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Archived News:
Blizzard Entertainment announces the
beginning of the World of Warcraft Open Beta (thanks Ant), though the
World of Community Website seems
to have crumpled under the stress of the news. Word is that: "An initial run of
open beta accounts is now available from
FilePlanet"
(not limited to paid subscribed like the stress test), the wording suggesting
accounts will be available elsewhere eventually. Here's a bit on the beta: "In
preparation for the launch of World of Warcraft, we are now introducing the most
complete version of the game, including a new patch with extensive content,
including racial traits, raids, Hunter and Paladin talents, new quests for
high-end zones, and much more." Update: The client is now also available
on WorldofWarcraft.com and
mirrored on Gamer's Hell.
Warren
Spector exits Eidos on GameSpot (thanks Frans) has word that the famed
designer has parted ways with ION/Eidos. They quote a spokesperson as saying:
"Eidos announces that Warren Spector has relinquished his role as Studio
Director at Ion Storm. Warren has chosen to pursue personal interests outside
the company, but he will continue to work for Eidos as an IP consultant. His
insight and expertise is highly valued by Eidos, and the company looks forward
to continuing its relationship with Warren in his new role." The story goes on
to speculate that Warren's consulting with Eidos may be on the next Tomb Raider
game and repeat rumors of a possible move to Midway. In another developer
departure,
Fred Nilsson's .plan File announces the animator is leaving id Software to
return to the movie industry.
EA sends word that Need for Speed Underground 2 is gold, and the cross-platform
illegal racing sequel will cruise into stores on November 15: This is a
quick note to let you know that Need for Speed Underground 2 under the EA GAMES
brand has gone gold for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube and PC. The title will
ship to retail outlets nationwide on Monday, November 15th.
The sequel to the best-selling EA console game of all time (the original Need
for Speed Underground has sold more than 8 million copies worldwide), Need for
Speed Underground 2 challenges gamers to uncover the tuner underground in a
massive free-roaming city spanning five distinct, interconnected neighborhoods
and more than 125 miles of race-ready asphalt.
Featuring dozens of the hottest tuner cars on the market, thousands of
aftermarket upgrades and deep under-the-hood performance customization options,
Need for Speed Underground 2 gives games a blank canvas for total automotive
self-expression.
The game also includes online play for the PS2, Xbox Live and PC, which rounds
out an insanely deep single player experience, featuring more than 150 unique
events and starring gorgeous, world-famous adrenaline junkie Brooke
Burke.
Destineer subsidiary Bold Games announces that
Wings Over Vietnam has deployed, and that Third Wires combat flight
simulator is now available in the U.S.: In Wings Over Vietnam, players fly
campaigns through some of the most highly defended areas of North Vietnam. With
over twelve aircraft to choose from - such as the awesome F4 Phantom or the
F-105D Thunderchief, players will launch day and night operations from Kitty
Hawk or Essex Class aircraft carriers and attempt to slip through menacing
MiG’s, SAM’s and Triple-A against overwhelming odds.
Wings Over Vietnam contains some of the most heart-pounding, authentic missions
available in a flight simulator. Novice or experienced sim pilots can test their
marksmanship on historical power plants, bridges, airbases and naval facilities
of the Viet Cong. Those who live long enough will win decorations, awards and
promotions with each successful mission. These are just a few of the thrills
you’ll experience as a U.S. Air Force, Marine or Navy pilot.
Polish developer People can Fly announces the completion of development on
Painkiller: Battle Out of
Hell, saying the first expansion for their first-person shooter will be
available in the U.S. this week and in Europe shortly thereafter: Paris,
France - November 8, 2004 - DreamCatcher Games today announced Painkiller:
Battle Out Of Hell has reached gold status. The Expansion Pack for the
award-winning Windows® FPS, Painkiller, will begin shipping to North American
retailers on November 11th and will begin releasing across Europe on November
24th.
Picking up where the game's story left off, Painkiller: Battle Out Of Hell
offers multiple features to extend enjoyment of this spectacular shooter. Using
code from the 1.5 update, the Expansion Pack includes an additional
single-player chapter with 10 levels, as well as new multiplayer modes, maps and
models. It will also offer an amplified arsenal of un-deadly weapons, bigger and
badder bosses and the map editor Software Development Kit.
"Painkiller fans are going to be very happy with Battle Out Of Hell," said
Richard Wah Kan, DreamCatcher's CEO and President. "The levels are bigger, the
gameplay is more intense, and if you can believe it, the monsters are even more
terrifying."
A shooter in its purest form, Painkiller boasts truly inspired graphics and some
of the most intimidating level bosses ever seen. Utilizing the Havok 2.0 physics
engine, the game continues to achieve new heights of physics-based game play
while the latest version of the "PAIN Engine" cranks out an unbelievably high
polygon count, and exciting new features like heat and haze distortion, light
blooms, spectacular pixel mapping, new shader effects, tweaks for the latest
video cards and an improved networking core.
The Official Cross Racing Championship
Website now features downloads of a playable demo from Invictus' upcoming
rally racing game. The demo is a 91 MB download, described by the developer
thusly: "The Demo offers three quick race game modes, a time trial mode, two
game tracks and two cars with wide variety of tuning options, from the eagerly
anticipated racer."
The World of Warcraft Community Site
has details on a new patch for the beta of World of Warcraft,
these
release notes outline what's new and different in the game following the update.
Sony Online Entertainment sends word that EverQuest II is launching today, as
planned: SAN DIEGO, CA – November 8, 2004 – Sony Online Entertainment
Inc. (SOE), a worldwide leader in massively multiplayer online (MMO) gaming,
today announced that EverQuest II has shipped to North American retail stores.
EverQuest II is the highly-anticipated follow-up to Sony Online Entertainment’s
EverQuest, the most successful and longest-running 3D MMO role-playing game in
North America. More than 100,000 people have already pre-ordered EverQuest II in
hopes of being among the first to experience this massive gaming phenomenon. The
CD and DVD versions of the game carry an SRP of $49.99 and include the game, an
in-game item and an exclusive in-box item. Limited quantities of the EverQuest
II Collector’s Edition (DVD) are available at an SRP of $89.99.
“Today is a proud day as we open our new online world to people around the
globe,” said John Smedley, president, Sony Online Entertainment. “Over the past
five years, we’ve worked hard to ensure EverQuest II is fun, and meaningful to
our players. We’ve spared no expense and we’re confident players will agree that
EverQuest II is an amazing interactive online gaming experience.”
- PoP: Warrior Within
The
Prince of Persia
Warrior Within Q&A on ToTheGame chats with some unnamed Ubisoft
representative about the upcoming installment in the PoP series: "Well,
Warrior Within is not this kind of sequel were we put all the stuff we could
not put in the first one. Actually, Prince of Persia – The Sands of Time was
a very complete game and it contains all the features we wanted to have in
it. The idea behind Warrior Within is that we wanted to give players a
fresh, brand new experience and not just more of the same. Of course, the
game is based on the same core technical and gameplay qualities, but there
is really few ‘old’ ideas brought out the closet."
- Survivor
The
Survivor Q&A
on Fappin talks with Claus Wohlgemuth of Replay Studios about
Survivor, the upcoming
game that allows the player to try to escape the clutches of some of
history's most terrible disasters: "We’re avoiding exaggerated theatrical
effects as well as false glorifications of heroism, like it is shown in some
Hollywood disaster movies. The focus is set straight on realism. The player
should not just escape falling debris or run around to watch the events from
different viewpoints. We want to offer a rich, intense gameplay with a
maximum of player freedom and many different mission targets on the way."
- Derelict
A
Chat With Mark Fassett Of Laughing Dragon Games on DIY Games discusses
Derelict, their
shooter described as Gauntlet in space: "It doesn't bother me at all.
Gauntlet is a classic. The original idea for Derelict came out of Gauntlet,
as there weren't any good games of that type that I could find available for
the PC. Of course, if you don't like the Gauntlet gameplay style, I guess
it's probably not a good thing, but you can't please everybody."
The Majorem Website (thanks Frans) has a confirmation that development on
Ballerium is suspended, confirming indications that the upcoming MMORTS was in
jeopardy ( story). Here's the deal: Having no viable
alternative and following the collapse of Majorem's only client, development is
immediately suspended.
The technology, demonstrated successfully with Ballerium will now be offered
as-is for whomever is interested in making an offer.
The UFO: Aftershock
Website has been upgraded to a full website from a teaser site. There's
little else there other than a
Frequently Asked
Questions section. Thanks Frans.
There's an EverQuest II spoiler database on
Everquest 2 OGaming, offering MMORPG guidance in a searchable database.
I'm settling in working on what is now my work computer... I was finally able to
get my Outlook up to date by brute force copying of my old data files into the
proper locations for the new install... seems to work great, except I can't
access my address book, which seems to be a permissions issue.
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