Archived News:
Battlefront.com announces PT Boats South Gambit, a standalone expansion for PT Boats: Knights of the Sea that's due for release later this month. The new game, which does not require the original to play, will offer more naval combat set in the Pacific theatre of World War II, along with new units, enhanced graphics, and improved AI. This page has details and screenshots, while even more details and system requirements can be found here. Here's word: You will join battle in the Mediterranean and transport British troops and supplies to Libya and Tunis, and escort convoys to the besieged island of Malta; just as if you were participating in the real historical operations “Harpoon”, “Vigorous” and “Pedestal”. Then you will be relocated to the Black Sea, where some of the most dramatic historical battles were raging. Nazi “Kriegsmarine” will do its best to disrupt sea communications between Sevastopol and Novorossiysk. So, you and your PT boat will play an important role in night raids against enemy bases and then in artillery attacks on the German Navy in Yalta and Anapa.
The Vindictus Website has word that open beta testing of this Source-engine MMORPG will kick off tomorrow. Word is: "At that time, all players in the Continental US and Canada will have the opportunity to join the battle against the Fomors, and Early Access Beta testers will be able to keep their characters along with any leveling, skills, items and gold they have acquired!" Thanks Acleacius.
Stardock Entertainment announces they have hired Derek Paxton as a senior producer, and the designer of the Fall from Heaven series who has also contributed to Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword and Civilization V will oversee ongoing development of Elemental: War of Magic and development of expansions for the recently released fantasy-themed strategy game. "This is the opportunity to marry my professional project manager career with my passion for game design," said Paxton. "I'm especially excited to work with the talented people at Stardock who have always been focused on creating great PC strategy games. I'm currently immersing myself in the world of Elemental, and I think everyone will be excited to see what is coming from Stardock Entertainment."
GOG.com announces the addition of Betrayal in Antara to their DRM-free digital marketplace, saying this is free along with Betrayal at Krondor, with the pairing to henceforth be known as the Betrayal at Krondor pack.
A new hotfix is now available for the just-released European edition of ArcaniA: Gothic 4, the RPG sequel from Spellbound Entertainment. The patch is hosted on AtomicGamer, The Patches Scrolls, and WorthPlaying, and it is also available as an automatic update through Steam.
Matrix Games now offers a new patch for Empires in Arms that they are calling a "mega-update" to bring the Napoleonic grand strategy game to version 1.08.04. Word is: "The update includes dozens of important bug fixes, rule fixes, gameplay and interface enhancements and AI enhancements, as well as some improvements for Windows 7. This is a must-have update for owners of Empires in Arms and we strongly recommend that all players upgrade to this new version as soon as possible." The patch is available here and mirrored on AtomicGamer, FileFront, and Gamer's Hell.
Steam now offers an automatic patch to update R.U.S.E., Ubisoft's real-time strategy game. The patch includes four bug fixes, including one to address frequent desync issues.
The version 1.81 path for Sol Survivor recently released on Steam is now also available for the Impulse edition of the multiplayer tower defense game. The new version addresses a handful of bugs.
The Din's Curse Demos Page now offers updated version 1.008 demos for both the PC and Mac editions of Din's Curse, Soldak Entertainment's action/RPG. Word is: "Not only does the demo have the latest and greatest changes, we also increased the level limit to 6 so players can get a better feeling for the game."
The Miner Wars Website announces that their decision to sell the pre-alpha version of the game at a discount has been a success, as many customers have already purchased the game. They also make good on their commitment to provide frequent updates, offering a patch for the pre-alpha with a number of enhancements for this singe-player and MMO space shooter.
Link of the Day: Eric Stoltz Was The Original Marty McFly. Thanks Ant. Marty McBrundlefly. And yes, it's the link of the day just so I could make that joke.
2K Games and Gearbox Software announce the release of the Borderlands Game of the Year Edition for Windows and Xbox 360. The bundle includes Borderlands, the shooter/RPG, as well as tokens to download the game's four DLC packs, as well as the promised certificate for the Duke Nukem Forever First Access Club, a Super Adventure Club spinoff that "entitles owners to a wealth of ballistic bonuses, including early access to a playable demo of the legendary, long-awaited video game - Duke Nukem Forever." In case it's not clear, Eurogamer quotes Gearbox's Steve Gibson saying the DNF demo will eventually be released for all: "When we put Borderlands out this wasn't even possible to do or contemplate. So that's kind of difficult, but yeah, the demo is coming out for everybody."
The new version 4.01 patch for World of Warcraft mentioned yesterday is already live, according to the WoW current patch notes. The update to Blizzard's MMORPG adds the promised Cataclysm Launcher Update, special Reforging NPCs, and more. Word is: "World of Warcraft: Cataclysm will be in stores on December 7, 2010 and the time has come to prep for the official launch by implementing its first major patch. Players can experience many major game and user interface systems updates in the first official patch for the upcoming third expansion, patch 4.0.1."
CCP announces the EVE Online: Commissioned Officer Edition, a new upcoming boxed version of EVE Online that will be geared towards allowing new pilots to advance more quickly in the science-fiction MMORPG. This will be available in North American stores next week on October 19, and it is available for preorder from a number of retailers, but no release date is yet offered for other territories. They also note that this version of the game will not be offered through digital distribution. Here's word: This latest boxed edition will include an exclusive in-game item, the Cerebral Accelerator, which is a military-grade implant that significantly increases a new pilot’s skill development. While they are a very strong boost to nearly all abilities, these bonuses are temporary and are only effective for the first 30 days of a pilot’s life as they get up to speed in the universe.
The Commissioned Officer Edition also includes a CD key for starting a new account, 30 days paid game subscription time and an EVE poster with helpful hints and tips for getting started on the reverse side. This edition can be used to start a new account or to convert a free trial or buddy program trial account into a full account with the access and benefits afforded to all EVE subscribers. The Cerebral Accelerator will be delivered to the first character created on the account and cannot be acquired through any other source.
EA announces the release of Medal of Honor, the new installment in the military shooter series that takes it from World War II into a present day setting. Here's word: Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS), today announced that Medal of Honor™ is now available at retail stores in North America. Co-developed by EA’s Danger Close™ Studio in Los Angeles and DICE in Stockholm, Medal of Honor heralds the return of EA’s storied first person shooter franchise with award-winning multiplayer combat and stunningly authentic single-player incursions. Set in today’s real-world war zone and inspired by actual missions in Afghanistan, Medal of Honor was developed with unprecedented access to the U.S. Army as well as active and retired Tier 1 Operators. The game brings a new level of authenticity to interactivity, inspired by soldiers’ stories from the war in Afghanistan, which the NY Times Magazine calls, “…transgressively real.”
bitComposer Games announces plans to bring their arcade space shooter Ion Assault to Windows next month, exclusively through Steam, offering PC users this game which combines "familiar skilled arcade shooter elements with the game principle of classics such as Asteroids, and embellishes it with some innovative ideas." Here's more: The sparks sure do fly in Ion Assault! The player finds himself in his spaceship surrounded by millions of nano particles; you’d better harness this swirling dust and use it to fend off swarms of enemies and obstacles. The player must use some smart particle suction and shooting to quickly blast adversaries out of the way. The player’s journey takes him through four different sectors each with 6 levels and a mighty boss waiting at the end of each sector. The “dynamic level intensity” in Ion Assault makes it easily accessible for beginners, while setting new challenges for hardcore gamers. The graphics and sound enhance the adrenaline-fueled atmosphere and make Ion Assault a must-have for fans of exhilarating arcade action!
The Bethesda Blog now offers a few trailers from last night's episode of X-Play where they focused on Fallout: New Vegas, Obsidian's upcoming RPG sequel. In one clip Chris Avellone discusses the game's story with Morgan Webb, and there are five additional clips on the topics of the setting, features, art, weapons, and characters.
This new trailer is a clip currently airing as a television commercial showing off elements from the solo campaign in Call of Duty: Black Ops, the upcoming military shooter sequel in development at Treyarch. The trailer offers several cinematic snippets, concluding with a disturbing Deer Hunter call out. The embedded version follows, guarded by our gullible bouncer. Continue here to read the full story.
There's a Trine 2 Preview on 1UP.com with an interview with Frozenbyte CEO Lauri Hyvärinen about the upcoming puzzle/platformer sequel, along with a trailer showing it off. Topics of the conversation include objectives for the sequel, the addition of co-op support, new powers, graphics, locations, music, the possibilities of licensing the Trine engine, wariness of mobile versions, and more. The included Trine 2 trailer offers a brief tease of gameplay showing off the game's lush visuals.
Raph Koster - The Fundamentals of Game Design. A reprint. Thanks Ant via Boing Boing.
There’s really only one way, right now. You prototype and iterate. Don’t get hung up on the visuals, except for worrying about whether you are giving enough feedback. The best games can be played using sticks and stones. (You can play most roleplaying games with pretty much any random chance generator, for example).
As much as I like to fancy myself a non-idiot, I keep coming up with evidence to the contrary. Over the weekend we visited the local nursery to pick up some pumpkins to decorate our porch for the season, and along the way met the nursery owner's new umbrella cockatoo. His old one was a cranky bird, who only liked about two people, and while I happened to be one of them, his owner was not, so he eventually gave it away. His new bird is much more people-oriented, and was a lot of fun to interact with. At one point she started gently kissing my finger through the cage, so I cleverly stuck my nose through the bars to collect a better birdie smooch. If you are waiting for the part with the evidence I am an idiot, we are upon it: I now look like I've been punched in the nose from the swelling, and I have a nifty little gash on the top of it where the bird's beak penetrated the skin, though it could have been far worse, of course, as this bird was clearly capable of giving my schnoz the Michael Jackson treatment. The owner thinks she may have been reacting to the shine of my sunglasses, as she'd never bitten anyone before, but she did once latch onto a woman's necklace attracted by the glitter. This did not actually harm our little friendship, as he opened her cage and I got to pet her quite a bit without it resulting in further bloodshed.
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