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Archived News:
Valve officially announces the Source Engine 2, saying they will make this
available free to content developers. Word is they plan on fully supporting
Vulkan, the API formerly known as Next Generation OpenGL. Here's the deal:
Valve announced the Source 2 engine, the successor to the Source engine
used in Valve's games since the launch of Counter-Strike: Source and Half-Life
2. "The value of a platform like the PC is how much it increases the
productivity of those who use the platform. With Source 2, our focus is
increasing creator productivity. Given how important user generated content is
becoming, Source 2 is designed not for just the professional developer, but
enabling gamers themselves to participate in the creation and development of
their favorite games," said Valve's Jay Stelly. "We will be making Source 2
available for free to content developers. This combined with recent
announcements by Epic and Unity will help continue the PCs dominance as the
premiere content authoring platform."
Also as part of supporting PC gaming, Valve announced that it will be releasing
a Vulkan-compatible version of the Source 2 engine. Vulkan is a cross-platform,
cross-vendor 3D graphics API that allows game developers to get the most out of
the latest graphics hardware, and ensures hardware developers that there is a
consistent, low overhead method of taking advantage of products. Vulkan,
previously called Next Generation OpenGL, is administered by the Khronos Group,
along with other standards such as OpenCL, OpenGL, and WebGL.
Valve announces Steam Link, a new product to allow gamers to stream content from
a Steam computer to any room in the house, presumably the new living room device
they mentioned last week. They
promise more details at the GDC, and here's what they say for now: "Steam
Machines, Windows PCs, Macs, and Linux PCs will be able to take advantage of a
new product announced at GDC called Steam Link. Designed to extend your Steam
experience to any room in the house, Steam Link allows you to stream all your
Steam content from any PC or Steam Machine on the same home network. Supporting
1080p at 60Hz with low latency, Steam Link will be available this November for
$49.99, and available with a Steam Controller for an additional $49.99 in the US
(worldwide pricing to be released closer to launch)."
Valve also reveals further details about their SteamVR system, elaborating on
the reveal of HTC's VR headset and
announcing Lighthouse, their codename for a "room scale" tracking system. Here's
word: Valve will show a virtual reality (VR) headset. Developer versions
of the headset will be available this spring, and partner HTC will ship their
Vive headset to consumers by the end of the year.
Two new technologies are part of the VR release - a room scale tracking system
codenamed Lighthouse, and a VR input system. "In order to have a high quality VR
experience, you need high resolution, high speed tracking," said Valve's Alan
Yates. "Lighthouse gives us the ability to do this for an arbitrary number of
targets at a low enough BOM cost that it can be incorporated into TVs, monitors,
headsets, input devices, or mobile devices." Valve intends to make Lighthouse
freely available to any hardware manufacturers interested in the technology.
"Now that we have Lighthouse, we have an important piece of the puzzle for
tackling VR input devices," said Valve's Joe Ludwig. "The work on the Steam
Controller gave us the base to build upon, so now we have touch and motion as
integrated parts of the PC gaming experience."
"We've been working in VR for years and it was only until we used SteamVR's
controllers and experienced the magic of absolute tracking that we were able to
make the VR game we always wanted to make," said Alex Schwartz of Owlchemylabs.
VR demos being shown at GDC include work from Bossa Studios, Cloudhead Games,
Dovetail Games, Fireproof Studios, Google, Owlchemylabs, Skillman & Hackett,
Steel Wool Games, Vertigo Games, and Wevr.
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment announces a September 1st release date
for Mad Max, Avalanche Studios' movie-inspired car combat game for
Windows, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. This is a bit of a delay, as the
game's announcement said it would come
sometime in 2014, and also mentioned Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 editions which
are not addressed in the new announcement. They do announce a preorder bonus,
saying: "All those who pre-order Mad Max will receive an additional Magnum Opus
car body called “The Ripper,” which packs a powerful V8 engine, upgraded exhaust
with custom off-road tires, a ramming grill and a tuned suspension so it can
take on a variety of Wasteland surfaces." There are images of this on the
Mad Max website.
Electronic Arts now offers the original 1993 Syndicate as a free download
as the latest addition to their
On the
House program (thanks Burrito of Peace). This works though their
Origin service, but once claimed, the game
is yours to keep. Here's part of the description from their
game page with a reminder of what this is about: Syndicate is
Bullfrog's masterpiece of a game in which you aren't saving the world or
protecting innocents. You just make sure that your employers get what they want.
At your disposal are four cyborg agents, an impressive arsenal of weapons and
gadgets, and a massive selection of cybernetic upgrades. You are free to unleash
this power on a highly interactive map where you can blow up buildings, steal
cars, light trees on fire, or just shoot stuff. Produced by Peter Molyneux
himself, Syndicate is the essence of cyberpunk and, with its great music,
stylized visuals, and mind-blowing atmosphere, it has earned its place among the
best games of all time. Make sure to check out the game that secured Bullfrog's
place in game development hall of fame.
Steam News announces the
Havoc DLC for
Call of Duty: Advanced
Warfare is now available for Windows, as its Xbox exclusivity has now
expired. Word is: "The first downloadable content pack for Call of Duty®:
Advanced Warfare, featuring the all-new Exo Zombies co-op experience, the
all-new versatile AE4 directed energy assault rifle, the AE4 Widowmaker custom
variant, and four new Multiplayer maps, tailor-made to unleash your
exoskeleton’s power." On a semi-related note, the
Call of Duty blog has word on plans to offer "Advanced Supply Drops" for a
premium which will include weapons, but they still say these "are optional and
do not affect the balance of gameplay" (thanks
MP1st). Here's word: Since the launch of Call of Duty®: Advanced
Warfare and the immense personalization of operator gear and weapon variants,
players have been asking for more opportunities to secure additional supply
drops. Coming soon, Advanced Supply Drops will be available from the in game
store, to give you the chance for more Weapon Loot and Character Gear to
customize your operator, as well as Reinforcements (Advanced Supply Drops will
not include Rapid Supply or Orbital Care Package Reinforcements). Advanced
Supply Drops are optional and do not affect the balance of gameplay.
Here is what you will find in each Advanced Supply Drop:
- Three items.
- At least one weapon variant.
- At least one Professional rarity item or better.
- All items come with their own Armory slot; all
items can be redeemed for XP.
In addition to acquiring items from the current rotation, you will also have
the opportunity to get unique cosmetic gear items found only within Advanced
Supply Drops. Be on the lookout for the Eco Custom Exo, items from the Arctic
Gear set, and more!
White Night is now available
on Steam for Windows,
Linux, OS X, offering OSome Studio's survival/horror game, which is also now
available for PlayStation 4 and coming to Xbox One. The
White Night website features a
recent gameplay trailer
showing off White Night's interesting monochromatic style, and here's the
announcement: White Night lures horror fans back to the old-school style
the genre was built on, focusing on gripping tension, compelling mystery and
clever puzzle design. Stranded alone in a seemingly abandoned mansion, players
will have to explore the estate and confront its tortured past to dispel the
spirits that haunt its halls. White Night draws from the classic themes of the
jazz age and film noir storytelling to bring its rich world and atmosphere to
life, reinforced by chilling sound effects, music and voice acting.
Plunged in darkness, White Night’s striking black-and-white visuals are also its
most thrilling mechanic. Your surroundings can only be revealed by light, and
anything from the flicker of a match to the glow of the moon can expose new
paths, secrets and story details. Moreover, light provides a safe haven against
the terrors lurking in the shadows, making it a crucial resource to manage until
the sun rises.
Continue here to read the full story.
- The Evil Within on
Steam. Save 66%.
- Game Dev Tycoon on
Steam. Save 33%.
The Unity website announces the launch of
Unity 5, the latest version of this multi-platform game engine, offering a free
Personal Edition and a Professional Edition for $75.00 per month. Word is:
"Unity 5 is the new edition of the best development platform for creating 2D/3D
games and interactive experiences. Unity 5 brings you awesome new artistic
power. Improved efficiency makes the hard work smoother and more fun, and with
the industry’s most comprehensive multiplatform support, you can now launch your
game on 21 platforms." Here's
a feature list: Unity
5.0 is our biggest and boldest release ever. Powerful new features in Unity 5
include:
- The Physically-based Standard Shader to make your
materials look consistent in any lighting environment, cross platform.
- Real-time Global Illumination, built on Geomerics
Enlighten technology.
- The Audio Mixer, to massively improve audio in
your game.
- HDR Reflection Probes to enhance visual fidelity.
- PhysX 3.3 to bring massive performance
improvements to 3D physics.
- Major updates to the animation system.
- WebGL preview.
And of course, many more new features and updates. Keep reading to learn
more.
SEGA announces the release of The Trigger, a fifth add-on for Alien:
Isolation that serves as a prequel for Creative Assembly's survival/horror
game. Here's the description from
the Steam page for the
DLC: Welcome to The Trigger, the fifth add-on content pack for Alien:
Isolation.
Can you make Sevastopol safe? You’ve been given a box of explosives and the
locations to set them. All you need to do now is pull the trigger… and stay
alive.
- Features three all-new Survivor Mode maps. Can you
survive and get the highest score?
- Play as Ricardo and learn the truth behind the
explosives on board Sevastopol.
- Avoid security alarms, take on Working Joes and
above all, survive the Alien.
If you own Alien: Isolation Season Pass, DO NOT purchase this content here as
you will be charged again.
Publisher Nordic Games and developer Cliffhanger Productions announce
Shadowrun Chronicles: Boston Lockdown is the new official title for the
project previously known as Shadowrun Online, also revealing plans to
launch the co-op tactical combat game for Windows, Linux, and OS X on April
28th. They explain the new title was decided in collaboration with Kickstarter
backers, and better reflects the nature of the game, as they found people
assuming this was an MMOG just because they named it like one. "Especially for
the boxed version, gamers need to be sure they can play the game alone at their
convenience and not be forced into some online pattern or depend on any server
activity for that matter explains Nordic's Gennaro Giani. "The new title also
implies that Shadowrun Chronicles is here to stay." Here's word on the game:
Enter the world of Shadowrun and lead your team of runners into deadly
missions in tactical co-op in this digital version of the Pen and Paper
cyberpunk RPG classic.
Boston 2076: A dragon emerges from a hidden underground lab, laying waste to the
city and spreading a strange disease, turning citizens into raging killers. The
government and corporate forces lock down the city, abandoning its inhabitants.
And this is only the start…
In our future, magic has awakened and with it creatures of myth and legend.
Elves, Dwarves, Orks and Trolls walk the neon-lit streets, while the matrix
connects everyone and everything as the corporate towers cast their long shadows
across the globe. You are a Shadowrunner – an expendable asset on the edge of
society, hired for the jobs no one wants to be connected with. Welcome to the
dark side of the future, chummer. It’s going to be a hell of a ride.
- Run and Gun! Gripping tactical combat with over 50
different enemies from vicious gangers to combat drones and corporate
wagemages!
- Teamwork! Build up your team of runners or join
with other players in live co-op to find the best combination of skill,
magic and technology for survival.
- Real consequences! Team members die and missions
get taken by other runners.
- You'll never run alone! Team up with friends or
swap stories with other runners in the hangout.
- Every move counts! Dive behind cover, hack
security, send in your drones and use any weapon at your disposal to make it
out alive.
- Be who YOU want to be! Create your individual
Shadowrunner in a level-free character system from over 60 different combat
and non-combat skills, unique backgrounds and five metahuman races.
- Shape the future! Developed jointly with the
tabletop RPG books, so your actions in-game will shape the future of the
Shadowrun universe!
Steam
now offers the release of Five Nights at Freddy's 3 for Windows, a third
installment in the fright-fest set in the scary environment of a pizzeria.
Here's word on the game: Thirty years after Freddy Fazbear's Pizza closed
it's doors, the events that took place there have become nothing more than a
rumor and a childhood memory, but the owners of "Fazbear's Fright: The Horror
Attraction" are determined to revive the legend and make the experience as
authentic as possible for patrons, going to great lengths to find anything that
might have survived decades of neglect and ruin.
At first there were only empty shells, a hand, a hook, an old paper-plate doll,
but then a remarkable discovery was made...
The attraction now has one animatronic.
Yacht Club Games
reveals details on Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows, a new expansion for
Shovel Knight that's coming for free to all owners of the throwback platformer
next this spring (thanks nin). They offer some screenshots along with the
following description: Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows is a free
expansion for Shovel Knight, a sweeping classic action adventure game that won
over 70 Game of the Year Awards in 2014. You play as Plague Knight, the
villainous master of alchemy, in a quest all his own. Using his maniacal
scientific mind, Plague Knight is seeking to concoct Serum Supernus, the
Ultimate Potion. However, to retrieve these ingredients, he must extract them
from his former allies… the villainous knights of the Order of No Quarter! World
class platforming, music, storytelling, and art all return in Shovel Knight:
Plague of Shadows; an explosive quest with a new play style, new story, new
bosses, and more!
A
Steam Community announcement has word that a beta patch is now available for
Resident Evil Revelations 2 / Biohazard Revelations 2 to enable the
split-screen co-op feature
missing
upon release of the first-episode in the new series. Here's word on the
patch, which is actually
now available for those willing to risk a beta: Soon we plan to
release a beta branch on Steam which will allow two players to play the Story
and Raid modes locally via a split screen. We want to get this feature in the
hands of our PC players as soon as possible, so this option may not be 100%
polished when it is released. Feedback from those who try it out is welcomed.
For anyone who isn't satisfied with this option, refunds are available through
Steam.
Today is IHOP National Pancake Day,
a worthy cause on two fronts, as it aids Children's Miracle Network Hospitals,
and it also glorifies pancakes, and free ones at that. I am a big fan of
pancakes, and they were the first food I ever made myself that turned out well,
so I have a soft spot for them. I think this is a good excuse to celebrate with
pancakes for dinner. Now we need to find a more international version of the
International House of Pancakes (huh?) and pressure them to help turn this into
International Pancake Day at some point. You can't tell me that's an idea that
would fall flat.
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