The PC Centric Extravaganza 3.18.08
Posted by Chris Evans on 03.18.2008
The PC Lives!
The PC Centric Extravaganza 18th March 2008
Finally I am on my Easter break, a whole month of University is something to be happy about! However I must make a start on my dissertation proposal…which is going to be all kinds of fun. Well I am thinking about doing my dissertation on the internet and gaming along with politics…time will tell how it goes though.
Just a note – I am not sure what happened with last weeks column, it seemed to be live for a bit then disappear. My Piracy article took its place so I hope you all enjoyed reading that.
Starcraft 2 videos
Zerg rush anyone? Check out this new video for Starcraft 2 showing off the Zerg!
Mmm....zergy! This video has made me want to play some Starcraft and actually complete it for once! *faints with shock*
Also you can see some of the Zerg cinematic intro trailer in the following video.
Thanks GameTrailers for the Zerg!
While there may be some better quality versions of these trailers floating about the internet those two show off the basics of what to expect from the Zerg in Starcraft 2.
I must confess that I have never completed the original Starcraft, though I have started playing it again and it is pretty good to be honest. However with such a backlog of games to play and/or review I honestly don't know if I will complete it before numero dos arrives!
Regardless Starcraft 2 is looking pretty damn good so far, keep your eyes out for more information over the coming months.
The Sims Carnival
I posted a little while ago I think in this column about The Sims Carnival and now I can provide a little update. I have been accepted into the beta, and within five minutes of logging in I had made my first game!
Now while what I created was pretty basic, it was fun to give the tools a very quick run through. You can find my game here to give it a quick play. Pretty simple Space Invaders kind of thing, over time I will aim to make something a bit more in-depth but for now some further thoughts on the whole Sims Carnival experience.
The Game Wizard that they have on the site is very easy to use, it simply asks you some questions and gives you some options allowing you to create a game. It will be very simple but, well you have made a game!
Using the Game Creator, a tool you download is infinitely more complex...well it is for me at any rate! It seems like an actual game creation tool, rather than a simple Q&A = Game that happens with the Wizard. The Creator is Flash based, and doing stuff is pretty easy, I got a background and a 'creature' to be placed on this white background. They both came from the assets folder that comes free with the Game Creator download.
You can do lots of stuff like changing collision points, creating behaviors etc. but it all seems a bit 'what?' to me. There is no manual that comes with it, and the online help isn't the easiest to get into and use. I am sure that if I had some better understanding of how the Creator worked I would be able to make something...decent out of it. As it is, all I managed to do was the following.
Good eh? Well not really! It sure looks fun though :P
I have seen some decent enough user-created games that have been made by other users already, nothing has caught my eye, but playing with a laptop mousepad isn't really that conducive to good gaming.
I am sure that The Sims Carnival will continue to evolve and grow, if only they had included some video tutorials, or any kind of tutorial with the Game Creator and it would be much better in my mind. However, it is a beta so time will tell!
Sequel-tastic!
Bioshock 2
First information regarding Bioshock 2 has been revealed:
2K Games said today that BioShock 2, the sequel to the wholly owned and internally developed title, is being developed by 2K Marin and is planned for release in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009. The critically acclaimed BioShock title has sold over 2 million units worldwide since its launch in August.
That is all the information currently available, source.
Kotaku has also revealed that Ken Levine will in some way be involved in Bioshock 2.
Dawn of War 2
I must say it is annoying when everyone knows something is going to be announced, but due to NDAs and company policies nobody can confirm anything until a certain date. This happened with Red Alert 3 when I knew it was going to be announced...but nobody was able to reveal anything until it was officially announced!
This time something similar has happened, in the latest issue of PC Gamer UK, at the back it gives us a glimpse of what to expect in the next issue, release April 10th.
Ominous reference to a new 'Dawn' and a silhouette of a strikingly Dawn of War type unit. With Soulstorm, expansion to the original Dawn of War having just been released then I think we can safely assume Dawn of War 2 is due to be announced.
Atari on Steam
Legendary gaming developer and publisher Atari has been announced to be moving onto Steam. The company has linked up with Valve and the Steam platform to deliver a dazzling array of games, initially only to North Americans.
"Atari is excited to team up with Steam and deliver great games through a digital platform that our fans have asked for," said Nizzi Renaud, Vice President of Online Entertainment, Atari, Inc. "We look forward to making an extensive collection of games, across many genres, available to Steam's extensive, globally-connected community."
"We're proud to welcome to Steam a company that has become synonymous with video games," said Jason Holtman, director of business development at Valve. "Atari cemented video games into the consciousness of modern culture and continues to produce a unique mix of games that appeal to a variety of audiences, as represented by the line-up heading to Steam."
With games such as Rollercoaster Tycoon 3, Indigo Prophecy and Act of War being made available now, and games such as The Witcher arriving on Steam soon Atari is making a concerted effort to kick off this new partnership with a bang.
Time will tell whether Atari achieve any success on Steam, but anything to boost the performances of this company should be welcomed with open arms.
A quick update on this story – most of the games I mentioned above have arrived in my Steam Press Account, as such they are all being downloaded right now…how I wish I had a better broadband connection though =[
Football Manager Live – Latest Info
In the latest 'Project Update' e-mail from SEGA regarding the development process of Football Manger Live some interesting information emerges. I have picked out the best bits, read on for what they are!
Tentative release date of early summer.
There are now six game worlds currently being beta tested resulting in over 5,000 people currently working away on FM Live to ensure it is up to scratch.
New 'Skills' system - players can take the time to improve around 100 skills across four categories - Management, Coaching, Scouting and Physiotherapy. Each skill will have five levels able to be achieved with higher levels taking longer to reach than lower levels. Skills will directly effect the team players.
Achievements are being included - reach a number of games without defeat or conceding among others and you will be rewarded with an achievement.
A new Football Manager Live website will soon be going live 'offering a whole new experience' for FM Live.
If all things go well then in the next few weeks I will have an interview with some of the guys from SI to go live talking more about FM Live!
Red Alert 3 – More Information
IGN have interviewed Chris Corry, the big boss man behind the development of Red Alert 3. This really in-depth interview with Chris talking a bit about the back story, FMVs and a lot about Naval warfare and co-operative play.
IGN: Tell us about the setting and the story, and is it directly related or connected to the events of the last game, or is it a completely different timeline?
Chris Corry: I touched on that time travel theme. The events that kick off Red Alert 3 really come back to that. Our story opens with the Allies and the Soviets going at it again, but this time the Allies have beaten the Soviets back and have the upper hand. The Soviet leadership is cowering behind the walls of the Kremlin; their defeat is imminent and all but certain. At that point, sort of crazed with desperation, the leadership descends into the bowels of the Kremlin into their secret labs where they have this skunk works project going on. They fire up this prototype of this device which is a time machine that's never been used before. And their intention is to go back in time and erase Albert Einstein from the timeline. Of course, Albert Einstein in the previous games has been instrumental in the technological advances that made the Allies so successful...
There are also a bunch of sexy new screens and the wealth of information is immense. Check it all here.
While I am unsure about the inclusion of the Japanese faction and the continued use of the SAGE engine, this promises to be an interesting addition to the C&C franchise. I am ready to keep an open mind on this and I really want to get into the beta whenever that starts so I can provide some detailed thoughts.
The PC Gaming Debate!
What follows is a selection of different news stories I have covered on my blog regarding the current debate on whether PC gaming is dying or not!
Epic and ‘mainstream' PCs
The past few weeks have seen numerous comments by some leading figures at Epic concerning the death of the PC, the PC Gaming Alliance and whatever else they feel like chatting about. In a new interview with TG Daily we see Tim Sweeney, the man behind the Unreal games, take a swipe at 'Mainstream PCs' and integrated graphics.
TG Daily: But we mostly talk about conventional retail sales. Do you see an increasing divide between the Pc and consoles?
Sweeney: Retail stores like Best Buy are selling PC games and PCs with integrated graphics at the same time and they are not talking about the difference [to more capable gaming PCs]. Those machines are good for e-mail, web browsing, watching video. But as far as games go, those machines are just not adequate. It is no surprise that retail PC sales suffer from that. Online is different, because people who go and buy games online already have PCs that can play games. The biggest problem in this space right now is that you cannot go and design a game for a high end PC and downscale it to mainstream PCs. The performance difference between high-end and low-end PC is something like 100x.
He has a good point about many PCs that can be purchased at mainstream stores are utterly crap for playing games, and most PCs nowadays should come ready installed with a low-end graphics card at the very minimum so people can actually play some games.
However, anything that comes out of Epic does nothing to help solve this problem right now. They make fantastic 3D engines...but they are often so high-spec and -tech that even those with somewhat decent gaming rigs are struggling to play games from Epic and their engines.
If their involvement in the PCGA changes their approach then that would be brilliant.
Epic – PC or Consoles they just don't know!
It seems these days that Epic don't know where their minds are at. First off they are members of the PC Gaming Alliance which is a nice enough thing for them do seeing as they have been PC aficionados for so many years. Then we had Cliffy B claim that PC Gaming was in disarray which was followed by Mark Rein calling him an idiot.
More recently Tim Sweeney commented that mainstream PCs are no good for gaming and now we see Tim say that Unreal Engine 4 will be console focused!
TG Daily: Let's talk about your game visions for the future and the next Unreal Engine? Where is EPIC going with the Unreal Engine 3.5 and 4.0?
Sweeney: The Unreal engine is really tied to a console cycle. We will continue to improve Unreal Engine 3 and add significant new features through the end of this console cycle. So, it is normal to expect that we will add new stuff in 2011 and 2012. We're shipping Gears of War now; we're just showing the next bunch of major tech upgrades such as soft-body physics, destructible environments and crowds. There is a long life ahead for Unreal Engine 3. Version 4 will exclusively target the next console generation, Microsoft's successor for the Xbox 360, Sony's successor for the PlayStation 3 - and if Nintendo ships a machine with similar hardware specs, then that also. PCs will follow after that.
Epic really don't know what they want, they are members of the PCGA which is aiming to promote the PC and improve it as an all around platform...but then we have other Epic guys saying they are going console focused. Someone needs to get their act together at Epic and make sure they are all speaking from the same page!
SOE boss on the PC debate
Sony Online Entertainment President John Smedley has talked with GameDaily here about the state of the PC gaming industry to add to a debate that seems to be getting ever more intense as the weeks go on.
Smedley is decidedly of the view that the PC is a strong platform and the growth of the MOG is a key factor in this. He is also critical of the NPD for not covering MOG subscriptions and digital distribution methods.
"It's ridiculous and foolish to say that PC gaming [is in decline]. I've seen some of the dumbest quotes out there about the business [falling apart]. It's just not true. The simple truth is the online business is picking up in a huge way. If you're able to add in – and NPD is beginning to track this stuff – the digital sales and regular sales and subscription money and all that stuff, the PC gaming industry is at its strongest point in its history period."
As should be obvious, I am a big supporter of the PC as a leading platform for games development, casual gaming, mainstream gaming, online gaming, competitive gaming and of course as leading media hub.
I do recognize there are many big ever-present issues that surround PC gaming which range from piracy to an unhealthy mix of hardware combinations as well as poor and limited analysis of the PC sales wise.
However in my eyes it is consoles which are becoming more PC like by the generation what with numerous SKUs for the 360 and the PS3, different models having different hardware setups which hurt games development (360 Hard Drive anyone) and an ever expanding focus on the online world.
I try to avoid PC vs. Console debates as I believe they are of now benefit to the industry as a whole. What needs to happen is for the PC Gaming Alliance and other PC focused developers work to further improve the
PC as a gaming platform.
Lets give a big cheer for the PC!
Closing
That is all this week, may be a day late with the column next week due to family commitments over Easter, but in the meantime check out my blog for all the latest PC based loving!
