PC Game News

Atari has announced that "Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir" has gone gold and will launch worldwide in November.

"Developed by world-renowned studio Obsidian Entertainment, the second expansion pack for the acclaimed Neverwinter Nights 2 delivers thrilling original D&D® adventures made even more exciting by a host of new gameplay features.

Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir builds on the strong tradition of Dungeons & Dragons computer games by marrying old-school concepts like full party customization and dungeon crawling with new innovations, such as a fully 3D Overland Map feature which allows for free exploration of the non-linear game world. The gripping storyline foreshadows the events that devastate the land of the Forgotten Realms in the Fourth Edition of the Dungeons & Dragons Role-Playing Game, released in June 2008.

The Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir Overland Map feature lets players explore the Chultan Peninsula and Sword Coast in a way never before possible in any Neverwinter Nights game. Players will explore well-known locations, like Neverwinter and Crossroad Keep, alongside lesser travelled areas, such as the xenophobic jungle nation of Samarach. Vicious monsters and groups of bandits populate the Overland Map, and the farther from civilization the player roams, the more difficult the encounters become.

The 20 to 30-hour campaign in Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir introduces new classes, including the fearsome Hellfire Warlock and the daring Swashbuckler, as well as brand-new spells, creatures, and playable races. Fans of the compelling multiplayer features of Neverwinter Nights 2 will be able to play through Storm of Zehir’s campaign in the online cooperative mode, while modders can use the included editor to create their own campaigns and Overland Maps to share online.

Game Features:

• Travel the Sword Coast and Samarach with the open-ended exploration of the new Overland Map. Use skills like Spot, Survival, and Hide to avoid ambushes and even find hidden locales and lost artifacts.
• Create your own full party of adventurers. Devastate your foes with a squad of fireball-flinging Sorcerers, form a solid wall of steel with a party of Fighters, or strike the perfect balance in your party by spreading out the classes you choose for your characters.
• Improved party gameplay with a sophisticated party conversation system, full party creation, and Teamwork Benefits.

Atari is committed to the continued success of the Neverwinter Nights series. The work that Obsidian has done in creating Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir is a result of listening to the fan community, working to deliver on their requests and constantly improving the experience.

More information about Neverwinter Nights 2 and access to the Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir site can be found at www.nwn2.com where visitors are encouraged to become part of the highly active Neverwinter Nights community and contribute their feedback."

Valve has released a new "Left 4 Dead" ad that will be airing on network and cable television. It seems appropriate with halloween right around the corner.

"As part of the $10 million marketing campaign for its upcoming Xbox 360 and PC thriller, Left 4 Dead, Valve is airing a pair of television commercials on network and cable television. Created with footage from the game’s opening sequence, the L4D TV campaign begins on November 8. The full intro sequence will be available for public preview in the coming days."

CD Projekt RED has announced that more than one million copies of "The Witcher" have been sold.

"The news comes just weeks after the release of The Witcher: Enhanced Edition, which was developed based on fan feedback to further improve the game that was named PC RPG of the Year by IGN, GameSpy, PC Gamer, Play and many more. The studio spent close to a year improving various facets of the game to deliver the ultimate role-playing game, then released the update for free to existing fans and loaded the retail package with extra value to encourage retail sales. As always, it seems that the customer is always right, as the Enhanced Edition is getting higher review scores than the original across the globe.

“We created The Witcher with the intent of becoming an acclaimed and successful development studio that always made games for its fans; we spent more than $11 million developing The Witcher and the Enhanced Edition, and it sure is nice to make some of that money back!” said Adam Kicinski, CEO of CD Projekt RED. “The success of The Witcher has ensured that we’ll be able to make the games we want – and the games that fans want – for the foreseeable future, and the amazing response we had from the gaming community to the Enhanced Edition really reinforced that we’re on the right track with our development philosophy. We really couldn’t have achieved this sort of success without the support of our amazing fans.”

“This is really just the beginning for us,” said Michal Kicinski, co-founder of CD Projekt. “There are a lot more places to explore in the world of The Witcher and there’s obviously a huge audience out there that would still love to see the game on consoles… we’re PC developers first and foremost, but you never know! We’ve already unveiled our DRM-free classic-games distribution site at GOG.com, and we intend to build that site aggressively in the coming months. We’re also rather close to breaking our silence about the multi-platform project underway at Metropolis Software, in which we recently acquired a majority stake. Needless to say, we’re very excited about the future and we think gamers will be, too!”

A video celebrating The Witcher’s anniversary, featuring footage of unannounced upcoming titles was released earlier today at GameTrailers.com (HD version at https://www.gametrailers.com/player/42116.html). For more information about The Witcher visit https://www.thewitcher.com."

Every gamer’s favorite lawyer has been officially disbarred according to The Florida Bar website. This means that "John Bruce Thomson" is no longer eligible to practice in the state of Florida and this will likely destroy his chances of practicing elsewhere.

Jack is, of course, known in the gaming community as a lawyer who would continually show up in the news media in his campaign against video game violence. Usually, he would blame games for crimes committed by juveniles. He is known for blaming games such as "Counter-Strike," "Halo," "Grand Theft Auto," "Bully," and several other popular games, often stating that a killer had "trained" on a game.

The great majority of gamers, including the 2404 staff, believe that Jack’s campaign was a severe mistake and an attack on free speech. The 2404 staff doesn’t condone excessive violence but on the other hand, we don’t believe in censorship either. We play games as an escape from reality, to experience things that we never would in life, and most importantly, to have fun. We hope that someone else doesn’t come along to fill his shoes but given the fact that the mainstream news media loves to use video games as a scapegoat, this probably won’t be the end of an attack on the art form that we enjoy.

The list of new PC game releases, DVD releases, and movies opening the week of October 27th, 2008.

PC Games:

• Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
• Fallout 3

Movies Opening This Week:

• Splinter (limited)
• The Haunting of Molly Hartley
• The Other End of the Line (limited)
• Zack and Miri Make a Porno

DVD Releases:

• Affairs of the Heart: Series 1
• Agatha Christie: Mystery Lover’s Collection
• Annie Leibovitz: Life Through a Lens
• Baraka [Blu-ray]
• Beat the Devil [Blu-ray]
• Between the Line: Sara Bareilles Live at the Fillmore 
• Bizet – Carmen
• Boston Celtics – 2007-2008 NBA Champions Special Edition
• Celtic Woman – The Greatest Journey: Essential Collection
• Dale Jr.: Shifting Gears
• Dead Space: Downfall [Blu-ray] + Digital Copy
• Death Defying Acts
• Elf [Blu-ray]
• Elite Squad
• Girlfriends: The Fifth Season
• Good Times – The Complete Series
• Hell Ride
• Inside Bob Dylan’s Jesus Years: Busy Being Born… Again!
• Introduction to the Nikon D300 & D700 vol. 2 : Advanced Topics
• Jack and the Beanstalk [Blu-ray]
• Jewel: The Essential Live Songbook [Blu-ray]
• Kit Kittredge – An American Girl
• Michigan vs. Ohio State: The Rivalry
• Mother and Son: Season 2
• Mystery Science Theater 3000: 20th Anniversary Edition [Limited Edition]
• Newsradio: The Complete Series
• NFL: Dallas Cowboys 10 Greatest Games
• One California Day
• Ouran High School Host Club: Season 1, Part 1
• Prince and Me 3: A Royal Honeymoon
• Run for Your Life
• Runnin’ Down a Dream
• Sanford and Son – The Complete Series
• Steve Harvey: Still Trippin’
• The Berenstain Bears: Christmas Tree
• The Catherine Tate Show: Christmas Special
• The Flintstones: The Complete Series
• The L-Word: The Complete Fifth Season
• The Polar Express Presented in 3-D [Blu-ray]
• Ultimate Fighting Championship, Vol. 86: Rampage Jackson vs Forrest Griffin
• War and Remembrance: The Complete Epic Mini-Series
• Widespread Panic- Live from Austin, TX

Paradox Interactive has announced "Supreme Ruler 2020: Global Crisis," a new expansion for the geo-political strategy game by Battlegoat Studios.

"This is the first time we’ve developed an expansion pack and we wanted to ensure that we had significant new content for our dedicated players to enjoy," remarked David Thompson, BattleGoat’s Lead Designer and Co-Founder.

"At the core of the expansion pack, we created a whole new sandbox style campaign that paints a new and far more intricate portrayal of the world of 2020 based on many of the ominous events from recent real-world headlines. Anyone who’s played our game knows that the possibilities to change the underlying storyline for new play experiences are limitless.  There’s always something going on in the world, thanks to human nature, that can easily escalate into a conflict."

"In addition to this expanded game play element, Global Crisis includes many new features:

• 20 new scenarios which more than doubles the number of scenarios that originally shipped with the game
• Additional new multiplayer scenarios
• New campaign/sandbox map along a new storyline leading players towards World War III
• New scenario features including scripted and random events
• Improved unit control and grouping
• Expanded tech tree
• New units and unit meshes
• Additional game lobby options
• Graphic improvements
• AI enhancements
• More tutorials and in-game tips
• User interface improvements

Global Crisis is scheduled for a digital download release via GamersGate during the latter half of Q4, 2008 and will require Supreme Ruler 2020 to play.  Supreme Ruler 2020 was released in June 2008."

Valve has announced that customers who pre-order "Left 4 Dead" will get access to a demo next Thursday, November 6th. This will be a week earlier than the public demo, which will be released on November 11th.

"Left 4 Dead is the new survival action game from Valve that blends the social entertainment experience of multiplayer games such as Counter-Strike and Team Fortress with the dramatic, narrative experience made popular in single player action game classics such as the Half-Life series of games.

Early access to the demo begins Thursday, November 6 on both the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PC. This pre-order promotion applies to all Steam PC pre-orders and all Xbox 360 and Windows-based PC pre-orders from participating retailers in North America. The demo will feature single player and co-operative modes, supporting 1 to 4 player games.

On November 11 the demo will be made available to all Xbox 360 and PC and gamers, with no obligation to purchase. The demo concludes on November 18, when Left 4 Dead will be made available at retail outlets across North America and worldwide via Steam.

This pre-order promotion is scheduled in concert with the previously announced $10 million consumer launch campaign that spans television, outdoor, print, and online advertising.
“Every time someone plays Left 4 Dead, we witness the most overwhelmingly positive reaction that we’ve seen from any of our games,” said Gabe Newell, president and co-founder of Valve. “This gives us tremendous confidence in the product and why we’ve taken the game on the road, produced this pre-launch demo, and invested more advertising dollars on the title than any prior release from Valve.”

Playable in single player, co-operative, and multiplayer modes, Left 4 Dead is one of the most anticipated releases of 2008 and winner of numerous pre-launch awards, including Best of E3 from multiple outlets.

For more information, please visit L4D.com or www.steamgames.com"

Electronic Arts has announced that "Command & Conquer Red Alert 3" has been shipped to retail stores worldwide and will be available in North America and Europe on the 30th.

"Poised to be one of the best strategy games of 2008, Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 blends the over-the-top humor the series is known for with exciting new real-time strategy innovations. With three fully co-operative, story driven-campaigns, and an unprecedented emphasis on naval gameplay, the game will delight fans and strategy novices alike. Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 also features the Command & Conquer franchise’s trademark live-action movie sequences starring one of the largest and most talented casts in the history of video games, including Gemma Atkinson, Gina Carano, Randy Couture, Tim Curry, Kelly Hu, Jenny McCarthy, Jonathan Pryce, Autumn Reeser, J.K. Simmons, Peter Stormare, and George Takei.

“Our team is made up of huge Command & Conquer fans who have been dying to bring back Red Alert and gamers are going to see that passion shine through loud-and-clear in Red Alert 3,” said Chris Corry, executive producer at EA Los Angeles. “Our goal was to strike a balance between being true to our roots – that unique, light-hearted tone and fast-paced Red Alert gameplay – and bringing a feast of exciting new RTS innovations to the table. The deep story, the star-studded cinematics? That feels like Red Alert. But bringing naval gameplay into the heart of the game design and launching the player into an ambitious and engaging co-op campaign? Gamers have never seen anything like this before.”

Like all games in the series, the events of Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 revolve around time travel and its consequences. The game begins with a doomed Soviet Union on the brink of defeat to the Allies. Two desperate Soviet generals and a brilliant scientist travel back in time to change history and restore the glory of Mother Russia. At first their mission appears to be a resounding success, but they quickly realize that their actions have created an alternate timeline where technology has followed an entirely different evolution, and a new superpower has been thrust onto the world stage – The Empire of the Rising Sun. Gamers will get to experience the three-way struggle between the Soviets, the Allies, and the Empire from each faction’s unique perspective, following three distinct storylines and with each campaign being fully enabled for co-operative play, connecting with a friend online** or with one of nine different in-game co-commanders. The game also features skirmish and multiplayer for up to six players.

Each copy of Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 contains a free “Women of Red Alert 3” poster and a code for Kossar’s Helm, an exclusive item for Mythic Entertainment’s Warhammer® Online: Age of Reckoning™. The Soviet hat gives gamers the ability to turn their WAR characters into a bear. Also available at launch is the Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 Premier Edition which contains exclusive multiplayer maps, a behind-the-scenes documentary on the making of the live-action cinematics, the Red Alert 3 soundtrack and an exclusive beta key to a future Command & Conquer game.

Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 has been rated ‘T’ for Teen by the ESRB and ‘16+’ by PEGI. For more information about the game, please visit www.redalert3.com and tune into Command & Conquer TV, the online network dedicated to all things Command & Conquer at www.commandandconquer.com."

There hasn’t been an official press release but "Fallout 3" has been shipped and is now available in North American retail stores, on Steam, and on Direct2Drive. The game was available at some stores at midnight last night.

"Vault-Tec engineers have worked around the clock on an interactive reproduction of Wasteland life for you to enjoy from the comfort of your own vault. Included is an expansive world, unique combat, shockingly realistic visuals, tons of player choice, and an incredible cast of dynamic characters. Every minute is a fight for survival against the terrors of the outside world – radiation, Super Mutants, and hostile mutated creatures. From Vault-Tec®, America’s First Choice in Post Nuclear Simulation™."

There doesn’t seem to be a lot of news today with the exception of this "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3" launch trailer.

"Red Alert 3 asks the question "What If?" What if every bizarre research project and technology experiment for the last 70 years had actually borne fruit? What if the Philadelphia Experiment, time travel theory, teleportation, invisibility, Tesla technology, and a hundred other intriguing research projects had all paid off and gone mainstream? What if the Soviet Union survived and thrived; what would it look like 10 years in the future? What if the Japanese Empire had never fallen and instead became the ultimate high-tech military superpower? The end result is an imaginative and playful vision of an alternate future filled with possibility."

Introversion has released a "Multiwinia" multiplayer demo, giving players a chance to try out the recent strategy sequel.

"Last month we released our fourth fantastic stand-alone PC title Multiwinia: Survival of the Flattest. A retro-arcade multiplayer extravaganza, set in the gorgeously pixellated Darwinia universe with hours of guaranteed gameplay, 49 beautifully unique maps and fantastic reviews from the crème-de-la-crème of gaming press, Multiwinia seemed a sure-fire success.

One big problem. The demo did not contain multiplayer.

Whilst it may be great to crush the AI bots in one fell swoop, nothing beats the guaranteed fun of Multiwinia multiplayer which is why we have been working round the clock to create a Multiwinia demo that gives players more, much more.

The new demo provides a fantastic online multiplayer experience with the available demo maps and also allows demo players to join full games when hosted by a fully paid up player over a LAN.  That’s not all – the demo also now contains an extra mode from the full game called Rocket Riot!

Players can now bask in the glory as their 1000-sprite army marches towards an opponent’s vulnerably defended statue, or look on in horror as their enemy retaliates with a 10-tonne killer airstrike on their one remaining spawn point.

To celebrate this great new demo release, Multiwinia is now available on Steam for a special price of $9.99 and for this weekend only Darwinia comes free with any Multiwinia purchase!

For more information about Multiwinia, and for links to the new demo, please head to www.multiwinia.com."

Valve has announced that Steam users can now pre-purchase Bethesda’s highly anticipated "Fallout 3" on its Steam platform.

"Fallout 3 features one of the most realized game worlds ever created. Set more than 200 years following a nuclear war, you can create any kind of character you want and explore the open wastes of Washington, D.C however you choose. Every minute is a fight for survival as you encounter Super Mutants, Ghouls, Raiders, and other dangers of the Wasteland.
           
"Fallout 3 is one of the most important PC launches of 2008," said Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve. "Last year, we were able to deliver major releases such as Bioshock and Call of Duty 4 to the millions of gamers connected to Steam. With Fallout 3 added to the line up of great titles coming to Steam, this year promises to be an even better holiday season for Steam gamers."
 
Hailed as one of the most anticipated games for 2008, Fallout 3 has already won numerous awards including Best of Show from the official Game Critics Awards at E3 2008 and a perfect 10 out of 10 from Official Xbox Magazine.
 
 "We’ve heard from everyone already using Steam that it is a fantastic online platform for delivering PC games," said Vlatko Andonov, president of Bethesda Softworks. "In addition to the leading edge service, the platform also exposes the game to millions of targeted gamers."
 
Fallout® 3 will become available on October 28 in North America. Fallout 3 has been rated Mature by the ESRB.  For more information on Fallout 3, visit https://fallout.bethsoft.com and www.prepareforthefuture.com.
 
For more information on Steam, please visit www.steamgames.com."

CDV Software Entertainment has announced that "Sacred 2: Fallen Angel" has gone gold and will be released for PCs in North America on November 11th, 2008.

"Sacred 2: Fallen Angel is an Action-RPG with a rich story that takes place in a giant, open-ended and seamless world. This world contains hundreds of dungeons, treacherous opponents and a variety of challenging quests. Intelligent enemies, steadily adapting in number and difficulty based on player progress, challenge players in heroic single- and multiplayer battles.

Sacred 2: Fallen Angel provides numerous unique items that can be gathered in this mystical world. A deep reward system further enables advancements in character, individual attributes and character-specific fighting styles, each designed to keep players returning to the world of Sacred 2: Fallen Angel to discover what is around the next bend. Drop-in styled cooperative multiplayer gameplay ensures players will enjoy the game alone or seamlessly with friends at any time. Five unique multiplayer modes round out the experience and offer a refreshing, first-class gaming experience in Sacred 2: Fallen Angel."

In an interview on Reuters on game sequels, Todd Howard states that gamers won’t have to wait another decade for the next Fallout sequel.

"Gamers have been waiting 10 years for Bethesda Softworks’ "Fallout 3," for PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

"I think it’s good for people to miss things," said Todd Howard, executive producer of the game. "Ten years between ‘Fallout’ is a bit long, but I think there’s this nostalgia factor."

Fans of the post-Apocalyptic game, set in Washington, D.C., won’t have to wait another decade for "Fallout 4." Howard said he believes three years is a good time frame between games."

You can read the entire article on Reuters.

Matrix Games and Strategy 3 Tactics have announced that "Close Combat: Wact am Rhein" has gone gold.

"Gamers will soon have the chance to enjoy the improved and expanded remake of this classic title complete with tons of new art, a new grand campaign, and much more!

David Heath, Director of Operations at Matrix Games, said “Newcomers to the renowned Close Combat series will no doubt find Wacht am Rhein wholly addicting and fun. The veterans of the series have even more to be excited about as the Strategy 3 Tactics team has added so much to the remake without changing the fantastic core gameplay.”

Based on Atomic Games’ award-winning Close Combat series, Close Combat: Wacht am Rhein brings together the classic top-down tactical gameplay from the original series and plenty of new features, expansions, and improvements! This remake based on Close Combat: Battle of the Bulge gives newcomers and veterans to the series alike a vastly improved and expanded version of the original experience. The Wacht am Rhein remake comes with a brand new Grand Campaign including a new strategic map with 64 gorgeous hand-drawn tactical maps, over 70 scenarios, tons of new interface and unit graphics, countless engine improvements, and much more!

In Close Combat: Wacht am Rhein, you take command of US or German forces and either retrace the last steps of Hitler’s army in one desperate attempt to turn the tide of the impending allied victory or ride to the rescue with General Patton and push back the German offensive to reclaim Bastogne.

Also included is a bonus “classic” version of the original Close Combat IV."