Got coding skills? Like the movie WarGames? Like the idea of your “binary baby” killing virtual billions? More importantly, do you like cash?

If you said “You bet.”, then heads up.

Introversion Software has teamed up with the organizers of CIG 2009 to establish a competition aimed to create “the world’s deadliest bot.” The contest, slated for September, is part of an ongoing yearly event that draws in programming talent from abroad in an attempt to create bots from videogames that are “realistic enough into fooling an expert panel of judges that they are actually human players.”

Not surprisingly, the game chosen as the playground for this year’s contest is none other than Introversion’s own nuclear holocaust simulator DEFCON (thumbs up here). And thanks to the concerted efforts of Computer Science geeks over at Imperial College, London, potential contestants now have a practical DEFCON API to prepare with.

Basically, the rules (here) are that programmers will pit their individual DEFCON A.I. against one another in a series (30 actually) of one-on-one matches among each of the possible starting territory configurations. The player with the highest cumulative score wins. Additionally, the grand prize winner’s human creator takes home $500, courtesy of IEEE. At this point, I’m still trying to figure out if you actually have to be physically present to participate.

Anyway, if you are interested in putting your coding skills to the test, you can start by reading here. An important thing to note is that the DEFCON API will also work with the DEFCON demo, which can be freely downloaded here. Again, deadlines and rules for the contest can be found via the IEEE’s CIG website. The press release found after the break contains all sorts of info, links, and contact information.

For those of you chortling “the only winning move is not to play,” I say what’s the worse that could happen? Well, I suppose Barry Corbin could break the bad news to you in person by knocking on your door then announcing his “conclusion that your new defense system sucks.”

Ok, I’ll stop…

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The specter of a world with no physical games available at retail is one that is raised often, especially by executives of traditional brick & mortar stores. In an article at Reuters, author John Gaudiosi raises the question yet again. He makes an effort to simply present the facts about the growing role digital distribution plays in how we purchase games today, and the facts are there. However, I believe that entire premise of the article is flawed.

Digital distribution really offers gamers only two highly positive benefits: First, it’s easy. You can purchase a game without ever leaving your house. Heck, you don’t even have to leave your chair. Second, it’s extraordinarily simple to keep games purchased over a platform like Steam updated. Since the Steam client must be running to launch the game, you simply download the update before you start the game. What could be easier?

The Reuters piece even quotes that great bastion of gaming knowledge, Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Michael Pachter (seriously, who died and made this guy king? Am I the only one who thinks he talks out his ass most of the time?), who says, “Downloads will become 20 percent of the market within five years, and probably peak at around 50 percent of the overall market in 10 years.”

I’m sorry, but this is not only purest speculation, it’s not even good speculation. Why? Hit the jump, and we’ll examine it.

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In wake of recent announcement that Valve would be releasing Left 4 Dead 2 this November, a small part of its community has responded with reception that would otherwise seem warm only to a zombie’s touch. The Left 4 Dead 2 Boycott Steam Community Group is not only upset with the recent announcement of a L4D sequel, but they feel that, no thanks to Valve, they have literally been Left 4 Dead. The group is not only a representation of L4D fans willing to boycott the full-blown sequel come November, but it also serves as a movement to educate the masses and point out repercussions a timely sequel will have on the present day L4D community.

Glancing at their Steam Community page, the group’s leaders have even gone to the trouble of establishing a manifesto outlining major points in their global argument that having a L4D sequel right now is a bad idea. Major points in the manifesto that stick out are that the group are foremost believers in Valve’s dedication to improving its past and current products, that until L4D2 hits shelves judgment can not be made, and that L4D2 will essentially split the community. I’ve copied and pasted the entire manifesto at the tail of this article.

The Left 4 Dead 2 boycott movement is, as of today, 20,000+ and growing strong. They have sent their manifesto to Valve. They have established a moderated public forum from which anyone can voice their opinions (assuming you behave). While this particular editor (and fellow zombie annihilator) will not be joining their ranks, I do find their sincerity and professionalism quite refreshing. They are off to a good start and I wish them luck.

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I’ll likely get hung for this post but I’m going to vent a bit anyway. Today during the Microsoft Press Conference at E3 2009 there was a reveal trailer for the next Left4Dead installment. Normally I’d be ecstatic about such an announcement, and initially I was – when I watched the trailer along with the Crackdown 2 teaser – but once the high faded a bit I realized how not OK I am with this whole sequel concept.

Left4Dead is less than a year old. It shipped with a very slight amount of content, only got added value with the later Survivor patch and is only now getting mod support from the community and rather than expand it and give us a more reasonably sized game.. we’re being fed a sequel.

More Zombie killing is a goal I subscribe to religiously. I love Left4Dead, I played the heck out of it for months until the 4 basic scenarios wore dry and even the injection of new content with the recent patch didn’t work to vary or sate that apathy much. The original gang isn’t done, I want more adventures, more maps and scenarios and frankly more value from that initial purchase – just as Valve promised.

The trailer and accompanying press release also worry me because the features they tout for the upcoming continuation don’t seem earthshaking or innovative, or like additions that don’t belong in a patch for the original game. What I’m referring to is the addition of more melee-centric weapons and combat, and an upgraded AI Director. Then there is this statement:

“Featuring new Survivors, boss zombies, weapons, and items, Left 4 Dead 2 offers a much larger game than the original with more co-operative campaigns, more Versus campaigns, and maps for Survival mode available at launch.”

Who is responsible for L4D not having a great selection of content, modes or characters?

Well the same people who are now expecting us to shill out full price yet again to support their hype machine. I’m an ardent supporter of Valve over the years but this move really bugs me. We’re still waiting on Half-Life 2 Episode 3 to wrap that story up – 4 years later – and yet they can crank out another money grab in the form of an L4D sequel. Valve doesn’t patch or fix problems with the 360 version of the Orange Box, yet they can produce an entirely new L4D product? Something smells here and while the “freeness” of the Survivor patch is a great move in an industry increasingly based on selling you parts of their completed game after release as a continued revenue stream, I am afraid with the current information in hand I may have to change my position on Valve and its formerly consumer friendly posture.

The new title is scheduled to ship on November 17th for Xbox 360 and PC, just in time for the Christmas rush, and features an apparent Southern US setting and characters including “Inbred Tank” and a multi-ethnic survivor team. I’m sorry but I think I’m going to take a pass here.. until I see something that shows a sequel was needed to the game, and this is not just more than a simple tech upgrade with new maps and re-skinned characters. You can view the full details of the press release after the jump.
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The Resident Evil 5 original soundtrack is in stores today ready to give gamers music to shoot zombies by. The OST features the chilling work of composers Kota Suzuki, Hideki Okugawa, Akihiko Narita and Seiko Kobuchi who bring ‘panic horror’ in the steaming jungles of Africa to life.

Of course the OST has already been pirated of is up on the Internet for download, but if you enjoy the series and the music that makes RE5 that much scarier, please purchase it legitimately. You can get a copy in retail stores, from iTunes, or as a complete digital release or individual tracks from the  Sumthing Else Music Works Distribution site. It’s $9.99 for a 3 CD set with almost 3 hours of music.
More details follow the break.
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The largest update to Team Fortress 2 ever has been released!

In celebration, Valve are making it a free-to-play weekend (starting now) for TF2 as well as making the full game 50% off ( = $10 USD) at the Steam Store during the period.

To recap, here are the upgrades the Sniper and Spy class are getting:

Sniper

Yep, it is that time again. Today is the sixth day of previews for the upcoming Sniper/Spy dual update to Team Fortress 2.

This time it looks like our Incognito Amigo is getting a new hand-cannon conveniently dubbed ‘The Ambassador’. Looking more like a piece of art than a weapon, this baby packs some serious wallop. Got a dispute with an enemy sniper or soldier? Call in ‘The Ambassador’. Your new “field cannon without wheels” will have those red/blue team babies waving a white flag after the smoke has cleared.

Or in Valve’s own words:

“There are two sorts of men in this world: the sort with blood pouring out of a hole in their heads, and the sort holding the Ambassador. It has the ammo count of a revolver and the pinpoint accuracy of a sniper rifle, even at long range. (But remember, a gun that packs this much heat needs to cool off between shots, so make every shot count.)

With its rosewood grip and likeness of your enemy’s mother (please send photo) engraved on the barrel, the Ambassador is eight motherloving pounds of steel your enemies won’t want to negotiate with.”

For some reason, after reading that, I want to yell out Jules’ (Samuel L. Jackson) sermon from Pulp Fiction.

Expect updates for the Sniper and Spy to roll out this Thursday via Steam.

Time to channel Billy Mays here…

Hi! It’s Friday, and we’ve got another great product for you! Not only is Friday great because it’s the end of the work week, it’s also weekend deal time on Steam.

That’s right, for a limited time only, you can be treated to the latest Call of Duty title from Treyarch, World at War, for 50% off. Now, since I know that some of our readers struggle with math, that’s just $24.99. $24.99!

But wait, there’s more!

If you order within the next 2 days, we’ll throw in the recently released Map Pack 1 absolutely free! We’ll even waive processing and handling fees! So stop playing older Call of Duty games, and get your copy of World at War today! Here’s how to order!

Head over to Steam and grab your copy today!

Tripwire entertainment is psyched as Killing Floor prepares for launch as Steam’s top seller. The co-operative survival horror game challenges players to hunt down experiments gone bad in the mean streets of London. You can recruit up to five of your buddies to stand with you or go solo offline. Gameplay features include a Persistent perk system and “ZEDtime ” slomo so you can appreciate a spectacularly chunky death, even in multiplayer.

Killing Floor is still 25% off as a pre-order discount for a few more hours before it goes live May 14th on Steam. More details on game features follow the break courtesy of FileFront.

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A mega update for Relic’s RTS Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War II has gone live. This brings the game version up to 1.3.1. The update will be applied automatically when you login to Steam.

Key changes include addition of a 2 vs. 2 mode, two new maps, new unit selection graphics, and a re-tooled skirmish AI.

An in-depth developers’ log (including screenshots) of the update can be found by following the links below:

The Road to Patch 1.3 (Part One)
The Road to Patch 1.3 (Part Two)
The Road to Patch 1.3 (Part Three)
The Road to Patch 1.3 (Part Four)
The Road to Patch 1.3 (Part Five)

If you are not interested in reading something that fancy, you can check out a brief listing after the break.

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