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Act of War Preview 02:14 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: real-time strategy
(0 comments)
The chaps at Gamesdomain tossed off a quick preview of Atari's Act of War: Act of War hasn't stirred up too much buzz just yet, but the storyline may raise some hackles. San Francisco has been ripped a new one by terrorists, and an alarmed U.S. administration has pulled its far-flung forces back from distant theaters for homeland defense in "Operation Hedgehog." It turns out that -- surprise surprise -- this is exactly what a certain evil alliance (known as The Consortium) wants. As you might guess, this is only the beginning.
WarCraft III Bonus Map: Goldshire 02:10 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: real-time strategy
Guild Wars Q&A; 02:03 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: mmog
Dreamfall: From Sketch to 3D Model 01:57 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: adventure
More Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory Coverage 01:48 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: action
The most important change comes with how the game selects players to go up against each other. Instead of the randomized setup in Pandora that could potentially put a first time player against three competitors with hundreds of hours under their belts, Chaos Theory will pit players against each other based on how long they've spent with the game. "Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow was a deep and complex game," says Mametz. "That means that you had a lot of things to learn before facing other players. One of the big difficulties of Pandora Tomorrow was that during your first sessions, you could fight players who were much better than you...in Chaos Theory, beginners with a similar 'played time' will be placed together when they search for a session." The setup will stop short of the matchmaking system seen in Halo 2 where players with similar rankings will be put together, but looks to be a good way to allow beginners to go up against like-minded players.You'll be able to check that out for yourself as mentioned on the official website: The Beta will ramp up slowly, to ensure an ideal gaming experience and allow us to build up our server capacity. It is designed to help us catch and correct serious gameplay and technical flaws. Please focus on MAJOR bugs and game design defaults (including balancing) and do not submit MINOR bugs or game design and level design defaults. A dedicated forum will be open shortly.
Gamespot Rumor Control 01:45 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: general news
Battlefield 2 Weapon Preview 12:57 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: action
Star Wars Battlefront 1.2 Patch 12:52 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: action
Most Anticipated 2005 Games Preview 12:41 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: general news
The game will operate on a brand-new 3D engine, which promises to combine the aesthetics of the KOTOR point of view with the tactical and strategic feel of the Baldur's Gate games, once you enter into combat. What isn't changing is the perfectly balanced, pseudo-real-time feel of the past Bioware games, which allowed you to speed through easy fights while still leaving the opportunity to pause a game in midstream to issue tactical commands in more-difficult battles. Bioware's also promising full speech in the game, so those who may have tried KOTOR first but were unable to get used to the slightly less-impressive production values in Neverwinter Nights or Baldur's Gate should be appeased.In my defense, I doubt Dragon Age will be released this year... Meanwhile, PC.IGN posted the second part of its 2005 strategy game preview.
Brothers in Arms MP Impressions 12:35 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: action
The guys at Gearbox readily say that they are going for tactics over deathmatch in the implementation of the multiplayer of Brothers in Arms. What does this mean for the game? Well, first off, as stated earlier, each player will be in charge of him or herself as well as a fire or assault team. These guys can receive simple commands such as rally around, fire on this target, or move and cover here. At this point, the AI seems pretty darn reactive and will defend and attack as needed. They won't ever advance without your orders, but are handy to have along in a heavy firefight. If a player character is killed in combat, he or she can then jump in to take over for one of the surviving members of the group.
Psychotoxic Hands-On 12:31 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: action / adventure
Although the visuals aren't quite in the same league as Painkiller, Psychotoxic has some more open environments and some unsettling set pieces almost on par with The Suffering. In one area, you must run around and destroy a set of grandfather clocks before a timer expires and a guillotine chops the head off of someone you need help from. With each clock you destroy, the timer gets slower. This scene is also viewed through a sienna filter sprinkled with film grains, and the Gothic setting and associated monsters is almost like stepping into another game. While hunting down the clocks, you have to do battle against grotesque, skittering spiders and back-flipping werewolves. The werewolves may sound silly on paper, but watching them hop around like circus acrobats is more unsettling than humorous.
Oddworld Stranger Preview 12:28 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- consoles: xbox
Oddworld's Stranger's Wrath is an interesting game in that it's truly a hybrid blend of gameplay styles. You're given two viewpoints, a first-person angle for shooting and combat, and a third-person angle, which is best suited for running, and hand-to-hand combat. I prefer the first-person angle, and one could theoretically play a predominant part of the game with only one viewpoint, but after several hours playing, I've come to realize that learning to regularly switch back and forth between the two viewpoints is the best way to play. In fact, I greatly disliked the third-person angle in the beginning. It simply wasn't fast or accurate enough for me. But I've learned how it's effective: In third-person you can gallop, engage in fights using spin punches and head-butts, and it's excellent for platforming. Otherwise, you can platform around in first-person, but that's a little bit too much like Turok for my tastes.
Godfather Game Details 12:25 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: action
EA has entrusted senior producer Hunter Smith with this license -- sure to be one of the years most scrutinized movie to game conversions. Smith has worked on the 007 and Road Rash franchises, and in comments with the magazine, he promises a movie to game conversion of a flavor completely different from existing movie to game products (many of which are released by EA in the first place).
Splinter Cell Chaos Theory Impressions 12:20 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: action
The specific mechanics have been fleshed out some since Pandora Tomorrow, affording you more flexibility as you sneak about. Sam's move set has been expanded considerably, offering even more ways to kill. We got a peek at a satisfying array of stealth kills performed from a pleasing variety of positions, such as hanging from a ceiling, hanging off a ledge, and the old standby of snagging someone from behind. PlayStation 2 and GameCube owners can also rejoice at their exclusive stealth move: a water stealth kill wherein Sam grabs his foe and drowns him, which will not be in the PC or Xbox versions of the game. Besides the new death-dealing Sam will also have a "shoulder switch" that will let you change which hand is holding your gun on the fly.On a related note, TeamXbox interviewed Ubi about it as well.
Weekend WPG 12:15 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: general news
In Other News... 12:01 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- in-house: in other news...
What are your experiences with laptops and gaming?
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Chaos Theory Preview 07:29 pm
- Jeff Tom
- games: action / strategy
(0 comments)
PC.IGN have scooped an in-depth preview of Ubisoft's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory. Here's a whiff: Chaos Theory features three adversarial game types. The first is Story Mode, which comprises all of the different objective-based game modes from Pandora Tomorrow. Instead of having a single objective, players are now given multiple objectives, many of them optional. Completing certain objectives can alter the map for both spies and mercs. Each map has numerous access areas (skylights, floor panels, sealed-off vents) that can be opened to offer alternative routes. Even mercs have the opportunity to alter the playground with destructible walls that can make for quicker routes, but can also open things up for the spies.
CS: Source Bot Monday; New Map 02:08 pm
- Andrew Burnes
- games: action
The official Counter-Strike Bot will be released for Counter-Strike: Source on Monday (January 17th). The Bot features enhanced abilities and will be available for all owners of Counter-Strike: Source. Also included in Monday's release is an updated version de_tides, rebuilt by Turtlerock Studios.
EA Wasn't Hostile; Ubisoft Has A Plan 10:58 am
- Andrew Burnes
- games: general news
Florin reiterated that Electronic Arts was not asking for a seat on Ubisoft's board. "We had the opportunity to buy a 20 percent stake in Ubisoft and we haven't asked for anything... That's not hostile. In our industry, one doesn't make hostile moves because our value lies with people," he added.
EA Waives Conditions on Digital Illusions Acquisitions 10:37 am
- Jeff Tom
- games: action
The offer had previously been conditioned upon EA becoming the owner of more than 50 percent of the total number of shares representing more than 50 percent of the capital and votes in DICE after dilution upon exercise of employee warrants outstanding under the option program launched in 2002. Even though the extended acceptance period has not yet expired and the calculation of the outcome of the offer has not yet been made, EA has decided to waive the above-mentioned condition for the offer.
Big Business Eyeing Game Publishers 10:31 am
- Jeff Tom
- games: general news
More worrisome would be the possibility of widespread unionization amongst developers, artists and others involved in the game creation process. This is an issue that has been discussed more seriously in the past several months, as the divide between developers and publishers has grown wider.
Constantine Preview 10:18 am
- Jeff Tom
- games: action / adventure
Constantine's gameplay is, well, more or less linear (although as you push further into the game there's a little more room for exploration), but it's well enough executed. It's also heavily scripted, but it's competent scripting and considering the game's overall cinematic ambience this isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, it's difficult to shake the feeling that you're being lead around on a string. Maybe it's because we've only dipped a toe in the Constantine sea and later in the adventure you're left to your own devices. But from our hands-on impressions for this article we've come away finding it impossible to rid ourselves of the thought that the title has been designed to pander to a wider audience than just the avid videogame fan, which may or may not sit well with some. But perhaps we shouldn't be so surprised. This is a movie tie-in after all.
Act of War: Direct Action Demo 10:10 am
- Jeff Tom
- games: real-time strategy
FYI, this is the game that allows you to blow up the White House and other world-famous monuments.
Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory Q&A; 10:08 am
- Jeff Tom
- games: action / strategy
A: Yes, co-op will be available for two players online - for two players. And Pandora's online mode - known as versus - will be back. Pandora Tomorrow fans will definitely recognize the versus mode of Splinter Cell Chaos Theory immediately. It still includes all of the elements that made Pandora such an addictive smash, with lots of improvements and additions such as new gadgets and moves. There's a cool new competitive move that allows mercs to knock a spy to the ground, place a foot on his neck, and verbally taunt him before letting him pass out, or moving in for the kill. There are also some cool new cooperative moves, and the cheating issues encountered in Pandora have been fixed.
RPG Vault Features 10:00 am
- Jeff Tom
- games: role-playing
Another thing you should understand is that Guild Wars has a story that is told through a linear series of missions, probably around 20 in total although we've yet to see a precise number. They're intended to be playable in around an hour apiece, and by the time you've completed them, you should be at least close to the above-mentioned level 20. These scenarios are intended for parties. You can tackle them alone, but they're being tuned for groups of up to six. If you don't want or can't find other players' company, you can recruit NPC henchmen before entering any mission or exploration area. There are four in all - Warrior, Monk, Elementalist and Ranger. You can only bring along one of each, which means that when the maximum party size is six, you'll only be able to reach it if you join up with another player. As of the beta event a week ago, some areas and parts thereof were pretty difficult even with a full complement, while others could be traversed fairly easily with smaller bands. This seems likely to change with further tuning.
Blizzard Q&A; 09:58 am
- Jeff Tom
- games: mmog
Given the magnitude of that task, do you see Blizzard as having transitioned into being a massively multiplayer company, or are you spinning that off as a separate unit alongside your traditional games business?
X2: The Return Preview 09:55 am
- Jeff Tom
- games: space strategy
The most recent work has been on the planet missions. We were lucky enough to be shown an early, unfinished Alpha-state version showing two ships ducking and weaving between a series of futuristic skyscrapers. Unfortunately for fans, you won't actually get to fly around on the planets, rather you're given controls of the ship's gun turret and have to try and shoot down a fleeing criminal. Limited maybe, but it, like half the new missions, has been designed to further the story, introduce game elements that might not otherwise have been discovered and break up the monotony of sitting in space.
Project Snowblind Previews 12:28 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: action
Comparable to Call of Duty, Snowblind offers up a truly epic sense of war. Often times the game pits dozens of friendly units against dozens of enemy units. The player's comrades aren't governed by truly advanced artificial intelligence, nor can they be directly controlled, but they do serve to expand upon the heated feel of the title by simply serving as cool interactive décor. Likewise, the levels themselves are often cluttered with an impressive amount of interactive objects, not just including the usual assortment of boxes and crates and exploding barrels, but also randomly popping junk, turrets, cameras, robots, security systems, and partially destructible walls and pillars that emulate the effect of movie squibs. Snowblind seems to have retained the more approachable philosophy its distant ancestor, the original Deus Ex, was so famous for.
Commodore 64 'Re-launched' 12:25 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: vaporware
Leading on-line gadget specialist, Gadgets.co.uk has today announced the launch of the £29.99 (inc vat) Commodore 64 "Direct to TV" unit, a re-launch of the world's biggest selling home computer.Yes, I'm as boggled as you are.
Hardware & Tech Nuggets 12:20 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- hardware: general news
Game Reviews 12:10 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- games: general news
In Other News... 12:00 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- in-house: in other news...
Today's question is: What sort of features are you looking forward to in the next-generation of games?
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