Month Financial Results (thanks Frans) offers Atari's
latest financials, including plans going forward. Curiously, or perhaps
tellingly, there is no mention at all of the PC version of DRIV3R, suggesting
the possibility that plans to release a port of the console wheelman game may
have gone off course.
A new "Dead City" movie from Painkiller: Battle Out of Hell is now
available, showing off the upcoming expansion for People Can Fly's first-person
shooter. The high-resolution clip shows off more than a minute of gameplay. The
5.5 MB clip is available on
3D Gamers,
4Players.de,
Filerush (torrent),
Gamer's Hell,
GenGamers,
and Worthplaying.
Also, a new Joint Operations: Escalation movie is now available, offering
a look at NovaLogic's now-gold shooter expansion in your choice of two
resolutions. One or both of the clips can be found on
3D Gamers,
GameSpot, and
Worthplaying. Meanwhile, new Sid Meier's Pirates! movie is now
available on this
FTP server, offering a look at the upcoming remake in your choice of five
languages. Finally, a new Terrorist Takedown movie is now available,
celebrating the completion of CITY Interactive's arcade counterterrorist
shooter, the 11 MB movie can be found on
3D Gamers and
Worthplaying.
- Pirates!
The
Sid Meier's Pirates! Q&A on Strategy Informer talks with unnamed
representative, who is now working for Firaxis, about their upcoming Prates!
remake: "Our goal has been to stay true to what people most love about the
original Pirates! while upgrading, enhancing, and in some cases,
re-inventing the game to make it a great experience for today’s gamers. With
the 3D engine we’ve created a gorgeous world full of interesting places to
visit and characters to meet. We’ve added new story elements and quests,
upgraded dueling, land battles and ship battles to give the player more
options and control, and added new action sequences like dancing and
sneaking in and out of towns."
- Horizons
A
Brighter Horizon on MM Hell is a Q&A with Artifact's David Bowman about
the future of Horizons: "Assuming court approval, there will be zero
downtime with any purchase. As to the future composition of the team that
supports Horizons in that case, Tulga Games has expressed an interest in
hiring the best possible team to support and grow Horizons. I know that the
entire team is interested in working with Tulga Games if that is what
occurs."
- Vendetta Online
The
Fab Four behind Vendetta on MM Hell is a Q&A with four principals of
Guild Software about their personal interests on the occasion of the release
of Vendetta Online.
A new Pirates of
the Burning Sea Development Update (thanks Mike) has a lengthy update about
Flying Lab Software's upcoming seafaring MMORPG, among other things, going into
detail about how much larger the game world is going to be than they originally
planned. Also, RPG
Vault's Action Peek - KumaWar Mission Briefing #11 offers analysis of the
latest mission in Kuma Reality's current events game, describing a "what if"
scenario attempting to capture Osama Bin Laden.
GMX Media announces plans
for Battle of Britain: Wings of Victory (thanks Frans), a new WWII air combat
game in the works at Shockwave Productions planned for release early next year,
not to be confused with the Battle of Britain game in the works at 1C Company
( story) though it does bear a relation to one of the many other
games that have carried that title: "Earlier this year, GMX Media acquired
rights to the former and critically acclaimed “Rowan’s Battle of Britain.”
Shockwave Productions is developing the new title, which is scheduled for
release in early 2005."
SEGA Europe announces a delay for the release of Immortal Cities: Children Of
The Nile in Europe, though it seems that the U.S. release of the upcoming city
construction game is still on track for next week, as this
EBgames listing
demonstrates. Here's word on the unusual decision to forego the lucrative
holiday sales season: SEGA® Europe Ltd, has announced a new release date
for Immortal Cities: Children Of The Nile™ for PC CD-Rom to provide greater
support and awareness for this remarkable, breakthrough title. In order to
maximise on market specifics the European language versions will launch January
28th, with the English language launch hot on their heels at February 4th. The
decision to move the release date was made by key marketing executives at SEGA
who feel Immortal Cities will greatly benefit by steering clear of this year's
cluttered holiday climate. The extra time will be used to build on a core fan
consumer base through extended Marketing and PR activities.
This was one of those late evening updates that became an early morning update,
thanks to what Stan Lee would call the Dreaded Deadline Doom. So, 90 minutes =
one day. Excelsior!
A couple of folks have written in to point out the Launch Links dealie was
busted... I actually busted out the JavaWrench and fixed some JavaScript myself,
in spite of being somewhat of a JavaMonkey. Should be working now, though who
knows what sort of JavaWreckage I've left behind...
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