Audio

• Razer Barracuda AC-1 Sound Card - TechAge

  Boards
  

• Abit IN9 32X-Max Wi-Fi Motherboard - Overclockers Club
• Intel's G965 Express chipset - Tech Report

  Cases
  

• Antec/Veris Fusion - TechPowerUp
• Thermaltake Kandalf LCS Case - Overclockers Club

  Cooling
  

• OCZ Vindicator - Anandtech Guides
  
• Cable Management Guide - Techware Labs

  Pads
  

• Steelpad QcK Heavy - BurnoutPC

  Video
  

• ASUS EN8800GTX AquaTank - Bjorn3D
• ASUS GeForce 8800 GTS 320MB - TechSpot
• MSI NX8800GTX OC Liquid - T-Break
• New Geforce 8800 Drivers for XP - VE

RPG Vault Goodness 12:49 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Role-Playing (0 comments)

The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles Team Q&A; #4
In this query session, the Bethsoft team members offer up comments on their own contributions to the expansion

Game Reviews 12:24 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (3 comments)

PC

• Sam & Max Episode 5 - Yahoo - 4/5
• Sam & Max Episode 2 - 1Up - 7/10
• Silverfall - AOL Games - 8/10
• S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Game Informer - 8.25/10
• S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Atomic Gamer - 81%
• TES 4 Oblivion - SI - GamePro - 4.5/5

  360
  

• Cabela's African Safari - 360.IGN - 5/10
• GRAW 2 - Game Informer - 8.75/10
• Guitar Hero 2 - C&VG; - 8.5/10
• Guitar Hero 2 - Yahoo - 5/5
• Guitar Hero 2 - AOL Games - 9/10
• Guitar Hero 2 - GamePro - 4.75/5
• Luxor 2 - 360.IGN - 6.8/10
• Luxor 2 - TeamXbox - 8.3/10
• Virtua Tennis 3 - Gaming Age - B+
• Virtua Tennis 3 - Game Informer - 7/10

  PS3
  

• Resistance: Fall of Man - Boomtown - 8/10

  PS2
  

• Burnout Dominator - Game Revolution - C

  PSP
  

• Syphon Filter - PSP.IGN - 6.5/10

  Wii
  

• TMNT - GameSpot - 2.1/10

  Wireless
  

• Derek Jeter Pro Baseball 2007 - Wireless.IGN - 8.5/10

In Other News... 12:15 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - In-House: In Other News... (24 comments)
Happy Good Friday. What's so good about it? Well, most people having the day off is a nice start. Easter is on Sunday too, so we're looking at a swank four-day weekend.

Today's question is from duman82, who asks:

Which comic book or cartoon should be made into a game [that hasn't been already]?

GFW: One question I put to Peter involved restricting choices. Imagine a Battlefield 3. It's on Games for Windows Live, it has voice-over IP, stat-tracking, and a promotion system. Now, is it true that, at that point, EA or whomever could not provide workarounds for people who purchased the software but not Live subscriptions?

JJR: Short answer to your question is, no, if I heard it correctly. Let me walk through the specifics. Just like we're giving consumers choices, game developers are always going to have choices as well. They can create multiplayer play for Silver users. If they want matchmaking, if they want to take advantage of our zones and achievements, they can add Gold. They're not restricted to one or the other.

World in Conflict Preview 08:11 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Real-Time Strategy (3 comments)
PC.IGN served up a hands-on look at World in Conflict, after playing the closed friends and family pre-alpha version of the game. Included, are a few new screenshots and videos clip of nukes going off.

Those of you that have been following the game probably already know why, but I like to hear myself talk (or see myself write in this case) so I'll explain again. World in Conflict introduces the idea of "classes" to RTS gaming. In a typical multiplayer game, combatants will have to take on a specific role guiding troops of armor, infantry, aircraft, or support. You'll have to select one of the specialties which will open up a selection of units available for use in each of those categories. Points to spend on these units accumulate automatically at different rates depending on the number of units you already have in the field. So if you've gotten all of your troops killed, you'll gain points back faster to get back in the fight whereas those who already have several units out won't be able to get help as quickly (or at all if they've got the maximum number). Squads of units are typically pretty small (around 4-8 units), but the battlefield never feels empty when there are 16 players moving around the same number of units. The pace is fast and chaotic.

Mass Effect Q&A; 08:00 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Consoles: Xbox 360 (0 comments)
TeamXbox has a short interview with BioWare's Casey Hudson who talks about Mass Effect's recent showing at the GDC. Of interest, are the new screenshots included in the article.

New Geforce 8800 Drivers for XP 04:02 pm - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - hardware: General News (22 comments)
NVIDIA has released some new 97.94 ForceWare video drivers for its Geforce 8800 series of graphics cards for both Windows XP/Media Center Edition, plus also Windows XP Professional x64 and Windows Server 2003 x64. Thanks Blue's News. Some changes include: an SLI crash fix for Company of Heroes, fixes SLI issues with Steam, a blue screen crash when burning DVDs and watching tv, plus minor tweaks for Oblivion, Spinter Cell Double Agent, Halo: Combat Evolved, and more.

Bruno Bonnell Leaves Atari 09:05 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: General News (6 comments)
He hasn't led them to great glory and riches so it's not exactly a big loss:

Bruno Bonnell has left Atari, according to a Thursday statement. He has stepped down from his roles as chief creative officer, chief financial officer and chairman of the game maker. Bonnell has also resigned from his roles as CEO and a director of Infogrames Entertainment, the France-based parent company of Atari that he co-founded. Reasons for his departure were not disclosed.

Bonnell had been at the helm of Atari since 2000 but then stepped down from his positions as president and CEO in November 2004 while retaining the titles of chairman and chief creative officers. He was replaced by board member James Caparro, only to again assume the role of acting CEO in June 2005, when Caparro resigned. No indication has been given as to who may replace Bonnell this time around.

Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts Officially Announced 08:32 am - Andrew Burnes - Games: Real-Time Strategy (11 comments)
Well here's the official word from THQ; you can find four screenshots here.

THQ Inc. today announced Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts, the next chapter in the groundbreaking real-time strategy (RTS) franchise, from internal studio Relic Entertainment, is scheduled to launch in fall 2007 for Windows PC.

Powered by the proprietary Essence Engine and Microsoft DirectX 10, Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts allows players to fight as the tenacious British 2nd Army during the heroic World War II liberation of Caen, France, and command the German Panzer Elite as they struggle to repel the largest airborne invasion in history. Players can battle online in exciting new multiplayer modes with these two all-new armies and utilize full compatibility with the original Company of Heroes for a total of four playable armies.

"Company of Heroes smashed preconceptions of what an RTS game could and should be, earning dozens of industry awards and the highest review score average of any RTS title in the last decade," said Bob Aniello, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, THQ. "Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts is an epic new chapter in this series, and we are excited to bring this top-tier cinematic RTS to consumers worldwide."

"In Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts players will experience fast-paced dynamic tactics like never before, in two of the most brutal World War II campaigns ever fought," said Tarrnie Williams, general manager, Relic Entertainment. "With two intensely cinematic campaigns, significant upgrades to the Essence Engine, mission persistence, improved vehicle AI and weather effects that directly impact the battlefield, we're delivering yet again on our commitment to leading the way in strategic gaming with the best, most innovative titles available."

Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts is the next chapter in the critically acclaimed Company of Heroes series. Players take command of the German Panzer Elite as they struggle against the might of Operation Market Garden, or lead the British 2nd Army in the vicious battle for Caen, France. The standalone title features two unique armies with full length campaigns, new multiplayer modes, Microsoft DirectX 10 support, mission persistence, improved vehicle and soldier AI, enhanced physics, and a dynamic weather system. Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts is fully compatible with Company of Heroes, allowing players to wage war with four unique armies. Internally developed by Relic Entertainment, Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts is scheduled to ship for Windows PC in Fall 2007.

Keep an eye on Planet Company of Heroes for even more OppFro stuff.

Hardware & Tech Nuggets 12:31 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - hardware: General News (0 comments)

Boards

• Asus P5N32-E SLI Plus vs Abit IN9 32X-MAX - HotHardware Cases
  
• 3R System M-Station HT-4000 - TechPowerUp
• SunbeamTech UFO Acrylic Cube Case - Virtual-Hideout
• Thermaltake LANBOX SFF Case - 3DGameMan

  Cooling
  

• Big Typhoon Squared: Cooler Master GeminII - Xbit Labs
• CoolIT Systems RAM Fan - Bjorn3D

  Power Supply
  

• FSP Blue Storm 500w - XS Reviews

  Video
  

• AMD/ATI Pricing on R600-series - BootDaily
• Does Chipset-to-GPU Matching Matter? - Toms Hardware Guide
• EVGA GeForce 7600GS 512mb - AMDZone
• PowerColor X1550 - The Tech Zone

  Vista
  

• 30 Days with Windows Vista - [H]

RPG Vault Goodness 12:29 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: Role-Playing (0 comments)

The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles Team Q&A; #3
We ask about memorable creative and psychotic elements plus the developers' characters to play through the add-on

Jonric's Blog
Project Hippasus, a math-ively multiplayer online world

Game Reviews 12:20 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - Games: General News (2 comments)

PC

• Command & Conquer 3 - AT - 91%
• Europa Universalis III - Boomtown - 8/10
• Galactic Civilizations II: Dark Avatar - Strategy Informer - 9/10
• Genesis Rising: The Universal Crusade - PC.IGN - 6.5/10
• Genoforge 4 - RPG Watch - 4/5
• Jade Empire SE - Gamebanshee - 8.2/10
• Jade Empire SE - Gameslave - 8.5/10
• Penumbra: Overture - GamesXtreme - 8/10
• Silverfall - PC.IGN - 5.5/10

In Other News... 12:15 am - Robert 'Apache' Howarth - In-House: In Other News... (25 comments)
Today's question is from bugmenot1900, who asks:

How many games do you currently have in your "to play" pile?

What games are they? I know mine is starting to get pretty big...