Archived News:
The Associated Press reports Activision has countersued former Infinity Ward executives Jason West and Vince Zampella, who sued their former employers last month claiming breach of contract and wrongful termination. The countersuit likewise alleges "breach of contract," saying West and Zampella held up development on other Call of Duty games in an attempt to gain more money. Word is: "The company is seeking to withhold additional payments to the men, who they claim also kept bonuses from Infinity Ward employees." Kotaku reached out to West and Zampella and heard from their lawyer, and if you were expecting them to side with Activision, you were mistaken, as the axed execs' attorney says: "Activision's inaccurate and misguided allegations lose sight of the reality here: None of the false claims of insubordination or breach of duties had any negative affect [sic] on Activision — none." Kotaku also has the legal documents.
GameInformer.com reveals the May cover story on their print magazine will be for Bulletstorm, the upcoming shooter form Epic's People Can Fly studio first revealed through a trademark filing late last year. Word is: "As the name suggests, players will take on hideous mutants in a flurry of lead, all the while racking up combos that encourage variety over headshot after headshot. It’s impressive stuff, and after reading our 10-page feature you’ll have an idea why Epic Games bought a majority stake in People Can Fly after seeing it demoed for the first time."
The Warhammer Herald has a follow-up on how Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning customers have been overbilled for their subscriptions (thanks Voodoo Extreme). Word is: "As of now we have received confirmation that the charges have been reversed. Depending on your financial institution and when they deposit the refunded charges back to your account it may take up to 3 business days for this refund to be reflected in your statement. To ensure a fast resolution we recommend you contact your financial institution first. For additional information on what you can do and how to seek additional assistance see this post."
Senscape Interactive announces it has launched operations as a new game development studio in Argentina. The studio was formed by Agustín Cordes, the designer and director of the Scratches horror/adventure. The Senscape Interactive Website is online, and here's what they are revealing at this time about their debut project: "A new horror adventure is brewing at Senscape Interactive under an enigmatic shroud of secrecy. Currently dubbed 'Unnamable Project,' until its final name is unveiled, the title aims to become one of the most heart-stopping and menacing games ever produced. 'We have been hard at work on this game for a long time,' said Agustín. 'We are confident that it will impress in all its aspects but primarily as a genuinely scary experience. This is exactly what fans of Scratches have been waiting for'."
Steam News has word that episodes one and two of The Scourge Project are now available, offering this co-op focused third-person shooter at a 10% discount for its first week of availability. Word is: "This two-episode bundle offers more than 5 hours of gameplay spanning 4 complete levels, with up to 4 Player Co-op Campaign Mode, 4 Unique Playable Characters to choose from, an arsenal of weapons and special abilities, thrilling boss-fights and environmental puzzles. Jump into a variety of multiplayer modes such as Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag and Frontiers, all of which allow up to 16 Players."
Impulse announces the release of a free Battle Tactics expansion for "all registered Total Annihilation Impulse customers via the Impulse client." Battle Tactics features 100 new missions, four new units, keyboard shortcuts, and six new multiplayer maps for the old-school real-time strategy game developed by Cavedog Entertainment. New purchases of the game on Impulse now include both the Core Contingency and Battle Tactics expansions.
The Anthony Castoro interview on The MMO Gamer talks with the co-founder and CEO of Heatwave Interactive about their recent acquisition of the IP and assets of cancelled MMORPG Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising. He discusses how they are playing the game for a few months to help formulate a plan on how to change it going forward, and hashes through the pros and cons of the business models they will choose between.
Planet Vampire has the release of a combo pack of mods for Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines, as the Wesp, Camarilla, and Companion mods for the action/RPG have all combined forces. To use the integrated mod you must first install the most recent version 6.9 of the unofficial patch for the game. There is also talk of adding the Clan Quest modification in a future release. Thanks Acleacius.
The Project Reality Website now offers a new version 0.91 of this Battlefield 2 modification focused on the reality in its title. This forum post fosters discussion of the new version. Thanks littleme via Tactical Gamer.
Dejobaan Games is offering a free game if you join their super adventure club. Thanks Joystiq.
Game Rant has an image from the current issue of the Official PlayStation Magazine (UK) that indicates next month's issue will unveil details about the next Call of Duty game. The magazine has a May 17 street date, though subscribers will get their copies a few days before that. One interpretation of a recent ARG is that it relates to this next CoD game, which is the subject of much speculation that it will be set during the Vietnam War. Thanks Joker961.
Blizzard has begun rolling out the promised World of Warcraft: Cataclysm class information. They offer new details on the Shaman, the Priest, the Warlock, the Warrior, and the Death Knight, with a separate article explaining: "in Cataclysm, death knights will have a dedicated tanking tree, much like the other three tank classes. That tree will be Blood." Still due over the rest of today are further details on the Rogue, Hunter, Druid, and Mage, while the final class preview for the Paladin will not come out until next week.
The Trine Downloads Page now offers downloads of the version 1.06 patch for Trine that was released automatically via Steam on Wednesday. A number of changes are involved, including the removal of the copy-protection from the North American and European editions of the action/platformer. The patch is mirrored on ActionTrip. The patch notes follow. Continue here to read the full story.
Steam News announces the release of a new patch for Supreme Commander 2 that will be applied automatically the next time owners of Gas Powered Games' real-time strategy sequel launch Steam. The new version adds a bunch of new features, including a ranked 1v1 system, as well as bug fixes. Here are the patch notes. Continue here to read the full story.
Matrix Games now offers another new patch for Distant Worlds, calling the new version 1.0.3 of CodeForce's 4X space strategy game a "major update," and saying: "The new comprehensive 1.0.3 update comes with over two dozen fixes for gameplay issues, improved stability and memory usage, and much more." The patch can be found on this page.
EA and Crytek announce sci-fi author Richard Morgan ( Altered Carbon, Broken Angels) is writing the story for Crysis 2 (bringing "his trademark visceral writing style to the project"), clarifying Morgan's collaboration with EA, which was first revealed late last year. "Video games are one of the only things in my life I would qualify as a complete addiction," said Richard Morgan. "The medium has every bit the potential for exciting and emotionally charged storytelling as literature and film, and I'm excited to explore this format on my first project in partnership with a world class developer like Crytek." Also, an expanded direct-feed version of the ShakyCam teaser clip recently shown in Times Square is now available, and this is embedded below. Continue here to read the full story.
There's an article about Fabled Lands on bit-tech.net looking at an MMORPG cancelled years ago by Eidos that was to be based on the Fabled Lands game-books ( Quest in the U.S.) by U.K. authors Dave Morris and Jamie Thompson. The article goes in-depth with information about the series itself, the type of game it was supposed to be, and what ultimately derailed the project. The article includes extensive quotes from the writers as well as bits of concept art.
The Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City Website now features some trailers created using the movie editor from the PC edition of Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City, the GTA4 DLC bundle due for release for PC and PS3 next week.
Three new clips are available on GameTrailers showing off Lost Planet 2, the upcoming third-person shooter sequel recently confirmed for the PC. There's a Beneath The Ice Trailer, a Vital Suit Weapons Trailer, and a Co-Op Trailer. Thanks Joker961.
Greywardens.com now offers part two of their interview with David Gaider, discussing Dragon Age: Origins with the BioWare writer. Topics include how writing for games differs from writing other forms of fiction, tabletop games, the importance of story in RPGs, difficult aspects of his job, and some questions about specific moments in Dragon Age.
A new version 1.9.0 beta 6.9 of the Doomsday Engine DOOM port is now available. These release notes outline what's changed in the new version. Thanks Ant via Doomworld.
Thanks Joker961.
GamesRadar - Why co-op can be a terrible idea.
So, F.E.A.R. 3 (I’m not calling it F.3.A.R. until Warner Bros. send a gang of samurai around to make me) has co-op then. Yay! Co-op! It makes everything better!
Or so goes the logic of the woefully misguided. Because it actually doesn’t. No, while it’s good in the right place, co-op just for co-op’s sake is more than capable of ruining what would otherwise be a perfectly pleasant experience. Like a cheeseburger at a wedding dinner. And right now I'm really worried about the effect that it's going to have on F.E.A.R. 3. Here's why.
Co-Optimus - Co-Op Play is the Future of First Person Shooters.
I think it's quite good to hear that developers are realizing that gamers truly desire co-op play in their games. Do they, or we, demand it? I think that's a bit strong. But when you design a game that for all intents and purposes appears to be cooperative and it's left out - that's when we get in an uproar.
- Crysis 2 Screenshots and Art on Blue's News.
- Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck’s Revenge on Blue's News.
Thanks Mike Martinez and Joker961.
Thanks Ant for sending along this Dogs 101 video on Airedale Terriers, explaining the breed. This can serve as equal time for all the writing I've done about rehabilitating Hudson the wonder dog's social skills after she was the victim of a dog attack, as it does a great job of outlining what fantastic dogs they are.
|
Twitter 
