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Archived News:
The Unbirth Website offers the
free release of Unbirth from Frictional Games (thanks Gamer's Hell), a project that
never got on track as a commercial release, but is being offered in its alpha
state due to popular demand. Word is: To all dear Windows users,
Before creating Penumbra and before founding Frictional Games, Thomas Grip
worked on a game called Unbirth, unfortunately this game was never finished due
to various issues. Unbirth was a game much like Penumbra, a first person
real-time rendered adventure horror game, but without the nifty physics. During
the past two years, players of Penumbra has continually asked if it would be
possible to release any working code of the game, and well, Thomas decided that
it actually is possible!
An alpha version of the game is now released at
http://unbirth.frictionalgames.com
as well as a short presentation about the game, how it was made and why it was,
sadly, never finished. It is an unstable, but working demonstration and gives an
insight into the history of the ideas and design choices that was an
inspirational source in the creation of Penumbra.
Playlogic announces Stateshift, a futuristic racing game from Engine
Software set to hit the starting line this summer: Amsterdam, 13 May 2008
- Today, Playlogic Entertainment, Inc. (Nasdaq OTC: PLGC.OB), an independent
worldwide publisher of entertainment software, announced that it will publish
the futuristic racer Stateshift on PC. Playlogic plans to release Stateshift
early summer 2008.
About Stateshift:
Brace yourself for the high-octane headrush of Stateshift! The aim of Stateshift
is to cleverly use a series of power-ups to boost, bash, drift and simply
destroy your opponents, as well as stay on the road ahead! Take on 15 other
fearless racers across 9 exhilarating tournaments to claim your title as the
greatest driver in the world!
Set in the future during a period of political unrest, a series of bloody
conflicts have brought the world’s economy to the brink of collapse. This has
resulted in mass global poverty, where the survivors strive to survive with only
one motivation… illegal Stateshift racing! Danger is never far away, with a full
arsenal of devastating weaponry, armed and ready to unleash at the touch of a
button. Collect homing missiles, mines, rocket launchers to gain the edge in a
race to the finish line, where only the fastest and deadliest pilots will
survive.
Special abilities
Apart from the deadly arsenal players have to their disposal, special powers can
be unlocked by picking up energy cells. State morphing is an energy based power
up system with which the player can– in real-time– change the handling of his
car. By using the various State morph abilities, the player can get better
average speed, supreme cornering, ram other players to oblivion, evade weapons
fire, drive through obstacles, and by combining all of these: reign the
competition.
Game features:
• Fourteen different race tracks
• Six different playable characters
• Four different Statemorph abilities
• Four different weapon pickups
• Max 15 AI controlled opponents
• Four different game modes including multiplayer
• In-game tutorial races on custom tracks to learn the basics
• Original soundtrack
For more info about Stateshift please visit the Playlogic website:
http://www.playlogicint.com
New WHQL-certified version 175.16 ForceWare reference drivers are now
available for NVIDIA GeForce accelerators ((thanks
Voodoo Extreme)., offering performance and compatibility improvements. There
are new drivers for
Windows XP,
Windows XP Media Center Edition,
Windows XP x64,
Server 2003 x64,
Windows
Vista 32-bit, and
Windows
Vista 64-bit.
- Mabinogi
The
Mabinogi Q&A on Ten Ton
Hamster talks with Ray Cheon of Nexon about the westernization of this
MMOG: "Mabinogi was developed by devCat, which is located in Korea, so it
took a lot of organization and effort to keep everyone on the same page and
to keep the project on schedule. With the time difference between our office
in the US and Korea, there were plenty of late nights! The job was hard but
definitely worth it as we see players really becoming enraptured in the
fantasy life."
- Angels Online
An
Interview with Angels Online Product Manager Dica Huang on Ten Ton Hammer
discusses this cartoony free-to-play MMORPG.
Frogwares announces that Dracula:
Origin should now be available in the US and Europe (thanks Gamer's Hell). Word is:
Frogwares presents a new, deeply Gothic adventure: "Dracula: Origin." Can
you imagine what it feels to be an immortal vampire, to love and hate eternally?
What would it be like to be a vampire hunter set against an eternal love and
hate? Do you want to know?
Frogwares' newest game is now hitting the shelves of your favorite retail store
in Europe and the US and will very soon be available to purchase from our
website.
Gravity Interactive is accepting registrations for open beta testing of
Requiem: Bloodymare on the game's
official website, saying the testing begins a week from tomorrow: MARINA
DEL REY, Calif. -- May 13, 2008 – MMO fans, the wait is over, registration for
the Requiem: Bloodymare beta begins today. Gamers can begin playing on May 15,
2008.
Requiem: Bloodymare’s brand of horror is changing the face of massively
multiplayer online games. With innovative ragdoll physics, buckets of blood and
the unique Nightmare, DNA and Beast Possession systems, Requiem offers players
gameplay they will not find anywhere else.
The DNA system allows players to customize their characters to their heart’s
content by combining new pieces of DNA. There are five slots available but
certain combinations can have special results and unlock a sixth slot.
The Beast Possession system allows players to transform their characters into
menacing Beasts in order to slay even the fiercest of monsters. Beasts can be
acquired starting on level 25 and gain experience with the user’s main
character. Up to three beasts can be equipped allowing players to select between
warrior and magic user beasts to balance their play style.
The Nightmare system is one of Requiem’s main differentiators. Requiem has day
and night cycles; a full day takes two hours in-game. Every night, from 11 p.m.
to 2 a.m., the world goes dark and much more powerful monsters come to life.
Players are able to collect better loot from Nightmare monsters; however they’ll
need backup in order to avoid repeated, painful deaths.
“We’re extremely excited about going into open beta. Requiem was developed from
the get-go to take adult gaming to a whole new level and we achieved that with
gut-wrenching battles and MMO bloodshed you have never seen before,” said Jay H.
Choi, vice president, Gravity Interactive. “The open beta will give everyone the
opportunity to seek adventure in Ethegia – and cut monsters in half, of course.”
Set in the frozen tundras of Crescent, the streets of Parness and many other
mysterious locales, Requiem: Bloodymare plunges players in a world where
technology has gone berserk and blood-thirsty creatures lurk around every
corner, allowing for a unique horror MMO experience.
Requiem: Bloodymare is now available to all players. To play the game, go to
www.playrequiem.com, create your free
beta account and download the client.
The game will be free-to-play with two levels of premium subscriptions.
Hothead Games announces that Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick
Precipice of Darkness, Episode One will be available for PC, Mac, Linux, and
Xbox 360 a week from tomorrow: VANCOUVER, British Columbia - May 13, 2008
- Hothead Games today announced that Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick
Precipice of Darkness, Episode One will be available worldwide both via Xbox
LIVE® Arcade (except Korea) and via the Greenhouse digital distribution platform
(www.playgreenhouse.com) for the
Windows®, Mac®, and Linux® versions next Wednesday, May 21.
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode One is
an RPG-Adventure game set in the deranged 1920s universe of New Arcadia,
delivered to gamers via accessible episodic releases. Players join Gabe and
Tycho, the crime-solving team of the Startling Developments Detective Agency, to
combat savage enemies and solve mysteries hidden deep in the sinister heart of
New Arcadia. The game is the result of close collaboration between Hothead Games
and Penny Arcade, featuring distinct artwork and characters designed exclusively
by Mike "Gabe" Krahulik, story and dialogue by Jerry "Tycho" Holkins, both
brought to life by the Hothead team.
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode One is
expected to offer players six to ten hours of gameplay, and is priced at $19.95
for the Windows, Mac, and Linux versions and at 1600 Microsoft points via Xbox
LIVE® Arcade. The game has been rated "M" for Mature by the Entertainment
Software Ratings Board for all platforms.
A new patch for Assassin's Creed: Director's Cut Edition updates the PC
variant on this stealth game to version 1.02. The 35 MB patch addresses a number
of bugs, adds support for x64 editions of Windows and fixed DirectX 10.1
support. The download is available from
AtomicGamer,
FileFront,
FanGaming,
FileShack, Gamer's Hell,
Internode
Games Network, and
Strategy Informer.
A patch is now available for Rainbow Six Vegas 2 to update the newest
installment in the Tom Clancy tactical shooter series to version 1.02. The new
version adds speech recognition and address a bunch of bugs. The 90 MB patch can
be found on AtomicGamer,
FanGaming,
FileFront, Gamer's Hell,
Internode
Games Network, and
Strategy Informer.
Got Game Entertainment announces Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals, a
point-and-click adventure game slated for release this August. Here's word on
the game, which is based on the graphic novels of Enki Bilal: Weston, CT
– May 13, 2008 - Got Game Entertainment today announced a North American
publishing deal for “Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals” (PC), adapted from the
famed “Nikopol Trilogy” graphic novel series, and major film release “Immortal”,
by Enki Bilal. “Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals” is a visually striking,
richly detailed point and click adventure game developed by Benoît Sokal’s White
Birds Productions. The game immerses players in a futuristic Paris and the tale
of a son’s search for his father and ultimate journey into the perilous world of
political intrigue. As Nikopol, players must use cunning and puzzle-solving
logic to thwart a dark conspiracy. “Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals” is
scheduled for release in August 2008 and will retail for $29.99 (USD).
“Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals” opens in the Paris of 2023, now ruled by a
power-hungry dictator, a place where the fascist rich and the abandoned poor are
separated by both a literal and figurative wall. As we join our hero Nikopol,
the son of an astronaut frozen in space decades ago, we find that a floating
pyramid inhabited by Egyptian Gods hovers above the city. As one of their
leaders plots to take control of Paris and its people, word reaches Nikopol that
his father may be alive and hidden in the city's underground, a possible pawn in
a looming battle. In the search for his father, Nikopol's journey finds him
entangled in political intrigue, caught between two worlds, one of anarchy and
one of immortality.
The game’s official website will launch later this spring.
A playable demo for LEGO Indiana Jones allows you to put your fedora on
your blocky head and crack your plastic bullwhip in the brixilated edition of
the movie-inspired action game. The demo is available from the
LucasArts Game Discussion Forums, and the 465 MB download is mirrored on
ActionTrip,
AtomicGamer,
ComputerGames.ro,
FanGaming,
FileFront,
Gamer's Hell,
Internode
Games Network, and
Strategy Informer. Word is the demo includes the opening scene from
Raiders of the Lost Ark as well as a free play mode.
As noted on the Dream Builder's
Studios Website, a playable demo is now available for
Heresy War, their combat space
simulator. The Heresy War media
page offers the demo and some screenshots showing what it offers. The 155 MB
download is mirrored on
ComputerGames.ro,
Gamer's Hell, and
Strategy
Informer, and here's a bit on what to expect: The Heresy War demo is
finally ready to be made public. The demo gives a taste of what Heresy War is
all about by putting the player in the cockpit during the first mission of the
game. This demo contains the following:
• A four-part mission from the single player campaign of
the game.
• Full voice-over dialogues for the campaign mission
• Original soundtrack
• The Instant Action game mode
• Multiple ship choice for the instant action mode
• Furious dogfights
• Capital ship combat
• .. and more!
VideoGamer.com has word from Firefly Studios' Simon Bradbury on their plans
for the future, where he says that after completion of Dungeon Hero, the
developer will eventually turn its attention to Crusader 2 and
Stronghold 3, saying both sequels will be made "in due course."
A new update is now available for World of Warcraft, updating Blizzard's
juggernaut MMORPG to version 2.4.2. Some or all manual editions of the patch are
mirrored on
ActionTrip,
AtomicGamer, Gamer's Hell,
and The Patches
Scrolls.
Aspyr
Support now offers a new version 1.3 patch for the PC edition of Guitar
Hero III. The update adds a "Front Row Cam" for low-end configurations,
laptop-specific optimizations, Intel X3100 graphics support, a battery meter
icon for supported laptops, and a wi-fi meter for supported laptops.
The
dungeons section on the World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King Website
has details on the Nexus new dungeon from the upcoming expansion for Blizzard's
MMORPG. The update has information and screenshots for the blue dragonflight's
home base in Northrend.
Funcom and
Eidos announce that they have accepted over (Dr. Evil voice) one million
sign-ups for the Age of Conan beta test and that a new "femme fatale"
trailer is on the Age of Conan Website. Here's
word on the beta sign-ups: Durham, USA – May 13, 2008 – Funcom and Eidos
are proud to confirm some of the impressive figures powering the Age of Conan
launch, and the two companies are happy to reveal that the Age of Conan Beta has
passed 1 million sign-ups! As one of the most anticipated MMO’s ever, the 1
million mark confirms the amazing interest in the game.
“Funcom has not been able to find any higher beta numbers for MMOs in the
western world,” said Morten Larssen, VP of Funcom Sales and Marketing. “We
believe it represents the largest ever beta sign-up figure in the history of the
genre.”
In addition to the incredible beta numbers, Funcom confirms that almost 800.000
gamers have signed up for the Clan of Conan newsletter. The hundreds of
thousands following the development of the game have moreover resulted in a
rapidly growing forum community. Last week Funcom registered over 115.000 posts
on the official forums, across four languages. This comes in addition to Age of
Conan discussions on external forums and in other languages.
The Fury League Website has the prize
structure for this competition, outlining how the $25,000 prize pool gets
distributed.
I'm on call today as MrsBlue is home sick. On the bright side, I am up to the
task since my allergy flare-up seems to have abated. As my nana, Nana
Roseannadanna used to say, it's always something.
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