Author - Jerry Paxton

Demo Released for Victoria II Along with Contest

NEW YORK – February 2, 2012 – Recently released expansion for Victoria II has just received a demo. The demo for the game that focuses on the American Civil War era allows players to:

* Play from 1836 to 1860
* Play as Prussia with the chance to form Germany through warfare or diplomacy
* Play as Japan to westernize your country while fighting back reactionary forces.

The devs have cooked up something for those already playing the game as well. Join the After Action Report contest on the forums http://bit.ly/yFstfL. Winners stand to pick up a big chunk of the Paradox catalogue.

About Victoria II: A House Divided
From the development team behind Hearts of Iron and Europa Universalis, Victoria II: A House Divided introduces a new starting point in 1861 allowing players to experience the US Civil War from the start, from the era of absolute monarchies, encompassing expansion and colonization, culminating in the emergence of the US as a global superpower at the dawn of the 20th century.

Buy Victoria II: A House Divided here:
http://www.victoria2.com/game-info/buy-the-game

Borderlands 2 Gets Release Date, Pre-Order Bonuses

New York, NY, February 22, 2012  2K Games and Gearbox Software announced today that Borderlands™ 2, the sequel to the multi-million unit selling breakout hit, Borderlands™, will be available on the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Windows-based PC in North America on September 18, 2012 and internationally on September 21, 2012. Currently in development by Gearbox Software, Borderlands 2 is the sequel to the critically acclaimed four-player cooperative shooter-looter that combined intense first-person mayhem with role-playing gameplay. In addition, fans who pre-order the title from participating retailers will receive access to the Borderlands 2 Premiere Club, including rewarding in-game items and bonuses.

Living up to the mantra “bigger, better and more badass,” Borderlands 2 features all-new characters; skills; imaginative, diverse new environments with unique missions and enemies; and more exciting and fun weapons, equipment and loot than ever before. All of these features come together in a story that takes players to the world of Pandora to take down the notorious Handsome Jack and his corrupt Hyperion Corporation as a solo campaign or with up to four cooperative players.

“The addictive gameplay and shooting and looting mayhem of the first Borderlands is back and better than ever in Borderlands 2, taking the franchise to an entirely new level,” said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. “With more guns, more enemies, more missions, an engaging story and all-new characters, Borderlands 2 promises to bring a new era to gaming this fall.”

Borderlands 2 will allow friends to play together locally via split-screen, as well as online with drop-in-drop-out capabilities. With seamless cooperative gameplay and action, Borderlands 2 is extremely accessible for gamers and their friends to play alone or together in a variety of configurations.

Borderlands 2 is a passion project, through and through,” said Randy Pitchford, President of Gearbox Software. “The result is a sequel that has improved every successful aspect of Borderlands while innovating with an all-new experience.”

Gamers who pre-order Borderlands 2 from participating retailers will gain access to the Borderlands 2 Premiere Club, allowing them to download the Gearbox Gun Pack, a Golden Key and the Vault Hunter’s Relic. The Gearbox Gun Pack is a collection of unique guns to help players begin their journey on Pandora. The Golden Key is an in-game item used to unlock a rare item in the mysterious Golden Sanctuary Loot Chest found in Borderlands 2. The Vault Hunter’s Relic is an in-game item that boosts players’ gear-hunting fortune while playing solo or teaming up with friends. To pre-order Borderlands 2 please visit www.borderlands2.com/preorder.

Borderlands 2 is not yet rated by the ESRB. For more information on Borderlands 2 please visit www.borderlands2.com.

New Details About Mechwarrior Tactics

After signing up with the game’s official, yet cryptic, website we have received some new info about the upcoming Mechwarrior Tactics. This just in from Infinite Games Publishing:

It’s the year 3025. Hostile enemy lances are closing in all around you. As Commander of an elite mercenary company, it’s up to you to ensure swift victory and make your enemies pay dearly. Your Mech Bay hosts a vast array of custom Mechs, each configured for a specific combat role. Choose wisely which Mechs to take into battle: your future as the leader of your lances depends on it.

MechWarrior Tactics™ is a brand-new MechWarrior game set in the BattleTech® universe and includes everything you love about MechWarrior. MechWarrior Tactics is the latest evolution of turn-based strategy and blends tactical gameplay, deep collectability, and unique online features, and is set against visually stunning environments for the supreme MechWarrior battle experience. Players earn, collect, and purchase combat and aesthetic resources to outfit each Mech and prepare for the next online battle.

Game features:

• Collect, Customize, Command:

  • Earn Experience and new resources as you advance your level through gameplay
  • Upgrade and customize your Mechs in your Mech Bay
  • Make the most of each Mech’s unique configuration for total battlefield domination

• Customizable Mechs – seamless store integration means never having to leave the game to purchase and equip new resources for your next mission
• Asynchronous Combat: Multiple concurrent battles with players from around the world
• Competitive ranked games and global leaderboards lets the world know you’re in charge. Play for a chance to win larger, more meaningful reward payouts
• Watch and share your completed battle using a unique cinematic replay feature

MechWarrior Tactics will be available in 2012. More information about MechWarrior Tactics can be found at www.mwtactics.com.

The Secret World Gets Release Date

Durham, USA – February 21st, 2012 –Independent developer and publisher of online games, Funcom, today announced that the highly anticipated massively multiplayer online role-playing game ‘The Secret World’ will launch on June 19th, 2012. Originally slated for an April launch, Funcom has decided to invest more development time into the title in order to apply even more polish before launch.

Feedback from hands-on press events and beta testing has proven very positive, and Funcom intends to spend the additional development time focusing on polish and tweaking to maximize the potential of the game. The beta feedback so far is showing very positive reactions to core game features such as the role-playing systems, combat, missions, dungeons, story and immersion. Among the beta testers surveyed, almost 9 out of 10 say they will play the game at launch.

More than 750,000 gamers are now registered as beta testers, which is significantly higher than Funcom’s previous MMO ‘Age of Conan’ had at the same point in development. Funcom expects the number of beta registrations to grow significantly in the coming months, as the company ramps up its major PR and marketing initiatives towards launch.

“Allowing for even more time to polish the game really shows just how much faith Funcom as a company has in ‘The Secret World’ and how committed we are to making it the best it can be,” says Creative Director and Senior Producer Ragnar Tørnquist. “The additional time will also allow us to carry out even more quality beta testing, and soon we will also be announcing several public beta events where hundreds of thousands of gamers will get to test the game prior to launch.”

‘The Secret World’ is consistently mentioned as one of the most anticipated MMO’s in development. Mainstream publications such as Forbes and The Guardian have both listed‘The Secret World’ as a game to watch out for in 2012, and the game has also been singled out as one of the most anticipated games of 2012 by gaming sites such as G4TVVideoGamer, and RockPaperShotgun. Leading technology website VentureBeat highlighted ‘The Secret World’ as one of the top new game brands of 2012, and over at MMORPG.com the game was given the ‘Rising Star’ in the site’s Reader’s Choice Awards.

Following the first hands-on press event last year, ‘The Secret World’ was heralded as “one of the most distinctive MMO’s of the last 10 years” (Videogamer) and MMORPG.com went on to predict that “The Secret World is going to take the world by storm and set new standards in excellence in gameplay.” This month, Funcom is doing another extensive round of hands-on sessions with select press, showcasing all new content and mechanics. New press previews are expected to hit later this week following the hands-on events held throughout February where journalists from over 50 outlets worldwide attended.

’The Secret World’ is published by Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA).  Those looking to join the ongoing beta test can sign up via the official site atwww.thesecretworld.com.

The Witcher 2 Enhanced Edition Teaser Trailer 1

CD Projekt RED has released a brand new teaser trailer offering another look at their hotly-anticipated RPG, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings Enhanced Edition, coming soon to the Xbox 360 console and PC. The game launches April 17 worldwide for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and for PC.

Trailer

ROCCAT Asking if PC Gaming is Dead, Promising Announcement

Hamburg, February 21, 2012 – With the headline “Isn’t PC Gaming Dead?” emblazoned across the screen, German gaming peripherals manufacturer, ROCCAT Studios, today unveiled a website where they ask for fans’ opinions on the state of PC gaming.

“With all the talk lately,” the message reads, “you’d think PC gaming was over. Some say PC gaming isn’t dead, but think they need to breathe new life into it now and then with yet another ‘groundbreaking’ reinvention. But is all that necessary? Does PC gaming need a doctor? Does it need an undertaker?”

Says René Korte, ROCCAT™ Founder and CEO: “We hope to get gamers thinking about where things are headed for PC gaming. Certain gaming peripheral companies constantly announce that they’ve come up with the ‘Next Big Thing’ that’s going to reinvent things. But does PC gaming really need revolution? Or, rather, is evolution the way forward? We, as always, have our own ideas. And very soon we’re going to show the world a new and exciting one.”

Visitors are invited to give feedback via an on-screen entry form, and ROCCAT™ will post many of the answers on the site for users to read and discuss.

ROCCAT’s site also features a countdown clock ticking off the number of days until the company announces what they think “is the smartest way forward for PC gaming.”

Unreal Engine 3 Licensed for Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock

CARY, N.C. (February 21, 2012) – Epic Games announces that BBC Worldwide and Supermassive Games have licensed the award-winning Unreal Engine 3 technology to power the time-bending action game, “Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock.” Crafted by acclaimed developer Supermassive Games and based upon the BBC’s heralded franchise that has entertained audiences for nearly 50 years, “Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock” will be the first PlayStation®Vita game to utilize the cutting-edge Unreal Engine toolset, which also fuels the PlayStation®3 and PC versions of the game.

An exciting new trailer for “Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock” gives players a taste of what they’ll experience upon the game’s release next month as the Time Lord attempts to save the universe yet again. Of special note in the video are newly revealed features such as split-screen and 3D camera support.

“At Supermassive, we always try to be very pragmatic about our choice of technology and choose the right tool for the job at hand. Our aim for ‘Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock’ is to match it as closely as possible in aesthetics, tone and sound to the television series, and also to achieve a new level of quality on Sony’s outstanding platforms,” said Jonathan Amor, chief technology officer at Supermassive Games. “Critical factors in our decision to license Unreal Engine 3 include the capability and maturity of the Unreal Editor and tool chain, and we required an engine that has proven success in the marketplace.”

Robert Nashak, executive vice president for BBC Worldwide Digital Entertainment, said, “‘Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock’ is the start of a major new gaming development for the Doctor Who brand. We’re committed to working with top-tier partners such as Epic Games to ensure a world-class game for fans of the series and gamers alike. ‘Eternity Clock’ will allow players to experience the action, adventure and madness of Doctor Who for themselves on an exciting new game platform that we hope will raise the bar for future games to come.”

“We are big Doctor Who fans here at Epic,” said Mike Gamble, European territory manager, Epic Games. “It’s brilliant to see the world of Doctor Who brought to life by the team at Supermassive and especially to see Unreal Engine 3 powering the game that’s bringing this universe to a whole new platform and an entirely new generation of gamers and Doctor Who fans.”

Wargaming.net Releases World of Tanks iOS App

21st February 2012 — Wargaming.net, the award-winning publisher and developer, is glad to announce that the first mobile application is now available for their world-famous armored action MMO World of Tanks.

World of Tanks Assistant is a new application that provides instant access to the latest and most important information on World of Tanks. The Assistant gives access to detailed data on players’ combat statistics and their positions in the Global Rating, displays current progress, shows players’ in-game balance, provides the latest news from the official World of Tanks website, and allows to share triumphs with friends via email and social networks.

The app is designed for iOS devices and is available free of charge at the iTunes App Store. The Android version of World of Tanks Assistant will be hitting the Android Market shortly.

“What I like about the Assistant most is its convenience”, says Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi. “Even if you’re away from your computer, there’s always an app at hand that will give you everything you need to know at any given time.”

Download World of Tanks Assistant free of charge at:

World of Tanks is the first and only team-based, massively multiplayer online action game dedicated to armored warfare. Throw yourself into the epic tank battles of World War II with other steel cowboys all over the world. Your arsenal includes more than 150 armored vehicles from America, Germany, the Soviet Union, and France, carefully detailed with historical accuracy.

A flexible system of authentic vehicle upgrades and development allows you to try any of the vehicles and weapons in the game. Whether you prefer to exhaust your foes with fast and maneuverable light tanks, make deep breaches in enemy lines with all-purpose medium tanks, use the force of giant tanks to eliminate opposing armored forces, or become a heavy sniper with long-range howitzers, each unit type has its own advantages and can be extremely effective when operated by a true tank ace.

But being a great tank commander alone isn’t enough to win! In World of Tanks, it’s all about teamwork. Victory is achieved by combining your combat skills with those of the other members of your team, each playing their own role on the battlefield. Just add your favorite strategy to build your own steel empire and manifest the indisputable authority of the tank power!

Join World of Tanks:

World of Tanks Assistant Screenshots