Archived News:
Ubisoft confirms their controversial new DRM scheme that requires a constant online connection will be used in Splinter Cell: Conviction, Silent Hunter 5: Battle of the Atlantic, Assassin's Creed 2, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, and the new Ghost Recon game, reports Softpedia by way of PC Gamer magazine. They offer a quote from a Ubisoft spokesperson: "It's hard for us to say, yes, from now until the day that we all die all of our games are going to include this but most will." Thanks Shacknews.
There's a State of the Game update on the Star Trek Online Website talking about future plans for Cryptic's Trekkie MMORPG now that it's left the spaceport. Topics include their efforts towards increasing server capacity, reviving the Tribble public test server, plans for update #1, and beyond. The following items are on their list of things they are working on bringing to the game: • Respec
• Death Penalty
• Difficulty Slider
• More open auto-fire
• Replayable missions
• Improving Memory Alpha
• Fixing those Commodity missions
Here are some new additions to GOG.com's DRM-free marketplace. They now offer adventure classics Kings Quest 4, 5 and 6 as well as turn-based strategy sequel Call to Power 2. Also, accompanying the release of Gabriel Knight 2 earlier this week they have a new Gabriel Knight 2 retrospective. They are also offering their Majesco catalogue for 50% off.
An "announce" trailer for Sid Meier's Civilization V is now available, offering cinematics from the upcoming turn-based strategy sequel, but no gameplay. Here's the embedded version. Continue here to read the full story.
The Battlefield Blog has a Battlefield: Bad Company 2 U.S. and European TV spot for your viewing pleasure. I can't say what it shows, since as a creature of habit, I run to the bathroom every time a commercial comes on.
Okay, it's been a pretty rough couple of days at the BlueTower as the weather has caused frequent brownouts, and with the cable down today we're on a DSL connection, which has not helped with today's flood of movies. Hopefully the cable will be back tomorrow so we can catch up on the rest of those movies, but I'm not really complaining right now, as apparently half our village has no power at all at this moment, so it could be a lot worse.
Link of the Day: Simon names who’s ‘So Vain’ — sort of. Thanks WalterEgo. Dang! I always thought that song was about me.
The Crytek Website has a new CryENGINE 3 demonstration with the super-geeky title: "Cascaded Light Propagation Volumes for Real Time Indirect Illumination." This consists of a paper in Adobe Acrobat format, a PowerPoint presentation, and a movie, described like this: "This I3D 2010 paper is a result of collaborative research with Carsten Dachsbacher. The LPV technique was extended to support secondary occlusion and multiple bounces. The propagation scheme is improved and compared to similar Discrete Ordinate Methods. Also this paper describes many additional application and implementation details." The trailer shows off what this means to the end-user, as it demonstrates some impressive real-time lighting and shadow rendering in Crytek's next-generation engine. Thanks inCrysis. The HD version of the clip is embedded here. Continue here to read the full story.
Dungeons & Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited has attracted over one million new players since the Dungeons & Dragons MMORPG dropped mandatory subscription fees in September 2009, announces Turbine. They also state the game's paid subscriber rate has doubled over that time, while the DDO in-game store generates triple the industry average activity, which have combined to increase the franchise's revenue by more than 500% since September. "The launch of DDO Unlimited has been a huge success and has really taken the game to a new level," said Executive Producer Fernando Paiz. "As we celebrate our 4th birthday, the game has never been better and we’re just getting started with more adventure packs, more store items, and other innovative features coming in the major updates we have planned throughout 2010."
The Natural Selection 2 Website reveals the Lerk ( No. 1 - The Lerk!), another of the alien critters lurking in the FPS/RTS sequel in the works at Unknown Worlds. They offer extensive details on the alien side's primary ranged and support fighter, along with screenshots, concept art, and an introductory trailer.
Avalanche Studios has suspended development of AionGuard, their planned fantasy-themed open-world adventure game, reports Develop. The game was never formally announced, but it was revealed early last year when we learned it had already been in development for two years. AionGuard was described by Avalanche at the time as offering strategic warfare on a grand scale with thousand-unit armies, featuring elite AionGuard units described as a mashup of "WWI dogfighter pilots, Samurai and medieval knights." Avalanche CEO Christofer Sundberg explains the game's shelving to Develop: "Aionguard it… it took a strange direction. We attached a licence to it and changed the whole game. We’ll continue to talk to publishers about it and hopefully one day we’ll work on it again." As for why, apparently Avalanche didn't need a mountain to fall on them to realize that a tough economy might not be time to take risks on a new IP, as Sundberg implies their next project will be an established property: "What happened I think with Aionguard is that it wasn’t the time for a new IP."
The launch trailer is now online for the new Venice add-on for Dawn of Discovery, the strategy/management prequel. The clip shows off the architecture and famed canals of Venice, highlights the multiplayer support included with the expansion, and hints at the dangers of Volcano Island (not that the island's name isn't a tip-off to wear your asbestos skivvies). The HD clip follows. Continue here to read the full story.
The Star Wars: The Old Republic Website lets us know we'll always have Taris, as they have posted a new Star Wars: The Old Republic Developer Dispatch called Returning to Taris, describing efforts to re-colonize the post-apocalyptic planet. Also, Issue 27 of Threat of Peace is online with the final installment in the web comic supplying the back story for the Star Wars MMORPG. Word is the new issue: "concludes the volume with a surprising turn of events as Jedi Knight Satele Shan, Fortris Gall, and Special Forces Lieutenant Tavus report their battle with the Sith to Master Orgus Din. The story comes full circle when Braden the Bounty Hunter finally completes the contract which got him tied up in this mess in the first place."
An updated version of the English demo fro M.U.D. TV is now available, as the version of the demo released earlier this week failed to include an ESRB rating. As before, the demo offers a sample of this game that simulates the operation of a television network, featuring the first two levels from the full game. Downloads can be found on AtomicGamer and WorthPlaying.
BioWare's Cerberus Network Page has details on a new Firewalker pack to be released for Mass Effect 2 next month (thanks Destructoid). The new content is free to owners of the Cerberus Network, which is included with new copies of BioWare's action/RPG sequel, but must be purchased by the dastardly scoundrels who buy the game used. Here's word on the pack: Download the Firewalker pack and gain access to 5 new missions featuring the Hammerhead. The Hammerhead is a heavy assault vehicle that hovers over the battlefield at up to 120 kilometers per hour and features a guided missile system ensuring accuracy even during aggressive maneuvering. Coming late March, free to all Cerberus Network members!
A new beta version 0.2.0 of the MechWarrior: Living Legends modification for Crysis is now available, updating this first-person shooter/simulation hybrid that recalls the gameplay in MechWarrior 2. The change log offers the extensive list of changes in the new version, which includes a new installer and online cheating protection.
A post on German website GBASE offers minimum system specifications for Splinter Cell: Conviction they say are supplied by Ubisoft Germany. The specs call for a Core 2 Duo CPU at 1.8 GHz or an Athlon X2 64 at 2.4 GHz, 1.5 GB RAM for XP or 2 GB RAM for Vista/Windows 7, a 256 MB GeForce 7800 or Radeon X1800 graphics card, 10 GB hard disk space, and a 1Mbps internet connection. They say the recommended specs call for a 512 MB GeForce 8800 GS or Radeon 4670 graphics card and a 2 Mbps internet connection. The internet connection requirement suggests the game will use Ubisoft's new online DRM.
Square Enix announces the promised details on the Just Cause 2 demo, saying the sample of the action game sequel will pull the ripcord on March 4 on Steam, PlayStation Network, and the Xbox LIVE Marketplace. Word is: "the Just Cause 2 demo will feature a massive 35 square miles of the Lautan Lama Desert, a vast expanse of stunning, sun-scorched scenery taking up just one of the many islands in the 400 square miles of the Panau archipelago. Packed with towns, villages, military installations, mountain ranges, missions and more, the demo will feature an astonishing amount of activities for the player... and opportunities for adrenaline-fuelled chaos are limitless." More details are below. Continue here to read the full story.
BlizzCast Episode 13 is a StarCraft II beta special, discussing the testing that's underway for Blizzard's real-time strategy sequel (thanks StarcraftWire.net). When asked about beta testing the map editor, Chris Sigaty volunteers an estimate of how long the beta will continue, saying they are still looking to release the first installment of the game in the first half of this year: You haven't asked this question yet, but I'll answer it ahead of time. We were targeting three to five months for the beta, we're really at a three month period of time for the beta at this point. We are still targeting the first half of this year, so with that in mind, it really shortens the window of time with our major content patch coming out pretty close to the end whether it's even worth it putting out the map editor at that point.
On a related note, a new version 0.3.14048 of the StarCraft II Beta is now available.
Ubisoft announces that Dawn of Discovery: Venice is now available, as well as Dawn of Discovery: Gold Edition, which combines the new Venice add-on with Dawn of Discovery, the RTS it expands with new content and an all-new multiplayer mode. Both Venice and the gold Edition are available digitally through the Ubisoft Digital Store. A list of key features follows. Continue here to read the full story.
Matrix Games announces the release of a new patch for Armada 2526 to update the turn-based/real time strategy hybrid to version 1.024. Word is: "Specifically, an automatic population transport feature has been added to reduce the micromanagement involved transporting population around the galaxy, the research speed and bureaucracy growth rate have scaled to game size and can now be set manually, improved support for mods has been added, bugs have been fixed, and much more. In addition, there have been several balance changes with the overall aim of promoting bigger, more interesting battles, greater use of ground units, and more research specialization." The patch, available here, also includes updated versions of .NET and DirectX, which are required.
NCsoft announces Aion: The Official Magazine, a digital-only publication for their MMORPG Aion which will offer a new in-game item with each monthly issue, offering a way to add another subscription fee to the process. The magazine will debut on March 26, and new issues will follow about every four weeks.
GamePro - Analysis: Digital Rights Management in PC gaming.
It's not clear, however, that copy protection ever effectively deterred software criminals. When illegal distribution first became a serious issue during the 1980s, PC software developers like Infocom and Sierra attempted to maintain control of their products by bundling games with gratuitous goodies that doubled as DRM. Players were usually required to consult a game's manual for fictional codes or recipes in order to play; The Secret of Monkey Island included an infamous "Dial-A-Pirate" spinning toy that doubled as a copy protection code wheel.
Digital Trends - Microsoft Should Never Have Built the Xbox.
Let’s talk about opportunity cost, which is the cost of not doing something. Let’s go back to Microsoft’s initial choice, which was to develop a separate game platform for a market selling in the low millions with small margins and royalties, or improve the game experience in a platform selling in the hundreds millions at huge margins. That was the decision that had to be made, and by building the Xbox, Windows gaming became less strategic. PRJ’s arguments one through four are valid, but only because Microsoft made this deliberate shift. Had they put the same effort into Windows gaming and targeted the same result, the company could have used a variety of tools from hardware certification to virtual machines to provide a similar experience on gaming PCs. The consumer segment of the PC market is around 75 million users, and Microsoft has around 90% market share. However, most of the other 10% is owned by Apple and this longtime rival owns nearly 90% of the premium market.
We have well over a foot of snow out there today, and it's still coming down. Apparently this has affected the cable in our area, as our main internet connection is down. There are only a couple of times a year that my backup DSL connection comes in handy, but on occasions like today when it does, it is a godsend.
Here's an HTML artist's depiction of this morning's view from the windows in the BlueTower:
R.I.P.: Andrew Koenig Found Dead in Vancouver. Thanks Ant.
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