Bethesda Softworks and Arkane Studios have released an interactive trailer for their upcoming stealth-actioner, Dishonored.
Archive - 2012
2k Games has released the official launch trailer to their new strategy title, X-COM: Enemy Unknown – enjoy!
Trailer
Focus Home Interactive has released a new “Buddy” trailer for their upcoming Of Orcs And Men – enjoy!
Trailer
Portland, OR – (October 4, 2012) – Aperion Audio announces the availability of the ARIS wireless speaker for Windows (7 & 8). The first certified compatible with Windows 8 speaker system, theARIS lets digital music lovers listen to their tunes from any room in their home. Using the Windows “Play To” feature, users can select and send music wirelessly from any Windows PC, tablet or smart phone connected to their home network. The Aperion ARIS for Windows is available now for $499 at www.AperionAudio.com.
Today, music is stored on a variety of digital devices in the home including desktops, laptops, notebook PCs, network storage drives, tablets and smart phones. ARIS connects to all of these sources of music on the home network and eliminates the need to move music files between devices or plug and unplug cables to hear specific tracks. Using Windows 7 & 8 on PCs or tablets and controller Apps on a Windows, Android, or iOS smart phone, music lovers can send music from any source on the network to an ARIS speaker located anywhere in the home.
ARIS is the first wireless speaker system for Windows, providing functionality similar to wireless speakers that work with Apple® AirPlay® or Bluetooth® technology. However, being Windows and DLNA certified, the ARIS system allows connectivity to multiple network devices, a simple ‘right-click’ music file playback and compatibility with a variety of playback Apps for tablets and smart phones. Aperion’s 12 years of experience in designing award-winning home theater speakers, has been applied in engineering the ARIS from the ground up for natural and low-distortion reproduction of sound, even at loud volumes. The all-in-one stereo speaker system includes six internal drivers and four amplifiers that provide a total of 100 W of audio power and a maximum SPL of 105 dB. The unique extruded and black anodized aluminum enclosure measures 6.5-inches high by 14.75-inches wide. The ARIS is equipped with an adjustable and removable red steel stand for precise angling to enable optimal placement in any room.
The ARIS connects to a home network at the push of a button using Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS), which is built into most current wireless routers, or a simple on-board setup sequence when WPS is not available. Once on the network, the ARIS Wireless Card for Windows (included) automatically updates software over the Internet to maintain the latest networking and codec technologies. The system is also made future proof by a patent-pending capability to swap out the wireless card should hardware technology change or if the user chooses a different network infrastructure in the future. This removes the potential need to replace the complete speaker system.
ARIS Wireless Speaker for Windows: http://aris.aperionaudio.com/
Key Features of the Aperion ARIS Wireless Speaker for Windows:
• Using Microsoft Windows “Play To” feature, send music wirelessly from any Windows device on your home network
• Six internal speakers including 4 powered drivers and 2 passive radiators
• 100 W total power with three sound modes: natural, bass boost and enhanced stereo
• Easy-to-use push button connection to home network via Wi-Fi Protected Setup
• Single-piece brushed aluminum enclosure with adjustable/removable steel base
• Certified compatible with Windows® 8 and Windows® 7
• DLNA® certified
Pricing, Availability and Warranty:
The Aperion ARIS Speaker with ARIS Wireless Card for Windows is priced at $499. The one (1)-year limited warranty covers all defects in material and workmanship. For more info or to order your ARIS today please visit www.AperionAudio.com. Also available at Amazon.com, and theAudioholics Home Theater Store.
SAN DIEGO – Oct. 4, 2012 – Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) today announced a new partnership with the leading publisher of client-based MMO games in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Innova Systems (Innova), to bring the award-winning massively multiplayer online first-person shooter (MMOFPS) PlanetSide®2 to Russian-speaking territories. This new partnership was revealed at the Igromir 2012 expo in Moscow.
The international partnership grants Innova exclusive publishing rights for PlanetSide 2 in its territory and ensures that dedicated servers, local customer support and payment gateways will be provided for the game. PlanetSide 2 will be launched under a free-to-play model, granting players basic access to the game free of charge so they can choose to play the game in a way that suits them best.
“The PlanetSide 2 tagline ‘Size Always Matters’ is more than just a slogan — it is part of our mission in creating the next greatest MMOFPS,” said Louis Figueroa, Senior Vice President, Business Development, Sony Online Entertainment. “A massive game like PlanetSide 2 requires a massive audience, so finding the best international partners to provide quality local support has been a huge goal for us. Innova’s proven record in the space made them an ideal partner and we are confident that they will provide players in Russian-speaking territories with superior local support.”
PlanetSide 2 takes all the groundbreaking features from the original title and adds features that modern gamers have come to expect out of the FPS and MMO genres. The game was developed using SOE’s state of the art next generation MMO engine — ForgeLight™. The use of a new technology and the latest physics processing capabilities allow for unprecedented realism in massive battles, with thousands of players banding together to win control of critical territories and key resources for their Empire.
“PlanetSide 2 is a breakthrough title for the MMOFPS genre. I’m convinced that this game will set a new standard and raise the bar for player expectations,” said Gevork Sarkisyan, CEO of Innova Systems. “The amazing visuals, dynamic and constantly changing battles, as well as the game’s epic scale produce a lasting impression. There is nothing like this available on the market right now.”
Through the partnership, online players in various international territories will have full access to PlanetSide 2, including: Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan, as well as the disputed territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
Cooler Master has released its new gaming mouse, the CM Storm Recon. Ambidextrous, the mouse is perfect for lefties who often find themselves at the end of the proverbial stick when it comes to such peripherals. The mouse features a black, gunmetal design with very attractive lighting scheme that is selectable in the software control panel. A medium sized mouse, it is just the right size for both palm and claw gripping gamers, and its Avago 3090 optical sensor has a maximum sensitivity of 4,000 DPI. There is a lot of argument between laser and optical sensors. Personally, I always go with what works for me and, I can safely say that the CM Storm Recon worked great in all the game sessions I had with it. Whether it was countless hours of Borderlands 2, fun times with Costume Quest, or even Sid Meier’s Civilization V – the mouse was excellent. In terms of how it feels, I have to describe it as “slick”. The feet of this gaming mouse are some of the slickest-moving I have ever used. In terms of friction, the CM Storm Recon feels like you are using a mouse on an air hockey table.
Official Specifications
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One feature of the mouse which you won’t find on others currently is the ability to adjust the lift-of-distance. Lift-of-distance is the distance between the mousing surface and the mouse at which point the mouse’s sensor deactivates. This is especially important when picking up your mouse to bring it back after sweeping one direction or another. Customizing this option means you can negate the off-centering effect that most mice experience. Additionally, you can set your DPI and polling rate through the control panel. All of this gives gamers an incredible range of customization.
If I could pick one aspect of the Cooler Master Storm Recon gaming mouse that needs fixing, it would be the cable. Unfortunately, the cable attached to the mouse is rubberized, not braided. This means that you have to be very careful how you manage your mouse cable as it can result in tangling and friction. Of course, you could always use the Cooler Master Skorpion cable suspender/organizer, but that’s for another review…
Overall, you can’t go wrong with the Cooler Master Storm Recon gaming mouse. It has a lot of features for both right and left-handed gamers as well as a a cool style and great retail rice of $39.99. There are plenty of gaming mice retailing for a lot more which do a lot less.
CM Storm Recon Images
STOCKHOLM – October 3, 2012 – With thousands of players duking it out on the server battlefields of War of the Roses, Paradox has officially confirmed plans to form a permanent franchise team for War of the Roses which will be led by Executive Producer Gordon Van Dyke. The game has enjoyed an enthusiastic reception by reviewers and gamers alike.
“There is no doubt that War of the Roses has been an ambitious project for us,” noted Gordon Van Dyke. “The game’s reception from players has exceeded expectations and we are truly grateful for the continued support from the community. We’ll continue to improve the game and add substantial content for all players.”
In War of the Roses, players don the role of a knight and are pitted against one another in an uphill squad battle to control the coveted crown of England. With steel on steel clashing and arrows and blots grazing past players, War of the Roses unleashes fury on a variety of battlefields in painful, real-time combat.
To celebrate the successful launch, Paradox has also announced a contest seeking the most action-packed screenshot of a battlefield image. The top two winners will each reach a private 32-player server for three months along with five copies of the game. Additional prizes will also be awarded. For more information, please visit:https://www.facebook.com/AWarofRoses
War of the Roses officially launched on October 2nd, 2012 and is currently available now PC for $29.99. Buy the game here: http://www.waroftherosesthegame.com/buy
More about the game
http://www.waroftherosesthegame.com/buy
http://www.facebook.com/AWarofRoses
http://twitter.com/AWarofRoses
http://forum.paradoxplaza.com
October 3, 2012 (Rockville, MD) – Bethesda Softworks®, a ZeniMax® Media company, is pleased to announce it has established a new studio in Austin, Texas, Battlecry Studios, to be headed by long-time industry veteran Rich Vogel. Most recently, Vogel worked at Bioware where he served as the executive producer on the development of Star Wars: The Old Republic. Rich has a long history in the industry having worked on Ultima Online, and Star Wars Galaxies as well as other online and console titles during his 20+ years in game development. The new studio is currently hiring other experienced game developers to fill key roles for an unannounced project.
“I have always admired and respected Bethesda’s approach to making great, original games,” said Vogel. “It’s a belief and passion I share, and I’m looking forward to building a team of high quality developers who want to bring that same commitment and creative energy to the games we’ll be creating.”
“We are very pleased to have someone with Rich’s vast experience join us at Bethesda,” said Vlatko Andonov, President of Bethesda Softworks. “Rich has a history of building and managing talented development teams and bringing high quality games to market, and we look forward to working with him on a new exciting project.”
Battlecry Studios will be the second ZeniMax studio located in Austin, joining Arkane® Studios, whose highly-anticipated title, Dishonored™, ships this month. For more information about Bethesda Softworks and available jobs at Battlecry Studios, visit: http://jobs.zenimax.com/.
Sometimes when it comes to doing a product review it takes a little longer than usual because you can tell this product is a next step, that the company that made it plans to show it proudly to the world and that this product will be showing up on the competitive circuits. You have to take a little more time with such a product to make sure it performs up to the company’s claims, that is is thoroughly tested and that it can be a new standard. That’s why it took a little longer to review the new Tritton AX Pro+ 5.1 surround headset.
Features:
True Surround Sound headset with a microphone that will work with your PS3, Xbox 360, and PC/Mac. For the audio or movie enthusiast, the AX PRO+ is also compatible with any device that features a digital optical or 3.5mm analog 5.1 outputs. Built on the successful AX360 Platform, the AX PRO+ features hardware Dolby Digital decoding and eight independent speakers to deliver true 5.1 surround sound audio. Upgraded speakers have been repositioned to provide crisper sound and more accurate 3D positioning. The vibration feature of the AX360 has been replaced by a new subwoofer that delivers improved low end punch and skull rattling bass. Other advancements include an easy to use illuminated inline controller with a microphone mute switch, independent volume control for game/chat, and the ability to custom tailor volume levels. With the ability to connect the microphone via the Xbox 360 controller port, USB, and analog 3.5mm inputs, the AX PRO+ is the most versatile headset on the market and the only headset you’ll ever need.
- True 5.1 Digital Audio Headset
- Detachable microphone compatible with Xbox Live, Playstation Network (PC/Mac in Europe)
- Digital audio connection for DVD, PC, PS3, XBOX360, and all other devices with Optical digital audio or analog 3.5mm
- Dolby Digital and Dolby Pro Logic Certified
- 8 speakers, 4 in each ear cup
- Illuminated In-line volume adjustment for Front, Center, Rear and Subwoofer controls
- Separate volume control for voice chat
- Inline microphone and volume mute switches
- Adjustable time delay for center and rear speakers
- Dynamic Range Control
- Includes external 5.1 audio controller with analog 3.5mm
- Lightweight headset with deep circumauraul design allows for comfort even during periods of extended gaming.
Installation:
This system has one of the easiest setups I have ever seen, the directions literally show a single diagram with where to plug everything into everything else. It took minutes to set up and once you have gone through the setup procedure resetting it up or setting it up on another system only takes seconds. The only concern I have with the setup is it assumes you have experience with optic cables and know to remove the rubber tips on them before trying to plug it in. It won’t work if you don’t so you can figure it out pretty fast.
Testing:
Here is where things become pure joy. There is nothing quite like throwing on these headsets and jumping into a game such as Transformers: Fall Of Cybertron and hearing explosions all around you or your favorite FPS (I don’t have a favorite so I tore through a whole bunch for this review) and listening for every sound detail to locate the enemy and hopefully get the drop on them before they get the drop on you. With a headset of this quality not only does your experience become more immersive but your gameplay should improve because of 3D sound enabling you to better locate enemies. It won’t make the young gamer on heads sound any less whiny or make the complainer’s expletives any less annoying but with independent game and chat sound level controls if they get too annoying you can turn them down and the game up. If you aren’t sure if you are coming through clearly when you tell the team they should flank left and they run right down the middle you can adjust your headset so you hear yourself in it and know it was just stupidity. I ran this headset through both XBox 360 and the PS3 on these paces and the only signs of game audio weakness turned out to be the game itself, when a headset is this good you can tell which games took the extra time to make sure their sound was exceptional. I found it particularly enjoyable playing Damage Inc. Pacific Squadron WWII Collector’s Edition which came with a Saitek Pacific AV8R Flight Stick because the immersion was intense and complete as if they were made to go together.
After getting some game time in I started streaming some Netflix as well as watching a couple DVDs and removed the microphone which locks on but is easy to take back off. There is just something about Dolby Digital Surround Sound which just makes everything SO much better. When you don’t have it you think “meh everything sounds just fine, I don’t need it” which has been our case since we don’t have a surround sound system in our living room. Then playing games or watching movies with the extra dynamic in sound makes it hard to go back to not having it. I purposely chose shows and movies with dramatic soundtracks or explosions and got so into them I nearly jumped out of my skin when someone walked into the room. Removing the vibration feature for a subwoofer was an excellent move and the configuration of the speakers physically places the sound in the locations needed for surround sound truly recreating the experience.
The box lists compatible devices with this model of the headset as being the XBox 360 and Playstation 3 but since I read it was PC/Mac compatible in Europe I decided to plug it into the PC and see how it works. During this entire writeup I have been listening to a bunch of my favorite songs with the headset on, trying ones with dynamic sound and ones with bass to make sure I wasn’t missing anything. I have been in my own world of writing and music thoroughly enjoying all at a nice level without waking up sleeping members of the household.
All this time testing on different devices brings up comfort as well which is insanely important during long term gaming sessions. The headset is truly lightweight and comfortable with padding around the ear cups and at the bottom of the bridge where it makes contact with your head. I could almost see getting caught up in your own thoughts and walking away from the computer/game system with them still on. Luckily you have 12 feet of cord to realize what you are doing before they will get yanked off your head. Usually I have a complaint about wired headsets due to them limiting the range from your device at which you can play but this longer than normal cord length is quite comfortable.
Appearance:
Appearance really shouldn’t matter that much in a headset since performance is really what makes or breaks it’s effectiveness but I would be remiss to not point out the new angular white shell on the headset which looks like it could be a part of a stormtrooper’s gear. I had it sitting next to my Star Wars XBox 360 and a clone trooper bobblehead and it looked damn sexy.
Last Call:
The Tritton AX Pro+ 5.1 Surround Headset is the only headset you will need from now on. It is perfect for gaming, movies, music, anything you could want the headset for and it’s connectivity allows the freedom to use it where you want. I plan to do some traveling with my Xbox 360 and laptop in tow, and this headset is definitely going along for the ride!
The Duo Gamer is a Bluetooth game controller for the iOS platform The controller is made from a durable, hard plastic and feels like it could take a beating. The package also contained a simple plastic stand for your iOS device to rest on so that you can prop it up for a more console-like experience. The stand may be simple, but does the job it was designed for without issue. It even has a cutout in it to run a charge/sync cable through. For an even greater console-like experience, you can attach an HDMI cable and run your device to a television set. The package also contained a nice, felt pouch to hold the Duo Gamer while in transit – although, our pouch string did not contain any kind of locking mechanism for cinching. I am unsure if our pouch is defective or that’s just how they come – hopefully, they all have cinch locks of some kind.
Pairing the Duo Gamer to my iPad was very easy – simply hold the power button on the controller down for a few seconds and the device appeared in my iPad’s Bluetooth device window. After its first paring, a window appeared, directing me to some of Gamelofts titles which support the controller. As it stands right now – only Gameloft titles are supporting the Duo Gamer. Thankfully, that means that you get a nice array of titles of varying genres to try out until the company releases some more or perhaps makes some deals with other game developers.
I was able to try out a couple of the first person shooter games in the Gameloft library as well as Order & Chaos Online. All the games performed remarkably well with the Duo Gamer and the two analog sticks feel really natural to control. The biggest problem I had with the Duo Gamer was the form factor of its upper section where the bumper buttons are located. For the FPS titles, the bumper acts as a trigger and, due to the shape of the controller’s corner, is slightly annoying to depress – especially when cranking out rounds with your character’s pistol. Hopefully Duo will update the design at some point but the issue should not deter you from purchasing now – you get used to it.
Overall, I would definitely recommend the Duo Gamer controller for any iPad gamer interested in taking their Gameloft titles to a new level. The overall experience is very console-like and will hopefully show hardware and software makers that the realm of iPad gaming has only reached the tip of the iceberg. The Duo Gamer will retail for $79.99 when it is released on October 5th at various retailers such as Amazon, Best Buy, and even the Apple Store.