I have been gaming literally since the age of Seven on my Atari 7800 ((Pole Position anyone ?)), then came the Nintendo ((The Mario Brothers years)), Commodore 64, Amigo 500 ((Swash Buckling Monkey Island)), Super-Nintendo ECT. Todays games are so realistic, believable and amazing looking but a lot of my fondest memories go back before the days of Gordon's crowbar :D

Well where to begin, I think probably the game I spent more time with my eyes glued to the screen was Super Mario Brothers, every one from Super Mario Brothers (Nes) right to the mods ((Mario-Kart)) Nintendo owes me some serious time back for that, I could have gotton some sort of kids' degree with the time I wasted on that game, oh boy was it fun though.


Next contender from the Amiga 500 we have "The Secret of Monkey Island", a swash buckling tale of mystery, adventure, grog drinking contests, insult sword fighting and general fun. I remember playing as Guybrush Threepwood, a nobody who wanted to become a pirate at any cost. Great adventure kept me busy for a lot of hours too.

Ok, on to the Super-Nintendo. Being a Street Fighter II fanatic ((well a former one anyhoo)) I always used to spend as a kid any little change i could find on going down to my local arcade and pumping it in to Street Fighter II.
I slowly developed my skills of the fireball and "awr-uu-get" ((I know, I know it was Sho-ryu-ken or some crap, but it sounded like awr-uu-get to me)). The conversion to the Super-Nintendo was breath-taking to fans of the arcade version. Many a sleep over was had with a trusty Super-Nintendo and many, many game-pads to boot.

I so owned everyone at Street Fighter II ;)

The first game i played on the PC that really got me into them big time was a multi-player Half-Life mod known as Day of Defeat. A WW2 tactical shooter, it was just so dam playable. Richie introduced it to me over a year ago and i am still playing it online. It just has it all really, great gameplay, team speak, wonderful maps and the ability for anyone to make a map ((within reason)). Dave has a review for DoD here. And it will be getting a make-over in the form of Day of Defeat Source, new technology that brings believable graphics to DoD's outdated cardboard looking trees, real physics, lighting and shadows. Actually it's pretty scary when i think of just how much time i spend playing DoD, when Source comes out i'll be screwed. I'm thinking of those people who get trapped in their room from lack of doing anything and i get so fat that i can't fit out the door so they have to demolish part of the house. :D

So what are your fondest gaming memories, do share with everyone...

Discussion >>

A free trial is available for the latest game published by Alawar Games, Sea Wolves.
Players explore the ocean in the aftermath of a series of man-made cataclysms that left most of the world flooded.

The 3D engine-generated screenshots caught my eye, but the game also boasts realistic physics effects:

For starters, each player vessel contains animated parts, bringing to life the age when wind-powered ships gave way to the first workable steam engines.

The waters surrounding your boat have also been designed with an eye for detail; sunlight dances on the surface of the ocean and shines through to the rocky bottom below, twilight gives the game world an amber hue, and smoke trails trace the path of each shell and missile as it arcs through the air.

Realistic physics play a part in ship navigation as well, as your boat pitches and sways according to its movement across the deep and bucks with each blast of your cannons.

Download the free trial here
Discussion >>

FiveStarDeath points us to Face of Mankind, another MMORPG he's found that is currently in Open Beta.

The screenshots look good:

Face of Mankind is not a typical RPG: the most important difference is that you are the game. Your actions will affect the next available tactical decision for you and your fellow players. Your actions will affect the economic system. Your actions will determine the balance of power each and every second.

You have control over an intuitive First Person Shooter style interface. The cutting edge graphics engine will present a world of five huge cities on earth, 20 colonies in outer space and two special places.

Choose to join one of ten organizations. Be a soldier for the F.D.C. or a law enforcer of the L.E.D.. Fight for right and order, climb to higher ranks! Decide to be a clan member and find your way beyond the law! Or join one of the companies as a trader, miner or producer to control the complex economic system.

Sign up to play here, or if you're already playing let us know what it's like in the forum.
Discussion >>

ATI have made available new Catalyst drivers for their Radeon graphics cards.

These release notes provide information on the latest posting of ATI's industry leading software suite, CATALYST™. This particular software suite updates both the ATI Display Driver (version 8.10), and the CATALYST™ CONTROL CENTER (version 5.2). This unified driver has been further enhanced to provide the highest level of power, performance, and reliability. The ATI CATALYST™ software suite is the ultimate in performance and stability.

Full release notes here
Download Catalyst 5.2 for W2K/XP here
Other systems here.

Discussion >>

Another short trailer showing off Risk Your Life: Path of the Emperor has been uploaded; you can grab it here (4.56MB | WMV format)

Our RYL contest is also still running if you haven't entered yet;
just answer the simple questions here to be in with a chance to win a voucher for three six months of free playtime when the game goes subscription-based.

More info:
RYL: Path of The Emperor exclusive first previews
Discussion >>

Over the next month or so Source will see a numer of updates. Apart from new maps for Couner Strike Source, Valve have revamped the "Highway 17" chapter of Half Life 2 with new technology and have designed a new level to be released over Steam (free of charge) to customers who meet a specific "High-end" hardware requirement.

Valve have been sketchy with the details of the requirements but have said they will be released shortly.

One feature that we'll be adding to the Source engine in the coming months is high dynamic range lighting. To showcase this we've taken a part of the Highway 17 chapter of Half-Life 2 and worked it into a single level that incorporates HDR along with some new gameplay. We're calling this short level "The Lost Coast," and it will be made available free of charge to Half-Life 2 customers that meet a specific set of high end hardware requirements. We'll be publishing those requirements soon.

Some concept art is available here, here, and here

Visit Steampowered for more information.

Discussion >>

Chris writes: Here's an article from The Inquirer that deals with the question whether Half-Life 2's End-User License Agreement (EULA) is illegal:

The German Consumer Association has recently found that the packaging on Half-Life 2 is misleading.

In a report made following complaints from the public, they said that the mere listing of an internet connection under the 'other' category in system requirements did not accurately describe the true extent of the internet tie-in with the game, and ordered Vivendi to amend the packaging and untie Steam from HL2 or face a hefty fine.

[...] How far other consumer associations will agree with the Germans is yet to be seen, but it seems a no-brainer that Steam should be mentioned on the retail pack.

The return of software has traditionally been a bugbear for gamers. Most shops, at least in the UK, have a policy not to allow the return of opened software because of piracy risks. However, most consumers are not aware that, in some cases at least, this is in breach of their statutory legal rights, which cannot be infringed.

[...]It is quite conceivable that any gamer not being able to connect to Half-Life 2 is entitled to a legal refund in the UK. The case would hinge around whether or not the inability to play the game without persistent net connection, or the previous hacking of the CD Key rendering it unplayable, makes the game unfit for the purpose described on the box. This could well be a winner.

The last issue is the most interesting and relates to a number of other cases that have come up over the last couple of years.

According to US and UK law, under the principle known in the US as 'First Sale', a consumer buying a game takes absolute title to it; that is, they own it. Here's the dig. At least in the States, opening a game box is equivalent to accepting a EULA. However, you can't read the EULA until you've opened the box, since game stores don't carry copies. Can the EULA then be binding? In the US courts - and contrary to popular opinion - it can be, but it must be 'reasonable' according to a bunch of different standards. Half-Life 2, perhaps, wouldn't be.

This whole issue might be in line with Valve caring about their customers...

Discussion >>

Variety report that Microsoft have employed Alex Garland (28 Days Later & The Beach) to write the script for a Halo movie.

The route of employing the scriptwriter themselves (instead of simply licensing the rights out to one of the major movie studios) is reportedly due to Microsoft's awareness of the damage a shoddy movie could do to the Halo franchise:

As nearly every producer in town expressed interest in the title, it became clear that Microsoft wasn't interested in licensing it out of fear that a poorly received adaptation similar to "Final Fantasy" or "Super Mario Bros." could hurt the lucrative franchise.

Instead, those inquiring about a license found out that Microsoft decided it would develop its own script and shop it to studios once satisfied.

That's a highly unusual move for a tech company such as Microsoft, which has published videogames but has never before gone into the business of producing films.

More (free trial subscription required)

Via Slashdot

More info:
Alex Garland on IMDb.com
Discussion >>

The specifications for the "Cell" chip were recently unveiled by engineers from Sony, IBM and Toshiba.

Dubbed a "super computer on a chip", it will have 8 "synergistic processing units" that allow speeds faster than 4 GHz (faster than Intel's current high-water mark of 3.8GHz), and will be capable of processing 256 billion calculations per second (256 gigaflops).

The Playstation 3, expected to be released next year, will have a Cell chip onboard, and a test of the chip is due for later this year on PC workstations optimized for animation and graphics tasks.

While the PlayStation 3 is likely to be the first mass-market product to use Cell, the chip's designers have said the flexible architecture means that Cell will be useful for a wide range of applications, from servers to cell phones. Initial devices are unlikely to be any smaller than a game console, however--the first version of the Cell will run hot enough to require a cooling fan, Kahle said.

More

More info:
Consortium reveals Cell details, claim 4GHz+ clock speeds
PlayStation 3 chip has split personality
Playstation 3 technology unveiled
Discussion >>

Blizzard have posted an employment notice on their site, looking for a Lead Game Designer to head the design team behind Diablo and Diablo II.

Listed as a Plus for the position is "Experience working on an RPG titles."
Link

More info:
Blizzard Entertainment: Diablo
Evil Avatar - Blizzard starting Diablo III?
GamersHell: Diablo 3 Rumor - A sequel is in development?
Joystiq: Rumor: Blizzard Begins Work on Diablo III
Discussion >>

LusasArts have made available a demo for Star Wars Republic Commando, their latest first-person / futuristic / tactical / shooter for the PC.

Enter the dark military side of the Star Wars universe as a squad leader of a Republic Special Operations unit. You are a Republic Commando. You must infiltrate deep behind enemy lines and lead your elite team on precision operations - lurking in the shadows, striking at will...

Star Wars Republic Commando will present a dramatic military-style action experience from the point-of-view of an elite squad member of a Republic Special Operations unit. Players will step into the role of a Commando performing precision operations deep behind enemy lines in this brutally realistic Star Wars combat experience.

Download it through Bittorrent here or direct download mirrors from 3DGamers. (421 Mb)

Star Wars Republic Commando Homepage
Discussion >>

Browse our archives:

Igniq.com Weekly News Archives

Archive for this week:

12.2.05 What are your fondest gaming memories ?
11.2.05 Sea Wolves - Free Trial
10.2.05 Face of Mankind Open Beta
 Catalyst 5.2 Radeon Driver Suite
 Second RYL: PoTE Trailer Available
9.2.05 Half Life 2 Expansion - The Lost Coast
8.2.05 Half-Life 2 EULA - Illegal?
 Microsoft Retain Scriptwriter for Halo Movie
 Cell Chip Tech Revealed
 Rumour: Diablo 3?
7.2.05 SW Republic Commando - Demos