I was talking with my friends about this on the weekend... how cool it would be to remake DOOM and DOOM II with the DOOM3 engine. I'd definitely put some money down for that.
My buddies and I use TeamSpeak often and it works well for us. The server took a little bit of time to get running but now that it's up (24 hours a day) any of us can chat at any time.:)
My Monster MX300 served me well during the pre-XP days. These days I'm running an nForce2 motherboard with SoundStorm. I had an Audigy for a while but it just didn't cut it for me.
There hasn't been much in the way of audio for PCs because there's a lack of competition these days. There doesn't seem to be much innovation.
Back in the day there was the good old A3D vs. EAX debates. Things steadily improved as Aureal and Creative Labs tried to outdo each other. Sadly, Aureal couldn't hack it and bowed down to CL. Soon after, CL became complacent (in my opinion).
Playing Half-Life with A3D and four speakers was so cool!:)
With a bit of practice, it's not that hard to sneak with an analog stick on a gamepad. In my experience, developers are usually pretty generous when setting thresholds between walking, jogging, running, etc. And there are some games that give you a sneak button (Eternal Darkness comes to mind).
I'd have to agree with Megaman 2, moreso for the music than the actual gameplay.
Coincidentally, that very game took up so many hours of my Saturday and Sunday a few weeks back.:) A friend of mine bought the orginal NES cart so we fired up the NES and went through it a few times.
I don't mind the reuse of old characters--in fact, I love it. I can't wait to see the next Mario/Link/Metroid/etc games. However, I'm not a huge fan of re-releasing old games over and over again. They have Super Mario Bros. for NES, SNES (All-Stars), and GBA. I'm surprised it's not on the 'Cube yet.
This could be a side affect of me getting old (25). I forget that there are always new gamers that haven't experienced the joys of playing these classic games. As an aside, I was reminded this weekend that there's an entire generation of youth that hear the 1960s Batman theme music and say "WTF??".
I totally remember that game! It was a lot of fun. I think it was one of the few games that made me break down and buy a decent joystick (Motoracer and Interstate '76 being some of the others).
The best part was chopping off a kobolds arm with your sword, picking up the arm, and clubbing him over the head with it.
To further this point... there are software pirates who pirate software and never actually use the software because they are more interested in collecting and/or trading.
I've known people who pirated software and they never did get around to running the software (i.e. playing the game) until a few years later due to time constraints and whatnot.
And you know what? I didn't ask for the CZero Steam cache and it's still downloading it. My Steam network bandwidth is at 150 kbps and "Steam is not currently updating any games". WTF?
I have no interest in CZero. Why should I have to go in and manually tell Steam to stop downloading something I don't want?
I couldn't load this in Firefox for some reason so here's the text from IE
--
Electronic Arts "Oh James!" Pierce Brosnan and Mya in 'Everything or Nothing' By Tom Loftus Columnist MSNBC Updated: 1:17 p.m. ET Feb. 19, 2004You know the love affair between Hollywood and video games is in full bloom when Judi Dench appears in a game. Yes, that Judi Dench, noted Shakespearean actress, Dame of the British Empire, Oscar winner and now star of Electronic Arts's upcoming James Bond title, "Everything or Nothing."
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The trickle of A-list talent appearing in games has turned into a torrent of late and beyond publicity, the trend has triggered changes in game development. Stars now work with game producers on story and character development as agents and lawyers try to figure out how an actor can maintain his "image," in an interactive environment.
When Electronic Arts decided to create a new James Bond game, among its first actions was to make an offer to Pierce Brosnan, the actor who has played 007 for the last four years.
The offer was unusual: There was no film to support the game's release. The script, the soundtrack, the girls... everything would be digital.
Producer Joel Wade remembers Brosnan's reaction. "Pierce thought it would be odd if someone else played him," he said.
Such an exchange was nearly impossible just a few years ago. A 40-plus-year-old A-list actor pondering whether or not to appear in a game? Heck, even Roger Moore would have been loathe to actively participate in what was once the perceived domain of momma's boys.
"Traditionally, Hollywood signed away rights without any expertise or any idea of the plot lines," said industry analyst P.J. McNealy.
Several factors helped change Hollywood's mind. Technology advanced exponentially, making it possible to accurately recreate the voice, looks and movements of real people. Another factor was the Sony PlayStation 2. Or to be more exact, 60 million PS2s, GameCubes and Xboxes sold in the United States alone.
As games became synonymous with mass entertainment, Hollywood got it. The movie executives who chanted "cross-branding" and "synergy" at power lunches got it. Game developers got it. Even the actors got it. Soon Electronic Arts was convincing not only Brosnan, but Bond regulars John Cleese ('Q') and Judi Dench ('M') as well as William Dafoe, Heidi Klum and Mya to join "Everything or Nothing."
And the sound of "ka-ching" rumbled down the California coastal range from Silicon Valley to the Hollywood Hills.
From co-stars to co-creators It's not only about the money. As more and more stars realize the impact a game appearance can have on their careers, they are starting to contribute to the creative process.
Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Jet Li in "Rise to Honor"
While developing Sony's upcoming martial arts game "Rise to Honor," producer Jim Wallace hit a potential roadblock. The storyboard called for a scene where the protagonist Kit Yuen, a Hong Kong gangland tough, would have to battle an evil nurse.
That was a problem. Yuen was voice-acted by action star Jet Li who, in his films, was known to reject any scene that called for him to fight women.
"I called Jet up and said 'hey, is this cool?'" Wallace said. "And he said, oh yeah, that it would work."
Such double-checking isn't unusual in films; actors, depending on their leverage, regularly have a say. But in the comparatively cloistered world of game development, such level of involvement is new.
And with increasing frequency, game publishers are learning to listen.
For "Rise to Honor," Li not only vetted scenes with Wallace, but brought along his longtime collaborator Corey Yuen, who worked with Sony on the fighting system -- the underlying combat technology -- so that it dovetailed with Li's signature moves.
The middlemen "It's very important that the closer the game developers are
As an alternative to downloading from FTP and HTTP sites, I'd suggest checking out a newsgroup such as alt.binaries.games or something similar with your favourite newsreader. The alt.binaries groups usually have the latest demos. And (for me at least) it's a super fast download.
Slashdot Mirror
I was talking with my friends about this on the weekend... how cool it would be to remake DOOM and DOOM II with the DOOM3 engine. I'd definitely put some money down for that.
This is definitely a fun read about a bot that plays Star Wars Galaxies.
My buddies and I use TeamSpeak often and it works well for us. The server took a little bit of time to get running but now that it's up (24 hours a day) any of us can chat at any time. :)
Don't forget this classic from back in the day...
My Monster MX300 served me well during the pre-XP days. These days I'm running an nForce2 motherboard with SoundStorm. I had an Audigy for a while but it just didn't cut it for me.
There hasn't been much in the way of audio for PCs because there's a lack of competition these days. There doesn't seem to be much innovation.
:)
Back in the day there was the good old A3D vs. EAX debates. Things steadily improved as Aureal and Creative Labs tried to outdo each other. Sadly, Aureal couldn't hack it and bowed down to CL. Soon after, CL became complacent (in my opinion).
Playing Half-Life with A3D and four speakers was so cool!
With a bit of practice, it's not that hard to sneak with an analog stick on a gamepad. In my experience, developers are usually pretty generous when setting thresholds between walking, jogging, running, etc. And there are some games that give you a sneak button (Eternal Darkness comes to mind).
I had some good times with Bubble Bobble. And after all those hours of playing, the music never got old. :)
I'd have to agree with Megaman 2, moreso for the music than the actual gameplay.
:) A friend of mine bought the orginal NES cart so we fired up the NES and went through it a few times.
Coincidentally, that very game took up so many hours of my Saturday and Sunday a few weeks back.
I don't mind the reuse of old characters--in fact, I love it. I can't wait to see the next Mario/Link/Metroid/etc games. However, I'm not a huge fan of re-releasing old games over and over again. They have Super Mario Bros. for NES, SNES (All-Stars), and GBA. I'm surprised it's not on the 'Cube yet.
This could be a side affect of me getting old (25). I forget that there are always new gamers that haven't experienced the joys of playing these classic games. As an aside, I was reminded this weekend that there's an entire generation of youth that hear the 1960s Batman theme music and say "WTF??".
*sigh*
Parappa The Rapper and Um Jammer Lammy have some cracked-out, doped-up, need-some-drugs-to-understand-it cutscenes. Fun games though. :)
My PC speaker never sounded so good. Good old Starcon2.
I totally remember that game! It was a lot of fun. I think it was one of the few games that made me break down and buy a decent joystick (Motoracer and Interstate '76 being some of the others).
The best part was chopping off a kobolds arm with your sword, picking up the arm, and clubbing him over the head with it.
Good times.
To further this point... there are software pirates who pirate software and never actually use the software because they are more interested in collecting and/or trading.
I've known people who pirated software and they never did get around to running the software (i.e. playing the game) until a few years later due to time constraints and whatnot.
Maybe last year when they said "September 30" they meant "September 30, 2004".
Aww crap. Now I'll have to look twice before I shoot in a game to make sure I'm shooting the right guys. :)
What did the PS2/GC/X-Box era provide? At least when it came to new gaming experiences?
A very decent wireless controller (i.e. the WaveBird). I hope they become standard in the next generation of consoles.
Make that two. It happened to me as well.
And you know what? I didn't ask for the CZero Steam cache and it's still downloading it. My Steam network bandwidth is at 150 kbps and "Steam is not currently updating any games". WTF?
I have no interest in CZero. Why should I have to go in and manually tell Steam to stop downloading something I don't want?
Take a look here for older versions of WinAmp.
Yep. I never saw it though. You can check a walkthrough on GameFAQs.
Are you thinking of Jet Li's Rise To Honor? It was mentioned in the article. :)
I couldn't load this in Firefox for some reason so here's the text from IE
... everything would be digital.
--
Electronic Arts
"Oh James!" Pierce Brosnan and Mya in 'Everything or Nothing'
By Tom Loftus
Columnist
MSNBC
Updated: 1:17 p.m. ET Feb. 19, 2004You know the love affair between Hollywood and video games is in full bloom when Judi Dench appears in a game. Yes, that Judi Dench, noted Shakespearean actress, Dame of the British Empire, Oscar winner and now star of Electronic Arts's upcoming James Bond title, "Everything or Nothing."
advertisement
The trickle of A-list talent appearing in games has turned into a torrent of late and beyond publicity, the trend has triggered changes in game development. Stars now work with game producers on story and character development as agents and lawyers try to figure out how an actor can maintain his "image," in an interactive environment.
When Electronic Arts decided to create a new James Bond game, among its first actions was to make an offer to Pierce Brosnan, the actor who has played 007 for the last four years.
The offer was unusual: There was no film to support the game's release. The script, the soundtrack, the girls
Producer Joel Wade remembers Brosnan's reaction. "Pierce thought it would be odd if someone else played him," he said.
Such an exchange was nearly impossible just a few years ago. A 40-plus-year-old A-list actor pondering whether or not to appear in a game? Heck, even Roger Moore would have been loathe to actively participate in what was once the perceived domain of momma's boys.
"Traditionally, Hollywood signed away rights without any expertise or any idea of the plot lines," said industry analyst P.J. McNealy.
Several factors helped change Hollywood's mind. Technology advanced exponentially, making it possible to accurately recreate the voice, looks and movements of real people. Another factor was the Sony PlayStation 2. Or to be more exact, 60 million PS2s, GameCubes and Xboxes sold in the United States alone.
As games became synonymous with mass entertainment, Hollywood got it. The movie executives who chanted "cross-branding" and "synergy" at power lunches got it. Game developers got it. Even the actors got it. Soon Electronic Arts was convincing not only Brosnan, but Bond regulars John Cleese ('Q') and Judi Dench ('M') as well as William Dafoe, Heidi Klum and Mya to join "Everything or Nothing."
And the sound of "ka-ching" rumbled down the California coastal range from Silicon Valley to the Hollywood Hills.
From co-stars to co-creators
It's not only about the money. As more and more stars realize the impact a game appearance can have on their careers, they are starting to contribute to the creative process.
Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.
Jet Li in "Rise to Honor"
While developing Sony's upcoming martial arts game "Rise to Honor," producer Jim Wallace hit a potential roadblock. The storyboard called for a scene where the protagonist Kit Yuen, a Hong Kong gangland tough, would have to battle an evil nurse.
That was a problem. Yuen was voice-acted by action star Jet Li who, in his films, was known to reject any scene that called for him to fight women.
"I called Jet up and said 'hey, is this cool?'" Wallace said. "And he said, oh yeah, that it would work."
Such double-checking isn't unusual in films; actors, depending on their leverage, regularly have a say. But in the comparatively cloistered world of game development, such level of involvement is new.
And with increasing frequency, game publishers are learning to listen.
For "Rise to Honor," Li not only vetted scenes with Wallace, but brought along his longtime collaborator Corey Yuen, who worked with Sony on the fighting system -- the underlying combat technology -- so that it dovetailed with Li's signature moves.
The middlemen
"It's very important that the closer the game developers are
Why not? You can get ICQ numbers.
As an alternative to downloading from FTP and HTTP sites, I'd suggest checking out a newsgroup such as alt.binaries.games or something similar with your favourite newsreader. The alt.binaries groups usually have the latest demos. And (for me at least) it's a super fast download.