Gamernode: Latest PC News

MS: Windows Live marketplace, GFW fees cut

First discussed a few months back, Microsoft announced today that a Windows Live marketplace, similar to the Xbox Live marketplace, will launch this fall. In addition, all associated subscription fees for its Games for Windows Live Gold service have been permanently removed.

Once the Windows Live marketplace launches this fall, the Games for Windows Live service will be redesigned, namely the system's user interface to properly accomodate the PC crowd. Chris Satchell, Microsoft's Entertainment Business Division CTO, talked about why that change was necessary.

"The first UI was good but it was too console-centric. It wasn't really what Windows gamers wanted. We have a new UI that's consistent with the way Windows gamers want to interact. It's free to you as a developer, and we're reducing the...

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Wrath of the Lich King goes Beta...productivity pl...

The productivity of a few thousand people just took a nose dive. Forget about asking them to take out the trash, get the kids to bed, or maybe *gasp* go outside and enjoy summer. The Wrath of the Lich King Beta has gone live, and a niche of hardcore fans are now exploring the new continent of Northrend. While they aren't the first Blizzard has let loose on the snowy plains of Arthas's domain,  they will be the hot bed of testing to see what works, what is broken, and what needs improved before the expansion hits the store shelves.

Opting into the Beta was done through Blizzard's website a few days before the random process of sending out invites began. As of this writing, you can still sign up for the Beta, but don't be surprised if the quota is quickly filled.

Joining in a Beta with a game...

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Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II teaser trailer

Here's a teaser trailer for Relic Entertainment's upcoming RTS sequel Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II. Now that the game will have a greater focus on your units and squads, I imagine the space marines featured in this trailer will settle some emotion in our hearts. After viewing the trailer below, check out Kyle's hands-on preview of the game (which I am very jealous of) after the jump. Expect Dawn of War II to hit stores in Spring 2009.

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Flagship sinks; everyone fired, IPs lost

Flagship Studios, the makers behind Hellgate: London and Mythos, have officially closed their doors and are letting go of "nearly everyone" on the payroll. According to VE3D, Community Manager Taylor Balbi initially confirmed the news, something he himself denied. Since the initial rumor it seems to have become confirmed left and right, as various sources from Flagship and Ping0 have reported that the entire staff has been fired with a 30-day pension, paid for out of the pockets of the studio's higher-ups, and most of Flagship's employees are now listed as no longer working with Flagship on LinkedIn.

The studio's intellectual property has been turned over to two companies who had invested in Flagship throughout its short lifespan, with Mythos going to Korean gaming developer HanbitSoft, an...

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Warhammer Online beta sees major cutbacks

I think Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning may be walking on thin ice at the moment. I've been looking forward to this game for a long time, but I'm starting to wonder if it might be in a bit of trouble.

Mythic is holding a private "Guild-only" beta test that just started today. The idea is that guilds from other games sign up to participate in the beta to test out the guild system.

However, today when the beta started there were 4 less major cities than originally planned, and four fewer classes. The cities have been downsized to just one major city per racial class.

All things considered, that's a pretty sizable chunk of the game to be chopping off as late as a beat test. It can be expected that certain things will be removed, but this is a big one.

WAR is going to be going up against a goli...

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CD Projekt to change the world of digital distribu...

CD Projekt (the developers of The Witcher) has announced their new digital distribution system called Good Old Games, or GOG for short. GOG has been described as "Steam for old PC games" and that's an accurate description. GOG is built around old PC games from the mid 90s to the early 2000s. This means it offers only beloved classics and not newer games. CD Projekt has already secured a winning launch lineup including Fallout 1 and 2, Freespace 1 and 2, Sacrifice, and Descent 1-3

Probably most exciting is the way CD Projekt is handling the whole thing. Game prices will range from $5.99 to $9.99 and Good Old Games will be completely DRM free. Like Steam, once you buy the game it's yours forever. You're free to download the game as many times as you want as well as download it to as many PCs ...

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First DC Universe MMO screens

Finally new screens showing off the new DC Universe MMO have arisen on Sony Online's Myspace page. Even though these screens don't show any actual gameplay, we can see the artistic direction that artist Jim Lee finally went with

The art style definitely fits the subject matter; the characters look like they were pulled right off the pages of a comic book and filled out into three-dimensional, polygonal form. It would have been nice to see slightly more action-packed shots than these particular images, though.-Eddie

In case you haven't heard of DC Universe Online yet, it's similar to City of Heroes in that you can create a superhero and select his or her superpowers. And while you can't play as any of the actual DC superheros, they will be featured throughout the game. Expect the game to come...

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Diablo 3 isn't about griefing, says Blizzard

Over at the World of Warcraft forums, Blizzard poster Bashiok has chimed in on a discussion about player killing (PK) options in the recently announced Diablo III, saying that Blizzard will do their best to discourage unprovoked betrayal and griefing of party members in the sequel.

The main focus is intended to be on cooperation and working towards common goals, although that won't necessarily rule out all PvP options. Bashiok explains:

"We're - in general - not big fans of griefing for any game. It's really only "fun" for one person, and that definition of fun isn't generally something we're going to want to encourage. It's far more positive to encourage and support meaningful and skillful options and systems within a game, than a mechanic for people to instantly turn against one another f...

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Day of Defeat: Source update, free-to-play weekend...

Valve released an update to Day of Defeat: Source, which coincides with a free-to-play holiday weekend to all Steam users.

The update, dubbed the Palermo Update, features a new community map (Palermo), Steam Community integration, 51 new achievements, player statistics and a freeze-death cam.

Additions like player statistics showcased in the Steam Community and achievements, as well as the freeze and domination cameras, were previously featured in Team Fortress 2. These new additions join the new map Palermo, which contains five capture points for enemies to combat over.

For more details on the Palermo update, continue reading below.

Palermo:

Introducing Palermo, a new Day of Defeat: Source map from Magnar "insta" Jenssen. This map's design was inspired by the Italian port city of the same nam...

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GTA IV PC in the works?

At this point, nothing seems to be official, and this information came from an unlikely source, but it is interesting that it "slipped his togue" if you will. Some pranksters decided to contact Rockstar's customer service and ask them about a problem they had when playing GTAIV on their PC. They said:

"The first person driving view is simply amazing and the Nico Bellic character really makes me feel like I'm living the storyline. So much so that I feel bad in finding something to complain about, that being the surround sound. At times the back left speaker cuts out, specially when characters like little Jacob are speaking. Also when I call 911, the automated response starts, but cuts out when I am given emergency options."

Pretty convincing? After a few responses they received the reply: "...

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December launch of Starcraft II now in doubt

Recent rumors and indications from various retail outlets suggest that Starcraft II is sitting in the wings for a December 3 release for this year. But statements made by executive vice president, Rob Pardo of Blizzard, have cast some doubts recently on the launch date.

At the Worldwide Invitational presentation of Starcraft II, Pardo talked about how far along the game was in the development cycle and said they were "about a third of the way through" the campaign and were focusing on the cinematics and story structure. He said that by year's end, Blizzard would have something dramatic to reveal.

If Starcraft II is indeed only a third of the way along in the development cycle, with only five months left before the rumored release date, will there really be enough time to finish and test the ...

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Diablo III cinematic trailer revealed

Blizzard. Diablo 3. Officially announced. Trailer below.

Really, does anything else need to be said? Watch the Diablo 3 cinematic announcement trailer below. If not, bad things might happen to you while you sleep. Awful, horrifying things.

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Heavens tremble, Diablo III announced!

The day has finally arrived where the ice melts away and the heavens peer down on our planet with eyes filled with hate and destruction. At last the legends are true, the coming of a new generation of Diablo will tie gamers down to their PCs for years of gaming ecstasy.

The almighty Blizzard has announced with its voice of grandeur the next coming of a game that will sell millions of copies on the first day of release. The time for Diablo III is here.

There were doubters (yes everyone point at me) and there were people who leaked information onto the powerful gossip machine we call the Internet, but in the end, when the game is announced from the mouth of Blizzard, it just has to be true.

Can you hear that? Thats the sound of hundreds of pants being washed in the washer because of what this...

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Microsoft spreads the PC gaming gospel

Mark Twain once remarked, after seeing his obituary in a newspaper, "The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated." If anything could describe the condition of PC gaming, as some see it, Microsoft certainly would use this quote.

Yesterday, I attended a Games for Windows meeting where Microsoft gave a presentation on the "true" state of PC gaming, opened up a question and answer period, and of course, provided the perfunctory snacks, drinks and finger food that often accompanies these types events.

During the formal part of the event, Kevin Unangst, senior global director of Windows Gaming, gave a presentation, and spoke with the fervor of an absolutely focused man on a mission to make a difference in the world--and in this case, the PC gaming world.

He said Microsoft is totally behind PC g...

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More Crysis Warhead details, teaser trailer

More details for Crysis Warhead have been revealed. According to the next issue of PC Gamer, Crysis Warhead will have to sell well for a possibility of Crysis 2.

New gameplay details revealed that the game will be a "less linear approach and more sandbox type of gameplay, as opposed to the original," and the single player campaign is expected to last between 8-10 hours.

New plot details include "begins when the original game's Nomad character parts ways with Warhead's new hero, Psycho, and follows him all the way until the two are to reunite again on board the aircraft carrier."

Improved enemy AI, new weapons (grenade launcher and double SMG are confirmed), new vehicles, a new team-based multiplayer mode and lower system requirements are also confirmed for Crysis Warhead. In addition, Direct ...

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Blizzard teases us with something cold

A new teaser splash page has been put up on the World of Warcraft official site showing players what seems to be a formation of ice crystals covering something behind it. With a new teaser being announced by none other than Blizzard, gamers have been contemplating what it could be. A good portion of the fanbase thinks that a Diablo III will be announced, of which I say not before hell freezes over. But then maybe that page is a teaser of hell freezing over? So much to contemplate indeed.

What we do know is that Blizzard's Worldwide Invitational is being held in Paris this weekend in which we expect new info on World of Warcraft as well as Starcraft II to surface. That's right people, there is no glimmer of hope inside my soul that says anything about a hopeful Diablo III announcement. So wh...

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Frank Klepacki returns for Red Alert 3!

The news that many Red Alert fans have been waiting for has finally arrived. Frank Klepacki is officially returning to the RA franchise to help work on the Red Alert 3 soundtrack.

Klepacki is best known for creating the iconic Hell March, the theme music for Red Alert, and later, in the form of Hell March 2, the theme music for Red Alert 2.

Fans of the game, along with Klepacki himself, were initially worried that he might not have been able to work on the soundtrack, due to him no longer working at Electronic Arts as well as possible contrctual issues arising because of his current position at Petroglyph Games. Thankfully though, it looks like everything has been cleared up

In a video shot from his private studios, Frank talks quickly about his involvement in the game, thanks the fans for t...

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StarCraft II coming December 3rd?

The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) recently took steps to reduce the frequencey of information leaks regarding future releases, but when will videogame retailers appease publishers and follow suit?

Not today, apparently.

According to Best Buy, Circuit City, and GameStop, StarCraft II, for which Blizzard has yet to announce an official release date, will be shipping to stores on December 3rd of this year.

With no confirmation from the publisher, these listings are about all that the drooling masses of StarCraft fans have to go on at this point. I'm sure that plenty of internet message boards will be alive with buzz during the next few days, but whether the data is accurate or not, of course, only time will tell.                                                                      ...

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BioWare MMO due between 2010 and 2011

According to John Riccitiello, BioWare's MMO is scheduled to be released between April 2010 and April 2011. That's a long time from now isn't it? I won't complain as long as BioWare is focusing on other games as well. To create a whole new universe is a pretty daunting task, and if you are out to make a spectacular MMO (which I no doubt think it will be), polish and balance is key.

It has been rumored that the project is a Star Wars MMO, in specific, KOTOR. In his talk with the William Blair and Company during an investor conference, Riccitiello mentioned the BioWare MMO is "new intellectual property", and while one would think that this would kill the KOTOR MMO rumor outright, Eurogamer made an interesting point when they stated that while "Star Wars and KOTOR are hardly new, they would b...

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Team Fortress 2 Pyro update - details revealed

The much-talked about Pyro update for Team Fortress 2 goes live in a mere hour and a half. In preparation for the patch, Valve has divulged exactly what the upgrade will bring to the table.

First of all, Valve has included two user-created maps in this update. Namely, CTF_Turbine and CP_Fastlane. You may have already played these maps as they've been available on custom servers for some time but now Valve is making them available to all TF2 players. Here are Valve's official descriptions for both of the maps:

CP_Fastlane: "A control point map with five points, in the style of Badlands. Its symmetrical layout provides for high-speed and well balanced gameplay, while the multiple indoor routes, connected to larger outdoor arenas, provide a wide set of interesting and varied combat spaces. The ...

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