Archived News:
Shacknews has word
that some of the America's Army development team has been let go, as the main
Emeryville, CA-based studio for the game is being shuttered, just the day after
the release of the most recent version of the freeware military shooter. Word is
future development to take place at the game's office in Redstone Arsenal, AL,
and there's no word on how many developers have lost their jobs as a result of
this move. "This consolidation will allow us to gain efficiencies between our
public and government applications," is how they quote a representative of the
project. " We appreciate all the hard work that every member of the America's
Army team has contributed to the project, and we look forward to delivering
future America's Army game releases in the months ahead."
Gamasutra
reports that a majority of the assets of German developer Ascaron Entertainment
have been acquired by Kalypso Media, who have established a new studio called
Gaming Minds Studios staffed by 15 former members of Ascaron. Apparently
Ascaron's most recent project, Sacred 2, is not part of the deal, which does
include some IP: Port Royale, Darkstar One, On the Ball,
and The Patrician.
The Dawn Of War II
Website announces plans for a major update for the RTS sequel this summer to
be titled "There is Only War," that they say "adds tremendous value to the
multiplayer experience through new features, major balance improvements, and new
content." The update will include a new observer feature, PvP balance changes,
and eight new multiplayer maps. They say they will begin beta testing the update
next month, and that all Dawn of War II owners will be eligible to participate.
GameTap announces the resumption of their
Free Games
Program, and the game they've moved into the gratis zone for this week is
Total Overdose, the third-person shooter set once upon a time in Mexico.
They also announce
Unreal Tournament Game of the Year Edition and Unreal Gold
(URL unknown) are now available to subscribers, and that next week they'll be
adding Rise of Nations.
A new version 1.03 R2 dedicated server for Windows is now available for Far
Cry 2, Ubisoft's sequel to Crytek's first-person shooter. The new version
clears up a couple of bugs and updates the read-me. Downloads can be found on
AtomicGamer and
Gamer's Hell.
The
Company of Heroes Website warns of a possible disruption of service as they
update the Company of Heroes Server: We will be bringing the Company of
Heroes server offline for an update today. The update is aimed at addressing a
number of issues, such as searches on the leaderboards not always showing
results.
We apologize for the interruption in your gaming and thank you for your patience
as we work to improve your online experience.
Tripwire Interactive announces the
Killing
Floor Grindhouse Custom Map Making Competition. The competition includes
over $20,000 in prizes, with a grand prize of 10K.
The Jumpgate Evolution
Interview on Ten Ton Hammer hears from Hermann Peterscheck about the
upcoming revival of their space-based MMORPG. Topics include how much of the
original Jumpgate is in Evolution, lore, why three is the magic number for
factions (not to mention Tootsie Pops), and some specifics about gameplay.
Xbox Live boss quits for EA has word that John Schappert is leaving
Microsoft to become the new COO of Electronic Arts, while
this article explains Microsoft is now filing his empty post. As for former
(pushed out?) COO John Pleasants,
this article outlines his new role at
Playdom, purveyors of games on MySpace and FaceBook.
The World of Warcraft Test Realm Patch Notes now list changes for the
upcoming version 3.2.0 patch for Blizzard's MMORPG juggernaut. The notes outline
new areas that are now in testing as well as the completion of the Crusaders'
Coliseum, though this is not yet online. Also mentioned is new druid art, new
portals, new mailboxes, and of course and extensive list of balance changes.
There's no indication of when the patch is expected on the live servers. Thanks
IncGamers.
The
Total War Blog promises a new patch next week to update Empire: Total War
to version 1.3, saying the patch is expected on Monday, June 22. The post
outlines what's planned for the patch, which includes multi-threading for
multi-core CPUs, optimizations for single-core machines, multiplayer tweaks, bug
fixes, and 14 free units to replace generic units, "giving each faction a unique
identity on the battlefield." They also offer descriptions of these new units.
Steam announces a new
automatic update is now available for RailWorks, offering tweaks and bug
fixes for the transport simulation.
MacNN
reports on plans to bring The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena
to the Mac platform, though no release date is announced for the Mac edition of
the first-person shooter remake from Starbreeze Studios. Word is: "The Mac
version will also feature six multiplayer modes not present in the PlayStaytion
[sic] 3 or Xbox 360 versions," though there's no indication of cross-platform
multiplayer support with the PC edition.
A new patch for Men of War updates BestWay's World War II real-time
strategy sequel to version 1.11.13.1. Word is the patch applies to all versions of
the game, including those from Direct2Drive or Digital River. The patch is
available on AtomicGamer,
FileFront, and
Gamer's Hell. That said, a separate patch for the Metaboli version is on
AtomicGamer. Update: This turns out to be a repackaged version of a previous patch.
A new trailer for Blood Bowl offers a look at the upcoming "ultra-violent
mix of Warhammer Fantasy and American football." Word is: "This video gives you
a preview of the 8 races all with the same thing on their minds: crush their
opponent and win the Blood Bowl! Definitely eager to fight, the teams are not
afraid of their adversaries and won't miss an opportunity to taunt and provoke
them!" The clip is available on
ActionTrip,
FileFront, and Gamer's
Hell.
Alt
Text - A Hard-Core Proposal for Gamers. Thanks Mike Martinez.
So here’s my proposal. Every game, in addition to the standard easy,
medium and expert modes, must have a “1988 mode.” In 1988 mode, you don’t
get to save the game, ever. If you lose, you start over from the beginning
of the game. Every hit from an enemy reduces your hit points by 25 percent,
minimum. Extra lives and hit points are tough to come by, not handed out
like Mardi Gras beads to bosomy exhibitionists.
Sessler's Soapbox - To the Left 4 Dead 2 Petitioners.
By now, most of you have heard about the Left 4 Dead 2 internet petition
claiming that the sequel should be released free to owners of the first
game, fulfilling Valve's promise to support Left 4 Dead with free DLC. Well
I'm sure you've guessed it by now, but Adam has something to say on this
subject. Check out the Feed story about the Left 4 Dead 2 boycott petition,
and then press play to find out how The Sess feels.
Okay, so I have hit the next noteworthy stage in the evolution of my
relationship with the squirrels raiding the bird feeder. I described how I had
to over-tighten two nuts to keep the squirrels from taking the feeder apart, but
the other day I found it dismantled once again, as there was a third nut on the
bottom I overlooked. This time I couldn't even find all the parts to put it back
together, and I wouldn't put it past the little geniuses to have deliberately
hidden them. The new stage this triggered is that this finally made me mad, the
anger replacing my previous detached sort of bemusement at the whole
situation. This lead me to the store in search of a more worthy feeder, and yes,
I believe acquisition of a second feeder is probably another key milestone for
the newbie bird-feeder. Anyway, I found a spring-powered one that works as
described in a couple of forum posts: by closing off the feeding holes under the
heavier weight of a squirrel. So far it's been very effective, the squirrels
don't seem to have figured out yet how to thwart it. I took amusement in
noticing the wire it hangs from was twisted around a few times... obviously they
took a crack at their proven unscrewing method, but that's not how this one
comes apart, and they seem to have given up even trying for the time being. It's
too early to declare victory in the squirrel war, but I think I may have won a
battle.
|
Twitter 
