And in other PC gaming news…
And now for the weather. Tonight will be mild with clear skies that should last through to tomorrow morning, where a gentle mist will give way to a sunny afternoon with a chance of otherworldly invasion. Being a weather forecaster in Rift’s world of Telara must be a difficult job at the best of times, but on the eve of a colossal attack from undead forces from a different veil of reality, it’s nigh on impossible. Fortunately, there is no weather forecaster class in Rift, and tomorrow’s apocalypse is great news for rogues, mages and warriors looking to prove their worth and grab some spectacular loot.
Elsewhere today, we’ve had a good look at Portal 2, seen some of the first footage of Grim Dawn and reviewed Shift 2 Unleashed. There’s been plenty more happening in the world of PC gaming, though. Here’s your daily dose of news.
The 5 StarCraft 2 players you should be watching – America & Europe
StarCraft 2 has revitalized one of PC gaming’s best facets: the feeling of fandom. Live match streaming and YouTube broadcasting has spawned networks of bottomless competitive footage–if you haven’t cheered at your keyboard for your favorite player as he makes an impossible Baneling Bust to turn the tide of a tournament, you’re missing out. To encourage you to get involved, we’ve identified our five favorite “foreign” (i.e., not from Korea) SC2 professionals that deserve your spectating, fanmail and low-level worship.
Minecraft 1.4 update arriving this week, will add stats, achievements and wolves
Notch has tweeted to say that Minecraft’s 1.4 update will be landing very soon. “The plan is to release 1.4 this week.” he says, “stats and achievements require more work than expected.” Notch also updated his blog to say that the update will add wolves, and the ability to change your spawn point. Notch recently put out a video of the new wolves. They’re adorable.
As for plans beyond the 1.4 update, Notch says the team will be working on community creation tools. “Once that update is out, we’ll spend some time figuring out exactly what to do with the modding, which should result in a nice modding API.”
Trion explains Rift’s first World Event in Patch 1.1
Residents of Telara might be used to regular invasions from the elemental planes, but even the most battle-hardened Telarans will be in for a surprise with this week’s 1.1 patch. Beyond 12 pages of changes, the update is set to add in the game’s first world event, in which the plane of death begins a global assault on Telara that looks to dwarf everything seen up to this point. But what the heck is a world event? Scott Hartsman, Chief Operating Officer of Trion Worlds, gave us the low-down.
Rift endgame revealed in new trailer
Trion Worlds have just sent over a new Rift: Planes of Telara trailer that gives the first look at the endgame content. A short-skirt-wearing, pale-skinned lady called Alsbeth appears to be in charge. I’m going on first impressions here, but she doesn’t seem to be very friendly.
We recently interviewed Scott Hartsman, Chief Operating Officer of Trion Worlds about the new content. Tom Senior (our resident Rift player) was so intrigued he managed to land an exclusive interview with design producer Hal Hamlin too.
If you’re playing RIFT and are not already a member of the PC Gamer guild, what the hell are you up to? Join up here, silly.
Grim Dawn – an action RPG from the creators of Titan’s Quest
The indie devs behind Titan’s Quest, Crate Entertainment have supplied a first look at their next project: Grim Dawn. Titan’s Quest is one of the better Diablo-style RPGs available at the moment, so Grim Dawn will probably be worth a loot when it gets released.
Visit the official site for more information.
Are you pining for more loot, or have you got enough already?
Play with PC Gamer: Join our EU guild in The Old Republic!
Aspiring Sith Lords from North America have somewhere to go – PC Gamer US has already established the biggest guild in their region, way before The Old Republic is even released. Coconut Monkeys is still recruiting, so sign up asap.
But what if you’re going to be playing from Europe? Thankfully, The Old Republic is the game to break Rich. He has completely forgotten about his life-long, self-enforced MMO ban and nominated himself to be the “Ultimate Lord and Master” of The PC Gamer Mint Imperials. Don’t worry, he’s nowhere-near as aggressive as he looks in his profile pic.
But what if you want to play as the Republic when Bioware’s MMO gets released later this year? I asked Rich to comment: “Republican scum will be dealt with in a manner that I see fitting,” he cackled. “Imply that I’ll kill them, basically.”
In truth, we do plan on expanding to include a Republic division further down the line, but one guild at a time eh? That’s the Mint Imperials way.
Sword of the Stars II Developer Diary 3: Maturing the style
PC Gamer routinely features Developer Diaries: tales of what goes on behind-the-scenes in the development studios making your favorite games. In this entry, Sword of the Stars II: Lords of Winter’s Lead Artist, Chris Gerspacher, talks about refining and upgrading a game’s art style for a sequel. For more information, read the first and second entries, and let us know what you’d like to see developers discuss in future diaries in the comments.
And in other PC gaming news…
My desire to become ‘alright’ at Total War: Shogun 2 reached breaking point yesterday. I ended up watching video commentaries of more skilled players. The battles might not be presented with the polish we’ve come to expect from Starcraft commentaries but they’re epic and educational regardless. This guy has even used YouTube captions to lead you through his online matches in your own custom order. Very clever.
I just want my Avatar Conquest games to look like his; is that too much to ask?
Click more for today’s bonus links. WARNING: lots of sprites die on the next page.
Intern Arena: Has Duke Nukem crossed the line?
Last time on Intern Arena, Lucas narrowly edged out Anthony in a 60-40 split. But Anthony has a plan. He knows what he must do.
Anthony, sitting in a dark room, camera pans around him] He’s the most the dangerous—and brilliant—criminal mind I’ve ever know. For years, I’ve been watching him, tracking him, studying his every move. I know his every mannerism, every facial tick, gesture. I know him better than he knows himself. And now, after all this time, I finally figured out a way to trap him.
I will become him.
Portal 2 “Bot Trust” trailer shows just how lovely robots really are
Valve have just released another trailer for Portal 2. This one highlights the caring nature of the bots you’ll play as in co-op.
Expect two more videos of this ilk before the game gets released on April 19, and check the site tomorrow to read Craig’s preview of Portal 2. It’s got spoilers in it and everything!
The Old Republic trailer shows evolution of a Jedi
CVG have spotted a new Star Wars: The Old Republic trailer highlighting the progression path for Jedi characters. It shows how you get from being a man with a pole to a robe wearing master of the force, and highlights the differences between the Jedi Guardian’s tough support style and the Sentinel’s brand of dual wielding badassery. Which one would you choose?
Call of Juarez: The Cartel co-op demo planned
The Cartel plans to bring Call of Juarez’ wild west gunslinging to the present day. Drug cartels replace cowboys and there will be three characters instead of two. In fact, the whole game will be playable in three player co-op. We might be getting our hands on the game sooner than expected in the form of a demo. Techland brand manager, Blazej Krakowiak, told ScrawlFX that a demo is definitely planned, saying that it will “probably a co-op demo, but I can’t tell you whether it will be before or after release.” For a look at Call of Juarez’ new direction, watch the latest trailer, or have a browse of the Call of Juarez: The Cartel site for more info.
Crysis 2 patch bins auto aim and tidies up multiplayer
Crytek released a patch for Crysis 2 over the weekend, fixing a few of the multiplayer issues that many players have been experiencing. The patch also gets rid of auto aim and enables the developer console. You’ll find the patch notes below.
Witcher 2 system specs detailed
The Witcher 2 is looking exceptionally pretty, and the devs know it, but will those huge fantasy vistas need a supercomputer to run? CD Projekt have released the system specs for The Witcher 2. You’ll find them below in full.
