Leaked Wolfenstein Multiplayer Screens?
Apparently, there's a load of "leaked" environmental screenshots from Raven's upcoming Wolfenstein title over on Photobucket, taken from the multiplayer portion. While Activision could not "confirm their authenticity" (thanks Shack), the copyright information at the bottom right corner could or could not mean that these screens are genuine. Still, they're cool to look at and gets us pumped up for the game's summer release.
Unreal Engine 3 Goes MMOG
This morning Epic Games said that it will sport new Unreal Engine 3 features next week at the Game Developers Conference, revealing an integrated MMOG back-end environment (Atlas Technology), a new content browser and search engine, the Unreal Master Control Program, and the Unreal Lightmass, a new global illumination solver. As for the Atlas Technology aspect, announced today by Epic Games China, the UE3 engine now supports MMOG content creation that is already licensed by developers in North America, Asia and Europe. “The increasingly competitive MMOG landscape is forcing developers to commit to exceptional production values. UE3 combined with Atlas Technology gives development teams a firm foundation to help them bring their products to market,” said Jay Wilbur, vice president of Epic Games.
New Add-On Scenario for Final Fantasy XI Soon
This morning, Square Enix said that the first of three add-on scenarios for Final Fantasy XI will go on sale March 23. Called "A Crystalline Prophecy - Ode of Life Bestowing," the content will cost $9.99 via the PlayOnline viewer but won't be accessible until early April. According to Square Enix, the creation of the three upcoming content packs is led by Masato Kato, the mastermind behind the Final Fantasy XI stories and scenarios as well as the first expansion pack, Rise of the Zilart. As for the new content pack, the story goes like this: "One day, a giant crystal appeared in the skies above Jeuno, triggering a series of unexplained happenings across the land. Now, adventurers will set forth to unravel the mysteries of this primordial crystal that holds the secret of Vana’diel’s past."
Three Kingdoms: The Battle Begins Launches Today
Uforia announced that its new MMO Three Kingdoms: The Battle Begins really begins tonight -or at least its cash shop- at 8 PM Pacific Standard Time. The company said that players who participated in the open beta last week will be able to keep and play with that character. However, changes were made to the PK balance system to make for more even gameplay. "Three Kingdoms: The Battle Begins has received a great response in just the few short weeks since we announced it and held some beta tests," said Mike Min, Game Operations Producer of Uforia. "Now we are inviting the community and fans and MMO players out there to come and enjoy the full Three Kingdoms: The Battle Begins experience."
Wallace and Gromit Demo
Telltale Games released a playable demo of Wallace and Gromit's Grand Adventures, located over on FilePlanet (meh) and Yahoo Games for now, with more websites taking on the download burden tomorrow. According to the company, the series will launch next week, however the demo pieces a few scenes from the upcoming first episode. Players can check out the demo with either a keyboard or gamepad, and the demo even supports Italian, Spanish, German and French. Don't forget, through Monday, March 23 we're offering a really great deal for people who preorder the season," says the company. "You can get the entire four episode series for $26 -- that's 25% off the regular $34.95 price."
Steam Does DLC
Valve Software said that its Steam service can now deliver in-game downloadable content, with The Maw serving as the first game to take advantage of the new feature. The game's first releases are the levels entitled Brute Force and River Redirect. Apparently, each level expands the storyline by fitting "in-between" the original levels as "deleted scenes." Additionally, DLC can now be added to any game on Steam, regardless of whether it was originally purchased via Steam, at retail, or via other digital outlets. It is also a feature of Steamworks, the suite of free tools and services available to game developers and publishers.
GameSpot: Resident Evil 5 for PC IS Coming
This afternoon Capcom announced that Resident Evil 5 shipped 4 million units, and coincidentally, the demo currently reached 4 million downloads via Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network. But because that was console news, we (or rather I) ignored it. However, GameSpot took that zombified revelation a step further by adding its stone-etched knowledge that the PC version will indeed ship. It's common knowledge that Capcom neither confirms or denies its existence, however now we have GameSpot's valued opinion.
It's a slow news day, but stay tuned while I hunt down more. Have news? Email me!
