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Archived News:
EA and Epic announce EA will handle publishing and distribution of the
upcoming unannounced new game from Polish developer People Can Fly ( Painkiller) based on a
new IP.
EA also announces "a publishing agreement with iconic Japanese development
studio Grasshopper Manufacture. Under the terms of the deal, EA Partners will
publish an all-new action horror game produced by Shinji Mikami and directed by
innovative game designer Suda51." Here's word on the People Can Fly deal:
Redwood City, Calif. – August 14, 2008 – Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:
ERTS) and Epic Games, Inc. today announced that they have signed a publishing
agreement for an all-new action title for the PC, Xbox 360® video game system
and PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system. The new intellectual property
is currently in development by Epic’s People Can Fly studio in Poland.
Battlefront announces Strategic Command WWII Pacific Theater, a third
installment in the Strategy Command series of World War II strategy games.
A product section for the game is online with full details, images, and a
video trailer. Here's a bit from the announcement: WWII Pacific Theater
the third, and newest, game in the award winning Strategic Command series. WWII
Pacific Theater shifts the focus from Europe and into the steaming jungles and
islands of Asia- Pacific. WWII Pacific Theater is a standalone new game and does
not require any of the previous titles to play.
For the first time, players will be able to wage war across the massive expanse
of the Pacific Ocean. From British occupied India, Tibet, Nepal and China in the
West to Pearl Harbor and the West Coast of the US and Canada. WWII Pacific
Theater features the largest map yet in the series at 198x82 tiles in size.
Command the forces of 5 major and 23 different minor nations. 20 different
unique unit types are portrayed and modeled with up to 30 different
characteristics and stats. To add historical flavor and replayability, over 150
different in-game events are now depicted including the Doolittle Raid, Mirill's
Marauders, Japanese Midget Sub attacks on Pearl Harbor and even the decision to
drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. 8 mini-campaigns feature various
operations including Midway, Macarthur's struggle in the Philippines, the
defense of India by General Slim's courageous and outnumbered 14th Army, the
Allied liberation of Burma, the island assaults of Okinawa, Iwo Jima and Pelelui
plus the entire New Guinea campaign.
Also included is a full "Mega-Campaign" which covers the entire conflict
beginning with the December 7th 1941 surprise attack on the US fleet at Pearl
Harbor and playable until the middle of 1947, in case you need that long to gain
ultimate victory!
Activision announces HISTORY Civil War: Secret Missions: SANTA
MONICA, CA – AUGUST 14, 2008 – Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI)
announced today that HISTORY Civil War: Secret Missions will be released later
this year for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft,
PLAYSTATION®3 and PlayStation®2 computer entertainment systems, and PC. A
completely new episode in the HISTORY Civil War franchise, the game will allow
players to assume the role of Union and Confederate soldiers fighting behind
enemy lines in legendary battles.
“There is a rich history to the Civil War, especially in terms of covert
military tactics,” said Dave Oxford, Activision Publishing. “American warfare in
the 1860’s was brutal yet surprisingly sophisticated, so it was essential for us
to capture this duality.”
The player’s goal in HISTORY Civil War: Secret Missions is to disrupt the armies
of both the North and the South by any means necessary, including conducting
train raids, stealing ironclad ships, stopping enemy supply lines, destroying
enemy artillery and more. All events are drawn from the real life actions of
famous partisans, scouts and rangers - fight as a member of Mosby’s Rangers,
Sheridan’s Scouts and Grant’s Secret Service and receive your mission commands
from famous generals including Robert E. Lee, “Stonewall” Jackson, and Ulysses
Grant.
The action in HISTORY Civil War: Secret Mission accurately reflects the
guerrilla tactics of the time period. Weapons include the shotgun, the pepperbox
revolver and the coffee mill gun, and there is heavy reliance on scouts and
naval warfare.
HISTORY Civil War: Secret Missions, which is not yet rated by the ESRB, will be
available for $49.99 on Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment
system, $39.99 for Playstation®2 computer entertainment system, and $19.99 for
PC.
For more information on HISTORY Civil War: Secret Missions videogame, visit
www.activision.com.
Publisher Ascaron Entertainment announces
A Vampyre Story is due this October, as Autumn Moon Entertainment's adventure game is planned
for a Halloween release: A Vampyre Story, the ‘captivating’ new adventure
game for PC from Ascaron Entertainment and 93 Games will be released in October
for a haunting Halloween. The game has been developed by Autumn Moon
Entertainment, a company founded by ex-LucasArts employee Bill Tiller, who
previously worked on adventure game classics The Curse of Monkey Island and
Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine.
The new Point & Click adventure tells the tale of the beautiful, gifted opera
singer Mona De Lafitte, whose life is brought to an abrupt end by the vampire
baron, Shrowdy Von Kiefer. Trapped in Draxsylvania Castle and doomed to a
miserable existence as a creature of the night, Mona decides to run away to
fulfil her dream of singing at the Paris Opera.
A number of challenges await the elegant opera singer as she comes to terms with
her new vampire nature and learns to harness the supernatural abilities she has
acquired. Froderick, a witty and mischievous bat, joins Mona on the quest to
realise her dream, helping unravel brain teasing puzzles and adding humour to
the proceedings with a consistent flow of wise cracks and sinister jokes.
A Vampyre Story is a beautifully crafted game with great aesthetic value
conveyed through a cast of wonderful characters and a creative storyline. Set
for a Halloween 2008 release, the new game is a must see for any adventure game
fan.
Today's installment of the
Team Fortress 2 A Heavy
Update has details on Badwater Basin, a new Payload map that will be
released as part of the upcoming Heavy class update for the teamplay
shooter: Badwater Basin is a Payload map focusing on more open spaces and
less chokepoints than Gold Rush. (A) Right out of the gate is a multi-level area
where the Blu team needs to control the high ground while moving the cart
through a tunnel below. This open area has few natural choke points, allowing
Scouts, Soldiers, and Demomen to move creatively through the space, forcing the
Red team to rapidly respond to choices made by Blu. (B) As the track winds its
way into tighter spaces, vertical control becomes more important. Each
successive checkpoint requires the Blu team to take control of defensive
positions above the track, usually occupied by Red Engineers. (C) Eventually the
track winds down into a large basin which the Blu team must assault from all
sides in a final push to destroy the Red base.
Unlike Gold Rush, where the track is split into three separate stages, Badwater
Basin uses a single large stage with several checkpoints. As a result, the Blu
team is highly encouraged to push the cart hard after beating their way through
the Red defensive line.
Tonight's preseason tackle football contest between the Eagles and the Panthers
is the first time I've ever seen a rain delay in an NFL game, though in
fairness, this is justified by the lightning the storm brought, it was not due
to the wetness. Now they've gone too far though, as they are filling time with
an episode of Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader, so we've gone from something
I've never seen before, to something I never want to see.
This press release announces Carrier Command: Gaea Mission, a
multiplatform remake of the
1988 action/strategy game
in the works at Bohemia Interactive and Black Element Software that will
incorporate a story based on the upcoming second book in the
Gaea series. The
Carrier Command: Gaea Mission Website
is already online (thanks Tiscali Games), with media and information, and further details
are promised at next week's GC Developer's
Conference. Here's the announcement: Bohemia Interactive Studio and
Black Element Software announce a new multi-platform title, Carrier Command:
Gaea Mission. Based on the original Carrier Command released in 1988, and fully
licensed and endorsed by its creators, the new game strives to deliver
innovative and intense gameplay in a truly next-gen rendition. Carrier Command:
Gaea Mission is currently scheduled to be released in Spring 2010 on PC and
other popular platforms.
Bohemia Interactive´s CEO, Marek Spanel, explains why the company chose this
natural evolution from their current line-up of realistic military shooters,
including titles such as Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis and ArmA: Armed
Assault:
“When we first heard about the opportunity to develop a game based on the
original Carrier Command, we were instantly hooked,” says Spanel. “For us,
Carrier Command was not only one of the most innovative games we had ever played
but it is also one of the very few games that truly influenced our gaming tastes
and motivated us in our own home grown game development, which later
materialized in the form of Operation Flashpoint, with similar open ended
gameplay and emphasis on a deeply simulated game world.”
“Having the opportunity to create an actual Carrier Command game is not only a
great honor for us, but it also allows us to take the legendary title we all
love and do it justice with a truly next-gen rendition,” comments Otakar Nieder,
the game’s project leader at Black Element Software.
Carrier Command: Gaea Mission is set in the Gaea Universe, with the story
adapted from the science fiction trilogy’s second novel, due for publication in
2009. The first volume, Gaea: Beyond the Son, is currently available in
hardcover from Helios Publishing.
The game’s story centers on a crew waking from their thirty-year hibernation in
the middle of a war that has raged from Earth to humanity's first colony in
another solar system.
“The Gaea Universe offers a realism and depth beyond the usual gaming
conventions,” explains David Lagettie, Gaea Executive Producer. Writer Didi
Gilson (co-author with partner Phil under the pen name P.D. Gilson) elaborates,
“Gaea explores harsh consequences in our future, from dwindling natural
resources to the all-too-human talent for war, and how those aggressive
instincts can impact our first forays in space colonization.”
“The vivid writing and compelling characters help us set this game in a
believable universe and provides a strong Sci-Fi plot for the player’s
immersion,” says CEO Spanel.
More details about Carrier Command: Gaea Mission will be revealed during the
upcoming Leipzig Game Convention starting 20th of August.
http://www.bistudio.com
EA and Maxis announce the completion of development on Spore, so Will
Wright's life simulation is on track for its most recent release dates of
September 7 in North America and Asia Pacific and September 5 in Europe:
Redwood City, CA – August 14, 2008 –The wait is almost over! Electronic
Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) and Maxis today announced that Spore™ the most
anticipated video game of the year from the creator of The Sims(TM), has gone
gold and will be available for the Mac and PC at retailers September 5 in Europe
and September 7 in North America and Asia Pacific. Spore™ Creatures for Nintendo
DS™ and Spore™ Origins for mobile phones will also be available globally
September 7.
Players who preorder Spore or Spore Galactic Edition from participating
retailers will receive a coupon good for $10 off their next purchase of custom
merchandise at
www.zazzle.com/sporestore. For the ultimate Spore fan, the limited Galactic
Edition will contain the 'Making of Spore' DVD, 'How to Build a Better Being'
DVD (a 50 minute National Geographic Channel documentary DVD hosted by Spore
mastermind, Will Wright), 'The Art of Spore' hardback book, an exclusive Spore
poster, and a premium 100-page Galactic Handbook.
"We are so excited to finally get Spore into the hands of fans and players,"
said Lucy Bradshaw, executive producer of Spore at Maxis. "The Maxis studio has
had an absolute blast creating Spore, but the fun is just beginning. The most
engaging stories are truly the ones people create themselves, and we can't wait
to see how players not only craft and explore the Spore universe, but hear what
stories they have to tell as a result."
Spore gives players their own personal universe in a box, allowing fans to
create and evolve life, establish tribes, build civilizations, sculpt entire
worlds and explore a universe created by other gamers. Spore gives players a
wealth of creative tools to customize nearly every aspect of their universe:
creatures, vehicles, buildings, and even spaceships. Players can then seamlessly
share their creations with the world via the Sporepedia™ and explore infinite
new galaxies created by other gamers*.
For all the latest Spore news, screens, videos community content, and to try out
the trial version of the hugely popular Spore Creature Creator, visit
www.spore.com.
GameTap's American McGee's Grimm
page now offers The Fisherman and His Wife, the third installment in
American McGee's Grimm, the episodic fairy tale-inspired adventure series.
As before, the episode will be free to download and play for 24 hours, after
which a premium Gold subscription to GameTap or a purchase of the episode will
be required. Word is: "In this episode, a destitute fisherman catches a magical
fish which offers to grant him wishes in exchange for its freedom. The fisherman
is content with his current lifestyle, but his insatiable wife keeps pushing for
bigger and bigger wishes: to live in a castle, to be Pope, to be like god. It's
up to Grimm to make sure that they both get what they deserve."
Publisher Lighthouse Interactive and developer Kerberos Productions announce
A Murder of Crows, an upcoming expansion for the 4X space strategy of
Sword of the Stars. The add-on will require either the Sword of the
Stars: Collector's Edition or the Born of Blood expansion, and the
digital release of A Murder of Crows is planned for next month. There are some
screenshots on
FileFront, and here's the announcement: Toronto, Canada – August 14,
2008 – Today leading Publisher Lighthouse Interactive, part of SilverBirch
Inc.’s (SVB:TSXV) video game division, and accomplished developer Kerberos
Productions, announced the upcoming release of A Murder of Crows, the latest
addition to the highly acclaimed 4X space strategy game franchise, Sword of the
Stars (PC). This brand new expansion pack exemplifies Kerberos Production’s
continued commitment to the dedicated Sword of the Stars community. Players are
required to have either Sword of the Stars: Collector’s Edition or Born of Blood
in order to play the game. A Murder of Crows will be available for purchase
exclusively at www.GamersGate.com in
September 2008.
GAME SUMMARY
While the four civilized races battle back the voracious Zuul and seek advantage
over each other, a ghost from the past returns to the galaxy in the form of the
manipulative Morrigi. Already known for their dark crow-shaped attack drones and
deadly traps, this race once thought long extinct, returns looking for
vengeance.
Using never-before-seen weapons, ships and tactics, the Morrigi fall upon the
other five races of the Sword of the Stars universe, who must now adapt to the
ancient masters of space or be destroyed.
Time is of the essence as world after world falls to the black winged ships that
surge out of the dark like A Murder of Crows.
FEATURES
• A New Sixth race – The Morrigi, who appeared as a
series of mysterious random events in Born of Blood (the first Sword of the
Stars expansion pack), continues to evolve the ever-expanding Sword of the Stars
universe
• New Ship Sections - Over a dozen new ship sections
for all races to match against your opponents
• Unique ‘Grav Flock’ Drive System for Morrigi Ships
– The more Morrigi ships in a fleet, the faster they can travel, continuing the
racial diversity unique to the Sword of the Stars gameplay experience
• 15 new weapons
• 27 new technologies and the new Xeno-Cultural and Drones
tech trees
• Sword of the Stars gameplay continues to deepen with
Civilian populations, independent worlds, Espionage options, and demands for
planetary surrender
• Drone carrying ships in all three size classes
• Construction ships, a variety of orbital stations, spy
ships, Police Cutters, and more
• A whole new set of GUI enhancements and additions
For more information about Sword of the Stars: A Murder of Crows, please visit:
www.swordofthestars.com or
www.lighthouse-interactive.com.
Bionic Commando Rearmed
Available On Playstation Network, Xbox Live Arcade, and Windows PC has word
that the swinging platformer remake is now available (the press release is from
yesterday, but the PC edition just became available moments ago). The
Bionic Commando
Website offers the
full game manual for download, and
Direct2Drive now offers digital sales of the PC edition, and word is the
game will be added to other online outlets over the course of time. Update:
The game is also now for sale on
GamersGate. Here's the announcement: : Capcom, a leading worldwide developer and publisher of video games,
today announced Bionic Commando Rearmed, a makeover of the classic 8-bit game
originally released 20 years ago, is now available for download in North America
on Xbox LIVE Arcade for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from
Microsoft, PLAYSTATION Network, and PC. Bionic Commando Rearmed is rated Mature
by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) and is available for 800
Microsoft Points, $9.99 on PLAYSTATION Network, or $14.99 on PC. Bionic Commando
Rearmed sees a return of the intense 2D side-scrolling, shooting and grappling
action from the beloved 1988 classic game, Bionic Commando on the Nintendo
Entertainment System. Bionic Commando Rearmed brings the game into the next
generation with stunning new visuals, new weapons, online rankings, a reworked
musical score, and newly reworked stages.
Bionic Commando Rearmed also boasts a multitude of features including 2 player
co-op, a frenetic multiplayer mode for up to 4 players and a series of over 50
devious challenge rooms to test your swinging skills. What’s more, each version
of the game will feature unique content specific to that platform. The title
will also provide cross-game bonus features, as completing parts of Bionic
Commando Rearmed will unlock new content and provide secret insight into the
characters and storyline behind the brand new next generation Bionic Commando.
Features:
• Classic Bionic Commando gameplay focused around the use
of the bionic arm
• 2-player Co-op mode
• Local multiplayer matches for up to four players
• Total modern visual revamp, including dynamic shadows,
particle effects and environmental damage
• Reworking of musical score
• Cross-game interoperability – complete specific parts of
Bionic Commando Rearmed to unlock new content and hints for the Bionic Commando
sequel
• Unique platform specific content for Xbox LIVE Arcade for
Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION Network
• In-game art designed by one of Capcom’s most talented
artists, Shinkiro
For more information, visit:
http://www.bioniccommando.com
A new patch is now available for Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock,
updating the PC edition of the music/rhythm game to version 1.31. The patch is
available from the
Aspyr
Website and mirrored on
AtomicGamer,
FileFront, Gamer's Hell,
and The Patches Scrolls.
Here's word on the new version: This optional patch fixes an "Emulator
Detected" error that appears on some machines AFTER APPLYING THE 1.3 PATCH. This
patch does not affect gameplay in any way and only resolves this emulation
issue.
This patch is to be installed only after applying the 1.3 patch. The in-game
version number will not change once the 1.31 patch is installed.
This patch is for PC only. The Mac 1.3 version is unaffected by the Emulation
problem.
PLEASE NOTE: This will only resolve Emulator Detected errors that occur after
the application of the v1.3 patch. If you have had these errors before applying
the 1.3 patch, this patch will not fix the problem.
The Register
has a follow-up to the release of the OpenGL 3.0 specifications earlier this
week (thanks Mike Martinez), and the resulting hue and cry from folks unhappy with the
limited progress in the new version of the API ( story). They
spoke with Neil Trevett, president of OpenGL proprietor Khronos Group and VP of
member company NVIDIA, who told them his consortium hopes to start the process
of streamlining OpenGL with version 3.1, saying that version 3.0 lays the
groundwork for this, adding his personal hopes that the new spec will be
released within six months. Here's a bit: Trevett said the re-write was
simply too much to engineer at the time. OpenGL is used in massive range of
scenarios and supported by AMD, Apple, Intel, Dolby, Ericsson, Panasonic, Nokia
and Symbian to name just a few of the 100 Khronos members.
Trevett reckoned that while people worked on the big goal of shrinking OpenGL
the delays this produced meant companies relying on the API had been unable to
take advantage of latest changes in hardware.
"Games are rebuilt every generation," Trevett said. "CAD programs can't have
stuff disappear at short notice."
He added that while OpenGL 3.0 isn't as streamlined as people were hoping it
would be, the deprecation mechanism is a step towards that bigger goal while
giving people in CAD a chance to find out what's going to disappear ahead of
time, and to prepare accordingly.
The All Points Bulletin Website now offers a
link to the
Register Your Interest Page on Facebook promised when the
Facebook Page for the open-world MMOG signed-up 500 members
( story). When beta testing will begin and how participants will
be selected is not clear at this time. Meanwhile, the
APB
Facebook Page has been updated with some concept art from the game (as well
as photos of a truck cab inexplicably adorned with an APB paintjob).
The Vancouver Sun (thanks
Edge Online)
reports another unfortunate round of developer layoffs, as around 100 employees
have been let go from Radical Entertainment, which represents approximately half
the staff of the Canadian developer. The cuts are the latest fallout from the
Activision Blizzard merger, as two of the studios' four projects were cut as
part of the newly merged company's focus on its bottom line. Word is: "Last
month, Activision Blizzard said it would go ahead with five games or franchises
including Radical's Crash Bandicoot, and Prototype, a new game created by
Radical that will debut in 2009. Radical's hit title Scarface: The World is
Yours was not listed. Rubin said Radical would be offering laid-off employees a
number of tools and resources to help them find new employment."
The BlizzCon 2008 Website
has a statement from Blizzard's Mike Morhaime about the stream of problems that
plagued their attempts to put tickets on sale for BlizzCon 2008 earlier this week
( story, story, story,
story, story, and story). Word is
they've scraped together an additional 3000 tickets, which will be distributed
via lottery to folks that had registered Blizzard accounts at the time the
tickets were sold out: On behalf of everyone at Blizzard, I want to
apologize for the challenges and frustrations you experienced while trying to
purchase BlizzCon tickets on Monday and Tuesday. BlizzCon is about the positive
experiences you all have had with Blizzard games. As a result of this week's
events, the excitement that many of you felt about the show has turned into
dissatisfaction and disappointment.
Due to these circumstances, we've reevaluated our convention hall space and come
up with some solutions that will allow us to offer 3,000 more tickets for sale.
We know this will not be enough to satisfy the very high level of demand for
tickets this year, but we want to ensure that BlizzCon remains a great
experience for those of you who are able to attend. To avoid the issues many of
you faced this week, we'll be selling these 3,000 via a lottery. We'll post
further details once our plans are finalized. Please note that the lottery will
only be open to those with an active Blizzard Account as of 9:00 PM PDT on
August 12, the time that the “Sold Out” notice was posted.
I, and everyone else at Blizzard, share the frustration and disappointment that
many of you have expressed as a result of this process. We'll do what it takes
to avoid this type of situation in the future.
Codemasters announces three new Overlord Games planned for release next
year; Overlord II, a full sequel to the fantasy action/adventure planned
for PCs and consoles, Overlord: Dark Legend for Wii, and Overlord
Minions for DS. Here's the general announcement and specifics on the sequel:
Thursday 14th August/... Marking the return of the bad ass game brand
that champions a despotic tyrant and sets loose the most vicious, yet lovably
insane critters in gaming, Codemasters® today announced that the Overlord and
the Minions will headline a series of three new Overlord™ titles for multiple
platforms in 2009.
Overlord™II is the sequel to the original twisted fantasy action adventure and
is now in development at Triumph Studios for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer
entertainment system, Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from
Microsoft® and Games For Windows®. True to form, the Overlord and the Minion
horde have their sights set on supremacy and 2009 will also see the series
debuting on new formats. Exclusive extensions include the action title
Overlord™Dark Legend for Wii™, featuring minion control through Wii Remote
movement, and Overlord™Minions, a dedicated puzzle action title, for Nintendo
DS™.
“As a million-plus seller Overlord is now a significant brand in the
ever-growing Codemasters portfolio,” says Barry Jafrato, Senior Vice President
of Brand, Codemasters. “With specific titles published across major formats and
download content available, Overlord has established a huge cult following and
won widespread critical acclaim. We’re delighted to have the despot back for
this three-game, five-format product line. With Triumph’s hugely impressive
vision for Overlord II and bespoke titles for Wii and Nintendo DS, Overlord is
set to dominate in 2009.”
“Epic battles, all new Minion play mechanics, a stunningly detailed new visuals
and a fresh theme – Overlord II’s really packing a punch,” says Lennart Sas,
director and Overlord lead at Triumph Studios. “We’re really excited about
shifting the world to a new era where a Roman-inspired Empire rises as the
arch-enemy of the Overlord, which leads to an epic clash between the regimented
forces of a sprawling state and the faster, harder, more manic minion horde.
It’s also great to see the series reaching new formats. The creativity being
packed into the design for Overlord Dark Legend on Wii and Overlord Minions on
Nintendo DS make great use of the platforms’ unique features and are perfect
extensions to the Overlord series.”
OVERLORD TITLES FOR 2009:
OVERLORD™II
• PLAYSTATION®3 system, Xbox 360, Games For Windows.
Overlord™II is the sequel to the hit warped fantasy action adventure that
had players being delightfully despotic. In Overlord II, a new Overlord
and a more powerful army of Minions take on an entire empire in a truly epic
adventure, inspired by the rise of the Roman Empire. As the Glorious Empire
conquers kingdoms and destroys any sign of magic it finds, it’s time to go
Minion Maximus and send in the horde.
The Minions return smarter, deadlier (and funnier) and are ready to fight in
large scale battles that will see their wild pack mentality squaring up to the
organised legions of the Glorious Empire. As ever, they’ll do anything and
everything the Overlord commands of them, especially now that they can run
ravage and wreck buildings and scenery. They’ve also learn to ride: In
Overlord II Minions will be able to mount up and ride wolves and other
magical creatures around the landscape and take them into battle, making our
band of merry fighters faster and fiercer than ever before. Coming in 2009,
Overlord II is now in development at Triumph Studios in Delft, the Netherlands,
for the PLAYSTATION®3 system, Xbox 360 and Games For Windows.
Like a cat with nine lives, Ryzom
announces this science-fiction MMORPG is making another comeback, following
another brush with receivership ( story) that's had the game
offline for some time now. They've been running in an invitation-only mode for a
while, and are now inviting anyone who has ever had a Ryzom account (even a
trial account) to check things out as they prepare for a full re-launch. Here's
word: In order to keep you informed on what is going on with the new
Ryzom, we wanted first to tell you that we are all really very happy and very
proud to work, and for some of us work again, on the magical world of Ryzom. We
wanted also to sincerely apologize for not having been able to talk to you
earlier. Unfortunately we had a lot of work to do to revive our fabulous planet;
tonnes of terabytes of blood, sweat and tears... hard drives to recover, check,
and deal with... countless Kami, Karavan, Kitins, and friends to find and put
back in place, all in order to reawaken Ryzom and to prepare it for your next
visit.
But now we are all very pleased to share with you our joy that the hardest part
is behind us.
Yes, our servers have already been revived in a testing phase for several weeks
now, and with the help of our great CSR team, we have worked hard to repair
Ryzom to its former glory. We mowed lawns, trimmed hedges, pulled weeds, and fed
the Yubos which were feeling very hungry and abandoned.
These past weeks we also re-opened the servers to our former Ryzom subscribers
to thank them all for their patience with a totally free VIP access and as we
are very happy with how this VIP phase progressed we have now decided to expand
the access to our servers to everybody who already had an active account, free
trial included. Yes, even if you previously only had a free trial you can now
once more log into Ryzom for free with all your stored characters! The only
restrictions still applied to the free trial accounts will be the level cap and
the geographical limitation to the starter island "Ruins of Silan", but these
restrictions will not last long either! We will keep you posted on all of this
when the time comes.
ATTENTION for those of you waiting to step onto Atys for the first time, please
don't forget that we are still in a re-launch and testing phase. This means that
Ryzom is still closed to newcomers as the creation of new accounts is not yet
permitted. If you don't already have an active Ryzom account you won't be able
to play Ryzom yet.
Don't worry though, we plan to reopen the account activation pages shortly; once
again, we will let you know as soon as it happens.
Thank you for your loyalty and above all for your patience. The new Ryzom team
bids you a very warm welcome and is looking forward to seeing you again in our
world...
A new trailer from Pyroblazer hopes to fire you up about this combat
racing game in the works at Eipix. The clip shows off some of the game's
futuristic settings and high speed hover-racing, though none of the combat part.
The movie is posted on
AtomicGamer and Gamer's
Hell.
Getting Destructive
with Red Faction Guerrilla's Design Director on GameZone talks with James
Hague about the next installment in Volition's shooter series with destructible
environments. The first answer he provides has a concise summary of the lessons
learned from the previous games that's guiding them this time out: "We learned
that destruction needs an open environment in order to shine. The two are a
perfect match."
Okay, so we watched a little of the Olympics, catching some of the women's
softball the other day. The USA team pitched a combined no-hitter the game we
saw, and then I saw highlights from the next game, which was also a no-hitter
for the Americans. The thing I'm trying to figure out is not why the no-hitters,
but rather how anyone ever gets any hits in that game at all. Those ladies get
the ball going over 100 km/hour from a distance of 45 feet away, and I'm sure I
wouldn't be able to hit any of those pitches with a tennis racket, much less a
bat.
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