Steam News announces a
free weekend and sale are underway for
Left 4 Dead 2, Valve's zombie
shooter sequel:
Play Left
4 Dead 2 for FREE starting now through Sunday at 1PM Pacific Time. You can
also pickup Left 4 Dead 2
at 75% off the regular price!*
If you already have Steam installed, click here to
install or play Left 4 Dead 2. If you don't have Steam, you can download it
here.
*Offer ends Monday at 10AM Pacific Time
The
Team Fortress 2
website has details on changes coming to
Team Fortress 2 in an
upcoming patch for Valve's team-based shooter. They describe fixes coming to
several maps to close off bugs and exploits, many of which have been caused by
the introduction of new weapons over the years. They also have word on new maps
being added to the rotation. Here's a bit:
And Badwater is just one of the
maps with fixes in this update. In fact, the majority of maps in TF2 have gone
through the same process. By eliminating these exploits and bugs, players can
once again feel like they understand threats and the dangers presented in combat
spaces.
Secondly: Sure, it’s great to fix the old maps, but we’re also adding two NEW
community-created maps by Ian Cuslidge that, and here's another spoiler warning,
are fricking awesome. Introducing two all-new Capture Point maps: Process and
Standin. Beyond a great polish, both of these maps offer unique and exciting
gameplay; Process with its five streamlined Capture Points and Standin with its
triple Cap Point free-for-all.
Unknown Worlds
details the upcoming addition of the promised female Marine for
Natural
Selection 2, their action/strategy sequel. They describe the three different
versions they will offer, and note that they are breaking with how most
developers portray female characters by actually giving her armor. Here's
word:
The game industry has a history of depicting female characters
inappropriately. Often, they are stylised to such a degree that they become
sexual objects: While their male comrades are clothed, armed and armoured to
fight, the female character is notable for
the lack of any clothing at all. When female characters are granted equal
protection, that protection often
ignores basic laws of physics in favour of offering titillating form.
This is not good enough, and it’s not a trope Unknown Worlds will entertain.
Games are
legitimate cultural influences, and game developers are responsible for the
message they choose to convey to players. The Natural Selection 2 female marine
is first and foremost, like her male colleague, a soldier. Her armour puts
function before form, while adopting the science fiction, melee combat aligned
design ques that have made the male marine so uniquely recognisable.
The
7 Days to Die website now offers
this trailer with
about 15 minutes of gameplay from this survival/crafting game. Here's a
description:
An open world, voxel-based, sandbox game blending the best
elements of FPS, Survival Horror, RPG and Tower Defense style games. "Seven Days
to Die" looks to carve out its own space giving gamers what they really want
with a unique combination of combat, crafting, exploration, and character
growth. It's not just Survival Horror anymore its "Survival
Horde."
Continue here to read the full story.
An
Epic Games job ad
puts out the call for a Senior Systems Designer for one of two projects, one of
which is
Fortnite, but the other is an unannounced "competitive
online action game that includes player progression, heavy itemization, and a
dynamic economy" (thanks
VG247 via
NeoGAF). That's about all it says about the game for now, but here's the
whole shebang:
Epic Games is looking for a Systems Designers to join one
of two projects. One of the teams is working on an unannounced competitive
online action game that includes player progression, heavy itemization, and a
dynamic economy; the other is for Fortnite. In either of these roles you’ll be
working on the biggest most important systems and will have a hand in designing
everything from economics and itemization to balancing combat mechanics. You’ll
be responsible for general design, balance, rules, interface, etc. and will play
an integral role in defining the outcome of the project.
A
WoW DB
Entry shows a new item found in the version 5.4 patch on the Public Test
Realm for
World of Warcraft called the "Enduring Elixir of Wisdom" which
is sold from within the MMORPG to provide double XP, saying simply: "Experience
gained from killing monsters and completing quests increased by 100%." This
continues a steady trend over the life of the game to make leveling up quicker,
though this would be the first chance to pay to not play the game. A
blue
post from Blizzard also explains they are testing the ability to make
in-game purchases: "We are currently exploring the possibility of adding a way
for players in certain regions to make purchases directly within the game. As
part of this process, elements related to this will be appearing on the PTR.
We’ll provide additional updates on our plans as development progresses." Thanks
Blend Games.
There are quotes from an upcoming interview with Pete Hines on
IGN where the Bethesda spokesperson discusses possible follow-ups to a
couple of the publisher's recent games, as he confirms that a goal of their new
IPs will always be to launch new sustainable franchises, saying: "In general, we
try not to wade into anything as a one-off in the first place." He then confirms
that
Dishonored qualifies for a sequel, saying: "The success of that game
and how proud Arkane is of it and what goes on at any studio when they put out
something like that and all the ideas that are coming out, certainly it’s
something that we feel is a franchise." As for a possible sequel to id
Software's RAGE, Hines is more circumspect, saying id is solely focused on
DOOM 4 right now: "To be determined," he tells them. "We’ll see. Right now,
[id’s] focus is on their current project. They are full bore on that. What I’ve
seen of it recently, I’m super happy about it. We want them to stick to that
until we’re ready to talk about what that is. But let’s wait until we get there
first."
The
StarCraft II website
announces an "Arcade Weekend of Freedom," offering a temporary expansion of
scope for the free starter edition of
StarCraft II, Blizzard's RTS
sequel:
Though many would consider July 4 a great time to get together
outside in the sweltering heat, we think staying inside and playing amazing
games might also be time well spent. What better way to show our appreciation of
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness than offering more FREE games? Over
this entire holiday weekend -- from July 3 through July 8, all previously
featured arcade games are now available to anyone using the free StarCraft II
Starter Edition. From
StarDodgeball to
Blasterbots to Night of
the Dead, there’s a wide range of different games to please
everyone.
The
Sydney Morning Herald heralds a scary-sounding development, profiling a
headset being marketed to gamers that will "Overclock your brain using
transcranial Direct Current Stimulation to increase the plasticity of your
brain. Make your synapses fire faster" (thanks
MCV). One could argue that your synapses would have to be operating pretty
slowly to start with to find this appealing, but just in case, they offer a few
cautions:
The company says the headset is not a medical device and is not
regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration. It also says the device meets
all regulated safety standards but warns against its use by epilepsy sufferers
or anyone with implants.
Professor Colleen Loo, from the University of NSW school of psychiatry and
clinical and research psychiatrist with the Black Dog Institute said the effect
on the brain was dependent on where and how the electrodes were positioned.
''It's a bit like having an accelerator and brake in a car,'' she said.
''Neither is bad and both are very useful but applying them judiciously at the
right time and in the right context is absolutely essential. I think stimulation
of yourself with do-it-yourself kits is potentially quite dangerous.
Hope everybody celebrating had a safe and happy Independence Day! We survived
the fireworks of the fourth, though with it falling on a Thursday there is
little doubt there will also be explosions to be feared on the fifth and sixth,
and I'd be surprised if we didn't get some on the seventh as well. We've got the
hatches battened down... too bad they aren't sound proof.
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