October 2001

New World Order Screenshots ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 3:36 PM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
Cutting The Edge has some new screenshots of New World Order, featuring 11 new weapon shots and 3 new player model shots from this upcoming FPS by Project Three Interactive and Termite Games.

CS: Condition Zero Interview w/Randy Pitchford....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:53 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
Computer and Video Games has posted an interview with Gearbox Software's Randy Pitchford talking about the upcoming single player Counter-Strike title, CS: Condition Zero. They discuss the transfer of the project from Rouge to Gearbox, the Half-Life engine, weather effects, new character classes, new skins, the AI, team orders, and more.

As a single-player game, how will you implement a coherent sense of continuity, and will there be any consequences from succeeding at a previous mission, but not executing it perfectly?

RP: The single-player game is driven by a narrative that makes the player understand why it's so important to succeed in each mission. Each scenario requires a number of objectives to be completed, nine out of ten of which are new. As objectives are completed, additional funding is earned for the squad that enables the player (as the squad leader) to invest in an improved arsenal, squad training or recruitment of new members. There are some other surprises that money can be spent on as well. Completing all of the objectives of one scenario will yield more funding for the squad, which will give that squad the resources to be better equipped to deal with the next scenario. In some cases, however, it will be necessary to move ahead and acquire things from later missions before the player can go back and complete every objective in an earlier scenario. Resources and weapons will also be transferred from one mission to the next. The single-player game is very well layered and there are tons of incentives to just keep going. I'm very proud of the design for this one as it's clearly the most innovative thing Gearbox has ever done.

Ghost Recon Preview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:49 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
Games Domain has posted a Ghost Recon preview where they take a closer look at various aspects of this promising Tom Clancy-inspired game from Red Storm including multiplayer, the graphics engine, AI and a whole lot more. Here's a bit on the graphics:

Red Storm has implemented a brand new graphics engine, and the game looks frankly fantastic. Each character is rendered in painstaking detail, right down to the eyes blinking, and the landscapes match accordingly. Each tree even moves according to the weather, and you'll have plenty of opportunity to admire the ground cover as you crawl through open areas on your face. There's also plenty of variety, and we'll leave it up to you to discover just how painstakingly accurate some of the real-life urban landscapes have been recreated.

New Eternal Arena....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:47 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Eternal Arena Website now has downloads available of a new public beta 2 of version 5 of this Q3A mod. The new release adds two new rail types, missiles that can be destroyed, progressive zooming, and real weapon physics option. Public beta 2 is available as a full release or as a patch for public beta 1, and in addition to this release, they also have released a special "Pumpkin Edition," in honor of Halloween, adding "some additional pumpkin graphics and sounds."

The Fine Line Between a Feature and a Gimmick ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:19 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Fine Line Between a Feature and a Gimmick is the latest editorial on 3DActionPlanet, giving their views on what seperates between a a game feature and simply a gimmick. Among others, they talk about the bullet-time in Max Payne, and the Geo-Mod technology in Red Faction.

Game Mods -- Volume 1....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:16 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
Kazi Wren shares the latest mod information from across the game industry in a new column for GameSpy. Here's his intro to get you started:

"Like you, I've spent more money than I can remember buying games over the years. Some were absolute dogs to play, while others were incredible works of art and technology.

Instead of uninstalling a game I enjoy, I jump online to check for any mods that were created by other gamers. You see, developers learned quickly that their games could live on with an editing community. Release a few tools and let gamers take it from there. It wasn't a bad idea, and long since DOOM, players have breathed new life into an assortment of games.

I've kept up on popular mods like Counter-Strike (Half-Life), but my real curiosity surrounds games that have gone relatively quiet since being released. If editing tools were released, then chances are good someone in a game community has cranked out a mod."

Deadly Dozen Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:12 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
Specforce.net has posted a Deadly Dozen interview with the development team that discusses its forthcoming action game. Here's a snip:

What game feature are you most proud of? (great AI, save-anywhere, awesome sound, immersive environments, etc.)

Jason: I think I'm most proud of the gameplay. We started off with a rough idea of the type of game we wanted and not nearly enough time to do it. Our original goal was lofty, we wanted to present a realistic wartime environment to the player and let them figure out how to complete the mission completely on their own. Kind of like Deus Ex, where you have a ton of ways to solve any obstacle and its up to you to create a solution. What we ended up with is very very close to our original goals, much closer than I even thought we'd get.

AvP2 Tourney Sign-ups....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:10 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
The CPL says that they have opened online registration for their upcoming Aliens vs Predator 2 tournament. The grand prize is a car: "a high-end customized 2002 Ford Focus ZX3, designed by APC of Corona, CA. and valued at approximately $40,000", according to The CPL.

New Q3 Gridiron....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:07 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
A new version 3.1 patch for the Q3 Gridiron modification is now available, updating this mod that adds the violence of American football to the competition of Quake III Arena. Described as a "final version 3.1 patch," this update fixes a few bugs and adds "some nice code and map tweaks."

Film and Television Arts Awards ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:06 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards have been handed out, with Max Payne winning for best PC game, and Black & White winning for "interactivity" and "moving images," and Shogun Total War: Warlord Edition winning for best music.

Chaser....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:05 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
Here's a bit on Chaser from Fragland.net's Fishtank Development Update. Check it out:

"The development of the potential ego shooter hit (Release: 4th quarter 2002) is coming along exceptionally well. So well, in fact, that we expect a fully functional multiplayer version including bots (!) to be ready for internal testing by November."

Command & Conquer Renegade Developer Q&A part 2....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:53 AM MST Wednesday, October 31, 2001 [Comment on news]
Action Vault has posted a Command & Conquer Renegade Developer Q&A part 2 where they talk again with Dan Cermak, the Executive Producer on the upcoming action game based on the C&C RTS universe.

FATE Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:59 AM MST Tuesday, October 30, 2001 [Comment on news]
GameSpy Daily has posted an interview with a few guys from Ireland-based developer Torc Interactive, talking about FATE, an upcoming free FPS they're working on. They talk about the reasons to make the title free, the main character, weapons, levels, multiplayer, other titles the company is working on, and more.

Codename Outbreak Preview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:57 AM MST Tuesday, October 30, 2001 [Comment on news]
GameSpot has posted a Codename Outbreak preview, taking a look at GSC Game World's upcoming shooter. They talk about the plot, missions, gameplay, AI, interface, the engine, sounds, and more.

GeFest on EuroGamer....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:37 AM MST Tuesday, October 30, 2001 [Comment on news]
Need advice on picking a GeForce 3? EuroGamer has an article today that may help. Here's their intro to give you a taste:

"Upgrading your graphics card has never been so expensive. To pick up a cutting edge card based on NVIDIA’s cracking Titanium 500 reference design could set you back upwards of £350. These days you could probably replace your monitor for less. If you have to buy NVIDIA though – and judging from the emails we’ve been getting that’s a lot of you – then you probably want to know whether it's worth sifting through the various boards on the market, or whether you should simply go for the cheapest. It would be impossible for us to scrounge every single GeForce 3-derived card on the market, but by examining a cross-section of the products on offer we can establish whether any performance difference exists, or not... "

Making A High Performance Silent PC ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:33 AM MST Tuesday, October 30, 2001 [Comment on news]
On a different note, Making A High Performance Silent PC on GamePC offers a guide to adding MIPS while removing decibels.

Tactical Ops ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:30 AM MST Tuesday, October 30, 2001 [Comment on news]
A post to the Tactical Ops Forums has a feature list for the new version 2.10 beta of the Tactical Operations modification for Unreal Tournament as well as a list of mirrors where the new files can be downloaded. The new version rebalances the weapons, adds new sounds, improves firing sounds, fixes an AI bug, updates some maps, and adds a bunch of new features, tweaks, and bug-fixes.

Croteam Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:29 AM MST Tuesday, October 30, 2001 [Comment on news]
Ferrago.co.uk has a Croteam Interview posted where they chat with designer Davor Tomicic and programmer Nikola Mosettig about progress on Second Encounter, their upcoming follow-up to Serious Sam: the First Encounter. Among the subjects covered is how the feedback about the first Sam game is influencing the follow-up, the premise for Second Encounter, new enemies and weapons, new environments, gameplay changes since the original, graphical improvements, what the future holds for Sam, and more.

Ghost Recon Update: FAQ Additions & Screenshot....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:27 AM MST Tuesday, October 30, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Ghost Recon site has been updated with some new questions and answers in the official FAQ.

An FPS-Themed Board Game?....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:26 AM MST Tuesday, October 30, 2001 [Comment on news]
It may sound crazy to many online gamers, but that’s the essence of FRAG, a new board game release from Steve Jackson Games. The game does a great job of simulating the action of your average first-person shooter, where you die constantly, only to respawn and do it again. Sweet! Check out 3D Action Planet's review.

C&C Renegade beta....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:22 AM MST Tuesday, October 30, 2001 [Comment on news]
The official C&C: Renegade site was updated with the news that the game has gone into the first stages of beta testing! The first 20 lucky winners will get to play the game starting this weekend. Here's the info:

The names have been picked, the invites have been sent and the planning has begun for the first stage of the Renegade beta test! A select group of less than 20 people was chosen to give the Command & Conquer multiplayer mode in the near future! You're sure to be hearing about it soon, and keep your ears peeled for word on the upcoming beta which will allow everyone to apply!

Windows XP Review ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 3:40 PM MST Monday, October 29, 2001 [Comment on news]
Firing Squad has posted a review on Windows XP and have given it an overall score of 85%. Here's a snip about whether you should upgrade or not:

The question simply comes down to whether or not you need and or want the new features that Windows XP offers. If you're a gamer and are satisfied with Windows 98SE, by all means, don't upgrade and risk losing the ability to play some of your favorite games. If you're at the office, you might want to steer clear for a while to let many of the bugs get addressed before making the plunge. Some of us are already experiencing some problems at work getting Windows XP to communicate through the network with older Windows machines. Ask critically and carefully, and then decide, after examining all the features that Windows XP provides and compare them to what you currently have, whether or not to take the XP route.

Mac Gaming....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 3:37 PM MST Monday, October 29, 2001 [Comment on news]
InsideMacGames has word that the OS X version of Giants: Citizen Kabuto has begun shipping and all pre-orders should be arriving soon.

Renegade Screenshots ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 3:35 PM MST Monday, October 29, 2001 [Comment on news]
ToTheGame has twelve new screenshots from Westwood's upcoming first person shooter, Command & Conquer: Renegade.

Team Factor Developer Update....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 3:34 PM MST Monday, October 29, 2001 [Comment on news]
There's a Team Factor Developer Update on Cutting The Edge where the folks from 7fx give a rundown on what's up with their upcoming team-based shooter, broken up into several departments: Conception, Attraction, Storyline, Scenarios, Progress, Game Specs, and System Specs.

Q3A: New Weapons Factory Beta....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:08 AM MST Monday, October 29, 2001 [Comment on news]
Weapons Factory Arena Beta 3.1b Now Available For Testing. You can download the new beta right here. Weapons Factory Arena is the popular Quake 3 Arena mod with classes and teamplay and all that good stuff

QuakePro Plus Updated....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:04 AM MST Monday, October 29, 2001 [Comment on news]
QuakePro Plus has been updated to version 1.05. Tons of new features and updates have been made, here's a quick quote on the increased ease of use:

QuakePro+ now includes its own menu and is easier to use than ever before. While in game just go to Menu and at the bottom of the list go to ' QuakePro+ Settings ' and setup all your custom settings there.

Croteam Update ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:56 AM MST Monday, October 29, 2001 [Comment on news]
The latest update has been posted on the Croteam website, this time mentioning that they've finished beta 2 of Serious Sam: The Second Encounter, and that the game should be going gold in the next ten days:

On lighter note, we finished Beta 2 (tm) of The Second Encounter, which is already on its way to Talonsoft. For those who don't know, Talonsoft is Take 2's team which did Serious Sam: The First Encounter beta testing and now they are doing it for The Second Encounter as well. Next week we'll be shipping Beta 3 and 4. If all goes well, we should be finishing with Release Candidate 1 (RC1), RC2 and Gold master in the next 10 days. Meanwhile, we are preparing all things (translations, voice overs, menu, manuals, etc.) to be delivered to Take2 for translations, since Take 2 plans to ship both versions (US and Euro) at the same time. Looking back at Alpha and Beta, we did huge things in terms of visual appearance of game. Also we added many cut sequences, not to make game time longer, but to help making traps and puzzles easier. We haven't found many major bugs in Beta, which is a good sign of hard work and concentration. Level editors did tweaking to playability, making some fight easier and tweaking performance issues. Art department is finishing polishing some of the levels and models for Seriously Warped DM which plays really good. It should be heaven for all multiplayer freaks.

Firearms Update....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:54 AM MST Monday, October 29, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Firearms Half-Life mod website has been updated today, giving the word on the latest happenings with the upcoming 2.6 RC. In this update, they talk about the maps, giving the list of maps that will be added, removed, or updated, including a single screenshots for each map.

Uncrossable Parallel....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:45 AM MST Sunday, October 28, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Uncrossable Parallel mod site has been updated with some new info and screenshots of their latest build.

Renegade Update....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:34 AM MST Sunday, October 28, 2001 [Comment on news]
The latest Command & Conquer: Renegade update has been posted on the game's official forums, as producer Dan Cermak talks about the latest happenings with this upcoming shooter, scheduled for a February 12th release:

Guess it's been an interesting week for everyone, ship date announced and beta test set up. Things continue to progress, in single player we are focused on one last pass at the exterior terrains, looking for places where the AI units and the player might need a little extra cover. I don't expect much in the way of changes but I want to be sure that the AI has enough cover points to make it interesting for the commandos out there. After that we will take a final pass at lighting the levels and we will be locked on the terrains. From the design side of single player we continue to work on the bugs and tweak with the balance a bit. We have a couple of leader "Boss" characters that have some pretty special moves and attacks, makes for some very intense fights. We have to make sure you guys can win them somehow....

Multiple play continues to polish up nicely. We added new base and character status keys, cool to see the health of your base and the enemy base at a key******. The game is getting very addictive, in fact we normally have 2 sessions a day to check out new base layouts or changes in interface, etc and we have been getting more and more people from marketing, audio, PR playing because it really provides a different experience. I canceled an afternoon session to focus on a build and did I hear about it....

Wolfenstein's Weapons ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:30 AM MST Sunday, October 28, 2001 [Comment on news]
Return To Castle Wolfenstein, as everybody probably knows, features real-world-based weapons from the World War II era. However, not very many people know all that much about the original weapons themselves -- where did they come from? What were they like to use? 3D Action Planet's fr0sty has done us a great service, answering these questions and more!

Team Factor ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:27 AM MST Sunday, October 28, 2001 [Comment on news]
The official Team Factor site has been updated with half a dozen new screenshots of the team-based multiplayer shooter in the works at 7FX.

Countdown Quake3 ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:25 AM MST Sunday, October 28, 2001 [Comment on news]
The debut release of the Countdown Quake3 mod is now available. This is an interesting new mod that plays Quake III Arena deathmatches backwards. This works by starting every player out with the number of frags in the game's fraglimit and all the weapons except the BFG10K. Killing an opponent gets you -1 frag, while being killed gets you +1, and a suicide will get you +2. As you get down to certain frag levels, one weapon at a time will be removed from your arsenal, until you are down to trying to get the final frag with the gauntlet, and the first player to get to zero frags wins.

New WolfStat....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:24 AM MST Sunday, October 28, 2001 [Comment on news]
The WolfStat Homepage has a new version 0.8.0 of WolfStat, a utility that can extract statistics from the server log file for a Return to Castle Wolfenstein Test server. The new version features a new design, and adds support for Quake III Arena.

Half-Life Movie....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:49 AM MDT Saturday, October 27, 2001 [Comment on news]
Valve sent over the following note, asking whether or not you would like to see a Half-Life movie:

Valve has been approached by a number of filmmakers interested in developing a Half-Life movie. Would you go see a Half-Life movie and, if so, what would you like to see in the film? (i.e. actors, story lines, etc.) To enter your opinions on the subject, even if your comments are limited to, "Yes, I'd go see a Half-Life movie," simply email your thoughts to movie@valvesoftware.com Thanks.

MechWarrior 4: Black Knight Goodies....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:47 AM MDT Saturday, October 27, 2001 [Comment on news]
PC.IGN has also posted some new movies and screenshots from the upcoming MechWarrior 4: Black Knight expansion pack.

New World Order Tech Demo....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:46 AM MDT Saturday, October 27, 2001 [Comment on news]
GameSpot has posted a new two minute tech demo of Project Three Interactive and Termite Games' upcoming New World Order shooter. Check it out!

R.E.D. Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:42 AM MDT Saturday, October 27, 2001 [Comment on news]
In the business of making video and PC games in 2001, a developer not only has to come up with a cool game idea but also has to sell their idea to a publisher. These days, with multi-million dollar budgets becoming the norm rather than the exception, developers have to deal with the business side of creating a game. Enter R.E.D (Representing Entertainers & Developers) a video and PC game agency who has garnered a growing clientele of developers such as 4D Rulers (Gore) Silverback Entertainment (Harbinger) and many others. Just this week the agency announced it had secured a development team to work with Sega to bring their Dreamcast game Skies of Arcadia to the Playstation 2 console. HomeLAN got a chance to chat with R.E.D co-founder Jeff Brunner to find out more about what his agency does for game developers and the gaming industry.

Goretest2 Release!....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:38 AM MDT Saturday, October 27, 2001 [Comment on news]
4D Rulers has released a new test demo of Gore, their upcoming multi-player first-person shooter that is a 69.2 MB download. This test demo includes two new levels and one from the original test, 4 characters (2 UMC and 2 MOB), CTF and Tactical game modes in addition to deathmatch, all the weaponry from the first demo and half a dozen new weapons, and more.

Here's some download mirrors for you:

Blue's News
3D Gamers (3 FTP Sites)
FilePlanet

CPL AvP2 Tournaments ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 4:32 PM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
The CPL has announced that Aliens vs. Predator 2 has been chosen as an "Official Tournament Game of the CPL". Here's a snip:

Los Angeles, CA - October 26, 2001 - Sierra(tm), Fox Interactive(tm) and the Cyberathlete Professional League(r) (CPL) are excited to announce that Aliens vs. Predator(tm) 2 has been chosen as an "Official Tournament Game of the CPL". To kick off this partnership, the Aliens vs. Predator 2 tournament, also sponsored by PNY Technologies(r), will be included in a 30-city tournament at the CPL qualifying centers, a worldwide online tournament with the Cyberathlete Amateur League( and the upcoming CPL World Championship event. The Aliens vs. Predator 2 finals tournament will have gamers from across the nation competing for the grand prize of a high-end customized 2002 Ford Focus ZX3 courtesy of American Products Company located in Corona, CA.

"We are excited to be partnering with the CPL to showcase Aliens vs. Predator 2 to the gaming community all over the world. This unique tournament, with over $60,000 in prizing, will be one of the biggest computer game tournaments ever," said Ivo Gerscovich, Director, Promotions and Strategic Partnerships for Fox Interactive. "The common vision the partners shared in putting this event together will hopefully serve to set the standard for future tournaments."

Soundblaster Windows XP Drivers ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 4:29 PM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
Soundblaster.com has new Windows XP drivers for the Sound Blaster Audigy series, the Sound Blaster Live! 5.1 series, Sound Blaster Live! / Value cards, and Sound Blaster PCI 512 cards. Word on Sound Blaster Live! (CT4620, CT4670, CT4760), Sound Blaster PCI 16/Vibra128/AudioPCI, Sound Blaster PCI 128, and Sound Blaster PCI Compact (CT5808) support is to be "available end-November," while other Ensoniq audio processors, the Sound Blaster AWE series, the Sound Blaster 16, and the Sound Blaster Pro are already supported by native Windows XP drivers.

Ghost Recon Preview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:35 AM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
PC.IGN has posted a Ghost Recon preview, talking about the multiplayer part as they give their impressions from playing a late build of the game.

And the level of detail on everything is incredibly high. While many people thought the foliage in Operation Flashpoint was hot, the trees and bushes and grass effects in Ghost Recon are much more believable. It's a shame that you can't tell just from the screenshots but the way the trees sway in the wind adds a whole new level of credibility to the environments. The buildings, water and sky effects also add a touch of realism.

And while the details are certainly important, it's the way the levels are put together that really supports the illusion of reality. My favorite of the maps is a secluded, wooded valley. The hills and trees of this level are gorgeous and the small little cabin lying at the bottom of it all quickly became a point of contention. Mostly that was because of the .50 caliber machine gun emplacement on the porch. While it allowed you to mow down anyone who got within your field of fire, it left you vulnerable to an attack from the rear or the side.

Tim Sweeney Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:33 AM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
There's a Tim Sweeney interview on Tolstiy's Place talking with the Epic lead programmer about technology. You can check it out here.

Chaser Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:47 AM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
Blue Monday has posted a Chaser Interview where they talk with David Durcak of Cauldron about Chaser, their upcoming first-person shooter. The conversation offers some background on Cauldron, the Chaser storyline, and more. Here's a taste:

What can you tell us about the CloakNT technology? What are the most important features of the engine?

The engine itself is the most important feature :) It allows us to design levels and characters with much less restriction than it is with other engines. We have very detailed characters with an advanced system for animations. This system allows us to combine many animations together, resulting in very nice looking and fluent characters motions. Characters can have facial expressions, so they can smile, frown, etc. We can use curved surfaces, which give better detail to the levels. The portal system of the engine allows us to create more complicated levels without loss of performance, and with the particle system we can create great looking explosions and effects.

Ghost Recon Chat Log ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:43 AM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
Icegameware has posted the log of the recent IRC chat with the Red Storm team, where they discussed this just gone gold military shooter, Ghost Recon.

Q: How does GRs AI match up to previous AIs from Rainbow 6 and Rogue Spear?

A: Like night and day. They actually miss sometimes. And they duck for cover if you shoot at them and miss... Its really cool to see... And they taunt you too. Weasels. The AI enemies in GR are much more responsive and aggressive, making for more of a cat-and-mouse feel to much of the engagements. It is better about using tactics and terrain for cover. The AI will show a surprising degree of tactical intelligence. In addition, they can flank uoi and work together very well. And they shoot good, too.

AvP2 Release Date ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:42 AM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
AvPNews has posted word from a Sierra rep, saying the current US shipping date for Aliens vs Predator 2 is Tuesday, October 30th. Check it out!

MechWarrior 4 Q&A....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:40 AM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
Gamespy has an interview this morning with FASA Studio Program Manager Andrew Brown, and Studio Manager Dave Luehmann chatting about MechWarrior 4: Black Knight. Here's a snip:

GameSpy: Where do you see the franchise going in the next year? Five years?

Dave Luehmann: Oh well, how can I say this without giving it all away? Let me just say there are some very interesting things in the works, great new gameplay ideas as well as story lines that will play big roles in our future releases.

Combat Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:38 AM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
HomeLan has an interview up with Paul Schuytema, from Magic Lantern Playware, who is working on Combat, a remake of the old Atari 2600 game.

Top Ten Shooters For Low-End PCs....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:34 AM MDT Friday, October 26, 2001 [Comment on news]
3DAction Planet has an article posted today called Top Ten Shooters For Low-End PCs. Here's their intro to get you started:

"That brand new computer you got two Christmases ago -- you know, the one with the blazing 300Mhz Pentium II processor and 8MB Voodoo3 card? The one you've been meaning to upgrade, but were afraid would become immediately outdated again? Well, now it's really outdated. And Return to Castle Wolfenstein is going to bring it to its knees. What are you going to do now?"

New World Order Movie....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 4:40 PM MDT Thursday, October 25, 2001 [Comment on news]
Project 3 Interactive has released a new technology trailer of New World Order, the team-based first-person shooter in development at Termite Games. The hefty 67.1 MB download shows off some new areas that weren't in the previous trailer, and runs for more than two minutes in high-res (640x480) AVI format.

Operation Flashpoint Gold Edition....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:55 AM MDT Thursday, October 25, 2001 [Comment on news]
Codemasters announced this morning the Operation Flashpoint Gold Edition. This complilation pack will include Red Hammer: The Soviet Campaign, all the latest updates, a prima strategy guide and the original game. Look for it in the UK around November 30.

Unreal 2 Screens & Concept Art....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:55 AM MDT Thursday, October 25, 2001 [Comment on news]
On C&VG this morning, there are some new Unreal 2 screens & concept art worth checking out.

3D Games Get Physical as Karma and Unreal Combine....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:03 AM MDT Thursday, October 25, 2001 [Comment on news]
Agreement results in complete professional game development solution for physics-based behaviour in realistic 3D environments.

MathEngine and Epic Games today announced they have created a complete game development solution which incorporates MathEngine?s Karma physics into Epic?s Unreal Engine. The resulting engine offers professional game developers the ability to create new game worlds featuring objects with physics-based behaviour within completely realistic 3D environments.

Since May 2001, a team of MathEngine engineers has been working with some of Epic?s top development talent (including Unreal designers Tim Sweeney and Cliff Bleszinski) to integrate Karma physics into the Unreal Engine. The results, which expose most of Karma?s functionality through the Unreal Engine editor and allow for swift placement of physical objects within realistic 3D environments, were debuted at the recent ECTS (London, September 2nd-4th 2001) and received a great response from game developers from around the world.

?We initially approached Epic because we believed that a collaboration between our two companies could produce something special. However, even we were pleasantly surprised by the exceptional results we have achieved in such a short time,? says Mike Gamble, Business Development Director for MathEngine. ?This is the future of middleware - companies working together to provide extended solutions for the development community.?

?The combined efforts of Epic and MathEngine have produced a technology solution that is immensely attractive to game developers, no matter what genre of game they are creating or what platform they are designing it for,? adds Mark Rein, Vice President of Epic Games. ?The integration of Karma?s real physics adds an extra dimension to the Unreal Engine and we believe that the combined engine can be used to create games of almost any type. You want to build a basketball game? Unreal Engine gives you the court and Karma gives you the ball.?

Epic?s development team is so pleased with the results of the collaboration that they are jointly promoting the updated tools with MathEngine.

Although the two products are now tightly integrated, they will continue to be licensed as standalone offerings.

For more information, please visit www.mathengine.com.

Codename Outbreak FAQ ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:56 AM MDT Thursday, October 25, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Codename Outbreak FAQ has been updated with a load of info about this first-person shooter following its release in Europe and the UK.

Ghost Recon Movies....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:55 AM MDT Thursday, October 25, 2001 [Comment on news]
Belgian site SpelletjesGarnaal has posted two new Ghost Recon movies, showing more from the squad-based tactical shooter that just went gold at Red Storm Entertainment. The movies feature a bit over a minute each of in-game footage in MPEG format, showing off the Characters (35.9 MB) and Vehicles (38.1 MB) in the game.

Operation Flashpoint: Red Hammer Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:51 AM MDT Thursday, October 25, 2001 [Comment on news]
HomeLan Fed has posted an Operation Flashpoint: Red Hammer Interview with Codemasters' Executive Producer Jonathan Smith. They talk about this planned add-on for Op Flashpoint that will allow players to assume the role of the Soviet side in the cold war tactical shooter.

Mobile Forces Interview....
Posted by [luckee] @ 12:55 AM MDT Thursday, October 25, 2001 [Comment on news]
Frag-girlie recently had the opportunity to chat with Colin Macdonald from the Mobile Forces Team, an upcoming FPS from Rage.

Here's a lil snip from her intuitive interview:

FG: From where did you get your influence for this game?

CM: Everywhere! The most obvious influences would be Counterstrike, Unreal Tournament and Codename Eagle. But when you?re going through the design phase, you end up making references to hundreds of different things ? many of them not First Person games at all.

Films also always make excellent reference material ? the ones I can remember having to buy ?for research purposes? include the Die Hard?s, the Mad Max?s, Leon, Godzilla and Dirty Harry.

It?s also amazing what you can find in the local area if you just look hard enough, so there?s been people from here out and about with digital cameras just getting as much relevant reference material as possible.

FG: What tools did you use to create such beautiful detail?

CM: Mobile Forces is based on Unreal technology, so a lot of the level design has been done in a heavily modified version of UnrealEd. For the finer detail on vehicles, terrain, and some very intricate parts of the levels, we use 3D Studio Max.

Multiprocessing in Windows XP ....
Posted by [luckee] @ 12:22 AM MDT Thursday, October 25, 2001 [Comment on news]
Q: I know that Windows XP Professional supports dual processors, but I was wondering if the XP Home version also supported dual processing. Which operating system should I purchase?

-- Josh via email

A: Symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) is a technology that allows a computer to use more than one processor. The most common configuration of an SMP computer is one that uses two processors. The two processors are used to complete your computing tasks faster than a single processor. (Two processors aren't necessarily twice as fast as a single processor, though.)

In order for a computer to take advantage of a multiprocessor setup, the software must be written for use with an SMP system. If a program isn't written for SMP, it won't take advantage of SMP. Not every program is written for SMP; SMP applications, such as image-editing programs, video-editing suites, and databases, tend to be processor intensive.

You can read the rest here.

Rho-Bot 2.0 Beta 2....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 1:32 PM MDT Wednesday, October 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
Version 2.0 beta 2 of the Rho-bot Half-Life deathmatch and teamplay bot has been released. The new version has been updated for Half-Life v1.1.0.8 compatibility, and also offers a few minor changes.

Another New MOH: AA Movie....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 1:30 PM MDT Wednesday, October 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
The EA Games frontpage offers a new Medal of Honor: Allied Assault movie for viewing in the usual high-res (8.5 MB) and low-res (1.1 MB) QuickTime formats. This 47 second clip shows the continuation of the events in last week's movie but with a different ending than yesterday's movie where the events continued on a another track (and for which a piece of footage is still missing in action).

Luckee's Tech News....
Posted by [luckee] @ 9:58 AM MDT Wednesday, October 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
- Anandtech has an article on the AMD Hammer CPU.
- HardOCP reviews the ATi Radeon 8500 3dcard.
- Sony has enabled the use of Linux on the PS2.
- 50 things that you didn't know about WindowsXP.
- NeoSeeker reviews the Echo MIA Soundcard.
- EnvyNews checks out the Abit KG7-Lite Motherboard.
- They also review the Crucial PC2100 256MB DDR SDRAM.
- TweakersAsylum has updated their Win9x detonator database.
- Gideontech has a liquor case mod.
- HardwareZone reviews the Vivitron CDP-2880 MP3 cd player.
- ExplosiveHardware takes a look at ACPI and Win2k.
- Radeonic reviews the Nanotherm Ice thermal paste.
- PCStats checks out the Samsung DVD-P401 DVD Player.
- They also review the Philips Acoustic Edge PSC706.
- Electic has Windows media player 8 for Windows 2000.
- D-E shows you how to make a SlotA water block.
- OCOnline mod checks out a AOpen HQ45 case.
- Dan checks out the Lian Li PC-60USB case.
- PCfusion reviews the Klipsch ProMedia 4.1 speaker system.
- ViperLiar reviews the Antec SX1030B SOHO Case.
- AcidHardware checks out a rainbow neon.
- IANAG has a guide to modifing the HP A1097C monitor.
- Hardware-Test checks out the Gigabyte GA-7DXR DDR mobo.

Eternal Arena Mod for Q3A....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:50 AM MDT Wednesday, October 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
Version 5 of the Eternal Arena mod for Quake 3 Arena has been released, offering a ton of changes including new main menu and background, map rotations, random maps, head/body model switching, full awards logging for all games, anti-spawn suicide timer, awards on scoreboard miniscoreboard, better map selection, and more. You can grab it here.

Ghost Recon Goes Gold....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:49 AM MDT Wednesday, October 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
Red Storm's military shooter Ghost Recon has gone gold and, as previously stated, will be released on November 13.

Ubi Soft Entertainment is delighted to announce that the title Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon has reached Gold Master Status.

Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon has been developed by Red Storm Entertainment, the studio behind the multi-award winning 'Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six' franchise.

Set in the year 2008, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon is a squad based tactical combat game that follows the exploits of a fictional US Special Forces team. Russia has fallen under the control of ultra-nationalistic leaders intent on rebuilding the Iron Curtain. This leads to conflict with NATO as Russia attempts to reclaim the breakaway republic of Georgia, and the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. As the war escalates, casualties mount, hostages are taken and the Ghosts are sent in.

The player takes command of the Ghosts through a series of missions that range from demolitions, to search and rescue, to all-out firefights for survival.

Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon ships on PC CD ROM on November 13th 2001. MSRP $49.99

Techland Announces Chrome....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:43 AM MDT Wednesday, October 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
Techland, a Polish developer and publisher of interactive entertainment, after success of Crime Cities, announced that Chrome is in development for PC platform.

Chrome is a TPP/FPP tactical action game taking place on newly colonized planets of a distant star system. The player takes the role of an Interstellar Bounty-hunter, who performs various missions challenging both reflex and tactical skills. There will be an opportunity to execute missions in 10 different environmental locations, such as: tropical jungles, futuristic military bases, underground mines, orbital bases, severe moons, etc. Very often a success of a mission will depend on tactics, reflex and use of enemy premises and vehicles.

Chrome is an unusual story...
Logan reaches Valkyria System at a moment, when a disagreement over the deposits of one of the planets starts. The conflict includes more sides than it seemed at the beginning. A peaceful resolution is not very likely. Situations like that can be very favourable for independent mercenaries working for those, that pay more. But sometimes money is not the only criteria for the right decision.

Chrome has an outstanding list of new features, including: huge locations, on which action takes place; an advanced level design; the first time such realistic visual effects in a computer game; realistic human, vehicle and other objects physics; biotechnical innovations of the 25th century like implants and stimulators diametrically changing characters' traits; organized and hard to anticipate enemy troops; and finally, a revolutionary multiplayer mode - enabling playing in a dexterity as well as tactical mode.

Taking the role of mercenary Logan, the player is armed with a massive arsenal including knives, pistols, sniper rifles, machine guns, plasma rifles, flame throwers and rocket launchers. Our hero is also given Implants, which can improve character's parameters (like accuracy, health, or speed), and Equipment, which includes flashlights, radar, sonar, med-kits, drugs (stimulators), various explosives & grenades, and other non-firing weapons, which can be used during missions.

Techland's Chrome is currently slated to arrive on store shelves in spring 2002!

Ask the AI Guy....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:39 AM MDT Wednesday, October 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
Voodoo Extreme has posted up "Ask the AI Guy" where they have ION Storm Austin's AI programmer Paul Tozour answering a whole bunch of questions that their readers sent in about artificial intelligence. He answers all sorts of stuff ranging from games that impress him in the A.I. department, the possibility of an A.I. accelerator and more.

SoF2 Sound Diary....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:35 AM MDT Wednesday, October 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
The 7th installment of the Soldier of Fortune 2 sound diary is up at GameSpy where Raven's Zachary Quarles talks about how the sound in their upcoming Quake III engined FPS is coming along. Looks like there might be a couple new screen shots in there as well. Here's a snip:

Mr. John Mullins came into town and he shared some of his insights on both the game and the events that are transpiring in the world these days. It was very interesting to hear about some of his experiences and ideas. I would tell you what he said but I can't remember any of it because I was in fear of my life. He could snap me like a piece of celery.

Rogue Spear Black Thorn Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 9:28 AM MDT Wednesday, October 24, 2001 [Comment on news]
HomeLan Fed has a Rogue Spear Black Thorn Interview where they chat with Patrick Naud, Associate Producer on Red Storm Entertainment's now-complete tactical shooter. Topics include the changes that were made to the game in light of the September 11 terrorist attacks, the touchy aspects of releasing a game that deals with terrorism in the current environment and more.

Medal of Honor: Allied Assault Movie ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 12:11 PM MDT Tuesday, October 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
The latest Medal of Honor: Allied Assault movie is online at Computer and Video Games today, showing more from the WWII first-person shooter by 2015. This clip continues with the action from Mission 5 Level 3 and offers a minute and a half of in-game footage in QuickTime format.

Renegade Release Info....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:59 AM MDT Tuesday, October 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
Westwood's Cliff Hicks made a post to the official Renegade forums saying that they're aiming to release this first-person shooter on February 12th:

We are currently aiming for a target release date of February 12th, 2002 and we feel confident this is about when you will be seeing Renegade. (Allow a few days either way for the possibility of things beyond our control.)

TV Shows To Action Games....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:57 AM MDT Tuesday, October 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
3DActionPlanet has posted a new article, taking a look at some TV shows that could make good action games. They talk about Law & Order: Criminal Intent, America’s Most Wanted, Thieves, The Tick, Dark Angel, Stargate SG-1, and a few others.

Call Sign Charlie Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:55 AM MDT Tuesday, October 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
Blue Monday posted a brief Call Sign Charlie interview with Outsider lead developer Tomas Roller about this Vietnam themed action game.

Operation Flashpoint Mission Editor Uber Reference Guide....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:53 AM MDT Tuesday, October 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
"The Merciless Creations Operation Flashpoint page has the Operation Flashpoint Mission Editor Uber Reference Guide," a 302 page downloadable compendium of Operation Flashpoint editing tutorials.

Ghost Recon FAQ ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:51 AM MDT Tuesday, October 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
The official Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon FAQ has received a major update. You can check it out here.

Chaser Movie & Q&A....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:50 AM MDT Tuesday, October 23, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Cauldron Team has released a Chaser video from ECTS that features "a few locations from Montack city and animations of characters" in Windows Media Player format. This is a different Chaser ECTS video than the one that appeared immediately after the show, though three short sequences in the 1:19 clip are part of the previous shorter clip. On a related note, there's a Chaser Interview on Jolt.co.uk offering some general background on this upcoming first-person shooter from Cauldron before moving along to a Q&A with David Durcak, the game's project manager. Topics include the state of the game's progress, how Chaser will stand out in the FPS market and more.

Max Payne Cinematics Postmortem ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 1:54 PM MDT Monday, October 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
Machinima.com has posted a Max Payne Interview where they talk with Saku Lehtinen and Anssi Hyytiäinen, level designers at Remedy who were also responsible for a good deal of the work on the cinematics in the recently-released third-person shooter. Topics covered along the way include the pair's background in film, their influences in this project, pros and cons of doing this sort of work with the Max Payne engine, the tools they used, what the production process consisted of, what went right and wrong along the way, the length of the project, and their feelings about the final result.

Red Faction Patch....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 1:52 PM MDT Monday, October 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
Word on the official Red Faction site is that a new update for Volition's earth-shattering first-person shooter is now available, taking to the game to version 1.10. This patch is currently only available through the auto-updater, and includes some two dozen changes, improvements and bug fixes.

Opera Half-Life Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:37 AM MDT Monday, October 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
Multi Player Zone has posted an interview with Vermilion of the Opera team, talking about this Half-Life mod. They talk about the concept, name, the development process, features that didn't make it into the mod, and more.

NVIDIA GeForce Ti Overclocking....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:50 AM MDT Monday, October 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
Wondering how an overclocked GeForce3 Ti 200 stacks up against the GeForce3? How about the GeForce3 Ti 500? Find out how all these boards perform at stock speeds and when overclocked in FiringSquad's latest article.

Aliens vs Predator 2 Multiplayer Demo Review....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:48 AM MDT Monday, October 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
The multiplayer demo for Aliens vs Predator 2 has finally been released and now all four species are playable in this one-level demo. But how does it shape up? Does the Alien still reign supreme? How does the Predator do? Is the Human still a wimp? 3D Action Planet's Dr. Foxy tells all in his demo review.

Greed Mod for Q3A....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:40 AM MDT Monday, October 22, 2001 [Comment on news]
The GreenHouseEFX website has the debut release of the Greed modification for Quake III Arena. The game offers a bunch of features and three distinct game sub-types, but the general idea behind gameplay can be summed up as: "No weapon pickups and the stakes are high. Everyone starts with the same weapon(s). Tokens are dropped by a player when they are hit and can be picked up by the attacker and used to purchase more powerful weapons and health."

Æstats v5.21 ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 5:22 PM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
A new version of Æstats has been released. This version, 5.21, includes a complete redesign of the output, no longer using frames, as well as lots of bug fixes. For a full list of updates, visit the Æstats web site.

Renegade Update ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 5:20 PM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
The weekly Command & Conquer: Renegade update by producer Dan Cermak is up on the Renegade forums. Check it out to see what he has to say!

Half-Life: Stargate SG2 Alpha 1.3 Released....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:35 AM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
The first patch for the Stargate SG2 mod has been released. Alpha 1.3 contains some fixes and additions, forwarding this mod into greatness. Anyone who is a fan of the Stargate SG1 TV series will probably be particularly interested in it. Here’s the usual info:

-- fixed main menu buttons
-- sounds fixed
-- 7 new models
-- bug fxes and setting changes

Eye-Trek Personal Viewing System ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:28 AM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
Techno-videophiles no longer have to share their view, thanks to products like the Eye-Trek personal viewing system that sits on the face and serves images just beyond the eyelashes. Check out what Tech Extreme has to say about them!

High-end Gaming PC Buyer's Guide ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:26 AM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
Looking to build a high-end gaming machine? This month's High-end Gaming PC Buyer's Guide at Sharky Extreme has been updated to show you what $2500 can buy you.

GXP Q3 Tourney, Gamers Cove iCafe Partnership ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:24 AM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
If you're in the bay area in Northern California, stop by Fry's Electronics in Sunnyvale for the GXP's Best of the Bay Quake 3 Tournament. Word is that there will be some good players showing up to show off their duel skills.

In other news, GXP has also announced a partnership with the Gamer's Cove iCafe in San Dimas.

GXP Affiliates with Gamers Cove iCafé
GXP, a GX-Media company, is pleased to announce its first iCafé affiliation: [GXP]Gamers Cove, located in San Dimas, CA. With 34 P4 systems and all the latest PC games, Gamers Cove is perfect for awesome head-to-head play. If that's not enough, they're sitting on a sweet T1 connection as well.

Check [GXP]Gamers Cove out at www.gamercove.com. To celebrate the new affiliation, Gamers Cove will be offering a $1/hour discount to all first-time visitors that mention seeing this article. Go check 'em out!

GXP is a GX Media Company. GX Media was founded in 1997 and is the parent company of Gamers.com and Firingsquad.com. For more information about GXP and about upcoming GXP events, visit www.gx.com/gxp

PC Action Games....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:18 AM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
3DAction Planet has posted an article on action games for the PC. They talk about Serious Sam: The Second Encounter, AvP2 and Rogue Spear: Black Thorn going gold, Quake for Halloween and more. Here's their intro to get you started:

"The action world has been quite packed lately. With games like Aliens vs. Predator 2 going gold and Serious Sam: The Second Encounter in the works, it should be a good Christmas for action junkies. Around here, we're pretty excited about the next Serious Sam instalment, and I'm sure most of you are as well."

Serious Sam: Second Encounter Q&A....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:09 AM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
There's another Q&A online today about Serious Sam: The Second Encounter. This time HomeLan Fed has tracked down Dean Sekulic, Davor Tomicic, and Alen Ladavac of Croatian developer Croteam to discuss progress on Serious Sam: The Second Encounter.

Hidden & Dangerous 2 Q&A....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:03 AM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
There's a Hidden & Dangerous 2 Interview on Hidden & Dangerous Fanatic chatting with Petr Vochozka of Czech developer Illusion Softworks about progress on their upcoming World War II tactical shooter sequel. Questions and answers cover things like the impact of the recent departure of lead designer Tomas Pluharik, how the lead designer role is now being dealt with, their current release schedule, plans for a demo, what they are currently working on, planned improvements over the original game, how the changes at publisher GodGames will affect the project, and more. Included with the chit-chat is a small batch of three new screenshots.

AvP2 Linux Server Plans....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 11:01 AM MDT Sunday, October 21, 2001 [Comment on news]
A post on the Shacknews Forums by Monolith's Jason Hall reveals that there are plans underway for a Linux dedicated server for Aliens versus Predator 2. Here's the update:

We are (and have been) working on a Linux server for AvP2 now. Unless we hit some kind of technical impossibility, the AvP2 community can expect to get Linux server support in the near future.

Jason Hall

AvP2 MP Demo Patch Info....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 6:40 PM MDT Saturday, October 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
Monolith CEO Jason Hall sends along an update on the patch for the Aliens Vs. Predator 2 multiplayer demo. The update contains a list of changes that are being tested at this time, as well as other information regarding servers and the features of the demo (particularly the gameplay balance). Here is a snip from the update:

Here's the list of changes for the upcoming new version - hopefully all of them will pass the testing process and be made available to you:

Fixed the crash bug on the Join screen.
Added async listing of game servers, so it will now add them in blocks at a time and you can see the progress.
Added a "[D]" to the end of server names that are dedicated... this helps spot them in the list without the filters, and it allows GameSpyArcade to filter them.
Added the player rename functionality during an MP game... use ' Spanky' to change your name.
The server list now filters out servers that can't receive proper game information and reduces the total server count by that amount.
Added a recommendation warning to players who try to start a non-dedicated server with more than 8 players as the maximum.
Added PageUp and PageDown support to the server list.
The arrows on the server list now act as PageUp and PageDown instead of just Up and Down.
Added mouse wheel support to the server list.
Added double click join support to the server list.
Made sure you can skip the FOX intro logo with the keyboard... previous it only worked with the mouse.

Infiltration Stuff....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:46 AM MDT Saturday, October 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
There are some new screens of what's to come in Infiltration, with a new map by Alpha_9 called Skopje. On another note, according to a recent article in Maximum PC Magazine, Infiltration is "one of the 10 Best Online Games You're Not Playing."

Luckee's Tech News....
Posted by [luckee] @ 10:16 AM MDT Saturday, October 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
- IANAG checks out the Samsung 171MP monitor.
- HardwareZone reviews the Altec Lansing AVS300 speakers.
- OC'd Cafe checks out the Globalwin YCC-8870 case.
- FlipChip reviews the AVerMedia AVerTV Box.
- NeoSeeker reviews the HP Jornada 565 PDA.
- They also review the Fujifilm FinePix 6900 Zoom Digicam.
- ViperLiar takes a look at the Therm altake crystal orb.
- TweakTown reviews the Asus A7V266 mainboard.
- FrostyTech checks out the Akasa Icicle 238 Heatsink.
- PCHardware reviews the MSI Geforce2 MX400.
- OCshoot has some chipset cooling.
- ATi Radeon 7500 reviewed here at 3DExtreme.
- IANAG checks out the Thermaltake Active Memory Cooling Kit.
- FrostyTech reviews the Fortis Tech A102 Heatsink.
- TweakTown reviews the OCZ Dominator2 HSF.
- DivX codec Version 4.02.
- ViperLiar reviews the Vantec CCK-6027D HSF.
- Rojakpot checks out the Microsoft Office Keyboard.
- They also review the Akasa Silver Mountain CPU cooler.
- RatedPC have a guide to running a Linux server.
- EnvyNews reviews the Belkin 6-Port FireWire Hub.
- OCIA checks out the Matrix Orbital Graphic LCD.
- Intel 845 chipset article at Radeonic.com.
- LivePC show you how to Configure a Linksys Router.
- Dan has some very weird stuff.
- ClubOC takes a look at the 51.1cfm Delta Fan.
- Guru3D has a Geforce Tweak Utility 3.1 RC2.

Chrome First Look ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:12 AM MDT Saturday, October 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
GameSpot has posted up an exclusive first look at Techland's upcoming sci-fi shooter Chrome, where players assume the role of an interstellar bounty hunter. They've also got some screenshots to check out here.

Freedom Force Character Builder Q&A ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:06 AM MDT Saturday, October 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
There's a Freedom Force Character Builder Q&A on GamePro.com discussing the creation of characters for this upcoming superhero game. Check it out!

Beginning of a New Era for Gamers and Linux Users....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:04 AM MDT Saturday, October 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
In a bit of different news this morning, TransGaming and MandrakeSoft have announced the upcoming release of "Mandrake Linux Gamer Edition" which will be shipping on November 9, 2001. Included in the bundle will be Mandrake Linux 8.1, Electronic Arts' The Sims and TransGaming's WineX portability technology which allows many other games designed for Windows to run on Linux. In their words: "This release marks the beginning of a new era for gamers and Linux users, as dual booting is no longer necessary for gaming on Linux." MSRP for the bundle is $69.99.

Seriously Warped Deathmatch Interview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:02 AM MDT Saturday, October 20, 2001 [Comment on news]
HomeLan Fed has posted a Seriously Warped Deathmatch Interview where they talk with A Few Screws Loose, the folks behind the Seriously Warped mod for Serious Sam, which has been announced that the next version of the mod will be included in Serious Sam: The Second Encounter. The Q&A corners several members of the team, discussing their backgrounds, their first reaction to Serious Sam, the head-start they received from Croteam, their experiences working with the Serious Engine, their reaction to the big response the mod has received, new features to be included in the "commercial" version, their plans for the future, and more.

AvP2 MP Demo Released....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 2:35 PM MDT Friday, October 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
The Aliens vs Predator 2 multiplayer demo has been released. This post has what's included in this 63MB demo. Here's a list of some mirrors:

Blue's News
3D Gamers
4Players.de
PlanetMirror
ShackNews (Registration Required)
FilePlanet
BonusWeb

Ghost Recon Preview ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 2:16 PM MDT Friday, October 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
GameSpot UK has posted a Ghost Recon preview, offering their impressions from Red Storm's forthcoming military shooter, schduled for a November 13 release. They discuss the difficulty in playing the game, saying it requires patience, observation and planning, mostly talking about the squad command feature that let's you give a variety of orders to your squad.

nVidia Offers Exclusive Gear at New Online Store....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 10:41 AM MDT Friday, October 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
NVIDIA® Corporation today announced the opening of the ?NVIDIA Gear Store?, a secure and comprehensive online shopping site, selling a variety of exclusive gear and merchandise, all adorned with the distinctive NVIDIA logos and corporate colours. The new e-commerce store can be reached here.

"We have been inundated with requests for an NVIDIA on-line gear store,? stated Dan Vivoli, vice president of marketing at NVIDIA. ?We?re thrilled by the groundswell of enthusiasm over the NVIDIA brand.?

The NVIDIA Gear Store has something for everyone. In addition to apparel for men, women, and children, the store is also offering other unique items such as baseball caps, bags, pens, scooters, key-chains, umbrellas, and cycling jerseys. The NVIDIA Gear Store is a secure e-commerce site and implements the highest level of encryption for credit card transactions.

In the future, visitors to the NVIDIA Gear Store will be able to interact in 3D with select NVIDIA products online. Potential customers will be able to spin, zoom and test the functionality of each enhanced product model - discovering the unique and specific features of these leading-edge products.

NVIDIA shoppers can track their purchases on the site, or ask questions about their orders via e-mail through NVIDIA?s customer care centre. With online (custserv@pds.com) representatives, shoppers are assured the highest level of customer service.

More AvP2 Demo Info....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 7:35 AM MDT Friday, October 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
Sierra sent some info on the upcoming multiplayer demo for their just gone gold Aliens vs Predator 2 title.

-- The playable characters will be the Alien Drone, the Predator, Harrison or Dunya.
-- The weapons for the Marine will be the knife, pistol, shotgun, pulse rifle and smartgun.
-- The weapons & tools for the Predator will be wristblades, spear, plasmacaster, netgun, charger, medicomp and mask.
-- The map will be "A Lesser Fate".
-- The modes will be Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch.
-- There will be Internet/LAN support for up to 16 players.
-- The total file size is 65MB.

Serious Sam: The Second Encounter Movies....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 7:32 AM MDT Friday, October 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
GameSpot has six new Serious Sam: The Second Encounter movies, showing the sniper rifle, flamethrower and the chainsaw in use, and of course showing Serious Sam fighting a herd of enemies.

Ghost Recon FAQ ....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 7:28 AM MDT Friday, October 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
The official Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon FAQ is now online answering general, gameplay, visual, and technical questions about the game.

Bull Arena Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 7:26 AM MDT Friday, October 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
There's a Bull Arena Interview on Jolt.co.uk talking with the team behind this upcoming Serious Sam modification

CPL Europe Changes Planned....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 7:25 AM MDT Friday, October 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
CPL Europe has announced that their final 2001 event, scheduled to be held in Paris, has been postponed until Spring 2002. A post on ShackES by Angel Munoz announces the changes in the special CPL version of Counter-Strike that replaces some of the terms in the game, including "terrorist." Here's the list of changes:

1. The words "terrorist" and "counter-terrorist" have been replaced with the clan's name.
2. In-game text files containing the words "terroist" "counter-terrorist" have been replaced with "offensive team" and "defensive team."
3. The text files containing the word "bomb" have been replaced with "device" and "communication device."
4. Sound wav. files containing explosion sounds have been deleted.
5. Models are now forced and the entire offensive and defensive teams can choose only one model per team.

Ghost Recon Still Coming to PC....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 7:22 AM MDT Friday, October 19, 2001 [Comment on news]
EuroGamer has a confirmation posted saying Ghost Recon will be coming to the PC, confirming the speculation that accompanied the "Xbox exclusive" report that this referred to console exclusivity and not the PC.

AvP 2 Q&A....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 4:41 PM MDT Thursday, October 18, 2001 [Comment on news]
AvPNews has posted a Q&A with directors Eldritch and Sadogoat, who have been participating in the beta testing of the game, as they answer some reader-submitted questions about this upcoming shooter sequel. Topics include improvements made since the Marine demo, movement and maneuverability of the different species, AI, level design, ambience, multiplayer, and more.

Operation Flashpoint Patch....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 4:39 PM MDT Thursday, October 18, 2001 [Comment on news]
A day earlier than promised, Bohemia Interactive has released a new patch for Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis, updating their tactical shooter to version 1.27 beta. This 5.0 MB patch adds another batch of changes and fixes to the ones from version 1.26, all listed in detail on this page, and comes with a new dedicated beta server to match. Lastly, the Grenade Launchers pack is also available, adding the MM-1 and 6G-30 to the game's arsenal.

Aliens vs Predator 2 Gold....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 4:37 PM MDT Thursday, October 18, 2001 [Comment on news]
Sierra and Fox Interactive send along the announcement that Alien versus Predator 2, their three species first-person shooter sequel, has gone gold. Here's the press release:

THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS!
Sierra and Fox Interactive Announce Aliens vs. Predator™ 2 Goes Gold

Los Angeles, CA - October 18, 2001 - The around-the-clock shifts have ended and the countdown begins as Sierra(tm) and Fox Interactive(tm) announced today that Aliens vs. Predator 2 has indeed gone gold. It's only a matter of time until players can immerse themselves in a game that combines elements, creatures, and settings from the hit movies Aliens™ and Predator™ in three unique, interlocking stories. Aliens, predators, and humans share one powerful trait-the enduring will to survive. The only question left to ask is "Will you be up to the challenge?"

"It's been a long journey on the Aliens vs. Predator 2 project and I'm proud to see this one set sail! The team over at Monolith has created a great product that I'm quite sure the AvP fans will enjoy," said David Stalker, producer for Fox Interactive. "My thanks go out to all the Monolith team members, as well as the folks from Fox, Sierra and Vivendi Universal who gave their very best for this game...now everybody go get some sleep!"

Aliens vs. Predator 2 will be available at retail late October for a suggested retail price of $49.95. For more information, go to AvP2.sierra.com or order by phone at 800-757-7707.

AvP2 MP Demo Coming Soon....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:36 AM MDT Thursday, October 18, 2001 [Comment on news]
Sierra passed along word that a multiplayer version is in the works and will be released soon. Here's the announcement:

Three species, one world - it is survival of the fittest and only one species will emerge victorious. Your chance is coming to be one of those species in the soon-to-be-released Aliens vs. Predator 2 multiplayer demo. Which species will you choose...

The odds are stacked against the marine as he faces these two deadly foes, but never underestimate the heart of a marine and his will to survive.

Challenged by human and Alien obstacles, the Predator must discover his will to survive must be greater than the lust for the hunt.

Striking from within the facility, the Alien seeks to save its queen stopping at nothing to ensure survival of the Alien race.

Stay tuned for more details...

Counter-Strike: Condition Zero Interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:34 AM MDT Thursday, October 18, 2001 [Comment on news]
Game Helper interviewed Gearbox Software's Randy Pitchford about Counter-Strike: Condition Zero, the single player stand-alone Half-Life engined game based off of the popular Counter-Strike mod. Here's the scoop on the gameplay:

GH: Will the missions still consist of the familiar “rinse and repeat” gameplay style? (repeat the same missions, gaining round wins, until a set time limit is reached?)

RP: In Condition Zero, you’ll become very familiar with the combat environments, but you won’t have to repeat the same objectives over and over. The goal is to complete the primary objective, but to also complete secondary objectives often returning to the same locations if necessary to do so. By completing objectives, you’ll earn more funding for your squad and can use those funds to invest in new weapons and equipment, recruiting new squad members or training current squad members to become more effective in the field.

Global Ops shots....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:33 AM MDT Thursday, October 18, 2001 [Comment on news]
Barking Dog Studios released a pair of new screen shots for Global Operations, the LithTech engined tactical action / teamplay game that Crave is producing. Today's images are from maps in Mexico and Quebec.

Duke Nukem interview....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:32 AM MDT Thursday, October 18, 2001 [Comment on news]
HomeLan has posted a Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project Interview with ARUSH Entertainment who are making a series of episodic games (to be released on the Internet) based on the Duke Nukem series. Here's a clip about the gameplay:

HomeLAN - The game is being described as a third person action game with some side-scroller elements. Can you be more specific on what type of gameplay you are trying to make?

Donald Case - It truly is a unique 3D game that just can't be described in the traditional sense. DNMP will be a cutting-edge game that will be easy to get into and play. Even though it has a lot of the mechanics of a platform game, it will actually be fully 3D in nature. (Using the Prism3D Engine) Since the environments are constructed in a true-3D engine, we shall enjoy the natural visual benefits this conveys such as depth of field, fully three-dimensional obstacles and a deeply visually interesting environment. Plus, the player can go back into the environment in certain areas, giving the game more depth of motion than just left/right and up/down directional control.

MOH:AA Movie....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8:30 AM MDT Thursday, October 18, 2001 [Comment on news]
The official Medal of Honor: Allied Assault site features a new movie trailer of the first-person shooter in the works at 2015. While billed as part 2 in the five part series covering Mission 5 Level 3 in the game, this clip actually contains the same gameplay action as last week's clip, with just half a minute of further footage appended it's available in low-res and high-res QuickTime formats.

GOTY Maps....
Posted by [Frag-girlie] @ 8