Alice Starts to Quake

PC: The time has come, the walrus said, to talk of many things. Once in a while, there comes along an idea so mind-bendingly good that it’s hard to believe it took this long to surface. The news that Alice in Wonderland is to been bent, twisted and mutilated into the form of a first-person shooter based on the Quake 3: Arena engine certainly has to be one of them. American McGee’s Alice? Hit the headline for more.

Battle With 50,000

Online: Can you imagine playing a game with 50,000 other people? Well, Kesmai has launched its latest online game MultiPlayer BattleTech 3025 which will be able to support that many people competing simultaneously. The game is set in a 3D universe where players select BattleMechs and try to gain control of the Inner Sphere. The winner is the person who becomes house leader and dominates the war. If that many people do play the game, whoever does emerge triumphant will have recorded a great achievement. The company wants people to beta test the product, so if you want to register hit this link.

PC: Following on from Dynamix’s recent announcement of Tribes Extreme, the enhanced version of Tribes with singleplayer elements, the company has released a selection of screens from the much-anticipated game. The squad-based shooter looks to be up there with Valve's Team Fortress Classic, and can be viewed over at PC.IGN. Enjoy.

Firaxis Fires Up to Antietam!

PC: Sid Meier's Antietam!, the follow-up title to hit Civil War sim Gettysburg!, will feature new troops including Union and Confederate Zouaves, the Irish Brigade, Sharpshooters, the Louisiana Tigers and more, new terrain features and many new AI enhancements when it is released for PC this fall. The newly announced 3D war game offers numerous historical and imaginary short engagements, full battle and half day scenarios. A random scenario generator also means unlimited re-playability and four strategists can compete or cooperate in the multiplayer mode.

PC: Sierra will release a new Tribes bundle that features new multiplayer enhancements as well as a single player campaign. Although Tribes Extreme isn’t an official sequel, it will help fans of the game pass the time and polish their deathmatch skills till it arrives. "Tribes has taken the online world by storm," said Jeff Tunnell, executive director of Tribes Extreme. "Many action gamers hesitate to jump online without perfecting their skills. Tribes Extreme gives them an incredibly fun campaign to cut their teeth on - and team missions so they can form a squad and practice their match skills. We want everyone to see how fun and easy it is to be an online warrior."

Multi: Mike Wilson of GOD has issued his .plan with updates on FLY! and Darkstone. He reports that FLY! will ship on July 26th and that coders are currently finishing off the compatibility testing. Darkstone will appear in the same week and Wilson said, "This one should keep the Diablo fans out there busy. Some editors have stated that the beta build have made them forget all about Diablo 2."

New Quake 3 Test

Online: Although id’s upcoming multiplayer shooter, Quake 3: Arena, doesn’t look like it will be released until the end of this year, a new test will be released in the near future. Planet Quake has reported that id is relocating its web and ftp sites to a new server in order to host the new test. John Carmack has updated his .plan to inform hungry Quakers that the new test will include "some pretty incredible 3D texture maps, especially with effects like the rocket launcher. Be sure to check out the Quake 3 website for updates on when the test will be available.

DOWNLOAD: I-War

Online: Infogrames is currently completing the deluxe edition of Independence War, has decided to let you get in on the action. A full level of the space-based fighter has been snagged by Game Center, allowing you to sneak into a Commonwealth Navy dockyard and relieve it of a large capital spacecraft. The full retail version of the acclaimed title will include new weapons, such as a hull-mounted gatling gun and a sniper particle beam cannon, as well as extra characters. Get a taste of things to come right here.

Diablo II Fact of the Day

Diablo II adds a day/night cycle to the generally improved realism of the game. The exact time a full cycle will last is not yet determined, but probably around 2 or 3 hours. There will be somewhat different types of monsters out and about at different times of the day, and also there are some items "of the moon/sun" that will have different effects from day to night, amongst other changes.

PC: The Adrenaline Vault has posted details that will please all those fans of stomping robot shooter MechWarrior 3. Microprose is to release a Mech Commander Compilation in November, with an official MechWarrior 3 expansion pack expected the following month.

Online: Girl Power enters the net as women have burned their bytes and set up a new website for the female gaming community. WomenGamers.Com looks at the industry from a women's perspective and how it affects women.To find out more hit this link now.

PC: What do you do when the Quake 3: Arena engine simply isn't enough? You call in the Greeks. In an effort to enable the kind of gameplay that lets you blast aliens as they drag your teammates away, crew members to get irritated with you and bridge officers to switch from fixing control panels to letting loose with phaser fire, Raven, the developer behind FPS Star Trek: Voyager has developed ICARUS. Josh Weier, one of the company's programmers, has given Ga Source an explanation of the proprietary scripting code. "As we went into the project, our design goals called for a living, breathing environment, one of our main goals being to make the player feel like he or she was part of the crew of the starship Voyager. That meant interacting with the other members of the ship, as well as having those other members interacting with each other and their surroundings. They needed to walk around and go about their respective jobs just as they would on the show. Trying to achieve these sort of goals with a normal AI setup would have been next to impossible... ICARUS was born." Hit the headline for more.

Half Life's New Chronicles Unveiled

PC: RadioActive Software has begin work on Half-Life: Chronicles, a mini-series of singleplayer missions that will be available for download via the Internet by mid-July. According to RadioActive Software, the product presents players with alternate worlds drawn from the original Half-Life, as well as continuations of Half-Life itself. Hit the headline for more.

MechWarrior Live Online

Online: MicroProse has launched the official MechWarrior 3 website. The site features news, downloads, and all the information on this soon-to-be-released PC mech-blaster. Stomp over here straight away.

DOWNLOAD: Updated Drakan Demo

Online: A new build of Psygnosis' great-looking Drakan demo has been released, Drakan.net has excitedly announced. The 67.3Mb update contains less bugs and refined AI compared to the popular original version. The demo of the Surreal-developed title includes Arokh's Lightning Attack, and a secondary-attack to boot. Mirrors of the download are gradually appearing online, and you can get more information and access the demo from Drakan.net right away.

Prima Is Hiring

Do you know your games? Prima Games, the world's leading strategy guide publisher, is seeking:

• Editors
• Associate Product Managers
• Freelance Designers
• Freelance Writers

Previous experience or related coursework required (and a love of games helps). For more information, follow this link:www.primapublishing.com

Please fax resumes and cover letters to 916-632-4405, or e-mail to hr@primapub.com

Must be able to relocate to Sacramento, California, except for freelance positions.

And of course there are updates at the Diabloii.net site.

DOWNLOAD: Phantom Menace and Racer

Online: Admit it - you yearn to blast through the air at 600kph: you dream of taking on the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi and playing out the movie of the decade. Wait no longer. LucasArts has released downloadable demos of both Racer and Phantom Menace. The Phantom Menace demo weighs in at 33.8Mb and can be had here, courtesy of Game Center. In case that isn't fast enough for you, get the Racer demo here, fresh from the pages of AGN3D. Get them now.

Anyone have a cable modem . . . .

DOWNLOAD: Braveheart

Online: The demo released by Scottish developer Red Lemon for Highland RTS title Braveheart is a whopper - 103Mb is the size of the download. Set in 13th Century Scotland, you take on the role of a clan leader embroiled in the campaign to free your beloved country from the evil English oppressors. Hit this to get your sword swinging.

Guess what. More Diablo 2 screen shots. If there are any other games that you think are cool or worthwhile, drop me a note. I don't mind keeping track of games that are cool. 8-)

For even more news and insights, visit the creators themselvles, Blizzard.

Some cool pictures from the Blizzard E3 booth.

Quake III Test

Online: Id Software has released the Quake III Arena test demo. John Carmack reckons everything looks solid and that after a few more tests the demo itself will be released unless, of course, major bugs are discovered. So if you want to see it hit this link to download.

Some new screen shots for Diablo 2. The graphics and scenery are looking pretty cool.

Roger Wilco is now FREE.

Some new Diablo 2 shots/artwork that I missed. Scroll down the news section for the links.

Lara's Death Nell Tolls

Industry: The unthinkable has happened - Nell McAndrew will no longer play the world circuit as the official Lara Croft. The buxom blonde bombshell has decided that a year dressing up as half the globe's adolescent fantasy is more than enough. "I got the contract last May and promoted Tomb Raider III for the Christmas market," McAndrew told MegaStar. "It's been a brilliant experience travelling the world as Lara, but it's time to hang up my Uzi and do something different. I had a meeting with the people at Eidos, who produce the game, and we decided that I would be released from my contract and allowed to pursue other interests." No news has emerged as yet regarding the next human iteration of Ms Croft. Fans of the UK-born model won't have to wait too long for some slightly more revealing shots of their idol - Nell is to appear naked in the American PlayBoy to be released at the end of May. Cool. Provided you're old enough to buy it, that is...

Diablo II has a new avi movie. For links to the download and a fine, in depth analysis of it, visit the Diablo II website. Some cool new screen shots come with it.

Intel Drops PIII Price

Industry: According to Reuters and various online reports, Intel is to drop the price of its processors across the board; that includes Pentium III. Apparently to take place on April 11th, the cuts will span between ten and 20 percent.

Rainbow Six Sequel Revealed

Multi: Red Storm has posted details on the upcoming sequel to the massively popular Rainbow Six, titled Tom Clancy's Rogue Spear. "We hope the new features and improvements that we're implementing in the sequel make it the ultimate gaming experience for players everywhere," explained producer Carl Schnurr. The sequel is scheduled to include sixteen separate levels and eighteen missions. Some levels will be used in different time periods during the game. There will also be a mix of hostage rescue, surveillance and demolition missions. Rogue Spear will be showcased at E3 in May. Hit this for more details.

PC Gamer Exclusive: Rainbow Six Sequel Announced!

RedStorm has just announced details regarding the sequel to Rainbow Six. PC Gamer has the exclusive first look.

Redstorms press - Check it out here!

DOWNLOAD: Wanted! The Quake II Western Pack

Online: A fully playable demo of this Quake II-derived pack has been posted online. It's 66.5 Mb to download (but will increase to 125 Mb when installed) and is set in the American Wild West. There are single-player and a DeathMatch modes, plus all Quake II weapons, pick-ups, textures and sounds. You can access the demo, which of course requires a 3D card and the original version of Quake II to function, over at www.wantedq2.com right away.

If you're interested in some Diablo 2 desktop backgrounds, hit this link.

DOWNLOAD: MechWarrior III

Online: MicroProse's 3D mech-sim is scheduled for a June 2nd PC release for, and aims to improve upon its predecessors in terms of visuals and gameplay. To satisfy eager fans of the MechWarrior series, its creator has posted a 37 Mb downloadable taster which is available right now. There are instructions about how to get the game up and running on the download page, which is accessible via this link.

Forgot to post that the Diabloii site posted a new screen shot. If you want to check it out, hit the link.

Mig Alley: PC.IGN.COM: “Hit the skies of Korea in Empire's upcoming sim.”

DOWNLOAD: X-Wing Alliance

Online: The demo of this LucasArts title casts you as the pilot of a Corellian transport craft, similar to the Millenium Falcon. You'll need to "jump into the laser turrets and destroy attacking enemy ships," and "hyperspace between sectors while trying to avoid Imperial entanglements." Native support for 3D hardware, dynamic music with iMUSE, 3D sound, rudder control and force feedback support are all included, and the 27.8Mb demo is downloadable here now.

BattleCom BETA Updated: We have just released BattleCom Client Version 1.2 Beta 3. What are you waiting for? Drop by the Beta Downloads page and pick up the new version!

This release contains fixes for issues with Beta 2 as well as extending the expiry date of the 1.2 Beta to April 7, 1999. Make sure to check out the included whatsnew files to see what's been changed.

- The ShadowFactor Team

MechWarrior III Preview:
PC.IGN.COM New shots of MicroProse’s upcoming battle sim.

Unreal Pack Details
PC: GT Interactive's Unreal Web site has posted full details of the upcoming Unreal mission pack, Return to Na Pali. You'll find information regarding weapons, maps, levels, story, and enemies. Hit the link above to return to Na Pali.

Civilization: CTP Gold
PC: A gold master of the highly anticipated Civilization II sequel, Civilization: Call To Power, has been sent out for manufacturing and is expected to be in full distribution by April 5th.