November 2001

Ghost Recon Review....
Posted by [luckee] @ 10:43 AM MST Sunday, November 25, 2001 [Comment on news]

Ghost Recon is Red Storm Entertainment's (UBI software) latest in their Tom Clancy tactical shooter genre of games. In the past Tom Clancy has produced some great titles such as the Rainbow Six and Rogue Spear series of games which was a huge success for fans of the genre. Ghost Recon is a similar title to that of Rogue Spear and Rainbow six with a bit of Operation Flashpoint and Delta Force to finish it all
off.

Ghost Recon is set in the year 2008 and involves a rebellion in the Georgian republic which escalates into an international conflict between Russia and the US/UN alliance because the Russians are trying to start a communist regime all over again. You are part of an elitefighting force sent in to different locations across Russia
to complete various missions. You are equipped with the most advanced battle field technology to date and have at your disposal a team of various specialists which are trained in different areas of modern day warfare. As far as the political side goes you don't really need to worry about that after all it's all made up. All you need to do is take yourself and your team into a mission, blow a few things up and kill allot of enemy's and then get out alive. Of course you get the odd person who insists on following the make believe war and Red Storm Entertainment have accounted for that and introduced a briefing system before each mission informing you of the different changes and current events that are taking place.

Uncrossable Parallel Tidbits....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:35 AM MST Saturday, November 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
There's a small update on the Uncrossable Parallel site. Here's what they had to say:

Put your hands together for the Uncrossable Parallel rebel sniper player class. Shadows and GroundZer0 have been working away at him for a little while and the results are excellent. Maybe you'll see some ingame pics of it soon.

Cycloid and Scribe are now hard at work on Alpha 5.0 which will be including some very impressive new features. My current plan for Alpha 5.0 is:- All weapons modeled, skinned, animated ingame
- 3 additional player classes model, skinned ingame.
- All player animations complete.
- 16 fairly complete maps.

I've yet to work out a date, but things are looking nice. Oh, and this is for the team and testers only - sorry guys.

Budget Video Card Chipset Roundup....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:30 AM MST Saturday, November 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
Gaming In 3D puts the nVIDIA MX400 up against the ATI Radeon VE and the ST Micro up against the Kryo II in their latest Budget Video Card Chipset Roundup. Check it out!

Alliance Q3A ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:27 AM MST Saturday, November 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Alliance team has sent along word that they've posted a list of all the maps in the soon-to-be-released Alliance 3.0. You can download wallpapers of all 14 maps from the Alliance Web Site, get ready to play because it comes out in 2 days!

Gray Matter Studios....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:19 AM MST Saturday, November 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
This web site has been online for a bit, but we just got around to spotting it. The official Gray Matter Studios web site has gone live with info on the main developer responsible for Return to Castle Wolfenstein. While the site is pretty bare bones in terms of graphics, it has a lot of info on the company, including why the company basically started Gray Matter from the ashes of Xatrix Entertainment.

Duke Nukem Forever FAQ ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:17 AM MST Saturday, November 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
The official Duke Nukem Forever FAQ has been updated, doling out the latest info on 3D Realms' upcoming Unreal-powered sequel to Duke Nukem 3D. Nothing truly earth-shattering has been added (they are under a self-imposed media blackout afterall), but it's still a great reference to check out in case you want to get up to speed on the much-anticipated title.

Alliance Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:13 AM MST Saturday, November 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
HomeLan Fed has posted an Alliance Interview where they talk with Mr. White from the team behind the Alliance modification for Quake III Arena.

RTCW MP Tips....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:11 AM MST Saturday, November 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
Penny Arcade has posted a Return to Castle Wolfenstein multiplayer tips.

Red Faction interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 6:07 PM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
There's a Red Faction interview at the Moviehole talking with Volition's James Tsai about their recently released first person shooter. Here's some info about geo-mod:

GVK: Describe how the idea for Geo-Mod came about and the idea for the game.

JT: Geo-Mod is one of those ideas that I’m sure a lot of people have had but not very many have acted upon. The climate of FPS games has been pretty constant for several years – destructible environments were something that developers have thought about trying to implement but never did because of the constraints and difficulties it presents in design. Of course, in real life if explosives were to detonate against a wall you’d expect to see a big chunk of that wall gone and the appropriate level of collateral damage around it, but in FPS games it was always accepted that it just wasn’t feasible to simulate that. I think Geo-Mod really challenged conventional thinking in the genre, and Red Faction was set up to showcase the technology while still being fun to play.

Operation Flashpoint: Red Hammer movie trailer ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 6:05 PM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
CVG has also posted a movie trailer of Operation Flashpoint: Red Hammer, the new Soviet add-on that will be released as part of the imminent Gold Edition and Upgrade of Bohemia's soldier sim. The movie comes as a hefty 46.9 MB download in QuickTime format and sports an action-packed minute and a half of in-game sequences. A smaller DivX AVI version of the movie (4.6 MB) is also online at Tiscali Games.

IGI 2 hands-on preview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 6:03 PM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
Computer and Video Games has posted a hands-on preview of IGI 2: Covert Strike based on checking out the stealthy first-person shooter by Innerloop at the Codemasters press event they attended today. The article offers impressions of the enhanced graphics engine, the mission they got to try out, and various other new features, and is illustrated with eight new screenshots (and a familiar one).

SiX Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:57 AM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
Jolt.co.uk has posted an interview with the development team of SiX - A Red Faction Mod. Here's their intro to get you started:

Now that Red Faction has been in shops for a few weeks we are hearing the first rumblings of mods appearing in the community. Amongst them is The A-Team's Steel Inflicted Xtermination (SiX), a character-based multiplayer game set in a variety of futuristic settings inspired by films such as Mad Max and Blade Runner.

The guys had previously been developing the mod for Half Life, but the move over to Red Faction has breathed new life into the development. With so many details undecided, details on their webby are understandably quite sketchy. For this reason we wanted to find out a little more about what the mod has in store. They kindly let us have a cheeky look at some of the weapon models they've put together. Also, as one of the first mods being developed for Red Faction, SiX will give the community an idea of what can be achieved with the new Geo-mod Engine and the 'Red' editor.

How to Make Custom Q3A Team Skins Work in 1.29h and Above....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:52 AM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
How to Make Custom Q3A Team Skins Work in 1.29h and Above on Bane Forge is a new tutorial on the subject offering step-by-step instructions.

Game On....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:51 AM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
Barbican Gallery announces Game On, "the first major and most comprehensive UK exhibition to explore the 40-year history of computer gaming (1962-2002 and beyond)." Here's the deal:

Over 250 exhibits will be displayed in an exciting and specially created environment. GameOn will be based on 11 themed sections exploring a wide variety of areas. These will include early arcade games - featuring the very first arcade game - Computer Space (1971); the creative process of games - highlighting key individuals who have been responsible for the development of games such as Core Design the creators of Tomb Raider and Maxis developer of The Sims.

The exhibition will also feature original artwork and prototypes of the games. The section entitled Games Families offers the chance for visitors to play over 40 games from action to simulation. The impact of film and music on computer games will be explored as well as an area especially designed for under 18s in mind, featuring artwork, handhelds and games stations that reflect both historical and current games. The cultural links and differences between games developed in Europe, North America and Japan, will be examined, and a section dedicated to the future of computer games with the latest examples of hardware and software will be featured.

Red Faction interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:49 AM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
The latest Gareth Uncuffed, a movie critic column, features an interview with James Tsai, the producer at Volition on Red Faction, their first-person shooter. The Q&A covers a pretty standard set of topics, including the GeoMod engine, content and gameplay, obstacles the production encountered, things about the game they would change, the length of the development cycle, and more.

Will Rock Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 12:51 AM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
We recently had an opportunity to speak with Matthew Karch of the Will Rock Team, an upcoming FPS. Here's a snip:

How does Will Rock differ from other FPS titles out there today? What makes this title look so realistic?

MK: Most FPS games in development today involve lengthy stories and interactivity. We wanted to create a throwback game that focused more on action and less on story. Our game is more in the mold of Doom and Serious Sam than it is in the progeny of Half-Life. We have distinguished ourselves from other titles in the genre in that our environments are much more interactive than in most games. Not only can you break lots of stuff and spray holes everywhere, but the statues, the paintings and the walls themselves pose a threat to the player in that they can come to life. Will Rock is kind of like an FPS in a massive haunted house.

The reason our title looks so realistic is a function of both our engine and artwork. We have tested the Saber3d Engine on scenes with as much as 150,000 polys visible at one time – on a Pentium III with a GeForce 2 – and we maintained a frame rate of close to 30 fps. Because our engine allows for the handling of such large on-screen geometry, we are able to create detailed models with high resolution textures. Our artists all have experience in creating high-poly cut scenes for major game releases, and they have been able to produce beautiful artwork that can be handled by our engine with relative ease.

Which Console Is Tops? ....
Posted by [luckee] @ 12:24 AM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
It's the season of giving, which means it must be the season of getting, which also makes it the season of wanting, and I have an idea what you might want. I bet you want one of those new-fangled videogame consoles that all the spiky-haired weirdos on television are yammering on about.

But wait a minute, those evil manipulative console makers have made three hyper-powerful, lifestyle-defining systems available, and you can get them all right now!

Whatever shall I buy? Whatever shall I play?

Kidding aside, this isn't an easy choice if you have limited funds and a furious gaming appetite. So here are some pointers for making the best decision for you and your gaming tastes.


Read the rest here.

The SoundBlaster Audigy Review....
Posted by [luckee] @ 12:11 AM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
Guru3D reviews the Creative SoundBlaster Audigy here's a snip:

The really interesting Audigy’s are the ones that come with the AudigyDrive. You get two choices here also, an internal AudigyDrive, seen in last years’ Live Platinum, and an external version, ala the Hercules Game Theatre XP. The AudigyDrive offers copious amounts of input/output options. There is one ¼” headphone output with volume control, RCA inputs, a microphone input (with a gain control), SB1394, optical in/out, mini-midi in/out (includes two adapter cables), and SP/DIF in/out.

All are gold plated, with the exception of the optical, where photons don’t know much about electrical friction. I was surprised not to see some USB dongle on it as well, but if you’ve got IEEE-1394, who cares about USB? Both come with a nifty remote control, which works much better than we imagined, which duplicates the majority of the Audigy’s functions within a TV-like on-screen-display. The Platinum series are geared toward a home studio type of thing, where you need some extra inputs and outputs. The AudigyDrive itself is digitally connected to the Audigy by SB1394, Creative’s somewhat proprietary implementation of IEEE 1394 (not FireWire, that’s an Apple IEEE1394). Both digital and analog signals can travel over this connection, depending on the source material. The Platinum’s are heavily geared for sound/wav editing, mixing, sequencing, the stuff you’d find in a small home recording studio. The difference, AudigyDrive module aside, really is in the software. Creative is really pouring on the value here, offering Tons and Tons © of software, from Cubasis STE, Deus Ex, to no less than three wav editors.


Read the rest here.

The Final Hours of Metal Gear Solid 2....
Posted by [luckee] @ 12:02 AM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
GameSpot has published a huge Final Hours of Metal Gear Solid 2 feature detailing a wide range of topics.

Details include the team's creative process, the major milestones in development, and a look behind the scenes at how developing the game affected the lives of the team members. In addition to interviews with all the key developers in Japan, the story features comments from the main voice actors, including David Hayter (Snake), as well as composer Harry Gregson-Williams (The Rock, Enemy of the State). Here's a couple quotes from Kojima-san himself:

"I really think that Metal Gear has to live on in some form. But as I said at the end of Metal Gear Solid, I really think it is time for me to hand the director role over to someone else. I might do the initial planning for the next game, but not much more than that."

"When I was flying back from E3 in May, I was really worried. Not worried in the sense that we might not be able to finish the game--I was worried that it would be absolutely impossible for us to finish Metal Gear Solid 2 this year, the year of the snake. I must tell you, I was sitting here in June and thinking that no matter how hard anyone on the team could work, we would not finish the game this year. And that was the toughest point in my 15 years in the game industry."

"There are going to be fewer bonuses in the US version than I would like because of the lack of time. But the good news is that I am going to add a lot more bonuses to the Japanese version. You see, sometimes it pays to wait."

Read the rest here.

Return to Castle Wolfenstein impressions....
Posted by [luckee] @ 12:02 AM MST Friday, November 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
I've been playing this game for a few days now. I can tell you this game is off the hookie hook:) Graphics, sound effects, damge effects ect.. unseen before... I even had an instance where I threw a granade at one of the German soilders, and he picked it up and threw it back at me, blowing me up:). Examples like this make for a exciting game. I'll have my review out soon. In the meantime, check out Gamepspot's 'lil first impressions on RTCW. Here's a snip:

Even though Return to Castle Wolfenstein went gold only last week, it's already in most software stores throughout California. Since receiving the game early this week, we've been playing through Wolfenstein's single-player campaign as well as its multiplayer component. Both modes are equally as robust: The single-player campaign appears to be long, and the game's many levels are all complex and interactive enough to keep you constantly occupied with all of their many details. On the other hand, the multiplayer component of Wolfenstein has three distinct modes of play, along with what may be the most well-executed class-based system since the original Team Fortress. Most fans of the game should be familiar with Wolfenstein's multiplayer component if they've played id Software's recent release of the beach-invasion multiplayer level. Interestingly, that level is the only one of the nine included multiplayer maps that isn't a modified version of a single-player level. The id Software master server is already up and running, and there are dozens of servers hosting online games, many of which are completely full.

New AvP2 Single Player Demo....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:02 AM MST Thursday, November 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
I missed this yesterday... A new single-player demo has been released for Aliens vs Predator 2, this time allowing you to play one level as the Alien, Predator and Marine, all have the same functionality as they do in the full version. The saving feature is disabled, but 4 difficulty levels are available. You can grab the 158MB demo from the following mirrors:

Blue's News
3D Gamers
PlanetMirror

Command & Conquer: Renegade Designer Diary....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:00 AM MST Thursday, November 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
PC.IGN has posted the second edition of their Command & Conquer: Renegade designer diary, as Lead 3D Engineer Jani Penttinen talks about their decision not to license an engine, but instead develop one by themselves.

Another important reason for using proprietary technology is that Renegade is being developed to appeal to both Command & Conquer fans as well as the action shooter crowd, and the system specs for these two camps can vary widely. So the game's got to look great and take advantage of the latest graphics cards from a variety of manufacturers as well as the most powerful processors from people like Intel and AMD. At the same time, it needs to offer a great game play experience for the users with lower end hardware. This kind of scalability is best achieved when the engine is tied as close to the game as possible.

Operation Flashpoint Guide....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:58 AM MST Thursday, November 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
Burnoutpc.com has posted a Operation Flashpoint Guide, offering tips and tactics for survival and success in this tactical first-person shooter.

New Half-Life Science & Industry....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:56 AM MST Thursday, November 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
After a considerable testing period, a new version 0.97a of the Science & Industry modification for Half-Life is now available, featuring new maps, new weapon models, several bug fixes, voice communication & HLTV support from the latest Half-Life patch, and more.

Red Faction Mac Version Gold!....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:55 AM MST Thursday, November 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
Inside Mac Games is reporting that the Mac version of Red Faction has gone gold, and that the OS 9 version of this ground-breaking shooter is expected in stores next week sometime with OS X support to follow.

Deadly Dozen Patches....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:54 AM MST Thursday, November 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
There are some patches that have been released for Deadly Dozen, the recently released squad-based tactical shooter by nFusion Interactive. You can upgrade from the previous version 1.01 (6.5 MB) or the original game (40.0 MB), and this version 1.03 brings a massive list of improvements, gameplay changes, mission tweaks and bug fixes.

nFusion Interactive has also released a patch for the Deadly Dozen demo (1.3 MB), likewise bringing it to version 1.03. Further, a tiny Blood Mod is now available, which is "an unsupported modification that will add blood when a character is hit with a bullet in the game. This is totally unsupported and was done just as a 'thank you' to the fans (and because all you psychos begged for it)." Lastly, the promised Editing Tools (5.8 MB) have been released as well, allowing you to modify their squad-based tactical shooter, and this is even more unsupported than the Blood Mod.

U.S. Video Game Industry Ahead of its Game Despite Recession....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 12:45 PM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]

Top-10 List of the Best Selling PC Games in the US ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 12:42 PM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
The NPD Intelect has released the latest top-10 list of the best selling PC games in the US ending the week of Nov 10th. Civ III lost its spot on top after one week, Aliens vs. Predator 2 moved up a spot to 8th, while Infograme's backyard line up of sports games seem to have sold quite a few copies due to their low price.

1) Backyard Basketball - Infogrames Entertainment $17
2) MP Civilization 3 - Infogrames Entertainment $48
3) The Sims - Electronic Arts $41
4) Backyard Football 2002 - Infogrames Entertainment $17
5) MP Roller Coaster Tycoon - Infogrames Entertainment $19
6) Bob the Builder: Can We Fix It - THQ Inc $17
7) MS Zoo Tycoon - Microsoft $29
8) Aliens vs. Predator 2 - Vivendi Universal Publishing $40
9) Dark Age Of Camelot - Vivendi Universal Publishing $39
10) The Sims: House Party Expansion Pack - Electronic Arts $28

Legend Entertainment Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 12:39 PM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
Tolstiy's Place has posted a Legend Entertainment interview with Scott Dalton, Chris Hargrove, and Aaron Leiby, about the technology being added to the Unreal engine for Unreal 2. The conversations goes into specifics of the new particle system, what designers will be able to do with all those particles, how easily custom map designers will be able to adapt to the new system, the particle system's extensibility, how far along the system is in development, the GOLEM mesh-control system, how using it differs from using the stock Epic animation tools, examples of GOLEM's usage, working with Epic, and more.

Op Flashpoint: Red Hammer Q&A....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 12:37 PM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
Computer and Video Games has interviewed Codemasters' Executive Producer on Red Hammer, Jonathan Smith, about the upcoming add-on for Operation Flashpoint, the cold war military first-person shooter. Topics include the plot of the expansion, specifics about the character you will play for the Soviet side, the missions, how much gameplay this will entail, the possibilities of an Op Flashpoint sequel, and more.

Ghost Recon Voodoo Fix ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:55 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
Ghost Recon Retreat has a small 18KB fix for the recently released Ghost Recon military shooter, addressing a problem with blurry fonts in the game when using a 3dfx Voodoo card, or other unsupported cards.

Wolfenstein Stuff ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:54 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
A couple of .plan updates offers some RTCW info, as Todd Hollenshead's .plan update has a few notes about the just released Return To Castle Wolfenstein, including the suggested retail price, and Graeme Devine's .plan talks about the cd-keys, saying that ones being distributed over the Internet are being added to their bans list, and more.

Command & Conquer: Renegade Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:52 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
MGON has posted the first part of their Command & Conquer: Renegade interview, as they talk to Senior Producer Sean Decker about this upcoming shooter. They talk about the decision to make a FPS in the Command & Conquer universe, weapons, missions, gameplay, the listening device, the EVA, and more.

Unreal Co-op ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:51 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
The latest co-op article is now up on Z-Axis, as this time MrBunwah and friends do co-op Unreal. Go check it out to see if they liked the co-operative play in Epic's shooter.

Hitman 2: Silent Assassin Preview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:50 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Armchair Empire has posted a preview of IO Interactive's upcoming 3rd/1st person action sequel, Hitman 2: Silent Assassin. They talk about the first title, settings, improvements made to the sequel, weapons, engine, and more.

Counter-Strike: Condition Zero Screenshots....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:49 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
MOD Magazine has posted three new Counter-Strike: Condition Zero screenshots, offering new scenes in the single- and multiplayer first-person shooter being developed at Gearbox Software.

All American: The 82nd Airborne at Normandy Beta Test Sign-up....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:48 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Shrapnel Games Website has word they are looking to recruit their own band of brothers:

"The beta test team for All American: The 82nd Airborne at Normandy will be assembling their stick and deploying for battle in early January 2002. All prospective recruits should report immediately to the Beta Test HQ."

Unreal & Deus Ex Machinima Tools....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:46 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
Hugh Macdonald of UnFramed Productions sends along the following:

"I've just released both Unreal Movie Studio 1.6 (UMS 1.6), and Deus Ex Movie Studio (DXMS). UMS 1.6 is a updated version of UMS, which is completely modular, allowing users to create their own modules for UMS, increasing the functionality. DXMS is a version of UMS 1.6 (including all modular functionality) which has been tweaked and compiled for Deus Ex. You can find both files (along with UMS 1.5 (non-modular version) and WoTMS (non-modular version of UMS for the Wheel of Time) here. Or, UMS 1.6 can be downloaded directly and DXMS can be obtained from this page."

Future of TRIBES....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:42 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
A post to the PlanetTribes Forums by Alex "Marweas" Rodberg, Sierra's TRIBES 2 brand manager, offers a clarification of the future of TRIBES 2 in light of all the recent changes at Sierra, including the departure of much of the team from Dynamix responsible for creating the game. Here's what he had to say:

I know it's been a rough couple of weeks. The recent retirement of some notable teams and individuals from T2 was a disappointment to many including myself. The DoS attack on the authorization servers last week didn't make anybody's day either. The bug problems, the gameplay issues, the quitting and complaining – they’re enough to make anyone throw in their towel. Some even said the end was at hand.

But it’s not.

Today Sierra stepped up and reaffirmed its commitment to the Tribes brand, and to their customers. The Tribes team received a go-ahead on a proposal that among other things includes a plan for addressing the remaining critical issues with Tribes 2. We want to eliminate UE’s, improve FPS, nerf the ELF a little, and fix other problems that prevent people from playing their game. There is more in the works that will make Tribers happy, but I know you’re not big on hype so we’ll get there when we get there.

Please understand that while this bodes very well for all of us, IT’S NOT YET A PROMISE OF A PATCH. I cannot commit to that until we sign a contract with the developer. It is still possible for the negotiations to go south or some other obstacle to arise. I’ve promised to play straight with you and this is how it is.

I don’t have an estimate for how long the negotiations and signing will take, but we’re looking for a speedy turn-around. I will update as I can given the typical restrictions during a contract negotiation.

vvo - Alex

"Sweep all out and bust up!"

Return To Castle Wolfenstein Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:40 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
HomeLan Fed has posted a Return To Castle Wolfenstein Interview where they talk with id Software co-owner Kevin Cloud about Return To Castle Wolfenstein, the just-released Quake III-engined first-person shooter from Gray Matter Studios and Nerve Software for which id oversaw production.

Jedi Outcast Chat Log ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:39 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
There's a Jedi Outcast Chat Log on MGON taken from yesterday's session with LucasArts producer Brett Tosti and Raven project leads Kevin Schilder and Steve Raffel discussing Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast. Topics include the game's just-announced multiplayer support, beta testing plans, system requirements, the complexity of lightsaber duels, music, whether Luke will be making an appearance, force powers, community interaction, the light and dark sides, and more.

The Pros and Cons of Clans....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:37 AM MST Wednesday, November 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
It is a rare occurrence these days to play any game on the internet and not see someone without a “tag” next to their nickname. Typically these tags or combination of letters, numbers and sometimes symbols refer to the group or organization the person plays for. But what do they all mean? What benefit does a gamer receive by having a tag before their name? Find out what 3DAction Planet has to say in their latest article The Pros and Cons of Clans

PC release date list ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:47 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Adrenaline Vault has updated its PC release date list with the games that will be shipped for the personal computer during the remainder of 2001 and the first quarter of 2002. Find out which titles publishers will be bringing to the table this winter here. The page also contains a list of all the PC games released to retail since September.

High-end Gaming PC Buyer's Guide....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:41 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
Looking to skip the whole Xbox vs. Gamecube vs. Playstation 2 issue altogether and build yourself a system that will let you both work and play? Then check out this month's High-end Gaming PC Buyer's Guide for Sharky Extreme's latest recommendations.

Evercool HSF Shootout ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:35 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
CPU cooling is a very important part of the computer. An improperly cooled CPU will cause instability in the system and may end in the destruction of both the CPU and Motherboard. Today, Hardware Extreme has posted their Evercool HSF Shootout to help you out.

Codemasters recruiting for Beta testers as IGI 2 and Dragon Empires’ ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:31 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
Codemasters has launched online micro sites for two of next year’s major PC titles: IGI 2: Covert Strike, the sequel to the award-winning first-person shooter, and Dragon Empires, the fantasy-based MMORPG that will host a world of clan-based tribal players.

For PC gamers wanting to get ahead of the game, Codemasters is offering early sign ups to the Beta Test programme for both titles. Beta testing for IGI 2: Covert Strike is scheduled to being early 2002 with Dragon Empires entering the phase in spring 2002.

Sign up to the IGI 2: Covert Strike Beta Test programme on the game’s micro site, located at: www.codemasterscom/igi2/front.htm.

Dragon Empires’ micro site containing the recruitment page can be found at: www.codemasters.com/dragonempires/front.htm.

Both games’ Beta Test sign-up pages are now live and interest is high with IGI 2: Covert Strike attracting an incredible 3500 sign ups within 24 hours.

Comdex Reports....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:25 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
FiringSquad has posted up reports from last week's Comdex. In Report 1 they chat with the big boys of video and processors, Nvidia, ATI, AMD, and Intel. All have exciting products lined up for the beginning of 2002, and guarantee that economic bust or not, the new year will prove to an exciting one on the hardware front. In Report 2 they focus on the products and trends of your favorite motherboard manufacturers, where a landslide of the boards and designs were introduced, based on chipsets by SiS, VIA, Nvidia, and now even ATI!

GeForce3 Ti 200 Review ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:22 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
Guru3D has posted a review of the GeForce3 Ti 200 video card.Here's a snip:

"The Titanium series of GPUs are to be produced on TSMC’s 0.15-micron-enhanced process technology that features higher performance transistors. As said, in this feature we will test a GeForce3 Titanium 200, it's a reference model that we received from NVIDIA. Basically it's the same product as the Ti500 except the GPU core has been downclocked to 175 MHZ and 400 MHz for it's memory. Furthermore it lacks ramsinks and an active cooler to cool down the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit)."

Wolfenstein Wallpaper....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:19 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
Two new wallpapers from id's World War II action shooter have been posted at fansite Wolfenstein Xtreme.

Medal of Honor: Allied Assault Movie ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:13 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
After a bit of a break, the official Medal of Honor: Allied Assault site has posted up the fourth movie in the five part series showing off gameplay from 2015's upcoming World War II first person shooter. The game, published by Electronic Arts, will be released early in 2002.

Computer Games Converted Into Healthy Physical Activity....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:11 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
Not exactly our usual headline, but I thought you may find it interesting nonetheless:

MINDEN, Nev., Nov. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- The health of today's youth is a low point when it comes to assessing the overall healthiness of America's society. Experts say that television, video games, and high-fat, high-carbohydrate diets are the major causes of our kids' problems.

To combat the child health issue that some officials are calling an epidemic, Eloton Inc., developer of interactive exercise equipment, has introduced The SimCycle Gamebox, a compact electronic device that enables consumers to have an effective cardiovascular workout while enjoying the fun and excitement of PC video games.

"Today's parents are in a constant battle with the T.V. and with video games when it comes to getting their kids the exercise they need to lead healthy lives," explain Eloton co-founders Greg House and Ryan Forvilly. "The SimCycle Gamebox brings physical exercise to video games rather than trying to tear the kids away from something they already love."

Hooking up the Gamebox is fast and easy: the consumer simply connects the SimCycle to the small (four-inch by six-inch) Gamebox, which is then plugged into the game port on a Windows-based personal computer. The user can now control the speed of their racecar, fighter jet, or 1st person shooter while physically pedaling the SimCycle and using a standard game pad to control other functions.

Statistics from the American Council on Exercise's Operation FitKids school fitness programs reflects the poor health of America's children:

* 40% of kids age 5-8 are sedentary and clinically obese.
* The same number also have high blood pressure and cholesterol.
* 3/4 of obese teens will remain obese in adulthood.

This could all change with the introduction of the Gamebox.

"Youngsters in our Nation are in the worst shape of any country in the world with the exception of some 3rd World countries because we no longer teach physical education in our schools," says Jim Bush, Pro-Coach and Advisor to the Presidents Council On Physical Fitness. "The SimCycle is a great way to help get these kids back into shape and have FUN while doing it."

The SimCycle Gamebox retails for $79.99 and comes with it's own Eloton game pad. Consumers can order directly from the Eloton Web site, or call the company's toll-free number, 1-866-eloton1.

Aces High Voice Beta....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:05 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
HiTech Creations has released the Aces High Voice Beta (direct link, 32 KB), a voice over net technology beta for use with their online WW2 combat game. HiTech wants to test the software a little bit before fully implementing it into the Aces High client. It's a small download and can be used with or without the game running. The only requirement is that you'll need to have DirectX 8.0 or higher installed on your PC. You can read more about it in the latest development update over at the HiTech site.

The Action Report Issue #2....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:02 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
My pal StealthBuda passed along word last night that The Action Report Issue #2 is online. This report features a Half-Life Front Line Force Interview, an article on the history of FLF, and some exclusive screenshots on Navy SEALs for Q3A. Check it out!

New Kquery....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:00 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
A new version 2.5.1 build 675 of the Kquery server browser is now available. The new release features a "fast automatic ping time finder," more master servers, PunkBuster support, "even faster server querying," and a new Kquery help system.

Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast Chat Tonight....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:59 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
The LucasArts Entertainment Company Chat Page (free registration required) is where to congregate this evening if you are interested in participating in a developer chat with LucasArts and Raven Software to discuss progress on Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, the Quake III-engine first-person shooter sequel formerly known as Jedi Outcast: Jedi Knight II. The session is scheduled to run from 9:00-10:00 PM EST, though the chat room will open an our earlier at 8:00 PM EST. Attendees will be LucasArts producer Brett Tosti and Raven's project leads Kevin Schilder and Steve Raffel.

Return to Castle Wolfenstein Hits Stores Nationwide....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:57 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
MESQUITE, Texas, Nov. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Retail outlets are bracing for the blitzkrieg with the announcement that id Software's Return to Castle Wolfenstein(TM) for the PC is now available. Activision, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI - news) and id Software confirmed today that the title has been shipped to retailers and will be available on November 20 for a suggested retail price of $49.99. Return to Castle Wolfenstein has been rated "M" (Mature) for blood, gore and violence by the ESRB.

"The game that started it all is back, bigger, badder and more beautiful then ever," said Todd Hollenshead, CEO, id Software. "Wolfenstein 3D set the stage for one of the most prolific genres in PC gaming history, and now Return to Castle Wolfenstein is here to once again set the standard in first-person action gameplay."

"Return to Castle Wolfenstein is the definitive combination of technology, story, design and gameplay," said Larry Goldberg, executive vice president, Activision Worldwide Studios. "Players will feel like they've stepped into a feature film with a storyline full of interesting characters, heart-stopping action and plot twists that will keep even the most hardcore gamers on their toes."

Aliens versus Predator 2 Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:54 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
PlanetAvP has interviewed William Westwater, the lead designer at Monolith on Aliens versus Predator 2. Subjects covered include the team's feelings about how the game turned out, planned features that were not included in the final version, issues in balancing a game with thee species each with multiple classes, the possibility of expansions, plans for a source code and editing tools release, the reasons for the inclusion of classes, multiplayer play, as well as some off-topic questions.

Artificial Intelligence ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:52 AM MST Tuesday, November 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
AI. It’s a term which the games industry seems to have taken under it’s wing like an orphan child. The term Artificial Intelligence though, doesn’t seem to correctly describe what coding in current games achieve. Today, 3DAction Planet has posted an editorial on the subject.

SoFII Multiplayer Screenshots ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 4:57 PM MST Monday, November 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
To accompany the announcement earlier about Soldier of Fortune II multiplayer support, Activision has released a set of five multiplayer screenshots from Soldier of Fortune II showing off the first publicly-released images from the upcoming Quake III-engine shooter sequel. Check 'em out at Blue's.

Gore Updated Test 2 & Patch....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 4:55 PM MST Monday, November 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
4D Rulers has released a 1.55 MB patch and a 69.2 MB full install for the multiplayer test 2 demo of Gore, their upcoming futuristic first-person shooter.

Return To Castle Wolfenstein Shelf Date News....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 4:52 PM MST Monday, November 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
id Software CEO Todd Hollenshead updated his .plan with word on places to expect to find Return to Castle Wolfenstein tomorrow:

Return To Castle Wolfenstein Shelf Date News!

According to my sources at Activision, the following stores will
have the game available tomorrow, Tuesday November 20:

CompUSA
Best Buy
EB (USA)
Gamestop
EB (Canada)

If you pre-ordered the Tin, I think those should be available tomorrow in the locations listed above, but you may want to call ahead to make sure. If you didn't order a Tin, but would like to pick one up, I understand that a limited number may make their way to store shelves. I'm guessing that any available Tin boxes will disappear as soon as they hit the shelves.

The official strategy guide from Pri