Archive - 2011

Hellgate Begins Open Beta Test

T3 Entertainment has announced that their upcoming online shooter, Hellgate (formerly known as Hellgate: London), has entered a state of open beta testing. T3 is celebrating the open beta launch with four special events.

From the Press Release

Hellgate will celebrate the Open Beta launch with four special events to reward and entertain the growing Hellgate community – the Guild Reservoir event, the Daily Supplies event, the To Level in Hell event and the Level and Be Rewarded event, each awarding top players with valuable prizes. Additionally, the Open Beta will feature two new game modes – the PvP Duel Area and the zombie-infested Cow Room. Finally, there is a special prize waiting for everyone upon entering the Hellgate Open Beta today.

iPhone 4 PowerSkin Battery Case Review

For us smartphone users, aside from cell connection, the thing that matters most is our precious battery life. As phones draw more juice with faster processors and bigger screens, power is at a premium. Tennrich International Corp and XPal Power have released the PowerSkin line of smartphone battery cases. We managed to get a hold of their iPhone 4 version, which fits both AT&T as well as Verizon iPhone 4’s.

The PowerSkin case is pretty thick, making your iPhone 4 increase girth to 0.77 inches. The width and length of the units also increase, making the iPhone 4 5.1 inches long and 2.5 inches wide – so it definitely makes your iPhone 4 larger than you are used to. It could be an issue for those people who keep their iPhones in cargo and carpenter pockets, so be sure to take note prior to purchase. The case itself is an attractive black silicone with a nice rubberized feel.

Inserting your iPhone 4 into the case is exceptionally easy – in fact, far easier than most cases I have seen. The phone simply slides into the case, bottom-first, then the top part of the silicone case snaps over the top of the phone. Along the bottom side of the case are four blue LEDs which display the battery cases current charge level. By pressing and holding the button on the bottom-side of the case, you can power on and off the PowerSkin. Once plugged in, I got about a day and a half out of the case with a standard amount of usage. Taking the phone to Disneyland today, I got about a full day’s worth (in the amusement park, I took hundreds of images and video for an upcoming segment).

PowerSkin was taking photographers into account with this case as well as the camera port is tapered to allow for a full field of view. Also, the material is a matte finish so you will not get any strange reflections from it onto your lens. In fact, it has enough depth to actually shield the lens from the sun in outdoor conditions while still allowing for photos to be taken.

The PowerSkin uses a mini-USB cable to charge and dock it to your PC. Thankfully, the cable allows for full iPhone 4 sync and charge functionality so you won’t be missing your standard iPhone 4 cable anytime soon.

Overall, I am very impressed with the iPhone 4 PowerSkin battery case. It features a smooth, sexy design with outstanding battery life. Plus, at $79.99 (right now on sale for $69.99) the unit is very reasonably-priced!

Official Product Page

Images

The Baconing Announcement Trailer

Hothead Games has released the official announcement trailer for their upcoming Summer title, The Baconing. The game sees the return of the heroic DeathSpank as he battles the AntiSpank to save SpankTopia.

Wargaming.net And DAVA Sign Deal

Wargaming.net, the developer and publisher behind World of Tanks, Massive Assault series and Order of War along with DAVA Consulting, LLC, a highly-acknowledged developer of mobile games and applications, have announced their strategic partnership and signing of a long-term co-development agreement.  Partnership with DAVA gives Wargaming.net the exclusive opportunity to step into the rapidly-growing market of mobile games and applications.

“Having known the DAVA team for some time, we are thrilled to have them spearhead our efforts in the mobile games and applications development,” said Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi. “We are looking forward to establishing a strong presence on the mobile market and DAVA is the best partner to assist us.”

“We are honored to be working with such a world-renowned developer and publisher,” said Oleksandr Alex Fomenko, Founder of DAVA Consulting, LLC. “The strategic partnership with Wargaming.net is an excellent opportunity for us to develop innovative content on a global scale and we are extremely excited about it.”

RAGE Behind the Scenes Video #1

id Software and Bethesda Softworks have released their first behind-the-scenes dev diary for their upcoming shooter, RAGE. RAGE is due out on October 4, 2011 on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Windows PC platforms. It is the first game to utilize id Software’s id Tech 5 game engine.

Full FEAR 3 Achievement/Trophy List

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment has released the full achievement/trophy list for their new horror-shooter, FEAR 3, which is out now on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Windows PC platforms.

Campaign Specific Achievements/Trophies

Almost Halfway – Attain Rank 10  –  10 Pts / Bronze

You’ve Got the Touch! – Attain Rank 21  –  25 Pts / Silver

Prison Impossible – Complete Prison  –  10 Pts / Bronze

Get To The Chopper – Complete Slums  –  10 Pts / Bronze

Pain, In Bulk – Complete Store  –  15 Pts / Bronze

Town Hall Beating – Complete Village  –  15 Pts / Bronze

Through The Haystack – Complete Tower  –   20 Pts / Bronze

Trouble Cross – Complete Bridge  –  20 Pts / Bronze

Terminal Victory – Complete Port  –  25 Pts / Bronze

Homecoming King – Complete Ward  –  25 Pts / Bronze

Mission… Accomplished? – Finish the Campaign on any difficulty (all levels complete)  –  50 Pts / Gold

Man Mode – Finish the Campaign on INSANE Difficulty  –  100 Pts / Gold

General Achievements/Trophies

Art Collector – Pin 100 total enemies with the Penetrator or Leaper knives  –  15 Pts / Bronze

A Precursor – In the Poker Room of Prison, kill all 3 enemies with headshots before Slow-Mo ends – 5 Pts / Bronze

State-of-the-Art. Bang Bang! – Kill 10 enemies in a row with Sniper Rifle headshots   – 20 Pts / Bronze

Yo, Adrian! – Find something worth punching!  –  15 Pts / Bronze

No can Defense! – Kill 100 enemies with Jump Kick or Slide Tackle  –  20 Pts / Bronze

Extremist – Complete any campaign level on INSANE without reloading checkpoints or going into Last Stand  –  20 Pts / Bronze

Earl of Pain – Kill 1,000 enemies by any method in any game mode  –  10 Pts / Bronze

Character Specific Achievements/Trophies

God Among Men – Kill 250 total enemies during Slow-Mo  –  25 Pts / Silver

Footy Foul – Kill 2 enemies with 1 slide-tackle during Slow-Mo  –  10 Pts / Bronze

Insider Trading – Possess every type of possessable enemy!  –  15 Pts / Bronze

Head Crab Removal – 20 kills with a crowbar  –  10 Pts / Bronze

Online and  Multiplayer Achievements/Trophies

Little Brother’s Helper – As Point Man, Kill 100 enemies Suspended by Fettel  –  15 Pts / Bronze

Big Brother’s Helper – As Fettel, Suspend 100 enemies that Point Man kills  –  15 Pts / Bronze

I’m not a Doctor, I’m a Medic! – Perform 50 Revives in any Game Mode  –  10 Pts / Bronze

Dead Blind – Spend an entire round of Contractions in deep fog without going into Last Stand  –  10 Pts / Bronze

I F.E.A.R. Nothing! – Finish a wave of Contractions on INSANE without anyone entering Last Stand – 15 Pts / Bronze

We’ll Try Again Tomorrow! – Survive 3 round in Contractions in a row without anyone bringing back a crate  –  15 Pts / Bronze

Hanging 20 – Complete wave 20 in Contractions  –  20 Pts / Bronze

Handle with Care – Return 30 Crates in one game of Contractions  –  20 Pts / Bronze

Indecisive – Possess 10 different enemies in one round of Soul King  –  10 Pts / Bronze

Unstoppable! – Win all 5 rounds of a 5-round Soul King match  –  15 Pts / Bronze

Soul Gatherer – Attain a total of 6,000 Souls in one round of Soul King  –  15 Pts / Bronze

Soul Hoarder – Attain a total of 25,000 Souls across all round of a Soul King match  –  20 Pts / Bronze

Monarch – Win 20 round of Soul King  –  20 Pts / Bronze

Rank,  Score and Exploration Based Achievements/Trophies

Doll Collector – Find the Alma Doll on every level  –  20 Pts / Bronze

Spiritually Attuned – Make 100 Psychic Links (Share or Steal)  –  20 Pts / Bronze

Score Monger – Complete 30 challenges in one chapter  –  30 Pts / Bronze

Supreme Challenger – Complete 500 total challenges between all categories  –  25 Pts / Bronze

Completionist – Complete every challenge at least once  –  50 Pts / Bronze

That’s a lot of Zeros – Attain a total of 95,000 score on Prison  –  15 Pts / Silver

Magna Slum Laude – Attain a total of 85,000 score on Slums – 15 Pts / Silver

Cannibal Run – Attain a total of 95,000 score on Store – 15 Pts / Silver

House Arrest – Attain a total of 105,000 score on Village – 15 Pts / Silver

Point Taken – Attain a total of 110,000 score on Tower – 15 Pts / Silver

Crossing Over – Attain a total of 70,000 score on Bridge – 15 Pts / Silver

Point Authority – Attain a total of 110,000 score on Port – 15 Pts / Silver

Dream Score – Attain a total of 50,000 score on Ward – 10 Pts / Silver

Teaser Screenshot from Unannounced Polish PC Shooter

Flying Wild Hog, a developer hailing from the land of fellow Polish developer, cd Projeckt RED, has released a teaser image from an as-of-yet unannounced PC shooter. According to Evolve PR, the developer’s North American press agency, the game will be announced very soon, in mere weeks.

It looks as though you can get a better look of the creature seen in the distance of the screenshot over at Flying Wild Hog’s official website.

Larger Version of Screenshot

Resistance 3 Gets Music from Boris Salchow

Insomniac Games has revealed that veteran composer Boris Salchow will score their upcoming shooter, Resistance 3. Resistance 3 is due out on September 6, 2011 for the PlayStation 3 platform and picks up four years after the events of Resistance 2.

Paul Mudra, Audio Director, Insomniac Games: “For RESISTANCE 3 we required a composer who would be able to interpret the nuance of mankind’s struggle for survival in a brutal world and create an engaging and emotive score. Boris spent many hours at our studio becoming familiar with the story, meeting with several key members of the development team and immersing himself in our process and culture. The soundtrack that Boris composed is compelling and a perfect fit for the game.  We consider it to be a key part of the overall RESISTANCE 3 experience.”

Salchow is a veteran composer, with credits including games like Resistance 2, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas 2, and films such as Prom Night.

Images from Abbey Road recording session

Dead on Arrival Developer Diary #1

N3V Games has released the first developer diary video for their upcoming iOS and Android zombie shooter, Dead on Arrival.

FEATURES

  • Face paced action survival shooter
  • Survive massive waves of zombies!
  • Purchase loads of weapons to defend yourself with
  • Border up doors to keep some of the zombies out for a short moment
  • Unlock rooms to move the fight into, each room holds a different weapon to purchase.
  • Look for the random box which holds the most powerful guns! Doesn’t mean you will always get them though.
  • Massive hospital level to explore and defence yourself
  • Tutorial level to help explain the gameplay while also giving you access to explore the power of each gun
  • Full 3D action and gore theme set in high detailed graphics perfect for mobile!
  • Coming Soon to iPad / iPhone and Android!