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Prototype

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 07:57:00 +0700

Publisher: Activision
Developer: Radical Ent.
Genre: Sci-Fi Action Adventure
Release Date: Jun 9, 2009
ESRB: MATURE

Manhattan Island has suffered all manner of fates in movies over the years. It was attacked by monsters in Godzilla and Cloverfield, hit by tsunamis in The Day After Tomorrow and Deep Impact, and targeted by aliens in Independence Day and Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. But though I am Legend comes close, the New York borough has never before been subjected to a disaster quite like that depicted in Prototype. In this fast-paced open-world action game, the military is doing what it can to contain a viral outbreak that's turning the island's population into mutants. As amnesiac Alex Mercer, who's trying to figure out what's going on, you spend much of your time caught in the crossfire. Fortunately, what Mercer lacks in memories he more than makes up for in agility and superpowers, and as a result, he's an incredibly fun character to play as in a game that also counts an intriguing story, varied missions, and some memorable boss battles among its features.

At the outset, Mercer is a much easier character to control than he is to understand. Making giant leaps, gliding through the air, and even running up the sides of skyscrapers are effortless actions. You could probably make it from one end of Manhattan to the other in a straight line using nothing more than the sprint button if you really wanted to, since it's the only one you need to scale buildings, barge through crowds, and overcome obstacles like cars and rooftop air-conditioning units parkour-style. No fall will ever hurt you, no obstacle is impassable, and there are very few enemies who can keep up with you when you're at full clip. Combat is also relatively simple early on, but as you progress and learn more about who and what Mercer is, his repertoire of moves grows exponentially until remembering which button combinations trigger which moves in which of his five forms becomes something of a challenge. You certainly don't need to remember how to use every single move you unlock with evolution points, which are earned by doing just about anything, but it's unfortunate that even after picking favorites you might find yourself having to hold down up to three buttons (a trigger and two opposing face buttons) simultaneously to perform them.

Regardless, combat in Prototype is a blast. Using a slick radial menu that slows down the game any time you call it up, you can shape-shift into different forms that morph your arms into blades, a whip, and hammerlike fists. You also have the option to use more conventional weapons dropped by enemies and, eventually, to hijack tanks and helicopter gunships. The latter are especially fun, because you can use a whiplike arm to latch onto them in midair--even while falling from another helicopter that you've been shot down in. One benefit of having all of these options available to you, as well as the ability to disguise yourself as any human character that you "consume" (read: absorb) to regain health, is that many of the already-varied story missions (as well as a couple of the boss fights) can be approached in a number of different ways. For example, if you need to destroy an item inside a military base, you could attempt it in one of the aforementioned vehicles, walk right in there and set about killing or consuming everything that moves, stand on a nearby rooftop and throw things, or even disguise yourself as a soldier and distract the real military by pointing at a nearby character and declaring that he's the enemy. As a soldier look-alike you can even call in airstrikes from your unsuspecting comrades, but you get only a very limited number of these. Some missions, and almost all of the optional challenges scattered across the island, force you to play a certain way, but for the most part you're free to use the environment and everything in it however you see fit.

It's almost impossible to play Prototype without feeling like Mercer is an overpowered character at some point, but any time you start getting too comfortable, there's a good chance the game is about to change things up on you. To give specific examples would be to risk spoiling the game's story for you, but suffice it to say that new enemies and hazards are introduced, moves you've come to rely on might not always be available or effective, and as time passes, Manhattan becomes an increasingly perilous place to be. The difficulty curve is nigh on perfect, and the fact that you're continuously adding new moves to your arsenal to combat new dangers helps keep the gameplay from getting repetitive.

The same can't be said for the scenery unfortunately. Save for a handful of landmarks like Central Park and Times Square, much of Prototype's Manhattan starts to look the same after a while, and because the whole island is yours to explore from the get-go, it never changes. With that said, moving around the island is so much fun as Mercer that you inevitably end up exploring anyway, and there are 200 glowing orbs to find around the city to encourage you to do so. There are a number of other things to do outside of story missions as well. Optional timed and score challenges include checkpoint runs across rooftops, battles in which you must remain disguised as a soldier and use only conventional weapons, gliding toward targets and trying to land in the center, helicopter strafing runs, and more.

Perhaps the most interesting challenges are those in which you have a time limit to consume a number of highlighted pedestrians in different areas of the city. These pedestrians, of whom there are more than 130 to find both during challenges and during regular play, are special because they each have some knowledge of what's going on in Manhattan, and when you consume them, you're treated to a brief montage of their relevant memories. Few of these contain much information individually, but they're slickly presented, and unlocking a large number of them adds an extra, dark layer to the occasionally predictable story that's well worth the effort. Similarly, if you choose to infiltrate military bases and consume specialist soldiers inside, you can learn abilities from them (how to fly a helicopter, for example) or improve your effectiveness with guns. Prototype's core story missions can be beaten in less than 10 hours, but you can comfortably double that number on your first play-through if you're not in a rush and take the time to check out all of the optional extras.

If those extras include the aforementioned military bases, you'll find that Prototype's camera definitely isn't at its best when Mercer steps inside a relatively small, confined space. It occasionally has trouble keeping up with the action outside too, but it's rarely detrimental to gameplay and you can always pan it down yourself after running up the side of a building if you want to make sure you land on the roof, for example. Furthermore, there's a lock-on targeting system that will keep enemies in view at all times, which is especially useful during boss fights. It can work against you on occasion, though, because on a street crowded with civilians, zombielike infected, and abandoned taxicabs, hitting the lock-on button will almost always default to one of the cabs, or a bench, or a chunk of concrete, or some other inanimate object. That's great if you're looking for something to throw at a troublesome helicopter, but less helpful if you have almost no health left and desperately need to consume some folks.

There's at least one achievement to unlock that discourages targeting innocent civilians, incidentally, but Mercer isn't a character who shows any remorse as he tears up Manhattan and is a danger to anyone and anything that's living. And make no mistake: Prototype is a truly brutal game when Mercer is on the warpath. Enemies will be cut in half horizontally, torn in half vertically, have holes punched clean through them, and be decapitated, skewered, and even used as projectiles. And all the while, there's a plentiful (though not overly excessive) supply of blood spilling onto the streets. These particularly gruesome kills are accompanied by sound effects that do a decent job of letting you know exactly when an enemy's flesh is being compromised, and screams from the crowd and radio chatter from the military do an excellent job of reminding you that the trouble in Manhattan isn't always at Mercer's location. Mutants and the military can be played off each other on occasion, and a quick look at the city map makes it easy for you to identify which neighborhoods are controlled by which group and which are contested.

Frequently, battles that you're not directly involved in can be seen playing out as you negotiate the rooftops above, as can large crowds of fleeing civilians and mutants shambling toward their prey. Prototype isn't a game in which any one visual element is remarkable, but it looks good, and it's impressive that the frame rate holds up even when the number of characters and the amount of action onscreen border on insane. Furthermore, Mercer is brilliantly animated, which makes the parkour, the combat, the shape-shifting, and especially the gliding between rooftops all the more satisfying.

That's a word that can be used to describe almost every aspect of Prototype, and although there's no multiplayer component, you're free to remain in Manhattan long after you've beaten the story or, if you prefer, go through it a second time while retaining all of the powers that you already unlocked. Prototype is good enough that you'll almost certainly want to keep playing either way, and even if you don't, there's more than enough fun to be had here in a single play through for us to recommend the game without hesitation.

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xxx-pro.iso
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Also for PC
System requirements:
OS: Windows XP (with Service Pack 3) and DirectX 9.0c or (Windows Vista with Service Pack 2)
Video Card: 256 MB 3D hardware accelerator card required - 100% DirectX 9.0c with Shader Model 3 support *
Processor: Pentium Intel Core 2 Duo 2.6 GHz or AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800 + or better
RAM: 1 GB of RAM for Windows XP / 2 GB Windows Vista systems
Hard Drive Space: 8 GB of uncompressed hard disk space (Plus 500MB for swap file.)
Sound Card: DirectX 9.0-compliant sound card
DVD-ROM: DVD-ROM

Download link for PC:
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By Justin Calvert

AMD releases new Phenom II X4 processors

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Thu, 4 Jun 2009 21:10:00 +0700

AMD started shipping the Phenom II X4 earlier this year and will now refresh the lineup with two new processors: the Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition and Phenom II X4 945. Both processors are modestly priced, with the Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition at $245, and the Phenom II X4 945 at $225.

The 955 Black Edition and the 945 are clocked at 3.2GHz and 3.0GHz, respectively. Black Edition processors have unlocked multipliers to make overclocking easier for PC enthusiasts. The processors differ only in clock speed, and have identical specifications otherwise. The Phenom II X4 processors will come with 64K of L1 instruction and 64K of L1 data cache per core (512KB total L1 per processor), 512KB of L2 data cache per core (2MB total L2 per processor), and will also have a shared 6MB L3 cache.

The two new processors are based on AMD's AM3 socket but will also work in most AM2+ motherboards. Because they support both sockets, the processors also support both DDR2 and DDR3 memory, respectively found in AM2+ and AM3 socket based motherboards. Using DDR2 the processors will have 17.1GB/s of memory bandwidth, and using DDR3 the bandwidth jumps up to 21.1GB/s. Older Phenom II X4 processors, like the 940 Black Edition and the 920, use AMD's AM2+ socket.

AMD also bundles the Fusion and Overdrive utilities with the processors. Fusion helps to improve gaming performance by disabling scores of Windows services and slightly overclocking the entire system. AMD's Overdrive utility helps to automatically overclock the system and lets users apply those settings on an application-specific level.

The initial Phenom II X4 processors launched with higher prices than these new processors and proved to be great values. Like the processors before them, the Phenom II X4 955 and 945 will likely make for cheap and easy upgrades for owners of existing AM2+ platforms, while at the same time leaving the door open for an AM3 upgrade later down the road.

Nintendo DSi

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sun, 31 May 2009 09:13:00 +0700

The Nintendo DSi will finally hit American soil. Japanese gamers got to play with the DSi last November, and they've been gobbling it up since. The DSi marks the third incarnation of the DS and is probably the most drastic change to date. Nintendo's upcoming handheld system includes new hardware functionality, new software, and an updated menu system, in addition to several physical design changes. The Nintendo DSi will arrive in black and blue flavors on April 5 with an MSRP of $169.99.

DS Lite (top) and DSi (bottom) | Stacked bottom | Stacked right | Stacked top | Stacked left

We'll start with the DSi's cosmetic changes, because that's what everyone will see before cracking the clamshell open. One significant change that doesn't pop out in photographs is the system's new paint job. Our matte black DSi has a grainy textured surface far different from the slick plastic exterior on the DS Lite. The material feels similar to the inside surface surrounding each screen on the DS Lite, but it's grittier.

The DSi is thinner than the DS Lite, but the new portable is also slightly longer and wider, so don't expect it to slide into your front pocket any easier. The top edge of the system reveals redesigned shoulder buttons and a new AC power adapter port shape, which instantly makes all of your backup power adapters obsolete. The DS Lite's shoulder buttons sit flush with the top of the system, but the DSi's buttons protrude out, making them easier to press.

DSi D pad | DS Lite D pad | DSi buttons | DS Lite buttons

We noticed that the directional pad and buttons on our DSi sit lower compared to the controls on the DS Lite. We haven't spent enough time with the system to decide whether this is a good thing or a bad thing yet, but we did notice that the change made powersliding easier in Mario Kart because you don't need to press the D pad down as much while rocking left and right.

You'll find the new SD memory card slot on the right-hand side of the portable where the power slider used to be located. The SD card will be used to store pictures, AAC music files, and software downloaded from the online DSi Shop--basically anything that can't fit on the system's 256MB internal memory. Both SD and SDHC memory cards work on the DSi. The power button is now located inside the DSi near the lower-left area of the touch screen. The button is fairly stiff, so there's little risk of accidentally turning off the system midgame. Tapping the power button will take you back to the home menu, and holding it down will shut down the unit.

Battlestations: Pacific Preview - The Road to Hawaii

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sat, 30 May 2009 20:44:00 +0700

We get an early look at one of the later single-player missions in this hybrid action-strategy sequel.

Publisher:Eidos Interactive
Developer:Eidos Interactive
Genre:Historic Real-Time Strategy
Release Date:May 12, 2009
ESRB:TEEN

Minimum System Requirements
System: 3GHz or equivalent
RAM: 1024 MB
Hard Drive Space: 8000 MB
Other: 2GB RAM required for Windows Vista

Battlestations: Pacific, the follow-up to Battlestations: Midway, ships later this month. The previous game offered hybrid action-plus-strategy gameplay in World War II's Pacific theater, including missions that were inspired by actual historical conflicts. The original game let you play as the American forces, heading out to battle as a strategic commander giving orders to your fleet of ships or squadron of fighter planes, but at any time, you could switch to direct control of any of your vehicles to dive into the action.

The sequel will offer even more of the hybrid action-strategy gameplay from the previous game and will let you play as either an American or a Japanese admiral. Like the original game, Battlestations: Pacific will have numerous missions whose designs were inspired by actual historical skirmishes, though the sequel will also have a number of missions based on fictitious "what if?" scenarios. Please note that this story may contain minor spoilers.

Our final sneak peek at this upcoming game will focus on the Road to Hawaii. This single-player mission is based on a fictitious operation that occurs far into the Japanese campaign, 13 missions in. Road to Hawaii will find the American forces in a hurry to erect whatever defenses they can in and around the area with PT boats--and, apparently, no other combat vessels to back them up. This mission will have multiple goals for you, as the Japanese squad leader: You'll need to lock down the skies for your nation, knock out any air-to-ground and artillery emplacements, and assist the ground invasion on the main American base from the skies. Fortunately, by this point in the campaign, you'll likely have access to at least one of the game's unlockable Japanese fighters, such as the infamously fast Zero or the powerful experimental Shinden fighter, whose 30mm guns make it a powerful strafing ship and the single most damaging fighter plane in the game.

As it happens, your best course of action will probably be to tear down enemy artillery and antiair guns to prevent as much damage as possible to your own fighter squadron. The mission will also have an optional objective of hunting down and destroying a hidden listening post, which, if located, will increase your score.

However, once your squadron has secured the islands (about halfway through the mission), US forces will mount a counteroffensive. Squadrons of unreported US aircraft will enter the area, including C-47 personnel carriers full of paratroopers and armed escort fighters. In addition, enemy torpedo ships will attack your carrier, crippling it in the water and leaving you without reinforcement. At this point, you'll need to resort to what the developer refers to as "actions [players] never had to take before to stop and force the enemy back"--a kamikaze run.

Battlestations: Pacific is scheduled for release on May 12 for the PC and the Xbox 360.

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Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:46:00 +0700

Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Criterion Games
Genre: Racing
Release Date: Feb 5, 2009
ESRB: EVERYONE 10+
ESRB Descriptors: Violence, Language

Minimum System Requirements

System: 2.8 GHz (3.2 GHz for Vista) or equivalent
RAM: 1024 MB
Video Memory: 128 MB
Hard Drive Space: 4000 MB
Other: At least 1.5MB RAM required for Vista

The Ultimate Box brings many improvements to an already impressive game, and it's one of the best racing games available on the PC.

Burnout Paradise reinvigorated Criterion's ultra-successful smash-up racing series when it launched this time last year on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, and Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box brings the series' trademark racing action to the PC for the first time. With solid online and offline play, an almost staggering number of events, and more than 70 vehicles, Ultimate Box is at the front of the PC racer pack.

The amount of variety in the game is huge, and how you approach it is up to you; explore Paradise City's open world at leisure, unlock the 70-plus vehicles one at a time through single-player events, or join other players for races and challenges online. Couple this deep variety with the fact that it's hugely fun, and Burnout Paradise is easy to recommend. In addition to all of the content from the original console game, Ultimate Box also includes all of Burnout Paradise's downloadable content released to date. First up, there's Codename: Cagney, which adds the Stunt Run, Marked Man, and Road Rage modes to online multiplayer. The Bikes pack adds two-wheeled racing and a day/night cycle to the series for the first time. And last, there's Burnout Party, the first paid-for content to hit the game. Burnout Party is a pass-the-controller-style offline party mode for two to eight players and is a fun new way to experience Burnout.

Gameplay options are largely unchanged from the console version and include normal race, Stunt Run, Marked Man, Road Rage, and Burning Route. For those new to the Burnout series, in Stunt Run you chain together drifts, jumps, and boosts to achieve combos; in Road Rage events you need to eliminate opponents by smashing them into traffic or objects; and in Marked Man you have to reach the finish line before your opponents can destroy your car. Burning Route consists of time trials from point to point, and by completing them you'll unlock an upgraded model of your current ride. Unlike in Burnout 3, The crash mode and aftertouch takedowns from Burnout 3 are missing from Paradise, but it does have the Showtime mode, which lets you take control of a wreck through the streets of Paradise City and rack up a damage bill in the process. Showtime mode isn't as strategically crafted as the challenges in Crash mode, but you'll still get to dish out plenty of carnage on unsuspecting traffic.

The biggest new feature this time around is the Burnout Paradise Party Pack, which adds an offline pass-the-controller multiplayer challenge mode for up to eight friends. Once you've set up the number of players and game types, you'll compete in a series of minigames where you earn points for successfully passing a challenge or beating your opponents' scores. The Party Pack offers instant gameplay for when you and your friends don't want to compete in longer, more demanding events, and it consists of three challenge types: stunts, skill, and speed. Stunts are a collection of insane tricks, such as successfully landing a cliff-top jump. Skill challenges include driving into oncoming traffic with boost on for as long as possible. Speed challenges might have you smashing a few billboards and then racing back to the start within a designated time limit. The Party Pack is a great addition that finally brings offline multiplayer to Burnout Paradise.

Getting online is as simple as hitting a button during gameplay, at which point you'll join your friends or enter a random lobby. The online mode is seamless, and there are no loading times; you can drop in and out of online games at will. You can set up simple point-to-point races all over the city when hosting a multiplayer session, or tackle a Freeburn Challenge set by the developers, with different challenges depending on the number of players. Burnout Paradise included 350 challenges, and there are now an additional 140 challenges with the new packs. The challenge types are varied and include straight races, beat-the-clock events, jumping over other players' rides, and other more-complex multipart challenges, such as meeting at a designated place and racing a route to an end point while hitting specific jumps along the way. Challenges are a lot of fun, especially when you have a large group of friends to play with, and they give the online play a lot of longevity.

You'll spend the majority of your time in Paradise City on four wheels, but there's an option to use just two. Bikes are a great addition to the game; and while you can only compete in time trial events, there are different events for daytime and nighttime. Bikes come without boost since they're already blisteringly fast, and they won't take damage either. All of the bikes are extremely light and nimble and are so fast that they almost make the cars feel a tad sluggish by comparison. While it would have been great to see damage modelling on the bikes, and more bikes included, you're guaranteed to have a blast with the two bikes at the start and the two upgraded models you can unlock after completing all of the time trials.

Visually, the PC version is even more of a sumptuous feast than its console brethren. Running at its highest resolution, Paradise City has never looked crisper or more vibrant. Cars smash, pop, scrape, and deform just as you'd expect, and the particle effects make the wanton destruction seem real. The weather effects brought in with the Bikes pack look great, with fog, glowing nighttime neon, and the half-light of dusk all rendered with style.

The audio is also top-notch, with traffic and ambient noises providing a backdrop for the high-pitched whines and throaty growls of the game's cars and bikes. Unfortunately, DJ Atomica is back again from Burnout 3 and is still an irritation for the most part. With its bland and generic rock soundtrack, the audio certainly doesn't live up to the high standards set by the visuals. While there are a few notable artists, including Guns N' Roses (providing the game's title track), Jane's Addiction, LCD Soundsystem, and Faith No More, these are outnumbered by the generic guitar rock and electronic tracks from past Burnout games and tracks from a number of less-illustrious artists.

Emerging a year after the original console release, Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box doesn't just manage to keep up with the pace of the competition; it's at the front of the pack. If you own one of the console versions and already have the DLC packs, there's no major benefit to upgrading, but if you're new to Burnout Paradise, The Ultimate Box is the best Burnout experience to date. With a mass of online and offline events and modes, dozens of cars, the addition of bike and night races, and an all-new party mode for up to eight friends, The Ultimate Box is instantly gratifying and long-lasting high-octane entertainment.

Download Link :
http://rapidshare.com/files/214816922/Burnout_Paradise_The_Ultimate_Box.part01.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/214817171/Burnout_Paradise_The_Ultimate_Box.part02.rar
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Need for Speed Undercover Hands-On

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 16:28:00 +0700

Publisher:Electronic Arts
Platform: PlayStation 3
Developer:EA Vancouver
Genre:GT / Street Racing
Release Date:Nov 18, 2008

The latest entry in EA's long-running racing series looks to the past while throwing in some interesting new features.

Only in the context of video games will you hear people clamor on about how they wish they were being chased by the cops, but that's just what many Need for Speed fans have been doing since 2005's Most Wanted. Well, the boys in blue are back for Need for Speed Undercover, and so is the open-world setting that last year's ProStreet sacrificed in favor of quartered-off racing courses. But it's not as though developer EA Black Box has gone into full-on time-travel mode for the latest entry in this long-running series. For every nod to the series' past, you'll find something new like Hollywood-style driving techniques designed to help you elude the police, new events and skill-building systems, and a step toward more mature, less hammy storytelling.

Need for Speed Undercover is swapping the professional racing circuits and nighttime neon lights of the past two games in favor of an open-world Gulf Coast locale. Known as Tri-City Bay, this collection of floating-bridge freeways, dirt roads, and industrial shipping yards is set in the postsunrise, presunset time of day when the sun sits low in the sky and covers everything in a golden light. There seems to be a lot of diversity, and the race events take good advantage of that. One of the Sprint Race events we took part in--a supercar showdown featuring the likes of the Carerra GT and Pagani Zonda--took us from the highway to a high school football field to a millionaire's marble driveway before arriving at the finish line in a freeway tunnel. It's definitely a big world, too. We're told you can drive the fastest car in the game and it would take you a solid eight minutes to circumnavigate the entire world at top speed.

One of the ways Black Box is looking to expand your driving abilities without necessarily changing the way cars handle is through what it's calling the Heroic Driving Engine, a system that allows you to achieve a new level of agility on the road. One of the ways it's done this is by removing the persistent relationship between a car's direction and the perspective of the camera. If you're flying down the road, you can jam on the brakes while jerking the control stick to the side and watch as your car does a 180 at speed while the camera remains firmly in place. It's not just for show; if you've thrown your car into reverse like this, you can double-tap the gas and your driver will come to a screeching halt and take off in the opposite direction. This entails the opposite scenario as before--your car will remain facing the same way while the camera turns around, saving you a good bit of time compared to the old-fashioned three-point turn. When you successfully engage in these types of moves, you'll be rewarded with RPG-style experience points that will upgrade your driving abilities.

As a way of maintaining balance with your newfound driving skills, EA Black Box is bringing back the police to keep you challenged as you wreak havoc on the roads of Tri-City Bay. Driver AI has been enhanced so that if you do something particularly stupid like nudge someone off the road at 90 miles per hour, you'll have the cops called on you. In other situations, you'll have them on your tail at the start of a mission, like in the Driver Job event we tried that had us stealing a police cruiser (a Nissan GT-R squad car, of all things) and bring it to a shop to sell it off. No matter the origins, getting rid of the cops is the same: You need to put some distance between you and the police cars, and if there's a helicopter, you need to find a tunnel or bridge to hide under.

As you progress through the game's story--a tale about a police officer so deep undercover that only a few people know who he is--the narration will unfold in the traditional cutscene format of the Need for Speed series. This time around, there's a new focus on taking these video sequences out of the stone age and into the modern era, where games don't need to remain stuck in the trappings of the mid-'90s. What this means is cutscenes shot on a live set rather than a green screen, real actors (well, at least the main characters--we're not sure if Jessica Alba's brother playing a side role counts as a real actor), and a director pulled from the show 24. Based on the three cutscenes we saw, these ingredients have come together to form a more mature look for the series. You'll have the chance to see how well the whole package comes together when Need for Speed Undercover is released on November 17.

Donwload Link :
http://rapidshare.com/files/189301136/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part01.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189308311/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part02.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189315301/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part03.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189322111/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part04.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189329073/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part05.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189336276/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part06.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189343004/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part07.rar
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http://rapidshare.com/files/189356525/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part09.rar
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http://rapidshare.com/files/189370306/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part11.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189376830/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part12.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189383249/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part13.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189389532/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part14.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/189395760/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part15.rar
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http://rapidshare.com/files/189420203/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part19.rar
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http://rapidshare.com/files/191294897/need_for_speed_undercover_TEAM_REFAT_BY_RB.part41.rar

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky Final Hands-On

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Mon, 8 Sep 2008 16:50:00 +0700

Publisher:Koch Media
Platform: PC
Developer:GSC Game World
Genre:Sci-Fi First-Person Shooter
Release Date:Sep 15, 2008

Modified guns, shrewd trading skills, and hilarious dialogue are all part of life in the zone. Our final thoughts before the review.
Life is not easy for a S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Besides the excessive punctuation between the letters of your job title (making a complete muck of stalker business cards), you inhabit the Chernobyl exclusion zone inhabited by angry militants, well-armed bandits, and irradiated boar--all of whom would take pleasure in guttin' you, boy. We hit the zone running this week and are here to offer our final thoughts on S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky, the prequel to the acclaimed Shadow of Chernobyl, before its release on September 15.

Clear Sky is a shooter, pure and simple, but also throws in elements of role-playing and survival horror games. Weapons are rated in strength, accuracy, rate of fire, and overall condition, which all deteriorate over time. Luckily for you, enemies tend to drop their own weapons when they, you know, die, and you can grab low-level replacements at any time. There are also a number of parts like scopes and larger ammunition clips that can be combined with firearms to increase their respective attributes. Early on we can already say how fun it is to pimp out your gun with items earned in the heat of battle. Although there is no custom creation tool for your looks, the combinations of weapons and armor at your disposal are endless.

There's also somewhat of an economy at work in the zone, and you'll pick up rubles along the way that can be spent at trading posts throughout the area. After a few hours of capping bandits and stealing their loot, we stopped by a trader in hopes of purchasing a shiny new American shotgun. We had more than a dozen basic Russian shotguns along with a number of pistols, worth thousands of rubles. But no. Blame it on the radiation, the sinking dollar, whatever--the trader would only offer pennies on the ruble for our weapons, a total of about 300 RU. Of course, he wanted nearly 3,000 RU for his shotgun, so we casually tipped our hat and left his humble shack. There's hope that different traders will offer better prices for your wares, but we decided to take our economic frustrations out on the enemy instead of haggling with miserly shopkeepers.

The opening portion of Clear Sky takes place in the Great Swamp. There reside enemy factions, bandits, and the friendly faction by the name of--you guessed it--Clear Sky. Clear Sky claims it's doing research on the zone to discover the reason behind the sudden increase in explosive radioactive bursts that kill everyone in their paths. Something about an intruder had gotten past the Brain Scorcher to reach the center of the zone, and the zone isn't happy at all about it. (The writing and dialogue aren't going to win any awards, if you were wondering.)

To guide you through the swamp, you have a handy PDA. The map showcases friendly, neutral, and enemy locations, and also exactly how big the area is. While it remains to be seen how much of the zone is cut off by fields of deadly radiation early in the game, if you zoom out of the map, you can see that the exclusion zone is huge. That's good, because it's also filled with valuable artifacts that can boost your abilities and resistance to radiation, or be sold for heaps of rubles. Your PDA also has a list of primary and secondary objectives, and a handy button that will highlight their locations. Because the factions are fighting a dynamic war that developer Deep Silver claims is different every time, there is also a faction page that gives details on each group's combat strengths and resources. After we took out several enemy strongholds, it was admittedly a blast to see Clear Sky's borders and resources expand.

Combat is basic first-person shooter fare, with a few twists. Particularly nasty bullet wounds will bleed, and you'll need to access your inventory for a bandage to stop the bleeding or else your health will continue to deplete. There are basic squad commands later in the game, but at this early stage we fought alongside Clear Sky soldiers. The health system is unforgiving, and you'll need to take lots of cover--this is not a run-and-gun shooter.

Clear Sky guides will escort you through the zone to previously unreachable locations. One such location was a stalker outpost located right next to a military base. Unfortunately for you, that particular military base is not friendly, and a soldier immediately opened fire with a mounted machine gun, forcing you to take cover behind boulders and trees--wait, not trees. Bullets slice right through the wood. After many deaths, we gave up trying to single-handedly take down the base and absconded to the stalker outpost for our next mission.

At this point, it's fair to say that fans of the original Stalker will enjoy Clear Sky as well. It's not without its foibles--cheesy dialogue, punishing difficulty, unfriendly checkpoint system--but the customization and open world offer a unique experience in an engaging universe. Check for our final review next week.

Download Link :
http://rapidshare.com/files/174987054/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part01.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174987439/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part02.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174987807/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part03.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174988164/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part04.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174988523/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part05.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174988927/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part06.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174989330/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part07.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174989720/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part08.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174990171/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part09.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174990566/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part10.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174990938/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part11.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174991325/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part12.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174991712/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part13.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174992128/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part14.rar
http://rapidshare.com/files/174992270/Stalker_Clear_Sky.part15.rar

Metal Gear Solid 4 Hints & Cheats

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Mon, 8 Sep 2008 16:34:00 +0700

Otacon's extra passwords

Put these in instead of the code Otacon tells you to at Shadow Moses. You will get the Access Denied scene but afterwards you will get the bonus.

Cheat	Effect
14893	100,000 DP
78925	iPod song
13462	iPod song

Metal Gear Solid 4 Passwords

Extras Screen Passwords

These passwords are entered at the Extras screen under Password after beating the game once on any difficulty. The items will be made available upon loading your save game or starting a new game (in which case you will gain access to them when you meet up with Metal Gear Mk. II; iPod songs are immediately available.)

Password	Effect
george	Unlocks "Gekko" iPod Song
thomas	Unlocks "Desperate Chase" iPod Song
theodore	Unlocks "Midnight Shadow" iPod Song
abraham	Unlocks "Mobs Alive" iPod Song
mekakorkkk	Unlock Mk. 23 handgun (SOCOM from MGS1)
mnsoymsyhn	Unlocks "Mosin Nagant"
deskyhstyl	Unlocks the Desert Eagle Long Barrel
1aytmmymhk	Unlocks 1911 Pistol
jmsotsynrn	Type 17 Pistol
aottrykmyn	Altair Costume
dntkkhktmm	Drebin Facecamo
mgo2play	Unlocks "Subsistence Action" iPod Song
tshsniammr	Unlocks Thor .45-70
pkhhnwhsjt	Unlocks Patriot
skynytktjp	Unlocks Scanning Plug S

Metal Gear Solid 4 Unlockables

Facepaint

Different face paint unlocked for in game use.

Unlockable	How to Unlock
FaceCamo	Defeat the Battle Beauty Laughing Octopus (the overall battle, no specifics involved).
Laughing Octopus	Defeat the Battle Beauty (human form) Laughing Octopus by non-lethal means.
Raging Raven	Defeat the Battle Beauty (human form) Raging Raven by non-lethal means.
Crying Wolf	Defeat the Battle Beauty (human form) Crying Wolf by non-lethal means.
Screaming Mantis	Defeat the Battle Beauty (human form) Screaming Mantis by non-lethal means.
Roy Campbell	Ram Colonel Campbell using the Metal Gear II during the intermission scene.
Otacon	Ram Dr. Emmerich using the Metal Gear II during the intermission scene.
Raiden Mask A	Ram Sunny using the Metal Gear II during the intermission scene.
Raiden Mask B	Ram Dr. Naomi Hunter using the Metal Gear II during the intermission scene.
Drebin	Purchase and keep more than 60 different weapons.
Big Boss's	Earn the Big Boss emblem on a single-player session
Young Snake	Beat Act 2
Young Snake with Bandana	Beat Act 2
Classic MGS Snake	Beat Act 3

iPod Tunes

Snake's iPod can download specific tunes throughout the course of the game. Some songs have an additional "secret" effect when it is played in the game.

Unlockable	How to Unlock
Beyond the Bounds (increases stun damage done by Snake from non-lethal weapons)	Stage 4 Shadow Moses, Tank Hangar. After power is restored, backtrack to the upper catwalk and explore all rooms
Big Boss (increase stun damage and increases Snake's accuracy when played)	Earn the Big Boss emblem
Bio-hazard (cause soldiers held by Snake to scream in terror)	Stage 3 Europe, Midtown
Destiny's Call (cause soldiers held by Snake to go enraged)	A random gift from a militia or rebel soldier if Snake gives them a healing item
Flowing Destiny (cause soldiers held by Snake to weep like a little girl)	Stage 4 Shadow Moses, Canyon. Before leaving the canyon area, examine the rocky walls for a hole hiding this item
Fury, The (cause soldiers held by Snake to go enraged)	Stage 2 South America, Cove Valley Village. Inside the fire ravaged house
MGS 4 Love Theme / Action (cause soldiers held by Snake to weep like a little girl)	A random gift from a militia or rebel soldier if Snake gives them a healing item
Opening - Old L.A. 2040 (increase Snake's accuracy)	Stage 4 Shadow Moses, Nuclear Warhead Storage B2. Input 78925 into Otacon's lab computer
Policenaughts Ending (cause soldiers held by Snake to fall asleep on touch)	Stage 4 Shadow Moses, Nuclear Warhead Storage B2. Input 13462 into Otacon's lab computer
Rock Me (increases Snake's amount of life recovered from items and other means)	Stage 2 South America, Confinement Facility. Island in the south-eastern quadrant
Sailor (increases Snake's amount of life recovered from items and other means)	Stage 2 South America, Vista Mansion. Between the east wall and a cargo container
Show Time (cause soldiers held by Snake to scream in terror)	A random gift from a militia or rebel soldier if Snake gives them a healing item
Snake Eater (increase the life recovery rate of Snake through items and other actions)	Unlocked by earning all 40 game clear emblems
Subsistence (increase Snake's accuracy)	Play at least one game of Metal Gear Online. You must start the match with at least two players
Boktai 2 Theme	Act 2, Mission Briefing, upstairs in the Nomad
Bon Dance	Act 2, Marketplace
Inorino Uta	Act 1, Mission Briefing
Level 3 Warning	Act 1, Advent Palace
Lunar Knights Main Theme	Act 4, Mission Briefing, upstairs in the Nomad
Metal Gear 20 Years History: Part 2	Act 4, Warhead Storage Building B2
Metal Gear 20 Years History: Part 3	Act 2, South America Confinement Facility. In room with beds inside the house
Metal Gear Solid Main Theme (The Document Remix)	Act 5, Under hatch to the left at the beginning of area
On Alert	Act 3, Midtown N Sector
One Night in Neo Kobe City (Causes soldiers held by Snake to laugh)	Act 3, Midtown, hold-up PMC.
Shin Bokura no Taiyou Theme	Act 3, Mission Briefing, upstairs in the Nomad
Test Subject's Duality	Act 3, Midtown S Sector
The Best Is Yet To Come	Act 4, Snow Field. Just before the "Disc Change" Codec scene.
The Essence of Vince	Act 3, Echo's Beacon
The Fury	Act 2, in the Cave Valley Village in badly burned building
Theme of Solid Snake	Act 1, Millennium Park
Theme Of Tara	Act 1, Militia Safehouse. Just before seeing the unmanned flying-bomber on the table
Warhead Storage	Act 4, Tank Hanger. Upper floor ventilation shaft.
Yell (Dead Cell)	Act 4, Casting Facility North
Zanzibarland Breeze	Act 1, Urban Ruins before cutscene
Bio Hazard	Frisk the restance fighter in Easter Europe.

Bonus Weapons

Unlockable	How to Unlock
Rail Gun	Beat Crying Wolf
MGL-140 Grenade Launcer	Beat Raging Raven
Mantis and Sorrow Dolls	Beat Screaming Mantis
Mk. 23 Handgun	Found in the first area of Act 4
Patriot Future Assault Weapon	Earn the Big Boss emblem on a single-player session
Thor 45-70	Earn the Fox Hound emblem on a single-player session
Desert Eagle, Long Barrel	Earn the Fox emblem on a single-player session
World War I Pistol	Earn the Hound emblem on a single-player session
Race (Ricochet) Gun	Clear the single-player game once
Solar Gun	Collect the five statues (those of the four Battle Beauties and the Frog Soldier/Haven Troopers in stage 1) using non-lethal means on their respective idols
Scanning Plug S	Log more than 10 hours of Metal Gear Online play time on the same profile as your Metal Gear 4 game. You purchase this from Drebin
Digital Camera	In the Nomad vehicle during the mission intermission; you can unlock a special photo by picking up this item in stage 4 instead of earlier
Stealth Item	Complete a single-player session without instigating a single alert (caution is okay, but not alert). You can do this on any difficulty
Bandanna	Complete a single-player session without killing anyone (including bosses). You can do this on any difficulty

Completion Unlockables

Unlockable	How to Unlock
New combat vests	Clear the single-player game once
The Boss Extreme difficulty	Complete the single-player mode once (and saving the cleared data).

Costumes

Unlockable	How to Unlock
Suit	Clear the game once
Civilian Disguise	Start Eastern Europe level
Middle East Militia Disguise	Middle East in the Militia Safe House
South American Rebel Disguise	South America (Cove Valley Village)
Altair	Obtain the Assassin emblem
Corpse Camo	Get 51 continues or more in a single playthrough to unlock this octocamo.

New Ammo

After finishing the game once, and getting back to drebin you can buy:

Unlockable	How to Unlock
Emotive ammo (laughter)	Finish game once
Emotive ammo (scream)	Finish game once
Emotive ammo (rage)	Finish game once
Emotive ammo (cry)	Finish game once
Smoke Grenade (red)	Finish game once
Smoke Grenade (yellow)	Finish game once
Smoke Grenade (green)	Finish game once
Smoke Grenade (blue)	Finish game once

Unlockable Emblems

Unlocking emblems gives you various bonus content.

Unlockable	How to Unlock
Assassin's Emblem	Beat the game with 50+ knife kills, 50+ CQC holds, and 25 or less alerts.
Big Boss Emblem	Beat the game on the highest difficulty with no deaths, no alerts, no kills, no recovery items, no stealth suit, no bandanna items, in under 5 hours.
Fox Hound Emblem	Beat the game on hard or higher w/ no deaths, 3 or less alerts, no kills, no recovery items, no stealth suit, no bandanna items, in under 5.5 hours.
Fox Emblem	Beat the game on normal or higher w/ no deaths, 5 or less alerts, no kills, no recovery items, no stealth suit, no bandanna items, in under 6 hours.
Hound Emblem	Beat the game on hard or higher w/ no deaths, 3 or less alerts, no kills, no recovery items, no stealth suit, no bandanna items, in under 6.5 hours.
Rabbit Emblem	Look at 100 Playboy pages
Little Gray Emblem	Collect all 69 weapons
Lobster Emblem	Spend a total of 2.5 hours crouching
Hyena Emblem	Pick up 400 dropped weapons
Inch Worm Emblem	Crawl on the ground for a total of 1 hour
Hog Emblem	Get 10 combat highs
Hawk Emblem	Be admired by 25 friendly soldiers
Gibbon Emblem	Hold up 50 enemies
Giant Panda Emblem	Complete the game after 30 cumulative hours of play
Eagle Emblem	Get 150 headshots
Frog Emblem	Dive or roll 200 times
Gecko Emblem	Press against walls for a total of 1 hour
Blue Bird Emblem	Give friendly soldiers 50 items
Bee Emblem	Use the Scanning Plug S or Syringe on 50 enemies
Bear Emblem	Choke 100 enemies to death
Ant Emblem	Shake 50 enemies for items
Mantis	Finish the game with no alerts activated, no continues, no rations, noodles or regains used and in under 5 hours
Wolf	Beat the game with no continues and no rations, regains, or noodles used
Pigeon	Beat the game without killing asingle person (Gekkos and Dwarf Gekkos dont count).
Raven	Beat the game in under 5 hours
Octopus	Beat the game without activating any alert phases.
Tortoise	Spend more than 60 minutes inside the drum can or card board box (this can be done throughout the game, not all at once)
Pig	Use more than 50 recovery items
Cow	Activate over 100 alerts
Crocodile	Have over 400 kills
Scarab	Perform over 100 rolls
Scorpion	Get less than 75 alert Phases, less than 250 kills, and less than 25 continues.
Tarantula	Get less than 75 alert phases, over 250 kills, and less than 25 continues.
Centipede	Get less than 75 alert phases, less than 250 kills, and over 25 continues.
Spider	Get less than 75 alert phases, over 250 kills, and over 25 continues.
Jaguar	Get over 75 alert phases, less than 250 kills, and less than 25 continues.
Panther	Get over 75 alert phases, over 250 kills, and less than 25 coninues.
Leopard	Get over 75 alert phases, less than 250 kills, and over 25 continues.
Puma	Get over 75 alert phases, over 250 kills, and over 25 continues.
Chicken	Get over 150 alert phases, over 500 kills, over 50 continues, use over 50 recovery items and finish the game in over 35 hours.
Rabbit	Flick through 100 Playboy pages

Dolls/Statues

You need to unlock 5 dolls before you can adquire the solar gun.
Defeat the Frog Soldiers, Laughing Octopus, Raging Raven, Crying Wolf and Screaming Matis with Non-Lethal weapons. (During their beast form, not beauty). After defeating them grab the doll before killing their beauty form. Except on the frogs because they don't have a beauty form.

Unlockable	How to Unlock
Frog Soldier Doll/Statue	At the garage at the end of the battle
Laughing Beast Doll/Statue	On a bed in a little room
Raging Raven Doll/Statue	On the upper floor on a corner
Crying Wolf Doll/Statue	In a side of a bulding just where you start after killing her beast form
Screaming Mantis Doll/Statue	On the corridor where you started

F.E.A.R. Project Origin Updated Hands-On

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Mon, 8 Sep 2008 16:23:00 +0700

Publisher:Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Platform: PC
Developer:Monolith
Genre:Modern First-Person Shooter
Release Date:Q1 2009

Warner Bros. dropped by with an updated build of Project Origin, and we got a chance to see how Monolith's F.E.A.R. sequel is shaping up.

Project Origin is both a sequel and a fresh beginning for the F.E.A.R. series. While it will continue the story of its predecessor, it promises to be more action-oriented thanks to an increase in outdoor environments. Certainly, the addition of mech-based combat is a new direction for the series, even if it isn't for developer Monolith, which has produced large-scale games in the past. We got a chance to look at an updated build of Project Origin today when Warner Bros. popped into the office, and the publisher was kind enough to tell us about where it's hoping to take the game when it's released in the first quarter of 2009.

Playing the game on the Xbox 360, we got to see how Project Origin's open outdoor environments are set to change the dynamic of the combat. Many of you will remember that the original F.E.A.R. had its fair share of scary moments, and while they still occur in Project Origin, the urban environments have been incorporated to allow for a distinct change of action. The gunplay is frantic and violent, while the enemy AI looks like it has learnt even more about using flanking techniques, as well as taking cover. Enemies open car doors to use as cover, but thankfully you can use a sniper rifle to shoot off extremities that peek out around the edges. If you shoot a soldier in the leg, then he'll hobble over to stronger cover, or you can be safe and use a rocket launcher to blow the entire car up.

One of the key new additions to the game is mech combat, which we got to try out two-thirds of the way through the demo. Long-time Monolith fans might remember the game Shogo: Mobile Armor Division, a mech-based game that the company released back in 1998, and it looks like it's returning to these roots with Project Origin. As you might hope, you become much more powerful in a mech suit, with both a chaingun and a rocket launcher to play around with, but your movement is severely restricted. We were disappointed to find that you can't fly or even jump in the suit, and if it becomes too damaged, you have to eject completely. If you're in the middle of a battle against another mech and you have to eject, then you last about five seconds without the heavy armour.

Warner Bros. also used its visit to explain some more of the storyline as we were playing. Alma, the creepy girl who haunted you throughout the first game, will make a return in a more mature form. While you spent most of F.E.A.R. wondering whether you should kill or protect Alma, you now at least know that she's the reason behind all of the strange occurrences. In Project Origin, she's now grown so old that Warner Bros. referred to her as "hag" Alma, in reference to her fairly withered state. We saw both versions of Alma within a short space of time; first, as the young model crawling around on the floor; then, as the older version appearing naked and floating in the air. We weren't told why she grows old in the sequel, but we're sure that it will shed plenty of light on the occurrences from the first game.

We were told that you'll start the game 30 minutes before the end of the first game, so you'll get to see F.E.A.R.'s explosive ending and its aftermath. We also saw that the famous slow-mo feature makes a return in Project Origin, although we actually preferred to move quickly through the level we played and only used this feature a couple of times during our time with the game. Additionally, Warner Bros. let us know that there is some big news for F.E.A.R. fans in the very near future and that the multiplayer game should be shown off in the UK around Halloween. We'll be on hand when it all happens, so stay tuned for more on Project Origin as soon as we get it.

Download Link :
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Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 20:26:00 +0700

Codes

Cheat Codes

Although it spoils the game, cheat codes aid you in your conquest to victory. These codes can only be used in a single-player game. They are also not case-sensitive.

Code	Effect
Motherland (race) (level)	Directs to that particular mission
Synergy	Disable requirements
Whoisjohngalt	Enable research (regardless of requirements)
Iocainepowder	Fast death or decay
Keysersoze %	Gives you % Gold
greedisgood %	Gives you % Gold and % Lumber (If not specified gives you 500 each)
Leafittome %	Gives you % Lumber
Somebodysetusthebomb	Instant Loss
Allyourbasearebelongtous	Instant Win
Whosyourdaddy	No damage inflicted to you and you 1 hit KO (Does not apply to your allied units)
Strengthandhonor	No defeat, no matter what
Itvexesme	No Victory, no matter what
Thedudeabides	Performs spell instantly (Mana cost applies)
Tenthleveltaurenchieftain	Plays a special song while playing
=	Re-enters the last code you had entered
Iseedeadpeople	Remove Fog of War
Pointbreak	Removes food limit (It is still capped at 100)
Riseandshine	Sets to dawn
Lightsout	Sets to dusk
Daylightsavings %	Sets your time to % hours (In a 24-hour day format)
Warpten	Speeds up construction of buildings, units, and reasearch
Thereisnospoon	Unlimited Mana
Sharpandshiny	Upgrades automatically goes up 1 level (no money needed)

Contributed By: Ben del Raichu

Unlockables

Campaign Modes

These are the unlockables that are in the Campaign Mode.

Unlockable	How to Unlock
"The Crossing" Secret Campaign	Play in Human 3rd Mission. There are 3 sheeps, step onto them in the order "Bah-Ram-You".
Play Pandaren Brewmaster in the 4th Human Mission	Complete "The Crossing" Secret Campaign.

Contributed By: Ben del Raichu

Diablo II: Lord of Destruction

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 20:18:00 +0700

1.10 Cache & framerate info

In 1.10, to view the framerate, cache, and memory information, input ''/framerate''.

It shows the same stuff as typing ''/fps'', but also shows cache figures and memory figures.

Contributed By: sir briax

Disable music/sound at main screen.

If you are annoyed by the music, or sound effects that play while you are at the main menu, and not in game.
Press the following codes to disable them: (Typing them again will enable them)

Code	Effect
Ctrl+M	Disable/Enable the music while at the main menu.
Ctrl+S	Disable/Enable the sound effects while at the main menu.

Players X

In single player

Hit Enter
Type "/players x" (without quotes)(X= a number between 1 and 8)
eg. /players 4

Code	Effect
/players 7	Extremely hard to kill monsters
/players 3	Good difference
/players 5	Hard monsters
/players 2	Little difference in Difficulty
/players 8	Maximum diffculty/Nigh impossible to kill monsters
/players 1	No effect
/players 6	Very difficult to kill monsters
/players 4	Very noticable difference

Contributed By: KevynKross

Random Cheats

Note: you can type in all of these codes again after they are in effect to turn them off. If it is one of the /players cheats then you have to type in the code "/players 1" to set it back to 1.

Code	Effect
soundchaosdebug	Every sound at once.
/fps	Show frames per second.
/nopickup	Won't let you pick up items unless you press ALT. This helps in cluttered areas with a lot of lag.

Contributed By: HawkeyeCH13

Target line codes

Right click on your Diablo II desktop icon. Left click on the shortcut tab. Enter the code in the target line after the quotes. make sure there is a space between each code , and a space between the last quote and first code.

These codes currently work as of the 1.11b patch.

Code	Effect
-act1	Create a new level 1 character in Act1.
-act2	Create a new level 16 character in Act2.
-act3	Create a new level 21 character in Act3.
-act4	Create a new level 27 character in Act4.
-act5	Create a new level 33 character in Act5.
-npl	Doesn't preload anything.
-nosave	Never saves the game.
-ns	No sound driver is loaded.
-w	Opens the game in a window.
-skiptobnet	Skip directly to BattleNet login.
-opengl	Uses the OpenGL graphic renderer in game.

Contributed By: Red_Bird_of_Cha

Easter Eggs

Diablo 2 Commercial

With the D2X disk in you computer click on the "My computer" icon. From there you should see the D2X shortcut picture. Right-click on it and select Open. Inside there is a file called D2COM_01. Double click it to watch the semi-funny 30 second D2 commercial.

Contributed By: D2_Balk

Every Sound

To hear every sound recorded for Diablo 2 press ''enter'' in a game to open the chat box and type in ''soundchaosdebug''

Contributed By: Jeff Andonuts

Secret Cow Level

Just like the Secret Cow Level in the original Diablo II, the Secret Cow Level is in LoD as well. You must have beaten Baal on the difficulty you want to make the portal for though.

1. Go to Rogue Encampment
2. Insert a Wirt's Leg and a Tome of Townsportal into the Cube and Transmute.
3. Enter Portal.
4. Fight Cows.

The cows CAN be difficult to kill with melee characters, so be careful. Paladins and Sorceresses are always helpful here.

The cows do not give good experience, but the chances of finding good runes/gems/equipment is better than most places. Also, most of the ''stashes'' and ''chests'' here are good drops as well.

WARNING: If you want to make the portal again, DO NOT KILL THE COW KING. If the Cow King is killed in a game where you made the portal, you WILL NOT be able to make the portal for that difficulty anymore.

Contributed By: Andrea Blackheart

The game changes the difficulty depending on how high the number is. (1 being the easiest, 8 being the hardest.)
It's the same effect as being on B Net and having more than 1 player. The game's enemies get harder, drop better, and give more experience. This also affects bosses, so the /players 8 on Hell Mephisto's drops are incredible.

This doesn't effect immunities on monsters, and works in all Difficulties and all Acts.

Call of Duty: World at War Hands-On

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:38:00 +0700

Publisher:Activision Blizzard
Platform: PC
Developer:Treyarch
Genre:Modern First-Person Shooter
Release Date:TBA

Co-op makes its series debut in World
at War, and we take it for a spin in the Pacific and Berlin.

With Call of Duty: World at War, developer Treyarch is aiming to bring the series back to its old stomping grounds while simultaneously venturing into unfamiliar territory. In addition to exploring the frequently overlooked Pacific Theatre, World at War will be the first in the series to offer co-op gameplay. It's a feature that will support up to four players online and two-player split-screen offline. We recently had the opportunity to see how this addition to the series is coming together by taking a spin through one Pacific level and one Berlin level. Our most recent look at World at War began where the game does, during an escape from Japanese captors on the Makin Atoll. As the game's introductory level, this one had the player going on a tense hike through darkened jungles where guerrilla Japanese soldiers would frequently pop up from unexpected hiding spots. This time around, we got to see a very different chapter from later in the game. Based on the Battle of Peleliu, the Pacific battle with the highest casualty rate from the entire war, this level features a massive fight complete with tanks, autocannons, and more than a few inappropriate uses of the flamethrower courtesy of our first gleeful hands-on session with the game.

The Peleliu level begins with a relatively quiet walk through a swamp before building up to a full-scale battle. You and your team are trudging through knee-high water when they notice a downed plane. One soldier goes to inspect the remnants for any survivors when a sudden ambush of Japanese soldiers comes spilling out of the vegetation. The squad fights through this scuffle and makes its way out of the swamp and into a wide-open field of tall grass and the occasional palm tree. This is where we got to take over a controller, and we immediately felt at home with Call of Duty's familiar, responsive control scheme.

One of the ways Treyarch is looking to put a twist on those familiar controls is by giving you access to previously unseen weapons. Right from the beginning, our character was equipped with a flamethrower to flush out enemies hiding in the trees and tall grass. We put it to use early and often, torching everything in sight and watching the tweaked Call of Duty 4 engine handle flaming scenery as blazing grass slowly gave way to charred earth. The flamethrower is a lot of fun to use, though we have the sneaking suspicion it may be a little overpowered. Much of that is because there's fuel gauge for it; you simply wait for it to cool back down when you've been using it for too long. Either way, it's a blast.

Peleliu is a textbook example of Treyarch's desire to showcase some of the more epic battles from World War II. It almost caught us by surprise how quickly this chapter escalated. At one point we had to clear enemies out of a wrecked building, only to emerge on the other side in a full-blown tank battle. Staying alive required hiding behind the friendly Sherman tanks as they slowly inched forward, then jumping into the foxholes to find rocket launchers to take out the enemy tanks. A moment later, we rushed a group of soldiers stationed on an autocannon and wound up using it to take out nearby antiaircraft guns. At random intervals throughout this conflict, we'd see airplanes come crashing down to earth, trucks on fire zooming past us, and general mayhem at almost every turn. It's clear Treyarch is aiming to push the limitations of the current-gen hardware as far as it can in order to deliver massive, chaotic battles.

The actual co-op doesn't seem to change the way you play the game very much. You won't encounter any puzzles that require specific roles from each player like the spotlight scene from Gears of War. Rather, you're helping one another out through good, old-fashioned teamwork. Because the difficulty is ramped up in co-op, you won't be able to run around Rambo-style quite as easily as in single-player. You'll need to stick close to your teammates in order to survive, working as a group in close proximity.

After completing Peleliu, we had the chance to turn our co-op attention toward Berlin with a chapter called Eviction. Ironically, despite the return toward a more traditional Call of Duty setting, this level gave us better insight into some of the new directions World at War is headed. Right from the beginning, your squad of Russian soldiers encounters a few of your countrymen, who clearly have less than friendly intentions. They have a German soldier surrounded, pleading for his life, but just as quickly as you stumbled upon this scene, the Russian in charge of this other squad takes out his pistol and puts and end to the German's pleading.

A darker retelling of World War II's brutal realities is one of Treyarch's primary goals. In addition to these heartbreaking scripted moments, you'll notice more realistic violence. Damage models have been enhanced to display the loss of limbs, blood will flow more freely, and enemies will writhe in agony when caught on the bad end of one of your Molotov cocktails. A further boost in realism is provided by the Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare engine, which expertly renders the effects of bullets passing through various surfaces. This means you have to be suspicious of every cover you hide behind, especially wooden ones. At one point we tried taking a breather behind an overturned wooden table, only to see an area dangerously close to our face erupt in splinters and sawdust courtesy of a nearby German's shotgun.

As we progressed through burned-out Berlin apartments and underground tunnels, we eventually made it out onto the streets. The skies above Berlin were dark and gray, dumping rain onto the fight below. It was a bit of a surprise, having just come from a sunny Pacific setting, but not as much of a surprise as the music that began building up as we pushed deeper into the Nazi-filled streets. Rather than the triumphant, orchestral score we've all come to expect from Call of Duty games set in World War II, this particular scene was accompanied by a gritty industrial rock track. It was a little jarring at first, but we wound up being pleasantly surprised by how well this music worked. The dark, aggressive feeling of the music was a great accompaniment to the dreary and violent look of this scene.

In addition to basic co-op, another, more incentive-based option will be available. Known as competitive co-op, this setting borrows all the customization and rewards from the multiplayer and places them in a story setting. Points are awarded for killing enemies, you can use your perks, and everything you unlock here is carried over to the multiplayer side. Seeing the points pop up above an enemy's head is a little startling in a story setting when you first try out this mode, but it should go a long way toward adding replay value to the campaign.

Our hands-on session with World at War has revealed to us a game that feels at once familiar and shockingly different. The action is pure Call of Duty, that familiar blend of sprinting, hiding behind cover, and looking down the sight of your gun to blast a group of enemies. But from the way those enemies react to gunfire to the ways they plead for mercy when all hope is lost, this is a different depiction of World War II from what we've all previously seen. It's a little more brutal, a little more grisly, and generally more realistic in the way it portrays the horrors of war. It's clear this isn't quite the same World War II we've come to expect. Whether or not that novelty can hold up for the duration of an entire campaign is something we're eagerly waiting to discover.

Bionic Commando Update: Multiplayer Hands-On

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:38:00 +0700

Publisher:Capcom
Platform: PC
Developer:GRIN
Genre:Sci-Fi Adventure
Release Date:TBA

Capcom lets us try some bionically enhanced rumbling in the upcoming update of its platforming classic.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if a pack of bionically enhanced supersoldiers were thrown into an arena packed with weapons? If so, Capcom is offering one potential answer with the multiplayer mode in Bionic Commando. While we've covered the single-player game extensively since its announcement last year, we haven't had the chance to try its multiplayer mode just yet. This changed recently on a recent visit to Capcom where we had the chance to swing and shoot in the multiplayer demo that's going to be shown at Leipzig this week. Although the demo was a little on the thin side, with one level and one game mode, it gave us an idea of what to expect from the game.

The demo, clearly meant for a Euro audience with its German text, provided a small portion of a ruined city that met our deathmatch needs. Although the final game will support online play, the demo was set to a local LAN game. The matches we tried varied in number of players, although the final game will support a maximum of 10. While Capcom isn't releasing any new info on the additional multiplayer, reps told us to expect a greatest hits of multiplayer action that should include such fare as King of the Hill.

The action was what you'd expect from a deathmatch game in the BC universe: running, shooting, and swinging, with some bionically enhanced punching thrown in for good measure. To help out with the killing, there were several different pickups strewn throughout the level. Green pickups restored health in varying amounts. Armor pickups granted some added durability and let you take some more gunfire before dying. However, the more important pickups are weapons. In the demo, we were able to grab a shotgun, grenade launcher, sniper rifle, and machine gun. Each weapon comes with limited ammo so efficiency is key, especially in the case of the grenade launcher, which is a one-hit kill if aimed properly.

Of course, a multiplayer game wouldn't be much without control, and BC offers a solid system. You'll move with the left analog stick, although hitting the D pad will let you turn in 90-degree increments, which can be key during a close-quarters fight. You'll aim and change your camera view with the right stick. Clicking the right stick tightens up your view for fine aiming. When you've got a sniper rifle equipped, clicking the right stick zooms in your view. You'll jump and pull your arm's line in with the A button. The B and Y buttons are for melee attacks when you want to get up close and personal. The left trigger will shoot your arm's cable out, while the right trigger fires your equipped weapon. The right bumper will open up a radial weapon menu so you can use it to pick your available weapon of choice or quickly equip the next weapon in line when tapped.

While the weapon business was pretty typical, we really liked how the arm was worked into the mix. In addition to the standard melee punches, you can use your arm to pull off special attack combos. One, called a punch-up, lets you juggle an opponent in the air then jump up and smack him down. Another, a zip-kick, uses your arm's cable to latch onto a foe and slam into him at high speeds. Better still, you can use your arm's cable to keep hold of an enemy and slow him down--allowing you to better aim.

One thing to note on the demo we played is that, while the action was playable and fun, there was actually quite a bit not in yet. On the weapon front, the tarantula rocket launcher, which lets you lock on to and fire at multiple targets, as well as proximity grenades, will be included in the final game. More importantly, there is the adrenaline system, which will let you charge up a meter that will let you perform various powerful special moves with the arm.

The demo we played ran well, although it had the expected array of rough edges here and there. The environment had a good amount of detail and featured plenty of places to use your bionic arm's cable for swinging. The character models were a bit on the plain side, but we reckon there will be some measure of customization in the final game, along with more variety in models. The special effects for the weapons were coming together, although they were still a bit understated for our tastes. Still, incomplete status notwithstanding, we were pleased to see the game run so smoothly.

Based on what we played, Bionic Commando's multiplayer will offer a solid dose of face shooting and bionic-arm-enhanced mayhem. The deathmatches seemed fine, although the size of the level we played in begged for a full 10-player match. The control is good and tight, especially the things you can do with the arm, while the pickup selection is modest but effective. From what we can tell, Bionic Commando's multiplayer is shaping up to be a nice complement to the single-player game. Bionic Commando is slated to ship later this year for the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. Look for more on the game in the coming months.

Sam & Max: Season 2 Review

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:33:00 +0700

Publisher:Telltale Games
Developer:Telltale Games
Genre:Adventure
Release Date: Apr 11, 2008

Game Information

Number of Players: 1 Player

Minimum System Requirements

System:Pentium IV 1.5 GHz or equivalent
RAM: 256 MB
Hard Drive Space:1500 MB
Other:Windows XP/Vista

Everyone's favorite freelance police return for five more escapades crammed with the surreal stories and offbeat jokes that make these games instant adventure classics.

Santa going postal, staking an emo vampire, and taking the Soul Train to hell are just a few of the insane moments crammed into Telltale Games' absolutely hilarious Sam & Max Season Two. This outstanding compilation pulls together the last five episodes in the ongoing adventure series starring Sam, a McGruff-style dog sporting a suit and fedora, and Max, a murderous, smelly rabbit. Most fans have probably already played these games, as they have been released online over the past year, but if you missed these games when they were first released, the low price and ton of extras make this collection worth the purchase price.

Anyone who loves classic adventures will have a great time with these surreal, zany shorts. Sam and Max fashion themselves as "freelance police," private detectives who get into one zany mess after another while trying to solve crimes in a zany cartoon world. This means that all of the tales here are laugh-out-loud funny, yet also dark and more than a bit disturbing. You should probably just enjoy the pop-culture jokes riffing on everything from The Exorcist to The Mod Squad and skip putting too much thought into the delightfully twisted minds who came up with the game's bizarre yarns.

But the puzzles themselves aren't as off the wall as the insane stories of the adventures included here. Your tasks are generally based on common-sense logic, even though the end goals deal with nutso objectives like exorcising Santa Claus, figuring out what Charles Lindbergh and D.B. Cooper are doing as babies on Easter Island, and checking out the absurdly bureaucratic Hell LLC. There is a structure to everything that Sam and Max do, so you don't have to fool around with nonsensical adventure game logic or collect a bunch of worthless junk to use at some future date. Tasks are always focused around picking up just a couple of key objects and using them in the right places, nifty conversation trees with consequences to each dialogue choice, and arcade minigames where you do things like box rats and race cars. Everything flows along at a great pace, and your duties are mixed up so that you never get bored with one style of puzzle. Even if you do get a little weary of the sheer strangeness of everything, machine gun pop-culture jokes about the real world keep you grounded and laughing. The biggest design issue is too much backtracking, in that you have to frequently drive back and forth between episode locales and Sam and Max's home office and surrounding neighborhood to solve quests.

The look and sound of the missions are striking. Visuals are done in a Saturday-morning-cartoon style, with lots of bright kiddie colors blended with sharp edges. Everything is just a bit askew, like you're viewing Sam and Max's world through a funhouse mirror. Style is everywhere, right down to the opening and closing credits of each episode. The only drawback to the visuals is the camera angle, which is a little too close to the action in many scenes and can't be manually rotated past its on-rails 2D position to look all around the 3D landscape. Audio effects are dead-on, from the restrained insanity of Max's voice to the 8-bit arcade music played whenever you have to deal with the obsolete computers that operate the Pimplecar Garage.

And when you finish up the adventures themselves, you can check out the extras that make this compilation something of a director's-cut version of the original download-only games. Over four hours of audio commentary are included, along with the "Sam & Max Nearly Save Christmas" cartoon short and a bunch of random collectibles such as trailers, outtakes, and concept art. None of this is absolutely essential, and the Christmas short is already available free online, but taken altogether you've got a sizable grab bag of extra goodies for collectors.

The only disappointment in Sam & Max Season Two is that it ends too soon and leaves you wanting more. Each episode can be played through in just a couple of hours, although you would be best advised to drag out the experience and check out everything you can click on for the extra laughs. This series is a great example of how much creativity, intelligence, and humor can still be poured into this classic genre. So, bring on season three.

Fallout 3 Hands-On

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 23:32:00 +0700

Publisher:Bethesda Softworks
Platform: PC
Developer:Bethesda Softworks
Genre:Role-Playing
Release Date:Q4 2008

Bethesda came to London to show off more playable Fallout 3, and this time we took a brand-new path through Washington's postapocalyptic landscape.

Fallout 3 is an open-world action game, so our second play through the area that we saw during E3 was completely different from our first. Given that our first visit to Washington, DC was spent taking in the postapocalyptic scenery, we raced to the nearest town to experience dialogue and side quests the second time around. The one hour of playtime that we had still felt way too short to completely satisfy us, but we also had time to explore an abandoned subway and come across a local trader. If you're new to this game or the Fallout series in general, then we recommend reading some of our earlier previews to cover the basics, but for now, this is what we did in our most recent play-through.

We started the demo at exactly the same point as we did at E3, emerging from the vault in which our character had spent his short life. You come out of the darkness blinded by the sunlight, but once the blur dissipates you're left with a crisp vision of the devastated landscape. We were playing the Xbox 360 version, so we pressed the B button to call up the Pip Boy, the in-game computer that shows your inventory and map. The map is blurry and featureless at the beginning, so it's difficult to figure out where to go, but we headed east to what we thought would be a settlement. Bethesda says that if you can see something in the distance in Fallout 3 you can go there, but you'll have to explore the landscape on foot before you can press a button to automatically transport between locations.

Delving into the Pip Boy, we found some more cool options to play around with. There are two radio stations, Enclave and Galaxy News, which have opposing political stances and mixes of music. Enclave is very serious and patriotic, playing famous American anthems to encourage patriotism while assuring its listeners that they'll help to rebuild the country's schools. Galaxy is a more laid-back and personal station, with tales about survivors punctuated by soulful tunes. The radio-station idea may have been pioneered by other open-world games, but hearing Billie Holiday while exploring this decimated city is a chilling experience.

As we entered the first town that we could find, we came across a small boy named Bryan Wilks who was trying to find his father. Fallout 3 uses a dialogue system that's based around morality, so you can choose to be sympathetic or dismissive when you come across individuals. We're not usually that friendly toward strangers, but in the interest of seeing some of the side missions, we decided to play nice with the kid and help him find the father. As he went and took refuge in a nearby diner, we pushed on through the town to have a look around.

The town was overrun with fire ants: huge, mutated insects that spewed fire at us if we got too close. The sound that these creatures made--a sticky but squeaky noise that sounded like plastic rubbing together--echoed through our headphones for most of our playtime, and they were tough enemies to kill. The standard combat system works with the left trigger to zoom and the right to fire, but our low experience level and low-powered rifles made it difficult to kill them. The best thing to do was use the VATS mode, which lets you pause the action and target individual parts of the enemies' bodies. You can do this only a limited number of times before you run out of power, but it's by far the best way of killing enemies, or least incapacitating them by taking out a limb.

In addition to using VATS, it helps to talk to people to get advice on how to kill enemies. We headed over to the diner to talk to the boy about the fire ants, and he relayed something that his dad had told him: always aim for their antennae. We also found that you can turn the ants against each other by running around so that they spew fire at each other. It's worth noting just how adult this game is; even the young boy repeated the "F" word without batting an eyelid. He called the enemies in question the "f***in' ants," something that we've not really ever heard said by a minor in a video game before. Thankfully, the voice acting in Fallout 3 is pretty good, at least with the few characters that we came across.

After searching around, we came across the boy's father, who was unfortunately lying dead on the floor of his house after being attacked by the ants that his son had been so recently been expressing his disapproval of. Sad as it was, the world of Fallout is harshly low on resources, so we had to scavenge what we could from the body and the rest of the house. Although it was obviously of little help to him, he'd stashed plenty of ammunition and a Chinese assault rifle, which was a much better weapon for taking out the remaining fire ants than our standard sidearm. Stocked up, we returned to meet the boy and give him the bad news. We had three responses to choose from: "Bryan, I'm sorry, but your father is dead," "Your father's dead," or "Sorry kid. Your old man is ant food." We decided to switch from good cop to bad cop and go for the last option, which was met with a response of, "You're an a**hole."

After taking this short side quest, we went and explored as much as we could of the world. We headed down into the Marigold Station subway, and it seems as if the same expansive design philosophy applies as much underground as above it. We didn't wander around too far because we wanted to see more above ground, but it looks like you'll be able to walk through the tubes to get from station to station. The only downside is that there are even more ants below ground than there are above, and this can get slightly annoying when you're in a confined space with a limited amount of ammo.

Above ground once again, we started to head out of town and toward downtown Washington, DC. We knew that we wouldn't make it there in the short time period that we had, but we figured it was a good direction to head in. We started to come across some new enemies such as the feral ghouls, which are humanoid characters that had obviously been affected by radiation. We also encountered a trader with a hut full of goodies and a couple of dogs, although considering that we didn't have any money, we couldn't buy any of the items that he was offering. We had a quick look through the catalogue to find the usual guns and ammo sitting alongside boutique items such as cameras and, somewhat strangely, washing detergent. We couldn't resist trying to steal a camera and then shoot one of the dogs, but we certainly didn't make it far once we did. We were low on ammo and health by this point, and the other dog chased us down while the trader himself fired at us from afar, eventually killing us and forcing us to reload the game.

As night fell in-game, the last place we made it to was the Capitol Wasteland. The wasteland was populated by what appeared to be other scavengers whose weapons made them even tougher to fight than the previous town's ants. Locked in our own little world with headphones blocking our hearing, we didn't notice the Bethesda PR man until he'd sat down right next to us. We tried to get some more time, but having already taken nearly double our allotted half hour, we had to vacate the console.

There's no doubt that Fallout 3 is an incredibly promising game and, some minor combat annoyances aside, it completely immerses you in its ruined world. Bethesda has gone on record to say that the planned downloadable content will be for the PC and Xbox 360 only, and unfortunately there'll be no multiplayer in the game. The huge scale of the game also makes a demo impossible, according to the publisher. But it's not all bad news; with a planned Q4 release, the team is pretty much finished on the story and is now just applying the finishing touches. We've been promised another look at the game at Leipzig, and Bethesda will be making another trip to the UK before release, so keep your Pip Boys ready for more on Fallout 3 soon.

QuakeCon 2008: The Story of Rage

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 23:26:00 +0700

Publisher:Electronic Arts
Platform: PC
Developer:id Software
Genre:Modern First-Person Shooter
Release Date:TBA

What caused the world to end in id's upcoming postapocalyptic first-person action game? We find out.

They knew the asteroid was coming, but no one expected total destruction. After it was confirmed that the asteroid would collide with Earth, the leaders of humanity secured a deep underground bunker. Its sole purpose was to house the future of the human race, leaders who would eventually rebuild the planet after the cataclysmic explosion.

The asteroid hit, destroying a large chunk of the planet, presumably wiping out all life on the surface. The survivors were supposed to open the doors of the bunker to a ruined planet and begin reshaping society on a new Earth. When they finally set foot on the surface, they quickly discovered they were not alone. Mutants stalked the desert wasteland, looking for their next victim, and were filled with rancor and hostility and what could only be described as...rage

At QuakeCon 2008, we got our first details on the story behind id's upcoming first-person action game. Id also showed off an extended version of the Rage trailer that debuted at E3 earlier this month that put a larger emphasis on driving and racing. But most of our new information came in an interview with id producer Tim Willits, who painted a somewhat clearer picture of a game heretofore described simply as a postapocalyptic shooting/driving hybrid. Rage is much more than that, he says.

In addition to vicious mutants roaming the desert wasteland, several human factions have formed in makeshift cities across the land. You play as an as-yet-unnamed character who emerges from the bunker to restart society, only to see that many of these factions have their own vision of how to implement the new world order. Some are friendly, but many are not, and one in particular has risen to power and is attempting to put a stranglehold on the rights and freedoms of the survivors. Willits likens it to Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. You'll travel from makeshift city to makeshift city, learning more about each faction as you progress through the main storyline.

Willits also pointed out that Rage is not an open-world game in the vein of Grand Theft Auto IV. Instead, id wants Rage to be a cinematic, story-driven experience that sucks you in and doesn't let go. But that doesn't mean you won't have choices. While Willits didn't elaborate on a possible conversation system or multiple endings, he did say that Rage will open the door to mission choices.

As seen in the many id Tech 5 demos and recent Rage trailers, driving will play a very large part in Rage. Over the course of the game, you'll accumulate several different vehicles that can be customized to your liking. In the latest trailer, we saw dune buggies racing on a desert track, armed with mounted Gatling guns and machine guns. Willits said these vehicles will become an extension of the player, so expect plenty of options for customization.

Multiplayer is still in the design stages, but both Willits and id technical director John Carmack said that cooperative play is in the works, with the possibility of sharing vehicles with a buddy. While competitive multiplayer wasn't mentioned specifically, it's difficult to imagine Rage without some sort of deathmatch and/or racing modes from the creators of Quake.

At the QuakeCon 2008 press conference and keynote address, Carmack confirmed that the content of Rage would exceed two Xbox 360 discs yet would fit on one high-capacity Blu-ray disc for the PlayStation 3. Since it's not cost effective to release a game on three discs because of material costs and a hefty royalty fee levied by Microsoft, Carmack said they would have to sacrifice the quality of the visuals on the 360 in order to fit the game on two discs. Unless Microsoft is willing to work with id on the disc royalty fees, the PlayStation 3 version will simply look better, Carmack said.

Be sure to check out our complete video interview with Willits as part of our QuakeCon 2008 coverage. Like all id games, Rage will be released "when it's done."

Spore Exclusive Hands-On - From Cell to Civilization

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 10:08:00 +0700

Did you ever think plant-eating cells would evolve into religious zealots? We find out in our exclusive time with Spore.

Evolution is a long, slow process, and its effects sometimes aren't noticeable for millions of years. In Spore, it takes about 15 minutes. We visited EA Maxis this week as part of our ongoing coverage leading up to the game's September 7 release date, and we played through the cell stage up to the final moments of the tribal stage as our creature evolved from single-celled organism to fire-wielding biped. Someday we'll conquer the planet and then the galaxy in the civilization and space stages, but today, we'll walk you through the first half of Maxis' hybrid strategy game.

Your first decision is one of the most important and will affect everything down to the design of your spaceship a billion game years in the future: Do you eat meat? Carnivores are more aggressive than their vegetarian cousins in Spore, and the simple act of eating animal cells instead of plant cells will lead species to be more hostile. That said, evolution in Spore is at your fingertips, and one mating call will take you to the cell creator tool, letting you completely reverse the direction of your evolution should your gameplay tastes change.

Once you decide on your diet, you choose one of several planets to play on. You have the option to begin from any of the five phases, should you want to skip the rather simple cell stage which, in some ways, plays more like a casual downloadable game. Indeed, after a meteor crashes into the ocean, seeding it with life (that's you), your first and only goal is to survive, swimming about using keyboard controls or the mouse, chomping on floating pieces of red meat, or green plants if you chose to play vegan (we didn't). With each piece of food you eat, you gain a point on the progress bar and grow slightly in size.

You're not alone in the primordial soup, however. Other cell creatures are fighting for food as well, and some are a lot bigger than you. To succeed, you have to avoid larger creatures that see you as nothing more than an afternoon snack and go after smaller creatures, many of which are user creations straight out of the Sporepedia. When you take out a competing organism, they will often drop new body parts that are added to the creator tool.

Then, by clicking on the mating call button, you swim up to a friendly cell of the same species--which are now everywhere as you begin to assert your dominance of the primordial soup--and make a baby cell. You can outfit this next generation with any of the body parts you've collected. Our new cell transformed from a friendly little guy with a pair of spikes to a poison-spitting, electrocuting ball of doom in just one generation. With significant DNA points and such evolutionary advantages, our cell was now ready to advance to the creature stage.

This stage takes you to an abridged version of the Spore creature creator, already available for $10 for dedicated mad scientists hoping to create the master race. Only this time you have just one evolutionary category to choose from: legs. Attach them to your cell and then crawl forth to land as a smaller fish in a bigger pond, a theme common in each Spore stage. Our creature was outfitted with a poison stinger, two electrical nodes, a few spikes, a pair of eyes, and carnivorous, flesh-ripping beak. After we advanced to the creature stage, a handy timeline popped up displaying each of our new generations and their evolutionary advancements over hundreds of millions of years.

Each stage will introduce an increasing number of strategy elements; the creature stage begins with a land map and home nest. The nest is where you can regain health if injured and recruit clan members of your own species to join you on a hunting party, the humble beginnings of civilization. As a carnivore, the only way to advance is to eat other creatures.

Thankfully some of the creatures are much less evolved than you, equipped with only legs and mouths and as easy to eat as an apple on the ground. Most species that you encounter, however, are more advanced than your own, and in these cases it's not advisable to go in chomping. Instead, change your "stance" from aggressive to friendly, and you'll open a new batch of diplomacy actions such as sing and dance. Some species are inherently aggressive and will attempt to eat you, forcing you back to the nest to wait for a hundred million years of evolution and growth before you're strong enough to take them on. Others enjoy a good song and dance and will be impressed by your creatures' performances. This little minigame is the base of all diplomacy for future generations.

Speaking of future generations, body parts litter the environment in the creature stage and are added to the creature creator pool for use after each mating call. When an egg hatches with your new modifications, the entire species will have been edited. Also, the baby's parents will teach you new moves such as strike attacks before letting you out of the nest to hunt. Continue to impress neighboring species or eat others into extinction to fill up your progress bar. This opens up more slots for clan members, but as you progress to the tribal stage, the need to be more organized becomes clear.

Soon, the alpha member of your species discovers fire. He grabs a stick and pumps it into the air in triumph, attracting other members of the species. They are impressed by his bravado and decide to follow his leadership as chieftain. Welcome to the tribal stage.

At this point the evolution of your creature is complete. Now you begin to learn the use of rudimentary tools and to craft ornate clothing. Members of the tribe gather around a makeshift village that consists of a hut and a fire. This is also where you gain the ability to command tribe members, selecting them much the same way you would select a unit in a real-time strategy game. As primitive hunters and gatherers, your first goal is to find food. Simply point and click on one of your tribe members and order him toward a food source such as wild animals or fruit trees. He will automatically collect the food and bring it home to your stockpile.

Food in the tribal stage acts as currency, used as gifts to wild animals in order to domesticate them, offered to rival tribes as a peace offering, or used to make new babies as you grow your tribe. It can also be used to purchase new huts for the village, unlocking new tools. Fishing spears, throwing spears, battle-axes, flaming torches, and musical instruments all become available, but there isn't room for everything. Hunting and gathering tools are useful for everyone, and fishermen armed with spears are much more productive than those using their bare hands--or whatever appendage you designed back in the creature creator. But more aggressive tribes may want to fashion weapons for midnight raids, while friendly folk might instead craft musical instruments.

There are five rival tribes in this stage, and you progress by either recruiting them to your cause or killing them off. Aggressive tribes will want to offer rival chiefs a gift of food, after which the tribes will become "ambivalent" to your presence, buying you time to build up resources and transform your tribe into an axe-wielding army. Then, when the time is right, gather a massive party, kill the rival chief, destroy their main hut, steal their technology, and eliminate the tribe. To commemorate your victory, add a totem piece to your camp.

Of course, Spore is simply one of the cutest games to appear this year, so many players will want to avoid violence and make friends with other tribes. To do so, you equip your tribe members with musical instruments such as maracas and didgeridoos. Then, make your way to the rival tribe village and talk with the chief. Be sure to switch your posture from aggressive to friendly so the tribe doesn't mistake your caveman orchestra for a hunting party.

When you talk to the chief, a musical minigame will unfold, and the other tribe will ask you to play one of three musical instruments. Simply answer them by pressing 1, 2, or 3 on the number keys, and the tribe will love your performance, offering to become your allies. New allies, like conquered foes, mean one more piece of totem for your pole.

Even after you've conquered the land with music, axes, or both, your tribe will need further organization. It's time to get civilized! We'll be back with an in-depth preview of the civilization and space stages soon. In the meantime, be sure to check out direct feed of Spore in action.

Mercenaries 2 Co-Op Hands-On

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 09:41:00 +0700

We get our first look at what destroying Venezuela is like in a multiplayer setting.

Mercenaries 2 is a game that has received plenty of coverage over its rather lengthy development cycle, but thus far little of that coverage has dealt with the highly anticipated cooperative multiplayer. We have heard that it will be a seamless experience in which the joining player simply drops in and out of the host player's session. The players will run around Venezuela blowing up everything they would in a normal single-player mode, but with the added benefit of being able to revel in all that destruction alongside a friend. We're pleased to say we finally had the opportunity to experience Mercs 2's co-op mode at yesterday's EA Showcase event in Redwood Shores. But we're even more pleased that this feature is every bit as simple and fun as we expected.

Mercenaries 2 is a game that has received plenty of coverage over its rather lengthy development cycle, but thus far little of that coverage has dealt with the highly anticipated cooperative multiplayer. We have heard that it will be a seamless experience in which the joining player simply drops in and out of the host player's session. The players will run around Venezuela blowing up everything they would in a normal single-player mode, but with the added benefit of being able to revel in all that destruction alongside a friend. We're pleased to say we finally had the opportunity to experience Mercs 2's co-op mode at yesterday's EA Showcase event in Redwood Shores. But we're even more pleased that this feature is every bit as simple and fun as we expected.

Nostradamus: The Last Prophecy Hands-On

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 09:22:00 +0700

Quite possibly the premiere cross-dressing detective adventure game set during the French Renaissance.

Catherine de Medicis is not happy. Having read a prediction by the famed prophet Nostradamus that she would outlive her husband, King Henry the II, as well as her three children, she begs the prophet to break the terrible curse forever and help her beloved family members to avoid their terrible fates. Unfortunately for her, Nostradamus is too old to leave the house, so the task falls on his daughter Madeline to unravel this 16th century mystery.

In Nostradamus: The Last Prophecy, the latest adventure game from developer Kheops Studio, you'll point and click your way through the French Renaissance, searching for clues to help Catherine de Medicis. Cosmopolitan as they may be, French society at this time still does not consider women to be the equal of men, so Madeline will often be forced to disguise herself as her brother Cesar to progress in her investigation. Sadly, playing the part of Cesar requires a lot more work than you expect from a simple adventure game.

In our hands-on time with Nostradamus, we spent hours searching Madeline's home for different components of Cesar's disguise. Rather than keep his clothes in his bedroom like a normal French dignitary, Cesar's clothes are scattered about the entire house, and you'll be forced to pixel-hunt for his boots, pants, wig, hat, glasses, shoulder pads, and a piece of cloth that flattens out Madeline's, um, bosom. As was the fashion at the time, Cesar also happens to wear a goatee, which poses a problem for Madeline as the nubile young maiden doesn't have the capacity to grow facial hair. So you'll have to head to the kitchen and whip up a coloring cream concoction out of water, oil, beeswax, and clay.

Adventure fans should get a kick out of most of the puzzles, although it would have been nice to have a little extra assistance for new players. After creating this cream, Madeline says she will take it to her father so that he may apply it. But when you try to give Nostradamus the cream, he doesn't accept it and won't give a reason why. We were forced to wander the estate, clicking on every possible clickable item to get a clue as to where to go next. Sadly, we never found one, and Madeline remains stuck at home, unable to solve the mystery. At least there's an oven in which you can bake bread, if you so desire.

When you eventually do put on the disguise and make it outside to the streets of Salon de Provence, the citizens will react differently to you depending on whether you're dressed as Madeline and Cesar. We know this because publisher Encore stopped by the office to give us a brief demo, which showed Madeline getting crushed by stone as a tunnel caved in. But when you equip a shield on her head, she'll make it through safely. Madeline also has a tool kit of items such as a magnifying glass and tweezers, as you'll often find yourself examining crime scenes. Think CSI: Salon de Provence.

So far, it appears there's a fair amount of trial-and-error gameplay in Nostradamus, so you'll need to really think about your next move in order to be successful, even if the game gives you no indicator that you should think about your next move. Those looking for a challenging adventure game, look to Nostradamus: The Last Prophecy.

Warhammer Online Updated Impressions - Lairs and Interface Updates

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 09:14:00 +0700

We explore a few new nooks and crannies in this upcoming massively multiplayer game from the creator of Dark Age of Camelot.
At a recent EA press event, we took the opportunity to squeeze a few new details out of developer Mythic Entertainment on its upcoming massively multiplayer game, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. The game is currently in a beta-test state with thousands of loyal testers from the fan community pounding awaat it nightly and with more beta testers to come thanks to the preorder offer that EA Games has attached to the collectors' edition, which will let early adopters into the beta in advance of the launch (and will also nab them exclusive character customization options, quests, and items).

In advance of our coverage of the beta, we got a few new details on some of the game's features, such as its fully customizable interface, which lets you click, drag, and resize every single interface window in the game, from maps to chat logs to everything else. Apparently, certain parts of the interface, such as the overland map, have been programmed in the LUA language, and Mythic will encourage you to create customized art for those interface elements.

We also had a chance to take a peek at some of the lair areas that will be hidden throughout the game. These will be out-of-the-way areas where exceptionally powerful and rare foes hide out of plain sight and guard exceptionally powerful loot. We had a chance to see two such lairs; the first was hidden on the border of a competitive realm-versus-realm zone (where players from different factions can freely clash with each other) and was locked away behind a stone gate, outside of which were various shaped stones embedded into the earth just in front of the entrance. The door itself will be locked, and the flat, ground-level stones arranged in a ring around the entrance apparently represent a puzzle that you will need to solve to open the gate. Another lair was hidden in a remote corner of a misty river basin that seemed mostly deserted and was separated by a small set of foothills. However, persistent players who explore every inch of the area may discover the means to climb up the first set of foothills to discover that a set of fallen logs lead the way to a row of shattered tree stumps that can be crossed with well-placed jumps that lead to a final hidden path to the lair of a mighty and ancient foe who summons backup to defend its treasure. Yes, Warhammer Online will have a jumping puzzle.

However, none of the game's lairs will have any kind of duplicate content or puzzles, so there will be no one-size-fits-all solution to unlock all of them. Though Mythic was gracious enough to show the entrances to two of these lairs, the studio was understandably reluctant to comment about the number and location of them in the game. There will, however, be "more than 20" lairs hidden throughout the world, and in addition to offering the opportunity to fight a unique enemy and win an exceptionally powerful weapon or item, finding lair locations will unlock sections of your "tome of knowledge," Warhammer Online's in-game journal. Players who enjoy exploring will definitely be rewarded for their troubles when they discover lairs, but the hidden enemies that lurk within will generally be exceptionally strong, and a stout group of adventurers will usually be required to conquer them.

Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning is currently in a beta-testing state and is scheduled for release worldwide in North America, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand on September 18.

NHL 09 Updated Hands-On

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 09:05:00 +0700

We strap on the skates and start making plays happen in our look at the EA Sports Hockey League in NHL 09.

One thing's for sure about this year's NHL game from EA Sports: It won't be lacking for features. Sure you've got your standard single-player games, but NHL 09 will also feature a new Be a Pro career mode where you'll play the role of a hockey hopeful looking to make a name for yourself in the AHL and, eventually, the NHL. Online, the game will feature full six-on-six play across 12 different consoles, online leagues, and--perhaps the biggest online feature in this year's game--the recently announced EA Sports Hockey League. During a recent trip up to EA Sports' Vancouver studios, we got a chance to strap on the skates and take a few shifts in the EASHL to see how this feature is coming along.

Essentially Be a Pro mode played online, the EASHL feature will let you take your created character and play online on teams made up of other players' created hockey pros. You'll use the same character you create in the Career mode, and all of the attributes you've built offline toward your character will apply to his performance on the ice in the EASHL. This is particularly important when picking the role you'll play on the ice, as we'll explain below.

In addition to playing with full six-on-six teams online, the EASHL will let you organize hockey "guilds" with your fellow puck fans (and if this is beginning to sound like a on-ice version of World of Warcraft, that's no accident; the developers at EA Canada commonly refer to the EASHL feature as a burgeoning sports MMOG, one on which the team intends to build for years to come in future versions of the NHL series).

While we didn't get an extended look at how the guild system will work, we did get into an online EASHL game, which looks to be a snap. Players congregate in a lobby until the game is launched, wherein players are then given the chance to claim their positions on the ice. During our time with the game, a team composed of gaming press took on the development team, and when it came time to claim a position, it seemed like a mad scramble to choose an offensive position.

Based on the character we had hastily created (a tall, hefty "play maker"), we quickly snapped up the left wing position, hoping to use our player as a passing expert who would make things happen in front of the net. It brought to mind the potential problems the "catch as catch can" nature of choosing your position might pose for regular EASHL fans. After all, there will be a certain segment of the NHL 09 fan base that looks to create and play defensemen (and a smaller segment that will be brave enough to live between the pipes as goalie). However, it seems that the more casual fan might want to only play in center or on the wings. Will we see lots of last-minute dropouts if players don't get the positions they want?

Regardless of this potential problem, you'll need to play whatever position you play carefully. As with the offline Be a Pro mode, NHL 09 will give you lots of feedback during the game on how you can improve your play on the ice, including a big blue arrow that will point out where you need to be if you get out of position, as well as handy (and often insightful) tips during intermission detailing what you did right or wrong in the previous period. If you're a shooter, you might be praised for taking lots of shots; if you're defenseman, you'll want to make sure you're laying plenty of hits on your opponent--or else you'll hear about it from the coach.

n our session against the EA developers, it was interesting to watch our team dynamic evolve during the course of the game. When the puck was dropped at the beginning of the game, it was like Pee Wee Hockey, with every player heading directly for the puck and virtually no positional play on the ice. Because we were all playing in the same room, our communication was a bit easier than it will be in the final game, where people will be talking (or more likely yelling) into headsets calling for the puck in their individual living rooms. However, as the game continued, each player got a better feel for what was required of him on the ice (thanks in no small part to the aforementioned feedback). In our case, we were able to make some nice passes, including one gorgeous two-on-one dump to our center that nearly resulted in a goal. We even managed to light the lamp on a handy one-timer in front of the net.

Sure, the EA devs were probably going easy on us--we won the game handily--but that didn't take away any of the pride we felt as we skated out onto the ice to accept the applause of crowd as the third star of the game. While the EASHL is just one in a full suite of features in NHL 09, it seems to be the one with the brightest future as the series progresses, and we look forward to following its progress. NHL 09 is scheduled for release on September 9; look for more on the game in the coming weeks.

Saints Row 2

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Fri, 1 Aug 2008 21:00:00 +0700

Publisher: THQ
Platform: Xbox 360
Developer: Volition Inc.
Genre: Modern Action Adventure
Release Date: Oct 14, 2008

The original Saints Row certainly didn't revolutionize the sandbox action genre, but in playing it safe, the game pulled off a successful imitation of the Grand Theft Auto formula while still managing to introduce a handful of novel features. Right from the get-go, players were introduced to an impressive and seemingly limitless palette of character customization options. It probably goes without saying that Volition will take that ability to obsessively mold your protagonist and carry it over to Saints Row 2, but now they've expanded the customization options to your entire gang. In addition to a few side missions, we recently took a glimpse at some of the ways you'll be able to design your ideal fraternity of criminals in Saints Row 2.

Once you've escaped from prison and recruited a few followers, you'll be given the option to tinker with your gang's overall appearance. The most noticeable change is in the gang's style. With this option, you can choose a visual theme for the followers you see roaming the streets--both lieutenants and thugs--from a pretty hefty list. Among the wardrobes we saw were those listed as '80s, Body Guards, Pimps n' Hos, and last but certainly not least, Ninjas. If you want your gang to look stern but classy, Body Guards might be the look for you. If you want an army of underdressed ladies hanging in your crib, Pimps n' Hos would be a safe bet. But if you're anything like us, you'll immediately choose the Ninja style and never look back.

With this option selected, all the thugs that belong to your gang will resemble stealth assassins of the night. So as not to stand out from your cronies, you can go into your own wardrobe and select your own ninja garb. If you really want to get into the spirit of things, you can also change your fighting style to the Ronin technique. This will change the look of your attacks to more of a nimble martial arts technique--as opposed to the street-tough look of your default character's punches. Thus, with our ninja cycle complete, we could move onto the other gang options.

These additional options include choosing an official gang taunt, graffiti tags, and the types of vehicles you're buddies will be driving. Gang taunts range from vulgar gestures (think everyone's favorite amateurish first-person shooter celebration) to comical Irish jigs. The graffiti tags are all authentic-looking designs, courtesy of one of Volition's concept artists, who we're told has a background in the tagging arts. And finally, the vehicle options let you choose the models, designs, and features of the cars you'll undoubtedly be stealing from your own comrades whenever you need a quick lift.

Once we had our gang done up to suitably absurd levels, it was time to test out a few of the game's side missions--or activities. We went with a pair of stronghold missions: goals where you need to find a rival gang's base and cause a huge ruckus. The first mission had us taking to the air in an attempt to destroy a rival gang's drug farm. Your character sits in a helicopter with an assault rifle in hand, and your goal is to blow up every last structure in the complex from on high. Once you get that done, it ends with you running down fleeing Cadillacs filled with armed thugs doing their best to make a successful escape from your rampaging ways. When successful, you're shown a newspaper clipping (Headline: "Hippies Mourn Loss of Drug Farm") that will adorn the walls of your crib. It's a wistful token of nostalgia, as well as a functional teleport, that gives you the ability to go back and replay that mission whenever you like.

The other stronghold mission we tried involved taking on a gang of a slightly higher stature. Rather than busting up a field of hallucinogenics, this one required plowing through a warehouse, stealing a large sum of money, as well as blowing up all their trucks and airplanes. The action itself feels similar to most third-person shooters, but a variety of guns and death animations help make things interesting. Most strategy requires knowing which weapon to use and when to crouch behind cover to let your health regenerate. The tricky part was the second stage of the mission, where you exit the warehouse and find yourself on an airport tarmac. Thugs are shooting at you from all over, but with the handy aid of a satchel charge and rocket launcher, you can take them and their vehicles out with enough effort.

The demo we played was on the PlayStation 3, which gave us our first opportunity to see how the Sixaxis controls work. We tested this functionality on a racing activity, which was a time trial where you need to race through the sewers on a jet ski. The motion controls were a bit more fidgety than we would have liked, but they became easier to deal with as we progressed from the confines of the sewer to the wide-open ocean. At the very least, the Sixaxis controls are purely optional because you can turn them off whenever you like.

Minor control issues aside, Saints Row 2 is looking like a worthy follow-up to its well-received predecessor. It may not be the towering artistic achievement that Grand Theft Auto IV turned out to be, but with even more features added to a game that already boasted lots of hidden surprises, the city of Stilwater should offer plenty to see. You can expect to see the game released on October 14.

NBA Live 09

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Fri, 1 Aug 2008 20:56:00 +0700

Publisher: EA Sports
Platform: Xbox 360
Developer: EA Sports
Genre: Basketball Sim
Release Date: Oct 7, 2008

While EA Sports' upcoming NBA Live 09 is going to be full of new features, the recently announced Dynamic DNA feature seems to be the big one on the list, if only judged by the developer's recent press events. The new feature--which keeps the virtual players in the game playing just like their real-life counterparts thanks to complex scouting data and downloadable updates for the game--was first introduced at E3 2008 during EA's press conference. Yesterday, EA threw its annual summer press event, where once again NBA Live 09 and Dynamic DNA took center stage, and we had a chance to play the game to see how the feature is coming along.

Along with presenting five real-life NBA stars (Andre Iguodala, Rudy Gay, Brandon Roy, Andrea Bargnani, and Live 09 cover athlete Tony Parker), on hand to check out the game, record some motion capture, and chat with the media, EA once again gave a quick presentation of the DNA feature, which looks to capture the real-life tendencies of both individual players and entire teams. Players are broken down not just by their hot spots on the floor, but by their tendency to move left or right on a defender at any spot on the court, as well as their propensity to shoot.

In addition, the DNA data will record what kind of play a particular player prefers to run--everything from isolation, to pick and roll, to off-ball screens. Combine all these tendencies and you'll have a pretty complete picture of how a player competes. For example, in NBA Live 09, Tony Parker is noted as a pick and roll ball handler, one who rarely shoots from outside, instead preferring to shoot from the left side of the baseline and who likes to move left at the top of the key. Like Parker, Brandon Roy's DNA pegs him as a pick and roll ball handler; unlike Tony, however, Roy is more dangerous on the right side of the baseline, but is liable to go left or right on a defender when playing on the left side of the hoop down low.

What does this kind of information do for you as a player of NBA Live 09? Well, perhaps most obviously, careful study of a team's players will let you better understand how to be effective with them. There's no point in trying to take three-point shots with Iguodala on the right side--he's pretty ineffective there. However, he's got a hot spot beyond the three-point line on the right that you can exploit. Understanding your team will help you better call smarter plays on the court. If you know Brandon Roy likes to run the pick and roll, you can get him in position to make the most of his talent.

For the truly serious, the DNA feature will be an ideal way to scout opponent teams controlled by the Live 09 AI. After all, unlike a human opponent (especially a skilled one), who can't be as easily predicted, the Live 09 AI players will play as their tendencies compel them. So if you've got a crucial division game with a playoff spot on the line, a little time scouting your opponent's tendencies is time well spent.

In terms of gameplay, NBA Live 09 feels much like the Live you've come to be used to. Live 09 is still not a very fast game, and players don't always get downcourt as quickly as you might expect them to. In addition, the ball still tends to feel a bit floaty at times, especially during long passes that don't always go in the direction you might have intended (if you're not familiar with it yet, you'll do well to acclimate to icon passing as soon as possible). You can see the work the development team has put into branching animations in the game--it's now easier to interrupt animations, such as passing out of an ill-advised shot attempt--and while there's still more work to be done, development is indeed progressing.

Live 09 also has some new control wrinkles to note. First is a new free throw mechanic. The last few games in the series have used the right stick for free throws. That's been replaced this year with button shooting. When you take your free throw, a small horizontal meter appears on the backboard. To start your shot, hold down the shoot button. The meter begins to move left to right and, to make your shot, you have to let go of the shoot button when the meter reaches the green zone. Depending on a player's shooting ability, that green zone will be smaller or larger. To add to the challenge, your multiplayer opponent can choose to rattle you by "buzzing" your controller with the rumble feature. We're not 100 percent sold on the new system--free throws seem more automatic for real NBA players (Shaq excluded) than they are in the game--but at the very least it seems a bit better than the old system. Another new shooting wrinkle is the return of timed shooting; you now need to release the shot button at the top of a player's arc to maximize your chance of making a shot.

You can call plays by pressing the left bumper and choosing the play you wish to run from a pop-up menu that appears. A faster play call option is the Y button (on the Xbox 360 controller); pressing it will automatically call the "best" play for that situation based on your team's DNA data. You can also bring up a player's hot zones by clicking on the left stick (though we wish the information would come up a bit quicker than it did in the version we played; the slight lag between the press of the button and the appearance of the hot zones was frustrating).

After a game is done, you'll get a complete breakdown of your player stats, as well as a thorough DNA report of every player on the floor--though it occurs to us that this is really a breakdown of how you played the game, not necessarily a reflection of the actual player's tendencies. Then again, learning your own tendencies probably isn't all that bad a thing, especially if it makes you a better player in the end.

We've seen a lot of the Dynamic DNA feature and, while it seems like a neat addition to the series, we're ready to see what the rest of the game has to offer. After all, NBA Live 09 will also feature a hoops version of the suddenly ubiquitous Be a Pro mode; and we hope to see how the online play has progressed since last year's promising postrelease addition of online team play. Stay tuned for more on these and other features as we continue to follow NBA Live 09's progress in the coming weeks.

Soulcalibur IV

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 17:13:00 +0700

Publisher: Namco Bandai Games
Platform: Xbox 360
Developer: Project Soul
Genre: 3D Fighting
Release Date: Jul 29, 2008

When Soul Calibur was released for the Dreamcast in 1999, it set a new standard for fighting games on home consoles. Subsequent entries in the series have changed very little as far as the weapon-based fighting mechanics are concerned, and have introduced new features and gameplay modes with varying success. Soulcalibur IV is no different in that respect; the series-first online play is a great addition, but though the visuals have improved and the gameplay has undoubtedly evolved, it still feels very familiar. And that's no bad thing.

The majority of the characters on Soulcalibur IV's roster will also be familiar if you're a fan of the series, though only around half of the 30-plus combatants are available at the outset, including Yoda on the Xbox 360 and Darth Vader on the PlayStation 3. Others are unlocked by defeating them in the single-player Story and Arcade modes, and by purchasing them with the gold that you're awarded for winning fights. There's more than enough variety on the roster to ensure that you can enjoy playing as at least a handful of different characters, and a robust customization system gives you the freedom both to edit their appearances and to create your own fighters from scratch.

Regardless of who you play as, Soulcalibur IV is accessible enough that even first-time players will have no trouble performing some powerful and great-looking moves. Rather than memorizing lengthy combo attacks and knowing how to attack your opponent, the challenge here comes from knowing when to attack, when to block, and when to sidestep around the arena. That's not to say that the combatants in Soulcalibur IV don't have impressively large repertoires of moves, because they do, it's just that very few of them are tough to pull off.

Your goal in Soulcalibur IV, of course, is to defeat your opponent by depleting his or her health bar. Alternately, you can win by knocking your opponent out of the "ring," which is possible in almost all of the game's beautifully realized arenas. New to the series--though reminiscent of a feature in 1997's Soul Blade--is the soul-gauge system, which appears alongside the health bar and changes color if you spend too much of your time blocking attacks and not retaliating with your own. When the gauge turns red and your health bar starts flashing, you're just an attack or two away from entering a defenseless "soul crush" state, at which point your opponent can perform a one-hit-kill critical-finish move. It takes a long time for that to happen, so the soul gauge isn't always an effective deterrent as far as overly defensive players are concerned, but it at least discourages online players from trying to score cheap victories simply by landing a couple of blows and then blocking until the time runs out.

Online play is where Soulcalibur IV really shines, though there aren't many different modes of play available. The action is fast-paced and free of lag for the most part, though if you have a slow Internet connection, you might find that your character takes a split-second longer to respond to your inputs than you're used to, which can prove fatal against a skilled opponent. You can choose to play ranked battles online against random opponents or join up to three other players in an unranked lobby, in which the winner of each round gets to stay in the fight as spectators get their turn in the ring. Both Arcade and Special modes of play are available online, the difference being that in Special mode all of the characters' move lists are augmented by special skills bestowed on them in part by weapon and clothing choices. Disappointingly absent from Soulcalibur IV, both online and offline, is an option to pit teams of fighters against one another. Team battles have appeared in the series previously, and given that the tagging mechanic is present in the single-player Tower of Lost Souls mode, its omission is baffling.

Considering that Arcade mode does nothing new and Story mode is really short and text-heavy, the new Tower of Lost Souls mode is where you'll find the majority of Soulcalibur IV's compelling single-player content. Taking control of one to three fighters, you must ascend (and later descend) the tower one floor at a time by defeating multiple groups of enemies without ever having your health replenished. Variety comes courtesy of opponents with carefully tailored skill sets, as well as battle-specific challenges that can be completed to unlock treasure chests containing new armor and weapons. For example, you might have to defeat three fighters who all have the ability to leech health from you, or who are impossible to force out of the ring. Optional challenges during these fights can be completed by meeting very specific conditions, such as landing the final blow as the timer ticks down to zero, performing four or more counter hits, or for defeating all opponents by knocking them out of the ring. As you ascend the tower, the difficulty level can ramp up pretty quickly, and you might find that you have to revisit the character-customization mode to prepare your chosen combatant for certain challenges.

How you go about customizing or creating a character for Soulcalibur IV depends on the use that you have in mind for the character. For Arcade mode, the only thing you need to concern yourself with is how your character looks, and you'll find that the number of armor pieces and weapons available for you to choose from increases quite dramatically as you spend time playing. For other modes, you'll have to consider the pros and cons of everything that you equip, even if that means ending up with a character who looks like he or she has just stepped out of a medieval thrift store. That's because just about every item has an impact, not only on your basic attack, defense, and health attributes, but also on the distribution of skill points, which fall into five distinct categories labeled power, impact, boost, gauge, and special. For example, equipping an executioner's breastplate will give you 30 power skill points to spend and will boost your attack and defense attributes, but at the expense of health points. There are dozens of items to choose from, and they're balanced so that it's possible for you to make more specialized fighters but not to gain an unfair advantage. Even skills such as temporary invisibility, unblockable attacks, and health recovery--which on paper sound like they'd break the game--are kept in check because to get any real benefit from them you have to forgo spending skill points in other areas. It's worth mentioning that more powerful (and costly) skills can be used only if you've played your character enough to reach a certain "style level," but reaching the level-nine cap doesn't take very long.

Style is something that Soulcalibur IV certainly has no shortage of. The nicely detailed character models look even better when the flamboyant animation kicks in, and the sheer variety that's on show in the arena locales can't fail to impress. The orchestral soundtrack ends up feeling a little too epic for its own good in places, but that's largely because it's paired with cheesy character dialog and an announcer who delivers his melodramatic lines without even a hint of irony. Fortunately, this isn't a game that's ever in danger of taking itself too seriously, as evidenced by the presence of Star Wars characters, animal costumes, novelty weapons, and plenty of amusing arena details.

Perhaps the most amusing, or at least laughable feature of Soulcalibur IV is that Yoda, Vader, and The Apprentice from LucasArts' upcoming Force Unleashed game all have stories that attempt to explain their sudden presence in the Soulcalibur universe. In terms of gameplay, none of the aforementioned fighters from a galaxy far, far away are a great fit with the rest of the roster, but they're certainly not so far removed that they ruin the game or anything like that. Some Force powers aside, Vader actually isn't radically different from some of the other members of the cast. The Apprentice uses the force a lot more liberally and, at least until you figure out how to fight against him, he can feel like a really cheap opponent when he throws lightning bolts and even his lightsaber across the screen at you. Given his diminutive stature, it's no surprise that Yoda feels very different from any other character in the game. He's impossible to throw and, considering that he spends most of his time jumping around very acrobatically, he can also be tough to hit. He doesn't use the Force a lot, though, and he moves around the arena relatively slowly, so he's not so much overpowered as just tricky.

The fact that Yoda and Vader are exclusive to the 360 and the PS3 respectively is easily the most pronounced difference between the two versions, but given that both games have an empty box on the Star Wars row of the character-select screen, it seems reasonable to assume that it'll no longer be an issue once downloadable content starts coming. The only other noteworthy difference between the two games is that the PS3 version offers an optional install to make the load times between fights shorter. Depending on how seriously you take your fighting games, the controllers that you use to play Soulcalibur IV might also be a consideration The PS3 controller's D pad is superior to the Xbox 360's on this occasion, but the latter's analog sticks fare a lot better. The question, then, isn't whether or not you should play Soulcalibur IV, it's which version you should play.

Out of the Park Baseball 9

hendra.sip@gmail.com (hendra) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 16:29:00 +0700

Publisher: Out Of The Park Developments
Platform: PC
Developer: Out Of The Park
Genre: Baseball Management
Release Date: Jun 1, 2008

Game Information
Offline Modes: Competitive
Online Modes: Competitive
Number of Players: 1-32
Number of Online Players: 32 Online
Minimum System Requirements
System: Pentium III 800 MHz or equivalent
RAM: 512 MB
Hard Drive Space: 600 MB

For a game franchise in transition, Out of the Park Baseball 9 is incredibly well polished. The baseball management simulation series from one-man development team Markus Heinsohn may have just gone through a couple of tumultuous years due to being acquired and then dropped by the U.K. soccer-game masterminds at Sports Interactive, but you would never know it by the latest addition to the family. This edition of the game might just be the best yet, thanks to quicker sim times, the addition of major league players, and some small refinements that improve the interface. It remains a little too hardcore and stat-heavy for anyone who doesn't have aspirations to be the next Bill James, although the game is nearly perfect for bleacher creatures who have noggins for numbers.

Statisticphobes shouldn't be scared off, though. While you need an affinity for baseball stats to really appreciate the game, the core of the game is all about indulging your inner Steinbrenner and taking total control over the operations of a big-league baseball franchise. You oversee everything from the top down: signing free agents, trading clubhouse troublemakers out of town, inking stars to contract extensions, setting the daily lineups, organizing the starting pitching rotation/bullpen assignments, promoting/demoting players in the minors, and even deciding on an average ticket price. Seasons progress in a turn-based manner, and you can manually sim each game as the dugout bench boss, auto-sim one day at a time, or go for a big-picture approach by simming through whole weeks and months in big chunks. Leagues are just about unlimited in scope. You can play solo running one team, take over all the teams in Commissioner mode, or get into an online league to take on other Branch Rickey wannabes (the multiplayer support is outstanding). Historical database support and downloadable mods that add the entire major leagues from any point in their history let you start a baseball universe at any time from the formation of the National League in 1871 to present day. You can then continue for unlimited decades, moving through authentic league expansion, team movement, and whatever else baseball has grown through over the years.

Attention to detail is incredible, which results in an authentic major league baseball feel. Although the game is mostly text-based, with little visual pizzazz aside from player photos and the big-league ballpark depicted on the simulation screen, the atmosphere is so lifelike that you can almost hear the hotdog vendors. Dozens of stat categories are tracked for each player. So you better have a good idea what ERA, OPS, and WHIP stand for before making a challenge for the pennant. However, there is also a strong human element. Players are given role-playing-game-like ratings that involve such personality traits as mood, loyalty, leadership, greed, desire to play for a winner, and so on that affect on-field performance, as well as come into play whenever you talk contracts. Negotiations are about more than number-crunching because you often wind up with pouting wannabes demanding trades if they're riding the pine too often, happy superstars taking hometown discounts on contract extensions, and free agents who simply won't listen to your offers because they don't want to play for your organization. All of these preferences are communicated in plain old English, too, which makes it seem like you're dealing with real people--not just names and numbers. It might not seem like a big deal, but having A-Rod comment on your smooth negotiation skills while giving him a $120 million extension makes all the difference between playing virtual accounting with baseball stats and feeling like you're actually running a big-league franchise.

But with all that said, there isn't a whole lot in OOTP9 that is completely new. Although this is a more refined, more complete version of the game than its OOTP 2007 predecessor, it doesn't bring any showstopping new features to the table. Streamlining is really the big focus of the design. Gone is the cumbersome Sports Interactive scouting system with scouts all over the world, replaced by a single head scout who does everything. There's also an animated baseball on the game-sim screen so you can watch plays develop. The biggest improvement is probably the simulation speed, which has been dramatically ramped up across the board without any loss in realism. You can now rip through a full season in under half an hour of straight simming and even zip through a year in no more than a couple of hours as a more hands-on manager simming one week at a time. This is a huge plus when compared to the last two OOTP games and arguably worth the price of the new game all by itself. Only an occasional stutter remains to slow you down, such as the near eternity it takes to load up the player award voting screen at the end of a season.

Built-in major league rosters are the other top selling point because previous OOTP games only came with fictional players. Being able to send real contemporary MLB stars, such as Magglio Ordonez, Roy Halladay, and Derek Jeter, onto the diamond is a much more attractive option than having to deal with a bunch of anonymous Joe Sixpacks. But these rosters do need to be tweaked somewhat. Bizarrely poor performances from some of the best in the game are too common. In a year as the Yankees, for example, A-Rod hit just .243 and counted a measly 30 homers (his lowest since 1997), while 2007 19-game winner Chien-Ming Wang finished 6-10 with a 5.51 ERA. Most players are pretty much dead-on, although this quirkiness is pronounced enough to apparently produce some weird contracts. Bona fide big-money superstars sometimes settle for ridiculously low deals, while average Joes wind up making huge bucks. So the Yankees can cheap out when re-upping Hall of Fame closer Mariano Rivera for $3 million a year on a three-year pact (although maybe this was just a huge hometown discount for a longtime Yankee who didn't want to leave town), yet a light-hitting infielder like Chone Figgins somehow gets the Anaheim Angels to give him $10 million a season for three years.

Computer GMs will also lay down big money on past-it stars like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens. In the first season we simmed, Bonds somehow got a three-year-deal worth $7.7 million a year from the Cincinnati Reds. Priorities seem to be skewed toward these established diamond dogs as well. While teams are making outrageous deals for washed-up old guys in their 40s, they're also dropping five-star prospects in their early 20s for no reason whatsoever. If you keep an eye on the waiver wire, you'll eventually scoop up enough talent to fill out a pitching staff. In our first season, the Yankees managed to put together the best middle relief in baseball due solely to a pair of killer young waiver pick-ups and score a 21-year-old four-and-a-half star starting pitcher who tore up AA ball.

At least the fictional and historical leagues aren't burdened with this sort of baggage. Starting with completely made-up rosters or going back to a past season seems to result in remarkably accurate player performances based on their skills and stats--whether you're playing on your own or in an online league. This is particularly noticeable if you go back to the 19th century--or the dead ball era--or even the offensively challenged years before the DH was introduced and the mound lowered. Now you can really see how different the game was back then, in terms of such key factors as greater pitcher endurance and fewer runs scored.

In a lot of ways, the above criticisms can be set aside as nitpicky. OOTP9 is a superb game--the closest thing we've got to major league baseball in a box. A few wrinkles need to be ironed out and owners of the previous game in the series might be a bit disappointed by the absence of prominent new features, but there is no doubt that this is the best baseball management sim out there for serious followers of the national pastime.