Weekly Digest - 14/09/2009
By Steven Perdikis - Mon Sep 14, 2009 9:00am
Each week, we collate the most popular stories that we published over the past seven days, plus a lineup of the most downloaded files added in the same timeframe. That way, in case you missed something, you can catch up in one helpful little spot, every Monday morning.
Last week, our new feature, The Mod Squad was the most popular thing on the site, closely followed by The Warp Pipe, which looked at the Dreamcast, ten years on. Also popular was our Batman: Arkham Asylum review, and news heralding the arrival of Dungeons and Dragons Online as a free to play title.
Last week, our new feature, The Mod Squad was the most popular thing on the site, closely followed by The Warp Pipe, which looked at the Dreamcast, ten years on. Also popular was our Batman: Arkham Asylum review, and news heralding the arrival of Dungeons and Dragons Online as a free to play title.
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The Mod Squad - Forgotten Hope 2 Review Do you like free stuff? We like free stuff too. That’s why we’re devoting some of our precious gaming time to the world of mods, with a weekly review of our favourites. Hopefully we haven’t peaked too early, as our inaugural Mod Squad takes a look at what could be the pick of the bunch. Read on to discover this must-have mod. Enjoy First Person Shooters on the PC? Download this file immediately. Interested in World War II? Download this file immediately. Need a good excuse to dust off your old Battlefield 2 CD, but want much improved graphics, and a refreshing new take on its epic teamplay? Download this file immediately. |
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The Warp Pipe - 06/09/09 This Wednesday marks the 10th Anniversary of the US launch of the Dreamcast, Sega’s last home console. For Sega fans, the Dreamcast was a rollercoaster ride; anticipation and hope of Sega’s second coming, a riotously successful launch and tons of awesome games eventually crushed by the PlayStation 2 hype train, piracy and Sega’s poor financial state. It also introduced some important concepts to the world of console games that we now take for granted. This week, The Warp Pipe will reflect on the Dreamcast’s highs and lows and highlight some of the better parts of its library. |
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2-Minute Review - Batman: Arkham Asylum If you're like us, you don't have all day to read game reviews that span several pages. You read the intro to see the general gist of the game, then skip straight to the conclusion to see if the game delivers the goods. Sound like you, or have we lost you already, Mr ADHD? If you want your gaming verdict in one quick, easy to digest nugget, you should enjoy our first 2-Minute Review. Our debut taste-test takes a quick look at whether Batman: Arkham Asylum is worthy of your Bat-coins. |
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Dungeons & Dragons Online now free to play A few months ago, it was announced that Dungeons and Dragons Online would become free to play. The Free to Play game client has now been released (weighing in at some 3.87 GB) and is now available for download. While the game is free to play, those who choose to contribute money to the title by way of micro-transactions will be able to gain access to new adventure packs, items, and other content. Those who have existing subscriptions to the game (or choose to contribute money) will be granted VIP status, allowing them to get proper support for the game, more content, and presumably, a "more fun" gaming experience. |
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SingStar Latino rated unsuitable for family audiences If you thought Australia was the only country whose moral guardians kept a tight watch over video game content, you can jolly well think again. Like the Australian Classifications Board, games sold in North America are carefully vetted according to strict codes by the Entertainment Software Rating Board. Generally these ratings turn out much as they do in other territories and could be predicted by most well-informed gamers. But the latest addition to the ever-growing SingStar library? Not only pushed out of the E: Everyone and even E-10: Everyone 10 and Older categories and into the much less desirable T: Teen, but described by the ESRB's report as packed full to the brim with immoral and unhealthy acts. I did not see that one coming. |
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Final Fantasy XIII release date accidentally leaked In other SquareEnix news of a more traditional sort, a major publisher once again proves that their PR team are not up to the challenge of fending off swarms of obsessive gamers. There's not a lot of point making everyone involved sign non-disclosure agreements, clamping down on your document security, and investing in a major marketing campaign based around a grand reveal ... if you hide the details of your revelation behind an easily guessable URL. |
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Playstation 3 sales increase by 1000%; no, that's not a typo Having been the satisfied owner of a big black box for some years now, the arrival on the scene of the PS3 Slim and its accompanying price drop didn't cause me much excitement - unless you count grumbling over my comparatively tiny hard disk "exciting". This is apparently not the case for people who don't consider the collection of every possible gaming platform a high priority than buying groceries; one British organisation is reporting a one thousand percent increase in Playstation 3 sales after the new models introduction. |
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Assassin's Creed II gets a shiny new, serious trailer Those of you who have been waiting for some new information on Assassin's Creed II will be pleased to know that Ubisoft have regained their sanity following last week's abominations, giving us nearly seven minutes of real gameplay footage. In the trailer, we get to see some of the new moves available to players, some of the new weapons, and a glance at how the economic system works. The game does still look very good (if we can ignore the previous trailer) and looks like it will address key concerns of gamers by doing away with much of the repetition that was seen in the first game. |
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Reader Interview: Randy Pitchford Just a reminder folks - if you ever wanted to get up close and personal with Randy Pitchford (with a name like that we don't blame you), now's your chance to do it vicariously through us. We're interviewing the main man behind Borderlands tomorrow, and want you guys to come up with some great questions. We’re basically offering to be your very own personal stand-in interviewer. Nice of us, huh? Just post your question in the comments section of this news piece, and the top 5 will make it into the interview. Gentlemen, start your questioning! |
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Tekken 6 flirts with Anna, Asuka screens What's a fighting game without a bunch of anatomically impossibly proportioned women beating each other up? Nothing. Tekken, a series which sadly seems to have lost a lot of its impact, relevance and following as its more stand-out features become old hat, knows this as well as any veteran of the beat-'em-up scene. The Iron Fist and I invite you to admire the latest batch of screenshots and artworks, which feature the lovely Anna and Asuka, and occasional violence. |
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S.T.A.L.K.E.R. : Call of Pripyat - trailer of lightning looks very nice Those of you who have not had enough of wandering about in radioactive wastelands are probably looking forward to S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat. If you're not looking forward to the game (yet) the latest trailer for the title should at the very least entice you. The trailer shows off what appears to be a completely new dynamic lighting system, with regular lightning illuminating the world in a very realistic way. It isn't only the graphics engine that has been improved with S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat, though - a new, military themed game play experience is promised, along with the ability to travel through previously unavailable areas of the Zone. |
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The Secret World releases trailer on the hush Gosh, The Secret World. Are we even interested? Sometimes an MMO comes along and even though we're all cynically aware that it's not likely to take the place of one of the big titles (or the big One, if you insist), it still stirs up a lot of interest - take Aion for example. But The Secret World? The most it's seemed capable of provoking so far is a "meh". Until this weekend. Why has every even vaguely game-related site I've visited over the last 48 hours just blared The Secret World? Is there something we don't know? Did I miss something? Is it a slow news week? Is there some subliminal message in this new trailer? Is somebody receiving a hefty kick back? Where's mine?! |
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Star Trek Online taking beta applications The Internet is both liberating, and scary. You can confess to the hobbies and interests that get you beaten in high school, and be assured of finding like-minded friends. On the other hand, the anonymity means you are at even greater risk of abuse than ever. So it is half with pride and half with embarrassment that I confess myself a mild Trekkie, and totally psyched for Star Trek Online. The wait just got more bearable. Head on over to the [url=http://www.startrekonline.com/]Star Trek Online website[/app] and register as a member, and you could score entry into the closed beta! |
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PS3 v3.00 update woes continue unaddressed I am ashamed of myself for raising such a fuss over Sony's sluggish response to reports of problems with the latest firmware update, v3.00. Only a few days after release, and already whinging! I apologise for my hasty reaction. Now that that's out of the way, let's get down to complaining that it's now eight days on, and not only has there not been a patch, but Sony are still keeping quiet, except for a small mention shoved in at the bottom of a blog entry. |
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Sony slow to move on 3.00 firmware issues The latest update to the Playstation 3's firmware, v3.00, is proving quite divisive and upsetting in all sorts of ways. Some gamers are grumbling over finding that what, according to conventional numbering systems, should have been a major update is actually mainly composed of minor aesthetic changes. Others are irritated by Sony's apparent intention to give the XMB a face-lift to coincide with the PS3 Slim's debut, rather than focusing on the features that early adopters have been calling out for. Then there's the unfortunate folk whose consoles started malfunctioning since the update, and those who are rather unhappy with Sony's belated, unsatisfactory response. |
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