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The Sims 2 Movies
We get the full E3 presentation showing off the love hungry Don.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Interview and Movie Recap
A chat about multiplayer betas, physics, and complex squad AI.

- Friday WorthPlaying Goods
- Halo 2 Weekly Update
- Star Wars Republic Commando Tour
- Half-Life 2 Forum Bits
- Serious Sam 2 Update
- Dragon Empires Diary
- Vault Bits
- Codename Panzers Interview
- WorthPlaying Previews
- Jumpgate Hits 1000 Days Milestone
 

Mortifilia First Look 06.25.2004
A creepy survival horror offering from France.

Close Combat: First to Fight -- First Look 06.25.2004
You want the real thing? Destineer's authentic US Marines FPS will show you how it's done. First details and screens.

Postal 2 Expansion Preview 06.25.2004
Apocalypse Weekend: Pray you live to see Monday.

Friday , June 25, 2004
Friday WorthPlaying Goods 06:48 pm - Apache - games: general news (0 comments)
Thank f'n goodness for Friday!

Halo 2 Weekly Update 06:43 pm - Apache - consoles: xbox (6 comments)
Thanks to HBO for the pointer that this week's official Halo 2 update is up over at Major League Gaming:

Well, I figure I might be the only animator chiming in today so I'll throw you a bone and let you in on what we've been doing. For the past couple of weeks I've been working on the CENSORED cinematic. I think it's the second longest one in the game at somewhere around CENSORED minutes or so… it has CENSORED different characters in it so I'm basically animating my ass off every day. It has two CENSORED and CENSORED CENSORED the CENSORED into the CENSORED chamber to face CENSORED and CENSORED. It's coming along pretty nicely and I should have CENSORED's part mostly finished by the end of the weekend. It's nice to have the final dialogue in the game, but when you're animating it you have to listen to it frame by frame or scrub through it quickly both forwards and backwards so after a while you go a little nutty. In fact, I've lost it. I'm gone. No I'm not - yes I am! Stacey has been working on a cinematic with the chief jumping across these huge beams as nasty shit is going down behind him and then there's this sick-ass explosion and CENSORED. Mike and Bill have been troopers and are putting the finishing touches on a lot of vehicle and character animations, and Jeremy has been a massive help with finishing off a lot of stuff for the Chief.

In other news, it's Friday and that is so sweet. I've also discovered that 2 out of 3 Americans do not appreciate the taste of ketchup flavored potato chips, which I find odd since they are so damn tasty.

Star Wars Republic Commando Tour 01:49 pm - Apache - games: action (1 comment)
LucasArts posted a walkthrough movie (the video is on the left side of the page under the big logo thingie) for Star Wars Republic Commando which takes you on a guided tour of their Battlefield flavored Star Wars shooter which is being developed by Pandemic Studios.

Half-Life 2 Forum Bits 01:25 pm - Apache - games: action (12 comments)
Valve's Gabe Newell posted a few nuggets on the HL2Fallout boards stating that Half-Life 2 'might' be going gold sometime in August, plus mentioned a few other bits like how big the game was going to be (3.5 gigs), actors working on the game and more. Thanks to all who sent that link in.

Serious Sam 2 Update 01:14 pm - Apache - games: action (0 comments)
Thanks to myself for noticing that Croteam has posted a new bi-monthly report on the progress of Serious Sam 2:

Serious Animation editor (SAE)
Serious Animation Editor has been added. That is something new and it's already proving to be a very useful tool. First, inside SAE you could create skeletal based animations. Procedure is similar to very expensive professional programs which are used for those purposes. This should be of great help to MOD community. They would have the possibility to create and add animations to the existing models or their own characters. After that, they could use Serious Macro Scripts (SMS) to control and play those animations. For example, anyone could create a cut sequence with their own animations, and all that without changing basic code. Along animations, you could also create paths. Paths could be used for various purposes e.g. path for camera, lights, character movement... Those paths could then be edited, you could insert new key frames, delete existing ones, etc.

Dragon Empires Diary 01:02 pm - Apache - games: mmog (0 comments)
A new developer diary with one of the guys working on the fantasy themed massively multiplayer game Dragon Empires is up at the Codemasters site. The topic today is testing and quality assurance.

Vault Bits 12:58 pm - Apache - games: general news (0 comments)
From Ye Ole Vault:

Codename Panzers Interview 12:50 pm - Apache - games: real-time strategy (0 comments)
Gamers Pulse cranked out an interview with the Stormregion Design Team about Codename Panzers:

GP: The game looks absolutely beautiful from the screenshots I have seen. Could you give us some information about the Engine you are using or a little more information on the graphics in the game?

We tried to catch the atmosphere of WWII in graphics as well. The advanced version of our in-house-developed 3D engine called Gepard 3D is serving the game on a world class level. It's a perfect tool for our talented artists to present colorful scenes, breathtaking effects, diverse cutscenes, and stunning visuals all over the game. Our coders stuffed all of the advanced 3D technologies into the game, including dynamic lights and shadows, self-shadows, 3D grass using LOD, vertex and pixel shaders and skeletal character animation (MOCAP). The game engine includes some interesting features as well, like physical modelling of the wires, and the special effects of water and waterfalls.

WorthPlaying Previews 12:44 pm - Apache - games: general news (0 comments)
A few previews from WorthPlaying:

Jumpgate Hits 1000 Days Milestone 12:18 pm - Apache - games: mmog (2 comments)
Netdevil announced that its space themed massively multiplayer game - Jumpgate has hit the 1000 days of operation milestone. "Jumpgate broke new ground in online gaming when it released in 2001," commented Steve 'Istvan' Hartmeyer, Jumpgate Programmer, "and even today no other game offers simulated spaceflight and combat with anything like the same degrees of skill and excitement."

Full Spectrum Warrior Preview 11:27 am - Jeff Tom - games: action (1 comment)
Computer&VideoGames; have slapped up a preview of the PC version of Full Spectrum Warrior from THQ. Here's a bit:

"What we're most proud of is creating a genre almost all to itself: part stealth, part RTS and part shooter, we've decided to call it a tactical action game," begins Greg, and as the opening level loads up, it's easy to see his point. Two teams of four US soldiers await your command and they're divided into two: one lighter Alpha 'assault' team and one Bravo 'support' team armed with a heavier complement of weapons like the M4's integral M203 grenade launcher or the M-249 SAW heavy machine gun. Full Spectrum Warrior's training aid heritage is immediately to the fore, as we set out on our first mission. "Authenticity is key," says Greg; and your squads will behave exactly as US soldiers would in the real world.

World of Warcraft Q&A; 11:25 am - Jeff Tom - games: mmog (3 comments)
Games Domain have scooped an interview on Blizzard's MMORPG, World of Warcraft. Here's a whiff:

GD: Your "rest state" feature was controversial at first. [Blizzard imposed experience penalties on players who leveled up their characters for long periods of time without logging off. -Ed] The complaining seems to have settled down now -- do you plan to make any more changes to it?

MK: Rest state was a hot topic, but as players started playing with it and realizing that we were going to be make changes to it, the fervor died down. By tweaking the rate of recovery and allowing you to rest to some degree anywhere in the world, we addressed some of the real issues that players were having. It is an example of why we have the beta: so we can try out new, even controversial ideas, and get player feedback. This is not something we could do as freely during or after launch.

Painkiller Expansion 11:18 am - Jeff Tom - games: action (4 comments)
Dreamcatcher have announced an expansion pack for the first-person shooter Painkiller, Battle out of Hell, due in time for the holidays. Here's some info:

Picking up right where the game's story left off, Battle out of Hell includes an additional single-player chapter with 10 levels, as well as new multiplayer modes, maps and models. It will also offer an amplified arsenal of un-deadly weapons, bigger and badder bosses and the map editor Software Development Kit.

Soldner Patch 11:09 am - Jeff Tom - games: action (2 comments)
A patch for the 3D action game Soldner: Secret Wars, has been released with a huge number of fixes and improvements. In there are noew server files for the game. Mirrors: 3DGamers, WorthPlaying, FileRush.

Tribes: Vengeance Preview 01:09 am - Apache - games: action (0 comments)
Gamespy kicks off their Tribes: Vengeance coverage with a nice preview of Irrational's Unreal engined sequel:

While there's no denying the incredible multiplayer gameplay of the first two Tribes games, there's also no question that they were woefully lacking in the single-player department. While the Tribes games were clearly meant for online play, a decent solo experience would've really enhanced the Tribes experience. The first game's laughable "fly to the top of this thing and now you're ready!" tutorial was useless, and the second game's "campaign" was little more than a poorly scripted tack-on thrown in at the end of an extra long development cycle. With a game as complex and dynamic as Tribes, new players either suffered online for a week or two while learning, or discarded the game in general, leaving behind one of the best multiplayer experiences ever created.

IGN Nuggets 12:57 am - Apache - games: general news (1 comment)
From around the IGN sphere of influence:

Clone Bandits for UT2004 12:37 am - Steejee - games: mods (4 comments)
Another day, another UT2004 mod. This one is a little wackier than most, featuring an odd (but interesting) premise and some LCD induced vehicles. Grab the (version 1.0) files off their website and get cracking. Oh, and for once the mod weighs in at something reasonable, 50 megs!

Sweeney Blurb on Art Assets 12:33 am - Steejee - games: general news (0 comments)
Beyond3D has a short snippet posted asking Tom Sweeney of Epic fame (and Carmack, with no response) on the problems artists face moving current gen art assets to next gen engines. Won't replicate anything here 'cause it's just too damn short.

Intel HD Audio Put to the Test 12:30 am - Steejee - hardware: intel (5 comments)
ExtremeTech puts Intel's onboard HD Audio to the test now that the 925/915 chipsets have hit the street. Will you be chucking your Audigy 2 anytime soon?

We're glad to see a major revision made to Intel's motherboard-down audio architecture. AC97 had clearly run out of gas and HD Audio marks both an improvement now, and its flexibility will enable some interesting implementations up the road. That said, there are still some pieces missing from the puzzle. For starters, there is currently no DVD-Audio player that can be used with Intel's HD Audio to enable that content format. Given HD Audio's design specifications—multichannel 96KHz/24-bit and two-channel 192KHz/24-bit—it was clearly aimed at being able to enable playback of DVD-Audio content, but the software support isn't yet in place. Hopefully, InterVideo and CyberLink will step up and enable DVD-Audio on Intel's HD Audio platform in their respective applications: WinDVD and PowerDVD.

Review Roundup 12:15 am - Steejee - games: miscellaneous round-ups (0 comments)

PC:

PS2:

XBox:

GC:

GBA:

Hardware Roundup 12:15 am - Steejee - hardware: hardware round-ups (0 comments)

Guess What (Hint: Starts with 'V', ends with 'ideo'):

Not:

In Other News... 12:03 am - Apache - in-house: in other news... (30 comments)
Oh sweet bliss, it's finally Friday! There was some interesting replies to yesterday's question of WTF happened to OpenGL as an API of choice, but I guess the bottom line is that QuakeX game licenses just aren't as popular as they used to be. It seems more people are into Unreal engine these days or write their own Direct X stuff. If DOOM III is a massive hit, I'm sure that will change though.

Today's question is What is the longest marathon of non-stop gaming you've ever partaken in? For me I think it's around 72 hours... (cough)
 
 

Thursday , June 24, 2004
Worthplaying Goods 06:26 pm - Apache - games: general news (2 comments)
Today from WP:

Austin Game Conference Details 02:53 pm - Jeff Tom - games: game biz. (1 comment)
GameSpot has some details on my hometown Austin Game Conference, with some news on who will be there. Check it:

Last year's AGC was a huge hit among attendees, and Chris Sherman, executive director of the AGI, intends to build on that success. Besides a larger tech pavilion and exhibit hall, the focus on online console gaming (especially of the massively multiplayer persuasion), has been expanded. Sherman cites influence from Microsoft and Sony for the MMOG expansion toward consoles, as well as the fact that many of Austin's game companies are involved in the genre, thus making it a natural fit.

Top 10 US PC Games of the Week 01:33 pm - Apache - games: general news (6 comments)
The NPD Group released the top 10 best selling PC games in the US ending the week of June 12th:

1) Harry Potter & The Prisoner Of Azkaban - Electronic Arts $27
2) Halo: Combat Evolved - Microsoft $24
3) Rise Of Nations - Microsoft $35
4) City Of Heroes - NCsoft $45
5) The Sims Mega Deluxe - Electronic Arts $34
6) Battlefield Vietnam - Electronic Arts $37
7) Far Cry - Ubisoft $38
8) The Sims Deluxe - Electronic Arts $26
9) Call Of Duty - Activision $39
10) The Sims: Superstar Expansion Pack - Electronic Arts $22
Nerf budget titles.

Top 20 Best Selling PC Games in May 01:28 pm - Apache - games: general news (0 comments)
The NPD Group released the top 20 best selling PC games list in the US for the Month of May:

1) City Of Heroes - NCsoft $47
2) Far Cry - Ubisoft $39
3) Battlefield Vietnam - Electronic Arts $38
4) Rise Of Nations: Thrones & Patriots Expansion Pack - Microsoft $27
5) Rise Of Nations - Microsoft $33
6) Unreal Tournament 2004 - Atari $38
7) Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic - LucasArts $29
8) Lineage II: The Chaotic Chronicles - NCsoft $45
9) The Sims Deluxe - Electronic Arts $25
10) Counter Strike: Condition Zero - Vivendi Universal Publishing $36
11) MS Age Of Mythology - Microsoft $33
12) Call Of Duty - Activision $42
13) Thief: Deadly Shadows - Eidos $40
14) The Sims Double Deluxe - Electronic Arts $33
15) The Sims: Makin' Magic Expansion Pack - Electronic Arts $32
16) Lords Of the Realm 3 - Vivendi Universal Publishing $20
17) Warcraft III Battle Chest - Vivendi Universal Publishing $42
18) MS Zoo Tycoon: Complete Collection - Microsoft $30
19) Hoyle Casino 2004 - Vivendi Universal Publishing $23
20) Final Fantasy XI - Square Enix USA $50
Some pretty good games in there.

Taldren Studios Closed 01:25 pm - Apache - games: general news (0 comments)
Thanks to Starfleet Universe via Blues for the news that Taldren Studios has officially closed it doors. Word is now that an offshoot of the company will reform in Korea where it will be working on a Myth themed massively multiplayer game.

New Ninja Gaiden Downloadable Content Coming 01:19 pm - Apache - consoles: xbox (1 comment)
Tecmo announced plans to release new downloadable content via Xbox Live for Ninja Gaiden come August:

Tecmo(R) and Xbox(TM) Live announced today their plan to expand the Ninja Gaiden playing experience with additional downloadable content which will be available in the beginning of August via Xbox Live. The evolved version will contain a wide array of additions including new camera and action engines that will improve upon the already superior game engine, new challenging enemies, new costumes, an arsenal of new weapons, and more. The new download was created to go side-by-side with the second round of the online Ninja Gaiden Tournament, named The Master Ninja Tournament, and will also be openly available to anyone with an Xbox Live account and a copy of Ninja Gaiden.

"Not only has Ninja Gaiden proven to be a massively successful and highly acclaimed game, it has broken records! The first round of The Master Ninja Tournament was so popular that it became the most participated tournament in Xbox Live's history," said John Inada, head of Tecmo Marketing. "Itagaki continues to dazzle gamers with his innovative game design, and he has pulled out all of the stops for the new downloadable content making it a must-have addition for our fans."

Feedback from Ninja Gaiden fans was taken into account when designing the added features. The new camera system enhances playability by changing the player's perspective relative to the enemies' position, while the new action engine will make the combat system more extreme and faster than ever before. New weapons and smarter enemies are just a few more of the features that complete the downloadable package.

"Keep in mind that Ninja Gaiden's main concept is its strength as an action game. The new downloadable content will only expand the envelope of this concept," said Tomonobu Itagaki, Tecmo's head creator of Ninja Gaiden. "The second round of The Master Ninja Tournament is formatted for participants to download the new content, play through the game from beginning to end and then post their scores online to see how they ranked against other players worldwide. If they are confident in their Ninja Gaiden skills, players must take on this challenge."

Spellforce Breath of Winter Q&A; 01:15 pm - Apache - games: role-playing (0 comments)
The chaps at Loaded, Inc. tossed off an interview with JoWood's Jan Wagner to learn more about Spellforce Breath of Winter:

What can fans of the first Spellforce look forward to with the Breath of Winter add-on?

Well, first of all we will have an extensive single player campaign Then of course our Free Game mode with over 25 different maps, which is sort of a Skirmish mode but you can create and save you own Avatar, so you can level up, collect items etc and you can play this with your friends, too, as a co-operative game. A bit like Diablo 2 or similar games but with both RTS levels and RPG levels. So again we follow our principle of creating a real combination of game styles. An RPS (role playing strategy) game as we like to call it.

MISSING: Since January Ships 01:10 pm - Apache - games: adventure (0 comments)
The Adventure Company also let us know it has shipped MISSING: Since January to stores:

Journalist, Jack Lorski and his companion disappear while investigating a series of serial killings. Soon after, SKL-Network , the agency Jack works for, receives a disturbing CD-ROM showing video footage obtained during his investigation. More than a simple CD, this disc marks the start of a chilling game of cat-and-mouse with a mad killer known only as "The Phoenix."

The most innovative game on the adventure market , MISSING: Since January features an innovative blend of Windows � and internet gameplay, making for a disturbingly immersive experience. Players will receive email from virtual characters, and The Phoenix himself, offering important information. Players will also scour a fusion of 300 real and fictitious websites to gather clues vital to solving the case.

Aura: Fate of the Ages Ships 01:07 pm - Apache - games: adventure (0 comments)
The Adventure Company sent word that it has shipped off Aura: Fate of the Ages to stores today:

Aura's" magical story begins with an ancient legend that tells of the existence of powerful and sacred rings and hidden artifacts that, when combined, offer great power and immortality to those that possess them.

Players will take an incredible voyage in search of these rings and artifacts, opening astonishing new worlds throughout the quest. A variety of ingenious fully-animated puzzles using logic, reasoning and common sense must be solved before the game reaches it fully-realized conclusion.

"Aura" is a challenging first person puzzle exploration game with an easy to navigate mouse driven, point and click interface. The game features vast panoramic landscapes and paramount pre-rendered graphics. Players will need to solve a variety of ingenious fully-animated puzzles using logic, reasoning and common sense.

KOTOR II Q&A; 11:35 am - Jeff Tom - games: action / roleplaying (1 comment)
RPG Codex have scored an interview with Obsidian Entertainment on the game and the programmer's background. Here's a whiff:

6) When BioWare handed over the Odyssey engine for Obsidian to get started on KOTOR 2, how much assistance did you receive? Did they give you their development tools and software or did you have to create your own, and how much modification did you do? Did you spend a lot of time on the phone with the guys at BioWare when you were first learning the engine, or were you fairly independent?

FK: There was quite a bit of initial support to get us started, but most of us here come from Black Isle where we had experience working with BioWare and their code base so the transition was relatively painless. Those of us who hadn't worked directly with BioWare in the past had experience working on existing engines, so we were all down with OPP (other people's programs) BioWare was certainly there if we needed them.

Chaos League Multiplayer Demo 11:31 am - Jeff Tom - games: real-time strategy (0 comments)
A multiplayer demo for the fantasy themed strategy game Chaos League has been released coming in at 155MB and featuring three races from which to choose from. Follow the links for all the mirrors and more official info on the game.

Shell Shock 'Nam 67 Preview 11:24 am - Jeff Tom - games: action (0 comments)
Computer&VideoGames; have slapped up a preview of Shell Shock 'Nam 67. Here's a cut:

And rather than just a mere afterthought or frippery, it quickly becomes a vital gameplay mechanic as you'll often need to scout ahead on your belly, or quickly seek cover when a firefight erupts. You can quickly swap between rifle, sidearm and grenades with the controls as you'd expect, and you can also revert to a behind-the-shoulder view which is ideal for sniping or when you need a high degree of accuracy.

Brothers in Arms Preview 11:12 am - Jeff Tom - games: action (0 comments)
Computer&VideoGames; have slapped up a preview of Brothers in Arms, the first-person shooter from Gearbox Software and Ubi Soft. Here's a clip:

What first strikes you when you see Brothers In Arms is the astonishing detail in your fellow paratroopers - the way their eyeballs follow your movement, their sneers and snarls, the looks of fear and pain... Their faces are so life-like, it's honestly disconcerting the first time you see it. Your squad, who you gather together as the game progresses, are separated into two groups - one with heavy guns that can suppress German outfits, and the other with lighter armaments and grenades, who you can use to flank, sneak and outmanoeuvre the enemy.

Star Wars Battlefront Preview 01:19 am - Apache - games: action / strategy (0 comments)
PC.IGN shared its hands-on impressions of Pandemic & LucasArts' Star Wars Battlefront:

Given the awesomeness of most of the vehicles, I think it's pretty likely that the game's pedestrians will find a lot of love in their heart for the heavy weapons class. Short of the shoulder-fired rockets, there's precious little you can do on foot to protect yourself from the AT-STs and Hailfires and such. The classes with jet packs also seem really useful as they give you a new level of mobility that the other classes don't enjoy. There are definite uses for the other classes -- the pilots come in handy for repairing the vehicles, for instance -- but the heavy weapons guys and jet pack troopers were definitely my own personal favorites.

Joint Operations Patch 01:07 am - Apache - games: action / strategy (0 comments)
Releasing a patch when a game hits store shelves seems to be a trend these days, so Novalogic posted an update for Joint Operation, its very recently released military themed tactical action shooter. Snag it from 3D Gamers or WorthPlaying. It comes in at 26 megs.

Horizons Update Q&A; 01:04 am - Apache - games: mmog (3 comments)
HomeLan checked in with Artifact's David Bowman to see if anything new for Horizons was (cough) on the horizon:

HomeLAN - Since Horizons's release, what has the development team done to expand the game in terms of content and features?

David Bowman - Horizons is a constantly growing game. Almost every week we've added new quests, monsters, abilities, locations, and events. The players cooperated on all of the shards to release the Satyrs and the Dryads as two new player races. We completely rewrote the combat system, which the vast majority of the players recognize as a significant client improvement. We've optimized the database, server and simulation that are the basis of Horizons as well.

Celeron? Good? Gah? 01:04 am - Steejee - hardware: intel (3 comments)
Anandtech got a hold of some of the Prescott based Celeron D CPUs from Intel and ran 'em through the gauntlet. Given the history of the CPUs (ignoring their uber-overclocking 15 minutes of fame), the results were kinda suprising:

The numbers don't lie: Prescott is very well suited for Celeron. Not only do the new Celeron 3xx line of processors perform better than the previous Northwood based Celerons, but even when hampered by a 400MHz FSB, the Prescott Celerons consistently showed improved performance over their predecessors. Even more impressive is the fact that the Celeron 3xx line is able to keep pace with AMD's 2600+ and under Athlon XP line.

Axis And Allies Q&A; 01:01 am - Apache - games: real-time strategy (0 comments)
A short Axis And Allies Q&A; is up at HomeLan today:

HomeLAN - How did the idea come about to do a PC RTS game based on Axis and Allies and how does the game relate to the classic board game?

Atari - Axis & Allies is a natural fit for RTS gaming and was co-conceived by Atari and Larry Harris, the inventor of Axis & Allies. It was decided early on to extend the Axis & Allies brand appropriately onto the PC instead making a copy of the board game. The RTS game takes much inspiration from the 20 year old brand but endeavors to bring WWII to life through real life personalities, historical battles and awesome graphics. Axis & Allies RTS will take it's place alongside Axis & Allies the board game as one of the great games of all time.

Champions: Return to Arms Preview 12:58 am - Apache - consoles: ps2 (0 comments)
Want more EverQuest on your PS2?

The EverQuest license is nigh unstoppable. SOE truly struck gold when it absorbed Verant Interactive and published the incredibly popular EverQuest for PC back in the late '90s. Since then we've seen countless expansion packs and a PlayStation 2 MMOG called EverQuest Online Adventures, not to mention the upcoming EverQuest II. Taking the action away from the MMO arena, SOE last year released the highly rated PlayStation 2 action/adventure title, Champions of Norrath: Realms of EverQuest, which drew from the excellent gameplay found in Interplay's Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance series.

Children of the Nile Preview 12:48 am - Apache - games: real-time strategy (0 comments)
PC.IGN took a look at Children of the Nile, which they compare to The Sims meets Civilization:

Although Children is described as a cross between city building, The Sims, and Civilization, let's also talk about what makes it different. After all, the above designs are now deeply ingrained in gaming, and combining two not-so-fresh-anymore themes doesn't really guarantee success. What Children does differently is that it treats each character in the world as a virtual person, rather than just a statistic, for starters. Each home is a household, with each family member having a name, a role and a generational tree. You can track them on the HUD as they go to gather resources, or go to the market to buy things, or join a protest, or loaf around, and more. The decisions they make and how effectively they make them are determined by how well you design and plan your city, which sounds logical enough. But within Children is a deep supply-and-demand model.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 Preview 12:44 am - Apache - games: action (4 comments)
Turtle Power!

TMNT 2's touted main attraction is the addition of a four player cooperative mode -- something that was sorely missing from last year's game. Continuing this four turtle trend, the single player story mode allows you to swap between all the turtles on the fly. While you won't have computer controlled buddies helping you through the levels (ala Shrek 2), this function is more than a simple palette swap. Each turtle possesses unique abilities -- so it's to your advantage to change shells. Donatello, the tech head of the family, is able to hack into computers. This will disable traps that lay in wait for the foursome. If there's a platforming challenge in front of you, Don might be able to unlock a bridge that will let you pass with ease. Or, he might turn off laser beams that block your path. Raph is the strongest turtle, so he's able to lift heavy objects (mostly blocks) so that the turtles will be able to reach new areas. Mikey retains his helicopter attack from previous games, which gives him more air time when jumping than his brothers. Leo, with dual katanas, is able to slice through objects -- which will aid in getting past obstacles and killing the Foot. In one level, trees litter the landscape -- a correctly timed swipe will crush foes.

Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War Preview 12:40 am - Apache - games: real-time strategy (0 comments)
PC.IGN slapped up a preview of Relic's upcoming real-time strategy game - Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War:

Games Workshop was very collaborative, understanding, and easy to work with. Initially I was really cautious when I completed a new design. First I'd show it to Relic's internal Warhammer 40,000 fans, next the team, and only then would I send it to Games Workshop. The feedback was awesome. It was so good in fact that once I got to know our contacts there better I'd send them the sketch directly. Once I even had famed Games Workshop artist Jes Goodwin do an over sketch of the Eldar tech tree just so the details were right. It was a great feeling to know that the man who designed the Eldar race in the table-top game just unofficially approved the Eldar tech tree! Games Workshop and I both really wanted this to be a collaborative process and it ended up being exactly that. Designing the additional Games Workshop units and tech tree was by far the most enjoyable part of the project for me.
Okay, it's more of a diary...

S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Shadow of Chernobyl Video Part 3 12:36 am - Apache - games: action (4 comments)
PC.IGN smacked up the third installment of its S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Shadow of Chernobyl E3 video presentation:

Today, in our continuing series of the STALKER E3 demo, we bring you the third movie. This time around we're taking a look at the other Stalkers you'll be working with and against. As always brand manager Darren Williams is our guide.

Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 Q&A; 12:30 am - Apache - games: simulation (0 comments)
PC.IGN is offering up some good clean family fun with an interview with some unnamed person working on Roller Coaster Tycoon 3:

Will players need a super fast computer to see the light effects?

Not at all - we have designed the game with the minimum spec in mind from day one so the lights are available on all spec of machines. The difference seen when a 'better' PC runs a park is mainly manifested in better frame rate (smoother animations and camera movement etc.) at higher screen resolutions. The main exception to this is the full reflective water effect, which unfortunately just isn't possible on the lowest end graphics cards. Our programmers are working hard to maximize the RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 experience on each given combination of PC processor, memory and graphics card.

All of the questions are about the game's lighting. Get excited!

Review Roundup 12:15 am - Steejee - games: miscellaneous round-ups (1 comment)

PC:

PS2:

XBox:

GC: I've got games! Really!

GBA:

Hardware Roundup 12:15 am - Steejee - hardware: hardware round-ups (0 comments)

Video (again!):

Not:

In Other News... 12:03 am - Apache - in-house: in other news... (22 comments)
I've been playing the New Frontiers expansion to Dark Age of Camelot and its pretty cool. It's a lot like Onslaught mode in Unreal Tournament 2004, but with more customized characters and classes. The only drawback would be the lag; right now the game isn't even playable for 56k clients. The whole concept of the expansion encourages players to "zerg", and while zerging is fun for people on broadband, well, it's not too great for everyone else who isn't. Since they added a lot of 'anti-cheating' stuff in New Frontiers, I hope they ditch the encyption they added to fight packet sniffing radar hacks, which pretty much halves what a modem player can handle on screen at once. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong there, but ever since they added that stuff, things have gone down hill... Whenever a big battle happens - bam! Link dead. Enter the suckage... Oh well, at its core its really fun but it's too bad that 56k players can't really enjoy it.

Today's question is WTF happened to OpenGL? The only state of the art game that uses it is DOOM III! Why has OpenGL been forsaken?

 
 


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