Weekly Digest - 5/10/2009
By Steven Perdikis - Mon Oct 5, 2009 8:00am
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 first ever web comic proved to be popular, as did a more in depth look at the reasons behind why Left 4 Dead 2 was refused classification. A retrospective look at Planescape: Torment was also widely read, and some leaked footage of the upcoming Aliens vs. Predator made many people drool. People were also interested in Korsakovia, a Half-Life 2 mod.
If you would like to receive this update via email each week, why not subscribe to our Weekly Digest!
Last week, our first ever web comic proved to be popular, as did a more in depth look at the reasons behind why Left 4 Dead 2 was refused classification. A retrospective look at Planescape: Torment was also widely read, and some leaked footage of the upcoming Aliens vs. Predator made many people drool. People were also interested in Korsakovia, a Half-Life 2 mod.
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Refried Webcomic - an L4D solution to an Aussie Dilemma? Aussie game developer Tim Colwill has put together a very special web comic for Internodians. He's as upset about a zombie-less Christmas as the rest of us, and put stylus to tablet to express what we're all thinking. Click on to see Tim's fantastic idea... |
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L4D2 Down, But Not Decapitated The banning of L4D2 in Australia has raised the ire of Australia's gaming adults. Like you, we're more than a little upset about the prospect of missing out on the sequel to one of our favourite PC shooters of all time. We sent Tim Colwill out to chat to Valve and the Classification Board about the recent decision, and discovered that all hope is not yet lost. Read on to see exactly why the game has been refused classification, and how the initial ruling isn’t necessarily the final verdict. |
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Retro Roadtest: Planescape: Torment Welcome to Retro Roadtest, where we dust off the beloved classics of ye olden days, to investigate just how well they've aged. We’ll also test how easy it is to get these cobweb-infested lines of code to run on today’s supercomputers. Today it's the turn of Planescape: Torment, one of the classic RPGs of late last century. To our surprise, installation was a breeze, but can the gameplay stack up compared to today's epic productions? |
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First leaked footage of AVP Aliens gameplay Video has surfaced online showing the Aliens gameplay from the upcoming first-person shooter Aliens vs. Predator. While the footage is furtive, shaky, and has next to no sound, the extreme brutality available to those who choose to play the acid-blooded Aliens is clearly visible. Players will be able to scale walls and scamper across ceilings, swooping down to dismember their enemies. |
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The Mod Squad - Korsakovia Welcome back to the Mod Squad, our favourite place to feature our favourite mods. This week we're turning our attention to a very creepy mod for Half Life 2. Korsakovia began as an experiment in game design, removing the usual gaming norms to create a tense and terrifying experience. Note that the content within this mod is disturbing to say the least, so gamer discretion is advised. |
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Call of Duty shocker: No local search for Modern Warfare 2 Infinity Ward creative strategist Robert Bowling has confirmed that in Modern Warfare 2, Aussie gamers won't be able to seek out other Aussie gamers for relatively lag and trauma-free game sessions. From Bowling's Twitter: "There isn't an option to search specific regions / countries when matchmaking, but there is improved matchmaking to auto-assist" This is bad news for Australia... |
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The Gayest Game Preview Ever? If you’re expecting this story to be a special hands-on report of the latest man-hug simulation, you’re going to be disappointed. However, if you’re expecting a preview of the latest GTAIV episode, which ratchets up the action to levels sadly absent from the original game, you’re going to love this story. Alan Moore recently visited Rockstar HQ to get his gay on, where he bore witness to a range of levels ably demonstrating this episode’s new focus on over-the-top action. And men holding hands. |
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Critical exploit discovered in Scribblenauts The latest release from 5TH Cell is a truly extraordinary achievement; a game where tens of thousands of different objects can be summoned into existence to solve some truly baffling puzzles. Scribblenauts is a game that can push your imagination beyond its limits. Unless, of course, you cheat.... |
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Star Wars: The Old Republic beta imminent Registration for the beta test of The Old Republic will be starting shortly – just as soon as LucasArts can make the official site withstand the swamping interest of fans from around the world. As of this writing, the registration page has nothing but a place-holder message: "Please be patient and check back later. We estimate that the site will be back up in the next few hours." |
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Forbidden fruit: Risen demo out now Weighing in at a petite 1.1 gigabytes is the demo for Risen, available now in our download section. While at first glance Risen may simply appear to be yet another entrant into the crowded fantasy RPG genre, this demo is actually a rare opportunity to stick it to 'the man.' -- Risen was Refused Classification in Australia. |
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Modern Warfare 2 achievements revealed A French website has released a list of the achievements in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Included is a de rigeur assortment of popular culture references, puns, and other assorted stabs at crude humour -- which is, of course, exactly what you want when marking an entirely arbitrary in-game micro-triumph. |
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The Warp Pipe - 27/09/09 The Wii introduced motion controlled gaming to the masses, and showed that you don't need the latest and greatest hardware to succeed in the gaming market. As expected, Microsoft and Sony are trying to get in on Nintendo's action, announcing motion control devices of their own. At the Tokyo Game Show this week, we got another look at the PlayStation 3 motion controller, and even got the first bunch of associated game announcements. It seems that motion controlled gaming is going to be the next big thing. But do we actually want motion controlled gaming to take over? |
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Wii Firmware 4.2 is bricktastic A word of caution to anyone considering updating their Wii system menu to version 4.2 - you might be turning your diminutive console into an expensive, somewhat impractical brick. Nintendo always advises against updates if your system has been modified, but it seems this particular update is even playing havoc with virgin consoles. Read on for Nintendo America's victim advice. |
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Reader Interviews - Valve, Ubi, BioWare and more! Apparently Tuesday, the 6th of October, is the unofficial Aussie Interview Day of the Year. Thanks to the upcoming EB vendor show, some of the biggest names in game development are headed to Australia. Their goal? To convince EB managers how wonderful their games are, and why EB should order more stock. Well, apart from Gabe, who is here as the result of a little joke with an Aussie mod developer. This is good news for us... and for you. We get to interview all of the developers while they’re here, and we want you guys to help us out with the questions. Read on to see the impressive list of who’s going to be in town – and start thinking of some juicy questions! |
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Science proves that gaming with your friends makes you weak American research has demonstrated that playing competitive video games against your friends will cause your testosterone levels to plummet. It is only through playing against complete strangers that conflict can trigger a boost to your hormone levels, and the resulting success-inducing aggression. This would appear to prove once and for all the biological underpinnings of man's war-like nature, and why picking fights is so much fun. |
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