Get a beta code and special tank for World of Tanks
Widely used by the Allies and Soviets during WWII, the Valentine proved to be a reliable tank early on in the war against Germany due to its small size and decent armor. And PC Gamer is letting you drive one of these lauded tanks in the upcoming free-to-play MMO World of Tanks. We’re giving out closed beta codes to the first 50 people that ask for ‘em. Even better, when you use our code to access the beta, you’ll receive the Valentine tank to charge into battle with, and will be able to keep it after the game goes live! Full details below.
Update 2: The contest is over. Stop emailing us.
Update: Wow. I knew PC Gamer readers love tanks, but that was insane! Four minutes after posting this article, we’d already received 50 emails. So we’re going to give away more! In addition to the first 50 recipients, we’ll give away beta codes (with the tank) to 50 random people who email us before noon PST tomorrow.
Bioware tease new game
Something odd is going on over at Bioware. Earlier this week they said that they would reveal a new game at the Spike TV Video Game Awards. Then a small clip of a new game appeared in a trailer for the Spike TV Video Game Awared with Bioware’s name on it. On top of all that, they’ve just Tweeted a couple of mysterious images which might somehow contain encoded within it the name of the upcoming game. Put on your best deducing hat, all the clues are assembled below.
Yar’s Revenge returns
Remember Yar’s revenge? The classic arcade shooter came out on the Atari 2600 nearly thirty years ago. Earlier today, Atari announced earlier that Killspace Entertainment are working on a downloadable remake to be released early next year. More details and the teaser trailer follow.
Fan made Left 4 Dead map lets you fight the battle of Helm’s Deep
A Left 4 Dead mapper has painstakingly recreated the fortress of Helm’s Deep from Lord of the Rings in the form of a huge Left 4 Dead survival map, which means you can create Gimli and Legolas’ competition to slay the most enemies over the course of the battle, only this time using assault rifles instead of a bow and an axe. If you don’t have the Zombie Genocidest achievement for killing 53,595 zombies yet, this map might be a good way to get it.
Interview: GamersFirst on bringing back APB
As reported last week, cops and robbers MMO APB has been bought by GamersFirst, who have announced that the game will return as a free-to-play game in the first half of next year. We’ve had a chat with GamersFirst CTO and COO, Bjorn Book-Larsson about the next chapter for the troubled MMO, discussing the game’s potential, the new features GamersFirst will be working on, and the reasons why APB failed in the first place.
Updated: Activision shutting down Bizarre and Budcat studios?
Anonymous development sources inside Iowa City-based Budcat Creations phoned into PC Gamer this morning to inform us that instead of developing games this morning, they’re sitting in a bar down the street drinking together and calling friends and family. The reason? When they arrived at work this morning they found security guards outside their office building and “too cheerful” consultants brought in to tell them they’re all being let go. Similar reports are coming out of UK developer Bizarre Creations, who made Blur for Activision just this year.
Update: Activision is taking 90 days to decide what to do with Bizarre Creations: restructure, sell, or close.
Bulletstorm video shows new trick shots and giant death wheel
We’ve already seen still images of the colossal rolling Death Wheel in the completely mental shooter, Bulletstorm, but we hadn’t seen it in motion, until now. Amazingly, the clip of a 100 foot tall bladed wheel carving up the landscape isn’t the stand out moment. That’ll be the giant lizard. More absurd violence and spectacular trick shots await in the latest trailer, embedded below.
Games for Windows Marketplace has launched
A short while back, we mentioned that Games for Windows Marketplace was making a comeback. The service has now gone live, so you’ll be able to do some browser based shopping at your leisure. There’s no need to download a client, and it’s possible to sign into the system using your Live, MSN or Hotmail account. First impressions are that it’s slick, but a bit expensive, with a relatively slim selection of games on offer, though of course this is just the beginning. Microsoft are planning to add plenty more titles in the future, including games that don’t bear Games for Windows Live logo. You can check out the new service over at the Games for Windows Marketplace site. What do you think, could this be a potential contender with Steam?
Need for Speed Shift 2: Unleashed announced
EA have announced that a sequel to the popular racing sim, Need for Speed: Shift is on the way. It will be called Need for Speed Shift 2: Unleashed, and it’ll be out in spring 2011. Read on for details and the teaser trailer.
Warhammer: Age of Reckoning patch to add playable Skaven
The Verminous Horde update for Warhammer: Age of Reckoning will land on Thursday, adding a ton of free new content, including four new playable Skaven units. There will also be a number of tweaks to Realm vs. Realm combat, and two RvR packs that can be purchased by high level players, adding new weapons, pets and mounts to the game. Read on for the full details.
Frozen Synapse is coming to Steam
Frozen Synapse is a multiplayer turn-based tactical combat game set in a destructible neon world. It’s not your typical strategy game. There are no bases or build orders, it’s just your tiny squad, a hidden enemy, and some rocket launchers. It’s a tense and brutal take on turn based strategy, and it’s coming to Steam early next year. Here’s why you should be excited.
Baldurs Gate 2 now available on Good Old Games
RPG classic Baldur’s Gate 2 is now available through Good Old Games. it comes bundled in with the Throne of Baal expansion pack and a collection of other goodies, including the soundtrack, manual, maps and artwork from the game, all for $9.99. Not bad for one of the greatest RPGs of all time. The game can be purchased now from GOG. Baldur’s Gate 2 is just the latest in a slew of great old Bioware games to make it onto Good Old Games. The original Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, the Icewind Dale series and Planescape Torment are also on the service. That’s hundreds and hundreds of hours of old school RPG action preserved in one place.
Interview: Final Fantasy XIV developers apologise to unhappy players
Final Fantasy XIV launched in September with both technical and design problems – our review gave the game 30%. So last week we sat down with producer Hiromichi Tanaka and global online producer Sage Sundi to ask them what happened, whether it could have been avoided, and what they’re doing to address it now.
Champions Online selling Lifetime Subscriptions
Cryptic Studios recently announced that Champions Online will be going free-to-play come the new year. Even so, they’ve just reintroduced a Lifetime Subscription that offers players permanent Gold Membership when the game goes free to play, as well as some bonus outfits and an in-game action figure, all for the price of $300. Read on for the list of benefits.
StarCraft 2 fan creates Protoss build order program
Recently a programmer called Lomilar created EvolutionChamber, a computer program designed to come up with optimal build orders for the Zerg race in StarCraft 2. One of the first strategies the program produced was a deadly seven Roach rush that had players on the Starcraft 2 forums scrambling to invent a counter. Now a different AI coder has taken Lomilar’s program, and rewritten it to work for the Protoss race.
