CS: Source supposedly will be released for free for all Half Life 2 owners. I understand they are also making an updated version of DoD, but I could be wrong.
I'd have to agree partially with what you said about both the maps and the really good players. I myself enjoy playing on servers that don't play the default maps. As for other players, during the time frame you described, I was noticing a big problem with cheaters. I stopped playing CS for over a year and finally started playing again not more than a month ago.
I've been playing CS since beta 2 in 1999. I've heard bitching after every single update.
I believe one of the reasons CS has such a huge following is because of the low system requirements. CS will run fine on a computer where Unreal Tournament (yes, the original) crawls.
I have plenty of stuff to complain about with CS, other updates I've loved. You just have to get used to changes with a game that is updated continually.
On the serious side, why couldn't a public company monitor security threats? Google has been adding all kinds of things, gmail, etc etc. Since they crawl so many websites, why wouldn't they be able to issue security alerts? There has got to be a way for them to make money off of it.
Thats something alot of people forget when they blast every single new MMORPG. Ultima Online took a long time for all the bugs to get fixed. I first played UO years after its launch. I participated in the Neocron beta test after getting free CDs for it at GenCon. For a beta, I didn't think Neocron had a whole lot of problems. (By the way, Neocron was the cyberpunk MMORPG with naked strippers.)
I'm really looking forward to World of Warcraft. I haven't heard too many bad things about WoW beta so I'm crossing my fingers and hoping it'll be good -- I'm going to be there at launch. (I'd be there now if I got into the beta.)
This may appear to be a negative, but the realism is probably responsible for Grand Prix Legends longevity. With out a doubt, GPL is considered by a large portion of hardcore racing sim fans to be one of the best, if not the best, racing sim out there despite its age.
I don't really consider myself to be a "hardcore" racing sim fan, but I bought the full game less than a year ago. Its an absolute blast to play. You can download new graphics packs to update to high-resolution textures. Sure, it might not have the latest shaders or lighting effects -- perhaps we will see more updates now that the source code has be purchased.
If you haven't played GPL, get a steering wheel and pedals, or a friend with one, and give it a shot. There is nothing more exciting than sliding around a corner at 100 miles an hour..
True, but relative to other excellent wargames out there Combat Mission has damn good graphics. Another good example in Medieval: Total War. Compared to Max Payne 2, Medieval's graphics suck. Compare it all the other wargames out there with bland graphics, it sucks.
I believe the problem is not super-realistic graphics detracting from the gameplay but rather the resources which are diverted toward the graphics seriously diminish the gameplay and replayability of the game.
Additionally, when going only for realism the artistic merit of the graphics wanes. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that a games sole purpose is to be art -- its to be a game thats fun and enjoyable to play, at least as far as I care. Its the art which visually separates one game from another. Take a look at World of Warcraft. The graphics are very stylized and it is recognizable "Warcraft" and not Warhammer. I hope that improved hardware capability will allow artists to push their vision of the world they are creating rather than be required to make a photographic replica of the latest and hottest movie.
(For the record I've mirrored this post on my website here.
Its great to hear this. There are tons of companies which have the cash to get this liscence, and most of them would f it up. It turned out just as I predicted.
"Even if the game is a success we all know they are looking at 4+ years of development which would translate into just another money drain for them -- not what they need right now. An up-front liscence fee from a big company like EA could be the cash injection the company needs. I'm just suprised their whole company hasn't been gobbled up yet."
Sorry I like to brag;)
One way to describe this is to imagine cars as software. Instead of stealing a BMW, think of the thief "duplicating" it. Ok, so there will be alot of people who decided not to shell over $50k for a new beemer -- they could have, but the got it for free instead. Now add in all the people who can't afford $50k for the new BMW, but got one because it was free. The way the BSA (MPAA and RIAA are doing the same) is making these calculations is by saying everyone who is driving a BMW they didn't pay for is $50k in lost revenue. Then factor in the third-world were people may be lucky to make $1000 a year -- they aren't going to pay $20 for software much less $500.
Yes, software companies *are* loosing money to "piracy." Many are indirect losers. Lets go back to the BMW thing again. Who would buy a Ford if they could have a free BMW instead? Same with software companies, people aren't buying Paint Shop Pro because they got Photoshop for free. However, the BSA, MPAA, RIAA, and others are destroying their credibility by giving out ridiculously exagerated numbers. Remember the people who told you pot was as bad as herion?
CS seems to have a pretty fanatical following here in the US too. I actually started playing it in 1999. The popularity of an otherwise obscure mod really took off. A couple of years ago I spotted the game on a picture in National Geographic. I haven't played CounterStrike in nearly a year so I'm really looking forward to the new HL2 version.
I believe the decision to simply upgrade the graphics is actually a very smart one. The gameplay in CounterStrike is incredibly addictive and a few changes in the wrong direction could through it off. We've been playing some sports for close to a hundred years with relatively minor changes (new gear thanks to technology but its still the same game), why not do the same with computer games?
The purpose of being based outside of the US is not to avoid US laws but not to be under their jurisdiction. Major US corporations do this to avoid taxes. Sometimes they lean to far on the edge of the grey area and get in trouble.
This is one of the reasons the internet has a bad reputation, or at least used to. People don't want to buy something off the internet because they are afraid their credit card will get stolen. (honestly, I can't blame them anymore with all the spyware shit.)
On the other hand, you have people who are happy to use their credit card to purchase things from spam. As they say, common sense isn't all that common.
Second Life is more like a webhost, where as a MMORPG is like going to the carnival. The pricing structure for Second Life is totally different, you pay by the amount of space you have to build on.
The law could easily play on both sides here. EULA says you can't sell on eBay, you did, now you get fined for braking the EULA. Or the law could toss out the EULA and say you do own the stuff. Quite frankly I don't think this is an issue worth using the court system or tax paying money on. We all know how the internet works. There is always a loophole. Let these for profit game businesses run the game how they like. If they screw it up -- people leave. They can choose to ban people who sell on ebay, or just ignore it. They can go after emulated servers, or they can leave them.
The system is certainly far from perfect. I remember the first days and months UO was released. All the bugs scared me away until several years later. Lineage currently has a huge problem with harvesting from what I understand. It looks like a great MMORPG, but I'll be staying away from that too for a while.
MMORPG are around to make money. If someone spends 40 hours a week playing Everquest, they've got issues. I don't believe that the law should either hinder or allow selling virtual items.
When I run a business I make damn sure that I'm not signing away my rights to a partner or to another company. Webhost wants to own the copyright to my work? Sorry. Maybe they pull some B.S. like certain companys have in switching the EULA without giving me proper notification. If it happens to negatively affect my businesses in a way which I find is worth the legal fees -- then I can sue them. If you want to sue Sony because they deleted you level 50 whatever, then so be it. Maybe you'll win, maybe you'll loose, but your pocket is going to feel quite a bit emptier.
And as I said before, we know there are loopholes -- especially with the internet. Gambling sites banned in the U.S., then they flourish on some tropical island along with their owner. Too much of a pain to host a MMORPG in the U.S., then they are going to move to another country.
If they turned Civ4 into a RTS... I don't even know what to say. It might be a good RTS, but none of civs core fanbase would want to play it. Imagine Doom3 as a turn-based startegy game. Thats about the best way to describe it.
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I have played Farcry. I did point out that CounterStrike Source brings CounterStrike up-to-date graphically with other current games, Farcry included.
Did they push HL2 back to add more features? Perhaps. As long as they get it released, I don't care. I'm still waiting for Duke Nukem Forever.
CS: Source supposedly will be released for free for all Half Life 2 owners. I understand they are also making an updated version of DoD, but I could be wrong.
I'd have to agree partially with what you said about both the maps and the really good players. I myself enjoy playing on servers that don't play the default maps. As for other players, during the time frame you described, I was noticing a big problem with cheaters. I stopped playing CS for over a year and finally started playing again not more than a month ago.
So should EVE players be able to sue pirates who extort them out of money in order to pass unharmed?
I've been playing CS since beta 2 in 1999. I've heard bitching after every single update.
I believe one of the reasons CS has such a huge following is because of the low system requirements. CS will run fine on a computer where Unreal Tournament (yes, the original) crawls.
I have plenty of stuff to complain about with CS, other updates I've loved. You just have to get used to changes with a game that is updated continually.
Why do people buy a Ferrari when they can buy a Honda Civic, and put some money into it to make it faster than a Ferrari?
Computers and cars both share quite a few similarities. Cars and computers both depreciate rapidly and cost a lot of money when something breaks.
My brother has been playing little fighter for years. Usually the control scheme involves about 3 people on one keyboard.
How about Philip Morris changing its name to Altria, and then running "cigs are bad" ads using the name Philip Morris?
On the serious side, why couldn't a public company monitor security threats? Google has been adding all kinds of things, gmail, etc etc. Since they crawl so many websites, why wouldn't they be able to issue security alerts? There has got to be a way for them to make money off of it.
Thats something alot of people forget when they blast every single new MMORPG. Ultima Online took a long time for all the bugs to get fixed. I first played UO years after its launch. I participated in the Neocron beta test after getting free CDs for it at GenCon. For a beta, I didn't think Neocron had a whole lot of problems. (By the way, Neocron was the cyberpunk MMORPG with naked strippers.)
I'm really looking forward to World of Warcraft. I haven't heard too many bad things about WoW beta so I'm crossing my fingers and hoping it'll be good -- I'm going to be there at launch. (I'd be there now if I got into the beta.)
This may appear to be a negative, but the realism is probably responsible for Grand Prix Legends longevity. With out a doubt, GPL is considered by a large portion of hardcore racing sim fans to be one of the best, if not the best, racing sim out there despite its age.
I don't really consider myself to be a "hardcore" racing sim fan, but I bought the full game less than a year ago. Its an absolute blast to play. You can download new graphics packs to update to high-resolution textures. Sure, it might not have the latest shaders or lighting effects -- perhaps we will see more updates now that the source code has be purchased.
If you haven't played GPL, get a steering wheel and pedals, or a friend with one, and give it a shot. There is nothing more exciting than sliding around a corner at 100 miles an hour..
True, but relative to other excellent wargames out there Combat Mission has damn good graphics. Another good example in Medieval: Total War. Compared to Max Payne 2, Medieval's graphics suck. Compare it all the other wargames out there with bland graphics, it sucks.
I believe the problem is not super-realistic graphics detracting from the gameplay but rather the resources which are diverted toward the graphics seriously diminish the gameplay and replayability of the game.
Additionally, when going only for realism the artistic merit of the graphics wanes. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that a games sole purpose is to be art -- its to be a game thats fun and enjoyable to play, at least as far as I care. Its the art which visually separates one game from another. Take a look at World of Warcraft. The graphics are very stylized and it is recognizable "Warcraft" and not Warhammer. I hope that improved hardware capability will allow artists to push their vision of the world they are creating rather than be required to make a photographic replica of the latest and hottest movie.
(For the record I've mirrored this post on my website here.
Its great to hear this. There are tons of companies which have the cash to get this liscence, and most of them would f it up. It turned out just as I predicted. ;)
"Even if the game is a success we all know they are looking at 4+ years of development which would translate into just another money drain for them -- not what they need right now. An up-front liscence fee from a big company like EA could be the cash injection the company needs. I'm just suprised their whole company hasn't been gobbled up yet."
Sorry I like to brag
I wonder what percentage of readers of Playboy and Penthouse are under 18.
Even if strong encyption is used, you still run the risk of hardware keyloggers.
One way to describe this is to imagine cars as software. Instead of stealing a BMW, think of the thief "duplicating" it. Ok, so there will be alot of people who decided not to shell over $50k for a new beemer -- they could have, but the got it for free instead. Now add in all the people who can't afford $50k for the new BMW, but got one because it was free. The way the BSA (MPAA and RIAA are doing the same) is making these calculations is by saying everyone who is driving a BMW they didn't pay for is $50k in lost revenue. Then factor in the third-world were people may be lucky to make $1000 a year -- they aren't going to pay $20 for software much less $500.
Yes, software companies *are* loosing money to "piracy." Many are indirect losers. Lets go back to the BMW thing again. Who would buy a Ford if they could have a free BMW instead? Same with software companies, people aren't buying Paint Shop Pro because they got Photoshop for free. However, the BSA, MPAA, RIAA, and others are destroying their credibility by giving out ridiculously exagerated numbers. Remember the people who told you pot was as bad as herion?
CS seems to have a pretty fanatical following here in the US too. I actually started playing it in 1999. The popularity of an otherwise obscure mod really took off. A couple of years ago I spotted the game on a picture in National Geographic. I haven't played CounterStrike in nearly a year so I'm really looking forward to the new HL2 version.
I believe the decision to simply upgrade the graphics is actually a very smart one. The gameplay in CounterStrike is incredibly addictive and a few changes in the wrong direction could through it off. We've been playing some sports for close to a hundred years with relatively minor changes (new gear thanks to technology but its still the same game), why not do the same with computer games?
The purpose of being based outside of the US is not to avoid US laws but not to be under their jurisdiction. Major US corporations do this to avoid taxes. Sometimes they lean to far on the edge of the grey area and get in trouble.
This is one of the reasons the internet has a bad reputation, or at least used to. People don't want to buy something off the internet because they are afraid their credit card will get stolen. (honestly, I can't blame them anymore with all the spyware shit.)
On the other hand, you have people who are happy to use their credit card to purchase things from spam. As they say, common sense isn't all that common.
Second Life is more like a webhost, where as a MMORPG is like going to the carnival. The pricing structure for Second Life is totally different, you pay by the amount of space you have to build on.
The law could easily play on both sides here. EULA says you can't sell on eBay, you did, now you get fined for braking the EULA. Or the law could toss out the EULA and say you do own the stuff. Quite frankly I don't think this is an issue worth using the court system or tax paying money on. We all know how the internet works. There is always a loophole. Let these for profit game businesses run the game how they like. If they screw it up -- people leave. They can choose to ban people who sell on ebay, or just ignore it. They can go after emulated servers, or they can leave them.
The system is certainly far from perfect. I remember the first days and months UO was released. All the bugs scared me away until several years later. Lineage currently has a huge problem with harvesting from what I understand. It looks like a great MMORPG, but I'll be staying away from that too for a while.
MMORPG are around to make money. If someone spends 40 hours a week playing Everquest, they've got issues. I don't believe that the law should either hinder or allow selling virtual items.
When I run a business I make damn sure that I'm not signing away my rights to a partner or to another company. Webhost wants to own the copyright to my work? Sorry. Maybe they pull some B.S. like certain companys have in switching the EULA without giving me proper notification. If it happens to negatively affect my businesses in a way which I find is worth the legal fees -- then I can sue them. If you want to sue Sony because they deleted you level 50 whatever, then so be it. Maybe you'll win, maybe you'll loose, but your pocket is going to feel quite a bit emptier.
And as I said before, we know there are loopholes -- especially with the internet. Gambling sites banned in the U.S., then they flourish on some tropical island along with their owner. Too much of a pain to host a MMORPG in the U.S., then they are going to move to another country.
For reference I have mirrored this post here
I enjoyed running over the cows (with the tractor i think) in SimFarm. Damn, its been a long time since I've played that game.
Right wing, left wing, conservative, liberal, I could fucking care less. What I do know is it was Bill Clinton who signed COPA into law.
If you have enough time to read Hotmail's TOS..
If they turned Civ4 into a RTS... I don't even know what to say. It might be a good RTS, but none of civs core fanbase would want to play it. Imagine Doom3 as a turn-based startegy game. Thats about the best way to describe it.
Read this.
I just did it with 0 problems, it took me 5 minutes to get the Tribes 2 CD key.
Sure, but plenty of other sites don't require signups such as 3DGamers and GamersHell.