The second beta for Elemental will add support for multiplayer matches and will be released to beta testers around the end of February. In a recent post on the Impulsedriven.net site, Stardock's head man Brad Wardell has posted up how folks will sign in to play a multiplayer match in the game. While you can play on an official Stardock server you will also be able to host their own servers. These servers will support custom rules and mods althoug that will be turned off in the beta version. Be warned, however, as Wardell states, "The betas are NOT fun. These aren't demo betas. These are real, painful, boring, ugly betas. The graphics engine is disabled in both beta 1 and beta 2."
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Second Elemental beta due in late February; will add multiplayer
The second beta for Elemental will add support for multiplayer matches and will be released to beta testers around the end of February. In a recent post on the Impulsedriven.net site, Stardock's head man Brad Wardell has posted up how folks will sign in to play a multiplayer match in the game. While you can play on an official Stardock server you will also be able to host their own servers. These servers will support custom rules and mods althoug that will be turned off in the beta version. Be warned, however, as Wardell states, "The betas are NOT fun. These aren't demo betas. These are real, painful, boring, ugly betas. The graphics engine is disabled in both beta 1 and beta 2."
Continue reading Second Elemental beta due in late February; will add multiplayer
Eclosion announced
Players will be able to use over 20 weapons in the game to fight off waves of over 50 different enemies. Your ship can be upgraded for better performance. There's over 90 minutes of music planned for the game and it will also offer co-op support. In other words not the world's hardest game but a title that might be a lot of fun. A release date for the game has yet to be announced.
GoG.com adds Driver: Parallel Lines to game line-up
Released back in 2007 by the franchise' previous owners Atari, the game takes place in their version of an open world New York City. It follows the life of "TK", a getaway driver who gets sent to prison in 1978 for a murder he didn't commit. The game then changes to 2006 as TK get out of prison and ready to exact some revenge against the people who put him in jail. The game is now available to download for $9.99.
Continue reading GoG.com adds Driver: Parallel Lines to game line-up
AMD launches new sub $100 DirectX 11 graphics card
AMD claims that in performance tests the 5670 outperforms the card's direct competition by over 20 percent in some high end games. The new card also supports the ATI Eyefinity tech which lets gamers hook up to three monitors to one video card. In other words you will be able to play Casino Kingdom on this card without any trouble.
Continue reading AMD launches new sub $100 DirectX 11 graphics card
Dark Void PC demo released after all but it's a FilePlanet exclusive
Yep, it looks like the demo for the Airtight Games-developed title is only going to be available via IGN's download service. Oddly the release of the demo was not promoted ahead of time by Capcom on their blog site nor on the game's official web site. In fact they still haven't promoted the demo's release as of the posting of this article. In any case we are emailing Capcom to see if we can mirror a non-FilePlanet version of the demo.
Continue reading Dark Void PC demo released after all but it's a FilePlanet exclusive
I Am Alive delayed again to at least April 2011
The game was first announced in July 2008 but has had a troubled development history. In 2009, Ubisoft made a game change and pulled the title away from its original developer Darkworks. Now under development at their internal Shanghai studio, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot stated during this week's financial conference call, "It will use the Splinter Cell engine. We think it can become a very good quality product."
Continue reading I Am Alive delayed again to at least April 2011
Former EA exec slams company: "EA is in the wrong business"
Mitch Lasky, who previously was head of EA's mobile division, posted a note on his personal web site this week that stated, "EA is in the wrong business, with the wrong cost structure and the wrong team, but somehow they seem to think that it is going to be a smooth, two-year transition from packaged goods to digital. Think again." He's not the only one. This Reuters article has comments from financial analysts who don't fee EA and its leadership have been doing a good job.Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter states EA currently has "zero credibility" with investors. However he does add that upcoming quarters might signal an improvement saying "I think their lineup is going to save them." Their line-up includes games like Mass Effect 2, Battlefield Bad Company 2, the recent console action game Army of Two: The 40th Day and more.
Continue reading Former EA exec slams company: "EA is in the wrong business"
Team Fortress 2 adds contribution web site; new update fixes bugs
To that end, the developer has launched their new Team Fortress 2 Contribute web site for that very purpose. As the team mentions on the official TF2 web site, "Many of you have been building fantastic TF2 work for a while now, and we wanted a way for you to get it in front of all TF2 players, and for everyone to see that you were the one that built it." In related news a new update for the game has been released via Steam with quite a few new bug fixes including some that center on the Spy character.
Continue reading Team Fortress 2 adds contribution web site; new update fixes bugs
Will PC games leave retail stores by 2011?
We don't think that's going to happen that quickly, at least in the US (we are pretty sure there will be lots of retail copies sold of StarCraft II released when it finally ships) . But it is clear that the presence of PC games in retail stores is getting smaller and smaller. Still states, "Digital is fantastic, and we're very pleased with it. But it is not us as the developers and publishers driving products to digital – it is because the options for the PC at retail are so limited."
The Settlers 7 beta test sign-ups begin
Beta sign ups are being handled by FilePlanet although you will still need an Ubi.com account to participate. The beta will officially begin on January 19 and will consist of the game's single player tutorial levels as well as skirmish maps in both multiplayer or against the game's AI. The game itself is scheduled for release later in 2010.
AI War: The Zenith Remnant expansion released
Priced at $9.95 the expansion adds over 120 new ships to the game. That includes 14 new ship classes and seven of the massive new Golem ships (you can see an example in the screenshot above). There are also new map types, new AI types and beheviors and more. If you own AI War you can download The Zenith Remnant and play it for a free trial period. Just so long as you don't download Poptropica instead.
Continue reading AI War: The Zenith Remnant expansion released
Make Something Unreal Phase 4 winners announced
While the contest is no longer taking any more entries there's still one more part of the contest that will be awarded soon in Las Vegas (and we aren't talking about playing in a casino kingdom). That's the grand prize of the best overall mod where the winning mod team will get a $50,000 cash prize as well as access to a full commercial Unreal Engine 3 license. The winner and runner-ups will be announced at the DICE Summit in Las Vegas in February.
Continue reading Make Something Unreal Phase 4 winners announced
Mass Effect 2 Soldier class video loves its guns
The Mass Effect 2 Soldier class is all about pure offense without relying on gadgets or biotics. However, that doesn't mean the class doesn't come with some unique perks. The class can use every type of gun in the game, and it's the only one that can use the assault rifle. Additionally, Soldiers can use specialized ammunition for a variety of effects, like burning enemies alive or freezing them solid. Abilities include an adrenaline boost to gain the upper hand in battle. The bottom line is, if you love guns (and who doesn't?), the soldier is the best class for you. Mass Effect 2 releases on January 26th.
Download HD Mass Effect 2 'Soldier' Class Video (117 MB)
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Continue reading Mass Effect 2 Soldier class video loves its guns
Avatar's movie success didn't translate to solid game sales
Wrong. According to the game's developer and publisher Ubisoft, the game (which released a few weeks before the film) did not meet its expectations. In today's financial report Ubisoft stated, " . . . .not all of the Company's games have reaped the full benefits of the measures implemented, with James Cameron's Avatar: The Game . . . reporting lower-than-expected sales." The game itself, which supposedly had Cameron as an active consultant, only got average reviews from critics. One wonders if Ubisoft will be so quick to sign onto making a game based on any Avatar movie sequel.
Overall, Ubisoft didn't have as good of a quarter than it though it would in terms of revenues. Today it revealed that it was now expecting revenues for the just completed third quarter to be 495 million euros versus previous estimates of 540 million euros. For its full fiscal year it is predicting it will have revenues of 860 million euros versus predictions of 1.08 billion euros.
Continue reading Avatar's movie success didn't translate to solid game sales
Transformers trailer uncovers the origins of the War for Cybertron
A teaser trailer for Transformers: The War for Cybertron released, announcing the first recent Transformers game that isn't based off a movie plot. This trailer extends the original teaser with greater detail, showing the motivations behind the civil war on Cybertron. It's an epic struggle between Autobots fighting for freedom and Decepticons battling for control, and players will get a front row seat as they choose which campaign to play. What isn't revealed is a expected release date.
"Transformers: War for Cybertron features two distinct storylines: the AUTOBOT campaign tells a story of heroism to save their home planet against overwhelming odds, and the DECEPTICON campaign tells a story of an unquenchable thirst for power to control the universe. For the first time in a TRANSFORMERS title, fans will be able to play the game with their friends through team-based online co-op, or go head to head in a variety of intense, online multiplayer game modes. The game features a sci-fi art style that introduces to fans the entire living, metallic world of CYBERTRON, as well as all-new visualizations of the iconic TRANSFORMERS characters in their original Cybertronian forms."
Download HD Transformers: War for Cybertron Reveal Trailer (160 MB)
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Continue reading Transformers trailer uncovers the origins of the War for Cybertron