Gaming News
Gaming's Forgotten War: World War I
Sunday, March 7 2010, 06:00 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
It's now a cliché in video game circles that World War II has been well and truly mined by first-person shooter developers. The Call Of Duty and Medal of Honor franchises, which made their names with WWII titles, recently shifted focus to more modern conflicts in search of fresh inspiration. Possibly, though, they should have looked back instead of forward. World War I has been largely forgotten by FPS developers, but it could actually provide rich source material for future titles. As the last WWI veterans depart this world and knowledge of the conflict turns to second-hand source and myth, games could actually play a vital role in bringing the conflict to life so that the sacrifice of so many people is never, ever forgotten.
Firstly, a disclaimer - this article is merely meant to stimulate debate about a possible WWI FPS game and is certainly not intended to trivialise the heavy cost borne by those who fought in the war, quite the opposite in fact. That aside, let us discuss a bit of history. The blue touch paper of WWI ignited when Austria-Hungary's Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated on June 28, 1914. Rightly suspecting Serbian involvement, Austria Hungary threatened retribution for the Slavic nation, backed by 'blank cheque' support from Germany and its leader Kaiser Wilhelm II, who cannily saw an opportunity to forward his imperialist aims.
Seeing a clear threat to Europe's balance of power, the entente nations of France, Britain and Russia declared war on Germany and Austria-Hungary, leading to four years of conflict which tore a bloody stain through the world and introduced the concept of Total War. At a terrible cost of over 16 million lives, the conflict also laid down a lasting blueprint for modern warfare techniques. However, the most identifiable facet of WWI's military operations was trench warfare, in which enemies dug in defensive positions to fight stagnant, destructive contests over small yet strategically important patches of land. Fighting in WWI's trenches at first appears unsuited for video games development, but there are many more dimensions to the Great War.
Creating a WWI FPS game raises questions about respecting the war's history, but immersion is a powerful tool which could play a vital role in ensuring that particularly young people better understand the Great War's significance. After all, some gamers know more about the Allied sacrifice in WWII from playing Medal of Honour or Call Of Duty than from any text book or school history lesson. Indeed, as games become more sophisticated and mature as an artistic medium, why shouldn't they play an important role in interpreting historical events?
Interestingly, there has been a glut of WWI flight simulation games, possibly due to the perceived greater level of individual skill involved. However, we could only find one FPS title based on the war, with 505 Games' Necrovisionopting to introduce horror and supernatural elements to the conflict. So the question remains: Why have FPS developers avoided the Great War? Justin Champion, history professor at Royal Holloway University and an expert in historical sociology, said that the biggest challenge facing a WWI FPS would be convincing the audience as to "why it was such an important conflict".
Among issues potentially working against WWI is the lack of a clear enemy on the scale of Adolf Hitler and the Nazis. As discussed in our historic FPS gaming retrospective, the Nazis in WWII were an enemy so tangibly evil as to become almost caricatures. In the absence of such a defined threat, it's possible that WWI has been viewed as too problematic a conflict to easily portray in games. However, Champion said that British perception of the Germans at the time told a very different story.
"We talk about the Nazis, but one thing we have lost is the Boche, the Fritz," he said. "You look at British propaganda in the First World War and it is brutal. In fact, it goes back to the 1880s and '90s. It's the round glasses and pointy hats, they really demonised the Germans."
In a global gaming market still dominated by the US, a further issue facing WWI has been the less-than-clear involvement of American troops in the conflict. Queen Mary University's Dr Dan Todman, who has written various books on WWI, including The Great War: Myth and Memory, explained that US troops entered the war in 1917 but did not really see combat until the final allied push to victory in 1918. However, he said that American soldiers still took part in "some pretty big battles" during the final 100 Days Offensive of the war, starting with the pivotal Battle of Amiens on August 8, 1918 and running to the armistice on November 11 of the same year.
American troops were involved in various operations in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive which could have FPS potential, such as the taking of Montbrehain village or the Battle of St Quentin Canal. Todman also pointed to the story of American hero Sergeant Alvin York, immortalised in a 1941 Gary Cooper film, which could "make a good episode in a computer game". York was awarded the Medal of Honor for leading a raid on a German stronghold in which his squad seized 32 machine guns nests, killing 28 Germans and capturing a further 132 in the process. Certainly, there are enough examples of US troop involvement in WWI to provide worthy material for a Call Of Duty or Medal of Honor title.
Even WWI's trench warfare could provide aspects for recreation in an FPS, including the infamous Battle of the Somme in 1916. There is plenty of evidence supporting the use of trench raiding and night patrol operations in No Man's Land during the Somme and other trench conflicts which could provide some powerful gaming moments. Sometimes involving squads of up to 100 people, these missions meant retrieving a fallen comrade or sniping a German officer in an opposing trench, where skill and nerve were essential for survival.
"Considering the experience of front-line soldiers, if you were going to make a game from parts of World War II, then you could certainly do it for World War I," said Todman. "Even in 1916 and the first day of the Somme, the perception is people standing up to be shot but there were actually things like trench raiding or operations outside of the Western Front that could be adapted to a gaming format."
There are also examples of early Special Forces-style operations, where small groups of soldiers completed a covert mission. On April 23, 1918, around 200 Royal Marines joined a Naval force to raid a German base in the Belgian port of Zeebrugge. The mission ultimately fell short of achieving its aims, but was still a precursor to modern Commando operations which could widen understanding of WWI. Likewise, in the war's Middle Eastern Theatre there were the actions of Captain T.E. Lawrence, better known as Lawrence of Arabia, in the Allied-backed Arab resistance against the Ottoman Empire. Despite his involvement somewhat falling into myth, there are many examples of Lawrence's covert operations which could be translated into a game, such as the Battle of Aqaba.
"You have famously got what we would now call Special Forces and guerrillas in the Middle East, which was what Lawrence of Arabia was doing," said Todman. "There were examples in the war against Turkey of submarines being used to insert soldiers behind enemy lines to attack bridges and things like that. Certainly sabotage wasn't something foreign to the armed forces."
Todman and Champion both acknowledged that it is strange so many FPS games have taken inspiration from WWII while the Great War remains untouched. EEDR vice president - analyst services Jesse Divnich claimed that WWI has been largely avoided because it lacks the type of weaponry and technology that gamers would consider "fun". At the start of the war, soldiers used standard Lee-Enfield rifles, but they rapidly got access to Lewis guns, light machine guns, tank mortars and adaptors to turn the Lee-Enfield into a rudimentary grenade launcher. Todman said that the mix of arms in a 20-man company in WWI was actually reflective of a modern Army unit.
"At the start of the war, the platoon commander only really had rifles, but by the end of the war he had a whole range of weapons his men could use," said Todman. "And in terms of how they used them, that is pretty much how soldier units use them today. They would use the indirect fire weapons or heavy machine guns to fix the enemy and then outflank them. They call it fix and strike."
However, one thing less advanced about the war was the tanks, which were unsophisticated and noisy by today's standards. However, a British tank called the Whippet could be transferred to gaming as it worked effectively with the infantry towards the end of the war. Mostly, though, soldiers got around the battlefield on horseback as it was the easiest way to traverse broken ground quickly.
Considering the rich military history in WWI, there seems to be an incredible and powerful story to be told by utilising intelligent game design and writing. Imagine taking a British soldier from the giddy naivety of signing up to the horrors of going over the top at the Somme in a hail of gunfire and artillery flak. As the war became more tactically sophisticated, the player could take on the role of US, French, Australian or Canadian troops in commando-style raids, operational attacks, trench raiding, sniping and tunnel mining. Despite Total War bringing massive deaths, there are still many examples of individual heroism. After all, it's no coincidence that 628 Victoria Crosses for bravery were awarded in the Great War, the most ever for a single conflict.
"I think that if these games serve a purpose then it's getting people thinking about the Great War in ways that they didn't before," said Todman. "It certainly surprises me that a lot of my undergraduates have played Call Of Duty and that is their reference point when we start talking about operations in the Second World War."
Due to limited space in this article it has only been possible to scratch the surface of the rich and surprisingly varied military history in WWI. Certainly, there is enough material in the conflict to create a powerful FPS game to rival anything based on the Second World War. The challenge would be combining historical accuracy and sensitivity with the need to create a compelling experience for gamers, but that is not beyond modern development capabilities. More importantly, though, a Great War FPS could really bring the conflict to life for particularly young people to ensure that the sacrifice and hardship of so many never slips into myth for future generations.
'GTA IV' named most expensive game ever
Thursday, February 25 2010, 16:05 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
Rockstar Games' Grand Theft Auto IV has been named the most expensive video game ever created.
According to a list compiled by Digital Battle, the open-world crime epic had a budget of $100 million (£65.5m) and took a development team of around 1,000 people three and a half years to finish.
Sony's Gran Turismo 5 came in second place, with a budget expected to reach $80m (£52m) by the time it is released later in the year.
Shenmue registered third at a cost of $70m (£45.8m), followed by Too Human at over $60m and Metal Gear Solid 4 at exactly $60m.
Rockstar featured again on the list in eight place with its mysterious L.A. Noire project, which is costing $50m (£32.7m) to develop.
The list in full runs as follows:
1. Grand Theft Auto IV - $100 million
2. Gran Turismo 5 - $80 million
3. Shenmue - $70 million
4. Too Human - $60 million+
5. Metal Gear Solid 4 - $60 million
6. Halo 3 - $55 million
7. APB - $50 million
8. L.A. Noire - $50 million
9. Final Fantasy XII - $48 million
10. Killzone 2 - $45 million
'AVP' debuts as PC number one
Tuesday, February 23 2010, 09:23 GMT
By Liam Martin, Gaming Reporter
Aliens Vs. Predator has soared to the top of the PC weekly chart in its first week on sale.
The Sega FPS is followed by The Sims 3, which moves up to second, and Football Manager 2010, which drops to third.
At the tail end of the chart, World Of Warcraft expansion pack Wrath Of The Lich King makes a healthy three place gain to seven, below Modern Warfare 2 and last week's number one BioShock 2.
The top ten in full:
1. (-) Aliens Vs. Predator (Sega)
2. (3) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
3. (2) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
4. (4) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
5. (1) BioShock 2 (2K Games)
6. (8) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
7. (10) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
8. (6) Mass Effect 2 (Electronic Arts)
9. (5) Star Trek Online (Atari)
10. (9) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C) 2008 ELSPA Ltd.
'Bad Company 2' to feature WWII level
Monday, February 8 2010, 16:26 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
EA DICE's Battlefield: Bad Company 2 will include a gameplay sequence from the Pacific theatre of World War II, it has emerged.
According to a report filed by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board, the multi-platform title will feature the retrospective WWII sequence in its single-player campaign.
"In single-player mode, players conduct missions on an unnamed Japanese island during World War II and then move into the modern day through jungles, deserts, and snowy terrain," said the ESRB.
"The firefights contain realistic gunfire, loud explosions, cries of pain; large sprays of blood come out of injured characters during the fast-paced combat. There are also close-up depictions of knife-stabbing (flesh-impact sounds) and melee attacks with a power drill."
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 will be released on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on March 5. Aspecial edition of the title will feature six gameplay unlocks, including two classic weapons from Battlefield 1943 - the M1A1 submachine gun and the M1911 pistol.
'Star Trek Online' captures PC top spot
Monday, February 8 2010, 13:31 GMT
By Liam Martin, Gaming Reporter
Star Trek Online has made its debut at the top of the PC weekly chart.
Last week's number one Mass Effect 2 falls to third, below another former number one Football Manager 2010, which remains second.
Just outside of the top three rests this week's second-highest new entry, with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Call Of Pripyat going straight in at four, above The Sims 3 and Modern Warfare 2.
The top ten in full:
1. (-) Star Trek Online (Atari)
2. (2) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
3. (1) Mass Effect 2 (Electronic Arts)
4. (-) S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Call Of Pripyat (Bitcomposer)
5. (3) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
6. (5) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
7. (4) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
8. (7) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
9. (8) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
10. (6) Empire: Total War (Sega)
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C) 2008 ELSPA Ltd.
'Mass Effect 2' shifts 2m in first week
Friday, January 29 2010, 21:21 GMT
By Oli Simpson
BioWare's hotly-anticipated Mass Effect 2 has performed well in its first week of release.
According to IGN, the title has so far sold around 2 million units worldwide.
"Mass Effect 2 is poised to be one of the biggest games of 2010. We could not be more proud of the game's universal acclaim and early commercial success," said Dr Ray Muzyka, co-founder of BioWare.
The developers recently confirmed plans to continue support for the title post-launch by announcing a clutch of additional downloadable content.
A new DLC pack, believed to include a new hover tank, new missions as well as unreleased in-game items, is expected over the coming months.
No dedicated PC servers for 'BioShock 2'
Thursday, January 28 2010, 16:41 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
2K Marin has confirmed that the PC version of BioShock 2will not support dedicated servers or LAN play on its multiplayer component.
In a Q&A on the Cult of Rapture blog, the studio said that the challenge of introducing multiplayer to BioShock 2 has required the team to set clear priorities.
"Bringing multiplayer to BioShock was a daunting task between the tech - there was no multiplayer support in the codebase from the first game - and the expectations of the community," 2K Marin explained.
"Either you try to do everything and so nothing feels finished or you focus your efforts to do a smaller number of things really well like an accessible online experience. We chose to spend the time we had creating a solid game foundation and unfortunately that did not include LAN play or dedicated servers."
On both console and PC versions of the game, rather than separating online matches into ranked and unranked, BioShock 2's multiplayer will utilise a lobby area for players to invite friends into four-person teams.
A matchmaking system will then pitch individual squads against each other based on leaderboard standings and connection speeds.
However, players will also be able to partake in private matches for up to ten people which are not ranked on the leaderboards and so can be used for practice.
"We felt like having just one giant place to meet players would be easier for getting better matches, and it is very important to us that we never split your parties," 2K Marin said.
"We want you to make friends, play with your friends, and compete with your friends. If you want to get practice in before going online, you can make a private match where you can play with people on direct invitation."
BioShock 2 will be released on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on February 9.
Duncan Smith launches attack on gaming
Sunday, January 24 2010, 10:05 GMT
By Mark Langshaw, Gaming/Comics Reporter
Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith has claimed that gaming is destroying the innocence of children in the UK.
In an interview with The Times, Smith condemned violent games and said that more needs to be done to ensure age ratings are enforced.
"We are driving children to lose their childhood, and some video games are incredibly violent, like Grand Theft Auto," he said. "They are meant to be 18 [rated] but nobody cares what it says on the label."
Last year, games industry body PEGI introduced a new classification system that includes placing larger age rating symbols on boxes. The government began enforcing this system during the Christmas period.
According to a recent survey by MyVoucherCodes, 33% of parents in the UK allow their children to play adult games.
York setting for 'Crysis 2'
Thursday, January 21 2010, 16:26 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
Crytek's forthcoming first-person shooter Crysis 2 is set in a version of New York City under attack from aliens, it has emerged.
Official PlayStation Magazine editor Gary Steinman revealed the news on his Twitter feed, while also showcasing the magazine's Crysis 2 cover feature.
Released in 2007 exclusively on PC, Crysis gained almost universal acclaim and is still constantly cited as setting the standard for FPS titles.
Publisher Electronic Arts confirmed last year that the sequel will be released on PS3 and Xbox 360, as well as the PC.
The firm also indicated that Crysis 2 will be made available during its 2010-11 fiscal year, which ends on March 11, 2011.
However, US PC Gamer recently claimed that December 2010 would be the game's most likely release window.
'Arkham' gets Game of the Year Edition
Saturday, January 16 2010, 10:07 GMT
By Mark Langshaw, Gaming/Comics Reporter
Eidos' Batman: Arkham Asylum is to be reissued under the Game of the Year Edition banner.
According to a listing on the BBFC website, the special edition game has been given a 15 rating. Further details are yet to surface, but it has been speculated that the re-release will contain all previous downloadable content and other extras.
Two Arkham Asylum DLC packs have been issued to date - the 'Insane Night' map pack and 'Prey In The Darkness'. Customers who preordered their copy from US retailer GameStop received the additional 'Dem Bones' map, and those who purchased the Collector's Edition were granted access to the 'Crime Alley' challenge map.
News of the special edition follows reports that a sequel to Arkham Asylum is currently in the works. A trailer for the game revealed that Mark Hamill will reprise his role as the Joker.
Full details of Batman: Arkham Asylum - Game of the Year Edition are expected to be announced soon.
Ubisoft hypes new 'Ghost Recon'
Friday, January 15 2010, 20:35 GMT
By Liam Martin, Gaming Reporter
Ghost Recon (360)
Ubisoft has confirmed that it is working on a new Ghost Recon title.
The video game company, which also publishes Beyond Good And Evil, claimed that its new Ghost Recon game will reinvent the shooter genre.
"The evolution of Ghost Recon will bring a completely new and fresh approach to the shooter genre," it said.
"The title is so impressive, it has the potential to rivalAssassin's Creed as our biggest game of fiscal year '11."
According to CVG, Ubisoft trademarked the title Ghost Recon: Future Soldier in 2009, although the publisher has yet to confirm this heading.
'Modern Warfare 2' takes $1bn since launch
Wednesday, January 13 2010, 17:59 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
Modern Warfare 2 has made $1bn (£614m) since release last November.
Activision CEO Bobby Kotick said that the figure "exceeded expectations" and highlighted the power of the franchise.
"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has exceeded our expectations and shattered theatrical box office and video game records," he said.
"There are only a handful of entertainment properties that have ever reached the $1bn mark, which illustrates the power of the Call of Duty franchise and mass appeal of this game."
The total was predicted by analysts Lazard Capital Markets prior to the game's release.
The title smashed the day one sales record, selling 1.23 million copies in the first 24 hours alone.
EA: 'MOH combat stands apart from rivals'
Tuesday, January 12 2010, 16:59 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
EA has claimed that combat in the upcoming Medal Of Honor reboot will set the title apart from its rivals, including the Call Of Duty series.
The game, being jointly developed by EA Los Angeles and EA DICE, transports the series to the modern day setting of Afghanistan, with events covering the allied invasion in 2001 and the resulting occupation up to 2004.
According to an early preview in the new edition ofGamesMaster magazine, the shooter features "slick and smooth" combat between US Special Forces and rebel fighters.
Alongside various elite operations, the game will also deliver large-scale "sledgehammer" campaigns which bear more similarity to EA's own Battlefield series than Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare.
In the preview, Medal Of Honor executive producer Greg Goodrich claimed that tactics, weapons and challenging enemies in the game will "set it apart" from rival shooters.
"I can't go into details, but let's just say you'll be surprised by how some of the enemies respond to you, both in terms of tactics and the weapons they use," he said.
Last week, Official Xbox Magazine revealed ahead of its Medal Of Honor preview that there will be multiple playable characters in the main campaign story.
The first-person shooter is scheduled for release in autumn 2010 for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.
Lance Henriksen to appear in 'AVP' game
Monday, January 11 2010, 11:34 GMT
By Liam Martin, Gaming Reporter
Actor Lance Henriksen has confirmed that he will appear in Rebellion's upcoming Alien Vs. Predator video game.
Henriksen, who appeared as Bishop in Aliens and Alien 3, will lend his voice and likeness to the character of Karl Bishop Weyland, a descendent of Weyland-Yutani corporation founder Charles Bishop Weyland.
Rebellion has also confirmed that a demo for the FPS will appear before the game launches in February.
Alien Vs. Predator will be released for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC on February 19.
Infinity Ward not developing 'MW3'?
Friday, January 8 2010, 11:25 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
Sources have claimed that Modern Warfare 3 will not be developed by Infinity Ward.
A US insider has told VG247 that either a Canadian studio or Sledgehammer Games will be taking the helm.
Sledgehammer Games, formed last year from ex-Visceral Games staff, has not announced a project and has been recruiting a multiplayer designer with five years experience.
Infinity Ward has yet to commit to working on another Call Of Duty title, only announcing that it will work on downloadable content for Modern Warfare 2 this spring.
World At War developer Treyarch is expected to release a new Call Of Duty title this year.
EA 'predicts fall in game prices'
Tuesday, January 5 2010, 17:24 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
EA Canada senior producer Jason DeLong has predicted that game prices will fall in the "near future" as studios focus more on money-spinning additional content.
Last year, Activision caused controversy by setting a £54.99 recommended retail price for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, although retailers subsequently drove down prices as demand for the game soared.
However, DeLong believes that the days of high RRPs will soon come to an end as downloadable and episodic content becomes more profitable.
Speaking to Game Informer, he said: "I think that we're going to start to see, maybe not in the next year, but in the near future, games go down the route of smaller up-front experiences and lower prices at the beginning and then the ability to extend the game through episodic material or future feature material. I think that's a direction we're probably heading in."
DeLong explained that a reduction in prices would not only benefit the consumer, but also make sound business sense by keeping people playing games for longer.
"Games are getting more expensive, and times are tough, and it's getting harder to purchase every game you want," he said.
"So, how can we keep people playing and offer them more but not have to make them break the bank to do it? It's going to be an interesting creative problem for us to solve."
'MOH' to have multiple player characters
Tuesday, January 5 2010, 15:54 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
EA's forthcoming modern-day revival of the Medal Of Honorfranchise will reportedly feature multiple playable characters.
According to Official Xbox Magazine, the first-person shooter will allow players to knock out lights with gunfire and then use night-vision goggles. It will also feature sprinting and knife melee attacks which are "similar to Call Of Duty".
The development team has consulted with Tier 1 US special forces to achieve authenticity in technical aspects of the game, such as camouflage and military language.
First unveiled last month, the new Medal Of Honor will take place in modern-day Afghanistan and focus on a team of highly-trained US soldiers.
The game is scheduled for release in autumn 2010 for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.
'Football Manager' tops PC chart
Tuesday, January 5 2010, 10:39 GMT
By Liam Martin, Gaming Reporter
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Football Manager 2010 has held off the competition to celebrate the new year as the PC's number one game.
The Sims 3 and expansion World Adventures dwell in second and third, while Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 slips to fourth.
Only 2K's cartoonish shooter Borderlands manages to penetrate this week's chart, after climbing three to re-enter at ten, below World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich Kingat nine.
The top ten in full:
1. (1) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
2. (2) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
3. (4) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
4. (3) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
5. (5) Left 4 Dead 2 (Electronic Arts)
6. (6) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
7. (7) Championship Manager 2010 (Eidos)
8. (8) Empire: Total War (Sega)
9. (9) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
10. (13) Borderlands (2K Games)
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C) 2008 ELSPA Ltd.
'Modern Warfare 2' most pirated game of 2009
Tuesday, December 29 2009, 20:42 GMT
By Oli Simpson
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has been announced as the most pirated game of 2009.
According to TorrentFreak, the PC format of the FPS has been illegally downloaded nearly 4.1 milion times this year, topping the list despite having only been released two months ago.
If accurate, the figures suggest that developers Activision have potentially lost around $245 million (£153.8m) in sales.
The Sims 3, Prototype, Need for Speed Shift and Street Fighter IV rounded out the top five, all of which were titles for the PC platform.
Meanwhile, New Super Mario Bros Wii was the most pirated Wii title, with 1.1 million downloads.
The report also noted that the total number of illegal downloads has doubled since last year, and that the PC remains the core target for filesharing, with more than three times that of the Wii and Xbox 360.
Valve begins AI bot testing on 'TF2'
Tuesday, December 24 2009, 12:47 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
Valve has begun testing new artificial intelligence bots able to replicate real-life player reactions on its multiplayer shooter Team Fortress 2.
Writing on the Team Fortress 2 blog, Valve developer Mike Booth revealed that the computer-controlled enemies will be unleashed on the game's King Of The Hill maps.
To try out the new "digital killing machines", Booth outlined a specific console command that PC players must input in order to add the bots to their game.
"With the success of the AI systems on Left 4 Dead, we've been continuing to develop these technologies to create new kinds of game experiences," said Booth.
"Team Fortress 2 is an excellent 'sandbox' for explorations of this sort, and we've been quietly doing so for much of this last year. Some of the results of these explorations are TF 'bots' - AI-driven player proxies with simulated humanlike senses, reaction times and tactics. Although the TF bots are not yet complete, they play a pretty decent game of King Of The Hill.
"We thought you might enjoy testing your skill against these work-in-progress digital killing machines. The bots have simulated humanlike senses, and only know what they see, hear and touch. They also have realistic reaction times and aiming limitations. They don't 'cheat' or use omniscient knowledge of the server state to make their decisions."
Valve will now take feedback from gamers about the bots, including any bugs or issues which need further tweaking.
Games For Windows issues holiday sale
Wednesday, December 24 2009, 11:20 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
'World Of Goo'
Games For Windows Live has issued a holiday sale.
The PC digital distribution service will be selling six games for half price until January 4.
Shadowrun, Viva Pinata and World Of Goo are £7.49 ($9.99).
Elsewhere, Where's Waldo has been priced at £4.99 ($7.49) while Osmos and Mahjong Wisdom are £2.49 ($4.99).
Each game will come with achievements for Live accounts.
'Modern Warfare 2' patch fixes Prestige glitch
Wednesday, December 23 2009, 18:29 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
Modern Warfare 2 has been patched to version 1.3.606.0.
Infinity Ward has solved a glitch that allowed players to cheat their way to higher Prestige levels, usually earned through extensive play time.
A glitch that has allowed those playing on private matches with custom rules to enter public playlists has also been fixed.
The patch will also rebalance the strength of the Akimbo 1887 rifles in multiplayer, which has been heavily requested by players.
The PC version will also see issues with hacked textures solved.
The update has been made available for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.
Steam announces holiday sale
Wednesday, December 23 2009, 13:34 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
Steam has issued a holiday sale.
The PC digital distribution service has heavily discounted individual games and publisher packs.
Until Christmas Day, Grand Theft Auto IV can be purchased for £4.99, Mirror's Edge for £3.24 and S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow Of Chernobyl for £1.39.
Until January 3, all Ubisoft titles are half price, all Unreal and Atari games have been discounted by 66% and the Rockstar collection is a third off.
In the indie section, Braid and AudioSurf are £1.74 each, while Machinarium has been priced at £4.24.
New deals will be available every three days.
'Football Manager' topples PC competition
Tuesday, December 22 2009, 12:58 GMT
By Liam Martin, Gaming Reporter
Football Manager 2010 has seen off The Sims 3 to become the 2009 PC Christmas number one.
With the latest fully-fledged Sims title in second place, third place sees its first expansion The Sims 3: World Adventuresovertake Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, which drops to fourth.
Eidos's Championship Manager 2010 becomes the second football title to make its way into the chart at nine, above fellow re-entry Fallout 3: Game Of The Year Edition at ten.
The top ten in full:
1. (1) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
2. (2) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
3. (4) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
4. (3) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
5. (5) Left 4 Dead 2 (Electronic Arts)
6. (6) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
7. (8) Empire: Total War (Sega)
8. (10) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
9. (12) Championship Manager 2010 (Eidos)
10. (11) Fallout 3: Game Of The Year Edition (Bethesda Softworks)
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C) 2008 ELSPA Ltd.
It's now a cliché in video game circles that World War II has been well and truly mined by first-person shooter developers. The Call Of Duty and Medal of Honor franchises, which made their names with WWII titles, recently shifted focus to more modern conflicts in search of fresh inspiration. Possibly, though, they should have looked back instead of forward. World War I has been largely forgotten by FPS developers, but it could actually provide rich source material for future titles. As the last WWI veterans depart this world and knowledge of the conflict turns to second-hand source and myth, games could actually play a vital role in bringing the conflict to life so that the sacrifice of so many people is never, ever forgotten.
Firstly, a disclaimer - this article is merely meant to stimulate debate about a possible WWI FPS game and is certainly not intended to trivialise the heavy cost borne by those who fought in the war, quite the opposite in fact. That aside, let us discuss a bit of history. The blue touch paper of WWI ignited when Austria-Hungary's Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated on June 28, 1914. Rightly suspecting Serbian involvement, Austria Hungary threatened retribution for the Slavic nation, backed by 'blank cheque' support from Germany and its leader Kaiser Wilhelm II, who cannily saw an opportunity to forward his imperialist aims.
Creating a WWI FPS game raises questions about respecting the war's history, but immersion is a powerful tool which could play a vital role in ensuring that particularly young people better understand the Great War's significance. After all, some gamers know more about the Allied sacrifice in WWII from playing Medal of Honour or Call Of Duty than from any text book or school history lesson. Indeed, as games become more sophisticated and mature as an artistic medium, why shouldn't they play an important role in interpreting historical events?
Among issues potentially working against WWI is the lack of a clear enemy on the scale of Adolf Hitler and the Nazis. As discussed in our historic FPS gaming retrospective, the Nazis in WWII were an enemy so tangibly evil as to become almost caricatures. In the absence of such a defined threat, it's possible that WWI has been viewed as too problematic a conflict to easily portray in games. However, Champion said that British perception of the Germans at the time told a very different story.
In a global gaming market still dominated by the US, a further issue facing WWI has been the less-than-clear involvement of American troops in the conflict. Queen Mary University's Dr Dan Todman, who has written various books on WWI, including The Great War: Myth and Memory, explained that US troops entered the war in 1917 but did not really see combat until the final allied push to victory in 1918. However, he said that American soldiers still took part in "some pretty big battles" during the final 100 Days Offensive of the war, starting with the pivotal Battle of Amiens on August 8, 1918 and running to the armistice on November 11 of the same year.
Even WWI's trench warfare could provide aspects for recreation in an FPS, including the infamous Battle of the Somme in 1916. There is plenty of evidence supporting the use of trench raiding and night patrol operations in No Man's Land during the Somme and other trench conflicts which could provide some powerful gaming moments. Sometimes involving squads of up to 100 people, these missions meant retrieving a fallen comrade or sniping a German officer in an opposing trench, where skill and nerve were essential for survival.
There are also examples of early Special Forces-style operations, where small groups of soldiers completed a covert mission. On April 23, 1918, around 200 Royal Marines joined a Naval force to raid a German base in the Belgian port of Zeebrugge. The mission ultimately fell short of achieving its aims, but was still a precursor to modern Commando operations which could widen understanding of WWI. Likewise, in the war's Middle Eastern Theatre there were the actions of Captain T.E. Lawrence, better known as Lawrence of Arabia, in the Allied-backed Arab resistance against the Ottoman Empire. Despite his involvement somewhat falling into myth, there are many examples of Lawrence's covert operations which could be translated into a game, such as the Battle of Aqaba.
Todman and Champion both acknowledged that it is strange so many FPS games have taken inspiration from WWII while the Great War remains untouched. EEDR vice president - analyst services Jesse Divnich claimed that WWI has been largely avoided because it lacks the type of weaponry and technology that gamers would consider "fun". At the start of the war, soldiers used standard Lee-Enfield rifles, but they rapidly got access to Lewis guns, light machine guns, tank mortars and adaptors to turn the Lee-Enfield into a rudimentary grenade launcher. Todman said that the mix of arms in a 20-man company in WWI was actually reflective of a modern Army unit.
"At the start of the war, the platoon commander only really had rifles, but by the end of the war he had a whole range of weapons his men could use," said Todman. "And in terms of how they used them, that is pretty much how soldier units use them today. They would use the indirect fire weapons or heavy machine guns to fix the enemy and then outflank them. They call it fix and strike."
Considering the rich military history in WWI, there seems to be an incredible and powerful story to be told by utilising intelligent game design and writing. Imagine taking a British soldier from the giddy naivety of signing up to the horrors of going over the top at the Somme in a hail of gunfire and artillery flak. As the war became more tactically sophisticated, the player could take on the role of US, French, Australian or Canadian troops in commando-style raids, operational attacks, trench raiding, sniping and tunnel mining. Despite Total War bringing massive deaths, there are still many examples of individual heroism. After all, it's no coincidence that 628 Victoria Crosses for bravery were awarded in the Great War, the most ever for a single conflict.
"I think that if these games serve a purpose then it's getting people thinking about the Great War in ways that they didn't before," said Todman. "It certainly surprises me that a lot of my undergraduates have played Call Of Duty and that is their reference point when we start talking about operations in the Second World War."
'GTA IV' named most expensive game ever
Rockstar Games' Grand Theft Auto IV has been named the most expensive video game ever created.
According to a list compiled by Digital Battle, the open-world crime epic had a budget of $100 million (£65.5m) and took a development team of around 1,000 people three and a half years to finish.
Sony's Gran Turismo 5 came in second place, with a budget expected to reach $80m (£52m) by the time it is released later in the year.
Shenmue registered third at a cost of $70m (£45.8m), followed by Too Human at over $60m and Metal Gear Solid 4 at exactly $60m.
Rockstar featured again on the list in eight place with its mysterious L.A. Noire project, which is costing $50m (£32.7m) to develop.
The list in full runs as follows:
1. Grand Theft Auto IV - $100 million
2. Gran Turismo 5 - $80 million
3. Shenmue - $70 million
4. Too Human - $60 million+
5. Metal Gear Solid 4 - $60 million
6. Halo 3 - $55 million
7. APB - $50 million
8. L.A. Noire - $50 million
9. Final Fantasy XII - $48 million
10. Killzone 2 - $45 million
'AVP' debuts as PC number one
Aliens Vs. Predator has soared to the top of the PC weekly chart in its first week on sale.
The Sega FPS is followed by The Sims 3, which moves up to second, and Football Manager 2010, which drops to third.
At the tail end of the chart, World Of Warcraft expansion pack Wrath Of The Lich King makes a healthy three place gain to seven, below Modern Warfare 2 and last week's number one BioShock 2.
The top ten in full:
1. (-) Aliens Vs. Predator (Sega)
2. (3) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
3. (2) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
4. (4) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
5. (1) BioShock 2 (2K Games)
6. (8) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
7. (10) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
8. (6) Mass Effect 2 (Electronic Arts)
9. (5) Star Trek Online (Atari)
10. (9) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
'Bad Company 2' to feature WWII level
EA DICE's Battlefield: Bad Company 2 will include a gameplay sequence from the Pacific theatre of World War II, it has emerged.
According to a report filed by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board, the multi-platform title will feature the retrospective WWII sequence in its single-player campaign.
"In single-player mode, players conduct missions on an unnamed Japanese island during World War II and then move into the modern day through jungles, deserts, and snowy terrain," said the ESRB.
"The firefights contain realistic gunfire, loud explosions, cries of pain; large sprays of blood come out of injured characters during the fast-paced combat. There are also close-up depictions of knife-stabbing (flesh-impact sounds) and melee attacks with a power drill."
'Star Trek Online' captures PC top spot
Star Trek Online has made its debut at the top of the PC weekly chart.
Last week's number one Mass Effect 2 falls to third, below another former number one Football Manager 2010, which remains second.
Just outside of the top three rests this week's second-highest new entry, with S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Call Of Pripyat going straight in at four, above The Sims 3 and Modern Warfare 2.
The top ten in full:
1. (-) Star Trek Online (Atari)
2. (2) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
3. (1) Mass Effect 2 (Electronic Arts)
4. (-) S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Call Of Pripyat (Bitcomposer)
5. (3) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
6. (5) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
7. (4) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
8. (7) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
9. (8) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
10. (6) Empire: Total War (Sega)
'Mass Effect 2' shifts 2m in first week
BioWare's hotly-anticipated Mass Effect 2 has performed well in its first week of release.
According to IGN, the title has so far sold around 2 million units worldwide.
"Mass Effect 2 is poised to be one of the biggest games of 2010. We could not be more proud of the game's universal acclaim and early commercial success," said Dr Ray Muzyka, co-founder of BioWare.
The developers recently confirmed plans to continue support for the title post-launch by announcing a clutch of additional downloadable content.
No dedicated PC servers for 'BioShock 2'
2K Marin has confirmed that the PC version of BioShock 2will not support dedicated servers or LAN play on its multiplayer component.
In a Q&A on the Cult of Rapture blog, the studio said that the challenge of introducing multiplayer to BioShock 2 has required the team to set clear priorities.
"Bringing multiplayer to BioShock was a daunting task between the tech - there was no multiplayer support in the codebase from the first game - and the expectations of the community," 2K Marin explained.
"Either you try to do everything and so nothing feels finished or you focus your efforts to do a smaller number of things really well like an accessible online experience. We chose to spend the time we had creating a solid game foundation and unfortunately that did not include LAN play or dedicated servers."
On both console and PC versions of the game, rather than separating online matches into ranked and unranked, BioShock 2's multiplayer will utilise a lobby area for players to invite friends into four-person teams.
A matchmaking system will then pitch individual squads against each other based on leaderboard standings and connection speeds.
However, players will also be able to partake in private matches for up to ten people which are not ranked on the leaderboards and so can be used for practice.
"We felt like having just one giant place to meet players would be easier for getting better matches, and it is very important to us that we never split your parties," 2K Marin said.
"We want you to make friends, play with your friends, and compete with your friends. If you want to get practice in before going online, you can make a private match where you can play with people on direct invitation."
Duncan Smith launches attack on gaming
Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith has claimed that gaming is destroying the innocence of children in the UK.
In an interview with The Times, Smith condemned violent games and said that more needs to be done to ensure age ratings are enforced.
"We are driving children to lose their childhood, and some video games are incredibly violent, like Grand Theft Auto," he said. "They are meant to be 18 [rated] but nobody cares what it says on the label."
Last year, games industry body PEGI introduced a new classification system that includes placing larger age rating symbols on boxes. The government began enforcing this system during the Christmas period.
York setting for 'Crysis 2'
Crytek's forthcoming first-person shooter Crysis 2 is set in a version of New York City under attack from aliens, it has emerged.
Official PlayStation Magazine editor Gary Steinman revealed the news on his Twitter feed, while also showcasing the magazine's Crysis 2 cover feature.
Released in 2007 exclusively on PC, Crysis gained almost universal acclaim and is still constantly cited as setting the standard for FPS titles.
Publisher Electronic Arts confirmed last year that the sequel will be released on PS3 and Xbox 360, as well as the PC.
The firm also indicated that Crysis 2 will be made available during its 2010-11 fiscal year, which ends on March 11, 2011.
'Arkham' gets Game of the Year Edition
Eidos' Batman: Arkham Asylum is to be reissued under the Game of the Year Edition banner.
According to a listing on the BBFC website, the special edition game has been given a 15 rating. Further details are yet to surface, but it has been speculated that the re-release will contain all previous downloadable content and other extras.
Two Arkham Asylum DLC packs have been issued to date - the 'Insane Night' map pack and 'Prey In The Darkness'. Customers who preordered their copy from US retailer GameStop received the additional 'Dem Bones' map, and those who purchased the Collector's Edition were granted access to the 'Crime Alley' challenge map.
News of the special edition follows reports that a sequel to Arkham Asylum is currently in the works. A trailer for the game revealed that Mark Hamill will reprise his role as the Joker.
Ubisoft hypes new 'Ghost Recon'
Ghost Recon (360)
Ubisoft has confirmed that it is working on a new Ghost Recon title.
The video game company, which also publishes Beyond Good And Evil, claimed that its new Ghost Recon game will reinvent the shooter genre.
"The evolution of Ghost Recon will bring a completely new and fresh approach to the shooter genre," it said.
"The title is so impressive, it has the potential to rivalAssassin's Creed as our biggest game of fiscal year '11."
'Modern Warfare 2' takes $1bn since launch
Modern Warfare 2 has made $1bn (£614m) since release last November.
Activision CEO Bobby Kotick said that the figure "exceeded expectations" and highlighted the power of the franchise.
"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has exceeded our expectations and shattered theatrical box office and video game records," he said.
"There are only a handful of entertainment properties that have ever reached the $1bn mark, which illustrates the power of the Call of Duty franchise and mass appeal of this game."
The total was predicted by analysts Lazard Capital Markets prior to the game's release.
EA: 'MOH combat stands apart from rivals'
EA has claimed that combat in the upcoming Medal Of Honor reboot will set the title apart from its rivals, including the Call Of Duty series.
The game, being jointly developed by EA Los Angeles and EA DICE, transports the series to the modern day setting of Afghanistan, with events covering the allied invasion in 2001 and the resulting occupation up to 2004.
According to an early preview in the new edition ofGamesMaster magazine, the shooter features "slick and smooth" combat between US Special Forces and rebel fighters.
Alongside various elite operations, the game will also deliver large-scale "sledgehammer" campaigns which bear more similarity to EA's own Battlefield series than Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare.
In the preview, Medal Of Honor executive producer Greg Goodrich claimed that tactics, weapons and challenging enemies in the game will "set it apart" from rival shooters.
"I can't go into details, but let's just say you'll be surprised by how some of the enemies respond to you, both in terms of tactics and the weapons they use," he said.
Last week, Official Xbox Magazine revealed ahead of its Medal Of Honor preview that there will be multiple playable characters in the main campaign story.
Lance Henriksen to appear in 'AVP' game
Actor Lance Henriksen has confirmed that he will appear in Rebellion's upcoming Alien Vs. Predator video game.
Henriksen, who appeared as Bishop in Aliens and Alien 3, will lend his voice and likeness to the character of Karl Bishop Weyland, a descendent of Weyland-Yutani corporation founder Charles Bishop Weyland.
Rebellion has also confirmed that a demo for the FPS will appear before the game launches in February.
Infinity Ward not developing 'MW3'?
Sources have claimed that Modern Warfare 3 will not be developed by Infinity Ward.
A US insider has told VG247 that either a Canadian studio or Sledgehammer Games will be taking the helm.
Sledgehammer Games, formed last year from ex-Visceral Games staff, has not announced a project and has been recruiting a multiplayer designer with five years experience.
Infinity Ward has yet to commit to working on another Call Of Duty title, only announcing that it will work on downloadable content for Modern Warfare 2 this spring.
EA 'predicts fall in game prices'
EA Canada senior producer Jason DeLong has predicted that game prices will fall in the "near future" as studios focus more on money-spinning additional content.
Last year, Activision caused controversy by setting a £54.99 recommended retail price for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, although retailers subsequently drove down prices as demand for the game soared.
However, DeLong believes that the days of high RRPs will soon come to an end as downloadable and episodic content becomes more profitable.
Speaking to Game Informer, he said: "I think that we're going to start to see, maybe not in the next year, but in the near future, games go down the route of smaller up-front experiences and lower prices at the beginning and then the ability to extend the game through episodic material or future feature material. I think that's a direction we're probably heading in."
DeLong explained that a reduction in prices would not only benefit the consumer, but also make sound business sense by keeping people playing games for longer.
"Games are getting more expensive, and times are tough, and it's getting harder to purchase every game you want," he said.
'MOH' to have multiple player characters
EA's forthcoming modern-day revival of the Medal Of Honorfranchise will reportedly feature multiple playable characters.
According to Official Xbox Magazine, the first-person shooter will allow players to knock out lights with gunfire and then use night-vision goggles. It will also feature sprinting and knife melee attacks which are "similar to Call Of Duty".
The development team has consulted with Tier 1 US special forces to achieve authenticity in technical aspects of the game, such as camouflage and military language.
First unveiled last month, the new Medal Of Honor will take place in modern-day Afghanistan and focus on a team of highly-trained US soldiers.
'Football Manager' tops PC chart
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Football Manager 2010 has held off the competition to celebrate the new year as the PC's number one game.
The Sims 3 and expansion World Adventures dwell in second and third, while Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 slips to fourth.
Only 2K's cartoonish shooter Borderlands manages to penetrate this week's chart, after climbing three to re-enter at ten, below World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich Kingat nine.
The top ten in full:
1. (1) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
2. (2) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
3. (4) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
4. (3) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
5. (5) Left 4 Dead 2 (Electronic Arts)
6. (6) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
7. (7) Championship Manager 2010 (Eidos)
8. (8) Empire: Total War (Sega)
9. (9) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
10. (13) Borderlands (2K Games)
'Modern Warfare 2' most pirated game of 2009
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has been announced as the most pirated game of 2009.
According to TorrentFreak, the PC format of the FPS has been illegally downloaded nearly 4.1 milion times this year, topping the list despite having only been released two months ago.
If accurate, the figures suggest that developers Activision have potentially lost around $245 million (£153.8m) in sales.
The Sims 3, Prototype, Need for Speed Shift and Street Fighter IV rounded out the top five, all of which were titles for the PC platform.
Meanwhile, New Super Mario Bros Wii was the most pirated Wii title, with 1.1 million downloads.
Valve begins AI bot testing on 'TF2'
Valve has begun testing new artificial intelligence bots able to replicate real-life player reactions on its multiplayer shooter Team Fortress 2.
Writing on the Team Fortress 2 blog, Valve developer Mike Booth revealed that the computer-controlled enemies will be unleashed on the game's King Of The Hill maps.
To try out the new "digital killing machines", Booth outlined a specific console command that PC players must input in order to add the bots to their game.
"With the success of the AI systems on Left 4 Dead, we've been continuing to develop these technologies to create new kinds of game experiences," said Booth.
"Team Fortress 2 is an excellent 'sandbox' for explorations of this sort, and we've been quietly doing so for much of this last year. Some of the results of these explorations are TF 'bots' - AI-driven player proxies with simulated humanlike senses, reaction times and tactics. Although the TF bots are not yet complete, they play a pretty decent game of King Of The Hill.
"We thought you might enjoy testing your skill against these work-in-progress digital killing machines. The bots have simulated humanlike senses, and only know what they see, hear and touch. They also have realistic reaction times and aiming limitations. They don't 'cheat' or use omniscient knowledge of the server state to make their decisions."
Games For Windows issues holiday sale
'World Of Goo'
Games For Windows Live has issued a holiday sale.
The PC digital distribution service will be selling six games for half price until January 4.
Shadowrun, Viva Pinata and World Of Goo are £7.49 ($9.99).
Elsewhere, Where's Waldo has been priced at £4.99 ($7.49) while Osmos and Mahjong Wisdom are £2.49 ($4.99).
'Modern Warfare 2' patch fixes Prestige glitch
Modern Warfare 2 has been patched to version 1.3.606.0.
Infinity Ward has solved a glitch that allowed players to cheat their way to higher Prestige levels, usually earned through extensive play time.
A glitch that has allowed those playing on private matches with custom rules to enter public playlists has also been fixed.
The patch will also rebalance the strength of the Akimbo 1887 rifles in multiplayer, which has been heavily requested by players.
The PC version will also see issues with hacked textures solved.
Steam announces holiday sale
Steam has issued a holiday sale.
The PC digital distribution service has heavily discounted individual games and publisher packs.
Until Christmas Day, Grand Theft Auto IV can be purchased for £4.99, Mirror's Edge for £3.24 and S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow Of Chernobyl for £1.39.
Until January 3, all Ubisoft titles are half price, all Unreal and Atari games have been discounted by 66% and the Rockstar collection is a third off.
In the indie section, Braid and AudioSurf are £1.74 each, while Machinarium has been priced at £4.24.
'Football Manager' topples PC competition
Tuesday, December 22 2009, 12:58 GMT
By Liam Martin, Gaming Reporter
Football Manager 2010 has seen off The Sims 3 to become the 2009 PC Christmas number one.
With the latest fully-fledged Sims title in second place, third place sees its first expansion The Sims 3: World Adventuresovertake Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, which drops to fourth.
Eidos's Championship Manager 2010 becomes the second football title to make its way into the chart at nine, above fellow re-entry Fallout 3: Game Of The Year Edition at ten.
The top ten in full:
1. (1) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
2. (2) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
3. (4) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
4. (3) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
5. (5) Left 4 Dead 2 (Electronic Arts)
6. (6) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
7. (8) Empire: Total War (Sega)
8. (10) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
9. (12) Championship Manager 2010 (Eidos)
10. (11) Fallout 3: Game Of The Year Edition (Bethesda Softworks)
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C) 2008 ELSPA Ltd.
'Modern Warfare 2' hit by ammo glitch
Wednesday, December 16 2009, 11:30 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
Modern Warfare 2 has been hit by an ammunition glitch.
Xbox 360 owners who have been playing the online multiplayer mode have been experiencing an issue that grants them infinite ammo.
Although the cause of the glitch is uncertain, it can be passed around virally between systems after playing together.
Disconnecting from Xbox Live and rebooting the system will clear the issue from the system's cache.
Infinity Ward community manager Robert Bowling told Twitter followers that the issue will be "eliminated soon enough" and that "lots of updates" are in the works.
Last month, the game was hit by the 'javelin glitch', allowing players to equip an active missile that would detonate upon being killed.
Games vending machines launch in UK
Tuesday, December 15 2009, 16:20 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
POP247 video games vending machines have started rolling out in the UK after the automated retail service successfully launched in the US.
American firms Best Buy, Wal-Mart and Blockbuster have already implemented the service in their stores, and the kiosks have also started appearing in US cinemas, Universities and airports.
Developed by UCA, a joint venture between Universal Studios and Sony Pictures, the POP247 machines stock physical copies of computer games and DVDs.
Around 150 cinemas in the UK have now started hosting the kiosks, along with selected gyms, supermarkets and shopping centres, reports MCV.
"We launched the POP vending machines in 2009 after a successful trial in a cinema chain, and the business is steadily growing," said senior product manager Maya Jenkins.
"We already have games in some machines and the range will expand over the coming months. POP vending really is about being able to offer a hassle-free retail solution that supports all types of modern entertainment and we have the flexibility to tailor-make an offering to suit a retailer's individual needs, so the range can differ from place to place.
"UCA funds the machines and the commission is almost all profit for the retailer and there is no outlay on stock. It’s the perfect solution for those looking to make incremental revenue from entertainment and the screens are dynamic and drive footfall."
Each vending machine can hold around 400 product units, while consumers can also download digital movies and music via a USB connection.
"The download portal can already be used to download music and movies, and games will be the next step along with any other downloadable content - such as ringtones," Jenkins added. "We are looking at this at the moment and this should be available to launch in 2010."
2K Games unveils 'Spec Ops: The Line'
POP247 video games vending machines have started rolling out in the UK after the automated retail service successfully launched in the US.
American firms Best Buy, Wal-Mart and Blockbuster have already implemented the service in their stores, and the kiosks have also started appearing in US cinemas, Universities and airports.
Developed by UCA, a joint venture between Universal Studios and Sony Pictures, the POP247 machines stock physical copies of computer games and DVDs.
Around 150 cinemas in the UK have now started hosting the kiosks, along with selected gyms, supermarkets and shopping centres, reports MCV.
"We launched the POP vending machines in 2009 after a successful trial in a cinema chain, and the business is steadily growing," said senior product manager Maya Jenkins.
"We already have games in some machines and the range will expand over the coming months. POP vending really is about being able to offer a hassle-free retail solution that supports all types of modern entertainment and we have the flexibility to tailor-make an offering to suit a retailer's individual needs, so the range can differ from place to place.
"UCA funds the machines and the commission is almost all profit for the retailer and there is no outlay on stock. It’s the perfect solution for those looking to make incremental revenue from entertainment and the screens are dynamic and drive footfall."
Each vending machine can hold around 400 product units, while consumers can also download digital movies and music via a USB connection.
Monday, December 14 2009, 16:53 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
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2K Games has unveiled a new story-driven, modern military shooter for release on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.
Titled Spec Ops: The Line, the third-person action game is being developed by German studio Yager. The story will focus on an elite Delta Force team as they enter a sandstorm-ravaged version of Dubai to hunt down rogue American officer John Konrad.
In the game, players will have to deal with The Line, which is the "razor's edge known only to men who deal with war" when death and duty become merged. The title promises a "unique" single-player campaign, along with multiplayer modes.
"Spec Ops: The Line is the epitome of a 2K Games title and incorporates all of our gameplay values: immersive experiences that draw you in, unique and innovative features that make you rethink the way you play them, and an amazingly high quality bar that is synonymous with the 2K name," said 2K president Christoph Hartmann.
"By meeting these core values, I'm confident that Spec Ops: The Line will be a great experience that people will enjoy playing for years to come."
Yager managing director Timo Ullman added: "Our close collaboration with 2K Games over the course of this production has allowed us to achieve our goal of giving players a unique and exciting gaming experience in Spec Ops: The Line. Yager's goal is to always push the boundaries of what is possible and exceed players' expectations in every production."
Spec Ops: The Line is currently scheduled for release in 2K's 2011 fiscal year, which starts on November 1, 2010.
Sega confirms 'AvP' release date
Thursday, December 10 2009, 15:37 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
Sega has confirmed that Aliens vs Predator will be released on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 in Europe on February 19, 2010.
According to MCV, the game will be made available as a standard boxed edition, along with two special editions -Survivor and Hunter.
Packaged in a steel case, the Survivor Edition will include a code for downloading multiplayer maps after the launch date.
The Hunter Edition will also includes the maps, along with a facehugger model, a 3D lenticular postcard and a Weyland Yutani sleeve badge.
"Aliens vs Predator is the first title to be released in our partnership with Fox for the Aliens franchise and it reinforces our commitment to provide high-quality gaming for the core market," said Sega Europe marketing director Gary Knight.
"The team at Rebellion has been true to the Aliens and Predator universes and created a title that allows gamers to experience all the tension and excitement of the Aliens and Predator movies."
Earlier in the week, Rebellion chief executive Jason Kingsley pledged not to "sanitise"AvP's content following a decision to ban the game in Australia.
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Rebellion refuses to sanitise 'AVP'
Monday, December 7 2009, 16:58 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
Rebellion Games has pledged not to "sanitise" the content of Aliens Vs. Predator following a deci sion to ban the upcoming game in Australia.
Last week, it emerged that the national classification board of Australia has moved to block the tit le's release due to its portrayal of extreme violence.
In response, Rebellion chief executive Jason Kingsley said that the studio will not pander to any territories "where adults are not able to make their own entertainment choices".
He explained: "Rebellion is disappointed that its upcoming title Aliens Vs. Predator has been banned in Australia. However, as we understand the law in that country, the authorities had no choice as we agree strongly that our game is not suitable for game players who are not adults.
"The content of Aliens Vs. Predator is based on some of the most innovative and iconic horror movies, and as such we wanted to create a title that was true to the source material. It is for adults, and it is bloody and frightening, that was our intent.
"We will not be releasing a sanitised or cut-down version for territories where adults are not considered by their governments to be able to make their own entertainment choices."
Aliens Vs. Predator will be released in February 2010 for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.
Brazil to ban "offensive" games?
Sunday, December 6 2009, 11:50 GMT
By Mark Langshaw, Gaming/Comics Reporter
Brazilian senator Valdir Raupp has proposed a bill to outlaw all offensive video games in the South American country, reports GamePolitics.
According to Brazilian website UOL, the legislation has been approved by the Education Commission of the Senate, and will now be put to vote at the Committee on Constitution and Justice.
The senator claims that his motives behind the proposal are to "curb the manufacture, distribution, importation, distribution, trading and custody [and] storage [of] the videogames that affect the customs, traditions of the people, their worship, creeds, religions and symbols".
"Therefore, we seek to protect the principle of equality - for many the greatest of constitutional principles - with the characterisation of such discriminatory conduct as a crime by making provision in the law," he said.
Brazil has previously banned Carmageddon, Grand Theft Auto and Postal. Anyone found guilty of violating the law could face between one to three years in prison, should the bill be passed.
Games on Demand coming to Windows
Saturday, December 5 2009, 10:30 GMT
By Mark Langshaw, Gaming/Comics Reporter
Bad news for Steamworks this week. Microsoft has announced that Games for Windows LIVE will begin to offer dowloadable titles later this month.
The forthcoming online store will allow users to purchase games from the Windows LIVE library. Launch titles includeResident Evil 5, Red Faction: Guerrilla and Battlestations: Pacific.
The storefront will also host LIVE-enabled versions of bestselling digital games, such as World Of Goo and Osmos. All purchases can be made using a credit card or Microsoft Points.
"With Games on Demand, we didn't just want to create a cut-and-paste version of existing digital distribution services," said LIVE general manager Mike Ybarra. "We challenged ourselves to deliver an integrated platform that takes full advantage of the unique capabilities offered by the LIVE service.
"Our goal has always been to create a seamless online gaming experience for the Windows community, and Games on Demand is a great step toward that end."
The Games for Windows LIVE client will come with an updated version of Vista gameTinker. The service launches on December 15.
'Max Payne 3' delayed until mid-2010
Friday, December 4 2009, 13:03 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
Max Payne 3 has been delayed.
Originally scheduled for early 2010, the title will now be released in the second half of the year, sometime between August and October, according to Eurogamer.
The announcement was made at Take-Two's financial report, and confirmed that BioShock 2 and Red Dead Redemption will be released as planned.
The third in the trilogy will see Max working in Sao Paulo for a private security firm protecting a wealthy family, 12 years after the second game.
It will be released on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.
EA: 'MOH can challenge COD dominance'
Thursday, December 3 2009, 16:06 GMT
By Andrew Laughlin, Technology Reporter
Electronic Arts boss John Riccitiello has pledged to challenge the dominance of Call Of Duty with the return of Medal Of Honour.
Yesterday, EA revealed that the latest Medal Of Honor game will be set in modern-day Afghanistan.
The franchise was previously brand leader in wartime first-person shooters, but lost ground to Activision's Call Of Duty, particularly due to the ongoing success of the Modern Warfare games.
Speaking to Kotaku, Riccitiello said: "I'm not saying it's going to happen tomorrow, but in the way that Activision sort of alternates sequels of Modern Warfare and Call Of Dutyand owns the leadership position in FPS, between Medal Of Honor and Battlefield, I want it back. And we're going to get there with innovation and quality."
Riccitiello expressed his high hopes for next year's Battlefield: Bad Company 2, which he believes could provide a viable competitor for the ubiquitous Modern Warfare 2multiplayer.
"The first [Bad Company game] did very well in its first outing. The next one is a heck of a lot better and it looks like a worthy competitor to Modern Warfare," he said.
"We think we've got an advantage over Modern Warfare 2 with our multiplayer. The guys at DICE do that really, really well. I personally think being able to control your vehicle as opposed to being able to ride on one [is good].
"And I think there's something a little bit cool about taking a building out and getting the six guys in it. Personally, I get sort of a silly amount of pleasure out of it."
Modern-day 'Medal Of Honor' announced
Wednesday, December 2 2009, 23:12 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
EA has revealed the latest game in the Medal Of Honorfranchise.
Titled Medal Of Honor, it will take place in modern-day Afghanistan and focus on a team of highly-trained US soldiers during the conflict.
"[It] will introduce the Tier 1 Operator: a relatively unknown entity directly under the National Command Authority who takes on missions no-one else can handle," said a press release.
"The development team has been working closely with Tier 1 Operators from the US Special Operations Community since the earliest stages of development to create the most authentic modern war experience."
The single-player campaign will be handled by EA LA, developer of the PS2-era Medal Of Honor titles, Boom Blox and Command & Conquer 3.
Multiplayer will be developed by DICE, creator of the Battlefield series.
The title will be released on 360, PS3 and PC in 2010.
'Left 4 Dead 2' shifts 2m copies
Wednesday, December 2 2009, 16:55 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
Left 4 Dead 2 has sold over two million copies, Valve has reported.
The first-person zombie shooter was released two weeks ago on the Xbox 360 and PC.
The console version has seen one million Xbox Live Gold subscribers go online with the game, allowing up to four players to play online co-operatively.
Sales already double those for the original, which was released this time last year.
'Football Manager' reclaims PC lead
Tuesday, December 1 2009, 10:55 GMT
By Liam Martin, Gaming Reporter
Football Manager 2010 has reclaimed the PC top spot fromCall Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
Activision's smash hit FPS drops down to second, above The Sims 3, which remains third. <
;script src="/plugins/editors/tinymce/jscripts/tiny_mce/themes/advanced/langs/en.js" type="text/javascript"> p>
The only new entry is 2K Games' Borderlands which manages to stumble into this week's chart, with a five place jump to tenth, below Fallout 3: Game Of The Year Edition andEmpire: Total War.
The top ten in full:
1. (2) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
2. (1) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
3. (3) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
4. (6) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
5. (4) Left 4 Dead 2 (Electronic Arts)
6. (5) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
7. (8) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
8. (10) Empire: Total War (Sega)
9. (9) Fallout 3: Game Of The Year Edition (Bethesda Softworks)
10. (15) Borderlands (2K Games)
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C) 2008 ELSPA Ltd.
'Max Payne 3' delayed until mid-2010
Friday, December 4 2009, 13:03 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
Max Payne 3 has been delayed.
Originally scheduled for early 2010, the title will now be released in the second half of the year, sometime between August and October, according to Eurogamer.
The announcement was made at Take-Two's financial report, and confirmed that BioShock 2 and Red Dead Redemption will be released as planned.
The third in the trilogy will see Max working in Sao Paulo for a private security firm protecting a wealthy family, 12 years after the second game.
It will be released on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.
Electronic Arts boss John Riccitiello has pledged to challenge the dominance of Call Of Duty with the return of Medal Of Honour.
Yesterday, EA revealed that the latest Medal Of Honor game will be set in modern-day Afghanistan.
The franchise was previously brand leader in wartime first-person shooters, but lost ground to Activision's Call Of Duty, particularly due to the ongoing success of the Modern Warfare games.
Speaking to Kotaku, Riccitiello said: "I'm not saying it's going to happen tomorrow, but in the way that Activision sort of alternates sequels of Modern Warfare and Call Of Dutyand owns the leadership position in FPS, between Medal Of Honor and Battlefield, I want it back. And we're going to get there with innovation and quality."
Riccitiello expressed his high hopes for next year's Battlefield: Bad Company 2, which he believes could provide a viable competitor for the ubiquitous Modern Warfare 2multiplayer.
"The first [Bad Company game] did very well in its first outing. The next one is a heck of a lot better and it looks like a worthy competitor to Modern Warfare," he said.
"We think we've got an advantage over Modern Warfare 2 with our multiplayer. The guys at DICE do that really, really well. I personally think being able to control your vehicle as opposed to being able to ride on one [is good].
"And I think there's something a little bit cool about taking a building out and getting the six guys in it. Personally, I get sort of a silly amount of pleasure out of it."
Modern-day 'Medal Of Honor' announced
Wednesday, December 2 2009, 23:12 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
EA has revealed the latest game in the Medal Of Honorfranchise.
Titled Medal Of Honor, it will take place in modern-day Afghanistan and focus on a team of highly-trained US soldiers during the conflict.
"[It] will introduce the Tier 1 Operator: a relatively unknown entity directly under the National Command Authority who takes on missions no-one else can handle," said a press release.
"The development team has been working closely with Tier 1 Operators from the US Special Operations Community since the earliest stages of development to create the most authentic modern war experience."
The single-player campaign will be handled by EA LA, developer of the PS2-era Medal Of Honor titles, Boom Blox and Command & Conquer 3.
Multiplayer will be developed by DICE, creator of the Battlefield series.
The title will be released on 360, PS3 and PC in 2010.
'Left 4 Dead 2' shifts 2m copies
Wednesday, December 2 2009, 16:55 GMT
By Matthew Reynolds, Gaming Reporter
Left 4 Dead 2 has sold over two million copies, Valve has reported.
The first-person zombie shooter was released two weeks ago on the Xbox 360 and PC.
The console version has seen one million Xbox Live Gold subscribers go online with the game, allowing up to four players to play online co-operatively.
Sales already double those for the original, which was released this time last year.
'Football Manager' reclaims PC lead
Tuesday, December 1 2009, 10:55 GMT
By Liam Martin, Gaming Reporter
Football Manager 2010 has reclaimed the PC top spot fromCall Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
Activision's smash hit FPS drops down to second, above The Sims 3, which remains third. < ;script src="/plugins/editors/tinymce/jscripts/tiny_mce/themes/advanced/langs/en.js" type="text/javascript"> p>
The only new entry is 2K Games' Borderlands which manages to stumble into this week's chart, with a five place jump to tenth, below Fallout 3: Game Of The Year Edition andEmpire: Total War.
The top ten in full:
1. (2) Football Manager 2010 (Sega)
2. (1) Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
3. (3) The Sims 3: World Adventures (Electronic Arts)
4. (6) The Sims 3 (Electronic Arts)
5. (4) Left 4 Dead 2 (Electronic Arts)
6. (5) Dragon Age: Origins (Electronic Arts)
7. (8) World Of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King (Activision)
8. (10) Empire: Total War (Sega)
9. (9) Fallout 3: Game Of The Year Edition (Bethesda Softworks)
10. (15) Borderlands (2K Games)
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C) 2008 ELSPA Ltd.
