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Archived News:
Steam
News has word that those who pre-purchase Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway,
Gearbox Software's upcoming World War II shooter, will earn themselves a free
copy of Brothers In Arms: Road To Hill: Brothers
in Arms: Hell's Highway, the latest installment in the popular WWII action
franchise, is now available for pre-purchase via Steam. Those who pre-purchase
the game via Steam before it is launched in late September will immediately
receive the complete version of Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 free of
charge.
KOEI announces a release date for Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI,
saying the latest installment in this historical turn-based strategy series will
be available in North America and Brazil on September 9, 2008, as a digital
download for $19.99. Here's word on the game: From legendary video game
producer Kou Shibusawa comes another historical simulation masterpiece.
Rediscover an ancient civilization with an explosive history in the most
stunning edition of Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
Set during the end of China's Han Dynasty and the 2nd and 3rd centuries A.D.,
RTKXI presents the most visually captivating evolution in the history of the
series. Blurring the line between video games and art, RTKXI features visuals
evocative of classical Chinese ink-paintings along with debates and duels
rendered in real-time 3D animation.
As the ruler of a kingdom, each player will have complete control over their
territories. More than 40 base commands give players the power to govern cities,
manage their personnel, practice diplomacy and much more. Complete freedom to
develop markets, shipyards, outposts, forts and military units expand on the
already substantial benchmarks established by previous editions of the series.
Furthermore, players will watch the era come to life through the uniquely
individual personalities of the more than 780 officers and supporting characters
they will encounter.
Players will need to dig deep within to prove themselves adept at both the
military and political arts in order to bring China under one rule. Domestic
affairs, diplomacy and warfare are all conducted on a single vast 3D relief map,
dramatically bringing to life the eight massive scenarios that lie before them.
For improved control over each military campaign, RTKXI's turn-based game play
allows the player to plan their movements without undue time constraints, and
then execute their battle tactics when ready. RTKXI also introduces an entirely
new system for researching military techniques, as well as an Advanced Tactics
System that allows players to drive or lure enemies into devastating ambushes.
Skilled players will be able to link together tactics for maximum damage.
Produced by Kou Shibusawa and developed by KOEI Co., Ltd, Romance of the Three
Kingdoms XI is rated "E10+" (Everyone 10 and older - Alcohol Reference, Mild
Blood, Mild Language, Violence) by the ESRB. The suggested retail price is
US$19.99.
Kotaku reports
they've confirmed layoffs at NCsoft Austin, where 21 positions have been cut,
including at least one familiar name,
Scott "Lum the Mad"
Jennings. The explanation says this mostly impacts unannounced titles,
though apparently (console?) ports of Dungeon Runners that had been in the works
have been cut as well: Primarily this is related to products which we
have not previously announced and were in prototype phases. We are also cutting
some positions on the Dungeon Runners team after deciding not to port the client
to other platforms at this time.
The
Crysis Warhead Q&A on GameSpot talks with Eric Legel and Bernd Diemer about
multiplayer play in Crysis Warhead, an enhanced version of Crysis
multiplayer play called Crysis Wars: "Crysis Wars is a new brand, a way
to tell the players that we aim to deliver a game that has been refined and
rebalanced to exclusively match multiplayer expectations. We have been reading
the community feedback and have improved many aspects of the game, [including]
balance, cheat protection, performance, [and] accessibility. Creating Crysis
Wars is a strong signal from Crytek to say that we have ambitions in the online
multiplayer environment, and want to improve and refine Crysis' multiplayer [to
be] as close to perfection as possible."
- Dynasty Warriors 6 on
IGN.
- Mercenaries 2: World in Flames on
GamesRadar. "Why Mercs 2 has the most satisfying co-operative mode we've
played in years."
- Spore on
Eurogamer
and
GameSpot.
- Wizard101 on
1Up.
Burgers tonight, and the grill is already fired up. I could probably eat burgers for
dinner every day for the rest of my life. Of course that would probably be a
shortened lifespan based on that diet, but what can you do?
Computer and Video Games has a couple of updates from the future, revealing
items from a John Carmack interview from the issue of PC Zone magazine
that will hit newsstands tomorrow.
One bit
highlights a comment about the possibility that a premium version of Quake
Live will be implemented at some point, but he makes it very clear that this
depends on how things go with the free version.
The second
tidbit says that a browser-based version of Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory
could also follow if Quake Live turns out to be successful. This seems to
contradict comments he made about this at QuakeCon ( story), but
they quote him saying: "If [Quake Live] is successful, we've tossed around the
idea of taking the Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory game - which was actually always
more popular than Q3A in the online space - and doing a similar treatment to it
with the experience we've gained here." Again, this all depends on Quake Live,
as they quote him saying id will not put any effort into that until they "know
whether Quake Live was a brilliant idea or if it was dumb move."
A new patch for Unreal Tournament 3 is now available, updating Epic's
multiplayer shooter sequel to version 1.3 with a number of bug-fixes, balance
changes, networking improvements, further modification support, and more. This
patch will work on the English, French, German, Italian and Spanish editions of
the game client as well as the dedicated server. The full patch notes are on
AtomicGamer, and the
new client patch is available on
AtomicGamer and
FileFront. There is also a new beta dedicated Linux server, but word on that
is: "The Linux dedicated server patch should be considered beta and only applied
if you wish to help Epic test it's [sic] functionality." The beta Linux dedicated
server can be found on
FileFront.
Today's installment in A Heavy
Update on the Team Fortress 2 Website reveals the K.G.B., the "Killing
Gloves of Boxing," an unlockable weapon, or pair of weapons, as it were. They
also offer the list of new achievements for the Heavy class, and while the
conditions for earning them aren't revealed,
GameCyte has some speculation about after engaging in a little detective
work (sandwiches?). Here's word on the K.G.B.: The unlockable for the
Heaviest pugilists out there is the K.G.B. Any time a Heavy kills an enemy with
the K.G.B he receives five seconds of guaranteed critical hits. This crit-boost
can be used to punch and kill further enemies, extending the boost time.
Alternatively, the Heavy can switch to another weapon and use the boost to take
out an enemy at range. The Heavy's slow movement speed, and the K.G.B's slower
swing speed, make it a risky prospect.
As announced here, a new update is now available for
Lineage II: The Chaotic Throne, NCsoft's
MMORPG. The update is called Gracia, Part 1, the first of a three-part Gracia
roll-out, and it makes leveling up nearly twice as fast as before thanks to a
new Vitality system, though they are quick to stress that this is still a
"hardcore" game. Word is: "Adventurers of varying levels can easily travel to
Kamaloka and face a series of incredibly potent creatures that are tailored to
the experience of the players. The expansion also offers a selection of new and
improved skills, many new items, and improvements to the Cruma Tower, as well as
other hunting zones."
BioWare announces they will be showing Dragon Age: Origins publicly for
the first time in the coming days, as the RPG will be making its show floor
debut at Gen Con in Indianapolis, which
begins tomorrow. The game will also be shown at next week's
GCDC and at
Penny Arcade Expo the week after
that: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada (August 13, 2008) – Leading video game
developer BioWare™, a division of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS), will be
presenting their upcoming dark heroic fantasy Dragon Age™: Origins publicly for
the first time ever to fans at Gen Con in Indianapolis, Indiana, the GC
Developers Conference in Leipzig, Germany and the Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle,
Washington.
Coming from behind closed doors and onto the show floor, BioWare is thrilled to
reveal the heart-pounding demo that wowed international media at E3 2008 to the
eager fans at Gen Con Indy, August 14-17, 2008, at the Indianapolis Convention
Center in Indianapolis, Indiana. This marks the very first public appearance of
Dragon Age: Origins ever, with fans able to get a first-hand look at some of the
exciting combat, devastating magic and credible digital actors that make up this
epic adventure.
Dragon Age: Origins will then cross the ocean to Leipzig, Germany, to reveal
itself to eagerly awaiting European fans at the GC Developers Conference, held
August 20-22, 2008, at the Leipzig Exhibition Center. Dragon Age: Origins
project director and executive producer Dan Tudge will be conducting behind
closed doors demos to the press, revealing new details about combat,
exploration, dialogue, the game’s origin stories and a few other juicy surprises
not to be missed! BioWare’s community team will also be there to demo Dragon
Age: Origins in a special lounge for invited members, fans and leaders of
international EA community sites, August 22-24.
Fans attending the Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle, Washington, August 29-31, 2008,
will get a close look at Dragon Age: Origins as the BioWare team shows off some
of the exciting combat, gameplay and origin story features. Another special
stage demo is also planned for PAX, providing the world’s first look at a major
feature of Dragon Age: Origins.
For more information about Dragon Age: Origins, the latest updates, or to join
BioWare’s Dragon Age community, visit
www.dragonage.com.
Reakktor Media has issued its own statement responding to the insolvency of
10TACLE Studios ( story), saying they are continuing to operate
Neocron 2 and develop Black Prophecy as before, in spite of being a
subsidiary of the troubled publisher: With regards to the announcement of
10Tacle Studios AG business activity's discontinuation, Reakktor Media,
subsidiary of 10Tacle Studios AG, declares that this does not affect the
business activity of Reakktor Media GmbH, despite the insolvency, especially
with regards to the operation of the MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role
Playing Game) "Neocron 2" and the development of the MMO (Massively Online Game)
"Black Prophecy".
Fireglow Games announces Sudden Strike: The Last Stand, the newest
installment in their series of World War II real-time strategy games. The press
release announces "finishing of the development" of the game, and Fireglow tells
us the game will be released during the fourth quarter of this year. Here goes:
13, August 2008 – Leading video game developer and publisher, Fireglow
Games™, announces today finishing of the development of the full-scale game for
PC Sudden Strike: The Last Stand.
Sudden Strike: The Last Stand allows you to become absorbed in thrilled
actions of World War II from 1941 to 1945. You tasks will vary from easy
"Protect and deliver ammunition" to sabotage counter AA operations in enemy back
areas and, of course, it's up to you to choose the opposing sides. There are
hundreds of units with historically accurate characteristics under your command,
cargo ships, delivering reinforcements, air support, landing forces and many
other things.
Sudden Strike: The Last Stand is not just the sequel of Sudden Strike 3:
Arms for Victory, this is the sequel with completely new damage model, balance
of forces and fabulous winter battles.
There are many new abilities in Sudden Strike: The Last Stand such as ambushes
in houses, landing parties, reconnaissance, transportation of infantry on tanks
and many other things. In Sudden Strike: The Last Stand user interface is
reworked, in order to make easier for player to control units and realize his
tactics in the game. We also haven't put graphics aside - you will see many new
visual effects and animations in the game.
Sudden Strike The Last Stand works independly from Sudden Strike 3:Arms for
Victory.
SimRacingWorld has good news for racing fans left in a lurch by the
insolvency of 10TACLE Studios ( story), which took the matchmaking
lobbies for GTR, GTR2, GT Legends offline. Word is developer SimBin has taken
control of the situation, and put the servers back online. Here are quotes from
SimBin and their cooperative ISP: "We want to make sure that our fans can
continue to enjoy our games on line and we are very happy that we could find a
fast and positive solution together with KGN" said Henrik Roos, SimBin CEO. "It
is of course sad to hear that our former partner has ended up in this
situation", added Roos.
"KGN’s K-Play has been supporting 'GTR', 'GTL' and 'GTR 2' from the start and we
are proud to be the key service-provider for these great games. Therefore we
will continue our service in cooperation with SimBin in spite of the unfortunate
insolvency of 10tacle. The cooperation will have K-Play continuing all the
online-services for 'GTR', 'GTL' and 'GTR 2' waiving all additional fees and
SimBin covering only the arising costs of keeping the server-infrastructure
online” said Götz Klingelhöfer, CEO of KGN.
Edge Online has
word that beta testing of All Points Bulletin
(APB) is on the horizon, though it's not sure how soon this phase of development
will begin for the MMOG from GTA creator David Jones. Jones says a "register
your interest" page will launch for the game once its
Facebook Page reaches 500 members, a threshold that it has already passed.
The report quotes Realtime Worlds community relations manager Chris Dye saying:
"Things have moved on quite a lot over the past weeks, and testing has advanced
to a very exciting stage internally, as such, we are preparing the initial steps
towards beta."
EA and Crytek Set Deployment Date for Crysis Warhead has word that the new
Crysis game is set for release on September 12 in Europe and September 16 in North America,
offering a new solo campaign and the enhanced multiplayer gameplay of Crysis
Wars. They are also offering a $5.00 discount off the game's $29.99 price tag for
those who order through the
EA
Store. A new Crysis Warhead Website
is online, and here's word: REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS
WIRE)--Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) and Crytek GmbH announced today that
Crysis Warhead®, the pulse-racing new installment of the Crysis® universe, will
ship to retail stores in North America on September 16th and in Europe on
September 12th. Beginning today, gamers can pre-order Crysis Warhead at the EA
Store (www.eastore.com/crysiswarhead)
for only $24.95; $5 less than the full retail price, or receive $10 off when
purchasing both Crysis Warhead and Crysis. Crysis Warhead recently recognized by
IGN PC as being the Best First Person Shooter and showcasing the Best Graphics
Technology of E3 2008.
“We think Crysis Warhead is going to offer a tremendous experience to a wide
range of gamers,” said Cevat Yerli, CEO and President of Crytek. “Fans of Crysis
are going to enjoy more of the open-ended gameplay, cutting-edge visuals and
huge, epic battles from the first game, while also finally finding out what kind
of havoc Psycho was wreaking on the other side of the island.
At the same time, we designed Warhead to be more accessible for gamers new to
the Crysis franchise. It is a game with a story that can stand on its own, it
has been optimized to run better on a wider range of PCs, and we are introducing
Crysis Wars®, a tailor-made experience for multiplayer gamers within the Crysis
universe – all at a great value.”
Crysis Wars features three multiplayer modes, including TeamInstantAction, a new
match type that mixes fast-paced action in a team-based environment, in addition
to the insanely frenetic gameplay style of InstantAction and the hardcore
team-based PowerStruggle, both of which return from Crysis. The game will
include 21 maps, six new maps for TeamInstantAction and InstantAction, and one
for PowerStruggle and Crytek will also have a support team dedicated to meeting
the needs of the Crysis Wars community.
A brand new trailer for Crysis Warhead will premiere exclusively on
“GameTrailers TV with Geoff Keighley” this Friday, August 15th on Spike TV
(check your local listings) and will be available online at
www.GameTrailers.com immediately
following the show.
Crysis Warhead is a standalone title and does not require the original Crysis to
play. The game has been rated ‘M’ for Mature by the ESRB and ‘16+’ by PEGI. For
more information about the game, please visit the game’s new web site launching
today at: www.crysiswarhead.com.
A new patch for Europa Universalis: Rome is online, which brings Paradox
Interactive's historical strategy game to version 1.3 by adding new features, AI
improvements, enhanced modification support, balance tweaks, bug fixes, and
more. The game can automatically patch itself via the update function, or the
manual version of the patch can be downloaded from
AtomicGamer,
FileFront, Gamer's Hell,
and The
Patches Scrolls.
Following quickly on the revelation below ( story) comes
the official announcement of Arkham Asylum, which is due for Windows, Xbox
360, and PS3 next year: REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Aug 13, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE)
-- Eidos Interactive and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment on behalf of DC
Comics announce Batman: Arkham Asylum, a dark, action-packed videogame adventure
for Xbox 360(R) video game and entertainment system from Microsoft,
PLAYSTATION(R)3 computer entertainment system and Games for Windows in 2009.
In Batman: Arkham Asylum, developed by Rocksteady Studios, the player assumes
the role of Batman as he delivers The Joker to Arkham Asylum. There, the
imprisoned super-villains have set a trap and an immersive combat gaming
experience unfolds. With an original script penned by Emmy Award-winning Batman
writer Paul Dini, the game brings the universe of DC Comics' detective to life
with stunning graphics.
"In Batman: Arkham Asylum Eidos and Warner Bros. are building a true action
adventure game experience worthy of gamers and fans," said Phil Rogers, CEO of
Eidos Interactive. "Players become Batman, like he has never been seen before in
a video game, as he fights through intense circumstances in Arkham Asylum
utilizing his intuitive detective skills and aggressive melee attacks."
"Batman: Arkham Asylum offers players the chance to battle Gotham's worst
villains with Batman's physical and psychological strength in a graphically
distinct and story-driven game," said Martin Tremblay, President, Warner Bros.
Interactive Entertainment. "We look forward to working with Eidos on expanding
DC Comics' world-renowned character Batman in the game space with a noticeably
different feature set in an incredibly dark interactive environment."
Eidos Interactive and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment will co-publish
Batman: Arkham Asylum in North America, Eidos Interactive will publish the game
in all other territories.
Paradox Interactive announces Elven Legacy, a fantasy-themed turn-based
strategy game due early next year (apparently a standalone expansion for
Fantasy Wars, thanks Gamer's Hell). Here's the revised announcement that clarifies
the game's release date, which was confused in the first press release:
New York, USA (August 13, 2008) – Leading PC strategy publisher Paradox
Interactive today announced a new release for 2009. The Fantasy Strategy game
Elven Legacy is developed by experienced studio 1C:Ino-Co, and is scheduled for
Q1, 2009.
Elven Legacy delivers a world filled with magic, and a thrilling nonlinear
storyline, gauged to provide many hours of gameplay for strategy enthusiasts.
Through an epic quest to restore the former glory of the Elven race, this
fantasy strategy game offers both depth and scope, all in colorful and
inspirational settings.
Play as an elf or a human, in the two primary campaigns – or why not the Orcs,
in a wide variety of bonus missions? With the accompanying tools, players may
also create their own missions and campaigns, and share them through
multiplayer.
"This is one of the best-looking TBS games I've seen in a long time, and it
follows in the same spirit of games like Heroes of Might and Magic, Master of
Magic, and Warlords Battlecry", said Paradox Interactive Executive Vice
President Fredrik Wester. "The developers have really taken care to provide
extensive depth and content, which could make this game one of those that stays
on gamers hard drives for a long time".
1C:Ino-Co CEO Alexei Kozyrev said, "In Elven Legacy, we've focused greatly on
making the plot intriguing and nonlinear. Our games are already known for their
rich tactical opportunities, which usually come highly rated by players. This,
combined with our improvements in the AI and interface, allows for this game to
appeal both to fans of turn-based strategies and to newcomers to the genre."
Elven Legacy is scheduled for release during Q1, 2009.
Game Informer September Issue Revealed! shows a cover story on Arkham
Asylum, an upcoming Batman game from Rocksteady Studios and Eidos. Word is:
This completely original title explores Gotham City’s darkest location,
the infamous Arkham Asylum. But as a routine prison transfer goes wrong, the
Joker sets his demented plan into action and Batman comes face to face with an
army of his worst enemies. In a dark and gritty setting reminiscent of Bioshock
(with a story co-written by Paul Dini), Arkham Asylum is setting the stage for a
true-to-character Batman game.
Valve's announcement of this week's A
Heavy Update for Team Fortress 2 includes word on another upcoming
free-to-play weekend for the multiplayer shooter: "The Heavy" update is
the largest update to Team Fortress 2 since it was first released as part of The
Orange Box last October. In addition to offering new unlockable weapons,
achievements, "The Heavy" update also includes a brand new gameplay mode and a
number of new maps.
The rollout culminates next Tuesday, August 19 when the update will be made
available to all owners of Team Fortress 2. To give all gamers a chance to check
out the new gameplay introduced in "The Heavy" update, Valve will be running a
Team Fortress 2 Free Weekend via Steam, a leading online platform for the
delivery and management of PC games. The Free Weekend is open to gamers the
world over and scheduled to begin Friday, August 22 at 11 am PDT. For more
information, please visit
http://teamfortress.com/
A new FAQ on the Star Trek Online
Official Website offers info on Cryptic's upcoming MMORPG, covering topics
like PvP, economics, your ability to take another role in addition to Captain
(dammit Jim, I'm a doctor, I can't run a starship!), playing with friends, and a
bit that reveals the game may support cross-platform play for PC and console
players: Will console and PC players be on the same servers?
We would like that to be the case. There is nothing technologically keeping us
from making it so.
London, England-based Splash
Damage has word they are seeking several Environment Artists (thanks Gamer's Hell).
It's not stated what project this is for, but it is known the company is working
on an unannounced multiplatform title with Bethesda Softworks. Word is:
We are looking for several Environment Artists to add to our talented
team. You'll be spending much of your time creating objects of varying shapes
and sizes that infuse our game world with life and atmosphere. A full
description of the position, including benefits, desired experience, and how to
apply for it can be found here in
the Jobs section.
In addition to this opening, we've got a variety of other positions available
across all development disciplines, so
go take a look!
Images
For 3-D Video Games Without High Price Tags Or Stretch Marks From UC San Diego
on Science Daily has details on new technology being presented at SIGGRAPH
2008 this week that may revolutionize game graphics: ScienceDaily (Aug.
12, 2008) — The images of rocks, clouds, marble and other textures that serve as
background images and details for 3D video games are often hand painted and thus
costly to generate.
A breakthrough from a UC San Diego computer science undergraduate now offers
video game developers the possibility of high quality yet lightweight images for
3D video games that are generated “on the fly” and are free of stretch marks,
flickering and other artifacts.
- Antec Signature 850W PSU on
Hi-Tech Reviews.
- ASUS Radeon 4870X2 Graphics Card on
Boot Daily.
- ASUS ROG Extreme N9600GT Matrix Graphics Card on
Legion Hardware.
- ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 Graphics Card on
AMDZone,
AnandTech,
Custom PC, Hardware
Secrets,
HotHardware,
PCGH,
SimHQ, and The Tech
Report.
- ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 Graphics Card and Crossfire on
Guru3D.
- Cooler Master Silent Pro 700W PSU on
bit-tech.net.
- Eagle Consus N-Series IDE to USB HDD Enclosure on
DragonSteelMods.
- Noctua NH-U9B, Thermalright Ultima-90I and Zalman CNPS9300 AT Coolers
on
X-bit labs.
- Palit Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB Graphics Card on
Hardware Canucks,
Legit Reviews,
Neoseeker, and
Techware
Labs.
- Sapphire HD 4850 Graphics Card in CrossFire on
X-bit labs.
- Sapphire HD 4870 X2 2048 MB Graphics Card on
HEXUS,
Overclockers Club,
PC
Perspective, and
techPowerUp.
- Thermaltake BlacX Hard Drive Dock on
MikhailTech.
- Thermaltake ProWater 850i Liquid Cooling Kit on
OCIA.net.
- TRENDnet 200Mbps Powerline Network Kit on
TweakTown.
Okay, in a strange twist, our recent server migration may be requiring another
server migration. This will probably take place next week sometime, and
remaining issues from the previous move will probably go unaddressed until that
time (sorry about that). Like my nanna, Nanna Roseanadanna, used to say, if it's
not one thing, it's another.
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