Archived News:
Here's a reminder that the
World of
Warcraft Community Website outlines locations holding midnight madness
events for the Wrath of the Lich King expansion for World of Warcraft,
which will become available as of the stoke of midnight tonight/tomorrow
morning.
GOG.com, the online Good Old
Games marketplace announces two new additions to their roster of DRM-free games
updated to run on modern systems. The new old games (huh?) they have just added
are Sacred Gold, the
upgraded edition of this hack-and-slash action/RPG, and
Jagged
Alliance: Deadly Games, a continuation of the turn-based combat of the
original Jagged Alliance.
Electronic Theatre has details about plans for copy protection in
Football Manager 2009, saying the upcoming Windows and MacOS football
(soccer) game will use new technology created by Uniloc. The new scheme will
prevent users from being able to play the game before its official release
(apparently historically a problem for this series). This new Uniloc DRM will be
activation based, so no disc is required to play, and from the description it
sounds like they've been listening to complaints about SecuROM and are hoping to
avoid similar controversy: "Uniloc’s software works in much the same was as
traditional DRM protections, the user is given a number of personal licences
tied to their activation key and can use these as required to
activate/deactivate their game. SEGA have worked hard with Uniloc to ensure that
the user experience is the best it has ever been with copy protection and a huge
leap forward is the removal of the ‘disc in the drive’ requirement of previous
years. We have listened to customer feedback and have chosen Uniloc as a result.
There are no hidden surprises with Uniloc, the protection software is completely
removed if you choose to on uninstall and there are no blacklists, or hidden
drivers stopping other applications from running." Thanks
N4G.
Now that the new Quantum Rise update is live for EVE Online, CCP's
sci-fi MMORPG, Steam News
has word that EVE Online: Quantum Rise is available on their service "for just
$9.99 when new customers buy it on Steam before November 18th."
Upon the release of an updated
Games for
Windows client (described
here), Shacknews
has a bit from their conversation with Microsoft's Chris Early, the Games for
Windows LIVE general manager. They will post the full interview tomorrow, but in
the meantime they excerpt a portion indicating that MS ultimately has ambitions
of competing with Steam as a digital distribution platform, as Chris lets slip
their plans to sell full games through Games for Windows LIVE.
- Hearts of Iron 3 on
GiantRealm. Dev Diary No. 5.
- Mafia II on
GamesRadar.
- Prince of Persia on
1Up and
again on 1Up.
Thanks Mike Martinez. On the game's "hidden message."
Uwe Boll ordered to pay $2.1m for breach of contract reports that this
director of bad
movies, many of them based on video games, has been ordered to pay $2.1
million in damages to Fantastic Films International, a majority of the judgment
for breach-of-contract, though $200,000 of it is for libel. A judge in Los
Angeles presided over the ruling that supports an earlier decision by an
arbiter, but there's no word on whether Boll has challenged either to a boxing
match. Thanks Mike Martinez.
ESRB Announces New Video Game Rating Summaries has word they are adding
"rating summaries," to their game ratings, describing "a new, supplementary
source of information about game content that parents can use when considering
which games to purchase for their children this holiday season and beyond." The
announcement contains a quote from president of the ESRB Patricia Vance, on why
parents need such an additional resource, considering most of them make use of
the ESRB ratings already: "Research shows that the vast majority of parents who
purchase games for their kids are aware of and regularly check ESRB ratings, but
parents can always use more help when making choices as to which games are right
for their children."
Gamasutra
has word of almost 50 layoffs at Cyan Worlds ( Myst), saying the cuts at
their CyanTest QA division are a result of SouthPeak's acquisition of
Gamecock, as Gamecock was apparently the primarily client of CyanTest's
quality assurance services. They say Cyan's current project is a port of Myst to
the iPhone and iPod Touch. On a semi-related note, the
Gamecock
Interview on Edge Online talks with Mike Wilson of the recently acquired
Gamecock, discussing how this publisher is probably better known for its antics
than its games, when this is likely to change, and a bit on how buttoned down
the games industry has become from the perspective of the fairly unbuttoned
Wilson.
This press release has word that film studio Red Eagle Entertainment is
entering the world of games, as the owner of the rights to late author Robert
Jordan's Wheel of Time series says they will create a series of Wheel of
Time games to accompany each of their movies based on the series, the first of
which, The Eye of the World, is currently in production. Even more
ambitiously, they say their Red Eagle Games is also to create an MMOG based on
the series. There's not much more in the way of details about the games, other
than they are being targeted at "all major videogame platforms, including
consoles, personal computers, handheld systems and wireless devices." There's an
article on
VentureBeat (thanks Mike Martinez and
GamesIndustry.biz) focusing on the riskiness associated with such plans.
Those with long memories will recall Legend Entertainment released an
Unreal-engine Wheel of Time action/RPG in 1999.
A playable demo for MotoGP08 offer the chance to test drive, or at least
test ride the latest installment in Capcom's motorcycle racing series. The demo
is available from the official MotoGP
Website and mirrored on
AtomicGamer,
ComputerGames.ro,
FileFront, and Gamer's
Hell. Also on the MotoGP Website is
an update for owners of the
Windows version of the game with word of new installers for the various
language editions of the game and a version 1.1 patch to address the
previously identified issue with installing the game to a custom
directory. The patch can be found on
this MotoGP Support Page and
it is mirrored on The
Patches Scrolls.
1C Publishing Website has a new
trailer showing off gameplay from NecroVisioN, the supernatural
Painkiller-engine first-person shooter set during World War I in development at
The Farm 51. The clip concludes with a release date, or at least a release
window, saying, "Coming Q1 2009." The clip is also available from
AtomicGamer,
Gamer's Hell, and
Strategy Informer.
A new movie from Hired Guns: The Jagged Edge is now available, showing
off the combat in the turn-based strategy game originally announced as
Jagged Alliance 3D. The clip is posted on
AtomicGamer,
FileFront, and Gamer's
Hell.
A new Pyroblazer movie show off more of the futuristic hover-racing in
the sci-fi game due for release tomorrow. The clip can be found on the
Eipix website and mirrored on
AtomicGamer,
FileFront, and Gamer's
Hell.
7-Eleven Breaks Wrath of
the Lich King Street Date on 1Up reports at least one instance of the
convenience chain conveniently offering the World of Warcraft expansion
in advance of its release date (selling tomorrow's game perhaps making up for a
predilection for selling yesterday's hotdogs). The article points out that the
expansion probably won't be playable until the servers are updated anyway, but a
jumbo coffee and a Slurpee will probably help you stay up to midnight if you
manage to strike heaven at your local 7-Eleven. Thanks Mike Martinez.
Alpha
Protocol interview on GameBanshee talks with Ryan Rucinski, Chris Avellone,
and Matt MacLean of Obsidian Entertainment about Alpha Protocol, their
upcoming role-playing game focused on the cloak-and-dagger world of
international espionage. Delighting as we do with wordplay, we rejoice in the
news that the game is now in the alpha stage: "Currently we are at Alpha stage
in development of Alpha Protocol. Reaching Alpha is huge for us because instead
of just dealing with single elements of the game we are seeing all the pieces
together."
A new trailer from Mosby's Confederacy offers a look at Tilted Mill
Entertainment's upcoming strategy game focusing on guerrilla warfare during the
American Civil War. The clip is available on
AtomicGamer,
FileFront, and Gamer's
Hell.
Square Enix and Gas Powered Games announce a strategic partnership and plans
for Supreme Commander 2, a sequel to Gas Powered's real-time strategy
game. There are no details about the game at all, other than it is now in
development, as they say: "gameplay features, platform(s) and release date will
be available at a later time" The majority of the announcement covers the
partnership, which Square Enix calls one of the first steps "towards their goal
of increasing western development efforts aimed for the global markets."
Matrix Games announces the release of World War One – La Grande Guerre,
AGEOD's new grand strategy game that gets in the trenches with the first world
war. Word is: "Gaze over an incredibly detailed, beautifully crafted, and
massive WWI map as you control dozens of different ground units, planes, and
ships. To add further flavor to an already chaotic and intense period of
conflict, hundreds of military, economic, political and technological events can
help turn the tide of war for or against you. Deftly craft new alliances and
jockey for any advantage that can break the deadlock by using ambassadors in an
innovative and intuitive diplomacy system."
Focus Home Interactive and Nadeo announce Virtual Skipper Online, a free
complete game in the vein of Nadeo's TrackMania Nations. The game is
available now to download and play, and word is: "Take the helm of the most
famous boats such as Class America, Open 60, Melges 24 or even offshore racers
to sail the four corners of the world in 14 of the best competitive
watercourses, either solo or in multiplayer mode." The game boasts "outstanding
graphics and an ultra-realistic sea modeled and animated to perfection,"
offering "a magnificent simulation with intense regattas in solo or multiplayer
mode." The game is an 877 MB download, which is available on
AtomicGamer,
ComputerGames.ro,
FileFront,
FileShack, and Gamer's
Hell.
A playable demo for FIFA Manager 09 is now available, offering the chance
to kick around a sample of the sports management sequel. The demo includes the
first divisions of six countries and four stadiums, while the full game will
include 67 divisions spanning 41 countries and over 30 stadiums. Several other
features of the full game are omitted, and the demo will operate for 90 days of
game time, but progress in the demo can be transferred to the full game. The 876
MB download is available on
AtomicGamer,
ComputerGames.ro,
FanGaming,
FileFront,
Games On Net, Gamer's
Hell, and
PixelRage.
Battle.net announces a policy change for Blizzard's online service, saying
they've identified and closed over 350,000 accounts for using third-party hacks
to cheat at Diablo II and StarCraft II. They have long had a
policy of banning accounts for cheating, but the new twist is that the CD keys
associated with those counts have also been restricted from playing on
Battle.net for approximately one month, and repeat offenders risk having their
CD keys banned permanently. In conclusion, they state: "Cheating ruins the game
experience for legitimate players, and we will not tolerate it." Thanks
GamesIndustry.biz.
The
Dungeons and Dragons Online Q&A on Massive Gamer Magazine talks with
Kate Paiz, senior producer on Dungeons and Dragons Online, Turbine's D&D
MMORPG. The conversation covers "Prisoners of Prophecy," the recently launched
eighth module for the game, as well as future plans. These include the goal of
expanding the role of hirelings in the game, the launch of module 9 on or around
the third anniversary of the game on February 28, 2009, a bit on the module 10
that will follow, and the long-awaited introduction of Druids sometime later
next year.
Meet the Team - Bill Roper on the Champions Online Website adds
Cryptic's new hire to the roster of employees so profiled. For
those looking to crack wise, the conclusion of his description of his résumé
kind of beats you to the punch: "I’ve been in the industry for just over 14
years. I started by doing voice-over and music on Blackthorne for Blizzard
Entertainment and then moved onto Warcraft: Orcs & Humans to create the world
fiction, write the missions, put together the manual and basically everything
and anything else they asked of me. Over the next 9 years I worked on the
Warcraft, Starcraft and Diablo franchises and did everything from design to
production to working with outside developers and leading internal strike teams
to press, marketing and eventually becoming a vice president. In 2003, I started
Flagship Studios (and later Ping0) with the core team of people that created
Diablo and we put out our first game, Hellgate: London, in October 2007. We also
were working on a casual online MMO called Mythos when we had to close the
studio in July 2008. I’m looking forward not only to bringing what I’ve learned
from the numerous successes I’ve worked on to Cryptic and Champions Online, but
also what I learned from the failures."
A few years ago Hudson the wonder dog was injured in an attack by another dog as
we walked the local doggie trail, an unfortunate incident I described
here at the time. We've ventured back occasionally since then, but I've been
a little too wary of a repeat incident to make it a regular event. Yesterday
afternoon I brought Huddy and the Gunnar-man over there for a romp, and even as
I was considering the benefits of resuming regular trips to the trail, Hudson
had another run-in with another dog. Now just like last time, she did not start
things, but she's probably more at fault this time around, as I think her "once
bitten, twice shy" attitude probably contributed to the dust-up. Anyway, just
like last time, as the other owner stood by helplessly, I dove into the fight
and separated the dogs before either of them got bitten. The same cannot be said
for me, however, as I felt a pinch on my arm as the other dog went after me, and
when I saw the large tear in the sleeve of my leather jacket, I had to thank
goodness I was wearing it, as it was clear that I would have suffered a severe
injury had that bite caught my arm. It turns out I didn't get off scot-free,
though, as there was a small wound beneath. It was more a scrape than a
puncture, so I'm confident I won't get tetanus, but since the other owner and I
parted ways before I noticed the wound, I'll just have to take it on faith that
I'm not going to come down with rabies either.
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