"Are you sick of UK newspapers and (my fellow) politicians beating up on gaming? So am I. The truth is, UK gamers need their own pressure group. I want to help you start one up. I don't know how it should work yet but please register your interest if you agree that gamers need their voice hear in the corridors of power. And if you have any ideas, please post them to the wall."
- Kol Tregaskes
"Microsoft confirms that Twitter, Facebook and Last.FM functionality turned off for those under 18"
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
I guess that none of the services really have proper parental controls... or MS have not yet provided access to the parental controls on the xbox for those apps.
- Travis Koger
"Several weeks have passed since our response and we started thinking that Apple has ruled in favor of our explanations. Unfortunately to our great surprise today we have learned that StoneLoops! had been removed from the AppStore. It was also quite a shock to learn that the final decision was actually made by MumboJumbo as apparently Apple asked them if our response was satisfactory. Of course MumboJumbo replied that they still want StoneLoops! removed. After all if you were to decide whether your direct competition will be allowed to sell products or not, would you allow them? Talk about unfair competition – Luxor is selling, StoneLoops! is not. I wonder what happens when Zuma launches in the AppStore. Will PopCap request to remove Luxor with similar claims? Such case would be identical."
- Glenn Slaven
from Bookmarklet
They are just as difficult as they were, but the graphics are much better!
- Michael Fidler
FPS-TPS ones are getting "piece of cake". Because producers are more intended to attact gamers with fancy graphics (that need more powerful graphics cards) but RPG's are getting harder, gloomy and needs more user intelligence to deal with AI
- Acharad Sami VanJoulee
Games are definitely getting harder, and it's absolutely NOTHING to do with my increasing age and diminishing dexterity.
- Slippy "Threadsbane" Lane
The general census is that they are getting easier. What do you say to that?
- Kol Tregaskes
I think, for the most part, video games reached a peak in their difficulty a few years back, and have started to get a little easier again than they once were. The systems, though, (with the exception of the Wii) are getting more complex and difficult for us old fogeys to understand.
- Curtiss Grymala
In my case, they were already so hard 10 years ago that I gave up playing, and stuck with Tetris and other puzzle games. Really didn't want to spend hours and hours just to reach the final screen.
- Jordi Soler
Games only appear to be getting harder because as we get older, there's always something else competing for our valuable leisure time, so we have fewer hours free for gaming. (Oh, and for me, it's also got a lot to with increasing age and diminishing dexterity...)
- Andrew Terry
Okay after thinking this over some more, I need to modify my answer. Games have become more difficult and I attribute most of this to the advances in AI. Enemies were once very predictable, but now they often do the unexpected and can even coordinate their attacks. I love this because this, because their varied responses add to the re-playability of the game. What has definitely become...
more...
- Michael Fidler
For lunchtimes at work I would like to play my Steam games I have at home. These have been downloaded via my home account but I also have a separate work account for work. I know I can copy the content but I don't really want the home account content to be shared with my work account content. What happens if I copy the games from home to my work machine?
- Kol Tregaskes
the files themselves are of no consequence.. it's the account you are connected to steam that determines if you can run it or not.. so, if you have a license for TF2 on both your work account and personal, you'll be able to play the copy on either machine.. but if you only have a license for it on your home account, you won't be able to play it when logged in as your work account, even if the software is on that machine.
- alphaxion
alpha, OK but you'll see the games listed under My Games when signed into both accounts?
- Kol Tregaskes
nope, you'll only see the games you have purchased a license for. The start menu in windows is a different matter tho.
- alphaxion
Good. And if I simply copy the data in the steamapps folder will that be enough? I don't want to screw up the work account which is already set up.
- Kol Tregaskes
that or just log in as your home accound and redownload the games. They are 2 seperate accounts and so that info should never mingle.
- alphaxion
"Unknown Horizons is a FREE and open-source, real-time 2D strategy game for Windows and Linux. The game emphasis on economy and city building: Expand your small settlement to a strong and wealthy colony, collect taxes and supply your inhabitants with valuable goods. Increase your power with a well balanced economy and with strategic trade and diplomacy. Unknown Horizons is loosely oriented on Sunflowers Anno series however not a clone of these comercial games nor an engine to play the original content."
- Mike Chelen
from Bookmarklet
Marcos: horizons is still simpler than lincity, although a diplomacy feature is planned
- Mike Chelen
you could always play a city builder game of OpenTTD where you have to build the transport infrastructure and supply the needed materials to get your town to grow
- alphaxion
Fwd: This is why console gamers can go SAF: you're ruining real PC games. Before you console juggalos came along, we never had to 'unlock' new areas or earn 'achievements'. Now PC games are bottlenecked by your console's weak hardware specs and game control is dumbed down to suit your limited, knobby, little controllers. (via http://friendfeed.com/akiva...)
"Well, are they? It’s a topic which has been discussed a lot during the first half of 2009 and depending on who you ask and when you’ll get a series of different answers – and I’ve definitely been guilty of trying to persuade others one way or the other, which is due to more than just my argumentative nature. It’s a complex issue." EDIT: Listen from 39mins on their podcast about this: http://www.bit-tech.net/blog...
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
The PC gaming market has changed. It is a great place for indie game development, casual games, and for titles of certain other genres. Consoles allow for much easier development (if you can get permission to work with the dev hardware) and provide superior copy protection. PC gaming will never die as long as there's a kid out there with an idea for the best game ever, because options for making it on a console are limited if you're not a professional.
- invariant - farewell FF
I wish I could answer this but I've not played anything on the PC for 6 years or more and not been following games in general for a similar time. I did get Sims 3 but only recently. Give me 6 months and I'll give you answer. ;-)
- Kol Tregaskes
all my gaming for 5+ years has been pc-based, and there have still been many ongoing changes
- sentientgames
Just laugh :D If pc gaming dies, how can intel,amd and nvidia and related technology companies keep the sales fit -and so increased ?- Meanwhile nearly all of entertainment dev. companies are funded by nVidia and intel rather than sales shares.
- Acharad Sami VanJoulee
"Insomniac Games is "probably" going to turn its back on its long-standing commitment to 60FPS gameplay for its Ratchet & Clank franchise. According to the developer, there is no marketing premium, or review score value, in supporting the highest-possible refresh rate common to all HDTVs. "We want to give you guys, our fans and players, the best looking games you can buy on a console," says engine director Mike Acton, and 60FPS actually gets in the way of that."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
"People didn't really respond all that well to the unveiling of the new Mass Effect character Subject Zero. A troubled lady with attitude and tats, she looked like the kind of person you'd rather have blasted out into space through an air lock than get stuck in a lift with - a particularly poignant worry given the original Mass Effect's excessive elevator-based predilections."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
Mass Effect (the first one) is about £6.50 on Steam this weekend.
- Kol Tregaskes
"Speaking at an EA Winter Games Showcase earlier this week and EA spokesperson said that the company strongly believed that multiplayer games were the most exciting place to be developing and that singleplayer experiences may well be on the way out."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
Well that's kinda crummy as I've only got time for single player experiences.
- ronin
My son and I have been going back to play "A Link to the Past." Single player is still fun.
- Jeremy
I put away singleplayer games years ago. Not that I play often, but when I do its with and against live people (well, I think its live people, but since its the interwebs I can't be too sure).
- jcunwired
"National Assembly of Hugo Chavez-led country signs off on bill that would see purveyors of "war" games and toys face up to five years in prison."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
"Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has acknowledged that tackling game piracy is an "endless battle", but has pledged to continue taking it seriously for the benefit of both its customers and other software companies."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
"With its fine fusion of stylised visuals, accomplished shooting gameplay, superb co-op elements and MMO-style character building, Borderlands should deliver developer Gearbox plenty of success. Gifted with an impressive 8/10 review score on Eurogamer, it's clearly a highly desirable game, but out of the three SKUs available, which is the most worthy of your investment?"
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
oh and if i get the opportunity, i may be picking this up this weekend too (PS3)
- Carlos Ayala
This game totally gives you headshot relief...and thankfully there's very little difference between the PS3 and 360 graphics on Borderlands. :) Pooh pooh, Carlos...no gaming with me for you!
- Alex Scoble
Very little difference on the low-res videos between the Xbox 360 and the PS3, though PS3 does win it. The PC vids didn't play for me but I'm sure it would have wiped the floor clear with both of the consoles.
- Kol Tregaskes
Yeah, that's what they say in the article...that a modern PC will play it a lot better without the slowdowns you get on both 360 and PS3.
- Alex Scoble
I would have watched the HD videos if I had time. I'll try and remember for tomorrow.
- Kol Tregaskes
Not that it matters to me...I can't play PC games on my 55" screen. :) And no, there wasn't enough of a difference either way for them to say that PS3 or 360 was the clear winner.
- Alex Scoble
"A social space? A cartographically accurate proxy for the real world? Some VR terra incognito to be carved up by entrepreneurs and homesteaders? A white elephant?"
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
A visual Facebook or just another Second Life?
- Ciaoenrico
"EA and Valve release the much-anticipated sequel to one of last year’s best FPS efforts…"
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
I am not big on FPS games but a number of people I work with play L4D religiously! I might pick up the sequel just so I can join in on some of the zombie killing mayhem! That would however require pulling myself away from World of Warcraft for long enough to play another game which I am still not convinced is humanly possible.
- Nicholas Kreidberg
"Owners of bricked systems file suit on behalf of everyone who downloaded system update 3.0 or 3.01; demand unspecified damages."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
"Senior Xbox cheerleader Larry Hryb has warned gamers buying second-hand 360s that they run the risk of not being able to connect to Xbox Live. It's all down to the fact that Microsoft has been "actively banning consoles from Xbox Live that have been modified to play pirated games"."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
..."And coincidentally, that's bad news for people who fancy buying a cheap Xbox 360 off eBay or wherever. "This would also be a good time to remind you that the warranty on an Xbox 360 console is not transferrable and if you purchase a used console that has been previously banned, you will not be able to connect to Xbox Live," Hryb added. You could argue that's a bit convenient, what...
more...
- Kol Tregaskes
Beware of banned consoles and buy with testing them on garage sales. We're tresting almost everything in turkey for avoiding frauds.
- Acharad Sami VanJoulee
"It's nothing if not strange to be reviewing the same thing for the second time in a fortnight, but then Rockstar has sent us down strange roads before. The Ballad of Gay Tony is the same now as it was last week, but the fact that it is also available on a disc it shares with The Lost and Damned, and which doesn't require the original Grand Theft Auto IV to play, asks different questions of a review."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
"Cut through all the fan service, ignore the not-bad script being performed with something approaching enthusiasm from the original cast, and the Ghostbusters game is as ephemeral as the glowing spectres that Venkman and friends spend their time chasing and zapping. That was true of the version released on the 360 and PS3, and it's even truer of this Wii-flavoured spin on the same source material, which strips the already slender gameplay to the bone for no good reason."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
I don't know about the Wii version but I really liked the Xbox 360 demo.
- Kol Tregaskes
"Speaking to Variety, veteran designer Warren Spector has indicated that he'd like to make more games in the style of his classic Deus Ex. He even had a spiritual successor to it in development before he started work on Epic Mickey."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet
"First look at big-screen adaptation of fantasy series shows massive special effects shots, sumptuous sets; Ubisoft declines to comment on speculation new game will be unveiled next spring; high-quality trailer now available."
- Kol Tregaskes
from Bookmarklet