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The Witcher 2 Video Presentation and FAQ

Roger Ma
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2

CD Projekt, the developers of the highly anticipated RPG ‘The Witcher 2: Assassin of Kings’ recently held a keynote presentation at CD Projekt Spring Conference last Thursday. The event was live stremed via the internet and showcased many of the game’s new features and gameplay. Right now there are probably some people kicking themselves for missing it. Lucky, the full video presentation, complete with a gameplay demo of the The Witcher 2: Assassin of Kings is now available from CD Projekt official website.

With the release of The Witcher 2: Assassin of Kings now less than a month away, CD Projekt has also been kind enough to through up a FAQ to answer several questions that I’m sure many fan have bombarding them with.

The Witcher 2: Assassin of Kings will be released exclusively for the PC on May 17th

THE WITCHER 2 FAQ UPDATE – APRIL 2011

  • WHAT DRM WILL THE WITCHER 2 HAVE?

The primary reason for including copy protection with internet activation is to address the biggest concern of our publishing and distribution partners, which is potential piracy before release. To do so, we must implement at least a minimal form of protection.

The Witcher 2 will be delivered to external manufacturing plants weeks before release. It is virtually impossible to guarantee absolute security for this entire time. Any leak of the code can gravely compromise the commercialization of the game, and we want to be sure that the first people to play it will be the fans and customers who are waiting for their official copies. That’s why, together with our publishing and distributing partners, we decided to use copy protection. The Digital Premium Edition available from GOG.com will be the sole exception. Since it is our sister company, located in the same building, we are completely confident the code will be absolutely secure.

As a company and also as gamers ourselves, we’d like to stress that we are against any kind of copy protection that might affect the game experience or limit the usability of legally purchased copies. For this reason, we decided to implement a custom version that is the lightest and least intrusive possible. During installation, it will be necessary to connect to the Internet one time – but NEVER while playing.  Similarly, the only time you need to have the disks in your drive is during installation.

While we are aware of some players’ associations with the SecuROM technology, the server infrastructure of its provider, SONY, gives us the highest level of confidence that registering legal copies will be problem-free. Every legal copy can be played on up to five machines at a time.  What’s more, registrations can be revoked at any time; in effect, The Witcher 2 can be installed on unlimited number of machines.  It will also be possible to make backups. Furthermore, we will make every effort to cooperate with our publishing and distribution partners to remove the DRM in a postrelease update.

  • WHY SHOULD I REGISTER MY COPY?

Registration of legally purchased copies is completely optional. To make the process as user-friendly as possible, the same key is used for both installation and registration. Anyone who chooses to register will receive various bonuses (English and Polish language packs, free future DLC and more), and additional promotional materials such as bonus songs. Registered users will also receive automatic notifications of updates via the game launcher. In addition, this will be the only way to update the product – patches will not be available as separate files, making it impossible to update illegal copies of the game in this manner.

  • WHY AND HOW SHOULD I USE MY SAVEGAMES FROM THE WITCHER?

The Witcher 2 will provide a complete story and game experience. It is not necessary to have played the original. As a bonus, those who did will have the option of importing their saved games. The opening of The Witcher 2 is, however, the same for everyone. Events and decisions from imported saves may be reflected later on, but only in ways that can happen anyway. If The Witcher is still installed on your hard drive, The Witcher 2 will automatically detect all saves after the last critical choice point, and either suggest the file to import, or allow you to choose from all the possible ones.

Note: The preview build sent at the beginning of April 2011 did not include the full save game system. The release version will let players save at any time PC gamers expect.

  • WHAT KIND OF PERFORMANCE AND HARDWARE ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?

The Witcher 2 is being developed for one platform, the PC. What this basically means, especially together with our proprietary REDengine, is that we take advantage of the most advanced performance hardware. Our game doesn’t compromise its performance, gameplay, the interface or anything else to accommodate other platforms.

The REDengine is built so players with two-core processors and min-spec machines will receive a fully enjoyable experience. Even more importantly, anyone with the recommended 4 cores and/or hyperthreading will see a visible improvement. 6 cores? 8? Cool! The Witcher 2 will make good use of them all. The game will also scale exceptionally well. It has not only low, medium and high graphical settings, but also an ultra detail level… and even an “uber sampling” mode.

Note: The release version of the game will have an advanced graphical settings menu. It will also support the 16:9 aspect ratio and be playable in 16:10 (non-native) as well as 4:3 (letterbox).

  • WILL THERE BE DIFFERENT VERSIONS OF THE WITCHER 2?

The Witcher 2 will have the same content worldwide. There will be no regional differences aside from the languages. And no censored versions – so no wondering about importing the game, nudity patches, etc.

 

Microsoft 100m Dash World Record Attempt Plus Free Gold

Darren Resnekov
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Attention:  Microsoft is calling all couch dwellers to emerge from your cacoon and work up a sweat in their 100m dash Guinness World Record attempt. Join potentially millions of players on April 28th as they login to Xbox Live and help Microsoft achieve this amazing feat.

To participate just follow these 3 very simple steps

1. Logon to your account and locate the Xbox Nations Dash. Download the Guinness gamer pic

2. Load up Kinect Sports, the choose 100m dash from the mini games and select your players

3. At 18:00 run the race as usual with up to 4 other competitors

For their participation, players will receive an exclusive Xbox LIVE and Guinness World record t-shirt

Microsoft have managed to get infamous (I’m Australian) English cricketer Graeme Swann, Olympic medallists Amy Williams and Louis Smith as well as table tennis legend Darius Knight who holds the record, on board hoping for a large response from Xbox Live players. During the week leading up to the race, a multitude of other “Play and Win” Prizes will be up for grabs including the chance to meet and train with boxer Amir Khan, 2 tickets to a premier league soccer game, clothes, Microsoft points and Zune passes.

The event is part of part of Xbox Nations, a free Live weekend offering those who don’t have a Gold membership a chance to try out its features for free from the 21st through to 25th April. Players will be offered free access to gaming and social networks as well as massive discounts (50%), on many games and add-ons. Apparently Sega’s range of classic games will be made available at a very low price to those who participate.

So jump online, be part of something big and take advantage of all that’s on offer.

Hunted: The Demon’s Forge allows you to create your own dungeon in The Crucible

Travis Bruno
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2

Hunted: The Demon’s Forge looks to be one of the best dungeon crawling experiences that you can look for in today’s Western RPG market and with the revealing of The Crucible it certainly is going to make a mark. inXile Entertainment and Bethesda have released a new trailer which shows how The Crucible system works and how the player can unlock things to use in The Crucible.

Players can create any dungeon of their liking and will have complete control of everything inside of it. If you want to change what enemies will spawn and how many will? That is all at your fingertips. There is even the option tochange how much gravity is in an area. You can then enter your created dungeon with a computer partner, a friend online or even a friend on the same TV. Or of course if you don’t feel like creating a dungeon from scratch you can just have it create one for you. Hunted: The Demon’s Forge comes out on May 31st for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC and is definitely going to be worth a look.

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQgvAB2Rpqs[/pro-player]

Sonic Generations The Hedgehog celebrates his 20th Anniversary

Darren Resnekov
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In celebration of the iconic hedgehogs 20th Anniversary ( yes I said 20 and I feel soooo old), Sega  America and Europe have released some much anticipated information about their upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 title, Sonic Generations.  The game will appeal to both old school gamers who grew up with 2D classic side scrollers as well as fans of the new 3D Sonic games by melding together both styles of gameplay. Players will be able to relive the feel of the original titles as they take control of the classic 1991 character as well as the faster paced modern day hero he has transformed into, each coming with their own traditional trademark spins and moves. Complete with a new interactive menu, players will unlock their favourite characters and hidden treasures throughout the game.

David Corless, the Global Brand Director for Sonic, comments that “Sonic Generations will certainly be a fitting celebration for Sonic’s 20th Anniversary”, and goes on to say that “By having the classic 1991 Sonic that many fans know and love team up with his modern day incarnation, we are bringing back the nostalgia of the early days of Sonic and combining it with the innovation and stunning HD technology of the modern gaming era. Sonic Generations will bring to life the last twenty years of Sonic’s universe in a truly unique and imaginative way.”

The games premise sees Sonic and his friends battle against an evil mysterious new power that is creating time holes in his universe, pulling him and his allies through into unknown territory.

Uncharted 3 Multiplayer modes and BETA

Darren Resnekov
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2
Uncharted 3 Multiplayer modes and BETA

Just days after a the first showcasing Uncharted 3 multiplayer to only a select group of editors, Naughty Dog have released a flurry of information to the public via the official Playstation blog claiming that the “leap forward in gameplay and technology………….is nothing short of astounding”. A bold claim, but check out the trailer below for a full low down and I’m sure you will also agree that it looks spectacular

On main showcase were the multiplayer levels chateau and airstrip, highlighting the games diverse map design and dynamic ever changing environments. While chateau is a more traditional map, Airstrip actually changes mid-level, as players battle whilst on moving trucks and a cargo plane as well more conventional land base fighting.

Arne Meyer the community strategist for Naughty Dog tells of 2 new competitive modes that have been added to the classic deathmatch. These include Three team deathmatch where 3 teams of 2 battle it out, as well as the much asked for Free for all. Some other key features include Late Join, allowing players to enter tournaments with free slots before they finish, and same console split screen as well as the ability to sign in with multiple PSN accounts.

There is a heavy emphasis on team play, and as such each player will be teamed up with a Buddy with whom they can share progress and collect information and items for each other. Players can also spawn to their buddies location should they be within a safe zone. Another welcome addition is extensive customer and emblem customisation as well as weapon mods that go beyond just being visually appeasing and actually add functionality to the item.

Those familiar with Uncharted 2 will remember the Booster system, which has been modified based on feedback and selection patterns, and extended to include special paid boosters. Players can also choose from multiple kickbacks which are activated by collecting enough relevant medals. There are thousands of customisable options which have been broken down into 4 slots making it easier to configure for each match. Level gain and cash also don’t have as much of an influence in Uncharted 3, as players can now collect treasures throughout the levels and unlock many more items and modifiers through instant and long term mission play. Instant missions pop up during gameplay and are short lived with small rewards. Comparatively longer missions can take days and come with large bonuses.

Meyer explains how a new Power Play system has been implemented adding incentive for both competing teams. The team on top will be given the opportunity to maximise their cash for the round whilst the odds will be evened for the losing team allowing them a chance to come back into the match. Games that are too close to call will go into overtime, and then Sudden Death where only one player will remain standing. There is also a strong social media presence on the game with direct links to YouTube and face book.

Uncharted 3 BETA starts 28th June worldwide or sooner for selected players

Rage pre-order content announced alongside Dead City trailer

Travis Bruno
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1

Retailer exclusive bonuses are the bane of some game buyers existence. Should I buy from this retailer and receive this different outfit or should I buy from that place and get a different car? Well Bethesda is looking to avoid any hassle for people looking to pre-order their upcoming FPS Rage. Rage pre-order bonuses will be the same regardless of what retailer you decide to give your money to.

GameStop, Amazon, Steam and Direct2Drive have been listed by the company to receive a handful of bonus content. The bonus upgrade to the Anarchy Edition from these companies will include four bonus items which you can see above. The Double Barrel Shotgun, the Crimson Elite Armor, the Fists of RAGE which are knuckles with knives on them and a Rat Road Buggy.

Alongside all the pre-order information Bethesda also released the Dead City trailer which shows off plenty of gameplay footage and you can catch it below!

Fallout: New Vegas Game of the Year Edition outed by Amazon

Travis Bruno
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2

Seems like every other week some retailer is letting information leak out before the publishers want them world to know about the existence of said information. Amazon is guilty this week, more like Amazon UK as earlier today they posted up a new version of Fallout: New Vegas on their website, a Game of the Year Edition. The price was set at £20.62 which was down from £29.99. The listing has since been pulled from the site but it hardly revealed anything surprising.

Bethesda often releases their games a second time with all the DLC contained in one package but at the moment there has only been one piece of DLC released for Fallout: New Vegas which was Dead Money. Nothing else has been officially confirmed from the company yet and the listing did not have a release date so, other than the knowledge that a Game of the Year Edition is coming, nothing else was revealed.

Alice: Madness Returns is 2 for 1 deal

Chris Cerami
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5

American McGee’s Alice, released all the way back in Y2K, is considered a classic amongst many PC gamers who are grizzled enough to remember dial-up modems. However, Alice: Madness Returns, set to release for Xbox 360, PS3, and PC this June, is probably going to be many players first entry into the twisted mind of Americna McGee. Given that the original PC game currently fetches a pretty penny on sites like Amazon and eBay (when it’s available at all), this probably won’t change any time soon. Lucky for gamers who missed out on the heyday of PC gaming, however, is the news that the second entry of the series will include a code for a downloadable version of the original. Amercian McGee has announced that the original Alice will be released for consoles as a downloadable game and that gamers who buy Madness Returns will be able to redeem the game free of charge. This is an amazing opportunity for gamers who missed out on Alice the first time around to catch up on American McGee’s older work. For those who haven’t seen the gameplay trailer for Alice: Madness Returns yet, check it out below.

Gears Of War 3 BETA Video Gameplay

Philip Federico
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Gears Of War 3 online multiplayer BETA has finally been unleashed upon the world.  So far Team Deathmatch (Ranked and Public are only available) but this is keeping us all very busy. There are currently only two available maps Thrashball (football field) and Checkout (small shopping mall) – both a relatively small.  The video game play runs you through two rounds of Thrashball.

So far searching for matches especially ranked ones take quite a long time as the game does some sort of quality check to make sure your matched up with players in your area /country to eliminate any possibility of lag.  Unfortunately at the moment matching you up with players of similar level and skill is not possible, so you might end up in a game with a group of level 25’s that run around destroying everyone with one shot kills with their shotguns and are near next to impossible to take down.   This happened a few times and our pitiful little group of level 1 to 5’s were destroy 14 respawns  zip.

Team Deathmatch on both maps starts both teams off with 15 re-spawns a piece.  Die and you draw a resource point from the re-spawn pool. Once you deplete your re-spawns, the remaining players on the team are left to survive  in a sudden death situation where if you die you’re out of the game /round.  When the final player is eliminated the round ends and the fun starts all over again.  Team Deathmatch is first to three and from playing approx 40+ games so far the first few games took a while, but now as the players get better and better a rounds can be finished in less than 3 mins.

The video gameplay below will give you a greater understanding on how everything works from gameplay to also the Stats and Award / Challenges that you can unlock by performing specific kills etc within the game.  Sit back and enjoy the video game play of MasterAbbott getting owned.  (at least I didn’t end up last)  😉

p.s I HATE SHOTGUNS !!!

We Sing Superstar Quiz available for free on App Store

Jack Joly
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We Sing Superstar Quiz available for free on App Store

Nordic Games has delivered free new app on the App Store for iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad,  We Sing Superstar Quiz.  It’s a music trivia title based on their Wii game, We Sing.

There’s over 2000 questions and players have three single-player modes to choose from, which are: We Sing Superstar Quiz, Classic Mode and Sudden Death. The further people get the harder the questions become.

“We Sing Superstar Quiz is a great way of extending the We Sing brand onto other platforms and keeping it entertaining for fans of the We Sing series,” said Nik Blower, sales and marketing director, Nordic Games. “It gives players a fun and interactive way to learn about their favourite artists, as well as challenging them.”

We Sing Superstar Quiz is available for free on the App Store HERE

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