Join Heroes of Newerth’s [PCGC], the official PC Gamer clan!
![HoNBattle by [S2] Ari](http://media.pcgamer.com/files/2011/05/HoNBattle-by-S2-Ari1-627x416.jpg "HoNBattle by [S2] Ari")
MOBAs are always better when you’re playing with friends. Whether you win or lose, it’s guaranteed to feel that much better if you’re praising your buddy’s clutch Javelin of Light, or laughing off a whiffed Guttling Hook. Whether or not you’re familiar with these abilities, we’d love to fight by your side or teach you the ropes in Heroes of Newerth. Read on to find out how you can get involved in what is sure to be the HoN (casual) clan of the century.
Call of Duty Elite closed beta taking applications now
There’s going to be a closed beta for Activision’s new Call of Duty Elite service, which will bring a suite of social networking features to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and Call of Duty: Black Ops’ multiplayer components. A lucky selection of players will get early access to these features as part of the closed beta, which is set to kick off “later this summer.” You can apply for a spot right now on the Call of Duty Elite site. All you have to do is enter an email address, your date of birth, and your platform of choice, which will be PC, naturally. Good luck!
And in other PC gaming news…
Who needs big budget film adaptations? These bright sparks have turned Portal into a stage play. It might be low tech, but it puts all those terrible Hollywood game adaptations to shame.
Today in PC gaming we were zerg rushed with info on Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm. Meanwhile the headlines belonged to Call of Duty, with the announcement of the controversial Elite payment scheme.
Activision Blizzard (or Actard as we like to call them) aren’t the only ones making news though, click through for a selection of other interesting stories from the world of PC gaming.
PC Gamer UK Podcast 56 – Chris Taylor and Danan Davis interview
I chatted to Gas Powered Games’ Chris Taylor and Microsoft Games’ Danan Davis about their new free-to-play game Age of Empires Online. Chris also talks about making Total Annihilation and Supreme Commander, and Danan about making Rise of Nations and Rise of Legends. And everyone has a lot to say about the future of PC gaming.
Download the MP3, subscribe, or find our other podcasts here.
Brink DLC detailed. Will include new maps, abilities, weapons attachments and outfits
We’ve just got the details of Brink’s first (free) DLC, Agents of Change. It seems like the war for the Ark is going to be shaken up a little: “Secrets, lies and double agents. Nothing and no-one is who they seem as the Resistance and Security factions deal with the arrival of a mysterious ship from the outside world.”
Blimey, that’s different. Agents of Change is slated for June. Click more for the details.
StarCraft 2: Legacy of the Void could have less units than Heart of the Swarm
Blizzard have told us that they would consider removing units for StarCraft 2′s second expansion, Legacy of the Void. Speaking at a recent press event, StarCraft 2 lead producer Chris Sigaty told us that “it would be a mistake for us to just put out units to put out units,” adding “will we do that again for Legacy of the Void? I don’t know. It may be that putting out new units for Legacy of the Void is a mistake.”
20 Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm screenshots
Blizzard have released tons of chitinous screens for insectiod sequel Starcaft II: Heart of the Swarm. You might have seen some of them in our preview earlier, but there’s plenty more inside to whet you appetite. Not enough? Check out the new trailer.
US military commission $57m virtual reality training sim powered by CryEngine 3
The Dismounted Soldier Training System is a new military sim commissioned by the US government. The sim will be used to train new soldiers as early as next year, and cost a hefty $57 million to make. GamePro report that it’s likely that most of this went on development of the the new technology that will capture soldiers’ movements on a ten foot square pad. New recruits will experience the simulator through a virtual reality headset that will run from a state-of-the-art custom laptop strapped to their back.
Assassin’s Creed Revelations trailer shows road to E3
Ubisoft have kicked off a series of Assassin’s Creed dev diaries in the run up to E3 with a fun look behind the scenes in the studio. The dev team on information lock down, but here are a few things that they do manage to confirm over the course of the video, spotted by VG247: “Crowd stuff.” Cutscenes. “Red” music. Whatever it is they’re not showing, the team seem very confident, aiming for a game of the show award. We’ll get to judge them soon when E3 hits San Francisco on June 7.
Creative launches new motherboard sound chip, but where’s X-Fi?
Is Creative backing away from its well known X-Fi brand? The audio specialist has just announced a range of integrated sound processors using a new logo and name, Sound Core 3D.
What’s curious is that looking at the specs sheet, Sound Core 3D is an X-Fi in all but name, and like the Bard’s rose presumably sounds the same. For starters, the press release says that it’s powered by the Quartet DSP: that’s a four core digital signal processor that has been the heart of the X-Fi chips since their launch, but which hasn’t been promoted by that name for nearly six years. I may be wrong, but I don’t recall it appearing on any Creative literature since 2005.
Starcraft 2: Heart of the Swarm teaser trailer starts the hunt for Kerrigan
Call of Duty Elite to bring monthly subscription service to multiplayer
The trailer above confirms the long-rumoured Call of Duty premium subscription service. Call of Duty Elite is set to launch alongside Modern Warfare 3. It will add social networking features like Facebook integration, video sharing, friends lists, groups, competitive leaderboards and more to Call of Duty’s multiplayer. Some of these features, like the Facebook integration, will be free, others will require a monthly subscription fee. Activision haven’t announced which features will be paid-for just yet, and the amount of the monthly fee hasn’t been decided either. Activision insist that players won’t be forced to pay to play online.
Fight, build and mine in King Arthur’s Gold
Mining is basically my favourite thing to do in games, and in the last year I’ve been served well by Minecraft, Wurm Online, Terraria and, now, King Arthur’s Gold. The multiplayer, team-based sidescroller is about two teams of Knights, Archers and Builders battling for control of a level’s gold supply.
It’s still in early beta, but already worth playing. Builders can mine through rock to find gold and build structures like ladders, doors and catapults, while Knights and Archers defend and lead attacks on the enemy’s gold reserves. It’s heavily inspired by King Arthur’s World, a sidescrolling RTS on the SNES from 1993, but it plays more like a competitive Terraria.
You can download the game and find news of the extremely frequent updates at the King Arthur’s Gold website, and watch a trailer over at IndieGames.com.
The Sunday Video Pwn
Sometimes choosing the headline video for the Pwn is a difficult decision. This week, however, the first video I found was granted immediate headline status. Volition win the number one spot with their take on that 80′s classic music video, using Red Faction characters. It does the worst job in the world at showing off the actual game, but as a piece of marketing madness it’s a sure-fire pwn.
Chris Taylor: “Total Annihilation was a game I designed for myself”
Total Annihilation was one of the PC’s most forward-thinking strategy games – it threw out all the arbitrary conventions of the genre and created something more like a simulation. The result was a game plenty of PC gamers still consider unsurpassed. More recently, its creator Chris Taylor took over development of Age of Empires Online, a free-to-play version of the old classic. When I got to chat to him recently, I asked about the unconventional economy model TA used, and why he didn’t stick with it.
