Monthly Archives: February 2006

Battlefield 2

Battlefield 2 1.2 Patch Readme

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Looks like yesterdays prediction on the 1.2 Patch was accurate. Here is the list of bug fixes and tweaks (click read more to see it all).

BUG FIXES & GAMEPLAY TWEAKS
– Dolphin Diving is no longer possible
– Players can no longer jump and shoot at the same time
– “Prone Spamming” is now fixed
– “Sprint exploit” is now fixed
– Helicopters now carry 8 missiles rather than 14
– TV-Guided missile now have a shorter range
– Damage decreased from M134
– Hit points on all air vehicles has been reduced
– AA missile lock has been improved
– All support kit weapons have been adjusted
– All Sniper rifles have been adjusted
– Sa80 has been adjusted
– G3A3 has been adjusted
– Reload while sprinting has been enabled
– Medic defibrillator paddles have been adjusted. They now reload while not in use.
– SCAR-L reload sound has been fixed
– Server setting to allow friendly fire to be off on mines without affecting other weapons.
– Server search filters now work properly
– Mines can no longer be destroyed with other explosives
– Bug in MP7 fire rate fixed. Ammo count increased and mag count and damage decreased
– Flash bang effect radius decreased
– Added unlocks for Sniper and AT kits
– Fixed a bug in terrain rendering with night vision, whereby terrain was still dark in dark areas.
– Fixed a bug whereby mods that are not bf2 or not xpack permutate shaders every time a level is loaded.
– Fixed a bug whereby non-xpack mods cannot use xpack shaders.
– Fixed bug in TV guided missiles of Havoc helicopter
– The LAV25 no longer shoots through penetrable materials.
– Vehicles no longer disappear when viewed from some vehicles with a HUD (e.g. Tanks).
– Performance gain found in static mesh rendering.
– Detonation radius from grenade launcher explosions has been reduced.
– Grenade launcher projectiles now have a minimum distance.
– Decreased Flashbang count from 4 to 3
– Replaced the existing Czech Flag with the correct one in the front end

Continue reading Battlefield 2 1.2 Patch Readme →

Battlefield 2

Battlefield 2 1.2 Patch Out Tomorrow?

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In an EA Community Update for 2/13/06 it sounds like the latest patch for BF2 will be out soon. Planet Battlefield is predicting tomorrow. Here is the entire update:

Community Update – 2/13/06

Listen up soldiers:

We have some great news for you regarding the upcoming patch. 1.2 is in the final stages of its release cycle. This means you need to keep an eye on this web space for further info and a release date.

I want to extend a huge thanks to our community for helping us grasp the issues that have made your gameplay less than optimal at times. We are very happy with the improvements in this patch and sincerely hope you are all pleased with the work we’ve done.

AJ Marini

Im pretty sure that my wife wont appreciate that as a Valentines Day present, but I sure would!

GR1 Heavy Metal

Top 13 Tracks As Of February 13, 2006

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# Artist Song Title Album
1 Pantera Walk Vulgar Display Of Power
2 Disturbed Down With The Sickness The Sickness
3 Slipknot Wait and Bleed Slipknot
4 Slipknot Duality 9.0: Live [Disc 2]
5 Disturbed Awaken Believe
6 David Draiman of Disturbed Forsaken Queen Of The Damned
7 System of a Down Spiders System of a Down
8 Rammstein Sonne Mutter
9 Drowning Pool Bodies Sinner
10 Disturbed Liberate Believe
11 Trapt Headstrong Trapt
12 Slipknot Duality Vol 3 (Subliminal Verses)
13 Rammstein Links Mutter

This list is generated weekly from a ranking based on your votes in the Live365 playlist window.

Microsoft

Halo 2 Coming To PC

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Press Release

Master Chief Dual-Wields His Way to Windows Vista

“Halo 2,” the award-winning sequel to the instant classic “Halo: Combat Evolved” to make its PC debut on the Windows Vista platform

“Halo 2,” the game that redefined first-person combat and multiplayer action for millions of gamers worldwide, is set to explode onto PCs exclusively for Windows Vista. “Halo 2” for Windows Vista will be developed by a dedicated Microsoft Game Studios team in partnership with Bungie Studios.

Only for Windows Vista, “Halo 2” will offer gamers both the single-player campaign and multiplayer experience of the original, as well as the additional maps offered in the “Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack.” Gamers will also have the exciting opportunity to build, create and customize their own multiplayer levels.

Continue reading Halo 2 Coming To PC →

Hot Off The Presses

Can You Say WoW?

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AP reports: Some humbling news for professional musicians like Madonna and U2: By a wide margin, TV viewers prefer the amateurs.

Nearly twice as many people – 28.3 million – watched “American Idol” than watched
the Grammy Awards – 15.1 million – when the two music programs went head-to-head in prime time Wednesday, according to Nielsen Media Research.

General

Dreamfall: The Longest Journey Trailer Available

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Press Release

Durham, USA — February 9, 2006 – Funcom announces the release of a new trailer for the highly anticipated adventure game ‘Dreamfall: The Longest Journey’. The game is scheduled for a Windows and Xbox release this spring. For the first time Funcom also offer an iPod version of the trailer, as well as a version for cell phones*.

‘Dreamfall: The Longest Journey’, winner of multiple E3 awards as the best game in its genre, is the continuation of a saga that began in the award-winning The Longest Journey, considered to be one of the finest adventure games ever made. In Dreamfall, players are taken on an epic journey of exploration and adventure as they venture through a thrilling and emotional storyline. ‘Dreamfall’ features a fully interactive world where beautiful music, stunning graphics, fascinating characters and unparalleled gameplay variety promises to bring the adventure genre into a new era. Prepare for a spiritual, fantastic and powerful gaming experience.

The trailer, screenshots and more information can be found on the official website:
http://www.dreamfall.com

Continue reading Dreamfall: The Longest Journey Trailer Available →

Unreal Tournament

Tools New Album

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Rumors about Tools new album are popping up all over the Internet. On April 25th, the band is expected to release Elephtheria. Track listing for the album could include:

1. “Greed Lies”
2. “Psychiatrical”
3. “The Distant”
4. “LK”
5. “Venomous Souls”
6. “Karma”
7. “Lost City”
8. “24th Hour”
9. “Area Unlocale”

Unreal Tournament

New Headbangers Ball CDs

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Roadrunner Records will release their 3rd installment of the MTV Headbangers Ball compilation CDs entitled MTV Headbangers Ball – “The Revenge” on April 11th. The two disc album will include the following:

Disc 1

1. Slipknot – “Before I Forget”
2. Korn – “Liar”
3. Iron Maiden – “The Trooper” (Live)
4. Hatebreed – “To the Threshold”
5. Mudvayne – “Forget to Remember”
6. Avenged Sevenfold – “Burn it Down”
7. HIM – “Vampire Heart”
8. Trivium – “A Gunshot to the Head of Trepidation”
9. Lamb of God – “Now Youve Got Something to Die For”
10. 10 Years – “Wasteland”
11. Disturbed – “Guarded”
12. As I Lay Dying – “Through Struggle”
13. Lacuna Coil – “Our Truth”
14. Underoath – “Its Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door”
15. Mastodon – “Blood & Thunder”
16. Killswitch Engage – “A Bid Farewell” (Live)
17. Black Label Society – “In This River”
18. Bleeding Through – “Kill to Believe”
19. In Flames – “Take This Life”

Disc 2

1. Chimaira – “Nothing Remains”
2. Bullet For My Valentine – “Suffocating Under Words of Sorrow (What Can I Do)”
3. Arch Enemy – “Nemesis”
4. It Dies Today – “Severed Ties Yield Severed Heads”
5. Opeth – “The Grand Conjuration”
6. Norma Jean – “Liarsenic”
7. DevilDriver – “Hold Back the Day”
8. Still Remains – “The Worst is Yet to Come”
9. God Forbid – “The End of the World”
10. Throwdown – “Burn”
11. From First To Last – “The Latest Plague”
12. 36 Crazyfists – “Ill Go Until My Heart Stops”
13. Dragonforce – “Through the Fire and Flames”
14. A Life Once Lost – “Vulture”
15. High On Fire – “Devilution”
16. Bloodsimple – “Sell Me Out”
17. Haste The Day – “When Everything Falls”
18. Walls Of Jericho – “A Trigger Full of Promises”
19. Kingdom of Sorrow – “Buried in Black”

FEAR

PunkBuster To Strike F.E.A.R.TM Into Cheaters

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Press Release

Version 1.3 Update introduces PunkBusterTM, vote kick and new maps

LOS ANGELES – February 06, 2006 – Vivendi Universal Games (VU Games) today announced that the post launch support for Sierra Entertainments award-winning F.E.A.R.TM (First Encounter Assault Recon), will continue with the launch of the new, version 1.3 update on Tuesday, February 7, 2006.

The new update will include the introduction of the PunkBusterTM anti-cheat software, a vote kick option that allows players to be removed from multiplayer games for unsporting behavior, and 3 new multiplayer maps. This update follows the recent launch of the F.E.A.R. SDK (Software Development Kit) and stand-alone server software for both Linux and Win32.

Developed by Monolith Productions, F.E.A.R. is an intense first-person close-quarters combat experience with rich atmosphere and an engaging, paranormal horror storyline. F.E.A.R. is also one of the most critically acclaimed titles of 2005, receiving 62 awards to date, including Best PC Game of 2005 and Best Shooter of 2005 as voted for by the readers of Gamespot.com and IGN.com.

To get more information on F.E.A.R., or to download the demo, please visit www.whatisfear.com. To download the SDK and server software, please visit www.fearfans.com. For more information on PunkBuster, please visit www.punkbuster.com.

Continue reading PunkBuster To Strike F.E.A.R.TM Into Cheaters →

GR1 Heavy Metal

Top 13 Tracks As Of February 04, 2006

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# Artist Song Title Album
1 Disturbed Down With The Sickness The Sickness
2 Slipknot Duality 9.0: Live [Disc 2]
3 Rammstein Sonne Mutter
4 Disturbed Awaken Believe
5 System of a Down Spiders System of a Down
6 Rammstein Ich Will Mutter
7 Pantera Walk Vulgar Display Of Power
8 Korn Did My Time Take A Look In The Mirror
9 Drowning Pool Bodies Sinner
10 David Draiman of Disturbed Forsaken Queen Of The Damned
11 Slipknot Wait and Bleed Slipknot
12 Rammstein Links Mutter
13 Disturbed Voices The Sickness

This list is generated weekly from a ranking based on your votes in the Live365 playlist window.

Interviews

Desert Combat Creators Back in the Game

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Gamespot has published a short interview with Frank Delise, formerly of Trauma Studios – Developers of the popular Battlefield 1942 Mod “Desert Combat” and Dan Kelly, Senior VP of business development at THQ. He and the rest of the Trauma Studios crew have formed a new game development studio called “Kaos Studios” and are working on a new game with the backing of the THQ Publishing House. Look for an official announcement later today from THQ. Here is a snippet of the interview which I think captures exactly what made the Desert Combat Mod so successful:

FD: One thing we were really good at [with the Battlefield 1942 mod Desert Combat] was we really listened to players. What do they want? What do they want to see next? Its really passion about the stuff we make. That obviously paved the way for us to develop the Battlefield 2 R&D projects. But now we have totally different ideas of where the action-drama should go. The most important thing to me was I wanted to keep the core team together and even expand on that.

Edit: The press release is out! Click “read more” to see it in its entirety.

Creators of Desert Combat and Battlefield 2 R&D Projects to Head Up New Studio

Feb 03, 2006 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ — THQ Inc. (Nasdaq: THQI) today announced the opening of Kaos Studios, founded by veterans of Trauma Studios, creators of Desert Combat and Battlefield 2 R&D projects. Kaos first project is an original intellectual property for next generation consoles and Windows PC scheduled for release in 2007.

Continue reading Desert Combat Creators Back in the Game →

Battlefield 2

More EA Job Cuts At DICE

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This was posted to the Planet Battlefield Forums:

Swedish paper this morning anouncing that at least 200 people working for DICE will loose their jobs.

I tried to confirm it online, but can not. Either way, I imagine it is true given the recent cuts and acquisition of DICE by EA. This does not speak well of the future for the Battlefield Franchise.

Unreal Tournament

Godsmack Sets Date For New Album

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More News From Blabbermouth.net:

GODSMACK have set an April 25 release date for their new album, “IV”. The albums first single, “Speak”, will be released to radio on Tuesday, February 14.

…

Other songtitles expected to appear on the CD include “Livin in Sin”, “Shine Down” (which comes complete with “killer harmonica”) and “Voodoo Too”.

Check out the full article for Sully Ernas thoughts on previous albums.