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Archived News:
Rise of the Argonauts Ships
announces that Rise of the Argonauts is now available in Europe,
Australia, and the US, for Windows, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3. Here's a bit on
Liquid Entertainment's mythology-inspired action/RPG: "Rise of the Argonauts
immerses players in a gladiatorial adventure set in a wondrously imagined vision
of ancient Greece. Taking the role of Jason, a hero and expert warrior, players
will battle alongside Hercules, Achilles, Atalanta and other Argonauts as they
engage in brutal, real-time combat against formidable beasts and enemies, in a
vast world alive with fickle gods, jaw-dropping panoramas, deep exploration and
epic quests."
Eurogamer has a follow-up to rumors that surfaced on French site
Jeuxvideo that an expansion titled Uprising is in the works for Command &
Conquer: Red Alert 3. The response they received from EA to their inquiries is
interesting, as it's not a denial as much as a teaser, as they say: "We will
have more information in the New Year."
Take-Two Posts a Loss and Offers Warning for 2009 has word that Take-Two
Interactive posted a fourth quarter net loss and is forecasting lower than
expected revenues for 2009, citing "significant softness” in retail sales.
Losses for the quarter totaled $15 million (20 cents a share), compared with a
loss of $7.1 million (10 cents a share), a year ago (thanks Neutronbeam). As for
next year: "The company forecast first-quarter revenue of $175 million to $225
million, missing Wall Street estimates of $310.75 million on Reuters Estimates."
The report indicates Take-Two stock dipped below $10 a share in after-hours
trading after EA offered $26.00 a share in a takeover bid last
February. One of the reasons EA's takeover of Take-Two failed was concern over
the contracts of Rockstar's Sam and Dan Houser that expire in
February, 2009, but
GameDaily reports that Take-Two has re-signed Rockstar Games, and inked
long-term employment agreements with key members of Rockstar's creative team,
including Sam Houser, Dan Houser and Leslie Benzies that run through January
2012. While this may seem incongruous in light of those loses,
GameDaily also reports that: "Chief Financial Officer Lainie Goldstein
revealed that for the company's fiscal year, GTA IV (plus the catalogue for the
whole franchise) accounted for a whopping $710 million in publishing revenues,
or about 60 percent of Take-Two's total publishing sales. During the fourth
quarter, GTA represented about $40 million in revenues, which is roughly 17
percent of the publisher's sales." Finally,
GameDaily also reports Take-Two is "selectively hiring" in this tough
economy.
Eurogamer has the latest in Tigon Studios apparent efforts at creating a
confused marketing message for Assault on Dark Athena, the upcoming
project that was originally described as a remake of Chronicles of Riddick:
Escape from Butcher Bay before recently being redefined as a
new project with a new 10-hour campaign that also includes that remake. Now
Tigon wants it to be clear that they do not consider Assault on Dark Athena a
sequel to Escape from Butcher Bay, but if demand suffices, they already have
plans for a sequel in mind: "We're not calling it a sequel; we've got a sequel
in mind that's a couple of years out if you guys want it, and you like this and
you tell us you want more."
A tech demo for Cryostasis: Sleep of Reason is now available, offering the
chance to benchmark how your system handles the PhysX effects in this upcoming
first-person horror/action game set in 1968 in the Arctic Circle. This demo
requires Windows Vista, and the 923 MB download is available from
AtomicGamer,
ComputerGames.ro,
FileFront, and Gamer's
Hell.
Version 1.06 of Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 is now available for EA's
real-time strategy sequel, offering an improved AutoMatch function that makes
joining multiplayer games much quicker, and a fix for the "Crane" exploit. Users
who installed the beta patch are already set, and everyone else is urged to
update through the in-game update utility. A manual patch is available for
roll-your-own types, and the various language versions are available from
The Patches Scrolls.
The MyCrysis
Website now offers downloads of a new Crysis Wars patch, updating the
multiplayer portion of Crysis Warhead to version 1.3. The new version
includes a holiday map pack that adds a PowerStruggle map called Savanna and a
TeamInstantAction map called Frost to Crytek's first-person shooter. EA and
Crytek also announce Friday will kick off another free Crysis Wars event that will
last over a week: "Starting today, gamers can take advantage of
this great offer by registering online at
www.mycrysis.com and by downloading Crysis Wars. After registration, players
will receive a unique key generated on the site that will be saved to their
profile, allowing them to play on all online multiplayer servers from Friday,
December 19th at 9:00 AM PT to December 28th at 11:59 PM PT." There's a
trailer for the new Frost map on
AtomicGamer and
FileFront and a trailer for the Savanna map on
AtomicGamer and
FileFront. Downloads of the version 1.3 patch are mirrored on
AtomicGamer,
ComputerGames.ro,
FileFront, Gamer's Hell,
and The Patches
Scrolls.
Outspark announces plans for Wind Slayer, an addition to their collection
of subscription-free MMORPG that's set to begin beta testing early next year.
The Wind Slayer Website
has a teaser trailer showing some strange gameplay as described here: "Wind
Slayer introduces blazing fast, side-scrolling 2D action in a combat system that
rewards precise control and timing. The game's visual style evokes images of
nostalgic fairy tales with friendly sprite-based characters and gorgeous fantasy
backgrounds."
Mythic
Entertainment's Warhammer Herald heralds the launch of "Keg End," a live
event that's now underway in Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, offering
an MMO pub crawl that will run from now through January 5. To keep anyone from
doing any drunk dialing, the event also includes the chance to do some drunk
killing, as word is: "Of course, holidays in WAR are never just for celebrating,
and this one is no exception. Ogres have been drawn out of hiding by the scent
of beer and blood, and those who challenge them in combat may be rewarded with
special Keg End loot. Snotlings have also been discovered in ale stores across
the world, and the special brews they’ve snatched could prove extremely useful
for Order and Destruction players alike. Even more incredible are stories
popping up about the legendary Golden Stein, a powerful relic that bestows the
blessings of Grimnir himself on whoever possesses it. Rumors say that it’s been
spotted on battlefields across the Old World, but only the daring and dedicated
will be able to unravel its mysteries as the New Year approaches."
The
City of Heroes Website announces beta testing of the MacOS edition of
City of Heroes is now underway.
This page has all the details
on the think different version of the superhero MMORPG, and it is also where you
can sign up for the beta. A post on the
City
of Heroes Forums by Matt "Positron" Miller explains: "The Mac version of
City of Heroes is now in Open Beta. This means that the Mac clients can only
access the Training Room, and we have lifted all the restrictions for PC users
who can also access to the Training Room. You will start to see a lot of new
faces as more and more Mac players come in for their first taste of City of
Heroes."
A new patch for Far Cry 2 updates the open-world shooter sequel from
Ubisoft to version 1.02, adding widescreen and multiple monitor support while
also addressing a number of bugs and other issues. The patch is a 34 MB
download, which is available from
AtomicGamer,
ComputerGames.ro,
FileFront,
FanGaming, Gamer's
Hell, and The Patches
Scrolls.
A new patch for Sacred 2: Fallen Angel is now available to update Ascaron
Entertainment's action/RPG to version 2.34, offering a content update along with
bug fixes as described in
this
forum post. The patch adds a new area with 24 aboveground sectors and six
underground sectors, 20 new creatures, new NPCs, a new full quest chain, an
additional armor set for each character, new armor items and weapons, as well as
new textures, sounds, and objects to create a snowy environment. Also included
is a beta version of the new Sacred 2 Network, which "includes an extensive
ladder and highscore ranking system allowing you to compare your own performance
to that of other community members. You can even win ranks and orders, and
legendary characters are immortalized in a Heroes' Cemetery and a Hall of Fame.
You can also use the social network to create your own profile then contact
other users, make new friends, or arrange some multiplayer sessions." The US
edition of the patch is available from
AtomicGamer,
FanGaming,
FileFront, and The
Patches Scrolls; while the patches for the other assorted localized editions can
be found on
FileFront and The
Patches Scrolls.
TopWare Entertainment announces details for the Collector's Editions for
X-Blades, which will be available on January 14 along with the standard
Windows, Xbox 360, or PlayStation 3 packages for Gaijin Entertainment's
action/adventure game. Eager collectors, and presumably you know who you are,
can opt for this bundle that includes a 22 cm. hand-painted statue of the
heroine Ayumi, a "top-class" art book, a soundtrack CD, a poster, and a strategy
guide. An additional bonus with the PC edition is a mousepad, suitable for
playing the game, or lording over owners of the console editions to highlight
the misery of a mouse-free existence. The announcement also includes word on the
game's support for multiple languages: "Language-wise, TopWare has also done the
game proud - it's been fully localized in English, French, Italian, German and
Russian - and there are sub-titles in Hungarian, Polish, Czech and Spanish which
can be combined in any way with the speech recordings."
A new patch for Tomb Raider: Underworld updates the latest gaming
adventures of acrobatic archaeologist Lara Croft to version 1.1. The update
applies to the retail boxed edition, and an update for that newfangled digitally
distributed edition will come soon. The download is available from
ActionTrip,
AtomicGamer,
eXp Download,
FileFront, Gamer's Hell,
The Patches
Scrolls,
PixelRage, and
Tomb Raider Chronicles.
The
Fallout 3 DLC Interview on UGO talks with Jeff Gardiner about Bethesda
Softworks' plans to support Fallout 3 with three batches of downloadable content
for the RPG sequel. Things kick off with an explanation that the DLC will drop
into the existing game, and will use your existing character: "Yes, all of our
DLC drops right into an existing game. Which is a double edged sword, or course,
it requires a lot of testing and fine balance tuning on our part! In our third
DLC, 'Broken Steel,' we’ve come up with a way of allowing the player to continue
on past the game ending… by changing it! You will not have to load in a new game
to play any of the DLC material – though you will have to finish the main quest
to experience most of what 'Broken Steel' has to offer. That being said, we are
raising the level cap, so even if you don’t complete the main quest you can
experience the expanded content by leveling up past 20."
BodySound Technologies, Inc. Introduces a $6,000 Video Game Chair announces
the availability of a new gaming chair peripheral, though its $6,000 price tag
may not be perfectly timed for a troubled world economy. Still, for the
well-heeled gamer whose ass craves a "fusion of fine furniture with high-end
audio technology," the BodySound may provide just what they crave, with its
dedicated 7-channel amplifier and Italian leather finish.
AMD and iZ3D Team Up to Deliver Immersive 3D Entertainment has word on new
version 1.09 3D monitor drivers on the iZ3D
Website. The new drivers include support for ATI 3D DLP, and in further ATI
support, they are offering a $50 rebate for owners of ATI graphics cards who
purchase an iZ3D monitor.
Well, I was already feeling good about keeping my DSL line available after
upgrading to a cable modem, since it has helped on a couple of occasions to get
me back online. This good feeling has hit a new level over the past couple of
days, as my cable modem has been offline for over 24 hours now. Thankfully the
DSL doesn't seem to resent being neglected for long periods only to be used and
abused when my surfing need rears its ugly head.
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