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Archived News:
Shacknews has a confirmation of plans for Supreme Commander ( story), an upcoming RTS game from Gas Powered Games. The article
is based on the cover story on the latest print issue of PC Gamer, where Chris
Taylor apparently calls the project the "spiritual successor" to Total
Annihilation, the rights to which still belong to Atari. The synopsis describes
a game with a new degree of scope and control from the namesake supreme
commander, with Taylor seeking to reinvigorate the genre with a reemphasis on
strategy.
This Battlefield 2 Community Update announces the availability of the retail
Win32 and Linux unranked servers for Battlefield 2 in preparation for the
imminent availability of the shooter sequel. The downloads are mirrored on
3D Gamers,
Battlefield2-News.de (Germany),
FileFront, Gameguru Mania,
Gamer's Hell, and
Worthplaying. The
update also includes word on vulgar usernames, plans to release the editor soon,
details on the Battlefield 2 launch party, and the following warning for server
operators: In anticipation of next week's launch of Battlefield 2 at
retail, we are releasing the Unranked server files for Win32 and Linux. Be
advised that, as with the demo, servers that are caught allowing users to play
with the unlock weapons using the python workaround will incur a one week ban
from the server list. While we encourage mod teams to discover cool things to do
with the python scripts, we reserve the right to de-list servers that find ways
to undermine the core features of the game using these tools. We will be sure to
update the community when we do begin punishing a tweak that falls into this
category.
If you are going to tweak the Python files and you are unsure whether you might
be doing something that DICE and EA would consider undermining a core game
feature, please feel free to send a note to
BFHQ@ea.com and ask for our feedback. We want to re-affirm that for the most
part anything goes on Unranked servers.
The Ritual Entertainment Website now offers
a redirect to this teaser page that
seems to be a countdown of some sort, as the page currently sports a ginormous
18. Proceeding through to the main
page reveals that the tribe is also launching a
playtester
program open to those 18 years or older in the Dallas, TX area willing to
come in and contribute opinions about their works-in-progress. Finally, on
another possibly related note, both
http://www.ritual.com/sin2/ and
http://www.sin2.com/ now redirect to
LegionPharma, a site that looks like a legit drug company, though
researching that trademark suggests this is fictitious, so this could be
some sort of viral marketing for a still-unannounced Sin sequel. Thanks Frans.
DC heroes enter online arms race reveals plans to announce an upcoming
MMORPG based on the world of DC Comics superheroes. Included in the story is a
confirmation of reports ( story) that The Matrix Online has been
sold off to Sony Online Entertainment, saying: "The companies also disclosed
that Sony Online had acquired Warner's 'The Matrix Online' game. All 25 staff
members currently operating the subscription-based massively multiplayer online
game have been offered their existing position under the new ownership." Here's
a bit on the new announcements: Sony Online already has demonstrated
expertise in this arena with such significant hits as the "EverQuest" franchise,
"PlanetSide" and "Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided." It also brings
economies of scale to operating these labor-intensive properties.
"By working with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, we will fuse the
knowledge SOE has in the online space with some of Warner Bros.' phenomenal
properties," Sony Online Entertainment president John Smedley said. "SOE will
work closely with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment to maintain the
authenticity consumers demand from the DC Comics franchises and the existing
'The Matrix Online' game."
Sega of America will continue to manage distribution of "The Matrix Online,"
while Warner will oversee content development and relinquish operational
involvement. Ubisoft withdrew from its involvement with the property in early
2004.
The Monster Madness Teaser Website
is online, heralding development of a new "4-player cooperative online-enabled
action game for the PC and Xbox 360" in the works at Artificial Studios and
Immersion Software. The site offers a screenshot and some concept art, and
here's a bit on the game, due in Q1 2006: 4-Player Cooperative Online
Action
Mix local & online players as you try to survive the Monster's invasion. Each
character has unique items and affects how the story plays out.
3D Top-Down Shooting
Aim in any direction, including up and down. Hordes of Monsters attack you from
all sides, but you can also utilize quick dodge-moves to avoid them!
Customize Your Weapons
Acquire Weapon Parts by defeating enemies and exploring your environments, and
then use these parts to Build better weapons and Upgrade the ones that you have.
Carry these customized Weapons between games, and find rare Weapon Parts at the
greater difficulty levels to build the Ultimate Weapons!
Drive Vehicles
Find abandoned Vehicles, outfit them with deadly weapons, and ride in them to
overpower your foot-bound foes.
Save the Town
Fight your way through 5 unique environments, such as "Suburban Nightmare",
"High School Hell", and "The Shopping Maul", each with deranged Boss Monsters.
Take back your turf from these evil fiends (and maybe impress your girlfiend
while you're at it)!
Advanced Physics
Monster Madness is designed specifically for the Ageia Physics platform,
including use of the PhysX PPU. Interact with the environments physics to give
yourself an advantage, such as creating barrides or throwing large
objects.
CIA Invests in Games on
1UP has word that the cloak-and-dagger gang is getting into gaming through
an investment in Destineer Studios (Close Combat: First to Fight) through a
company called In-Q-Tel, "a private venture group funded by the Central
Intelligence Agency (CIA)." The deal is apparently to develop training aids, and
word is: Estimates on the amount of tax payer money being invested in the
Destineer project are unknown. USA Today reports In-Q-Tell was formed in 1999
and receives $40 million to $45 million annually from the CIA. A typical
investment for the company reportedly ranges from $1 million to as much as $3
million.
The Outfront II E3 movie is now online, showing off Best Way's upcoming sequel
to Soldiers: Heroes of World War II. The download is available on
3D Gamers,
FileFront, and
Worthplaying.
Also, a new
X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse Trailer shows off the Nightcrawler
character from the upcoming X-Men game. There are also some
new Nightcrawler screenshots. Finally, an Antikiller E3 movie shows off Qbik
Interactive's movie-inspired third-person shooter. The clip is available on
3D Gamers and
FileFront.
A post to
BlizzPlanet outlines a number of changes planned for World of Warcraft,
Blizzard's MMORPG. Among the various changes are tweaks to the looting system to
make it fairer. On another WoW-related note, the
World of Warcraft Taiwan Website is
now live.
As noted on the Excalibur
Publishing Website (thanks Frans), Space Rangers 2 has shipped in the UK,
though since the original Space Rangers was only published in Russia, the game
will not carry a number in the title. To avoid avoiding confusion, the
U.K. package will include both games: Space Rangers will be published
on a PC-DVD as a two-game product and will include the original Space Rangers
title which sold in excess of 100,000 units in Russia and the former
USSR.
- Cold War
Gamecloud's
Cold War Q&A talks with Karel Papik of Mindware Studios about their
upcoming shooter set behind the Iron Curtain: "In the beginning, we were
considering several different ideas of which Cold War was one, and I must
confess it wasn't our favorite ;) We lived in Eastern Europe through the
communist era and so the setting was not that interesting to us; it’s here,
it always has been, so why would it be cool? However, the feedback to the
concept was really very positive and we understood that although the Cold
War was everyday life here, for others it was still very interesting. This
era has been covered repeatedly in many books, movies and TV programs, but
not really in games. And we also thought that people might be interested in
playing in real-world locations like Lenin's Tomb, the Kremlin or
Chernobyl."
- Puzzle Pirates
GamersInfo's
Yohoho! Puzzle Pirates Q&A Part 2 continues to converse about the
swashbuckling MMO puzzle game: "The supply chain between the shops is
actually being made more connected. One of the things introduced fairly
recently was paint for ships. And so to get a painted ship you need to get
paint. And the paint is made by the apothecary but that requires hemp oil
which comes for the distillery."
Electronic
Frontier Foundation (thanks Mike Martinez) outlines their perspective on the issues
at stake on Monday when an appeals court takes on the case of Blizzard versus
the creators of the BnetD Battle.Net emulator: St. Louis, MO - On Monday,
June 20, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments in Blizzard
v. BnetD, a case that could dramatically impact consumers' ability to customize
software and electronic devices and to obtain customized tools created by
others.
Along with co-counsel Paul Grewal of Day Casebeer, the Electronic Frontier
Foundation (EFF) is representing three open source software engineers who
reverse-engineered an aspect of Blizzard's Battlenet game server in order to
create a free software game server called BnetD that works with lawfully
purchased Blizzard games. The BnetD server lets gamers have a wider range of
options when playing online. The lower court held that the reverse-engineering
of the games needed to create this new option for consumers was illegal.
The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals will determine whether the three software
programmers were in violation of the anticircumvention provisions of the Digital
Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and Blizzard Games' end user license agreement
(EULA). EFF will argue that the DMCA expressly protects the programming and
distributing of programs such as BnetD and this protection cannot be undercut by
general state contract law as applied to EULAs.
EFF took the case to stand up for consumer choice in the marketplace. Reverse
engineering is often the only way to craft a new product that works with older
ones. Congress expressly recognized this when it created an exception to the
DMCA for reverse engineering. Whether it's allowing gamers to choose a better
server for Internet play, or allowing a printer owner to purchase from a range
of printer cartridge replacements, reverse engineering is a critical part of
innovation in a world where more and more devices need to talk to each other in
order to operate correctly.
A DOOM 3: Resurrection
of Evil Page is online, a home to id's DOOM 3 add-on. Also, a new
Ghost
Wars Product Page is online, though there isn't really anything new relating
to Digital Reality's upcoming RTS game. Thanks Frans.
As noted on
the Battlefield 2 Website, there are plans for a Battlefield 2 chat session
to discuss DICE's imminent military shooter sequel with producer Scott Evans.
The
GameSpy Arcade chat will take place at 7:00 p.m. EDT on Monday June 20. The
chat will also include a trivia contest in which five copies of the game will be
given out as prizes.
A new version 4.0 of the Qtracker server
browser (plus) is now available (thanks
Gameplay Monthly). The
Release Notes outline
the extensive changes in the new version.
The Multi Theft Auto San Andreas Website now
offers a new gameplay trailer from this upcoming GTA: San Andreas multiplayer
modification.
Intel Shuttle ESL Arena
Announced (thanks Mike Martinez) has word that: "The European Nations Championships
(ENC) will be played in the "Intel Shuttle ESL Arena," where the best European
egamers will compete with their national teams."
A new Army Ranger
Mogadishu Guide is online, a Adobe Acrobat handbook to Jarhead Games' imminent
military shooter. Also,
World of Warcraft @ TenTonHammer.com now offers a guide to the Shadowfang
Keep in Blizzard's MMORPG.
IGDA Offering
2005 GDCE Scholarship (thanks Mike Martinez) has word: "Winners will be able to
attend the Game Developers Conference Europe
(GDCE) including all the sessions, roundtables and keynotes. The GDCE will take
place in London, England from August 30 - September 1, 2005."
MrsBlue and I had a fine old time last night celebrating her birthday (she says
thanks for all the birthday wishes!). There's a new local seafood restaurant in
our area that she's been eager to check out, but there are all of about eight
small tables in there, and we'd heard that dining there inevitably entailed a
wait of 30 minutes or more. The ugly weather, however, played right into our
hands, as it kept enough other patrons at home that we were able to breeze right
in. The bad news is that my steak (I'm not a seafood guy) was terribly
overcooked, and I was spared the decision over whether to send it back since our
server never came back to ask how anything was. On the bright side, apparently
the seafood was up to the place's reputation, so the birthday girl had a fine
meal, which is the important thing.
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