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That certainly didn’t take long. Less than 24 hours after it was announced that Fallout 3 had gone gold, a number of torrent sites apparently started showing copies of the game for download. Of course, this is the Xbox 360 version of the game, meaning a modded console would be needed to play it; but that hasn’t deterred thousands of people from already downloading their illegal copy. Gamasutra theorizes that the leak might have come from the manufacturing plant, while commenters say it’s listed as a review copy and could have come from elsewhere.

It’s not unusual for full games to show up online before their release date, but that was still pretty darn quick. There’s a greater issue at hand here than the loss of sales for the publisher though: thousands of people out there are playing this awesome game right now, while the rest of us law-abiding gamers have to wait almost three weeks to get our hands on it. Where’s the justice?

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Bethesda announced today that Fallout 3, has gone gold for all formats and will be arriving on store shelves and online October 28 in North America, October 30 in Europe and Australia, and just in time for trick or treat on October 31 in the UK.

At lot of attention has been given to the DLC for the game, what with only the PC and Xbox 360 versions expected to get downloadable goodies in the future, and in the long run that may deter people from purchasing the PS3 version. However, considering the the fact that Fallout 3 is going to be hundreds of hours long, that may be enough to pacify some gamers.

Additionally, Bethesda has revealed the PC specs for their highly anticipated post-apocalyptic RPG. The required specs are pretty standard and even the recommended specs aren’t all that onerous because dual core is pretty much ubiquitous these days; therefore, anyone who wants the game for the PC should have no issues installing and running it. Plus, Pete Hines himself states that the dev team’s goal was for the game to run at 30 frames a second, which means that even your local library’s PC will be able to hang with the rest.

Minimum System Requirements:

• Windows XP/Vista
• 1GB System RAM (XP)/ 2GB System RAM (Vista)
• 2.4 Ghz Intel Pentium 4 or equivalent processor
• Direct X 9.0c compliant video card with 256MB RAM (NVIDIA 6800 or better/ATI X850 or better)

Recommended System Requirements:

• Intel Core 2 Duo processor
• 2 GB System RAM
• Direct X 9.0c compliant video card with 512MB RAM (NVIDIA 8800 series, ATI 3800 series)
• Supported Video Card Chipsets:
  • NVIDIA GeForce 200 and 9800 to 6800 series
  • ATI HD 4800 series to 2400 series
  • ATI X1900 series to 300 series
  • ATI X850 series

Today is GameTap Thursday, like most Thursdays here at Gaming Today, and just look what the folks over there have in store for you:

• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory: Yes, Sam Fisher is once again out to save the world in this third installment in the stealth-action series. Against the background of rising tensions in the East, protagonist Sam Fisher (Michael Ironside) is once again called into action, utilizing brand new stealth mechanics and close-quarter combat techniques to diffuse the situation before it’s too late. And with major graphical and lighting improvements, Splinter Cell looks better than ever.

• Ocean Express: This puzzle game from Strategy First has you working on the docks so to speak. There’s ships to load and money to be made! But filling those big barges is more complicated than it sounds, and only the most efficient shippers can possibly hope to earn a profit. You’ll start with just one barge and grow your shipping empire, one crate at a time.

Added to the ever growing roster of free games this week is none other than the illustrious Lara Croft in Tomb Raider: Anniversary which will be free-to-play for an entire week. Should you not be interested in this game or if you already own it, take heart because they have 143 other free games to play which is enough to keep even the most hardcore gamer busy for more days than one would care to mention.

The full list of free games can be seen after the jump or you can head on over to GameTap yourself and see what hoops you have to jump through to become a gold member. Personally I recommend doing a few summersaults and maybe a back-flip with a full twist. Okay, I am kidding, all you have to do is register and you will be guided through the process from there. If you are strapped for cash and just want the freebies, you still have to register.

Read the full article

NCsoft has promoted Tim Cain to Design Director for the unannounced MMO under development at Carbine Studios.

Cain has 25 years of experience in the games industry. He’s probably best known for his work as a producer and designer of Fallout and Fallout 2 before leaving Interplay to become a co-founder of Troika. The industry vet has several classic PC RPGs his credit including Arcanum, Temple of Elemental Evil and Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines which is still patched regularly by its fan base. Cain has been with Carbine Studios since its inception in 2005.

The games Cain has had a hand in creating are some of my all time favorites. His taking the reins as director of design for Carbine’s MMO is a definite attention getter. I look forward to the big reveal.

Games for Windows has hardly been the de facto PC branding it once upon a time hoped to be, but Microsoft is still making strides towards achieving that goal. The GFW initiative turns two this month, cuing Microsoft to announce that Grand Theft Auto IV — releasing on PC in November as a GFW-branded game — will bring with it “a revitalized Games for Windows Live experience” including an out-of-game client and marketplace — two features that will be much-welcomed and spur more than a few questions asking, “Why wasn’t this included in the first place?”

Over the paste few years, Steam and Steam Community have managed to gobble up much of the marketplace, becoming for many the standard, go-to service for buying games and maintaining a friends list. Microsoft’s going to have its work cut out for it going up against Steam and now Stardock’s Impulse. Of course, GFW does have the benefit of being plugged into Xbox Live, Achievements and, don’t forget, it’s now free. In addition to GTA IV, several other big name games will fall under the GFW umbrella, including Fallout 3, Dawn of War II, and Quantum of Solace.

What do you think? Will the new promised features of an actual GFW Live client and marketplace be enough to bring you back or has the service truly become irrelevant to the PC gaming space?

Bethesda has assured Fallout 3 fans that the game has been approved for release in Australia. A neutered version of Fallout 3 will be shipping worldwide.

Australia’s highest video game rating is MA15+, so the idea of players shooting up virtual morphine didn’t sit well with its ratings board. Bethesda simply removed the problem from all versions of the game to head off any other regional protests.

According to GamePolitics, we should have seen this one coming.

Fallout 3 has been cleared for sale in the U.K. with no content edits required…

Curiously, a “consumer advice” note posted with the rating decision does not mention the drug use which got Fallout 3 banned in Australia earlier this year. The only reference to content is “Contains very strong bloody violence and gore.”

Gaming Today posted an article on videogame regulation in individual nations eventually forcing global censorship. Oh how I wish we hadn’t seen this ill omen fulfilled so soon. This could be a very disturbing trend in the making.

One of the integral parts of the Fallout series that has claimed so many fans’ total devotion was the storyline. When Bethesda took on the challenge of making a fitting sequel to the these games, they faced a monumental challenge to live up to the expectations of the Fallout community. The company has been slammed over changing the game’s perspective from the established formula. The one thing that could possibly save them from being torn apart by super mutant fans is a solid story firmly grounded in the Fallout tradition.

Writing the story for Fallout 3 required options that allow gamers to choose their own way rather than locking them into a good or evil moral ground. Fallout is all about shades of gray and moral ambiguity. When looking for the best person for the job, Bethesda looked to the writer responsible for Oblivion’s compelling Dark Brotherhood quest line, Emil Pagliarulo.

Pagliarulo reveals in great detail the process of creating the story for the darkly satiric post-apocalyptic world of Fallout in an interview with Gamasutra. Fallout fans won’t want to miss this one.

October is already looking to be one bang-up month for gaming, what with a number of triple-A titles like Dead Space and Fallout 3 finally getting release. And now you can add Far Cry 2 to their ranks, as Ubisoft has confirmed their upcoming shooter will now be released on October 23rd. This is way earlier than expected, seeing as most early reports indicated a November or December release. In addition to that welcome bit of news, Ubisoft also revealed details of the Collector’s Edition for the game. The limited edition will include the game itself, as well as:

• Exclusive wooden box
• Limited Edition Far Cry 2 T-shirt
• “The Art of Far Cry 2″ artbook
• Map that shows the 50 km² world of Far Cry 2
• Making Of DVD

With all these high-profile games coming out in the next few months, I’m already wondering if this year will actually top last year’s surge of great games.

Via PCGH

We’ve seen quite a bit from Epic about Gears of War 2’s new weapons, levels, story, and such, but we haven’t seen all that much in the way of really different enemies. Now that’s changed with this new batch of screenshots that show off a few of the new baddies that you’ll be chainsawing your way through in November. They include the guy above with a wicked-looking mace, some bulldog-like creatures, and one guy sporting a flamethrower and a bucket for a head. Right now though, I just hope I’ve finished with Fallout 3 by the time this game hits release.

You can check out the rest of the screenshots here.

Fallout 3 is still over a month away from release (must…contain…excitement…) but that isn’t stopping Bethesda from already thinking about some DLC for the game. So how could you possibly add extras to a game of Oblivion-sized proportions? By pretty much expanding the game much like they did with Oblivion. Bethesda VP, Pete Hines, explains:

The type is really–we want stuff that’s going to be several hours. Not just like a one-off thing, but something like where you can download it and play it for X number of hours. It’ll be similar to what we did with Knights of the Nine in Oblivion, where it’s like whole new quest lines, new stuff, that kind of thing.

We want to do stuff like that, where it’s adding hours of tangible stuff to the experience. And it plugs into your existing game, so whether you’re starting a new game, or you’re playing for 40 hours, you can go off and play this.

No word yet on when they might release this new content, but one thing’s for sure: we’re going to be hearing about Fallout 3 long after it hits store shelves.

Via ShackNews

Good Old Games or GOG.com is rewarding its fan community for its support by offering keys to the Early Access Beta to anyone who wants one. Everyone who has signed up at the GOG.com website should look for a key in your email over the next week. The beta version of the site works just like the final version, offering players a chance to purchase DRM-free PC classics from this new games-on-demand platform.

“We want to reward everyone who showed us support, and thus decided to give everyone access to the beta site. Of course this meant we had to add all sorts of finishing touches to the site and test the new payment system, which caused a small delay. We used that extra time well and now we can provide players with the best GOG.com experience possible… until, you know, we make it even better,” said Adam Oldakowski, Managing Director of GOG.com.

“We have prepared about 30 acclaimed titles from Interplay and Codemasters at this stage, but we’ll add more every week. Aside from buying games, all users will be able to join the community, add comments, write reviews and download additional materials for the games they bought. It’s a beta that works just like the final site will,” said Oldakowski.

GOG.com is offering a buy one, get one free incentive during the Early Access Beta. Anyone who purchases a game will get a bonus code to trade for any Interplay game in the GOG.com catalog like Fallout, Fallout 2 and Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel. If you want to get in early on this deal, you have until the end of the closed press beta September 7th to visit the www.gog.com and get registered.

Retailers are getting competitive to earn your pre-order for videogames this Fall. Walmart is offering a Pip-Boy T-shirt with any pre-order of Fallout 3 including the collector’s edition. Yes that is in addition to the Bobblehead, lunch box and all the other goodies that come with the Fallout 3 Collector’s Edition.

As in most special offers, supplies are limited and the offer is only good until the last T-shirt is gone. It sounds like a winner to me. As much as I’d like to get Amazon’s Fallout 3: Survival Edition, I really can’t justify the $130 price tag, even for a Pip-Boy 3000 digital clock. Thanks to Bethesda Blog for the heads up.

PSP’s are an effective tool for marketing beer, at least in Australia. According to I believe in ADV, Fosters was looking for a way to market their lesser known Stella Artois. What they got was a custom designed PSP sporting a Stella Artois theme right down to the software.

Foster’s was expecting a brochure, or a folder with loose-leaf pages. They gave them 50 customised Sony PlayStation PSPs instead. The PSPs were delivered in hand-stitched black velvet drawstring bags. The machines were rebranded with a Stella Artois logo on the reverse of the case, and they also modified the operating systems and icon sets to reflect the brand. Then they installed the Stella Artois films and artwork, plus short presentations on the history of the brand. And because PSPs are wi-fi capable, Foster’s can load up new material quicker than new pages can be printed for a loose-leaf folder.

Fosters has found that every rep that got one of these PSPs has consistently met their sales targets. The PSP works so well as a sales platform, Fosters is ready to commission more.

Personally I find it hilarious that a country that kicked up such a fuss about Fallout 3 having drug use in it has no problem with PSPs advertising beer. The only question I have is where can I get one.

The results for the Best of Games Convention 2008 are in. The list of winners should look familiar to anyone who paid attention to the winners of this year’s Game Critics Awards for E3.

Awards were given in nine categories with EA and Sony featuring prominently in the winners circle. Spore took Best PC game while EA Mythic walked away with Best Online Game for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. Little Big Planet scored Best PS3 game while Mirror’s Edge took Best Xbox 360 title. Skate It rolled over competition for the Best new Wii title.

A full list of the Best of GC 2008 follows the break.
Read the full article

October 28th; almost two months from now. Mark your calendars, because that’s the day countless lives will be lost to the near endless exploration of the Wasteland to hunt mutants, visit old ruins, and fend off Raiders. That’s when Fallout 3 is coming to store shelves, and probably when hundreds, if not thousands, of gamers will sequester themselves in front of their computers or TVs to play what’s sure to be one excellent game.

“We are very excited to let gamers get their hands on Fallout 3, the latest chapter in this beloved and highly acclaimed franchise,” said Vlatko Andonov, president of Bethesda Softworks. “To meet the huge demand for this title by our fans worldwide, we are planning one of the biggest launches of any game released this year.”

Something tells me he’s not nearly as excited as the numerous fans who have been waiting for a new Fallout game for the last decade. I really need to start clearing my schedule for that day.

Via Press Release

Tomb Raider: Underworld is shaping up to be a very interesting game, which I for one am pretty excited about, and I have not been interested in a Tomb Raider title since the highly lamentable The Angel of Darkness. I have heard that Tomb Raider: Legend was palatable, but with the new turn that Crystal Dynamics is taking with Lara and her adventures, Underworld looks much more tantalizing than any Tomb Raider game released in years.

In the trailer, while searching for Thor’s Hammer in Thailand, the viewer is privy to some of the cool water dynamics, and lush environments that Cyrstal Dynamics have been working so hard on. Also of special note, are Lara’s enemies, which as always, come out in droves to impede her progress. With the prerequisite spiders and the huge leviathan she must subdue should she wish to continue her adventure, Lara must also solve mutli-stage puzzles, and use her unlimited knowledge of acrobatics to reach some of the most precarious heights imaginable.

Newly introduced to the series is the ability to kill multiple enemies with a dual-target system, a brand new shiny motorbike, ans state of the art gear with a new sonar map system. All of which should give long time fans and newcomers to the series a reason to have faith in gaming’s darling once again.

Coming to the PC, PS2, PS3, DS, Wii, and Xbox 360 on November 18, Tomb Raider: Underworld may just be the adventure game of the Fall, providing you are not a Fallout fan. Start crossing your fingers now.

New screens for the game can be found here.

What do you get when you combine a special event from Bethesda with a few people who don’t mind ignoring their NDAs? A whole lot of unofficial screenshots for Fallout 3. Recently, Bethesda held a press event in Taiwan where people were able to get some hands-on time with the beginning of the game. And some of those people took pictures; a lot of pictures. There are 145 different screenshots available at the link below, which show almost everything from the dialogue to the combat to the title screen. Naturally, I should warn you that the screenshots are full of spoilers, particularly since it walks you through the first portion of the game. Still, if you don’t mind that, you can get a very close look at the gameplay from them.

Via UnderOne [via No Mutants Allowed]

Good news, Fable fans. An official release date for the upcoming Fable 2 has finally been revealed, and that date is (dun dun dun dunnnn) October 21st. Hmm, I doubt I’ll be totally done with Fallout 3 by that point — since it releases two weeks earlier — but that probably won’t stop me from picking this one up as well. In addition to the release date, there are now official details on what to expect in the Collector’s Edition of the game:

• Bonus DVD – Includes new ‘Making-of Feature’ with Peter Molyneux and the team at Lionhead Studios and concept art viewer

• Bonus In-Game Content (Requires LIVE account) – Includes “The Hall of the Dead” Dungeon, “The Wreckager” Legendary Cutlass Weapon and Otherworldly Bonus

• Collectible Hobbe figure with accessories – From the Qee Collection comes this one-of-a-kind Hobbe figure. Nasty, brutish, and short, he roams the countryside, preying on travelers and spiriting away the children of the unwary.

• 48-hour Xbox LIVE Gold Trial Card – With Xbox LIVE Gold, players can show off their individual hero by inviting friends into their unique version of Albion or they can visit their friends’ Albion, and earn additional gold, experience and renown to take back into their own.

• Five printed Fate Cards – These five beautiful cards foretell the Hero’s great destiny to journey across all of Albion, encountering deadly enemies and enigmatic allies. The path leads to a choice that will change the world forever.

Don’t know if all that’s really worth the extra few bucks the Collector’s Edition will cost, but Fable 2 is still on my ever-growing list of games that will keep me broke during the rest of the year.

Via GamerScore Blog

All the votes are tallied for the Game Critics Awards: Best of E3 2008. Fallout 3 took two wins out of the three nominations it received including Best of Show. LittleBigPlanet was the only other game to win two categories and took Best Console Game. Here’s the official Game Critics Awards Winner’s Circle for 2008:

Best of Show
Fallout 3
(Bethesda Softworks for PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)

Best Original Game
Mirror’s Edge
(DICE/Electronic Arts for PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 36)

Best Console Game
LittleBigPlanet
(Media Molecule/Sony Computer Entertainment for PlayStation 3)

Best PC Game
Spore
(Maxis/EA)

Best Handheld Game
Resistance: Retribution
(Bend Studio/Sony Computer Entertainment for PSP)

Best Hardware/Peripheral
Rock Band 2 Ion “Drum Rocker” Set
(ION Audio/MTV Games for Xbox 360)

Best Action Game
Gears of War 2
(Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios for Xbox 360)

Best Action/Adventure Game
Dead Space
(EA Redwood Shores/EA for PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)

Best Role Playing Game
Fallout 3
(Bethesda Softworks for PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)

Best Racing Game
Pure
(Black Rock/Disney Interactive Studios for PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)

Best Sports Game
Madden NFL 09
(Tiburon/EA for All Systems)

Best Fighting Game
Street Fighter IV
(Capcom for Arcade)

Best Strategy Game
Tom Clancy’s EndWar
(Ubisoft Shanghai/Ubisoft for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)

Best Social/Casual/Puzzle
LittleBigPlanet
(Media Molecule/Sony Computer Entertainment for PlayStation 3)

Best Online Multiplayer
Left 4 Dead
(Valve/EAP for PC, Xbox 360)

Interestingly enough only one of the winning games, Madden NFL 09 will make it to the Nintendo Wii or the DS. Far be it from me to suggest that it could have anything to do with Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata’s declaration that E3 is no longer the appropriate venue for core games.

The Vault Wikia is a vast repository of knowledge for all things Fallout. You can find information on Fallout, Fallout 2 and Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel as well as the latest on Fallout 3.

According to the Bethesda Blog, the wiki has recently topped 3,350 articles on the Fallout series and counting. Gamers wanting a crash course on the Fallout timeline, the Vaults or the Brotherhood of Steel can find all the information they need to prep for the release of Fallout 3.

I am an avid Fallout fan. Not as dedicated as the Non Mutants Allowed fan base but I was pretty confident of my store of Fallout trivia. I’m humbled and pleased to learn what I’ve missed. I’ll have lots to keep me occupied while I await the October 7 release of Fallout 3.