For most of us in the South Eastern part of the United States, March has indeed come rolling in like a lamb, which according to old wives tales and the Farmer’s Almanac means that it will be going out like a lion. So, if instead of wanting to go outside and enjoy the crisp air and the wonderful sunshine while you can -you would rather sit at your computer and play a few demos and get the latest patches, or just lay about in your favorite chair, who am I to scold you for it?

This week we received the following demos: Journeys of the Dragon Rider, Penumbra: Black Plague (updated), Light of Dreams, Strategic Command 2: Blitzkrieg and a few others you can check out here.

Patches for the week included: Conquer Online, UT3, Frontlines: Fuels of War, Fantasy Wars, Enemy Territories: Quake Wars and a few more that can be found here.

Happy Gaming!

The horror-adventure title Penumbra: Black Plague from Paradox Interactive and Frictional Games is currently shipping to stores in North America, so when you wake up tomorrow morning it should be on shelves. If it isn’t, your local retailer is either setting the bar for its employees too low, or the UPS/FED-EX guy has some explaining to do.

This is the second installment in the Penumbra series and this latest addition to the survival horror series invites gamers to continue Philip’s quest from the cliffhanger finale of the previous episode.

Key Features in Penumbra: Black Plague include:

• Cutting-edge game engine featuring modern 3D and physics technologies: Adapted motion blur effects and a new unified lighting system with real-time lightning create great depth with a realistic atmosphere of psychological horror.
• Compelling and detailed story:Find the answers to questions of the mystery of Philip’s lost father throughout the game, with new explanations and a complete storyline wrap up.
• Highly interactive environments:Interact with any object not nailed to the ground! Focus on, pick up and move around objects through a simple drag and drop interface.
• Environmental sounds system: The sounds of the different environments are contributing to the atmosphere and give the player scaring hints of dangers.
• Puzzle solving challenges: Horror adventure game in puzzle-like style with bonuses and incentives to challenge the player throughout the game.

The standard PC version of Penumbra: Black Plague may be hitting stores as we speak, but those who are interested in the HaptX Edition will unfortunately have to wait until April 16th – this version of the game can be played with the Novint Falcon controller.

For more information on Penumbra: Black Plague check out our previous posts where you will also be able to download a demo of the game.

Via: Press Release

Saturdays are usually slow around here, and everywhere else for that matter. Saturday afternoons especially. Whether you are recovering after a late Friday night full of binge drinking which you ended by mooning passing cars on the freeway while your friend – sans drivers license – was driving or are just really bored and tired of looking at Lolcats hour after hour, then stop reading this run-on sentence of mine and download a patch for your game or a demo or two.

This week, demos were scarce again. I don’t know if the gaming companies are getting stingy or just really don’t have anything to give us – whatever the case is, it would be nice to see some more trickling in. Patches were in abundance again though, and I have listed the most popular ones below.

Demos that hit this week include:

• Dangerous High School Girls: Mac and PC gamers will travel to 1920s Brigiton, USA were this fantastical little town is the home of wily young girls, steadfast boys, and small-minded adults. Here you will gather your gang in the days of Mae West, Clara Bow, and Marlene Dietrich.
• Penumbra Black Plague:Paradox Interactive has released a demo which includes the four first levels of the game.
• Theatre of War: This demo is built with all of the relevant “Uber” (v1.10.0.81) patch features in play including the new advanced Line of Sight system, radically improved performance across the board as well as enhanced AI behavior.

Patches that hit this week include:

• Spaceforce Captains - English edition will add a new feature in the round-based strategy game and provide game improvements! The update will enable the game’s multiplayer mode so that you can start to fight for the stars together with your friends!
• Combat Mission Shock Force – For Battlefront and Gamersgate, this all inclusive patch introduces a brand new and advanced high fidelity spotting and line of sight system to the game in addition to a multitude of other gameplay enhancements and changes.
• Gothic 3 -Spellbound Software has issued a patch updating Gothic 3 to v1.6. – huge patch release notes are available when you click the link.
• Warcraft 3: Reign of Chaos – Blizzard has released new patch updating Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos to v1.21b. It includes the same fixes as before (adds 2 new maps, tweaks to older maps and the usual exploit, bug and crash fixes) but also removes the cd-check. Patch also available in the following languages: French, German, Italian, and Korean.

Check back next week for more, and for the full list of demos and patches, go here and here.

Paradox Interactive announced today that their horror adventure title, Penumbra Black Plague, has gone gold. The title is shipping to stores in the US on February 15 and will be in most stores in Europe on February 15. Simultaneously, the publisher has released two more videos, ‘Atmosphere’ and ‘Flow’, demonstrating the importance of audio and lightning to create a horrifying atmosphere as well as an insight to puzzle solving and the physical interaction needed.

The standard PC version of Penumbra: Black Plague might be hitting stores in February, but those who are interested in the HaptX Edition will unfortunately have to wait until April 16th – this version of the game can be played with the Novint Falcon controller.

Both ‘Atmosphere‘ and ‘Flow‘ require you to go through an age gate to view them, so click on the respective links to view them. You can also get more information about Penumbra Black Plague by clicking here, and view new screens here.

Via: Press Release

Penumbra Black Plague, the latest horror adventure game from Paradox Interactive will be shipping to stores, starting on February 12 in North America. In this, the final chapter in the Penumbra series, gamering will be focused around story, suspense, immersion and puzzles and instead of using violence to progress – the player has to use his/her wits to guide the main character Philip throughout the game.

In related news, Reachin Technologies and Paradox Interactive have announced an agreement to embed HaptX in Penumbra: Black Plague. HaptX and the Novint Falcon is promising to further enhance the chilling atmosphere and player interaction with everything that is visible on the screens.

“Our cooperation with developer Frictional Games started with Penumbra: Overture and we are incredibly pleased that both Paradox Interactive and Frictional Games, opted to continue using HaptX in the final chapter of the Penumbra series. This type of game is a perfect fit for our technology and gives the player the means to physically interact and experience the environment like never before. We have since pushed the boundaries of our technology further and look forward to seeing the impact on Black Plague “, said Mats Lordin, CEO of Reachin Technologies.

“We saw what an impact HaptX had on Penumbra: Overture so the decision to continue using it for Black Plague was easy. Penumbra: Black Plague is such a thrilling psychological horror adventure and adding another level of interaction and touch with HaptX promises an exciting end product, said Fredrik Wester, Executive Vice President of Paradox Interactive.

The standard PC version of Penumbra: Black Plague is scheduled for release in February and the HaptX Edition will be released on April 16th and can be played with the Novint Falcon controller.

For more screens from the game, visit our FileFront page and you can also check out the trailer that William posted last month here. The full description of the game is listed after the break.

Via: Press Release

Read the full article

The above clip is the second official trailer for Paradox Interactive’s Penumbra: Black Plague. Penumbra is a psychological horror adventure game that we have been waiting for. It seems as if psychological horror games have been flooding the market for the past few years, but this one looks original enough to remain exciting. Considering this is being released in February, I am sure we have at least one more trailer headed our way prior to release.

Scheduled to release in February 2008, this creepy adventure is set to push the boundaries of the horror game genre. Now the question is: how long can you keep your sanity?

The trailer features different horrific scenarios, giving players a peek into what they can expect when taking on the character of Philip as he is trying to solve the mystery of his dead father.

Anarchy Online turns six this year, and Funcom is adding new content to the deal. Of course, you have to pay for this content, but if you are a fan of the game and one of the millions who play – then a few bucks for a cool ride is not a big deal. Players can purchase these otherworldly machines either individually or as an entire pack, so if you cannot decide between a jet bike or a hoverboard, the pack option might be right for you, and both will be available in a variety of colors and skins. Also of note, update 17 .5 will be headed your way soon with a new quest series to Penumbra, including new team instanced playfield and encounter for high-level players. Here is a preview of the soon to be released update:

The Mysteries of Penumbra

Penumbra will be the latest area to open up its mysteries! Players will be able to embark on a series of great story quests that explore what happened to the Xan after the cataclysm.

• Uncover the untold story of Penumbra and discover the secrets hidden beneath the ice.
• Complete over forty new quests.
• Visit an exciting new team instanced playfield as both part of the quest lines and as a separate adventure.
• Earn new quest rewards including a host of new trade skills processes.

Ashes to Ashes…

…an old enemy resurfaces as the Dust Brigade threat makes itself felt on Rubi-Ka once again. Players will have to locate and enter the latest Dust Brigade camp in order to face a dangerous new opponent.

• New team instanced encounter for high level players.
• Help uncover what exactly the Dust Brigade are planning.
• Earn new rewards and items for defeating the encounter.

Gameplay Features

Of course the updates aren’t just about the new content, and there will be the usual host of new game updates and changes, here are some of the things you can expect to see in 17.5

• More new and unique drops will be added to Rubi-Ka mob types
• The VP gain for lower level battle stations will be adjusted upwards to offer better rewards.
• New items added to the OFAB vendors.

Enjoy the new screens, and we have
more for you if this is not enough.