Command & Conquer: Generals 2 “will set a new bar for fidelity in the strategy genre”
Bioware confirmed that rumours of a new Command & Conquer game were true this weekend when they revealed C&C: Generals 2. It’s in development at new Bioware Victory studio, and will be using Battlefield 3′s Frostbite 2 engine. We sent over a few questions to executive producer Jon Van Caneghem and Bioware co-founder Dr. Ray Muzyka to find out more. Van Canegham says that Frostbite 2 is “going to put Generals 2 on the cutting edge of the industry,” and “will set a new bar for fidelity in the strategy genre.”
Referencing Battlefield 3, Van Canegham says that “there are certainly going to be a number of differences between a shooter and a strategy game, but the possibilities are certainly opened up more when you have a great new engine to build upon.”
We’ll have to wait and see if Battlefield 3′s destructible terrain tech will make it into the new C&C, but we had a more pressing question. Of all the C&C franchises to bring back, why did Bioware choose Generals?
Play Star Wars: The Old Republic with us on Nightmare Lands and The Crucible Pits
Our US and European PC Gamer Sith and Republic guilds have been assigned servers. They shouldn’t be hard to forget, as the European one is called NIGHTMARE LANDS, and the US one is called THE CRUCIBLE PITS. Both suitable evil names for our Sith guilds. If you’re one of the lucky heroes who have received early access today, you can join us on those servers. If you want chat with fellow guild members, drop by the Mint Imperial and Coconut Monkeys threads in our forums.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 patch nerfs Akimbo FMG9s, tweaks Type 95
Modern Warfare 3 players don’t just love dual wielding FMGs for the fancy flipping animation, Infinity Ward seem to agree that they are also just too powerful. The Type 95 has also been toned down a bit, and the fire rates for assault rifles with undermounts have been ‘normalised.’ Infinity Ward have also released a list of future fixes and rebalances they’re considering for upcoming updates. Read all about it in the patch notes below.
They haven’t appeared on Steam yet, but in a post on the Modern Warfare 3 forums, Infinity Ward say that the update has been applied to all platforms.
Indie Royale Xmas bundle launches, now with more dinosaurs
Everyone and their dog-eardrum-bursting grocery store holiday music may be taking on a seasonal theme right now, but I think it’s fair to say that every season is indie bundle season. Case in point: The Indie Royale Xmas Bundle is the 46752th indie bundle I’ve reported on—or somewhere thereabouts. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. Four excellent indies for (as of now) four bucks? If that’s somehow upsetting, you may just be the unholy offspring of Ebenzer Scrooge and the Grinch.
Currently, the bundle’s offering Dino D-Day, Eets, The Oil Blue, and The Blackwell Trilogy: Remastered. As per usual with Indie Royale, the price fluctuates depending on whether you beat the minimum or pinch your pennies so tightly that Abraham Lincoln angrily asks just what the hell your problem is. As such, it’s a good idea to make your purchase ASAP, as the price is almost certain to increase.
Hard Stuff: Maingear VYBE Super Stock review
The pitch line for the VYBE Super Stock is “Geared for gamers—priced for the masses.” But can you really get something that sports a reasonable price tag and can also meet the specialized needs of gamers?
STALKER dev GSC will “do its best to continue” in spite of probable closure
Late last week, the PC gaming world emitted a collective gasp as STALKER dev GSC Game World went nuclear. Since then, very loud whispers have suggested that the team is “almost completely dissolved” – a sentiment that doesn’t exactly inspire hope. GSC, however, hasn’t gone completely silent just yet.
“We will do our best to continue. However, at this moment, nothing is certain,” the developer tweeted, also noting that its website, forum, and store will remain operational for the time being.
When reached for comment, Russian-speaking acoustic guitar playing guy spoke Russian and played the acoustic guitar.
Richard Garriott in talks with EA at “very high levels” about making Ultima Online 2
Richard “[Whichever title he's going by these days] British” Garriott has been to space. But whatever goes up must come down, and that includes rocketships. So now the legendary game designer/castle-owner is hoping to rekindle memories of a simpler time – you know, back when people were trying to assassinate him.
Garriott’s certainly not keeping any secrets about his “spiritual successor” to Ultima Online. However, if all goes according to plan, that “spiritual” tag may get kicked to the wayside sooner rather than later.
Guild Wars 2 leaked video reveals Mesmer as the next profession
Prepare to be Mesmer-ized. Yes, the regal Mesmer is the final profession to join the Guild Wars 2 class catalog. GamesReactor Denmark seems to have accidentally jumped the gun, posting the class trailer this morning, a few days ahead of the planned Wednesday morning announcement time. While not the most surprising of reveals, the leaked video shows off some fantastic-looking skills like teleportation, ethereal exploding clones, and even an area-of-effect invisibility spell. I’m guessing someone in Denmark wishes they were a Mesmer right about now.
The leaked video has since been removed, but according Guild Wars 2′s official twitter account, more information on our favorite illusionists will be revealed Wednesday. I guess it’s time to dust off my collection of fancy suits and mind bullets.
And in other PC gaming news…
We’ve all heard about how Mass Effect is trying to be Star Wars, or Star Trek, or just about every other classic sci-fi universe you’ve ever heard of, but now it seems it’s aiming for a new homage. If this reaper vs thresher-maw fight is anything to go by Mass Effect 3 is going to be… Dune! Yep, I take this trailer as conclusive proof that Shepard will actually spend most of ME3 as a desert nomad, trading in mysterious spices and killing people by shouting his name really loud, at least until the inevitable sandworm assault in the final act.
He who controls the PC gaming news controls the universe. I’ve placed mine inside.
Epic’s new game Fortnite looks like Team Fortress 2, is inspired by Minecraft
Epic announced a new game over the weekend called Fortnite. It’ll have a Team Fortress 2-esque art style and, according to Epic, is directly inspired by Notch’s indie block builder, Minecraft.
Fortnite appears to revolve around building forts to hold off waves of creatures that attack during the night, or rather ‘nite’. Whether the action takes place over two weeks is yet to be seen, but it looks as though there will be some creative building involved. In a tweet spotted by Eurogamer, Lead Designer Lee Perry says: “Minecraft was an inspiration for sure.”
Diablo III’s Battle.net Balance goes live
In a flurry of alliteration, Blizzard’s Battle.net Balance has finally been unleashed. The service allows gamers to add funds to their account using online transaction services such as PayPal, and it’s being tested in the Diablo III beta. The account also gives gamers somewhere to store hard-earned cash accumulated in Diablo III’s auction house.
The big question is whether or not gamers will be able to withdraw funds from their Battle.net Balances into the real world. According to Blizzard’s FAQ, this will be allowed “in certain regions”, but a fee will be charged. It’s also optional in Diablo III’s auction house, so you can still purchase items via traditional methods like PayPay and credit cards. Blizzard states that standard auction house fees will be applied to transactions regardless of where they’ve come from.
Rainbow Six Patriots trailer talks bailouts, shows bombs
With a vaguely zeitgeisty spiel about home foreclosures and bailouts, domestic terrorist organisation, The Patriots, vigorously wave the “we’re evil” flag by throwing a bomb-laden man out of a window to be detonated among the civilians far below. Judging from this bit of CGI and the previous trailer, throwing innocent people from a great height and then exploding them is going to be a recurring theme in Rainbow Six: Patriots. Edgy!
Though there’s still no in-game footage, few solid details, and it’s due out in 2013, Rainbow 6: Patriots is already available to Pre-order on the Ubisoft shop.
Hitman Absolution trailer kills all the men
Uh oh. Agent 47 has taken the drastic step of scratching off the barcode on the back of his head, thus removing any chance Hitman’s famously unobservant guards ever had of identifying him. There’s some confusion about what’s happening with the woman Agent 47′s trying to save here. First she’s in bed, then she’s in the shower (dead?), then she’s alive and being kidnapped, then Agent 47 goes all Leon with empty elevator and a lights-out killing spree.
I love the Hitman series, but I stopped paying attention to the story as soon as someone said the word “clone.” Who is the woman, is she a clone, and why do the bad guys leave two men to guard an empty room?
Mass Effect 3 trailer pits Reaper vs. giant worm thing
There’s one thing that the Reapers didn’t count on: giant indigenous sand worms. The big evil alien race that’s threatening to overwhelm the galaxy will be very familiar with Shepard after the end of the second game, but the big evil baddies have never read Frank Herbert’s Dune. Perhaps that is the weakness the allied races will use to defeat the Reaper threat. It looks like the third game will have set pieces on a scale that could rival the spectacular final acts of the first two games. Roll on March 6 2012.
This week’s best free PC games
This week’s best free PC games are reassuringly dark, given that festive merriment has begun to encompass our entire universe. There’ll be no Santa hats here, grump grump. Instead, we have games about fear, solitude, ice wolves and Cthulhu. Well, I suppose ice wolves are at least as cold as December. Read on for this week’s picks – including a fascinating new title from VVVVVV’s developer, and an awesome take on the maze exploration game.
