MMO Clerks

Have you been meaning to try Warhammer Online, but don’t necessarily want to pay for a month’s worth of play time? Luckily for you the game now offers a free 10-day trial for new players.
“A
call to arms has been issued! With the new free trial we are making it
possible for everyone to experience non-stop Realm vs. Realm combat wrapped
up in a next generation MMO,” said Mythic Entertainment general manager Mark Jacobs.
“What started out as a great game
has only gotten better as the team has added an incredible amount of
content with our first live expansion. For gamers that have yet to
experience the glory of WAR, there is no better time to join the
battle!”
Prospective players of the 10-day free trial are also invited to join the game’s current “Bitter Rivals” event, which will allow players early access to the planned Orc Choppa and Dwarf Slayer character classes, should they decide to [...]

Original post by Earnest Cavalli

Bethesda Softworks has finalized a release date for the second Fallout 3 downloadable expansion: March 24, 2009.
The add-on, dubbed “The Pitt,” gives player the chance to explore the post-nuclear wreckage of Pittsburgh. Unlike modern-day Pittsburgh, The Pitt is a decrepit industrial wasteland run by raiders and slavers.
Based on the images Bethesda has so far released, it almost looks like Barter Town from Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, only with a notable lack of Tina Turner in chainmail.
As with the previously released Operation Anchorage add-on, The Pitt will be priced at $10 on release and should hit the Xbox Live Marketplace and Windows Live simultaneously.
Image courtesy Bethesda Softworks
See Also:

Review: Engrossing Fallout 3 Mutates a Classic Series
Fallout 3 Banned in Australia
Hands On: Fallout 3
Arctic Ninjas in Fallout 3’s ‘Operation Anchorage’

Original post by Earnest Cavalli

Street Fighter IV may have stolen the limelight from Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, but the unfortunately named downloadable fighter still has a number of supporters, many of whom will be pleased with the fixes in the game’s upcoming patch.
While most of the issues corrected by the patch apply to both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game, PS3 gamers will be happy to hear that the patch prevents a number of freezing and crashing issues not shared by their Xbox 360 counterparts.
A full list of what the patch changes direct from producer Rey Jimenez can be found below.

After a number of games, the HUD will be corrupt.  Yellow lifebars
will freeze, the round counter flags will all be on, and the names will
show more than one name. (Both)
Frequent disconnects during VS transition screen. Often caused by selecting START color of character. (Both)
Title crashes if user has [...]

Original post by Earnest Cavalli

Amazon.com, the world’s most popular online retailer, has added a used videogame buy back program to its immense selection of standard sales offerings.
In return for a pre-determined amount of Amazon credit, the new program asks gamers to look up the value of each of their titles, print off a shipping label from their site, pack the games into a box, and ship the whole thing off to the firm. Once Amazon receives the games and determines that they are in good condition, credit is deposited into your Amazon account.
A cursory glance at the amounts being offered seems to put Amazon in line with Electronics Boutique’s trade-in program.
Amazon’s foray into the used games biz comes only three days after word that mega-retailer Toys “R” Us was also offering gamers a chance to trade in their used games.
Video Games Trade-In [Amazon]
See Also:

Toys ‘R’ Us Joins Used Games Biz
Microsoft Exec: Used Games are [...]

Original post by Earnest Cavalli

Since word broke that the SCENE expansion for Metal Gear Online would include fan favorite characters Vamp and Raiden, players have been chomping at the bit for word on when it would see release. Today, Sony answered their cries.
As of March 17, players will be able to purchase SCENE from the PlayStation Network Store for $10. Additionally, Konami is offering a package deal on MGO’s expansions: SCENE and MEME can be purchased together for $15, and players can download all three so-far released expansions (SCENE, MEME and GENE) for $18.
Those of you with money burning a hole in your pocket can hand it over to Sony as early as March 10, in the form of a pre-order for SCENE.
Even more important than release date and pricing details is word directly from Sony’s PlayStation.Blog of what exactly players will be able to do with Vamp and Raiden in multiplayer matches.
Raiden [...]

Original post by Earnest Cavalli

MTV Games announced on Thursday the release details and official title for its music game based on the Beatles.
The Beatles: Rock Band will ship for Xbox 360, Wii, and PlayStation 3 in North America and European territories on 9/9/09. Yes, that is the tenth anniversary of the U.S. launch of the Dreamcast, but more to the point, it’s “number nine, number nine, number nine.” Cute.
The standalone game will cost $60. Optional instrument controllers based on the instruments used by the band will also be available. On launch day, the available configurations will be a guitar controller for $100 and a limited edition bundle for $250.
Well, those sure are expensive controllers. Seems like they’re relying mostly on people using their existing guitars and drums to play Beatles, and just offering higher-quality controllers for people who want to blow a bunch of money for the ultimate experience. I wouldn’t expect these instruments [...]

Original post by Chris Kohler

Electronic Arts’ Need for Speed series has a long, storied history, dating back to the 3D0 in 1994. Three new games are currently in development, distinct titles that EA hopes will appeal to different types of racing fans.

Need for Speed: Shift is aimed squarely at simulator buffs, emulating an authentic racing experience with complex physics, fully realized performance modeling and a selection of high-performance vehicles tearing around closed-track environments.

I recently had a chance to test drive an early build of the PC version, experiencing all the joys of careening into stationary objects at mind-numbing speeds. Even in this early state, it’s an impressive ride.

Need or Speed: Shift is being developed by Slightly Mad Studios, whose previous titles (under the moniker "Blimey! Games") include racing simulators like GT Legends and GTR 2 — games that are generally ranked among the upper echelons of racing simulators.

In Shift, subtle details go a long [...]

Original post by Nate Ralph

Want to start demolishing the Covenant, strategically? In this week’s episode of Game|Life the Video, Nate Ralph takes us through a match of Halo Wars with his top five tips for utter domination.
In Nate’s review of Halo Wars, which shipped for Xbox 360 this week, he said that “console fans finally have a genuinely good real-time strategy experience on their gaming platform of choice,” even if “the simplistic game mechanics and sluggish controls mean that Xbox 360 still isn’t an adequate replacement for the PC.”
As always, this episode of Game|Life the Video is also available on Wired.com’s YouTube channel and on iTunes.
Watch more Wired videos.

Original post by Chris Kohler

Despite confirmation from previous publisher Vivendi Interactive, Ubisoft has apparently canceled the console versions of World in Conflict’s upcoming Soviet Assault expansion, reports CVG.
Ubisoft purchased WiC developer Massive Entertainment last November after the firm was inherited by Activision and subsequently put on the auction block. Until now, nothing had been said of World in Conflict’s console iteration by its new publisher.
Presumably this has no bearing on the PC release of Soviet Assault — a game that Ubisoft has recently confirmed plans to ship later this month.
Still, it should be seen as sad news for console strategy game fans. World in Conflict is one of the most inventive, cleverly polished and gorgeously rendered real-time strategy games of the last decade, even if it lacks the branding power of efforts from Blizzard or EA.
Image courtesy Ubisoft
World in Conflict console canned [CVG]

Original post by Earnest Cavalli

Come March 6, widely respected journalist N’Gai Croal will no longer be covering the gaming industry for Newsweek.
Though Croal’s announcement via Newsweek’s Level Up blog doesn’t specifically mention what he will be doing instead, he does wax verbose on his plans:
After Friday March 6th, my passions will take me beyond the world
of journalism. I’ll be wearing many hats on this new journey: videogame
design consultant, media strategist, consumer technology reporter,
columnist, blogger and, as always, provocateur.

Instead of completely abandoning the world of writing about videogames, Croal asserts that he will continue writing a monthly column for notoriously well-regarded gaming magazine Edge.
Image: Facebook
The Man Behind the Royal ‘We’ Says ‘So Long’ [Level Up]
See Also:

N’Gai Croal Takes Apart Roger Ebert
N’Gai Croal On GTA Delay: Don’t Blame PS3
Microsoft, N’Gai Croal Betting On PlayStation, Again
N’Gai Croal vs. Alex Ward

Original post by Earnest Cavalli