Diablo II 2000 ECTS Teaser - Falcon @ 10:12 pm PST
Traveling with hordes of demonic minions, Baal intends to corrupt the powerful Worldstone that protects the whole of the mortal plane from the forces of Hell in the upcoming Expansion set for Diablo II. Witness Baal's charge into the Barbarian Highlands in this teaser trailer from the 2000 European Computer Trade Show

Heart of Winter - Falcon @ 10:05 pm PST
Icewind Dale: Heart of Winter Intelligence Report
Following the success of Icewind Dale, Black Isle announced the Heart of Winter expansion pack last month. The team is planning to add new items, spells and monsters as well as some significant features, the most prominent of these being 800x600 resolution and full-screen view. RPGVault take a look in their new Icewind Dale: Heart of Winter Intelligence Report.

Diablo II Expansion Trailer - Hobbes @ 9:11 pm PST
Blizzard has released the Diablo II Expansion trailer that they showed at ECTS recently. FilePlanet has both the high resolution (29 MB) and low resolution (11.5 MB) versions. They are in Bink movie format.

Traveling with hordes of demonic minions, Baal intends to corrupt the powerful Worldstone that protects the whole of the mortal plane from the forces of Hell in the upcoming Expansion set for Diablo II. Witness Baal's charge into the Barbarian Highlands in this teaser trailer from the 2000 European Computer Trade Show.

Sunday, October 29, 2000

4x4 Evolution Demos - Falcon @ 1:03 am PST
After two very popular public tests, the full trial version of 4x4 Evolution is ready for your off-road driving pleasure. 4x4 Evolution is a new and dynamic simulation racer featuring rugged, customizable 4X4 vehicles. 4x4 Evolution is the first third-party development game with online capabilities that will support connections between players using Sega Dreamcast, Mac, or PC versions, allowing players to compete head-to-head with one another regardless of platform.

Screenshots - Falcon @ 1:02 am PST
Fresh today from Eidos come ten new screenshots, in the form of Mucky Foot's space station simulator that is 'Startopia'.

EuroGamer has another dose of eye candy for you today,
with ten brand new screenshots of "Startopia" provided by publisher Eidos. With the game now due out in February, these latest screenshots look better than ever, and also show more actual gameplay than we've seen before.

Game Of Death Announced, First Screenshots
Burns Entertainment sent GA-Source some of the first screenshots and details from their upcoming 3rd-person action-adventure title, Game Of Death.

No One Lives Forever Lead Designer Craig Hubbard tells GA-Source where he feels the FPS genre is moving in terms of innovation, and sends an exclusive NOLF screenshot as well.

Fresh today on EuroGamer is another batch of eight shots from Ubisoft's oddball adventure game "Stupid Invaders", which features voice talent from veterans of Ren & Stimpy, The Simpsons and Futurama.

Ultimate Fighting Championship Review - Falcon @ 1:57 am PST
Chi and Dale of GameCritics.com do their patented dual-perspective review on Crave Entertainment's unique and innovating fighting title, Ultimate Fighting Championship. Here's an text excerpt from the main review:

"As any typical stand-up fighter, UFC is more then adequate in comparison. Most fighters are capable of stringing together devastating punch-kick combinations, but what really sets UFC apart from the pack is its attention to ground fighting and the ability to make an opponent submit or "tap out" in an instant. Most other fighting games fail to recognize that a majority of real hand-to-hand fights end up on the ground. By representing this area of combat, not only does UFC break new ground in terms of realism, but it also opens up all kinds of new dimensions that the genre has never explored."

Stomped Updates - Falcon @ 1:55 am PST
Stomped got a gold master copy of Monolith's and Fox Interactive's No One Lives Forever on Friday and we have posted our first impressions of the 60's spy first person shooter game, along with four new screenshots. Check it out at http://www.stomped.com/published/jcal972675952_1_1.html

Also, Stomped chats with Team Evolve's Robert Waring on the reactions to the first beta demo of the PainKeep Arena mod for Quake III Arena and what we
can expect from the next version. We also have two new screenshots from the full version. Check it out at http://www.stomped.com/published/jcal972684291_1_1.html

Adellion Interview - Falcon @ 1:53 am PST
Adellion Interview
Most online worlds have received little media attention, and are thus relatively unknown. Nonetheless, some of them are interesting games based on very interesting ideas, and are well worth taking a look at to learn more. Today, Project Manager Paul Hutson tells us about HonourBound's browser-based online world.

Actiontrip Updates - Falcon @ 1:51 am PST
Gaming Clichés (2) - a second in the series of our offbeat, "unserious" articles (space fillers :) dealing with some of the clichés you're bound to encounter in today's PC games.

Dino Crisis Review - Did Capcom deliver something special to the PC crowd? I think not... Another survival horror PSX port, have we had enough of these?

Gamespy Updates - Falcon @ 1:48 am PST
GameSpy expands its comics section today with a new daily strip called Angst Technology. If you aren't familiar with it, you should add it to you daily routine. Find out about it at http://www.gamespy.com/articles/october00/angst/

We also have a new MechWarrior 4 developer diary by Christopher Blohm, along with four new screens. Check out the status of the game at http://www.gamespy.com/devdiary/october00/mechwarrior2/

And if you read our huge Deus Ex Strategy guide yesterday, then you'll want to know how to tweak your video performance to get the best game play possible. Check out our video card tweak guide at http://www.gamespy.com/articles/october00/deusextweak/

And finally, we have part three of "Fall of the House of Brahe," Penny Arcade's exclusive Halloween comic for GameSpy, at http://www.gamespy.com/comics/special/halloween/

And if you missed it, we visited Blizzard on Friday and got some digital camera screens of Diablo 2 Expansion and Warcraft 3, while not the same quality as regular screen shots, you can still get an idea of what the games have in store. Check out the images at
http://www.gamespy.com/news/october00/blizzard/

MPOG.com Reviews - Falcon @ 1:45 am PST
Panzer General 3: Scorched Earth

"Panzer General 3 is a nice comeback from Panzer General 3D Assault, which I trashed quite thoroughly in my review a year ago. At first glance, Panzer General 3 is exactly the same as Panzer General 3D Assault. That was my first impression too, because anyone familiar with sequels knows developers make the same mistakes over again most of the time. However, my first impression was wrong. Although it looks the same, SSI fixed many of the balance and level design issues so that Panzer General 3 is a much more enjoyable game than the prior title."

Saturday, October 28, 2000

Starcraft Trigger Map of the Month - Hobbes @ 2:41 pm PST
The newest Starcraft Trigger Map of the Month is entitled Deception. It is a single player mission in the 'use map settings' mode. This map is for Brood Wars only.

Cloaked in starlight's absence,
We follow paths unseen,
Never to be watched or heard,
Our senses are too keen.

- The Kimeran Pirates Motto

You can download the map here.

Friday, October 27, 2000

Firearms Mod Update - Falcon @ 7:17 am PST
The Official Firearms Half-Life Web Site has been updated with a feature list for the upcoming release (version 2.4), of the popular modification. There is also results from the first round of the Official Firearms League. So be sure to check it out.

Visit our web site here:

Blizzard Records - Falcon @ 7:17 am PST
Blizzard Records is designed for those individuals who are interested in purchasing music CDs that are not available in stores. All CDs can be reviewed for free at anytime you wish.

Win a PS2 and 5 games - Falcon @ 7:09 am PST
Unless you've been living under a rock -- a rock well-hidden from Sony's marketing team -- then you're probably well aware of the Playstation 2's arrival today on North American shores.

To celebrate, PlanetPS2 has been given a shiny new coat of paint, and are giving away a brand-new Playstation 2 and five of the hottest games -- Madden NFL 2001, Midnight Club: Street Racer, SSX, Tekken Tag Tournament and Timesplitters.

Addtronics 6890A Review - Falcon @ 7:04 am PST
new at Speedy 3D is a review of the Addtronics 6890A Full Tower case. Sporting support for 6 fans, support for ATX, AT, or baby AT style motherboards, this is the case to beat. Here's a quote:

"It is not just a case. It is a User Friendly case." This is a direct quote from Addtronics web page, and quite frankly, I could not agree more. The 6890A full tower case is packed with nice features. This may not be a case for the average user, but gamers and hardcore tweakers are not the average user. If you are tired of fighting with your cheap case every time need to install a new hardware device, you will highly appreciate the 6890A full tower or one of its variants.

Sons of Wolfenstein - Falcon @ 7:02 am PST
Has the game industry reached the limits of innovative FPS game design?
3DActionPlanet took a look at this question, investigating the eight-year history of the first person shooter and taking a look at what games radically changed the genre. Then we posed the question to some of the leading FPS developers to get their thoughts on the future of FPS game design. Read the feature here:

Staff for UT:SF Mod Needed - Falcon @ 7:01 am PST
NOW HIRING
Xtreme Gaming is now looking for some experienced and talented new staff members. Not only to work with us on UT: Strike Force but also a variety of other game titles. At this point in time our team is going underground to work on Strike Force version 2.0. If your have some major talent in any of these areas drop an e-mail with any examples of your work to optimizer@planetunreal.com.
Looking for: Model designers, animation specialist, music composer, map designer, skin/artists and anyone that has experience importing weapons and player models into UT.
Site:

Sea Dogs Interview - Falcon @ 6:59 am PST
In Sea Dogs, you get to sail the high seas as a pirate or captain in the navies of Spain, France or England. Become famous or infamous battling other ships, trading, and conquering towns as you sail around the archipelago. To find out more, RPGPlanet speaks with Constantine Sapronenkov of Akella, the Lead Writer.

Mech4, Alice Interviews - Falcon @ 6:57 am PST
Stomped chats with Microsoft's Steve Fowler about their close to completion action game MechWarrior 4. The interview includes four new screenshots from the full version of the game (which look particularly slick, if I may say so).

Also, Stomped concludes its mini-series of interviews with the American McGee's Alice team with a chat with Rogue Entertainment concept artist Joel Thomas. Check it out at http://www.stomped.com/published/jcal972508711_1_1.html

Microsoft leaves Windows open - Falcon @ 6:53 am PST
EuroGamer has posted a news feature about reports that Microsoft's own internal network was hacked into from Russia, and that the hackers could have had access to the company's holiest-of-holies for the last three months, without anyone at Microsoft even noticing until a couple of days ago...

"Reports are emerging in America that Microsoft has been the victim of a hacker attack. Nothing new there perhaps, but what is worrying is that the hackers have apparently had access to Microsoft's own internal network for as long as three months, including (according to rumours) the source code for products such as Microsoft Windows and Office. Microsoft are refusing to confirm what (if anything) was stolen or modified, and are calling the attack "a deplorable act of industrial espionage". At this early stage though it looks more likely that a group of rogue hackers were responsible, rather than another software development company."

Thursday, October 26, 2000

The Bouncer - Tufguy @ 3:33 pm PST
With the impending success of games such as Final Fantasy IX and the absolute success of games such as Chrono Cross and Vagrant Story, many people may be wondering as to what Squaresoft have been working on in the past 6-12 months. The answer is The Bouncer.
At first glance, the bouncer looks to be Squaresoft's take on the scrolling fighting games that dominated both arcades and home consoles years ago (games such as Double Dragon and Final Fight) but on further inspection, the game is much, much deeper than this.

The story revolves around a young teenage bouncer by the name of Sion Bardahd, the story begins with him entering a bar at the start of his shift, when suddenly, he and his girlfriend Dominique are attacked by some shadowy figures, Dominique is kidnapped and so begins The Bouncer.

Although little to nothing is actually known about the game itself, many accounts believe that the game has been inspired by The Matrix and is said to have the qualities of a sequel to a fighting game Squaresoft have released called Ehrgeiz, and one thing that has been said in all previews and accounts of this game - The visual quality is incredible.

The Bouncer is scheduled for a PS2 - December 21 release in Japan and an American release is sure to follow soon. I will keep you posted on updates about this and other games.

Final Fantasy IX english release dat - Tufguy @ 3:26 pm PST
News just in has SquareEA confirming that the release date for FF9 in America is indeed the same as speculative release dates have been announcing. The game is scheduled for a November 14th 2000 in America, with European and possible Australian releases to follow in early 2001.

The "Claw" - Tufguy @ 3:22 pm PST
From the Australian company Ferraro Design, they have just introduced their latest product, the "Claw".

Ultima Online Two, public testing - Raven @ 12:40 am PST
UO2.com has just put up a new FAQ section discussing public beta testing for their highly anticipated RPG, Ultima Online 2, Origin . The game slated for release in the not so distant future, puts players into a fully 3d rpg world, with fluid movement, magic and plenty of fighting. The First Phase of testing will be avaliable solely for current Ultima Online players. From their Ultima Online testing will branch out into the further community. Currently no sign up dates have been released. If you are interested in learning more about upcoming tests, head over to http://uo2.com/faq.html#10.

New Diablo Goodies - Raven @ 12:39 am PST
Gamecenter has gotten their hands on three brand new shots from the Diablo 2 Expansion, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction. The screenshots depict; the Assassin destroying an enemy catapult, a battle between the Assassin and some new minions, and also a new NPC found within Act5. You can see these goodies by heading over to http://www.gamecenter.com/Pc/Previews/Diablo2exp/.

Also a great article has surfaced over at Gamesultra. The article is a copy of a rant written by Blizzard North vice president Erich Schaefer, that appeared in the October edition of Game Developers. As part of this feature Erich in details discusses the positives and negatives associated with Diablo2, and what Blizzard was able to implement and failed to implement in the game. All in all its a great read, with lots of details. You can get it by heading here.

Warcraft 3 Preview - Raven @ 12:37 am PST
Warcraft III from Blizzard hasnt been out of the spotlight abit with details of the Diablo II expansion floating about everywhere. However if Gameposts preview is anything to go by Warcrafts preview will be the talk on everyones lips soon. Gamespot in their newest feature, has a short preview up, detailing some of the new features in the game. The preview comes with three new screenshots. Heres a quote:

We were impressed by the increasingly detailed environments. In one lava level, sections of the ground were cracked and glowing like red-hot embers. Geysers spewed bubbling balls of fire into the air, and great fingers of molten rock jutted up from the landscape. We also got to see a demonstration of the camera controls, which will not be available for the players but are used in the game's cinematics. In those cases, the camera could zoom down and tilt back to offer a level view of the terrain and characters. Then, when the cutscene is finished, the camera will snap back to the default overhead view.

Red Alert 2 Ships - Raven @ 12:30 am PST
Heres the quote of MGON:

Highly-anticipated war game set to hit shelves on October 25

LAS VEGAS, NV, October 24, 2000 - One of the most anticipated PC games of the year, Westwood Studios' Command & Conquer(tm) Red Alert(tm) 2, shipped todayin North America, Westwood announced today. The game
will begin appearing in stores on October 25 and should be fully distributed by October 28.

The real-time strategy game is the sequel to Command & Conquer Red Alert, one of the best selling PC games in history with more than 3 million sold. Red Alert 2 is part of the EA Games family of games from Electronics Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS).

There has certainly been alot of anticipation and expectations placed on Red Alert 2. We will know in afew days whether RA2 can live up to it :)

Nintendo Happenings - Raven @ 12:23 am PST
Found some interesting info over at Gamefan Online, our old hosts. After finally getting their act together GF has posted up the new release dates for upcoming Nintendo games in America. On the list are Pickacu, Pokemon Stadium GS, and ofcourse Zelda: Majora's Mask. You can view the release schedule here. Aswell as this Gamefan has got a link to the latest Zelda ad, from Nintendo's official site. The ad can be downloaded and viewed from here. If your a major Zelda fan then you will definately want to see this add, otherwise you might find it a waste of a download.

Half Life Patch v1.1.0.4 - Raven @ 12:16 am PST
Found over at Avault that they have the new half-life patch up for downloads. The patch includes a variety of bug fixes, new features and three new senario's for TF fans. Heres some details on the three new maps and some of the new features.

Avanti
Avanti challenges the offensive team to advance their flag to three successive capture points and conclude their run in the village cathedral, while the defense attempts to stall their efforts until time runs off the clock. The scenario takes place on the streets of an Italian village, with a wide variety of open spaces combined with tight corners and sniping positions.

Flag Run
Flag Run requires cooperative teamplay as some units attempt to retrieve their flags from the enemy's base while other units ward off the opposing team's attempts to the same. The scenario includes large, wide-open spaces in the center of the map with intricate base structures on either end.

Casbah
Like Flag Run, Casbah challenges the opposing teams to guard and defend captured flags as they fight to retrieve their flags from enemy territory. Designed by Dave Johnston (cs_cbble, de_dust), Casbah promotes extremely fast-paced battles that can realize sharp momentum changes in no time at all.

New features and fixes include:

All map resources can be downloaded from the game server.
Counter-Strike proxy cheat fixed.
Linux security issue resolved.
Pyro's burn damage increased.
Heavy Weapons Guy's chaingun damage reduced.

Siege of Avalon interview - Raven @ 12:08 am PST
When I first played Siege of Avalon, by Digital Tombs, I was shocked. The game while still in its infancy, with only one chapter released and no patches, was fresh, fun, and had a storytelling environment most games today fail to include. Since then Siege of Avalon has been tailored and through viewer feedback turned into a game far more stable, enjoyable and interesting. RPG-Vault have recently completed a second interview with Digital Tomb, concerning Siege of Avalon. The interview is well worth a read especially for RPG fans. The questions and responce are in depth and the interview is filled with plenty of details and information. Read the interview by heading, here.

Siege of Avalon is a commercial level RPG that includes a free downloaded first chapter. You can download the first chapter by heading over to http://svca.siege-of-avalon.com/

Wednesday, October 25, 2000

Icewind Dale Walkthrough - Falcon @ 11:48 pm PST
After long hours in the dungeon, the folks at PlanetBG are proud to unveil their Icewind Dale Walkthrough. Featuring annotated maps of the levels, exact locations for items and NPCs, and descriptions of all the points of interest, it should make travel through the Dale much faster and safer. Prepared by Magedragon, Iago and Silverdawn, we hope you find it very useful. Read it here:

Screenshots - Falcon @ 11:43 pm PST
Exclusive: Etherlords Screenshots
Nival Interactive sent GA-Strategy new exclusive screenshots from its recently announced 3D turn-based fantasy strategy game, Etherlords.

New Arcanum Screenshots
GA-RPG has been updated with new screenshots from Troika's upcoming RPG, Arcanum, that feature the combat system and clearly mark the differences between real-time and turn-based combat in the game.

New Max Payne Screenshots
With so few new images being released from Remedy's upcoming action game, Max Payne, we'll take what we can get.

Flesh & Blood in Development, First Screenshots
GA-Strategy has the first details and screenshots from JoWood's upcoming 3D real-time fantasy strategy game, Flesh & Blood.

New Oni Screenshots Released
Take Two Interactive sent GA-Source a pair of new screenshots from Bungie's upcoming anime action/combat game, Oni.

New Arcanum Details and Screenshots
Terra Arcanum, a Gamer's Alliance site dedicated to Troika Games' upcoming RPG Arcanum, has been updated with 13 new screenshots and a full list of skills and proficiency effects. - Gaming News

GameSpy has just posted 4 exclusive images from Strategy First's upcoming deep space title, O.R.B. Please feel free to check 'em at http://www.gamespy.com/screens/october00/orb/

No Name War Screens - Falcon @ 11:40 pm PST
Romanian developers AMC Creation just sent over some brand new shots of their upcoming RTS / RPG game, No Name War.

Indrema Dev Diary - Falcon @ 11:35 pm PST
John Gildred brings GameSpy the first in a series of dev diaries from Indrema on the development of their new console system. They will be coming every month. You can find the first one at http://www.gamespy.com/devdiary/october00/indrema1/

Rune Review - Falcon @ 11:32 pm PST
XLGaming.com just got their hands on a copy of Humanhead Studio's Rune. The new action type Viking game that puts you against big hordes of baddies with even bigger weapons! They were deeply pleased with this new title and gave it a 95% score.

"Humanhead has really pushed the limits of gamer’s loves with this title. No longer are super railguns and rocket launchers the norm. We are coming of an age where the sword, mace, club, and hammer are being used more and more. With the burnout on the guns and lasers I think developers are seeing more and more that gamers are dying for a melee sword game and Humanhead delivers! Not only was the single player engrossing and fulfilling, but the multiplayer was so addictive it halted the progress of this review!"

PSX2 Opinions - Falcon @ 11:28 pm PST
Stomped checks in with a number of gaming developers, including Epic's Mark Rein, Ion Storm's Tom Hall, and id Software's Paul Jaquays, to get their opinions on the impact of the Sony Playstation 2 on gaming, in our own little PS2 launch article. Check it out at http://www.stomped.com/published/jcal972496049_1_1.html\

Also, Stomped's Jim "Beachbum" Johnson continues Stomped's interview series with members of the American McGee's Alice team as he chats with Rogue Entertainment 3D artist Jim Turner. Check it out at http://www.stomped.com/published/jcal972403745_1_1.html

Shockwave debuts BLiX™ - Falcon @ 10:52 pm PST
SHOCKWAVE DEBUTS ADDICTIVE GAME BLIX

First 100 Levels Released Today Featuring Original Techno Music

SAN FRANCISCO, CA October 25, 2000 - shockwave™ today announced the release of BLiX™, an award-winning game with ambient sound and an addictive puzzle design. The first 100 levels debut exclusively at http://www.shockwave.com with additional levels to be released in coming weeks. BLiX is the first of a planned series of games the New York City-based gameLab is creating for shockwave and will be accompanied by an animated music video, or Shockwave Single™.

"shockwave is thrilled to be releasing this incredibly innovative game," said Mike Edmunds, vice president of Shockwave Studios. "BLiX pushes the limits of Web gaming with its distinctive gameplay and rich production values."

Named after the astronaut character "BLiX," the game combines techno music with a rave-like aesthetic. BLiX is deceptively simple, as players use skill and strategy to ricochet pong-like balls into a cup before time runs out. Winner of Best Audio at the Game Developers Conference's 2000 Independent Games Festival, BLiX was designed and produced by gameLab exclusively for shockwave. The music and characters from the game will also appear in a Shockwave Single, a new visual format that combines the impact of Macromedia Flash™ animation with MP3 audio, to launch later this fall season at www.shockwave.com.

"Our goal at gameLab is to see digital entertainment become a mass medium like film or music," said Eric Zimmerman, CEO of gameLab. "shockwave shares this vision, which is why for us it's a perfect collaboration."

Diablo II MP3 of the Week -and- D2 Wallpaper - Hobbes @ 5:30 pm PST
The newest MP3 of the week is entitled "Leoric." It is now available for download.

You can visit Blizzard's MP3 collection here.

"Leoric" for PC (2.84 MB).
"Kurast" for Mac (2.84 MB).

Also, Blizzard has released some sweet wallpapers, as well as some never-before-seen ones. I especially like the one of the Dark Lord himself. You can check them out here.

Tuesday, October 24, 2000

C&C2 Ships - Falcon @ 10:36 pm PST
COMMAND & CONQUER RED ALERT 2 SHIPS

Highly-anticipated war game set to hit shelves on October 25

LAS VEGAS, NV, October 24, 2000 - One of the most anticipated PC games of the year, Westwood Studios' Command & Conquer(tm) Red Alert(tm) 2, shipped today in North America, Westwood announced today. The game will begin appearing in stores on October 25 and should be fully distributed by October 28.

The real-time strategy game is the sequel to Command & Conquer Red Alert, one of the best selling PC games in history with more than 3 million sold. Red Alert 2 is part of the EA Games family of games from Electronics Arts (NASDAQ:ERTS).

Command & Conquer Red Alert 2 gives players an onslaught of new units, tactics and strategies. As in the original, gamers can choose to lead Soviet or Allied forces. Soviet commanders will invade North America and try to claim it for mother Russia. Allied commanders will fight to push back the invaders and save liberty.

Both sides are well-armed with conventional weapons and experimental technology. The Soviets can engage in psychic warfare, wield nuclear weapons and fry all they survey with Tesla technology. Allied forces can teleport with chrono technology, conduct covert operations with the help of gap generators, and rain down lightening bolts through weather control. Supporting these high-powered, advanced weapons are massive conventional forces, including armies, air power and navies.

The epic story of Red Alert 2 is told through movie sequences starring Kari Wurher (Sliders, Beverly Hills 90210), Ray Wise (Twin Peaks), Barry Corbin (Northern Exposure, WarGames), and Udo Kier (Blade, Armageddon).

Gamers can order online at www.eastore.ea.com or call toll free at 877-EA GAMES (877-324-2637). Red Alert 2 can also be ordered from Babbage's at http://www.gamestop.com and from Electronics Boutique at http://www.ebworld.com

Red Alert 2 will feature enhanced Local Area Network and Internet play. Players can engage in fierce combat over a LAN and battle via the Internet and Westwood Online(sm). A built-in worldwide ranking system allows players to track their victories and defeats against other Internet gamers. The Worldwide Domination mode lets players compete in an ongoing war for global control.

More information about Red Alert 2 can be found at www.westwood.com

AOE2 Developer Chat - Falcon @ 10:31 pm PST
AGE OF EMPIRES DEVELOPER CHAT ON ZONE.COM THIS WEDNESDAY

Registration for the Harvest Moon Tournament Now Underway

To celebrate the release of Age of Empires: The Collector's Edition, Microsoft announced today that on Wednesday, October 25, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. PDT, Bruce Shelley, senior designer from Ensemble Studios, will be in the Zone Theatre Chat Room to talk about the game and the upcoming Harvest Moon Tournament. Gamers are encouraged to register for the tournament at http://www.zone.com/conquerors/a2xpharvestmoonevent.asp.

Ensemble Studios senior designer, Bruce Shelley, leads the design of the enormously successful Age of Empires franchise. Gamers will have the opportunity to chat with Shelley about the continued success of the Age of Empires franchise, the release of The Collector's Edition, and the upcoming Harvest Moon Tournament. To participate in the chat, click "Chats & Events" on the navigation bar across the top of any Zone.com page, and then click "Chat Rooms" and "Zone Theater Chat" in the room list.

The Harvest Moon Tournament will use Age of Empires II: The Conqueror's Expansion, and gamers will have the chance to compete for a variety of prizes, including an autographed copy of The Collector's Edition. The Harvest Moon Tournament challenges gamers to demonstrate their courage, military tactics and strategy skills against some of the sharpest competition around. Gamers can participate in any of the preliminary tournaments that are scheduled from October 27 through October 30 by registering beforehand and checking in one hour before the tournament starts. Players may enter as many of the tournaments as they wish; however, to qualify for the finals, they must win at least one preliminary tournament. Final game settings will be sent in email format to each of the semi-finalists who are eligible to participate in the tournament's final round on October 31, 2000.

Age of Empires: The Collector's Edition is a special, limited-edition bundle that includes Age of Empires, Age of Empires: The Rise of Rome Expansion, Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, and Age of Empires II: The Conquerors Expansion. In addition, The Collector's Edition comes with an exclusive music CD, containing musical scores from the games, and Age of Empires promotional and teaser trading cards.

Age of Empires: The Collector's Edition will be available at retail locations throughout North America in late October for an anticipated street price of US$69.95.

More information is available on the game's official Web site at http://www.microsoft.com/games/agecollectors/, or on the Ensemble Studios Web site at http://www.ensemblestudios.com/.

Dragonriders Designer Diary - Falcon @ 10:30 pm PST
Dragonriders Designer Diary, Part 2
==========================
As development continues on this RPG adventure with a wholly original plot in a universe invented by award-winning author Anne McCaffrey, Lead Designer Oliver Sykes takes us through art refinement, game introductions, funny moments and several other aspects. Read it here:

Screenshots - Falcon @ 10:27 pm PST
GameSpy has just posted 10 exclusive images from Ubi Soft's upcoming spoof adventure, Stupid Invaders.

RPGPlanet have taken twelve screenshots from a beta version of Arcanum: Of Steamworks & Magick Obscura.

GA-Strategy has been updated with nine exclusive screenshots from Cauldron's upcoming conflict simulation, Battle Isle: The Andosia War.

Today's fresh dose of eye candy is eight exclusive new shots of "Original War", taken from a beta version of the real-time strategy game, which mixes some role-playing and stealth elements into the traditional RTS recipe.

Download Reminders - the_culture @ 9:19 am PST
Just a reminder for those of you who haven't been on the web recently. There have been quite a bit of demos/levels/patches made available in the past week of so. Here's a rundown for those who might have missed them:

Sierra released plenty of multiplayer material for those who own SWAT 3: CQB. They made available 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 missions. You'll need the multiplayer patch to use them. They also released character and weapon mods.

LucasArts released a demo for Escape From Monkey Island.

Just in case you're one of the LAST people on earth who has never played Myst, you can now download realMyst, a fully 3D version of the original slideshow.

The book was good, the movie sucked. Starship Troopers: Terran Ascendancy (based on the movie), a 3D RTS, is in demo form.

Here are the latest patches for: Unreal, Unreal Tournament, Quake 3, Half-Life, The Sims, Deus Ex, Diablo 2, Thief 2: The Metal Age, Rogue Spear, Urban Operations, Heavy Metal: FAKK2, Icewind Dale.

TRIBES 2 Mouse Pad - the_culture @ 7:49 am PST
I received an email from Everglide that they have new Game Title Giganta and Attack pads. The new ones are printed with the TRIBES 2 logo on them. A must have for all TRIBES fans. They also carry ones with logos of Quake 3, Half-Life, and Unreal.

Zelda: Majora's Mask Ships! - Hobbes @ 4:57 am PST
The sequel to Zelda: The Ocarina of Time is finally shipping. Majora's Mask will have similar gameplay mechanics to that of Ocarina of Time, but now you will be timed to complete the game (a real-time 72 hours) and you can put on different masks to change into things like a Goron, a Zora, and even a Deku Shrub. This game should be extremely exciting for lovers on N64 RPGs and big Zelda fans like myself :) EBWorld.com is shipping it, and it's still not too late to pre-order it and receive the limited edition GOLD CARTRIDGE (just like Nintendo did for Ocarina of Time). Be aware, though, Zelda: Majora's Mask requires a 4 MB memory expansion, which are $29.99 from EBWorld.com (a good price), so if you don't have one, make sure to add one to your cart when you check out :)

Monday, October 23, 2000

Qtracker v2.3 B20 Released - Falcon @ 11:39 pm PST
Qtracker v2.3 Beta 20 Released!

Qtracker is server browser, server launcher, server administrator, MP3 streaming audio browser, and HTML/PHP server list generator for Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000.

Boy, the releases just don't stop! : This new version fixes several problems which popped up in Beta 19, one of which would cause Qtracker to crash whenever you connected to a password protected server. You'll also find a fixed Gameaholic.com Unreal server listing, as well as several other bug fixes and one enhancement.

Swing on over to the Qtracker homepage and pickup your copy today!

Trio of developer chats - Falcon @ 11:31 pm PST
There are three mmorpg related developer chats this week. The topic for all three chats is general discussion. All three chats will be taking place on SorceryNet IRC, irc.sorcery.net port 6667. News from XRGaming.com

The first chat is with Mythic Entertainment, regarding Dark Age of Camelot, currently in closed beta. This chat is taking place on Tuesday, Oct 24 at 7PM EST in #camelot.

The second chat is with the developers of UWO:Origin (UO2), currently in development at OSI. This chat will be taking place on Wednesday, Oct 25 at 8PM EST in #origin.

The third chat is with Artifact Entertainment, developers of Horizons. This chat will be taking place on Friday, October 27 at 9PM EST in #horizons.

PS2 Launch Coverage - Falcon @ 11:28 pm PST
The PlayStation 2 will have the largest launch in history, and will have the most titles on launch day in history. So when October 26, 2000 comes by, which games should you buy? PlanetPS2 has taken a look at the launch titles that are coming our way, and narrowed them down into our Top Ten Launch Games special.

Also for those on the market to pick up a US PS2, PlanetPS2 has posted part one, of a three part series dedicated to informing you of everything surrounding the PS2, and it's launch. Be sure to check out part one of PlanetPS2's launch scoop!

GA Updates - Falcon @ 11:25 pm PST
GA-Source Q&A: Dark Sector
GA-Source interviews Lead level designer Juan Pancho Eekels to learn more about Digital Extremes' upcoming massively multiplayer deathmatch game, Dark Sector.

SFC2 Details, Exclusive Screenshots
Designer Joshua Morris has given GA-Strategy a detailed list of new features added to Taldren's upcoming space-naval simulation sequel, Starfleet Command Volume II - Empires at War.

BG2 Review - Falcon @ 11:22 pm PST
ActionTrip have put up a rather glowing review of Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn. The webmaster enjoyed reading it even though he's not a RPG fan, so that should tell you something.

Character creation is one of the most important elements in any RPG where you determine traits that will follow your character all through the game. BGII features three new classes, a lot of new sub-classes, and even some new races. I found the Half-Orcs to be most fun. They're big green and nasty, and anyway, who wouldn't like to be the Incredible Hulk? Half-Orcs are exceedingly strong. The game also features character fine-tuning enabling you to create truly unique personalities

Midtown Madness Tourney - Falcon @ 11:09 pm PST
MIDTOWN MADNESS 2 TOURNAMENT SIGN-UPS NOW UNDERWAY

Microsoft today announced that sign-ups for the Gateway Country Challenge, which features the recently launched Midtown Madness 2, are now underway in the United States and Canada. Gamers are encouraged to visit their local Gateway store to register for the chance to win prizes totaling more than $300,000.

In partnership with Intel and Microsoft, Gateway will be hosting the coast-to-coast tournament in all of its 320 Gateway Country stores. The tournaments will take place during the weekends of Nov. 4 - 5 and Nov. 11 - 12. Participants will have one chance each weekend to post their highest score on Midtown Madness 2, the urban racer sequel to last year's award-winning Midtown Madness. Approximately 2,280 high-scoring winners will compete for prizes.

Midtown Madness 2 delivers the same madcap racing excitement as the original with even more hair-raising racing challenges, two new locations ­London and San Francisco - and ten hip, new urban roadsters. Midtown Madness 2 also features the new single-player Crash Course Mission mode where budding drivers can learn and improve their skills by racing as a Hollywood stunt driver on location at a San Francisco movie set or as a trainee at the Imperial Cabbie Academy in London.

The game puts players in the driver's seat of ten all-new campy urban roadsters ranging from the Audi TT to a cherry-red Freightliner fire truck. These are in addition to the madcap assortment of cars and trucks from the original game, including the new VW Bug and Ford Mustang. The game features the same great racing modes as the original, including Blitz, Check-Point, Circuit and Multiplayer Capture-the-Gold. Plus, Midtown Madness 2 builds upon the ground-breaking physics engine of the original by allowing all new racing challenges like racing on two wheels, and mastering the hand brake, power slides and more. In addition, damage modeling has been improved, allowing breakaway parts and even better damage detail.

Midtown Madness 2 is now available at retail locations throughout North America for an estimated street price of US$39.99.

Zero-G Marines Interview - Falcon @ 11:06 pm PST
Stomped chats with Dan Hoecke, the lead designer for Strategy First's upcoming first person action tactical space game Zero-G Marines, along with offering two new exclusive screenshots from the game. Check it all out at http://www.stomped.com/published/jcal972329775_1_1.html

Evil Islands Interview - Falcon @ 11:05 pm PST
Two weeks ago, it was announced by Russian-based developer Nival Interactive and its German-based publisher, Fishtank Interactive, that the Russian and German versions of Evil Islands: Curse of the Lost Soul had gone gold. RPGVault were recently able to track down Nival team leader Serge Orlovsky for an informative Evil Islands Interview.

Duron 750Mhz Review - Falcon @ 10:57 pm PST
Today's review on EuroGamer takes a look at AMD's Duron processor, and specifically the 750 Mhz version. Can you get top performance at a budget price?

"Although the Duron is an impressive beast in itself and not just a "PIII reject" ala the Celeron, the question of its relative performance is still outstanding. Surely the only things standing between it and budget market domination are price, stability, performance and Intel's good name. AMD can't do much about the latter, but it looks as though the first three are in check."

shivaSite Manual Archive - shiva @ 6:48 pm PST
When I first decided to revive shivaSite, one of the first things I had to decide was what should I put in the site in terms of content. It was decided pretty quickly, when I was surfing the net looking to update the GameSurge Strategy pages, I noticed that my favorite site was gone.

Since I had already grabbed all the files I needed, it wasn't a big loss in my mind, until I realized that there was no other place that had this type of collection in one place, in fact, as far as I know, I'm the only place that has such a complete collection.

So I am making them available, and at least for the moment, they are zipped by system. I believe the total is around 6000 separate instruction manuals, zipped in 25 separate files, for the various computer/home/arcade systems, and the entire manual archive weighs in at 12.8 Megs.

I will also be doing the same for the other strategy sections as well, all are public domain, and most are text, though some of the GameSurge stuff is there as well. The truly scary thing is, I still have over 25,000 strategy files to sort.

Once all the PD stuff is in, then I will start work on building pages for them all, a process that could take years. :)

Sometimes, suffering from excessive content disorder can have it's problems...

MacWPCmame - shiva @ 6:43 pm PST
A Mac version of WPCmame is now available! A BIG thank you goes to Carbon, for taking the time to make a version. You can find the Mac version at his site, or just grab it from shivaSite at the WPCmame page.

This is in the Aladdin Stuffit format (.sit) and as far as I know, the roms should work fine. There is gonna be a pretty sizeable update coming shortly, but I have GameSurge stuff to do first. :(

New LucasArts Product Page - the_culture @ 8:31 am PST
LucasArts updated their product page with word that Demolition has a new page. It contains the usual links to Characters, Overview, Hint & Tips, Purchase, etc.

AURAN Update - the_culture @ 8:14 am PST
AURAN updated their page again with a new "Whitepaper explaining the Interface Kit Resource Formats." Additionally, they include a "3D Studio Max Model Example that provides an illustration of how to use 3D Studio Max with AURAN Jet." The AURAN Jet is a fully integrated 3D game development application. It's in beta stage right now and can be downloaded for free. Check out the main page for more information.

Sunday, October 22, 2000

Star Trek Away Team Preview - HandOverFist @ 2:11 pm PST
The cool people at PCGamer.com wrote a nice review on the upcoming new Star Trek game, Star Trek Away Team. Here is a little perview on the perview :) :

Away Team is an isometric-viewed squad-based real-time strategy game that any player of Eidos' Commandos will find instantly familiar. Throughout 18 single-player (or cooperatively multiplayer) missions, armchair squad leaders will command one- to six-character covert Federation commando teams in actions of stealth, rescue, evasion and deception, plus a smattering of other less than above-board (and in some cases, seemingly un-Federation) activities.

Half-Life 1.1.0.4 Screenshots and News - HandOverFist @ 1:56 pm PST
Half-Life 1.1.0.4 will be released early next week. The update adds three gameplay scenarios for Team Fortress 1.5 (aka Team Fortress Classic), adjusts TF classes for balance, and fixes a few other lingering problems, like fixing the Counter-Strike proxy and Linux security issues.

Some cool Screen Shots, Click Here!

New Shots of Zelda, for GBC - HandOverFist @ 12:38 pm PST
The first game is currently scheduled for release on an unspecified January 2001 date in Japan – Nintendo of America still have no idea when the game may see a release in the US. The whole "three games, each one released six weeks apart" idea has been scrapped – it's already been reported that this series has been knocked down from its original, planned three episodes to two due to the complex interactivity between the games (one event affects events in another cartridge). The second game in the series, now without a corresponding US title but translating to "Tale of the Sky" in Japan has an unset To Be Announced 2001 release date.

Here are some cool Screen Shots: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.

Lorne Lanning Interview - HandOverFist @ 12:17 pm PST
DailyRadar.com had an interview with Lorne Lanning, the president and cofounder of Oddworld Inhabitants. DailyRadar.com and Lorne Lanning talk about how the game was surpose to come out on PS2 then they decided it will come out on XBox only. Here is a little taste of the interview:

DR: Can you tell us how the decision to move Munch's Oddysee to the Xbox came about?

LL: We were looking for the ideal system to release for. We had been developing for the PlayStation2, and the Xbox was an ideal system in our opinion -- and in Microsoft Publishing's opinion, Munch's Oddysee was an ideal game for their console. And the excitement and the passion that Microsoft Publishing has toward getting the best games on their system - and supporting those games and giving them the full backing that they believe they deserve - well, that left us with the belief that Microsoft is the right partner to take the Oddworld property and fulfill its most gleaming potential.

To check out the whole interview, Click Here.

News Posting - Falcon @ 5:15 am PST
I'll be starting news posting within the next couple of days, i've been busy with a lot of other things including an all day LAN on Saturday. So keep the news submissions coming.

Saturday, October 21, 2000

Rune Gone Gold - Surebrec @ 10:01 pm PST
Damn, this game has been in development for as long as I can remember. And finally, Rune, Human Head Studios' viking action/adventure game has gone gold! The PC version of the game is expected to hit shelves by the end of the October, while the Mac version will be following in November. Here's the official press release:

Human Head Studios' Rune Goes Gold
PC Version to Hit Store Shelves at the End of October, Mac Version Arrives in November.
Human Head Studios today announced that Rune, its upcoming 3D game of intense action and adventure steeped in a blend of Norse mythology and high-fantasy, has gone gold. The PC version will be available at the end of October with a Mac version shipping to stores in November. Rune is being published by developer-driven computer and video game publisher Gathering of Developers.

Rune transports gamers into the Dark Ages, when the Vikings were the conquerors of a cold, dismal world, and stark religion ruled all of the northern lands. Taking on the role of Ragnar, a rugged young Viking warrior, players are challenged to fight off creatures from Nordic mythology and uncover an evil perpetrator who is annihilating the Viking population. Rune utilizes an enhanced version of Epic Games' Unreal Tournament game engine and features amazingly life-like animations, in-game cinema sequences, a detailed weapon system, custom Artificial Intelligence and a unique combat system. In addition, the game features the RuneEd editor, an enhanced version of 'Unreal Editor' which allows players to create their own enhanced levels and modifications for multiplayer and single player.

Rune's features include:

-43 Single Player Levels
-15 unique weapons including swords, axes and bashing weapons each with their own unique magic power that can be unlocked in play
-Multiplayer DeathMatch and Team DeathMatch modes
-21 different multiplayer characters to choose from
Seven custom-built multiplayer levels
-Five multiplayer mutator modes, including Low Gravity, No PowerUps, Fatboy, reduced Damage, and Left-Handed
-Customizable maplists and rule settings
-12 Classes of enemies with multiple variations for over 30 different enemy types in the game
-Five Distinctly different settings from a Mountain Fortress, to the Deepest Cavern to the pits of Hel's domain
-Combat system lets players take weapons from their defeated opponents.
-Visual inventory that allows the character to see available weapons at a glance.

For more info on this game, check out RuneGame.com.
Source: 3DActionPlanet

Scars of Velious Interview - Surebrec @ 9:55 pm PST
The good people at PC IGN have smacked up an interview with Jeff Butler, who is Producer at Verant, on the new Everquest expansion, Scars of Velious, which is intended for the higher level characters. In the interview, Jeff talks about what's new, and what the new land is like.

IGN PC: What was the decision behind making Velious basically a land-only upgrade instead of adding any new races or classes? Do you think Velious has more to offer in terms of plot and depth than the original EQ or the Kunark expansion pack?

Jeff Butler: The Velious storyline largely precluded a new player race. Historically, the presence of the dragons, and the remote location of Velious prevented other intelligent races from establishing a foothold there. Insofar as additional classes are concerned, we are pretty satisfied with the 14 currently available, and haven’t made any plans to include more in the foreseeable future. In terms of plotline, Velious does indeed offer greater depth, with nearly the entire continent embroiled in age-old conflict.

The return of shivaSite... WPCmame, and The Truth - shiva @ 4:26 am PST
Many of my viewers who have followed me for the last couple of years, will remember my first website,shivaSite. After a long absence, and due to the downtime here at gamesurge, I have brought back shivaSite, in a never ending quest to piss off as many people as possible, without losing my "respectable position" as webmaster here at GameSurge.

To celebrate the return of "the best damn small site on the internet today", shivaSite has a brand new design (pretty damn awesome, if you ask me) and several new features are also making their debut.

First though, The Truth, a famous, (or infamous) series of editorials, makes it's return to shivaSite. The latest in this series, called The Truth v6 - The End of Innocence details the entire GameFan Network/express.com mess, from a personal perspective. Many of you may know, that GameSurge.com,was until 2 weeks ago a affiliate of GFN.

Needless to say, I have a lot to comment about with this latest installment of The Truth, so I am going to tease you with a small slice from the article:

"One of the first things I had to decide when I decided to write this installment of The Truth was to select a suitable name as a title. The End of Innocence may seem like a odd title for a article like this, but it's a truly appropriate one. This is not about the loss of innocence on my part, nor is it the loss of innocence on any individual's part, it's the loss of innocence on the entire Gaming Community's part. Just like a child, who has grown up, and realized that there is more to life than being protected by mommy and daddy, the game web community has grown up, and has come to the slow realization that the days of being shielded from life's evil is over, and that it is time to either dance with the devil, or face it in defiance.

As a member of that community, I have done both. When I first started this website, nearly a year and a half ago, I did it fully with the hopes and dreams of a small child. I faced the trials and tribulations of this website, with the belief that what I was doing was based on pure motives, and was solely for the love of gaming. When I saw what I perceive as an injustice, I stood up, and made a stand, whether it was from a basis of being right, or from being wrong. It is with great sadness that I write to you now, because I am no longer that person."

The Truth v6 - The End of Innocence not only details GameSurges history as part of the GameFan Network, but also brings you some pretty sorbid backroom dealings by express.com, and ends with a sobering note about the "free" hosting industry as well. Before you read it though, grab a cup of coffee, as this editorial is split up on 8 pages. (I did say I have a lot to comment on)

You can also find The Truth, as well as a small selection of my other editorials, listed in the editorials page. More will be added shortly.

You can also comment on this article, as well as other shivaSite features, in the General Rants Section of the shivaSite portion in the GameSurge Network forums.

Also, I am very pleased to announce that shivaSite is the host for the WPCmame emulator. This is one of the most unique emulators ever produced based on MAME, as this emulator plays PINBALL roms. You can find all the details at the WPCmame Homepage.

I am very proud of the new shivaSite, not only because I think this is my best design ever, but also because I missed it. I haven't been the same since I lost the site, and lost the "fun" of gaming. It's real nice to be back, and I am seeing signs the "old shiva" is returning as well. Let the rape and pillage begin....

Friday, October 20, 2000

World Record Contest - shiva @ 10:17 pm PST
Here's the cut and paste from our friends at Twin Galaxies.

TWIN GALAXIES CHALLENGES VIRTUA TENNIS PLAYERS TO SET AN OFFICIAL WORLD RECORD
CASH PRIZES AND EXCLUSIVE T-SHIRTS TO THE TOP THREE PLAYERS

Fairfield, IA - October 20th, 2000 - Twin Galaxies, the Official World Referee and Scorekeeper for the Interactive Entertainment Industry, today announced that it will be giving away cash prizes and T-shirts to the three fastest times submitted on Sega's smash-hit Virtua Tennis, the first title in a series of free Scoreboard Challenge contests featured at http://twingalaxies.com to be set by the Twin Galaxies scorekeepers..

"This contest was inspired by a newspaper reporter in Salinas, CA, who submitted the first high score on Virtua Tennis with a fast time of 1.07secs," said Walter Day, Chief Scorekeeper, who is personally overseeing this venture. "When the staff of Twin Galaxies failed at trying to beat this score, the idea developed to expand the Virtua Tennis Challenge into a worldwide contest with a prize awarded to the fastest time and acknowledgement on the TG website and the Official Electronic Games Scoreboard, as well as a listing in the second edition of the book. Twin Galaxies recognizes that the Dreamcast platform has become one of history's most significant gaming systems and we plan to support the Dreamcast community with regular ongoing high score contests that offer prizes."

On the subject of prizes, Twin Galaxies is offering cash prizes and T-shirts to the top three players. Score submissions will only be accepted on videotape, in order to verify gameplay to the highest standards. All videotapes must be postmarked no later than November 15th, 2000. For further information on the Terms and Conditions, and to enter this Challenge, go to http://twingalaxies.com and sign up as a Twin Galaxies member. The rest will be gaming history!

Twin Galaxies, the Official World Referee and Scorekeeper for the Interactive Entertainment Industry, has been keeping scores for the world of video game and pinball playing since 1982, and now it still organizes the contests, enforces the rules, maintains the records and crowns the champions on console, PC, and arcade titles. Its mission is to transform electronic game playing into a recognized sport by building on a tradition of championships, world records and star players. The company publishes the Twin Galaxies' Official Video Game and Pinball Book of World Records, which contains top scores from players in 31 countries.

Twin Galaxies is a great site, and they hold a lot of world record contests for various games.
Source: Twin Galaxies

Why I can't answer back.... - shiva @ 10:00 pm PST
In between fixing the CGI, working on 2 sites, and trying to run a family, I noticed a "little" something... My Email doesn't work. Actually, to quote a movie, it's FUBARed. I can receive emails, just can't answer them back.

My ISP is working on it, but judging from the quality of my internet connection, it could be a while. So sorry to everyone out there, who emailed me and didn't get a answer back. I thought it was a server issue, but it turns out it's at the ISP end instead.

Hopefully soon, I will be able to write back. Thanks to all the people out there for their understanding.

Amerian Playstation 2 Deal - HandOverFist @ 6:39 pm PST
Amazon.com is selling PlayStation 2 for 299.99 american! And thats all you get is just the system. If anyone can find a good price or a great deal, post it up on our forum!

PlayStation 2 Deals - HandOverFist @ 6:28 pm PST
Right now I only found one great deal for the PlayStation 2 and its only for Canadians. Canadian Tire is sealing PlayStation 2 for $449.97 can. But thats not all. If you buy two games with the system you can receive a DVD movie at no extra charge (a 16.99 value)! The ony poor thing about this deal is that you have to choose from Final Analysis or Just Cause. Ok I know it not a good deal however its the best so far :) If you know any better PlayStation 2 deals post them up on our forum!

Upcoming Games For PS2 - HandOverFist @ 5:13 pm PST
Here is a long list of new games coming out for PSX. All these games are surpose to come out around now!

PlayStation 2
- Orphen (Activision)
- Armored Core 2 (Agetec)
- Eternal Ring (Agetec)
- Evergrace (Agetec)
- Street Fighter EX3 (Capcom)
- FIFA 2001 (Electronic Arts)
- Kessen (Electronic Arts)
- Madden NFL 2001 (Electronic Arts)
- NHL 2001 (Electronic Arts)
- SSX Snowboarding (Electronic Arts)
- Swing Away Golf (Electronic Arts)
- Theme Park Rollercoaster (Electronic Arts)
- X Squad (Electronic Arts)
- Time Splitters (Eidos)
- Real Pool (Infogrames Entertainment)
- Unreal Tournament (Infogrames Entertainment)
- Wild WIld Racing (Interplay)
- Top Gear Daredevil (Konami)
- Dynasty Warriors 2 (Koei)
- Winter X Games Snowboarding (Konami)
- International Track and Field (Konami)
- Silent Scope (Konami)
- Ready 2 Rumble Boxing 2 (Midway)
- Moto GP (Namco)
- Ridge Racer V (Namco)
- Tekken Tag Tournament (Namco)
- Midnight Club (RockStar)
- Smuggler's Run (RockStar)
- Q-Ball Billiards Master (Take Two)
- Surfing H30 (Take Two)
- Dead or Alive: Hard Core (Tecmo)
- Summoner (THQ)
- Gungriffon Blade (Working Designs)
- Silpheed Lost Planet (Working Designs)

Upcoming Nintendo Games - HandOverFist @ 5:07 pm PST
Nintendo 64
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (Nintendo) — October 26
Hey You, Pikachu! (Nintendo) — November 6
Mickey's Speedway (Nintendo) — November 13
Banjo-Tooie (Rare) — November 20

GameBoy Color
Donkey Kong Country (Rare) GBC Only! — November 20

FFXI on XBox? - Surebrec @ 3:35 pm PST
I also noticed at Gamers.com a news article that caught my eye on the possibility of FFXI on the Xbox. Here's a small preview of it:

Final Fantasy XI, a massively multiplayer version of the classic Square RPG series, was first announced for the PlayStation 2 and PC this January, but now rumors of an Xbox version are circulating in Japan. Nikkei Computer reveals several reasons why Microsoft's new machine may be graced with this integral piece of software.

Sources report that Square has been in possession of a Xbox development kit since early this summer, but development has been difficult due to a lack of Japanese documentation. Square has always planned a multi-platform strategy for its Internet games service, PlayOnline, and the concrete online strategy of Xbox would be an excellent console choice for the game.

Hitman Preview - Surebrec @ 3:32 pm PST
The guys at Gamers.com have slapped up a preview for Hitman: Codename 47, the upcoming action game from Eidos, which includes screenshots and movies to satisfy your appetite. In it, you take the role of a professional assassin and use your stealth and smarts to accomplish your mission. Here's a small clip from the preview:

Ever dream about what it would be like to be Jean Reno from The Professional? Or to become Chow Yun Fat in John Woo's The Killer? Calm, collected, and undeniably cool, these mercenaries must live the good life. Masters of their destiny, they can sit down to a cup of tea one moment, and have a knife at your throat the next. Hitman: Codename 47, from Denmark's IO Interactive, allows you to do just that.

Complete with a shiny bald head, and a strange barcode on the back of the neck, our hero Codename 47 is a hired gun for the International Contract Agency (ICA). Business is a cut-and-dried affair for him. He performs various hits and errands for the ICA, and is paid accordingly for each successful mission. Most of these hits have secondary objectives that can be completed for extra cash, to complement the primary mission. As the game progresses, so does the story, and piece by piece, we learn more about Codename 47 and his mysterious past.

It makes my mouth water.

New Forum - shiva @ 12:12 pm PST
Below, a couple posts down, you will see me bitching about spending 8 hours working on getting the forum working. Well, guess what I did yesterday?

Yeap, yet another new forum. And so far, it WORKS. At least today it does. Here's the link to the new forum, and this time, I'm leaving it alone. I just made it presentable, made sure it worked in both browsers (Netscape does work, just the text is smaller and a lot harder to read, which makes it real hard to believe people are paying $200 for this thing) and also, no problems with posting etc. You don't need to register to post either, something I have always hated to do just so I could put up one post.

Anyway, I'm going back to bed...
Source: GameSurge Forums

WF:a news. - Tufguy @ 7:17 am PST
the crew over at weapons factory arena have announced that the version 2 will be released on Saturday, October 21st.

A lot of testing has gone on as the testing servers were packed almost every night. Testers have been trying out the new spraypaint logo technology. Users can spray custom decals on the walls of WFA maps now ala Half-Life. If your WFA clan wants a logo included, submit your 32x32 graphic logo before Thursday. We also are introducing 150+ Taunt wav files to compliment the team oriented wav files. These are kickass clips from your favorite movies and TV characters. If you find them distracting, you can mute these out easily. Bot protection has been included in the latest version hopefully that will quell the cries of 'bot' on the public servers.
Most importantly, many new maps are being added, and we were very critical and thoroughly tested all new map submissions and also took time to re-evaluate all the official Maps in WFA. Many were found lacking and have been cut. The 16 maps (8 new official maps!) that are released with WFA 2.0 are very high quality maps, much better than the first generation maps (some of which have been retired, thankfully). So, it will be necessary to upgrade to 2.0 as soon as possible. Don't worry, its been through rigorous testing and 8 beta versions. I want to thank the WFA Mapping Committee and all the beta testers that have made WFA 2.0 the best it can be. Get a sneak peek of the new maps here.

There are tons of new graphics tweaks, like turret 'nades that are team colored, a new less laggy hyperblaster effect and a new weapon for the engineer. This rail-like weapon repairs teammates armor and when used against the enemy, its armor piercing properties take off 20 health per shot. The weapons in WFA v2.0 overall do more damage. So the carnage is even more visceral. The HUD is still 100% customizable in WFA, and there are tons of other choices you can make, like turning off smoke trails on rockets to turning off mega chaingun trails.

Many changes have been made based on feedback from the WFA community. WFA is the #1 class-based mod for Q3a each night in terms of players and was the #1 ranked mod for Q3A in a Gamecenter Q3 mod ranking article. With WFA 2.0, we look forward to welcoming more newbies into the mod as well as die-hard Quake2 WF players upgrading to Q3A. Feel free to stop by #wfa and #wfamaps on irc.enterthegame.com if you have questions.

Source: Weapons Factory Arena

Thursday, October 19, 2000

The Eight Hour Flu - shiva @ 5:35 pm PST
Sometimes, I think my life is cursed. For one thing, I just spent 8 hours getting the *^&%$ Forum to work (weird CGI) and then, I open the site, go to bed, and wake up to find the server died.

Now I have to stuggle with a couple more issues with the move. Oh yeah, I'm the other webmaster, and despite what Falcon has stated, anything that goes wrong with the design or the content, I'm the one who fixes it. In other words, I do the slug work.

Yeah, that's not fair, all I wanted to do was take it easy for a while, play with my son, and not stay up till 5 in the morning working on this site. On the other hand, I'm webmaster of a "respectable" site. Hmm, I hate being respectable....

Oh, by the way, it was Falcon who decided on the poll at the side, so I better make a public statement...

I AM A GOD!

And don't you forget it... especially you Falcon. :)

sigh, end of rant.

Hola - Surebrec @ 5:13 pm PST
Hey everybody, I'm Surebrec, formerly Cerberus. If you were visiting earlier this year, you may remember me. I used to co-webmaster here. Well, I have made a decision to make a semi-comeback here at Gamsurge. I'm only gonna be posting news. But in a while, I might be doing other content. Before I go, I'd like to thank Falcon for letting me post here :).

One more thing - Falcon @ 5:02 am PST
Just forgot to add this, but I would also like to express my thanks on behalf of everyone here at Gamesurge for the support we received from everyone, especially to the generous offers for hosting after our previous host abrubtly terminated their hosting services. We hope to put this into the past and get on with what we're here for, providing you with the latest news, reviews, articles and other content.

Reopening - Falcon @ 4:52 am PST
After a server move and brief struggle with the CGI scripts on the page (Forum is still being stubborn) we are back up and will be back to full operation within the next couple of days.
Please direct any questions to us at webmaster@gamesurge.com or contact me directly at Falcon@gamesurge.com or ICQ 6808294.

Warning! It's Coming... - shiva @ 4:25 am PST
Well, I just finished the design test phase, and so far, it works in both browsers, so I am in the process of building new pages for the SSP.

In other words, the scorge of the gaming community is returning, shivaSite. Instead of just concentrating on annoying the StarCraft community, (which is to easy, those guys have no sense of humor) I've decided to branch out and expand my horizons, and annoy the entire Gaming community.

Once I'm sure the site is ready, and there's no display problems, the site will be up and running. To celebrate the return of shivaSite, there's gonna be a couple of new features for the opening.

One of the things shivaSite was known for where the editorials, and the most infamous of them all where "The Truth" series. Previous Truth articles caused more than it's fair share of hate mail and letterbombs, so in keeping with the tradition, a new Truth article has been written. This one is on the GameFan Network mess, our part, and some words about the future of web server hosting. This is not for the faint of heart, so parental guidance is recommended.

As well, a LONG time ago, shivaSite was also a emulation site, (really just news though) but now, shivaSite will be hosting a very unique emulator called WPCmame. WPCmame is a PINBALL emulator, which allows you to play Williams pinball rom logic through your computer. This is stuff like the scoreboard, and test switchs etc. (This is not the actual game, in other words, you can't actually play a game of pinball on your computer) Still, it's very interesting, and since Williams actually has the roms on their website, they should be easy to get, without feeling guilty about doing something illegal. Cool product.

Also, there will be some odds and ends as well, and with some luck, and some spare time, shivaSite will be open this weekend. :)

Logitech Mouseman review - shiva @ 4:11 am PST
Falcon, the lucky begger, has a new mouse, the Logitech Mouseman Wheel Optical and has written his impressions on Logitech's latest offering. Here's a small part from his review:

"The Mouseman Wheel Optical is Logitech’s answer to Microsoft’s Intellimouse Optical series. As a long time user of the Intellimouse Explorer, it caught my attention when I heard Logitech had finally made some competition to Microsoft’s optical nice. So what’s the rundown of this big blue rodent?"

You can find the review here, and read all of our the reviews at the Computer Reviews Page, including another new review, this time on bleem!.

Back in Business - shiva @ 4:05 am PST
Ah, nothing like the first official post in 2 weeks. :)

Nice to be back and all, our CGI is working, including the forum (Note: the url has been changed) and the poll will be up as soon as Falcon sends me the link.

Hopefully, we haven't lost any staff, but I suspect a couple won't be around anymore, but we will make up for it soon enough. Anyway, have a browse around, and if you find any problems or bad links, just email me.