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Archived News:
The Machinarium Website is home to an
upcoming adventure game from Amanita
Design, creators of the web-based
Samorost games
( story), though at this point the site consists of forums,
newsletter signups, and a couple of images which are, appearances to the
contrary, actual screenshots (thanks Ant and
Kotaku). According to
Rock, Paper, Shotgun Machinarium will have a feel similar to that of the
Samorost games, with no speech, 2D artwork, and another soundtrack by Tomáš
Dvorák, saying: "It will be a fully hand-drawn world, where everyone, including
you, is a robot, fighting against the Black Cap Brotherhood."
A new Tale of A Hero Website
serves as home to this "fantasy adventure with a fairy tale atmosphere,
spreading dialogues, original characters, elaborate puzzle design and subtle
ironic humor." Thanks Gamer's Hell.
Fonix
Supplies Voice Command For Tom Clancy's EndWar on Gamasutra reports that Tom
Clancy's EndWar will include support for voice commands. Word is the real-time
strategy title will include VoiceIn software from
Fonix Speech, which supports voice
commands for multiple platforms.
AMD/ATI announces plans to release new version 8.3 Catalyst reference drivers
for their graphics cards tomorrow, promising some new features, including
CrossFireX for Windows Vista, quad-GPU support, scalable three GPU support, and
ATI Hybrid Graphics Technology for casual gamers: Advancing Multi-GPU
Gaming with CrossFireX Through three- and four-GPU configurations in CrossFireX,
gamers can see multi-GPU performance scaling across a range of today's most
popular DirectXR 9 and DirectXR 10 games on Windows Vista -- up to 3.2 times the
performance over a single GPU2 in some scenarios. The flexible architecture of
CrossFireX allows for the mixing and matching of high-performing ATI RadeonT
GPUs. Any ATI RadeonT HD 3850, ATI RadeonT HD 3870 or ATI RadeonT HD 3870 X2
cards can be combined to harness the power of up to four GPUs. CrossFireX also
supports a wide range of platforms, enabling many gamers to take advantage of
three- and four-GPU gaming on their existing hardware.
Boosting Game Performance through ATI Hybrid CrossFire ATI Catalyst 8.3 also
introduces ATI Hybrid Graphics support for Windows Vista. An industry first that
is unique to AMD processor-based platforms, ATI Hybrid CrossFireT delivers a
significant 3D performance boost. Up to 70 percent increases in performance are
possible in some gaming scenarios3 based on PCs comprised of an AMD 780G
motherboard and ATI Radeon HD 3400 Series graphics product in Windows Vista. ATI
Hybrid Graphics also support up to four independent displays through the
SurroudViewT feature for those who want to maximize productivity.
Ubisoft's FTP
directory offers a new trailer from Rainbow Six Vegas 2, showing off
cooperative multiplayer support in the Tom Clancy-themed tactical shooter. The
clip is mirrored on
AtomicGamer,
FileFront, Gamer's Hell,
and
PixelRage. Also, a new behind-the-scenes trailer from Stronghold Crusader
Extreme highlights the extreme-ness of the upcoming Stronghold Crusader remake.
The clip is found on Gamer's
Hell.
The Official SAGA Website offers
downloads of the client for SAGA along with word that the MMORTS is officially
live: Welcome to the world's first collectible, real-time strategy game.
Also, the world's first truly persistent RTS. As of release we have expanded the
SAGA development team with the intent of providing full support and ongoing
development resources to continue to improve all aspects of SAGA. We are aware
that there is yet, much to be done and improved upon and we're excited for the
opportunities that affords us. Thanks for all your patience and support so far!
The future is indeed bright and we look forward to continuing our SAGA
experience together!
The servers are now LIVE!
The Associated Press is reporting the death of Gary Gygax, saying the
co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons passed away this morning at age 69 of
unspecified reasons, though they note he has been suffering with health issues
for several years (thanks Mike and A51Abductee). Dungeons & Dragons, the pen and
paper/miniatures game Gygax created along with Dave Arneson, established a
template for virtually all role-playing games that have followed, and in spite
of those health woes, he was still hosting weekly D&D sessions in his home as
recently as the beginning of this year. Mr. Gygax is survived by his wife and
six children, who have our deepest condolences.
Got Game announces a third opportunity to enter a RHEM state, as
RHEM 3 is now shipping in North America for
PC and Mac, while also being available for online purchase. A playable demo is
available ( story) for your sampling pleasure, and here's the
announcement: Weston, CT – March 4, 2008 - Got Game Entertainment LLC
today announced that “RHEM 3”, the third installment in the popular “RHEM”
series of pure-puzzle adventure games for PC and Mac, has shipped to stores
across North America. From the master mind of developer Knut Mueller, the
critically acclaimed “Prince of Modern Puzzles”, “RHEM 3” is a mind-bending trip
into a labyrinthine world of hidden rooms and secret passages, strange vehicles
and odd machines. The game continues the puzzle-filled adventures of brothers
Kales and Zetais in the mysterious land of RHEM. Like its predecessors, "RHEM 3"
features non-linear gameplay and non-violent story. “RHEM 3” makes its retail
debut at $29.99 (USD) and is rated “E” for Everyone by the ESRB. The game is
also available for direct download purchase at
www.RHEM3.com.
Opening the door to a new journey of mystery and adventure, “RHEM 3” finds you
in the strange land of RHEM. In search of an unusual gem, and surrounded by
atmospheric stereo-environment sound, your quest is assisted by hints hidden in
a secret library and clues offered by the peculiar inhabitants of RHEM. With an
adventurous spirit, logical thinking, and keen puzzle-solving, you will slowly
but surely divine the location of this curious treasure and unveil the secret it
holds.
“The hallmark of this game is, as one critic put it, its sophisticated, complex,
and logical puzzles,” said Got Game Entertainment President Howard Horowitz. “If
you’re the type who loses yourself in puzzles and loves challenging your mind,
‘RHEM 3’ is the game for you.”
For more information, visit www.Rhem3.com.
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of
War - Soulstorm Ships For PC announces the release of the standalone
"hybrid" (gas and electric?) expansion for Relic's RTS game based on the
futuristic tabletop series. The press release offers some new screenshots, and
this announcement: THQ Inc. today announced that Warhammer 40,000: Dawn
of War – Soulstorm, the next hybrid standalone expansion in Relic
Entertainment’s critically acclaimed Dawn of War Real-Time Strategy (RTS)
franchise, has shipped exclusively for Windows PC to retail outlets worldwide.
Featuring an intense interplanetary campaign along with the debut of air units,
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm delivers an immersive strategic
experience with two new armies for an unprecedented total of nine playable
factions. Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm is now available for a
suggested retail price of $39.99.
“As one of the best-selling RTS series, the Dawn of War franchise is renowned
for its intense action oriented gameplay,” said Brad Carraway, director, global
brand management, THQ. “As the next Dawn of War chapter, Soulstorm takes it to
next level, offering RTS gamers an unprecedented depth of gameplay with nine
playable armies and air units, and the ability to play Soulstorm by itself, or
extend their multiplayer experience if played with any of the other games in the
Dawn of War series.”
“In Dawn of War – Soulstorm, we’re giving fans an incredible amount of new
content with two all-new races and an extensive campaign across an entire star
system,” said Tarrnie Williams, general manager, Relic Entertainment. “With the
debut of air units across all the armies and multiplayer achievements, we’ve
given players of all levels a tremendous amount of strategic options to
experience.”
505 games, 1C Company, Best Way and Digitalmindsoft announce beta testing is
underway for Men of War, the upcoming World War II real-time strategy follow up.
Details on how to apply to participate are on the
Digitalmindsoft Website,
and word is they will be accepting "Everyone who has a serious attempt to help
us, no other qualifications are needed."
Petroglyph Games
announces the availability of the promised ( story) second patch
for Universe at War: Earth Assault, which can be retrieved automatically by
logging into Windows LIVE. The
Universe at War patch2 release notes outline what's changed after updating
the real-time strategy game. For those who prefer to roll their own, there are
also downloads of a manual edition of the patch, which is mirrored on
ActionTrip,
AtomicGamer,
ComputerGames.ro,
FileFront,
FileShack, Gamer's Hell,
The Patches
Scrolls, and
PixelRage.
Various localized editions of a new patch for World in Conflict are now
available, addressing a few bugs in the real-time strategy game in what's
described as a hotfix
for update #6. Downloads are available from
Massgate.net, and
the US edition of the patch is mirrored on
Games32,
Internode
Games Network, and
The Patches
Scrolls; and the other editions of the patch can be found mirrored on
Games32 and
The Patches Scrolls.
Slitherine Strategies is serving
up a beta version 1.05 patch for Commander - Europe at War (thanks Gamer's Hell). The
patch offers "huge" performance increases and numerous gameplay tweaks ("so this
is probably the best patch yet!"). Word is: "Please note this is a public beta
patch for the English Slitherine digital download version only (not for Matrix,
CDV, Anuman, Friendware or any other publisher versions). Once this has been
tested we'll prepare the final version ready for release for all other
versions."
There's an
Asian Dynasties Patch Update on the Ensemble Studios Website where Bruce
Shelley fills us in on the status of the first patch for the Age of Empires III expansion (thanks Gamer's Hell). Bruce says the patch is undergoing quality assurance (including
testing by top players from the community), and that barring the discovery of
serious bugs, a release is still expected before the end of winter, and that the
patch notes will be posted "soon."
The official Dead Space Website
is live, offering a variety of media promoting the upcoming zombie game,
including a NSFW comic movie "animated" in the style of the old Spider-Man
comics (the camera moves over stationary images). There's also a
Developer Blog and the relocated
Dead Space
Forums.
- World of Warcraft
An
Aussie Working on WoW on IGN.AU thinks locally then acts globally,
talking with Julian Morris about his work on World Of Warcraft, which
presumably includes impressing folks with Crocodile Dundee-style AU antics.
The Q&A includes screenshots of upcoming Sunwell Isle content.
- Acclaim
The
Acclaim video interview on MMORPG.COM talks with Dave Perry and Acclaim
CEO Howard Sparks (who is not allowed within four feet of the microphone)
about Acclaims free-to-play business model, the challenges of properly
brining Eastern games west, and more.
"Is, your uh, is your wife a sport, ay?"
Today is Sportsmanship
Day. Allow us to pay homage to Bobby Knight, Woody Hayes, Bill Belichick,
and others… no wait, that would be Poor Sportsmanship Day. Okay then, how
about we pay homage to Luz Long
and those of his ilk? Okay, let's.
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