Archives:

11/15/2004 2:08:57 AM - Jedi: Timeline

11/15/2004 11:38:09 PM - EA Seeks Take Over of Digital Illusions

11/16/2004 8:39:46 AM - AirBuccaneers 1.5

11/16/2004 4:11:44 PM - HL2 released

11/17/2004 9:15:07 AM - Dice Interview

11/17/2004 9:26:56 AM - Majestic 12 v1.15 Released

11/19/2004 6:25:12 PM - Steam Client update released

11/19/2004 9:54:43 PM - Transformers Mod

11/25/2004 7:37:45 AM - Happy Thanksgiving

11/30/2004 12:01:26 AM - Dune: Desert Power

Submitted by: BumbleBee - 11/15/2004 2:08:57 AM

The Jedi: Timeline mod has posted a rather large update on their website. Be sure to check out the new renders on their site.

Well it’s been a while since you last heard from us. We have been hard at work on the mod, restructuring the staff, and getting ready to launch the Jedi: Timeline contest. It’s been a busy last 2 months. But hey I am here to give you a big media release, and to let you all know to come back tomorrow November 15, 2005. We here at Jedi: Timeline wanted to celebrate the release of Half-Life 2, with an all out modding contest. The contest will be for models, maps, and concept. We have plenty of big prizes for you. But full details will be released on the 15th. So don’t forget to stop by....

Submitted by: BumbleBee - 11/15/2004 11:38:09 PM

Big news on the Battlefield front. EA is set on acquiring DICE and has offered to purchase the Swedish based company. Read on.

The Board of Directors of Digital Illusions CE AB (publ) has reviewed the public offer of SEK 61 per Series A share in cash, which Electronic Arts Inc. ”EA” made public today, through one of its Swedish subsidiaries.

The Board has evaluated the conditions for the offer. The evaluation leads the Board to make the following statement.

In light of the challenges that the game industry faces, with increased development costs and the coming technological change, the Board is of the opinion that a merger between Digital Illusions and EA is industrially and strategically correct. EA can bring the technology and resources that make possible and facilitate the transition to the new game platforms.

On behalf of the Board, Nordea Corporate Finance has evaluated the public offer of SEK 61 per Series A share to Digital Illusions shareholders and has, in a report to the Board, expressed the opinion that the offered price is fair from a financial point of view.

Based on a collective assessment, the Board is of the opinion that the offer is fair and has therefore unanimously decided to recommend the shareholders of Digital Illusions to accept the offer.

[Full Story]

Submitted by: BumbleBee - 11/16/2004 8:39:46 AM

AirBuccaneers 1.5 has been released for Unreal Tournament 2004. Check it out.

Version 1.5 of the AirBuccaneers mod for Unreal Tournament 2004 was released today. This isn't a typical FPS mod, since it's about pirates on balloons and the player is allowed to select from 4 roles on the different craft : pilot, cannon loader, aimer, and musketeer. Hand to hand combat is de-emphasized in favor of strategic air battles.

Submitted by: Zor - 11/16/2004 4:11:44 PM

The hl2 saga came to an end today with valve finally giving gamers access to the most anticipated game of the year.

Here is the news from steampowered.com

Half-Life® 2 Released For Play
November 16, 2004, 12:07 am · valve
Half-Life 2 is available now for purchase and to play. Those who pre-purchased their copy via Steam may access the game by restarting Steam, then double-clicking on the Half-Life 2 icon in their Steam Games directory. To purchase your copy via Steam, get Steam now.

We hope you enjoy it!

Submitted by: BumbleBee - 11/17/2004 9:15:07 AM

The Swedish gaming site www.fz.se has posted an interview with Patrick Söderlund, owner and founder of DICE about the recent announcement with EA.

FZ: The past few years have been very successful, especially with the Battlefield 1942-franchaise. How long do you expect this game will continue to generate sales?
PS: We do expect to further develop the concept and game engine, using these to produce more titles. As of now Battlefield 2 is currently being developed and we expect to release this in March next year.

FZ: The gaming community and developing are undergoing some major changes. Will DICE continue to develop titles for the PC, or is developing gearing towards the next generation consoles?
PS: We've actually developed quite alot of titles for the consoles already, the Rallisport Challenge-games by Microsoft being one of them. They have however not even been close to the success of Battlefield 1942. Alot of focus will be put into the developing of games for Sonys and Microsofts coming consoles. This does not mean we will stop producing titles fot the PC, after all that's where we have our most faithful clientele. [Full Story]

Submitted by: BumbleBee - 11/17/2004 9:26:56 AM

The Majestic 12 team has released v1.15 of their mod. Hear what they had to say.

The grand final deadline of the Make Something Unreal Contest has just passed yesterday so it's time to release an update for Majestic 12. Thanks to school and some other things there were several things that didn't make it, but we can present you two new maps and an update of another.

Zer0.be has made MJ-DecayedTemple and worked on MJ-SilverDawn with the_Witch|K|ing. Ssswing` updated MJ-HiddenSorrow so there's less bugs and a higher framerate.
Besides that the CoFF Soldier skin and some of the weapon skins got an update and we've also added some static meshes.

This post also gives us a chance to welcome Synaptic and Nerd_Brazil to the team. Synaptic will be coding and Nerd_Brazil will help out on animation and modelling.

FPS Download - Majestic 12 v1.15 Patch - 37.63 MB

Submitted by: Zor - 11/19/2004 6:25:12 PM

Steampowered.com have just announced that a new steam client update has been released that resolves some half-life2 validation and crash issues. Here is an extract from thier website

A small number of Half-Life 2 customers have been experiencing problems while playing the game, and we have traced these issues to corrupt Steam cache files. We've released a Steam update to help resolve these issues. If you have been experiencing problems such as crashing during gameplay or startup of Half-Life 2, please restart Steam and then click on one of the links below. Steam will then automatically verify your cache files. The verification process will take roughly five minutes to complete.

To validate Half-Life 2 click here

To validate Counter-Strike: Source click here

To validate Half-Life: Source click here

We're also investigating a solution for the sound skipping problems a small number of users are running into. We'll have a solution for this as soon as possible.

Submitted by: BumbleBee - 11/19/2004 9:54:43 PM

The Transformers Battlefield 1942 modification has posted an update for their fans today. Be sure to head on over to their website to view the Screenshots they've posted.

Hello Transformers fans! Today we have a few vehicles to show you. First I'd like to say that we are still looking for experienced skinners. We have added three excellent skinners to the team. Franchise, Razer, and Liger-Zero are highly skilled skinners; however, we have more than enough work for them. We are also looking for a skilled mapper. Anyone interested in joining our team can contact us using our contact form.

On to the screenshots. The first two images are of the ATV (Autobot Transport Vehicle) and the DTV (Decepticon Transport Vehicle) which will come in handy for Transformers who don't transform into something that drives or flies. This vehicle was modeled and exported by Elektroscience.

The next two images are of Starscreams jet mode. This was also modeled and Exported by Elektroscience.

Submitted by: BumbleBee - 11/25/2004 7:37:45 AM

From Mod Recruiting Services to all of those who celebrate it, have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Submitted by: BumbleBee - 11/30/2004 12:01:26 AM

The Dune: Desert Power mod is showing off a bunch of screenshots on their website. Check it out.

We havent given the community an update for a few months, but we have been hard at work with Dune: Desert Power. We now have 4 tanks running in game: The Atreides Sonic Tank, which fires a pulse that goes through walls, The Harkonnen Devastator, which is lumbering giant, the Siege Tank, an all around battle tank, and the Missile Tank with a semi automatic missile launching pod. The Carryall now has chainguns and rockets. The quad has a stow-able turret array. The Sandbike gained new wheels, canopy, and 360 degree chain cannon. New plasteel structures have been designed, as well as a Harkonnen saber.

We have been working on this mod for over a year, and it is finally coming together. The open beta playtest will be scheduled soon. Any new fans interested in testing should join the forums at http://desertpower.net and register with their email address. Thanks to the fans who have followed us this far.