Pariah Interview 03:58 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Action (2 comments)
French gaming site NoFrag interviewed Digital Extremes' James Schmalz about Pariah:

The FPS scene is quite overcrowded now. What makes Pariah different from the average shooters that are released every week? What innovations does Pariah bring to the genre?

It's simply a different type of FPS game. We had similar questions when we were finishing Unreal when Quake was coming out. Same with UT and Quake3. Each of these games will be very cool and if you love FPS games you will probably like them all. We are focusing on a great story and the whole package.

The biggest challenges for any game developer are always making it fun and making it on time. It's easy enough to make content and nice visuals. It's hard to predict what you are trying is going to be fun unless you are completely just redoing an old idea. So it's a challenge to bite the bullet and throw things out if they are just not working and redo it AND stick to a schedule. It's very very hard.

Middle Earth Online Delayed a Year 12:49 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: MMOG (9 comments)
Online reports state that Turbine's massively multiplayer role playing game, Middle Earth Online has been delayed a year until sometime 2006 after the company announced it has severed ties with VU Games to both publish and develop the title on its own. Here's more:

In a statement today, the self-described "once-small contractor" says it is now the largest privately held online game studio in North America. "Turbine now directly owns or holds significant interest in each of the games and services that it produces."

Additionally, the statement said the dev team was "considering changes" to the game--a likely reason behind Middle-Earth Online slipping to 2006. A spokesperson for the developer called the delay an "unfortunate, but necessary" measure.

Earth 2160 Q&A; 11:52 am - Jeff Tom - Games: Real-Time Strategy (0 comments)
C&VG; have slapped up an interview with Zuxxex's Tim Wilson on their RTS, Earth 2160:

In terms of the RTS genre as a whole, what new features are you adding and do you think Earth 2160 is an especially innovative title?

Tim Wilson: The first thing that comes to mind is, as Zuxxez have already claimed, a milestone in the quality of graphics used in the genre. They approach or equal those of the best first person shooters. Innovative? Yes! There is also trend in RTS titles to cut back on aspects like research, or fighting for and yielding resources. Earth 2160 has gone the other way in the complexity of these points and promises to give the player "the full program".

EA Stock Continues to Sink 11:46 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (18 comments)
EA stock continues to sink today, as of this writing it's down another 14% after losing over $9 dollars a share with another hour and a half til market close. Yesterday, the stock fell 12%. More from Marketwatch who think that it's a broader problem than just hardware shortages:

Some of that weakness was due to shortages of Microsoft's Xbox and Sony's PlayStation 2, the most popular consoles used to play video games. But Electronic Arts, which has long benefited from strong sales of popular sports games like "FIFA Soccer" and "NBA Live" and its "Sims" series, is feeling the heat from titles made by upstart rivals like Take-Two Interactive Software.

"Certain EA franchises have performed poorly and are showing signs of fatigue," wrote Bear Stearns analyst R. Glen Reid in a note to clients.

Laser Squad Nemesis Goes Gold 11:38 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: Turned-Based Strategy (0 comments)
Got Game Entertainment announces that the very enjoyable Laser Squad Nemesis has gone gold and shall be available for all North Americans to buy come April 14th:

Developed by Nick and Julian Gollop, the team behind the "X-Com" games, "Laser Squad Nemesis" brings a new addiction to tactical warfare gamers. With its unique and innovative turn-based combat system, combined with the action of real-time strategy games, players plot battle orders, test them, and watch the results unfold as the forces of the Laser Marines, Greys, Machina, and Spawn fight for supremacy. Retailing for $19.99 (USD) and rated "T" for Teen by the ESRB for Blood and Violence, "Laser Squad Nemesis" is scheduled to arrive on store shelves April 14, 2005.

In "Laser Squad Nemesis", players establish their respective forces and strategies and then battle, against either a devious computer opponent or, via email, against other players from around the world, until one army is defeated or surrenders. Players can utilize the "test orders" function to fine-tune strategies, as well as rewind, pause or review games using the "Laser Squad Nemesis" video-style controls. With destructible terrain, players can change the landscape with grenades, rockets, and other weapons and the map creator allows players to create their own battlefields.

The North American release of "Laser Squad Nemesis" from Got Game Entertainment and Merscom includes 20+ missions in 4 single campaigns, a free 3 months subscription to additional online campaigns and updates, plus an extended and detailed manual.

Well worth picking up.

Doom 3 Mac Ships 11:33 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: Action (2 comments)
The latest Aspyr newsletter reveals that Doom 3 for the Mac should be hitting shop shelves now:

The development of DOOM 3 was an interesting and challenging process, bringing a game to the Mac that pushes the boundaries of technology wasn't easy. Aspyr Studios worked very closely with id Software on the DOOM 3 Mac project, and enlisted considerable help from Apple, ATI and nVidia as well. While the game was up and running on the Mac by the time Aspyr Studios became involved, there was a lot of work to do to polish up the Mac version and optimize it for OS X. This included writing Altivec code specific to the PowerPC, working with Apple's OpenGL engineers to maximize performance under OS X, and working to take full advantage of Xcode, Apple's development tool. DOOM 3 is one of Aspyr's first games to be developed from start to finish under Xcode.

Their newsletter also reveals that The Sims 2 is now in full beta testing and should be available soon for all Mac fans to get addicted to.

World of WarCraft Update Released 11:31 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: MMOG (9 comments)
Chances are you really don't need a reminder as when you login the download begins, but Blizzard released a new patch for World of Warcraft which includes the cool high level dungeon Dire Maul, plus offers UI improvements, chat bubbles, class tweaks, new outdoor raid encounters and more.

Update - It seems this update is giving a lot of people problems, so expect a patch for the patch soon. :)

SpellForce II - Blend of Perfection Announced 11:25 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: Role-Playing (0 comments)
I guess if you enjoyed the first SpellForce, you'll dig the newly announced sequel, Blend of Perfection:

In SpellForce II the player takes over both roles - he is Commander of his troops and also a front fighting hero, solving quests and overcoming obstacles as in classical RPGs, but also leads armies as in an RTS.

The Players character is supported by up to 5 heroes who can be summoned at special monuments - these will become available in stronger versions as play progresses and the player reveals more of the epic storyline.

In most scenarios, which are placed in huge and detailed environments, the player leads one of three factions (Alliance of Light, Hordes of Chaos, Brotherhood of Darkness) and builds bases to gather resources and summon troops at monuments.

That could be a costly subtitle if it turns out to be a big bag o' shite.

Ubisoft Does Digital Distribution Exclusively With IGN 11:08 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: General News (10 comments)
Ubisoft and IGN Entertainment have signed an agreement which will see their new and future titles digitally distributed exclusively by IGN's Direct2Drive:

Under the terms of the agreement, Direct2Drive will offer a range of highly anticipated new games from Ubisoft, including Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Chaos Theory, Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30, Cold Fear, Heritage of Kings: The Settlers and Silent Hunter III in North America.

"Partnering with Direct2Drive will provide Ubisoft with the ability to expand the distribution of its new games to tens of millions of gamers, helping Ubisoft to drive incremental sales," said Jay Cohen, vice president of publishing at Ubisoft. "For passionate gamers who are interested in downloading AAA games like Brothers in Arms and Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Chaos Theory, Direct2Drive offers an outstanding service."

"Our mission at Direct2Drive is to offer the world's best PC games for digital sale and download," said Jamie Berger, vice president and general manager of consumer products at IGN Entertainment. "Ubisoft is publishing some of the most anticipated titles of 2005 and we're excited to join Ubisoft in offering these games for secure digital download to our customers in North America."

While this is cool, a boxed copy still appeals more to me, especially when the digital download is no cheaper.

Jaws Screenwriter Adds Talent To Medal of Honor European Assault 10:39 am - Andrew Burnes - Consoles: General News (2 comments)
The screenwriter behind many memorable moments in films such as Jaws, Dirty Harry, Apocolypse Now, Conan The Barbarian and Red Dawn has signed up with EALA to help with the console-only Medal of Honor European Assault:

Electronic Arts today revealed that acclaimed Hollywood writer/director John Milius to be the screenwriting talent behind the WWII storyline of Medal of Honor European Assault, the latest from the widely successful Medal of Honor franchise.

Executive Producer Dan Winters believes John Milius—a military history buff—was the obvious choice, "The Medal of Honor franchise stakes its reputation on epic, cinematic action, and so does John Milius. It's a natural fit!"

Milius jumped on the opportunity. "Video games provide a great medium for storytellers like me, and the authentic WWII subject matter of the Medal of Honor franchise is a great premise for a storyteller," explained Milius. "As someone who has long been considered a creative cowboy, I really enjoyed collaborating with the dynamic creative talent of EALA's development team on the intense action-filled story of Medal of Honor European Assault. It took me back to when I had first started in the entertainment industry, back to my days as a USC film student, and sharing ideas with visionary thinkers like Steven Spielberg and George Lucas."

Check out John's IMDB bio here.

The Matrix Online Launches 10:32 am - Andrew Burnes - MMOG: Role-Playing (6 comments)
The latest contender in the MMOG arena has today launched:

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and SEGA are pleased to announce that today, hundreds of thousands of players can now jack into The Matrix Online, a massively multi-player online game (MMOG), to participate in the continuing saga of The Matrix franchise. Developed by Monolith Productions, directed by the Wachowski Brothers and co-published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and SEGA, The Matrix Online is launching for the PC today in North America and April 8, 2005 in Europe.

The Matrix Online's story continues after the third film, The Matrix Revolutions, ended with Zion and the Machines in an uneasy truce. Capturing the authenticity of the films, Laurence Fishburne (Morpheus), Monica Bellucci (Persephone), Mary Alice (The Oracle), Lambert Wilson (The Merovingian), Harold Perrineau, Jr. (Link), Harry Lennix (Lock), Nona Gaye (Zee), Collin Chou (Seraph) and Tanveer Atwal (Sati) have provided voice-over and character likenesses to the game. Don Davis, the film composer for The Matrix trilogy, is also providing the score for The Matrix Online.

If you're a lucky fellow you'll get to role-play with the above:

In an unprecedented move, a specialized role-playing live events team at Monolith will assume the roles of the actual Matrix characters and support the continuation of the game's storyline through choreographed interaction. Players will meet, battle and eventually team up with the familiar characters on high-profile missions or at player-organized events.

So, how will this fare against the likes of Everquest 2 and World of Warcraft?

The Bard's Tale Demo 09:25 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: Role-Playing (3 comments)
Fancy checking out the Mountain Tomb level from inXile's comedic role-playing game? If so, download the newly released 290MB demo from one of the following links:

• 3D Gamers
• Boomtown
• FilePlanet
• Fragland
• GG Mania
• Worthplaying

SCi Trumps Bono's Bid For Eidos 08:05 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: General News (4 comments)
Elevation Partners, the group on which Bono is a board member, appeared to have purchased the fledgling Eidos yesterday with a �71 million ($135.1m) offer, but now fellow Brit publisher SCi has issued a counter-offer of �76.1 million ($144m), effectively beginning a bidding war.

International investment banking and asset management group Schroders, the biggest single shareholder in Eidos, has backed SCi's bid, although word from Eidos itself is not yet forthcoming. Here's some quotage from SCi via MCV:

"Whilst Eidos' brands, studios and staff have significant potential, its continued financial problems appear to have resulted in rushed development cycles, missed deadlines and products that have not done justice to their brands.

"We are completely confident that the application of our successful business model across the Enlarged Group will significantly enhance shareholder value for both SCi and Eidos shareholders."

Update: Eidos has issued a brief statement regarding the new situation:

The Board of Eidos has noted today's announcement by SCi Entertainment Group Plc in relation to its proposed all share offer for the Company ("the Share Offer"). The Board will consider the Share Offer in the light of its other alternatives, including the recommended cash offer of 50 pence per share by EM Holding Corp., a company backed by Elevation Partners. A further announcement will be made in due course.

QuakeCon 2005 Announced 08:03 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: General News (0 comments)
The 10th QuakeCon has today been announced, and it's going to be one big long 4-day party to remember according to the id's Todd Hollenshead:

"QuakeCon's 10th anniversary is a historic milestone and a time to celebrate the volunteers, fans, sponsors and games that have driven QuakeCon to become the largest event of its kind," said Todd Hollenshead, CEO, id Software. "We're going to have the party of a decade, and we want everyone to be there."

QuakeCon 2005 will be a four-day, 96-hour bash with non-stop gaming, around-the-clock contests, exhibits, entertainment, giveaways, parties and white-knuckle tournament action. With a dedicated area for more than 3,200 BYOC (Bring Your Own Computer) LAN gamers, and over 150,000 square feet of total convention space for tournaments, exhibits, conferences and entertainment, QuakeCon 2005 attendance is expected to top last year's record of nearly 6,000 attendees.

First-come, first-served online registration for QuakeCon 2005 will begin at 9 p.m. EST on Friday, April 15, 2005.

Xbox In Short Supply, Or Is It? 08:02 am - Andrew Burnes - Consoles: Xbox (12 comments)
The word coming out of Microsoft at the moment is that consumer demand for the Xbox is so darn high that they just can't fabricate the big black doorstops fast enough:

Consumer demand is exceeding supply right now... we are working with partners to rectify the situation - we're working really hard to satiate consumers' needs.

However, conspiracy theorists and certain UK retailers recently speculated that Microsoft is deliberately limiting their production runs in the hope of clearing out all warehoused stock before E3, where the Xbox Next will be so whizz bang fabbo that no-one will want last year's tat, leaving Microsoft in a far stronger position for the next-gen launch. Truth or paranoia? You decide.

F.E.A.R. Quickie 01:20 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Action (0 comments)
The chaps at Gamesdomain shot up a quickie preview of Monolith's F.E.A.R.:

Visually, it's a gorgeous game, with a hard-core military ops feel that would do Half-Life 2 proud. The locales we've seen so far -- mostly a military base, with lots of functional corridors, equipment warehouses, offices spaces, and so forth -- are very straightfaced and feel like real places, without a lot of silly rooms full of improbable tech. The gunfire and ambient solider-chatter sound dead on, and the enemy AI looks nothing short of brutal. These guys will flank you, draw you into ambushes, flush you out with grenades, and coordinate assault teams against you. Apparently, the only thing they can't handle is... a little girl with her hair hanging in her eyes.

RoboHordes Interview 01:15 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Action (1 comment)
Also up at CGM this morning is an interview with Naked Sky Entertainment's Tian Mu who chats about their Unreal Engined 3 powered tech demo, RoboHordes which was shown off at Intel's GDC booth as part of its upcoming multi-core technology demo:

Computer Games - How did RoboHordes use Intel's multi-core technology?

Tian Mu - Lots and lots of threading. We use two threads for physics and a few more for other proprietary under-the-hood stuff. We're always actively researching ways to add even more threading into the game. Considering the new hardware coming out (both for PCs and consoles), we feel an important part of being a successful next-gen game company is having the knowledge to leverage parallel processing, and we're working hard to make sure we can stay ahead of the curve.

Star Wars: Empire at War Q&A; 01:11 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Real-Time Strategy (0 comments)
CGM interviewed Joe Bostic of Petroglyph about the upcoming real-time-strategy game they're developing for LucasArts, Star Wars: Empire at War:

Computer Games - What can you tell us about the graphics features for Empire at War?

Joe Bostic - The graphic engine used in Star Wars: Empire at War was written from scratch and fully utilizes DX-9 and pixel-shaders, but is based off of lessons learned from experience writing previous graphic engines. As part of due diligence, we examined existing graphic engines, but our requirements exceeded what could be delivered by anything else on the market and thus we chose to write our own.

NBA Signs Deal with Five Publishers 12:31 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Sports (1 comment)
Thanks to Andy who was surfing the net on his mobile and sent over this bit of news that the NBA has signed deals with five publishers to develop pro basketball titles including Electronic Arts, Take-Two, Midway, Sony and Atari. The six-year deal is said to be worth around $400,000,000.00.

"We had discussions about exclusivity with some of our current partners and with a company that is not a partner of the NBA," said Adam Silver, president and chief operating officer of NBA Entertainment.

More details here.

Hardware & Tech Nuggets 12:25 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - hardware: General News (0 comments)

Reviews

• Athlon 64 4000+ - Guru3D
• CoolerMaster CoolDrive Lite - Overclockers Online
• DFI LanParty nF4 SLI-DR - Neoseeker
• EPoX 9NPA+ Ultra - Legionhardware
• GIGABYTE GA-K8NXP-SLI - [H]
• Gigabyte GeForce 6200 with TurboCache 256MB - Hardcoreware
• Gigabyte K8NXP-SLI nForce4 AMD Athlon 64 socket-939motherboard - A1
• Icemat Siberia Multi Headset - 3DGameman
• Samsung SyncMaster 710N & 711T LCD - Overclockers Club
• Thermaltake Hardcano13 Multi-Function Panel - Systemcooling
• Vantec UV Reactive Gear - Viper Lair

  Other Stuff
  

• 4-way NFORCE 4 SLI Motherboard Round-up - Gamers Depot
• ATI Radeon X800 XL Roundup - bit-tech
• Little Speakers Can Create Big Problems - eCoustics

Game Reviews 12:20 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (0 comments)

PC

• Act of War - Gamespot - 8.5/10
• Championship Manager 5 - Gamers Europe - 6/10
• Nexus: The Jupiter Incident - PC.IGN - 8.2/10
• The Sims 2 University - Eurogamer - 7/10

  Xbox
  

• FIFA Street - Eurogamer - 8/10
• Knights of the Old Republic 2 - GamesXtreme - 9.3/10
• NBA Street Volume 3 - The Armchair Empire - 9.2/10

  PS2
  

• Brothers in Arms - Gamespot - 7.6/10
• Devil May Cry 3 - Dead Alfs - 9/10

  PSP
  

• Gretzky NHL Hockey - PSP.IGN - 7.5/10
• Gretzky NHL Hockey - GamingHorizon - 6.3/10
• NBA PSP - GamingHorizon - 6.1/10
• Need for Speed Underground Rivals - PSP.IGN - 7.9/10
• THUG2 Remix - Gaming Age - A Minus
• World Tour Soccer - GamingHorizon - 8/10
• Wipeout: Pure - GamingHorizon - 9.2/10

  GameCube
  

• Donkey Konga: Jungle Beat - The Armchair Empire - 9/10

In Other News... 12:15 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - In-House: In Other News... (25 comments)
I finished up Act of War and really dug it. It might not be an innovative game (really what is in today's market), but the graphics are nice, the gameplay is fun and the story is good. The US generals with Canadian accents didn't really immerse me in a world of Dale Brown inspired espionage and intrigue, but overall the movies were fun to watch in a campy C&C; way. If you have a decent video card and a love for classic RTS games, I give it my hearty seal of approval. Next up on the list is Gearbox's Brothers in Arms...

Today's question is:

In light of EA's stock getting gutted, do you think they are on the decline or just suffering from a year of crappy releases?

For that matter, what were the worst games EA released this past year that they were actually expecting to turn a buck on?

GB: If Jade Empire sells well for the Xbox, is there anything that would necessarily restrict you from porting the game to the PC? If there would ever be a PC version of the game, are there any particular features you'd like to tweak or enhance given the opportunity to take advantage of more powerful PCs?

Ray: We haven't announced any plans pertaining to a Jade Empire PC version, but there is a possibility we will consider a PC version in the future. If we do decide to develop a PC version, we will be sure to make the interface PC-friendly; we'd ensure a high-quality product as a result.

Age of Empires 3 Q&A; 08:49 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Real-Time Strategy (1 comment)
Filefront tossed off an interview with Ensemble's Greg Street about Age of Empires 3:

Q: Does using the Havok engine change the gameplay at all? If so, is it a dramatic difference?

A: Ironically, *incorporating* the Havok engine has made us change a lot of gameplay. Silly game things that you just accepted in previous games, like forests that blocked all movement, just seemed like glaring errors when the rest of the game world was so believable. It looked ridiculous when a cannon would fire at a group of infantry, and all their hitpoint bars would drop a fraction and they'd just keep coming. So Havok has led us to make combat more lethal. But there isn't a big gameplay ramification per se to throwing musketeers around when struck by cannons. We had to make a lot of these graphic features something that players with lower end systems could turn off in order to increase performance.

EQ2: The Bloodline Chronicles Released 08:45 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: MMOG (3 comments)
SOE released the first retail addon for EverQuest 2 called The Bloodline Chronicles which you can download from the official site for around five bucks:

The Bloodline Chronicles takes you deep into the mysterious caverns beneath Nektulos Forest to investigate the source of strange happenings in the land of Norrath. Battle the denizens of the underworld to discover the dark secrets of the Tombs of Night - and enter, if you dare, the Crypt of T'Haen to confront the legendary lost lord of the undead. Content in The Bloodline Chronicles is geared towards level 30-45 players, however all players will be given access to one zone, The Tombs of Night, whether or not they choose to purchase the Adventure Pack.

Empire Earth 2 Q&A; 08:40 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Real-Time Strategy (0 comments)
CGM interviewed Mad Doc Software about their cool upcoming RTS, Empire Earth 2:

Computer Games - How hard is it to both develop a game, as well as a 3D graphic engine?

Ian Davis - It's no small task, to say the least. And we're talking about a HUGE game here. The sheer size and scope of the game alone make this a daunting task - there's a great deal of work that goes into making a game of this scale. Yet I knew our team was up to the task - we thrive on the challenge - and I have to say, I'm elated with the end results: this is one solid engine, and one hell of a game.

In making Mad Doc's Empire Earth II, we built a brand new graphics engine. Every part of the game is brand new, every single line of code. We knew graphics would be extremely important in a game like this, and capturing a certain look for Empire Earth II was something we knew would be critical from the start -- so we knew we wanted to develop our own graphics engine. We took a good look at all the engine options and chose to use Gamebryo's core graphics engine. On top of that, we built a brand new Mad Doc� proprietary RTS engine. We used Gamebryo's graphics base layer (it's easily ported), and made a brand new RTS engine using our years of strategy game experience. The end result: Empire Earth II uses the Mad3D Game Engine and MadAI Technology - it let us make the absolute best RTS experience possible.

Bono Buys Eidos? 07:01 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (14 comments)
A catchy headline, but not exactly the case. Regardless, speculation ends today about who would be buying the once giant publisher, as an investment group called Elevation Partners purchased Eidos for $135.1 million dollars. Where does U2's Bono come into all of this? He's on the board of directors.

Monday WPG 05:42 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (0 comments)

• 'Battlestations: Midway' (PS2/Xbox/PC) - Screens
• 'Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django' (GBA) - Screens
• 'God of War' (PS2) - Screens
• 'GTR: FIA GT Racing Game - Kings of Ovals' Expansion (PC) - Screens
• 'Lego Star Wars' (PS2/Xbox/PC) - Screens
• 'RollerCoaster Tycoon 3: Soaked' (PC) - Screens
• 'Spy vs. Spy' (NGC/PS2/Xbox) - Screens
• 'Star Wars Galaxies: Episode III Rage of the Wookiees' (PC) - Screens
• 'TrackMania Sunrise' (PC) - Screens
• 'Untold Legends: Brotherhood of the Blade' (PSP) - Screens
• 'World Snooker Championship 2005' (PSP/PS2/Xbox/PC) - Screens

• 'Coffee Tycoon' - Demo
• Starting fresh with one store, players customize their coffee business and select a city to start their coffee empire.
• 'Dark Horizons: Lore Invasion' - Demo
• This demo features a Team Deathmatch map, an Assault level titled Sector 2, and a Capture the Core map called Crash Site, with a choice of four mechs on either side.
• 'Pro Rugby Manager 2' - Multiplayer Demo
• This demo features a friendly game between the Northampton Saints and Toulouse, playable in singleplayer mode, but also LAN and online multiplayer.
• 'Vietcong Red Dawn' - Free Addon
• The addon contains a new Vietcong cooperative campaign, new multiplayer maps, one new single player mission, AI bots for the multiplayer mode, and completely new theme music.
• 'Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory' - v2.60 Update Patch
• This brings the multiplayer addon to v2.60 and optimizes netcode, fixes various server crashes, the server can redirect clients to other servers when full, adds a mods menu, and plenty more.
• Various Game Trailers
• '7 Sins' (PS2/PC) - Trailer
• 'Commandos Strike Force' (PS2/Xbox/PC) - Trailer
• 'Earth 2160' (PC) - Trailer
• 'Empire Earth 2' (PC) - Trailer
• 'FEAR' (PC) - Trailer
• 'Mythic Blades' (PC) - Trailer
• 'World Snooker Championship 2005' (PSP/PS2/Xbox/PC) - Trailer

EA Stock Plummets 01:35 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (24 comments)
Following EA warning that its profits aren't up to snuff for its fiscal year 2005 estimates, the stock fell $8.33 a share or a little over 12%. "These results are clearly disappointing," said Larry Probst, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "While our new releases are performing reasonably well, they have not been able to offset a significant falloff in catalog sales." The bloodletting continues in after-hour trading.

Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay Demo 01:26 pm - Andrew Burnes - Games: Action (10 comments)
Although it's somewhat mistimed, here's a chance to check out one level of the excellent Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher:

• 3D Gamers
• FilePlanet
• Worthplaying

E3 Sells Out 11:46 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (8 comments)
Word from E3 is that the 2005 expo has already sold out all of its floorspace making it the largest show since 2000 (that's over 540,000 net square feet and five massive display halls booked). Why such a huge crowd this year? The big three are showing off their next-generation console systems of course.

"E3Expo 2005 brings us to the threshold of a new era of creative and technological innovation for the global computer and video game business, providing first looks at the next generation of hardware and previews of the advanced titles and technologies that consumers will be bringing home this holiday season," said Douglas Lowenstein, president of the ESA, the trade association that represents U.S. computer and video game publishers and owns E3Expo. "With a show floor the size of 2,700 city blocks, an unparalleled business conference program, and more than 400 exhibitors from 87 countries, E3Expo is truly the best place on the planet to get down to the business of fun."

E3 is the largest game show in the world hosted at the LA Convention Center May 17-20th.

RPG Vault Bits 11:31 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Role-Playing (0 comments)
It's pretty cool that role playing game news is coming back around:

The Matrix Online Pre-Launch Event Report As Monolith's intriguing persistent state game nears launch, we join members of the team for a look at their creation. - Includes six exclusive 1280x1024 screenshots

World of Warcraft Tips of the Week #16 We offer help in deciding whether the Warrior class would be fun for you, and look at some weapon considerations.

Guild Wars Media #21 As ArenaNet's characters level up and acquire new items, they can take on a considerable range of diverse looks. - Eight exclusive 1600x1200 screenshots

Chinese Gaming Market Booms Despite Rampant Piracy 10:43 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: General News (7 comments)
Niko Partners sent over a summary of their Chinese market research paper, which shows that the whole gaming thing is taking off big time, despite some areas of the country buying only 6% of their software legally:

According to a new report released by the company, online games revenue is forecast to reach $2.0 billion by 2009. Additionally, China had 28.8 million gamers in 2004 and Niko Partners projects that number to grow to 55.5 million gamers by 2009.

"Online games are emerging as the preferred platform for gamers and publishers," said Lisa Cosmas Hanson, managing partner, Niko Partners. "The online game platform is an excellent solution for the Chinese market, meeting the consumer demands for social interaction, entertainment, and intellectual stimulation. It also meets the needs of publishers because revenue is earned from fees gamers pay to play games, rather than from purchases of game software units that have long been the victim of piracy in China."

Niko Partners projects that the online games market will rise at a compound annual growth rate of 33.8% from $467.8 million in 2004, to $2.0 billion in 2009.

Currently, all online games are played on a PC, and half of all gameplay takes place in the 350,000 Internet cafes across China. Internet cafes provide online access at a low price point while also offering a social venue that drives much of the demand for games in the Chinese market, Niko Partners reports. The firm also reported that the next generation of consoles will offer increased online functionality which will augment the existing online infrastructure. Niko Partners predicts that by 2009, 91% of console games will be online games.

Getting into the Chinese market as a foreign videogame company can be a challenge. The government in China welcomes international investment in the growth of a domestic games market, yet regulations governing the videogame industry are difficult to navigate. "Foreign videogame companies need to adapt their business models to make them appropriate for the demand of the Chinese market and the restrictions on content by the Chinese government," says Ms. Hanson.

With China projected to have 55.5 million gamers by 2009, it is important for videogame companies to prioritize understanding in order to capitalize on this growing market.

Riddick Developer Does The Darkness 07:43 am - Andrew Burnes - Consoles: General News (3 comments)
It has been officially confirmed that Chronicles of Riddick developer Starbreeze is creating an adaptation of comic book series The Darkness for next-generation consoles:

Based on the best-selling Top Cow comic book, The Darkness casts players as Jackie Estacado, a fearless Mafia hitman for the Franchetti crime family who is suddenly possessed by the terrifying and spectacular powers of The Darkness. Throughout the game, players must learn to control and harness The Darkness power in order to overthrow the vicious mob boss and fulfill their destiny.

The Darkness features a seamless and unique blend of modern crime drama and supernatural horror through first and third-person, non-linear gameplay. Utilizing the Starbreeze engine for next generation consoles, The Darkness features single and online multi-player action across highly realistic environments.

Union Entertainment, a feature film and video game production company, packaged the deal which includes Paul Jenkins, a seminal writer in The Darkness comic book series, who will provide game story and dialogue.

Possession Q&A; 06:50 am - Andrew Burnes - Consoles: PS3 (0 comments)
Chris Swan, Project Manager at Blitz Games, spoke to eXperience Gaming regarding their zombie-themed next-gen console action title, Possession:

XG: What is it like developing for next-generation consoles?

Chris Swan: Highly challenging and very good fun! For one thing you have to remain very flexible and keep your options open, as new technologies and shader tricks are appearing nearly every week! Certainly the increase in polygons (and the actual materials that you can now have on these polygons), does greatly help a game such as Possession; from a technical point of view the game really would not have been feasible on the current generation of consoles without seriously hampering the quality of the product.

If you like the sound of Possession, I'm sad to say you'll be waiting 'til mid-2007 to play it.

Xfire vs Yahoo Q&A; 06:45 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: General News (0 comments)
ipkonfig discussed Yahoo's legal case against Xfire with CEO Mike Cassidy:

Q: In terms of the lawsuit, are there any foundations to what Yahoo! is claiming in Xfire's opinion?

A: No, we're definitely not infringing. Once we got sued we immediately offered them a number of ways to prove we weren't infringing including showing our source code to Jerry Yang or David Filo, submitting to binding arbitration by some third party, or entering into mediation. It's disappointing that they didn't even respond to any of these options.

Unreal Engine 3 Early on Favorite 03:15 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (22 comments)
Thanks to GryphonKlaw who suggested this week's poll (which you can vote for on the right hand side of the page) topic of "How much are you willing to pay for a premium game?" Keep in mind we're using US Dollars, so vote accordingly.

I guess "premium" can be taken in different ways; we're not talking about collector's editions with all the fancy extras, but rather solid AAA games and even next-generation titles. Some publishers are starting to salivate at the prospect of raising prices even higher, although developers like Epic have spoken out against it.

Speaking of Epic, the results of last week's poll which asked for your take on the best game engine are in, with Epic's Unreal Engine 3 taking home the honors, clearly beating out Valve's Half-Life 2 Source engine, id's Doom 3 and Crytek's Far Cry. It wasn't too long ago when id had the engine market cornered. How things have changed...

Hardware & Tech Nuggets 01:00 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - hardware: General News (0 comments)

Reviews

• Altec Lansing GT-5051 - Overclockers Online
• HIS Radeon X850 XT IceQ II Turbo and Radeon X800 XL IceQ II Turbo - HotHardware
• Intel's Pentium-M 735 Processor and DFI 855GME Motherboard - HEXUS
• Koolance Exos-2 - Hardwarehell
• Razotech UFO Mouse - Phoronix
• Thermaltake Kandalf Full Tower Series Case - 3DGameMan
• Thermaltake VA700 Shark Full Tower Case - Hardcoreware
• Transformer ATX Case - ATR
• Xoxide X-Treme Case - Bjorn3D
• XPER X-Armor ATX Case - ATR

  Other Stuff
  

• Radeon X800, XL distribution costs revealed - The Tech Report

Game Reviews 12:45 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (10 comments)
God of War gets an intimidating 9.8/10 score from IGN:

PC

• Brothers in Arms - Gamespot - 9/10
• Brothers in Arms - Gamespy - 4.5/5
• Brothers in Arms - ActionTrip - 83%
• Brothers in Arms - VIA Gamers Arena - n/a
• Freedom Force vs The Third Reich - GGMania - 90%
• Silent Hunter 3 - PC.IGN - 8.8/10
• Star Wars Republic Commando - 2404 - 8/10
• Star Wars Republic Commando - Computer Games Romania - 8.3/10

  Xbox
  

• Mega Man Anniversary Collection - Gamespy - 3.5/5
• Scrapland - WorthPlaying - 6.5/10

  PS2
  

• God of War - PS2.IGN - 9.8/10
• God of War - Gamespot - 9.3/10
• Timesplitters Future Perfect - PS2.IGN - 8.9/10

  PSP
  

• Ridge Racer - Gamespot - 8.3/10
• Tony Hawk 2 Underground Remix - PSP.IGN - 8.7/10
• Twisted Metal: Head-on - PSP.IGN - 8/10
• Twisted Metal: Head-on - Gamespot - 8.5/10
• Wipeout Pure - Gamespot - 8.8/10
• World Tour Soccer - Gamespot - 7.6/10

  GameCube
  

• TMNT: Mutant Melee - Cube.IGN - 5.5/10

In Other News... 12:30 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - In-House: In Other News... (33 comments)
Woot for Mondays! I hope you guys had a nice weekend; I mostly watched bad movies on the dish including "The Core", which stars Hillary Swank and some dude who looks like Highlander that was about a team of scientists who drill to the center of the Earth in order to detonate a nuclear bomb because the inner core of the planet "stalled out". Basically, think of the Earth like a giant construct. The inner core is the power supply which generates the magnetic field which keeps a shield around the planet protecting us from cosmic winds, radiation and other crap. The mantle is the filler that insolates us from the energy the core generates, and the crust is what we live on. So, aside from getting a nice Geology refresher, their task was to get the core moving again. Some fun science fiction as far as theories and gadgets go, but overall kind of a stinker.

Anyways, this week's release list is pretty hot. We have a new gaming system, the PSP, almost 20 games for said system (both old and new), plus The Matrix Online. Word is Monolith didn't show very much of the game in the beta, and it's actually a lot better than most people think. They're supposed to be sending me a copy here shortly, so we shall see. There's a stupidly huge fanbase for The Matrix series, so the upside is pretty high if the game is any good. Today's question: Do you plan on getting a PSP?