News
Max Payne 3 Preview: Hands-On With Multiplayer
By GameInformer, published 05-11-2012
Rockstar has done it! The famed developer has made bullet time work in multiplayer and achieved it with such subtle genius, it feels completely organic to the experience, retaining its functionality and its cool. It's the standout technical feature of Max's robust multiplayer mode, but it's not the only innovative idea set to make it a popular destination. Bullet time functions much as it does in the single player game. You build up your adrenalin by filling foes with lead, then tap a button to slow everything to a snail's pace. When you activate bullet time, any player in your line of sight also slows, albeit inhibited more than the activator in their ability to move and shoot. In addition, any players in the line of sight of the affected individuals also go into bullet t...
Being A Team Player In Far Cry 3’s Domination Mode
By GameInformer, published 04-08-2012
One of the primary complaints many gamers have with online FPS titles is the self-serving mentality of teammates. Many titles reinforce this behavior by rewarding players for kills more than supporting your team, but some attempts have been made recently to push things in the other direction (such as Modern Warfare 3’s support package). With Far Cry 3, the team at Ubisoft Montreal is putting a major focus on team play, and my hands-on time at PAX East left me thinking their methods may work. I had a chance to play a few rounds of Domination, and the similarities to Call of Duty’s multiplayer don’t end with the name of the mode. Three points (an ammo dump, fish market, and scrap yard in the Sub Pen area I played) are spread throughout the map, and teams are tasked with de...
Luchadores And Metroid Meet At Last In Guacamelee
By GameInformer, published 04-07-2012
At the Vita’s launch, DrinkBox’s downloadable Mutant Blobs Attack was talked about as much as any retail title. It featured a quirky sense of humor and classic platforming gameplay, which are two qualities that the developer is bringing to the upcoming Guacamelee. Due in early 2013, it plays like Metroid would if it were melee-based and featured luchadores instead of intergalactic bounty hunters. I had a chance to play it at PAX East, and it immediately became one of my most-anticipated downloadable titles. DrinkBox informed me that they don’t yet know if it’ll be a XBLA, PSN, or PC title (or some combination of the three), but the version I played utilized an Xbox 360 controller. Before we started playing, I got a quick rundown of the story. You play as Juan Aguac...
Hands-On With Borderlands 2 At PAX East
By GameInformer, published 04-06-2012
When we were down in Texas checking out Borderlands 2 for our September cover story, it was clear that Gearbox had ambitious plans for the sequel. The surprise success of the original game spawned millions of fans, and it was no shocker when the developer announced that a sequel was in the works. Our time at the studio was hands-off, but the game was in playable form on the PAX East show floor, and I had a chance to sit down with creative director Paul Hellquist for an extended demo. Two classes were available: the siren Maya and the dual-wielding Gunzerker that graced our cover. Since most of my time in the original game was spent with guns blazing, I opted for the latter. It didn’t take long for me to realize how well these two worked in tandem with each other. Hellquist was able ...
Battlefield 3 Patch Coming To PS3 Next Week
By GameInformer, published 23-03-2012
It's been a while since DICE last patched the base Battlefield 3 game. It turns out the studio was saving several fixes for one ginormous game update. The patch releases first on PlayStation 3 next Tuesday, March 27. DICE says the Xbox 360 and PC patches are coming soon as well. The most exciting changes include an updated comma rose for PC players, server rentals on console, an improved mini-map, and anti-aliasing for PS3. Ready for the full list? GENERAL GAMEPLAY FIXES-Players should no longer take fall damage from short falls.-Players now get up from Prone slightly faster, allowing better odds of getting away from a grenade or threat when prone.-Fixed some situations that would unintentionally make a player unrevivable.-Reduced the black screen fade in time on spawn. The fad...
Ten Things You Should Know About Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City
By GameInformer, published 17-03-2012
Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City is just around the corner, hitting PlayStation 3s, Xbox 360s, and PCs March 20. Socom developer SlantSix is at the helm of this third-person shooter, returning to the infected streets of Raccoon City. After spending plenty of time blasting away zombies, mutated monsters, and the armed opposition, I’ve compiled a list of 10 things you should know about the game. 1. You Are Umbrella Ever want to step into the combat boots of the evil Umbrella Corporation’s most hardened killers? This is your chance. You can choose from Hunk’s protégée, a rugged demolitions expert, a monster-controlling scientist, and more. Seeing the Raccoon City disaster from a new perspective is a unique experience that Operation Raccoon City has to of...
Battlefield 3 Gets Up Close And Personal
By GameInformer, published 13-03-2012
The announcement of the next batch of Battlefield 3 expansions couldn't have come at a better time for DICE. The natives were so restless over the lack of news and title updates coming from the studio that some particularly outraged fans were in the midst of organizing a 24-hour blackout to demonstrate their disappointment over the developer's perceived inaction. In reality, DICE was prepping the public unveiling of the most aggressive slate of post-release expansions since the days of Battlefield 2. But even before the first map pack releases in June, DICE has several other Battlefield 3 enhancements nearly ready for deployment. Executive producer Patrick Bach says a huge patch featuring several requested tweaks is going through certification right now with Microsoft and Sony, a...
Digging Into The Trenches With PlanetSide 2
By GameInformer, published 03-07-2012
When PlanetSide launched in 2003, it boldly tried to marry the persistence and player customization of massively multiplayer games with the kinetic action of a first-person shooter. Though it's fondly remembered by many for its unique concept, crippling bouts of lag ultimately grounded the ambitious project. Armed with better bandwidth and all of the progression refinements developed by games like Halo, Call of Duty, and Battlefield, nine years later Sony Online Entertainment is ready to give the concept another go. Like many other MMOs these days, PlanetSide 2 embraces the free-to-play financial model. Anyone will be welcome to download the game, with SOE supporting the servers by selling players several customization options for guns, vehicles, and soldiers. SOE was careful to poin...
Advanced Tactics: The Search For A Smarter Military Shooter
By GameInformer, published 02-07-2012
Military shooters have a long and venerable history in video games. Before Call of Duty and Battlefield began their war for complete market domination, smaller series like Ghost Recon, Rainbow Six, and SOCOM provided different takes on digital warfare. These series differentiated themselves – and the military shooter genre – from other FPS franchises like Quake and Halo by emphasizing strategy and realism. Forgoing roller-coaster spectacle and nonstop action, they presented gamers with a pseudo-authentic military experience where every shot counted and tactics played a larger role in the outcome of a mission than itchy trigger fingers. In the last few years, the first-person shooter landscape has radically changed. Guns-blazing military shooters now take ce...
Skyrim Patch 1.4 Available On PC
By GameInformer, published 02-01-2012
Bethesda said the latest patch for the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is now available for download on PC. Patches for the console versions are being submitted for approval this week. The patch was previously available to beta test on Steam. As revealed last month, v 1.4 fixes a number of issues. Below is the list of changes: Current 1.4 Changelog (all platforms unless noted) NEW FEATURES Skyrim launcher support for Steam Workshop (PC) BUG FIXES General optimizations for memory and performance Fixed occasional issue with armor and clothing not displaying properly when placed on mannequin’s in player’s house. (PS3) Improved compiler optimization settings (PC) Long term play optimizations for memory and performance (PS3) Memory optimizations related to scripting Fixed crashes relat...
Resident Evil: Revelations Review
By GameInformer, published 26-01-2012
Resident Evil: Gaiden, released for the Game Boy Color back in 2002, featured characters from the series fighting zombies on a cruise ship as they searched for the origins of a new viral threat. It was terrible. Considering that the setting for Resident Evil: Revelations is nearly identical and it’s also on a handheld device, any hesitation on your part is understandable. I’m here to ensure you that Resident Evil: Revelations is one of the finest entries in the franchise to date. The game packs improvements to the series’ reliable gameplay, impressive visuals, and a story that puts the last two main series entries to shame. Revelations is enough to please both diehard fans and 3DS owners looking for the next system-defining title. The story picks up between the...
This Is What The Next Skyrim Patch Fixes
By GameInformer, published 19-01-2012
Bethesda has released the patch notes for its latest Skyrim update, v1.4. On a blog post on the company's website, Bethesda says the upcoming patch for Skyrim is currently undergoing testing on all three platforms and hopes to have it finalized next week and submit it for certification on consoles and release on PC. "Our current update plan for the PC is to first release our updates as 'beta' versions through Steam," they said. "This is something you’ll be able to opt into through Steam and back-out of if needed. This is an extra safety check for everyone going forward and should expedite and improve our updating process for our PC users. We’ll have more info soon on how this will work." Bethesda said it will continue looking into issues being ...
Question Of The Month Reader Responses: Issue #226
By GameInformer, published 01-10-2012
A few months ago we asked readers what video game enemy scares them the most. The latest issue of Game Informer contains a few of the terrifying foes readers are afraid of, but there were plenty more picks lurking in the shadows. Jeepers Creepers: The creepers from Minecraft scare me the most. They’re just like bob-ombs, but with bob-ombs you only worry about them killing you. You worry about creepers killing your time. You can be building something and if they come near you and explode a lot of work and time goes down the drain. You always have to be alert for them because unlike most Minecraft enemies, creepers can survive in daylight. Even if they aren’t around they can strike fear into you with just the thought of them because anywhere and anytime they can find you.Blake ...
Blog Herding: Community Edition 01/05/12
By GameInformer, published 01-05-2012
Welcome one and all to the first episode of Blog Herding in 2012. Last year witnessed a steady growth in the number of bloggers and quality of blogs published and this year is already setting the pace with several new bloggers making this week's list. Enjoy the blogs and a new year of gaming. Blog Herding Stats: Period Reviewed: December 26 – January 01, 2012Number of User Blogs: 81Number of User Bloggers: 58Number of User Blogs Herded: 10 Community Blogs: Video Game Literature – Vintage GamesIf you're interested in video game history, you might enjoy Vintage Games, a book about the most influential games of all time. Samurai Zero summarizes the book and his thoughts about it in this blog. Starting Over From ScratchIn her premier blog, Valerie Figueroa talks about how ...
Hands-on With Alan Wake's American Nightmare And The Extended Trailer
By GameInformer, published 19-12-2011
American Nightmare bears the Alan Wake title, and it is releasing after the original Alan Wake, but the story and gameplay make the Xbox Live Arcade exclusive more of a side story to Wake’s expanding battle with darkness. “It’s definitely not a sequel to Alan Wake,” says Oskari Häkkinen, head of franchise development for Remedy. “It’s a standalone spinoff experience that anyone can pick up and play.”My hands-on time begins with Alan’s former manager Barry Wheeler sleeping in a hotel room. Since Alan’s mysterious disappearance, Barry has become the manager of the band The Old Gods of Asgard. The camera pans past Barry and to a television playing an episode of Night Springs, and the show’s credits reveal that the episode was w...
AMD Radeon HD 7970 Reference Board Design, Specifications, & Benchmarks Leak
By MaximumPC, published 18-12-2011
With a rumored December 22nd launch of the AMD Radeon HD 7970 just around the corner, details as expected are starting to leak out. A series of slides obtained during a press briefing have confirmed a few additional specifications in addition to what we already knew, and even a few internal benchmarks. Perhaps the most immediately apparent change in terms of the cards appearance is that AMD is finally going to be capable of offering up a high performance single-slot card for those willing to go with water cooling. Previous generation parts from the HD5000 and HD 6000 series had issues with the dual DVI connectors spilling over into a second expansion slot, making four-GPU configurations rather difficult in all but the most mammoth of cases. A second slot is still consumed by the 6t...
Blog Herding: Community Edition 12/15/11
By GameInformer, published 15-12-2011
The number of blogs posted this week rebounds back to normal levels while witnessing quite a few exceptional posts by infrequent bloggers. And as many of us are busy preparing for the holidays, quite a few gamers are preparing for the imminent release of The Old Republic. What better way to help pass the time than reading some community blogs, including a sampling of the best included below? Blog Herding Stats: Period Reviewed: December 05 – December 11, 2011Number of User Blogs: 110Number of User Bloggers: 67Number of User Blogs Herded: 8 Community Blogs: Embracing InteractivityIt's common for video games to use cinema-like cut scenes to stitch the story and the gameplay together, but can this method be a distraction? Read Matthew Fugere's thoughts on the subject and see if...
Serious Sam 3 Review: No Frills, Some Thrills
By GameInformer, published 23-11-2011
I have a lot of respect for Serious Sam developer Croteam for its unwavering dedication to a laser-focused design vision. Serious Sam 3: BFE is exactly what it means to be: a fast-paced, old-school shooter that makes up for its lack of nuance with lots of enemies and the ludicrous arsenal you need to take them down.Serious Sam 3 gleefully throws away all the fluff that modern shooters have accumulated over the last two decades. Anything that isn't about a) shooting aliens or b) blowing up aliens (or occasionally c) tearing apart aliens with your bare hands) has no place here. Your reward for finishing a level isn't a cutscene or a story beat – it's a score screen that penalizes you for taking too long. Anyone who pines for the good old days of Quake II and Unreal Tourname...
PlanetSide 2 - Screenshots
By Game Revolution, published 23-11-2011
KEY FEATURES: • MASSIVE WARFARE: Battles will take place not between dozens of troops, but hundreds; with air and ground vehicles slugging it out alongside squads of troops. Whether in open fields, tightly-packed urban centers or enormous structures, winning will require strategic teamwork and a quick trigger finger in the massive battles. • THREE EMPIRES: Players will have their choice to join three different empires: o Terran Republic – With a militaristic government, the Terran Republic uses its Imperial authoritarian might to impel humanity to peaceful coexistence through any means necessary. o New Conglomerate – A loosely connected group of rebel factions and idealistic freedom fighters, the New Conglomerate fights against the hegemony of the T...
Rage Review
By MaximumPC, published 22-11-2011
Fast, frantic, fun…forgettable? Before Rage was released there were a lot of unanswered questions floating around. Could Id make another genre-defining shooter? Would the six-plus years of development and the much-touted Id Tech 5 engine yield a sufficiently impressive result? While these are certainly appropriate questions for both reviewers and gamers to be curious about, we found ourselves haunted by another, seemingly trivial, question: What does the title Rage mean? Only after playing completely through could we truly understand. Rage pulls off an impressive feat: It manages to have a lot of personality despite having minimal character. While you may not care about the paper-thin story or remember any character names, you’ll probably notice something unique in just about every NPC...
Skyrim Beating Out Modern Warfare 3 On Steam
By GameInformer, published 13-11-2011
Of the many titles released last week, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 were probably the biggest. While we'll need to wait a while to see how they shape up in the sales charts -- and Modern Warfare3 will almost undoubtedly win -- we do have some intriguing evidence that Skyrim is beating out Activision's popular shooter for the PC crowd. Taking a look at the Steam game stats for today, Skyrim currently has an astounding 282,482 people playing. Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer has just under 80,000. Even if you include the number of people playing Modern Warfare 3 single-player, that number is still below 110,000, so Skyrim has it handily doubled and then some. To be fair, Steam isn't the only way to play these two games on the PC, but it's likely a g...
Maximum Interview: We Talk Battlefield 3 with a Navy SEAL
By MaximumPC, published 11-11-2011
Video games, like movies, are more about entertainment than realism. Yet game developers spend an inordinate amount of time modeling weapons, recording the sound from actual weapon systems and calculating how much damage a bullet should do. Since firearms are such a big part of first person shooters, we wanted to get the low down on the current state of firearms in video games and how they rate in real life. What's wrong with this picture? If you guessed, where's my rear sight, you guessed right. In real life, not having a rear sight would greatly diminish your ability to hit anything beyond 30 feet. There's no one to blame though, this Marine probably just hasn't unlocked his sights or bullets yet. To get the view of an expert, Maximum PC magazine spoke with Craig “Sawman” Sawyer. S...
Crime Shooter Delivers Tense, Challenging Co-op Shooting
By GameInformer, published 21-10-2011
On PC where it belongs, Payday: The Heist mostly lives up to its lofty potential. Those moments and sessions where everything is working together as intended are some of the best times I’ve had with a shooter this year. A lackluster backend and some minor issues around the edges keep it from greatness, but if you have any friends you can count on to have your back in a frantic firefight, this is a worthy investment.Payday is basically a modern crime-caper version of Left 4 Dead. The six heists are each half-hour or so affairs that shuffle their objectives and threats around each playthrough, but always challenge your four-person team to work together and accomplish a series of goals en route to pulling off some crazy stunt, like cutting a room out of a building and flying it off on ...
The Game Boy: Violence Is the (Wrong) Answer
By MaximumPC, published 20-10-2011
I love shooting things in the face. Monsters, aliens, mice, men – all are equal in the eyes of my trigger finger, which itches with such fervor that I should probably have a doctor look at it. But – even in the ammo-casing-coated world of videogames – there's a time and place for violence. (And no, smartasses in the audience, it's not “always.” Always isn't even a place.) More and more, I've noticed recent games tripping over their own feet because they choose to reign with unfaltering bloodlust instead of reining it in. In some games, it's but a speck-sized sticking point. Others, though, choose to live by the sword, only to fall flat on their faces and die by it in the most gruesome fashion imaginable. Evidence A: Deus Ex. For the most part, it's an amazing game, but bring up ...
Behind The Crosshairs: The Weapons Of Transformers
By GameInformer, published 13-10-2011
When High Moon started developing Transformers: Fall of Cybertron, the designers put out an open call for anyone in the studio to submit ideas for new weapons. A flood of concepts soon rushed in, and the programming team spent weeks turning a list of offhand and oddball ideas into a prototyped arsenal. Take a look at the creative munitions born out of this experiment. The Upgrade SystemEach weapon can be upgraded through universal munitions stations scattered around the planet. “We really made a conscious choice to make every upgrade a significant improvement, so one upgrade might increase your firing speed by 75 percent,” explains game director Matt Tieger. “We could have made the system so that there were a lot of upgrades that each improved your guns a little...
Question Of The Month Reader Responses: Issue #223
By GameInformer, published 10-11-2011
A few months ago we asked readers what their favorite video game power-up is, and why. The latest issue of Game Informer contains a variety of answer, but they were only the tip of the ice burg. Here are more responses from your fellow gamers. Invincibility Star FTW: I gotta give it to the star from Super Mario Bros. There are many obvious reasons, but its the only power-up I can think of that has its own theme music and that is some powerful sh*t!Brett Burrows My favorite video game power-up would have to be the star power-up in the various Super Mario Bros. games as well as Super Smash Bros. Brawl. The Star power-up gives you invincibility. Invincibility really helps you win in a fight (whether it's against Bowser and his minions or against multiple opponents in Super Smash Bros. ...
Behold The Skyrim Map
By GameInformer, published 10-10-2011
This is the territory where you'll spend hundreds of hours uncovering Daedric artifacts and slaying dragons. Thanks to the folks at ElderScrolls.net and Lexmirnov.ru, we now have a glimpse at the land mass filled with dragons, wooly mammoths, and trolls where I'll be spending the majority of my winter. Not a ton of details can be extracted from the map, but it does feature nine cities – the same number of major settlements that were found in Oblivion. For comparison's sake, here is an image of Cyrodiil, the setting of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Though these two maps may not be the same scale, the territories don't appear to be radically different in terms of square footage. I can't wait to explore all the nooks and crannies of this unforgiving, mountainous...
A Fresh Look For An Old Nightmare
By GameInformer, published 26-09-2011
The dangers and mysteries of Rockfort Island punished me across multiple playthroughs of the original Resident Evil: Code Veronica for Dreamcast and PlayStation 2. I still consider it the most difficult entry in the series. Claire and Chris Redfield’s journey across several Umbrella installations has received a makeover, and returning to the grueling game is a treat for classic survival horror fans. The story is as convoluted as any Resident Evil game starring a cross-dressing aristocrat and a Leonardo DiCaprio-look-alike could be. If you missed out on Code Veronica, this game could plug in some very interesting missing pieces. Lots of file-reading and campy voice-acting holds back the experience a bit. This isn’t a high point in the franchise’s twisting plot,...
Pandora, Facebook Show Off Major New UI Changes
By MaximumPC, published 21-09-2011
When you’re getting ready for the big dance, you slip into something nice, clean and pretty to try and put your best foot forward for the crowd. Two major sites did that today. Facebook doffed the equivalent of a new pair of shoes in anticipation of tomorrow’s F8 conference, drastically changing users’ News Feeds while keeping the rest of the layout the same. Pandora took the opposite route; they overhauled their ensemble from the ground up in a quest to impress. Unfortunately, one of them dashed its prom queen hopes after getting a big FAIL from unhappy users. Facebook’s redesign breaks the old two-tabbed News Feed into a single, mammoth News Feed that combines both Top Stories and Most Recent posts in a single interface. Facebook picks its Top Stories from a number of factors, in...
Screenshots Show WWII Flight MMO In Action
By GameInformer, published 16-09-2011
Tanks not your thing? Check out this impressive gallery showing off World of Warplanes, the next free-to-play action MMO from Wargaming.net. Wargaming.net has enjoyed massive, unprecedented success with its free-to-play World of Tanks, and the developer/publisher is expanding its reach into sky and sea with this and the upcoming World of Battleships. You can expect to engage in multitudes of session-based competitive multiplayer matches featuring a wide variety of real and prototype war machines of the World War II era, building up your pilot's career and his stable of aircraft as you go along. Given World of Tanks' success, you can bet that World of Warplanes will feature a similar system where gameplay is free, but you can buy special upgrades and ammo through a microtransaction...
Joerg Sprave unveils compact bullpup crossbow slingshot
By SlashGear, published 13-09-2011
That master of slingshot disaster Joerg Sprave has posted a new video to his YouTube account showing off his latest creation. This time around, he is shooting normal ball bearings out of what he calls the compact bullpup crossbow slingshot rather than exotic ammo like saw blades or iPhones. I will admit up front I [...]
An Afternoon Of Sci-Fi Carnage
By GameInformer, published 09-09-2011
In the golden age of shooters, story and puzzle solving didn’t take a backseat to action – they rode in a different car altogether. We fell in love with them regardless, defending humanity from aliens/Nazis/robots/demons/robo-demons/Mecha-Hitler in the shoes of silent heroes represented by the barrel of a gun and not much else. Such is the power of the first-person perspective. Hard Reset is a return to that simpler time, with only modern graphics and a simple upgrade system marking the passage of the last two decades. This budget-priced FPS tries to tell a story about surviving the robot apocalypse, but the muddy narrative is an unwelcome distraction from blowing up said robots. You won’t do much exploring or divining the secrets of the ruined city you run a linear path...
The Essential Survival Guide To Dead Island
By GameInformer, published 09-06-2011
Being prepared is the best option going into any apocalypse. Good planning is especially important when the undead are roaming around. Dead Island (read the review here) allows players to dive into an open world brimming with shambling, cannibalistic corpses and choose how they face the threat. There are tons of things to do and creatures to kill on Banoi Island, but we’ve prepared a few tips that will make starting your adventure a smoother experience. Basics: To bring up your map, hit the 360’s back button or Select on the PS3 controller. To manage your inventory, press up on the d-pad. The game’s combat is based around melee, but a good variety of guns appear a little bit after halfway through the game. You can look forward to handguns, shotguns, and more. Remember t...
A Few Missing Limbs Can’t Hold Back This Undead Romp
By GameInformer, published 09-05-2011
Like a garbage disposal with a severed arm shoved down it, the video game market is clogged with zombie games. New games featuring the walking dead have trouble standing out from the horde, but Techland’s first-person, open-world, action/RPG entry Dead Island distinguishes itself. After kicking and slashing my way through the infected island of Banoi, I can say the game has tons to offer. The long-term goal in Dead Island is to escape Banoi. On the way, you’ll fight tooth and nail-bat through legions of zombies as one of four characters. The survivors are all unique and loosely class-based, with specialists focusing on various types of melee weapons or firearms. While everyone starts on similar footing, the joy lies in chopping zombies to bits and completing quests ...
Mining the past for game ideas
By GameSpot, published 27-08-2011
PAX Prime 2011: Geeknight podcast hosts take a look at game mechanics worth revisiting from Outlaw, Spy vs. Spy, Sopwith, Aerobiz Supersonic, Rampart, Metal Marines. Who was there: Geeknights' Brandon DeCoster and Scott Rubin held forth at PAX Prime 2011 to talk about what designers can learn from games lost to time. Outlaw may look simplistic, but its gameplay is surprisingly entertaining. What they talked about: DeCoster and Rubin began their panel by referencing Dan Simmons' novel Hyperion, and a speech made therein. The far-future tale includes a speech by a character who is essentially the president of the galaxy. Afterward, the president is approached and praised on the speech, but the character says that it was actually stolen from long-forgotten l...
GI Staff And Reader Interests, Dislikes, And Favorite Games: Issue #221
By GameInformer, published 25-08-2011
The Game Informer monthly staff page is a forum where we all come together and talk about what's cool right now. We'll get the ball rolling and would love to hear everyone's current interests, dislikes, and favorite games. Andy McNamara Profile E-mail Editor Interests: Cycling, Bon Iver, Jose Gonzalez, Friday Night Lights & Mad Men (I Finally Sat Down To Watch These Shows That People Always Talk About), All The Great Feedback I Got For My Recent Letters As Well As GI Digital (Keep It Coming), The World Series of Poker Dislikes: That I Sometimes Wish I Still Read Comics, But Won't Get Off My Butt And Do It Because I've Been Burned Too Many Times, The Slow Process Of Getting Things Done, Darth Vader Deals, 3D, Contacts Current Favorite Games: A...
Fallout New Vegas travels Lonesome Road Sept. 20
By GameSpot, published 25-08-2011
Bethesda dates fourth full add-on for Obsidian-developed open-world RPG; two more DLC packs to launch September 27. The latest Fallout: New Vegas downloadable content has endured a long and winding path to release, but it appears to be close to its terminus. Bethesda today announced that Lonesome Road will launch for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC gamers on September 20. New Vegas is about to get lonesome. In the add-on, players are contacted by the original Courier Six, who refused to deliver the Platinum Chip at the beginning of the main Fallout: New Vegas campaign. Gamers will be offered the reason for his refusal if they agree to venture into the Divide, which has been ravaged by earthquakes and hurricanes. Lonesome Road was originally set for a ...
A Long-Dormant Series Returns To Mixed Results
By GameInformer, published 22-08-2011
With Ion Storm dead and celebrated creators Warren Spector and Harvey Smith each in new stages of their careers, developer Eidos Montreal faces the difficult task of bringing back one of gaming’s most celebrated series. Eidos sticks to Ion’s original vision, offering a game that supports deep stealth, combat, exploration, and RPG-style upgrade and conversation systems. Throughout most of this adventure, the player is empowered with an authoritative role over the gameplay flow. Depending on how a scenario is approached, individualized tactics can produce varied results that impact the story, obtainable loot, and shape of the world. An entire courtyard of civilians could end up dead, or the only casualty could be a computer’s security system getting hacked. Unfortunately, ...
Review: Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini
By TechRadar, published 18-08-2011
Before the arrival of Sony's Ericsson's new Xperia Mini, the X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro were an odd little couple, launching in mid-2010 with Android 1.6 and a bespoke and heavily-customised user interface on top.They weren't amazingly powerful phones and their 2.55" screens were shockingly small - but Sony Ericsson did a good job of maximising the available space with its corner-based interface. The same system has returned in 2011's updates, albeit improved thanks to Sony Ericsson's developers having another year to fiddle with the interface and add more new layers of social integration. We've got some real-life footage of ACTUAL people using the phone - check it out if these grouped-together letters are too much:The new Xperia Mini is available SIM-free for just over the £200 mark, with...
Review: Acer Aspire Ethos 8951G
By TechRadar, published 17-08-2011
These days we're seeing a lot more slim and light ultraportable laptops. Rising up against these size zero models is the Acer Aspire Ethos 8951G.Like the Dell XPS 15z and the Macbook Pro 17 inch, this is all about packing in huge amounts of power, and who cares if it's on the chunky side. After all, as our mothers told us: it's not the outside, it's what's on the inside that counts.As with the previous Ethos models, the Acer Aspire Ethos 8951G is an entertainment centre that's designed to sit on your desk at home.Crushing the scales at 4.2kg, you wouldn't want to carry this laptop any further than the next room, to avoid popping a couple of vertebrae.That said, we were impressed at how thin the Ethos is. Sure, 40mm can't really be described as 'thin', when you consider that the Samsung 900...
10 Things You Should Know About Deus Ex: Human Revolution
By GameInformer, published 08-12-2011
Deus Ex: Human Revolution has gone gold, and should be on store shelves on August 23. With Ion Storm disbanded, Eidos Montreal has taken up the reins on this anticipated sequel. I've already played all the way through the game, and have compiled a spoiler-free list of 10 things you should know about it. 1Pick Your PathHolding true to Deus Ex's heritage, Human Revolution allows players to approach many objectives from stealth, combat, exploration, and conversation angles. Early in the game, protagonist Adam Jensen must get to a computer terminal on a police station's second floor. Getting into the police station is no easy task. He can try to talk his way in or can draw his guns in the lobby and clear a bloody path to his objective. Alternatively, he doesn't even have to ma...
The Metamorphosis Of Castlevania's Classic Monsters
By GameInformer, published 08-08-2011
When the original Castlevania hit the NES in 1986, courageous adventurers were tasked with conquering six levels of a haunted castle. While six locations may seem like a short order on paper, the game's punishing difficulty humbled even the hardiest demon slayers. The six bosses – the giant bat, Medusa, the Mummy, Frankenstein's Monster, Death, and Dracula – were responsible for much of the frustration. Unfortunately, not every vampire slayer has endured a horrible night in Castlevania and lived to to see the numerous incarnations of those six core villains. Come along with us as we brave the halls of Castlevania and examine its deadly regulars. Before you dive in, we recommend that you select some spooky music to set the mood. The Giant Bat After Simon Belmont whips ...
Why I Picked Resident Evil For My Guinness Record
By GameInformer, published 08-01-2011
We here at Game Informer are developing somewhat of a fascination with going after Guinness World Video Game Records. We previously broke the record for longest fighting game marathon with our 30 hour, live-streamed Smash Bros. session, which has since been bested. Now six editors are going after six individual records all at once over the weekend of August 6-7. I’m gunning for a record in a whole new category: “Longest Video Games Marathon Playing a Survival Horror Game.” While the record is for the survival horror genre, I’m limited to the Resident Evil universe. Fortunately, that means I can play any Resident Evil game released since the franchise’s 1996 debut in my quest to play a minimum of 24 hours. I’ve tackled every Resident Evil game released ...
GI Staff And Reader Interests, Dislikes, And Favorite Games: Issue #220
By GameInformer, published 22-07-2011
The Game Informer monthly staff page is a forum where we all come together and talk about what's cool right now. We'll get the ball rolling and would love to hear everyone's current interests, dislikes, and favorite games. Andy McNamara Profile E-mail Editor Interests: Cycling, Google Plus, Twitter (Follow me @GI_AndyMc), Coming Up With New Plans For Game Informer, Surprised I Am Kind of Excited For Planetside 2, The Tour De France, Archers of Loaf (The Chicago Shows Rocked) Dislikes: How Slow New Plans For Game Informer Take To Come To Fruition, Netflix's New Pricing Plan, Slow Internets!, Comcast (Can They Do Anything Right?), Not Having Real Choice For Internet and Television Service (Choose This Idiot Or The Other) Current Favorite Games: Bastion...
Does Not Compute: 10 PC Myths from Movies and Television
By MaximumPC, published 15-07-2011
For over half a century, Hollywood has been making computers do whatever they damn well please. Routinely featured on television and in movies, supercomputers, desktop rigs and laptops—and in some cases, the people that use them—are all too often imbued with near-magical capabilities, painting a deceptive picture of what our beloved machines can and cannot do. Not sure of what tech-centric malarky we’re talking about? No problem: We’ve put together a list of our top ten Hollywood TV and Movie myths. We’re betting they’ll be just as familiar and irritating to you as they are to us. A computer will blow up if there is a question it cannot answer. According to Hollywood, computers are so delicate that when confronted with a question that they’re unable to answer, they’ll exp...
Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon - Xbox360 - GR Review
By Game Revolution, published 14-07-2011
It's extremely buggy. If all insects were wiped off the planet, most life would end. If all human beings were wiped off the planet, life would flourish. That might put the importance of our species in much-needed perspective, but after playing Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon, I don't care. Anything with more than four legs is going down. Insect Armageddon knows what it is—a cooperative third-person fragfest with the heart of an arcade twin-stick shooter—and it doesn't apologize. Sure, it's not the most intellectual or the most polished shooter on the rack, but it delivers where it counts. It knows that you want to shoot swarms of giant bugs with cool weapons and a couple of friends without having to worry about a complicated story. The sense of sc...
Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon - PS3 - GR Review
By Game Revolution, published 14-07-2011
It's extremely buggy. If all insects were wiped off the planet, most life would end. If all human beings were wiped off the planet, life would flourish. That might put the importance of our species in much-needed perspective, but after playing Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon, I don't care. Anything with more than four legs is going down. Insect Armageddon knows what it is—a cooperative third-person fragfest with the heart of an arcade twin-stick shooter—and it doesn't apologize. Sure, it's not the most intellectual or the most polished shooter on the rack, but it delivers where it counts. It knows that you want to shoot swarms of giant bugs with cool weapons and a couple of friends without having to worry about a complicated story. The sense of sc...
Playing The Resident Evil: Revelations Demo
By GameInformer, published 07-04-2011
Recent 3DS release Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D is plenty of fun in its own right. But it also includes a demo of next year's Resident Evil: Revelations. So what's it like? The demo begins on a ship in the middle of the Mediterranean. You control Jill Valentine circa 2005 between Resident Evil 4 and 5 as she searches for a missing Chris Redfield. His last known coordinates point to this ship. Of course it's full of vile creatures and scheming villains. The demo is dubbed the "Pilot Version" and may or may not take place at the beginning of the game. You walk down a hallway and some rats spring out of a panel. Rounding a corner, you see a large puddle of blood on the ground. Lightning flashes, swinging lamps, and Jill's flashlight show off the power of Capcom...
Google: 500,000 Android devices activated each day
By GameSpot, published 28-06-2011
Senior vice president at search giant's mobile division shares new milestone; claims that figure is growing 4.4% week-over-week. With some 187 million iOS devices sold to date, Apple Inc. is a behemoth in the mobile technology sector. However, it's not the only mobile giant in the business. Google today trumpeted its own mammoth sales figures, saying that some 500,000 Android devices are activated every day. Android devices are proving popular. The news stems from the Twitter feed of Google's senior vice president of mobile technology Andy Rubin. He also noted that the figure is growing 4.4 percent week-over-week. Further, daily Android device activation figures are surging quickly. During last month's Google I/O conference, the tech giant announced (accor...
10 Games Worth Downloading On DSiWare
By GameInformer, published 22-06-2011
Now that the 3DS eShop is open for business, many of the console’s owners are confronted with the DSiWare’s mountain of titles for the first time. Here are some great games to start with.As of press time, there are 360 DSiWare titles on the 3DS’s eShop. That’s a little too much to deal with if you haven’t been following the releases for the last few years. Maybe you’ve owned a non-Internet connected Lite for all your DS gaming. Perhaps you’ve had a DSi, but never knew what to download outside of a couple games. Whatever the case may be, I’ve compiled a list of ten quality DSiWare games to keep you entertained while the 3DS Virtual Console and eShop library slowly expand. (Please visit the site to view this media)Art Style: PictobitsDeveloper:...
Review: Sony VAIO VPC-F21Z1E
By TechRadar, published 21-06-2011
Alright, fancypants. You want a laptop of luxury, but you don't want an Apple MacBook? Not even a 17-inch MacBook Pro? You want 3D but a Zalman 3D monitor isn't for you? Fancy the sort of black plastic slab that your friends can only dream of owning? You want a machine so heavy and precious that taking it out of the house is about as easy as taking a cat for a walk? You've got it in the Sony VAIO VPC-F21Z1E. You've also got an empty wallet and, as we'll discover, a vague sense of disappointment. Clearly you can't have everything.Let's set this up, though: the Sony VAIO VPC-F21Z1E, in culinary terms, is a burger with all the toppings. It's got a Blu-ray drive, it's got USB 3.0 support, it's got a light-up chiclet keyboard and, most importantly, it's got a 16-inch screen capable of stereosco...
Itagaki Talks Devil's Third, What He Liked From E3
By GameInformer, published 16-06-2011
Tomonobu Itagaki has always been an interesting interview, so we jumped at the chance to talk to the Devil's Third designer recently. His new IP may not be debuting until 2013, but we learned a little about the style the outspoken designer is shooting for. Read on to hear about his new project as well as his thoughts on games he checked out at E3. Game Informer: What stage of development is Devil’s Third currently in?Itagaki: In terms of technology, we finalized the middleware, the engine, all the specs. So you know, we’re about ready to go into mass production.Will it be as action-heavy as your work on Ninja Gaiden, or will there be more puzzles and other activities to break up the action?Do you think shooters are lacking any action elements?No, I don’t think they&r...
Hands On With Ghost Recon Online
By GameInformer, published 06-12-2011
Ubisoft's new free-to-play tactical shooter stays true to the series, stressing teamwork over running and gunning. Like Battlefield Play4Free, it won't cost you a dime to jump online, create an account, and join a match. Developed by Ubisoft's Singapore studio, Ghost Recon forgoes an up-front fee in favor of the micro-transaction business model that more and more companies are experimenting with. Players earn XP during firefights by downing enemies and completing objectives to unlock new weapons, abilities, and outfits free of charge. If you want to accelerate your progression, you can pay for upgrades as well. End-of-game loot drops also give players the chance to test new weapons, which may convince you to open up your wallet to grab a gun that seems to fit your play ...
Being Dismembered Is Frustrating
By GameInformer, published 06-09-2011
I was intrigued when I first heard about NeverDead’s unique gameplay involving undead protagonist Bryce’s ability to lose all his limbs and still fight on. In theory, throwing your arm to distract a herd of hungry demons or using your head like Samus’ morph ball ability is awesome. In practice, having your body fall apart while trying to play an action game is very annoying. The E3 2011 demo at Konami’s booth involves Bryce running around killing monsters with his scantily clad female partner. Bryce has a pistol and SMG at his disposal, one attached to each of the controller's triggers. If an enemy bites off Bryce's hand holding the SMG, you’ll be left with just a pistol. At this point in development the aiming mechanic feels very loose, and I had a h...
We Take On The Authority In Rage
By GameInformer, published 06-08-2011
Our latest hands-on time with id Software's post-apocalyptic shooter took us on a daring prison break mission inside a mutant jailhouse. Earlier in the year I had a chance to play through some of Rage's early missions set in dusty towns and mutant-filled sewers, so when I checked out the missions available at Bethesda's E3 booth, I chose one that sounded promisingly different: Authority Prison. My objective was to head into Authority territory to locate a human prisoner -- the gameplay jumped right into the action, so I don't know why the character was important, just that there was no shortage of soldiers between and my target. The differences between Authority soldiers and the previous hoodlums I've fought was instantly apparent. While the wasteland's gang member...
Gears of War 3 Looks Ready For The Fight
By GameInformer, published 06-08-2011
If the campaign demo at E3 is any indication, Gears of War looks more than ready for its September 20 release date. The behind closed doors demo started on the same derelict ship as the live demo from the press conference. The mission, aptly called Abandon Ship, finds Marcus and Dom facing off against a huge sea beast called the Leviathan. With the ship coming apart at the seams, the squad needs to move quickly to get its uninvited guest to back off. As they work their way to the ship deck, the walls and windows around them crumble and shatter, showcasing the new vertex deformation that makes the Gears 3 environments feel much more alive than in previous games. With long, powerful tentacles and a mouth that could swallow the entire Gears squad whole, Lancers aren't going to cut it in...
Sony Online Entertainment Announces Payday: The Heist
By GameInformer, published 06-03-2011
It seems that the folks at Overkill Software are fans of The Dark Knight, because their newly-announced Payday: The Heist greatly resembles The Joker's bank robbery from the film. We're not sure if clown masks are a necessity, but this squad-based team shooter will have you picking classes, robbing banks, and taking hostages. Here are some features, as outlined by Sony: Six High-Intensity Heists: Whether you're blowing the roof off a building to extract a safe via helicopter or emptying the vault at the First World Bank, these action-packed heists will have players on edge and always checking their six. Interactive Co-op Gameplay: Whether AI or live, your crew of four must operate as one to bring get the "big score." Sharing extra ammo and med kits, helping regen wo...
Microsoft Unveils Windows Phone 7.1 'Mango' with Over 500 New Features
By MaximumPC, published 24-05-2011
Your Windows Phone 7 device is officially obsolete. At a press event in New York this morning and several media events around the world, Microsoft cut the ribbon on its next generation Windows Phone mobile platform codenamed "Mango," which introduces "more than 500 new features to push the boundaries of the smartphone experience." Before we jump into Mango and it's many new features, let's put some worries to rest. Yes, your Windows Phone 7 device is yesterday's news, but don't toss it in a river just yet. Not only would that be environmentally irresponsible, but Microsoft is making the Mango release available for free to Windows Phone 7 customers (and will come standard on new phones beginning this fall). "Seven months ago we started our mission to make smartphones smarter and easier for ...
Buying Guide: Best CPU cooler 2011: 8 coolers tested
By TechRadar, published 20-05-2011
How hot does your CPU really get? If you're talking about some low-end AMD Fusion beastie or a limping Intel Atom chip, then the short answer is: not very. If you're on about a fully fledged multi-core number, though, you may just be generating enough heat to cook a plum duff. Tasty, yes, but bad for your rig. With those lower-end CPUs, you can even get away with passively cooling them. That means no fans and no spinning, whirring noises to disturb you. You can't do that with higher-spec chips, since they work harder and thus get hotter, meaning you will almost always need an active cooler to keep your CPU running effectively. Of course, you could set up a heatsink the size of the mighty Greg Davies, but finding a chassis to house such a beast will be tricky. So if an active cooler is the ...
Arma 3 Announced For Summer 2012, First Screenshots
By MaximumPC, published 19-05-2011
After weeks of puzzles and hinting, Czech developer Bohemia Interactive has confirmed that a follow-up to its landmark military simulation game, Arma 3, is in development. It’s still a PC exclusive, it’s set somewhere in the Mediterranean, and it’ll retain the fine, sandboxy, multiplayer-friendly, emergent warplay that we expect from the franchise with some key improvements. Within: I dissect every detail of the announcement, play Where In The World Is Arma Sandiego?, and change my pants. Arma 3?s story, as described by the press release: “After years of intense warfare against Eastern armies, Europe has become the last stand for the battered NATO forces. On the verge of being driven into the sea, NATO command embarks upon a most desperate measure. In the hope of seizing what seems...
Vanguard Brings Polish And Depth To Twin Stick Shooters
By GameInformer, published 13-05-2011
Many twin stick shooters put players in a box and send endless waves of enemies in their direction until they get hit and blow up. Gatling Gears is not one of those games. It contains a multi-chapter campaign filled with vast lands to transverse so you’re constantly pushing toward new frontiers rather than trying to beat some high score in the same repeated arena.Throughout the course of the campaign, Max Brawley and optional co-op partner Zoe stomp their mechanical walkers through sunny forests, gloomy lightning storms, and treacherous snowy peaks in the name of stopping the evil Empire lead by his former army buddy.Fans of last year’s turn-based strategy title Greed Corp will recognize the backdrop world of Mistbound, which carries over into Gatling Gears (developer W!Games ...
GameFly wins in USPS dispute
By GameSpot, published 21-04-2011
Postal service ordered to treat games-by-mail rental services as equal to Netflix by introducing new first-class DVD mailer categories. The two-year dispute between GameFly and the United States Postal Service has finally come to an end. The Postal Regulatory Commission handed down its ruling today in GameFly's dispute with the USPS, finding that the service has been unfairly giving preferential treatment to the parcels of movie rental-by-mail services like Netflix and Blockbuster Video. GameFly's long, hard struggle for equality is finally over. At the heart of the dispute is a question about the hand-sorting of the various companies' disc mailers. GameFly claimed that its movie-renting counterparts received hand-sorting at no charge, a practice that kept t...
Uncharted 3 Director Sheds Light On Multiplayer Improvements
By GameInformer, published 18-04-2011
Late last week at a Sony press event we got the chance to sit down with Justin Richmond, game director for Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. We chatted about the changes between Uncharted 2 and Uncharted 3, crazy dynamic multiplayer maps, and booster balancing.Tell me about the multiplayer changes from Uncharted 2 to Uncharted 3 that might be easy to miss. The simplest one is that we put auto-pickup in the game on the grenades and guns. Because of that you never will miss a grenade on the ground because you accidentally tried to pick up a gun. It’s amazing how frustrating that is when you don’t have that [feature]. Basically, in the last game when you were running around and all the guns were on the ground, and you were trying to pick up the one you wanted, it was very diffic...
L.A. Noire Details One of the LAPD's People of Interest
By GameInformer, published 04-06-2011
When boxer Albert Hammond goes missing after he wins a match he was supposed to lose, the LAPD and Cole Phelps investigate the fixed fight. The trail leads Phelps to Hammond's girlfriend Candy Evans, who is just about to leave town herself. Phelps' interrogation of Evans highlights one of the game's principle gameplay mechanics, and tasks the player with reading Evans' body language to try uncover what she may have to hide and what info she may have on Hammond, the fight, and his disappearance. Checking out Evans and the boxing match is one of the game's vice desk cases. Each mission you investigate in the game is based around a police desk, whether that's homicide, traffic, vice, etc. As you progress through the game you'll be promoted to more glamorous desks ...
T-Mobile Nokia C7 Astound Unboxing and Hands-On [With Symbian^3!]
By SlashGear, published 29-03-2011
We had what seemed like only a few moments with this shiny little pebble back at CTIA 2011, and now we’ve got it for an extended period, all to ourselves! This is the Nokia C7 Astound, a Symbian^3 device that will be carried by T-Mobile exclusively in the very near future (April 6th for $79.99 with a 2-year contract,) has a 3.5-inch AMOLED touchscreen with a physical home, call, and end-call buttons, metal chassis, and is supported by T-Mobile’s 4G HSPA+ network for data. Let us inbox this little treasure. First Impressions This phone is what I at first felt was a blast from the past. It seemed almost ancient to be to be holding a phone without a basically square casing and screen smaller than four inches. Then I remembered that I’d just been handling the LG Optimus V, ...
Review: Exclusive: Acer Iconia Tab W500
By TechRadar, published 24-03-2011
Tablet or notebook? It's a question not only for the new Acer Iconia Tab W500, but for anyone looking to buy a new portable PC at the moment.Tablets are clearly all the rage; you only need to look at the excitement surrounding the launch of the Apple iPad 2. Many perceive these tablets as holding the key to moving mobile computing forward. The problem is, tablets aren't particularly productive devices. They're about watching movies or listening to music. They're about surfing the web on your sofa, or reading a book in a hammock. Tablets are about entertainment. They're rarely about actually creating the content that they are consuming.Anyone looking to do work or create content on the move is generally limited to using a standard computer.There is a place for showing reports using a tablet...
Review: Exclusive: Acer Iconia Tab W500
By TechRadar, published 24-03-2011
Tablet or notebook? It's a question not only for the new Acer Iconia Tab W500, but for anyone looking to buy a new portable PC at the moment.Tablets are clearly all the rage; you only need to look at the excitement surrounding the launch of the Apple iPad 2. Many perceive these tablets as holding the key to moving mobile computing forward. The problem is, tablets aren't particularly productive devices. They're about watching movies or listening to music. They're about surfing the web on your sofa, or reading a book in a hammock. Tablets are about entertainment. They're rarely about actually creating the content that they are consuming.Anyone looking to do work or create content on the move is generally limited to using a standard computer.There is a place for showing reports using a tablet...
Review: Exclusive: Acer Iconia Tab W500
By TechRadar, published 24-03-2011
Tablet or notebook? It's a question not only for the new Acer Iconia Tab W500, but for anyone looking to buy a new portable PC at the moment.Tablets are clearly all the rage; you only need to look at the excitement surrounding the launch of the Apple iPad 2. Many perceive these tablets as holding the key to moving mobile computing forward. The problem is, tablets aren't particularly productive devices. They're about watching movies or listening to music. They're about surfing the web on your sofa, or reading a book in a hammock. Tablets are about entertainment. They're rarely about actually creating the content that they are consuming.Anyone looking to do work or create content on the move is generally limited to using a standard computer.There is a place for showing reports using a tablet...
Review: Exclusive: Acer Iconia Tab W500
By TechRadar, published 24-03-2011
Tablet or notebook? It's a question not only for the new Acer Iconia Tab W500, but for anyone looking to buy a new portable PC at the moment.Tablets are clearly all the rage; you only need to look at the excitement surrounding the launch of the Apple iPad 2. Many perceive these tablets as holding the key to moving mobile computing forward. The problem is, tablets aren't particularly productive devices. They're about watching movies or listening to music. They're about surfing the web on your sofa, or reading a book in a hammock. Tablets are about entertainment. They're rarely about actually creating the content that they are consuming.Anyone looking to do work or create content on the move is generally limited to using a standard computer.There is a place for showing reports using a tablet...
EVO View 4G Revealed at Sprint Event [CTIA 2011]
By SlashGear, published 22-03-2011
At the Sprint event on Day 1 of CTIA 2011, a lovely humid Tuesday in Orlando, Florida, the stage was a round staircase leading up to two pedestals covered with golden sheets until whammo! They were thusly revealed. This is a 3G/4G Android tablet with dual cameras, video call functionality, high definition video capture on the back, a Flash-enabled email. On this 7-inch screen you be able to use the Scribe, a pen device that’ll work out of the box with this tablet – does this seem familiar to you? It’s because this is the US version of the HTC Flyer. We got the opportunity to see this tablet back at Mobile World Congress 2011 under the alternate branding HTC Flyer, here it’ll be called the EVO View 4G and as far as we know, it’ll essentially be the same devic...
Verizon 4G LTE plans for 2011 detailed: 59 more markets
By SlashGear, published 22-03-2011
Verizon had promised a rapid roll-out of LTE, and the carrier is doing its level best to deliver on that. A further 59 markets have been added to the roadmap, all tipped to get 4G service by the end of the year. That will take Verizon’s coverage to 147 US cities, promised on average 5-12 Mbps downloads and 2-5 Mbps uploads. As we saw in our HTC Thunderbolt review, those estimates aren’t over-ambitious either, and – as long as you have the power supply to back it up – right now Verizon’s LTE is perhaps the fastest way to get online when mobile. There’s a full list of the newly added markets in the press release below. Press Release: Verizon Wireless Brings 4G LTE To More Than 145 Markets By The End Of 2011 03/22/2011 BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Today, Verizo...
Cheat Sheet: 13 Fast Tips and Tricks for Steam
By MaximumPC, published 15-03-2011
If you're a PC gamer, you probably use Steam. Maybe originally it was because Steam was the only way to get at juicy morsels like Half Life 2, but these days Valve's online marketplace is pretty much the best thing going, with a huge library of titles, hyper-competitive pricing, and a strong set of social features. Keep reading for 13 tips, tricks, and addons that'll help you get the most out of your Steam games! Run Command Your Steam Games If you’re super lazy and just want to run your favorite titles by typing in a specific keyword via Windows’ “Run” screen (Window key + R), check out the application AddToRun. It’s super-easy to map a given executable (like a Steam game) to any word you want. Type said word into said Run box, hit enter, and you’ll be playing away eve...
GI Staff And Reader Interests, Dislikes, And Favorite Games: Issue #216
By GameInformer, published 03-11-2011
The Game Informer monthly staff page is a forum where we all come together and talk about what's cool right now. We'll get the ball rolling and would love to hear everyone's current interests, dislikes, and favorite games. Andy McNamara Profile E-mail Editor Interests: Designing "Stuff," Cycling (Yes, I Have Started Even Watching It On Versus. I Have A Sickness), Sleep, Tigerblood, iPad 2, All The Awesome Games We Are Looking At For Future Covers (So Much Awesome For You To Learn About In The Future), Radiohead, John Legend, Trail Of Dead Dislikes: Deadlines That Could Kill A Normal Human, When The Site Doesn¹t Work Like It Is Supposed To (*** You To Hell, Internet), Eating In A "Temporary Kitchen" (Read Laundry Room) As My Ki...
Inside The Mitsubishi Mobile Marketing Showroom: Massive 82 and 92-inch 3D TVs
By SlashGear, published 03-05-2011
Currently the world’s largest mass-produced rear-projection flat screen, the Mitsubishi 92-inch 3D TV was first unveiled at CES earlier this year. But this morning we got an up close and personal look at the mammoth flat screen along with its 82-inch sibling at the Mitsubishi Mobile Marketing Showroom. It is truly an immersive cinematic experience to be had if you can afford the price, the space, and don’t mind looking like a complete dork sometimes—as illustrated below. Mitsubishi’s 3D Home Cinema TV series uses an integrated 3D emitter that functions with special battery powered 3D viewing glasses. The pair I was donning was a super durable rubberized set used for high-volume demo purposes. For regular home use there’s a slightly more flattering alternative a...
Dead Island Demo Is A Bloody Good Time
By GameInformer, published 03-04-2011
After the Dead Island trailer hit the web, gamers were craving new gameplay details just as badly as the undead yearn to feast on flesh. Deep Sliver and Techland just gave us a taste of what to expect from the game with an extensive GDC demo. Although the game takes place in a paradise-gone-mad – the Royal Palms Resort on Banoi Island – the team promises that there will be diversity in locations. Boasting more than just beaches, the entire island has erupted with the outbreak and will feature cities, jungles, and poolsides littered with gore and corpses. Attempting to avoid being compared to its zombie-themed competition, the team at Techland opted to create its own genre and have branded Dead Island a zombie-slasher/action RPG. Suspense isn’t the focus, instead, Dead I...
Scribblenauts Creators Pull Back The Curtain On Hybrid
By GameInformer, published 03-04-2011
Developer 5th Cell is finally finished teasing its upcoming downloadable third-person multiplayer shooter. We went hands-on with Hybrid to try out its unique take on the genre. Hybrid was cryptically announced last year, and 5th Cell dispersed the first story details last month. If you haven't followed the news, the game takes place in the future when an asteroid hits Earth and kills a significant slice of the population. Two factions, the Paladins and Variants, fight for control of the world in a persistent online battle. 5th Cell isn't clarifying how this aspect will work exactly, but we did see a huge map of Europe split into several territories. Our demo focused primarily on combat and the new mechanics. Players battle it out on relatively contained maps in 3v3 battles. The de...
Hands-On With Resident Evil: The Mercenaries
By GameInformer, published 03-04-2011
We finally got our hands on the elusive Resident Evil 3DS offering, and put The Mercenaries to the test. The playable demo included Chris, Clare, Hunk, and Krauser as playable characters, although many more are promised when the final roster is announced. Each character had their own unique loadout that can be modified and customized as the player progresses through the game. Chris could swap between a standard pistol, shotgun, and sniper rifle, while Krauser had a knife, bow & arrow with unlimited ammo, and rocket propelled grenades at his disposal. Capcom promises over 30 missions for The Mercenaries with varying modes and goals. The levels we demoed were an amalgamation of enemies and locals from Resident Evil 4 & 5, but we expect to see content drawn from other titles in Resi...
David Cage on creating emotion in Heavy Rain
By GameSpot, published 03-03-2011
Quantic Dream studio head breaks out Heavy Rain statistics and speaks on future of the industry; around 2 million copies of the game have now been sold worldwide. Who was there: David Cage, founder, co-owner, lead designer, and writer at French game studio Quantic Dream, designer and director of the PlayStation 3-exclusive Heavy Rain. Heavy Rain was designed to be an emotional experience. What they talked about: Cage began the talk by giving the audience a brief rundown of Quantic Dream’s history, with picture slides of the 64-camera motion-capture system that was used to create Heavy Rain. He then debated Heavy Rain's genre: Is it an adventure game or an interactive movie? He settled on "interactive drama," despite saying he still thinks it rem...
Unlimited Data Plans to End by Mid-Summer: Verizon CFO
By HotHardware, published 03-02-2011
Verizon Wireless CFO Fran Shammo, speaking at a Morgan Stanley investor conference on Tuesday, March 1, let loose with the news that Verizon would be targeting mid-summer for an overhaul of its data plans, with tiered pricing coming. Naturally, that sounds like it will arrive right at the same time that the iPhone 5 does. Shammo said the following,...
Verizon’s Unlimited Data Plan for iPhone Ending Soon
By SlashGear, published 03-01-2011
Verizon will be following AT&T’s footsteps and ending the $30 a month, unlimited data plan for iPhone, according to CFO Fran Shammo. At a Morgan Stanley conference in San Francisco today, Shammo said that the unlimited data plan is “not a long-term solution”. Verizon may discontinue the plan as soon as this summer. Shammo said the company launched its current unlimited $30-per-month data plan to attract users to the Verizon iPhone, but will move to a tiered plan “in the mid-summer time frame.” Shammo did not give details on the tiered data plans Verizon plans to offer. AT&T stopped offering unlimited plans in June, and now offers a $15 plan for 250MB and a $25 for 2GB. The new plans could be based upon desired buckets of data, data speeds, or a combi...
Review: Hitachi Deskstar 7K3000 3TB HDD
By TechRadar, published 03-01-2011
Running on the latest 6Gbps SATA interface the Hitachi Deskstar 7K3000 3TB HDD is one big, quick drive.Although Seagate was first to market with a 3TB drive, the FreeAgent GoFlex, it was only available as an external drive (its internal version is only just arriving) with Western Digital being the first with a 3TB internal SATA drive, the Caviar Green. The silent elephant in the room, or should that be mammoth going on the size of the company, was Hitachi. Now it's their turn and it's unleashed this chunky Deskstar 7K300, a 3TB drive to join with the 2TB and 1.5TB models in the Deskstar 7K3000 family. Not only is it the world's first 3TB drive with a 7,200rpm spin speed, it's also Hitachi's first drive with a SATA 6Gbps interface.If that wasn't enough to make it one of the fastest mechanic...
Indie Week Day Two: Technical Excellence
By GameInformer, published 25-02-2011
[Welcome to Indie Week at gameinformer.com. We’ve got a full seven days of indie game coverage leading up to the 2011 Independent Games Festival Awards. Check back daily for coverage of the top independent games of the year.] What exactly is technical excellence? Read on to find out and see a new batch of innovative indie titles. This category isn't necessarily as easy to define as design or audio, for example. From our understanding, it's how a game incorporates its technology into meaningful gameplay. Judges in this category include Renaud Bédard (Fez), Raigan Burns (N+), Ron Carmel (World of Goo), Chris Delay (Darwinia), Ryan Doyle (Joe Danger), Alec Holowka (Aquaria), David Kalina (Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor), Anna Kipnis (Double Fine), Andy Nealen (Osmo...
L.A. Noire gets retailer-exclusive missions
By GameSpot, published 25-02-2011
Customers who preorder Rockstar's latest at GameStop and Wal-Mart will get codes to download new cases; Best Buy and Amazon offering attribute-enhancing in-game suits. UK deals also revealed. L.A. Noire is the latest game to dole out in-game content as retailer-exclusive preorder bonuses, as Rockstar Games today laid out five separate incentive packages designed to draw players to pick up the game from specific stores. There are now only 7,999,998 stories in The Naked City, depending on where one purchases the game. GameStop and Wal-Mart landed the marquee bonuses, as customers purchasing the game from either store before or at the May 17 launch will get an additional downloadable case. Those who go to GameStop will receive "The Naked City" case--in wh...
Bulletstorm Gives The FPS Genre A Billion Shots In The Arm
By GameInformer, published 22-02-2011
Do you remember the first time you shot an explosive barrel? That sharp blast not only heralded gamers’ infatuation with reducing enemies to pulpy puddles, it also laid the foundation for interactive environments in shooters. Clever gunmen have trained their sights on red barrels and other hazards for decades, learning the language of creative carnage. All you know about killing with style using your surroundings has been a prelude to the bloody playground of Bulletstorm. Going into a game called Bulletstorm I expected a paper-thin story as an excuse for nonstop murder. Instead, I was greeted with a humorous, potty-mouthed opening that fleshes out the dramatic crash-landing of ornery fugitive Grayson Hunt. His quest for revenge on corrupt military leader Sarrano is a goof...
Watson, Jeopardy and 11 Other Man vs Machine Battles of Epic Proportions
By MaximumPC, published 15-02-2011
The smackdown to end all smackdowns is on right now, baby, and the fate of mankind – nay, the fate of every living thing – hangs in the balance. In Corner #1: An unfeeling, metallic blend of potent software and light-speed hardware named Watson (after IBM founder Thomas J. Watson). Developed by IBM specifically for this particular assignment, Watson is nothing if not formidable. Fuelled by 2,800 Power7 processor cores and a seemingly inconceivable 16 TB of memory, and force-fed some 200 million pages of data over the past few years, it’s locked and loaded with data. But can it "understand" the nuances of the English language, the abstract answer-question Jeopardy format, the idioms, the puns, and the clever word puzzles for which the prime time game show is noted? (Check out the det...
Review: Panasonic TH-85VX200
By TechRadar, published 14-02-2011
Bigger is better where 3D is concerned and they don't come any larger than the 85-inch Panasonic TH-85VX200. You could, of course achieve an even bigger picture with a 3D projector, but you'll need to find a way of bringing about near-total darkness in order to reap the benefit. No such room control is necessary with this plasma. The only thing about the TH-85VX200 more mammoth than its screen is its price, which equates to the sort of deposit you'd need for a £200,000 house.Despite that, the TH-85VX200 isn't even a telly: it's just a tuner-free screen. With all this in mind, it's not surprising to find the display shipping via Panasonic's 'Pro' division rather than the consumer channel responsible for the brand's Viera 3D TVs. That the TH-85VX200 is one of Panasonic's Pro screens bodes r...
Hands On With Duke Nukem Forever
By GameInformer, published 02-09-2011
After 14 years of development purgatory, a presumed death, and his subsequent resurrection thanks to Gearbox Software's Randy Pitchford, Duke Nukem is ready to return to the spotlight. To see how the action hero has changed since his last ass-kicking escapade, we blasted our way through the first 90 minutes of the game. Duke Nukem Forever begins with a familiar scenario that transports me immediately back to 1996 – the action hero is parked in front of a urinal unleashing his preternatural stream. After what seems like minutes, Duke wraps up his business and joins a collection of EDF soldiers gathered in a stadium locker room. The commander is in front of a dry erase board explaining the tactics for Operation C--k Block, the plan for preventing the aliens from making out with o...
Bionic Commando Rearmed 2 Review: Rad Spencer Gains A Jump, Loses Charm
By GameInformer, published 02-04-2011
The downloadable Bionic Commando Rearmed was seen as the good cop to its disc-based counterpart’s bad cop. The former fully embraced the original NES game’s unique charms and blended it with sleek presentation and remixes of classic tunes. Rearmed did well enough to garner a sequel, while the dreadlocked Spencer from the console version isn’t doing anything outside of appearing in Marvel vs. Capcom 3.With Rearmed 2, developer Fatshark (made up of ex-Grin staffers) was free to go off the rails of the remake train and make whatever it wanted. The best new feature is easily the jump. Swinging through levels now feels much more natural, since jumping allows you to create momentum even if there’s nothing overhead. Purists can beat all the levels without jumping for an ac...
Star Wars: The Old Republic only needs 500K subscribers - EA
By GameSpot, published 02-02-2011
CEO John Riccitiello claims that the forthcoming sci-fi MMORPG will be "substantially profitable" with just a half-million subscribers. During a conference call with analysts following Electronic Arts' earnings report yesterday, executives did not comment on recent reports that Star Wars: The Old Republic has been delayed to September. They did say BioWare's massively multiplayer role-playing game will still ship during the publisher's 2012 fiscal year, which runs from April 1, 2011, to March 31, 2012. Previously, the game had been slated for a spring 2011 release window. Star Wars: The Old Republic will need only 500,000 subscribers to be profitable, says EA. While tight-lipped on The Old Republic's date, EA CEO John Riccitiello was quite chatty ab...
Black Ops shipped 20+ million, Cataclysm 6+ million - Analyst
By GameSpot, published 26-01-2011
Janco's Mike Hickey lays out estimates for Activision Blizzard earnings, predicts Diablo III, next Starcraft II, Modern Warfare 3 due in 2011. Activision Blizzard doesn't announce its October-December quarterly earnings until Wednesday, February 9. However, that hasn't stopped the professional prognosticators known as financial analysts from laying out their predictions for the company's holiday quarter. In his latest note to investors, Janco Partners' Mike Hickey predicted net revenues of $2.468 billion for the fourth calendar quarter of 2010, when not adhering to generally accepted accounting principles. Analyst Mike Hickey thinks Black Ops shipped over 20 million units last year. A big reason for the mammoth figure was Call of Duty: Black Ops, which Hi...
A Heart-Pounding Journey Into The Mouth Of Madness
By GameInformer, published 25-01-2011
When Isaac Clarke boarded the derelict mining vessel USG Ishimura, his actions were fueled by hope. His girlfriend Nicole was stranded on this ship. He did everything in his power to reach her. His search only led to death. The Ishimura was contaminated by a biological threat. Everyone aboard it, including his love, was lost to the disease. Although Isaac survived, he couldn’t outrun the contagion. He was infected. In Dead Space 2, Isaac isn’t a stalwart hero spitting out one-liners. He’s a flawed character. His deteriorating state of mind adds tension to an already unnerving atmosphere. He sees ghosts, and his consciousness periodically shifts from reality to a horrifying memory. Not being able to trust a game’s protagonist puts the player in a precario...
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HP Z200 : (6/10)
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