All New Copies of Alan Wake to Include Free DLC April 30, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Game News.add a comment
Remedy has already announced new content for Alan Wake (dubbed episodes) will be coming post game release for an unannounced amount. Today, Remedy announced in their official forums the first DLC will be free of charge, as download codes for it will be included in all copies of the game released worldwide.
This could be the latest volley against preowned game sales, or it could be a gift from Remedy to their loyal fans. More DLC for the game is expected after the initial episode, and Remedy has announced if the demand is high enough to release a second “season”, they will make a full sequel.
Steam Mac coming May 12 April 29, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Game News.add a comment
Well now that the new version of Steam has been released to Windows users I’m sure many Mac users (including friends of mine) were wondering when their own Mac version would be released.
Now we know. Valve has announced Steam will be avalible for the Mac on May 12th. I was one of the original Steam testers back in 2003. I never imagined the Steam service wouldve grown as much as it has since then. I thought 2006 was the major year for Steam, when they broke out and started publishing non Valve games. Looks like 2010 is going to be the next chapter.
Remedy Releases Alan Wake Launch Trailer April 29, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Game News.add a comment
With only half a month until Alan Wake hits store shelves, it seems like Remedy has gone all out and released what appears to be the final trailer for Alan Wake before release to their YouTube channel. This’ll probably go up on Xbox Live pretty soon, but it’s not up yet.
Without a doubt looks to be the game of the summer.
Editorial: A Beta Preview: Why Aren’t More Companies Doing this? April 29, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Editorials.add a comment
The Halo Reach beta video was released this afternoon and is avalible to download to all Halo 3 ODST owners who boot their first discs up. It is a very detailed video narrated by Aisha Tyler who goes over the rules of the beta and what is avalible.
The video, taking up several minutes, keeps smack talk to a minimum and specifically shows all the new components of Halo Reach, including the menu interface, matchmaking, and gives a rundown of weapons, controls, maps and gametypes.
So simple an idea, do a video where someone tells you how to play the game. I haven’t played a second of the Reach beta yet but I feel completely ready to play. Why aren’t more companies doing this?
The beta will not start until May 3rd, they’re probably going to take the video down once the beta becomes active. If you have a copy of Halo 3 ODST and intend to play the Halo Reach beta, you owe it to yourself to watch this video to be fully briefed on it before you play.
Halo Reach Beta Will Run from May 3rd-19th! April 29, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Game News.add a comment
Bungie has announced today that the Halo Reach beta will begin five days from now on May 3rd, and will end on the 19th of May.
Tomorrow, an exclusive video is going to be posted starring Aisha Tyler, who will give a introduction to the beta. It can only be viewed through the Halo 3 ODST disc 1.
When the beta becomes active on May 3rd, the option to play the beta will be added to Halo 3 ODST’s main menu, simply select “Play the Beta” from the menu (which will be an option at that point) and download the beta. The beta will be 1.2 GB. Load times will be high.
Anyone who participates in the beta will get an exclusive Halo Reach avatar tee through Halo Waypoint, and during the beta your stats will be fully trackable through bungie.net. gameXcess will be playing this beta, hope to see you all there!
Editorial: Have the Extreme Ghostbusters Solved Alan Wake’s Problem Before? April 28, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Editorials.add a comment
For those of you who haven’t taken a look at the Alan Wake X10 Trailer, please do so before reading the rest of this article.
Did you catch the post script to that? Alan Wake was writing something beyond his control. I did, and then I realized I had seen something like that before, and then I remembered where. When I was growing up I loved the Ghostbusters (naturally, they were awesome on all levels). In 1997, when I was in middle school, a new series based around Generation X was released on weekday mornings. With the ghostbusters now middle aged and only Egon still living in the firehouse, when the ghosts returned and him no longer able to fight, four of his community college students, each with their own specialty took up the new proton packs to fight a newer stronger generation of ghosts. They called themselves the Extreme Ghostbusters.
The ghostbusters have been known to fight anything, gods, demons, posessions, all in the name of a day’s work, but one episode of Extreme Ghostbusters touched on a myth that I think is the same myth that Alan Wake is evoking. Demons were terrorising New Jersey, taking human hostages, and they looked very similar to a popular series of books. One of the Extreme Ghostbusters was a fan of the books and recognised them and they discovered the writer, paticularly one based off of RL Stine, was bringing these creatures to life through his writing. He was compelled beyond free will to type down his stories, and with it, everything he wrote was coming true.
The trick was that it had to be written for it to happen. At one point, to save a fellow ghostbuster, one of the ghostbusters was able to mess around with the typewriter as something was happening, turning a weapon that the demon was holding into a banana, which meant that no matter how crazy whatever was typed, it would happen.
In the end, the Extreme Ghostbusters triumphed by destroying the typewriter that the writer was using to weave the story, breaking the demon’s control over him and destroying everything that had been done. All in the day’s work of your neighborhood ghostbuster.
Halo Waypoint Updated for Halo Reach Beta! April 28, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Game News.add a comment
When I went into the Halo Waypoint tonight to watch the first in a series of Halo Reach live action movies (because they haven’t been uploaded to Xbox Live for download yet) I noticed the waypoint was recently patched. When I checked to see what was new I noticed a new avatar award.
All Halo Reach beta players will be given an exclusive avatar item from the Halo Waypoint just for playing. If you want to play in the Reach beta, buy a copy of Halo ODST, if you’ve already got one, pop in disc one to download the Reach client when it becomes avalible.
Once the beta goes live you should get the item by simply logging into Halo Waypoint after playing some. If you haven’t downloaded the Halo Waypoint and you’re a Halo fan, get to it and greatly enhance your Halo experience!
Halo Reach’s beta will go live May 3rd, 2010 for all owners of Halo ODST with an Xbox Live Gold account (naturally since the Beta is MP only).
The History of Remedy Part 2 April 27, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Game News.add a comment
Machinima.com has released the second part of their history series on Remedy Entertainment, the makers of Alan Wake. since this is a machinima.com video, it’s recomended that you disable annotations or you won’t be able to see half the screen.
New Steam Client Released! Mac Version Soon? April 27, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Game News.add a comment
Valve has released their much anticipated updated Steam client. For those of you running the older versions of Steam, make sure to check for updates and make sure that the update installs, or you could just download the client through their website. Steam is required to run games like Team Fortress 2, Portal, and Left 4 Dead, and enables achievements, friends lists, and online server lists.
This new version is expected to be compatable with Mac, although Valve hasn’t announced the release of a dedicated Mac client yet. However it was promised for this month, and it’s almost over.
Bright Falls is Live on Xbox Live April 26, 2010
Posted by Maniac in Game News.add a comment
For those of you who have been waiting all day (and yesterday) for the first two episodes of Bright Falls, the live action Alan Wake prequel series, the gaming gods have finally smiled and released these episodes to Xbox Live to play on your TVs and HDTVs.
The series will follow a regular weekly release schedule for the six episode miniseries, which will culminate in the final two episodes being released the night before Alan Wake’s release.
Alan Wake will be released on May 18th, 2010 for the Xbox 360. If you don’t have an Xbox 360 and want to watch the series, they will be released online on their official website.
Of course, if you prefer since you’re here already, you can watch the first two episodes here. I don’t mind.
GameXcess.net - Gaming News, Videos and Editorials! 