Forces of Corruption Designer Diary - 16:24 PST
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GameSpot have kicked up a Designer Diary on Forces of Corruption. The diary is with Joe Bostic the Director of Game Design with Petroglyph. Here's a clip

Creating an expansion product provides a valuable opportunity to reflect on the state of the original game while also providing the opportunity to improve upon it. Thanks to LucasArts and the many fans of Star Wars: Empire at War, we've been given that opportunity through Forces of Corruption. Looking at Empire at War in hindsight, we can see that there are areas of the game that turned out different than originally planned and some areas where we wanted to improve the game experience but didn't have the resources at the time. Fortunately, the expansion gives us the opportunity to address some of these issues.

Just run on over to GameSpot to read the whole diary.

Chris Rubyor Podcast - 22:05 PST
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Chris Rubyor the Lead Designer on Forces of Corruption has done up and released a Podcast about:

In this interview we talk with the Lead Designer of Star Wars Empire at War: Forces of Corruption, Chris Rubyor (aka Delphi-PG), about all the meticulous work that has been going into this anticipated expansion. Furthermore, Chris tells us about his gaming experience, and continues on to elaborate on the changes in Patch 1.05 in Star Wars Empire at War. Chris has had his hand in designing many popular games in the RTS genre such as several titles in the Command & Conquer series and Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth! It's a great interview that I'm sure you'll enjoy! (15min 16 seconds)

If you are interested in downloading and listening to the podcast you can do so by clicking this link.

Legacy of War Secret - 22:06 PST
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The Legacy of War folks have sent word that coming up in July is some sort of a secret, this is all we know:

But what is it? Afterall Legacy of War was founded in July, but what date? What is this big thing that is going to occur? What will be shown? What new things are there so far in the Mod? Be on the lookout as we get closer to the date.

Do you know what it is? I think it's going to be the first release of their mod, but I'll probably be wrong :(.

And some other news... - 12:47 PST
[ Xyvik | Comments (0) ]
First, a new map has been made and is included in the Map Section, a well-done conflict done by General_zap.

On other news fronts, The Sith War has updated with four new models in-game. You can find the news, as always, at The Sith War

Couple News Items - 14:37 PST
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Wow news? Well I'm sorry but I've been busy myself with many things, mainly trying to find myself a job so I can live you know. Anyways two items of interest to modding and mapping people are:

• A 3DS MAX 8 Plugin was released for the EAW Map Editor, basically it allows you to develop new models for use in EAW. Find more info on it here.
• A Guide was created by Brent Zondi telling us how to Creat and Edit EAW Galactic Conquest maps. You can find the guide here.

So there you have it, hopefully I'll be able to keep you guys updated a little better from now on.

Wednesday News Roundup - 14:44 PST
[ Xyvik | Comments (0) ]
Greetings again good people! Two (hopefully) interesting new tidbits for you this fine day.

First, two new maps have been added to the Map Page, both land skirmishes. Check them out, download them, and enjoy!

The second news item is that I have finished my first article on mapping, 500+ words on the two types of maps. You can find that in my Articles Page on my forums.

I hope you enjoy, but if you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them here :)

Forces of Corruption Music Clips - 01:59 PST
[ Nick | Comments (1) ]
Up in the rant the other day I mentioned that I had a couple clips from E3 that I didn't release. Well the two clips are now released and they are music clips created for the new faction in Forces of Corruption. So when you play as them you'd hear music similar to what is in the clips. You can download a long version of the clip here or a short version here.

Maps Section is Live! - 11:27 PST
[ Xyvik | Comments (7) ]
Greetings to the Petroglyph community! Our wonderful webmaster Nick has allowed me to take command of the brand new Map Section of PetroMW!

For your immediate download pleasure, three maps are already available. You can find existing maps Right Here, and once more maps are submitted they will also be found on that page.

Got a map you want submitted? Simply go to The File Submission Page and carefully read the information there.

Other than that, have fun with the maps! Any questions or comments, direct them to myself or Nick via forum Private Messaging. Keep in mind that some snags are going to occur, so please try not to yell at me too loudly :)

-PS: I'll be writing articles and battle stories at various intervals for anything regarding maps, so keep your eyes here for any new information. A mapping tournament is in the works by Petroglyph, and I'll also keep you updated on that.

EAW 1.04 Patch Released! - 16:49 PST
[ Nick | Comments (1) ]
Patch 1.04 for EAW has been released! And best of all it includes a map editor! You can download the patch and read all of the patch notes here!

E3 Presentation Video: Forces of Corruption - 17:59 PST
[ Nick | Comments (4) ]
Well I've met with Petroglyph today, watched some great video about the game and talked mostly with the Lead Designer Chris Rubyor on the project. The best way for you to find out more on Forces of Corruption the EAW expansion would be by downloading the videos I took.

First off there is the "full" out presentation video, this is the video you want to watch to find out all about the game. You can download this video here.

Secondly they decided to show something a little extra since I was there and that was Yoda kicking some ass! You can download this video here.

I'll be ranting about what I think of the game, but I do know one thing; I'd like to go back and talk with them again. I really want to talk with Frank Klepacki a little more, the person who's made some of the greatest videogame music out there.

Star Wars Empire at War: Forces of Corruption - 18:41 PST
[ Nick | Comments (3) ]
It's official, EAW is going to have an expansion pack called Star Wars Empire at War: Forces of Corruption! Here's the info:

Following the success of Star Wars: Empire at War, the best-selling PC game of Q1 2006, LucasArts announces an expansion pack titled Star Wars Empire at War: Forces of Corruption. A widely appealing strategy game, Empire at War let gamers play the light side or the dark side in an epic Galactic Civil War. Now, for the first time ever, Star Wars Empire at War: Forces of Corruption introduces a unique point of view - the corrupt side.

The Rebels have just destroyed the Death Star, and the galaxy is in turmoil. As an aspiring Underworld figure named Tyber Zann, spread corruption throughout the galaxy using new strategic gameplay elements to influence other factions, steal their funds, slow their production, spy on them and more, all en route to becoming the most notorious criminal leader since Jabba the Hutt. Exciting new land-tactical options like customizable, upgradeable bases and guerilla warfare allow for innovative battlefield tactics. Take command of and confront new fighting units for all factions (Rebel B-wings, Imperial TIE interceptors, Darth Vader's Executor Super Star Destroyer and more), and take down anyone who stands in your way of ruling the Underworld, be they new battlefield heroes like Luke Skywalker and Yoda or the forces of your most bitter rival - Jabba. Destroy capital ships with the awesome firepower of the second Death Star, and satiate Tyber's drive for the deadliest capital ship in the galaxy, a devastatingly powerful Super Star Destroyer known as the Eclipse.

You may go change your pants :).

Man your Battlestations! - 10:22 PST
[ Nick | Comments (3) ]
Starting tomorrow (April 25) Sega is going to start revealing their game line up for E3. And according to Eurogamer Petroglyph's Sega game is a big possibility to be one of the games revealed.

The site where all of this information is going to be revealed is right here. And starting tomorrow morning at 12:01 PST the first update is going to happen at the site I just linked. So will Petroglyph's Sega game be revealed in the next few days or did Eurogamer just get our hopes up for nothing?

Only one thing is for sure, if Petroglyph's Sega game is at E3 I'll be checking it out in person as I'm heading down to E3 once again.

Patch 1.03 is OUT!!! - 14:46 PST
[ Nick | Comments (5) ]
Patch 1.03 has now been released! To get your hands on the patch head here! You'll find a download link and patch information inside the link.

Major EAW Update - 16:48 PST
[ Nick | Comments (4) ]
It may have been a week since the last news update here, but boy do I have a good update for you. Just read on, it's something directly from Petroglyph:

Patch 1.03 is nearing the final phase of testing and we are expecting it to be released next week. The patch contains a wide array of updates and fixes resulting from feedback we have received from the community. Most importantly, connectivity issues should be greatly reduced. Along with fixes and tweaks made to the net code, we�ve added a new feature that will allow the host to �Test Connections� before the game launches to ensure connectivity is 100%. You may have also noticed some changes to the Star Wars: Empire at War GameSpy portal pages. We're revamping the ladders artistically as well as adding a few new stats to both the ladders and player profiles including disconnects/ out of syncs, favorite side, favorite ladder, best win streak and worst loss streak. Check them out when the patch goes live!

As an added bonus, patch 1.03 contains new content including 1 new land tactical multiplayer map (Corellia) that utilizes the single-player reinforcement pop cap system; per the request of the community. In addition we�ve added a brand new 43 planet multiplayer campaign map that will give fans hours upon hours of EAW online mayhem. This is our way of saying thanks for all the support!

We are also hard at work on the editor and will provide more detail on the release date and contents as soon as we can.

Both the Petroglyph and LEC teams appreciate your passion, enthusiasm, patience and support for Empire at War. We couldn't do it without you!

So do you want to see what patch 1.03 will be doing? Well here are the notes on it:

New Content

* Added a new Multiplayer Land Skirmish map: "Corellian Countdown." This Skirmish map allows players to raise their own population cap by taking control points. This is similar to how land maps in Campaign games work.
* Added a new 43 Planet Multiplayer Campaign Map: "Lines are Drawn." This is a larger Campaign map that contains all of the planets from galactic map used in the story.

New Features

* Added an "ignore" button to the Internet lobby. Ignored player chat is not seen in any Internet dialog, and Ignored players are shown in a different color in the player list.
* Added "Quality Lights" to the multiplayer game lobby screen to indicate connection performance between players. Detailed ToolTips will also display when the mouse cursor is hovering over the "quality"
lights.
* Added a "test connections" button to the multiplayer game lobby screen that allows players to test out their connections with other players in a match before starting.

New Fixes

* Corrected several issues that caused Quick Match to hang indefinitely.
* Corrected an issue where Quick Match would connect more than two players to a game, resulting in a sync error.
* Several stat exploits that have been discovered and abused have been corrected. As a result, the GameSpy Arena 1v1 Space Skirmish, 1v1 Land Skirmish and 1v1 Campaign ladders will be reset. It is important to note that the ladders will remain populated. However, the current stats will be cleared to coincide with the 1.03 update as this levels the playing field allowing all players to fairly earn a ladder rank.
* Victory movies can now be skipped in multiplayer games.
* Corrected an issue where AT-ATs would stop moving when tow-cabled by Rebel speeders, allowing players to stop the unit from suffering a successful tow-cable attack.
* Client player in a match is now allowed to change color/faction after pressing accept.
* Increased Multiplayer stability for LAN and Internet games.
* Corrected an issue that caused CD-Keys to become invalid when playing on Limited-User Windows profiles.
* Corrected several text issues, including the removal of references to the Venator and corrections for "missing" text problems.
* Corrected an issue that allowed Empire heroes to be placed on the Death Star.
* Numerous other improvements and corrections have also been made in this patch.


Balance Issues

* Improved targeting priority for AI when fighting Star Destroyers.
* Increased the tractor beam hard point health from 100 to 150 for Star Destroyers.
* Increased the Garrison spawn time from 15 seconds to 25 Seconds for most buildings.

Can you say YIPPEE!!!!

Alienware Star Wars PC - 18:22 PST
[ Nick | Comments (7) ]
For those of you looking for a new computer, do I have one for you. As Alienware sells a special Star Wars influenced PC, and starting next week the following special will be going on:

Starting next week, Star Wars fans can get a 250GB hard drive upgrade and a $50 instant rebate when they purchase an Alienware Aurora Star Wars Edition PC and new Star Wars: Empire at War videogame.

In addition to playing the new Empire at War game on your Alienware Aurora PC, fans will also get free access to Hyperspace online content for one year and Sony Star Wars Video Journey samples featuring music from the soundtrack.

You can get the computer skinned in either the Light or Dark side, as follows:


Personally I like the Dark Side more, especially since my color preference for online play is now Red. If you want more information on the computer systems just make a beeline for Alienware.