Archived News:
The Shank on Steam Page now offers a playable demo for Shank, the indie action brawler from Klei Entertainment. There's no word on the demo's contents, but here's the one-liner for the game: "Betrayed by the only family he ever knew and left for dead it's up to Shank to seek revenge for the death of his beloved at the hands of the underworld's deadliest assassins." Thanks PC Gamer.
Stronghold Kingdoms is now in open beta testing, allowing users to check out this online game based on Firefly's Stronghold strategy series. After you register an account you can download the game, and there are simple instructions on how to get started. Thanks Big Download.
Though their page for the game has been offline much of the day due to demand, the front page of GOG.com has word that they are now offering Icewind Dale 2 Complete as an updated DRM-free download. For the unfamiliar, here's their write-up on the game: "Icewind Dale 2 is a computer role-playing game and the last title created with the Infinity Engine. The setting of choice is, of course, Faerûn of the Forgotten Realms, home to legendary tales and heroes beyond count. The mechanics come from the Third Edition Dungeons and Dragons ruleset, meticulously adapted to work in a real-time game. The story is just enthralling, good enough to compete with any fantasy novel. The dialogue is rich and enjoyable. The characters memorable. The combat satisfying and expertly paced. The game... An absolute masterpiece. If you don't have it yet - get it now. And if you've already got one... What's the harm in getting yourself a backup?"
Arcen Games now offers a new beta version 4.028 of AI Wars, offering the first beta content from their upcoming Light of the Spire expansion, which is now available for preorder. There is an explanation of why they are being coy about some of the add-on's new features, but they do also outline new things they are willing to discuss.
Steam now offers a new automatic patch for Worms Reloaded, adding Steam Cloud support to the squirmy action sequel, along with other changes. The full patch notes follow. Continue here to read the full story.
Steam News has word on a new version of the Steam client that will install itself the next time you login to Valve's online service. The change list follows. Continue here to read the full story.
- Eschalon: Book II on Steam. Save 20%.
- Grand Theft Auto Classics on Steam. Save 75%.
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas on Steam. Save 75%.
- Grand Theft Auto: Vice City on Steam. Save 75%.
- Grand Theft Auto 3 on Steam. Save 75%.
- Supreme Commander 2 on Steam. Save 66%.
- Supreme Commander 2: Infinite War Battle Pack on Steam. Save 66%.
Still on sale. Continue here to read the full story.
Activision posts higher 3Q earnings, revenue has the latest financial reporting from Activision Blizzard, where third-quarter net income more than tripled on strong sales of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and StarCraft II, and where they have also raised their fiscal outlook for the full year. Word is: "For the three months ended Sept. 30, Activision earned $51 million, or 4 cents per share. This is up from $15 million, or 1 cent per share, a year earlier. Revenue climbed 6 percent to $745 million from $703 million. The company's adjusted earnings of 12 cents per share handily surpassed Wall Street's estimates of 9 cents per share. After adjustments to account for deferred revenue and costs related to games with online components, revenue was $857 million. On this basis, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were expecting much lower revenue of $750 million." GamesIndustry.biz quotes Activision Blizzard CFO Thomas Tippl from a post-report conference call where he told investors in spite of the good results, "We have a number of businesses where the performance is not what we'd like it to be." Computer and Video Games cites that call as the source of word from Activision CEO Eric Hirshberg on plans for 2011 "Hero brand," Spider-Man, X-Men, and Transformers games and that they are also working on "an exciting new kid's property that will feature innovative technology and has the potential to open up a whole new product segment for us."
Atlus and Kylotonn announce The Cursed Crusade, an action/adventure set during the 12th century planned for release next summer for Windows, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3. A teaser trailer is online showing some work-in-progress gameplay footage, and The Cursed Crusade Website is live, offering info, forums, and preorders for the console versions. Here's word: "Set against the backdrop of the Old World, two adventurers--both seasoned warriors--will quest across a Western Europe ablaze with the turmoil of a newly begun Fourth Crusade. Denz, a holy Templar, and Esteban, a roguish mercenary, may have different origins, but their motivations are the same: amidst the danger and dispair of a new Crusade, to find the means to deliver themselves from a terrible curse that threatens to consume their mortal souls."
The Camelot Herald has patch notes for a new version 1.107 which is now live for Dark Age of Camelot, Mythic Entertainment's MMORPG. Highlights of the new version include personal property protection for the contents of personal player houses, which will now be repossessed instead of destroyed when rent is not paid and the return of the realm timer. The full patch notes follow. Continue here to read the full story.
The Arcen Games Website has an update on what's going on at this indie developer, following up on their charity initiative for the Children Of Neinzul micro-expansion for AI Wars to benefit charity and their financial difficulties. The post expands on previous discussions of their money crunch, and explains that giving the profits from their current project to Child's Play is not a the root of the problem. They go on to explain the actual reasons for their distress, and what they are doing to get back on course, announcing plans for Light of the Spire, another AI Wars expansion they expect to release in about a month. Here's word: We're working on a new for-pay full expansion to AI War, called Light of the Spire, to be released in the first week of December. It's using a lot of the groundwork that we put in for 4.0, which is why we're able to do a full expansion in such a short period of time; we've been thinking on this for a while, and getting things ready. Clearly there's still a big appetite for AI War stuff, and we've got some seriously cool ideas for this one, too.
Diaspora: Shattered Armistice is an upcoming freeware Battlestar Galactica game using the FreeSpace 2-engine, which has been OpenSource since 2002. They have an impressive new trailer showing gameplay and their improved 3D cockpit. Thanks Ant via RPS/ LinuxGames.
Matrix Games now offers sales of Larry Bond's Harpoon – Ultimate Edition, a re-bundling of the long-running naval strategy series. Word is: "This comprehensive bundle, unlike any that has previously been released for Harpoon on the computer, represents a digital history and 'Collector's Edition' of Harpoon that every Harpoon gamer will want to have on their shelf for years to come." Those who have purchased previous Harpoon collections will be given the opportunity to remedy their recklessness, as they say owners of Harpoon 3 Advanced Naval Warfare or Harpoon Commander’s Edition are entitled to a $25.00 USD discount on the new package. Here's more: To celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Harpoon and give fans who enjoy playing the older versions a great archival edition, Harpoon – Ultimate Edition includes more than 20 previous releases of Computer Harpoon including Harpoon 3 v3.63 and Harpoon Classic. This allows players who have databases or scenarios tied to these older versions to continue to enjoy them for years to come, and it will also allow new players who purchase the Ultimate Edition access to this rich older content.
The Danny Bilson Interview on Shacknews talks with Danny Bilson, THQ's core games boss, who discusses various aspects of the industry (thanks joao). One topic of particular interest is choosing between Games for Windows LIVE and Steamworks for back-end support, as Relic has vacillated between the two services for the Dawn of War series. From Bilson's comments, in spite of a general preference for Steam expressed by most gamers (not to mention himself), this situation remains up in the air: It's been easier for development [moving to Steamworks], so far, but Microsoft is really talking to me a lot about getting back on Games for Windows Live. So, it's not something I want to comment on because there are a lot of discussions going on about that right now. I like both platforms and I really, really, really like Microsoft as a partner. They're fantastic partners. I want to respect them.
There are a lot of discussions going on about that now because it's a sensitive issue. But from a development point of view, it has been easier on Steamworks. That has nothing to do with Steam as a distribution platform, as you know. The developers really like it, but again, I have incredible respect for Microsoft and they're really fantastic partners. And so, there's a lot of ongoing discussion about that.
The Team Fortress 2 Blog has word on how you can get exclusive items in Team Fortress 2 by playing Poker Night at the Inventory Telltale's gambling simulation that's now available for pre-purchase at a 10% discount. Those who buy the game in advance will get a Poker Visor for your Heavy character, and when the game is out your poker skills can earn more goodies for Valve's teamplay shooter/hat collecting game, saying: "Once the game is released, you'll also be able to unlock new TF2 items by beating The Heavy, Max, Tycho, or Strong Bad at high stakes games of poker."
Last night turned out to be a mini-nightmare for Hudson the wonder dog. I've mentioned before how my brave Airedale's fear of thunder and explosions also applies to the chirp of a smoke alarm that needs new batteries. This turned into a problem when one of the plotlines in last night's episode of Modern Family involved being unable to locate a smoke detector making such a chirp, so the episode featured the sound throughout, which freaked her out more each time it happened, even after turning the volume way down. If the episode had gone any longer than it did we would have just given up and shut it off. Luckily we don't generally watch reruns.
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