Left 4 Dead Opening Cinema

From Valve (the creators of Counter-Strike, Half-Life and more) comes Left 4 Dead, a co-op action horror game for the PC and Xbox 360 that casts up to four players in an epic struggle for survival against swarming zombie hordes and terrifying mutant monsters.

Set in the immediate aftermath of the zombie apocalypse, L4D's survival co-op mode lets you blast a path through the infected in four unique “movies,” guiding your survivors across the rooftops of an abandoned metropolis, through rural ghost towns and pitch-black forests in your quest to escape a devastated Ground Zero crawling with infected enemies. Each "movie" is comprised of five large maps, and can be played by one to four human players, with an emphasis on team-based strategy and objectives.

New technology dubbed "the AI Director" is used to generate a unique gameplay experience every time you play. The Director tailors the frequency and ferocity of the zombie attacks to your performance, putting you in the middle of a fast-paced, but not overwhelming, Hollywood horror movie.

Left 4 Dead will be released worldwide on PC and Xbox 360 this November.

Bioshock Sabotage

Did you download the demo to play Bioshock on your PC? You have a rootkit on your computer.

Did you buy the game and play Bioshock on your PC? You have a rootkit on your computer.

In a profound display of corporate stupidity, Sony (owns SecureROM) has reverted to their old DRM tricks. This is all in an effort to make sure that you can only install Bioshock on 2 computers (okay maybe 5 if the patch works as released).

The limit on being able to install Bioshock on two computers is a means the publisher is using to try to keep a lid on alleged piracy. The problem being that if you uninstall Bioshock from a computer, it doesn't free up a license to move to a third computer. This means that upgrades, rebuilds, or moving the game are problematic at best.

So nobody is going to find this stuff? Nobody is supposed to be able to repackage the game if they wanted to crack it anyway? Who are they trying to kid (besides the board of directors and stockholders)?

This limit was the original grief much blogged (twitchguru.com) this week. So two really big black eyes on Sony, SecureROM, and by extension Microsoft for a PC game release that arbitrarily inhibits user rights to move the game license and also installs a rootkit of unknown resources on your computer.

Sadly, this reflects badly on a game that is a superlative effort by the developers who really ought to be rewarded instead of punished by the techies for the release going so badly.

This link has instructions (long and techy) to remove the rootkit from your computer. So what's a rootkit? A rootkit is a set of software tools intended to conceal running processes, files or system data from the operating system. (wikipedia.org) A rootkit can easily be used for nefarious purposes, and use of a rootkit is suspect at best.

So if you've been waiting for Bioshock, you may be best advised to get the XBox version unless you'll only ever install it on one or two PCs, and you don't mind somebody's spyware on your hard drive.

If I bought the game, I'm a customer, not a culprit. I resent being treated as such. At this point, I'm glad I didn't splurge just yet. Good luck.

Wrath of the Lich King: Playable in Germany

If you're a World of Warcraft fan and just happen to be in Germany, a playable version of "Wrath of the Lich King," will be at the Leipzig Games Convention August 23-26th. The "Wrath of the Lich King," is the eagerly awaited second expansion pack. Here is what you can expect:

• Death Knight Hero Class: Create a high-level Death Knight character - the game’s first hero class - once certain challenges have been met.
• Increased Level Cap: Advance to level 80 and gain potent new talents and abilities along the way.
• Northrend: Explore the harsh new continent of Northrend, packed with new zones, quests, dungeons, monsters, and items - and do battle with the undead armies of the Lich King.
• “Inscription” Profession: Learn this exciting new profession and gain unique ways to permanently enhance spells and abilities in the game.
• Siege Weapons and Destructible Buildings: Take the battle to another level with new player-vs.-player game mechanics and new battlefields to wage war on.
• New Character Customization: Change how characters look and express themselves, with different hairstyles and dance animations.

Thanks to G4TV for this info.

Game time blues

I've recently rebuilt a PC/Windows system, and this weekend I wanted to just kick back old style and kill some Nazis or aliens or something. Time to burn it in with something challenging. I usually am more into simulations than first person shooters, but variety is a spice and all of that, you know? I'm an old Sim City nerd, playing Railroad Tycoon, Civilization, and the like. I get bored with grinding in WoW, Eve, or Vanguard. I've canceled those accounts.

So I loaded up Battlefield 1942. I really suck at first person shooters, but then I'm also playing with a trackball. That's my excuse and I'm sticking with it. But I'd suck anyway with a mouse or even a USB device implanted in my brain.

I had issues with Windows locking me up, with my antivirus (Norton) trying to declare terrorist alerts, my video drivers were outdated (on a new mainboard with built in nvidia 6-series graphics), and my DSL connection dropped my multiplayer attempts. I also recently played a few minutes of Resident Evil 4 at a friend's house on the Wii system. It got me thinking, that perhaps it's time to plunge into the console game wars. As long as it wasn't a Microsoft system, easy peasey. Right? Not that I hate Microsoft but... I don't trust the operating system, and I really don't like to give more money to the 800lb gorilla in the industry. I think they have enough of that.

Anyway, back to... Bah! Humbug! I was reading up on different games already released and in the pipe. Along with Resident Evil 4, Call of Duty 4 looked great, and I've skipped Call of Duty 3, which looks great on Wii. Interesting. BioShock has some interesting twists, and the list could go on.

The problem being all of the exclusive development going on. I want to buy one box and play all of my games on it. I don't want to spend for a game console three times. Sorry, Charlie. So, which game console should I pick?

I made a spreadsheet (oh, how nerdy!) with the games I'm interested in, and noted which ones were available on PS2, PS3, Xbox, Wii or PC.

Dammit! The only box that will play all of the games on my list is the freakin' Microsoft Xbox. Most of them won't even port a PC version. Have I decided to buy one yet? Nope. Will Call of Duty 4 melt my Xbox? Probably. Maybe I'll build a cabinet for it that doubles as an ice machine or something.

Do I go with Sony? Well they've made such remarkable business decisions with the PS3 and pricing and exclusive titles that... I think I'll pass on that and see if they lower the price a little more. A couple of times.

Do I go with a Wii? I'm not sold on the controller. It's fun for awhile, but I'm not convinced that I'll have a hankering to hook it up regularly. Madden 08 might be fun though.

Humbug....

Gears of War PC - Games for Windows Live only

This just in for those that don't have an Xbox 360. Gears of War for the PC is going to be online also, but it will only be Games for Windows Live only. This may irk some people that are used to having a freedom of choice in PC online gaming, whether it be Gamespy or the like. But Games for Windows Live is free, and you can pay $50 a year for the Gold. With the Gold you also get achievements, multiplayer matchmaking, Trueskill matchmaking, in addition to cross platform play.

No official word on when this comes out, but so far it seems the new Games for Windows Live games are going pretty well. If you listened to me earlier, you should have taken advantage of Halo 2 for Vista and Shadowrun for only $40. Each one comes with a 30 day trial for Gold.

This is an excellent game, I have it for 360 and I throughly enjoy it.

Link to the article here.

Learn more about Games for Windows Live here.

Ass Kicker Keyboard

So you're a PC gamer and you're ready to take it to the next level?

This new gaming keyboard with the kick ass name of 'Warbird' by Cyber Snipa will get it done for you. It's totally programmable with 10 assignable macro keys, 5 on each side. It also comes with 17 swappable combat keys that allow you to assign movement, weapons, ect.

Hit the jump for more information. [Gizmodo]

Civilization Revolution

Oh are we in trouble now. Not only has Sid Meier given us 4 different versions of Crack on PC i.e. Civilization, now he's putting it on the consoles. I don't know about you guys, but I had to refuse to buy Civ 4 because it's kind of like Dottie in Armaggedon. A life sucking bitch from which there is no escape. Sid is already calling this the game he always wanted to create. Loose translation, we're f'ing doomed.

Here's the preview video

Bioshock Ready To Reinvent The First Person Shooter

The new game Bioshock is set to turn the world of first person shooter on its ear. This could be one of the most revolutionary games in a long time.

Check the demo out. [G4TV]

Gears To The PC?

As you know E3 is next week, and the rumor mill is churning out some good stuff. If you're a fan of Gears of War but only own a PC, get ready to dance in the

Rumor has it that Epic will announce at E3 a PC version of Gears of War. No word if it will have the ability to cross platforms to play against Xbox 360 owners or if it will have extra content in the game.

Stay tuned and we'll bring you the news. [Kotaku]

And the bargains keep coming

To all of those that were thinking about trying Shadowrun for the PC. Go to Circuit City (stores only, not available online) and pick up a copy along with Halo 2 for Vista for the low, low price of $39.99. Yes...2 quality games for 20 bucks apiece. I've paid 20 bucks for crappy games so this is a sweet deal

Sony Announces 'The Agency' MMO

Sony has anounced a new title for PS3 and PC called The Agency, an espionage and mercenary-centered MMO, sounds like just the thing to enliven the MMO world.

The game, according to Sony, is "a fast-paced online action shooter filled with espionage, intrigue and betrayal," where players "assume the role of elite agents in a modern-day world. Both solo players and groups will enjoy a wide variety of cooperative and competitive story-driven missions set in exotic locales across the globe."

The game features a slew of differences from "traditional" MMOs, including a lack of a class system, the opportunity to build your own "Agency" and "operative" NPCs to ai on missions.

This looks like it could be a winner.

Stranglehold trailer is out.

In this GT exclusive, we “get an up close look at the amazing Stranglehold and see what the excitement is all about.” This game is set for release on the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC platforms on August 6th, 2007

Click here for the trailer.

Video game gets 'Lost'

You knew that this was inevitable. TV execs Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, speaking on their weekly Lost podcast, confirmed that there will be a 'Lost' video game for the PS3, PC and Xbox 360.

No word on the details of the the game, ABC is keeping tight lipped about the whole thing. I have to wonder if they're not sure what the game will be about. Kinda like the series. I'm still trying to figure this series out. They seem to be adding more questions than answering the ones that were out there in the first place.

I get the feeling that this game is going to suck.

A new 'Crysis'

The new game 'Crysis' is fast approaching its release date. This game may be the most ground breaking in PC games in a long time. The graphics engine is totally new, and pushes the envelope on any graphics card that is not up to speed.

Check out the look of this new game and how advanced it is after the jump.