FilePlanet (thanks Frans) announces they will be premiering the demo for Sword of the Stars on Tuesday, July 25. They provide a feature list for the full game, but there are no details at this time on what the demo will include.

A VN Boards forum Patch Update from Iron Lore outlines plans for the next patch for Titan Quest. The new version will incorporate several bug-fixes, as well as a logging system to track the causes of problems if the game crashes in the future. Thanks Voodoo Extreme.

The Salvo! Downloads Page (thanks Frans) now offers a new version 1.5 patch for SprueGames' recreation of old-style sailing ship combat. The patch addresses some bugs and other issues, and also adds new Hotseat and Play by Email multiplayer functions.

A Rainbow Six: Vegas Developer's Blog is online (thanks Frans), it actually apparently went live around the time of E3. The site includes tales from the frontlines in development of the next installment in the tactical shooter series. Included is a motion capture movie, showing off the creation of the game's animations.

The Bet on Soldier Downloads Page (thanks Frans) now offers a new movie showing off the Blood of Sahara add-on for Kylotonn's rambling, gambling first-person shooter. The clip shows off the game's support for the AGEIA PhysX PPU. Also, a new Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Dark Crusade movie shows off the Tau Krootox from Relic's upcoming RTS expansion, available on 3D Gamers.

• Activision
  Video Games Are Showing a Social Side on the New York Times (registration required) is a Q&A with Robert Kotick, chairman and CEO of Activision (thanks Neutronbeam): "Oh, this is one of my favorite misconceptions about the video game business. You know, you sometimes will hear criticisms that we’re too franchise-focused. Well, one of the things that actually allows you the flexibility of innovating with technology and game play is that you know the characters, you know the storyline, you know the story arcs, you know the universe that you’re going to be operating in. And having those basic parameters, that allows you then to focus on innovation. So if you look at like Ultimate Spider-Man, which was a game that we came out with last year on the Spider-Man franchise, it was a Spider-Man product and had the Spider-Man characters but a dramatically different experience than Spider-Man 2, the movie game, which was out the year prior."
• Hellgate: London
  The Hellgate: London Q&A on HellgateGuru talks with Ivan Sulic, Community Manager on Flagship's upcoming action/RPG: "I don't believe we have any sort of indicators that point out monsters before you actually see them. There're audio cues, of course, but I hardly think that's what you're wondering about. We also do not currently have any monster descriptions players can access before they see a monster."

• Civilization IV: Warlords on Apolyton Civilization Forums.
• Maelstrom on BFGeeks.dk.

• Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars on 3D Gamers.
• Sherlock Holmes: The Awaken on 3D Gamers.

Thanks Mike Martinez.

• Google-AFP case stumbles over tech glitches.
• NYU scientist finds they're making a 'reasonable' effort.

Thanks Mike Martinez.

• Memory chip threat to hard discs.
• AMD seen nearing $5.5 billion deal. A much more positive outlook on the rumors than last night's link. Thanks Veng3ance.
• Dell, HP Make U.S. Gov't List of 'Green' Computers.
• Toshiba's Survey Says: HD-DVD Will Win the Format War!
• On the horizon: an open graphics card.
• Dell Lowers Profit Forecast and Shares Fall Nearly 10% (registration required).
• Logitech's Profit Up 35% in Early 06.
• Linux Flash: Stoppage. Thanks Ant and Digg.
• Microsoft ready to do the robot.
• NVIDIA's PureVideo HD: HD-DVD Playback on the PC.
• AI Programs Grading Student Essays.

Thanks Mike Martinez.

• Microsoft official confident of Asian growth for Xbox 360 game console.
• Sega: Third-parties should shape up to Wii.
• Konami Announces Metal Gear Solid 3 Tournament.
• EA: PS3 Criticism Has Been Unfair And Irrelevant.

Thanks Mike Martinez.

• Microsoft confirms existence of Zune.
• Dell laptop overheating problems may have been downplayed.

Thanks Mike Martinez.

• Bush's German back rub magnified on Web.
• YouTube Revives Failed Sitcom Pilot.
• MySpace: The Young And The Vicious.

Thanks Mike Martinez.

• Microsoft defends WGA.

Vavoom version 1.21.1 is now available, updating the multiplatform game that merges DOOM, Heretic, Hexen (and "a little bit" of Quake). Word is: "This version fixes crash while building VIS data and crash in Hexen when traveling between maps." Also, The ZDoom Website now offers a new version 2.1.3 of this Win32 edition of DOOM. Apparently there were problems with the last patch, as the update kicks off saying: "Sorry about 2.1.2. Get 2.1.3 instead." Thanks Frans.

• Computer gamers compete for world championship.
• A battle for viewers - Professional video gamers are hoping for success on TV screens, too.
• Comic-Con 2006: Video games lure Comic fans.
• Thrones of Chaos Giveaway. "Enter the Thrones of Chaos giveaway contest for your chance to win several cool prizes and life time free access accounts when Thrones of Chaos launches!"
• Overclocker Cafe's NZXT Apollo Gaming Case Giveaway.
• FastLane Hardware Forums - Win a Hyper Kolor Case Window.

The news page on the framed Bugbear Entertainment Website has word on some job openings (thanks Frans). The listings all seem to be written in Finnish.

• More Games that Need Sequels on FiringSquad.
• JAPAN: Why The Big Head?
• How Can We Save Magical Story Hour? on The Armchair Empire.

• City Life on Gameplanet NZ.
• Darkstar One on Boomtown.net.
• Democracy on GamersInfo.net.
• Final Fantasy XI: Treasures of Aht Urhgan on IGN.
• Half-Life 2: Episode One on Out of Eight.
• Moscow to Berlin: Red Siege on GameDaily.
• Prey on GameShark and Gamepyre.
• Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends on The Entertainment Depot and BFGeeks.dk.
• Rush for Berlin on Worthplaying.
• Space Rangers 2: Rise of the Dominators on 2404.org.
• Titan Quest on Gameminion and BFGeeks.dk.
• X-Men: The Official Game on BytePress.
• Zoo Tycoon 2: African Adventure on GameDaily.

• Kingwin Supernova Micro ATX Case on PCApex.
• NZXT Precise 650W PSU on 3dGameMan.
• Ultra High-End PSU Shoot Out - Updated on ByteSizedReviews.
• XFX GeForce 7900 GT 550M Xtreme VIVO Video Card on Hot Hardware.
• Zalman CNPS8000 Low Profile CPU Cooler on ThinkComputers.org.
• Zboard Fang Gamepad on nV News.

• Steam News (thanks Frans) reports that X3: Reunion and X2: The Threat, the two most recent installments in Egosoft's space combat series, are now available via Steam…
• Atari Turns On The Ignition With 'GTR 2 – FIA GT Racing Game' …
• Blame video games for demise of U.S. sports. Thanks Mike Martinez…
• Entertainment Union Wants To Cover Video Game Workers …
• Voice Changer Software Designed by Gamers Specifically for Online Games. Thanks Mike Martinez…
• The Birth of PC Gaming. Thanks Mike Martinez…

I like games in general, so it's probably no surprise that I'm one of those kooks who actually enjoys watching poker tournaments on TV. This weekend there's a World Series of Poker 2005 marathon on ESPN Classic, and the only thing scarier than the fact that I'm interested in staying in on pleasant summer days to watch it is that I've actually seen most, if not all of it already.

R.I.P.: Emmy-winning actor Jack Warden dead at 85 and Creator of the Philly cheesesteak dies (yes, of heart failure).

All-in Links!	Thanks Mike Martinez and Ant.
Play:	Sneeek.
Stories:	Are Cyclists Destroying the Earth? Registration required. Catching the Same Fish Twice. For the richest guy in Margaritaville...
Science!:	Researchers Look for Signs of Telepathy. Fear of Snakes May Have Driven Pre-Human Evolution. Driven it off the plane? NASA’s Goals Delete Mention of Home Planet (registration required).
Media:	Bicycle Tricks. Wow! Triumph on the Hollywood Squares. William Shatner On Women & Love...listen up fellas.