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Direct2Drive celebrates 5-year anniversary with 50 games for $5 each

by Xav de Matos { Sep 10th 2009 at 2:00PM }

Over the next five weeks, Direct2Drive is offering a special discount on a host of different titles in celebration of its five-year anniversary. Every Monday, Direct2Drive will feature a new set of titles, reducing them to $5 (or £5 UK), with the first week of the promotion focusing on "Ubisoft and Strategy titles." While the upcoming week's titles have yet to be revealed, Direct2Drive has teased us with utterly vague descriptions of what to expect:

Week Two: Action Games
Week Three: RPGs & MMOs
Week Four: Indie Games
Week Five: War Games

The first week of the promotion ends on September 14. Games differ slightly based on your geographical region -- for instance, Ubisoft is strangely omitted from the European promotion. Check out a full list of this week's games for both regions after the break.

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Dawn of War 2 leads Steam weekend sale

by Alexander Sliwinski { Jul 31st 2009 at 7:15PM }

This weekend's Steam sale is 50 percent off Relic titles, including the developer's latest, Dawn of War II. Not only that, but a DoW II purchase also includes the "There is only war" DLC, which adds 8 new multiplayer maps, a map editor and more.

But wait, there's more! Since they're Relic games, Company of Heroes and the original Dawn of War are also included. Don't let the WWII theme turn you off from Company of Heroes; beyond its cliche setting is an enjoyably deep RTS experience and a long campaign -- definitely worth $10.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine cleansing consoles for the emperor

by Jason Dobson { May 28th 2009 at 9:28AM }

THQ has officially confirmed work on Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine, yet another game set against the backdrop of Games Workshop's gritty tabletop universe. Relic has again been handed developer duties on the title, though unlike Dawn of War, the console-focused Space Marine will be an action RPG that lets players control individual units through a "narrative-driven story campaign and in wide-scale online battles."

In development for both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, it's unclear what ties, if any, the project has to the leaked Space Marine footage that made the rounds late last year. However, judging from this IGN-hosted trailer, the game certainly looks to keep more with 40K's combat-heavy fiction when it eventually decides to chainsword retail shelves.

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2 beta on Jan. 21

by Kevin Kelly { Jan 12th 2009 at 4:44PM }

click for hugeness

Relic Entertainment's Mark Noseworthy has confirmed with Joystiq that the Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War 2 closed beta will begin January 21st if you purchased the original Dawn of War expansion, Soulstorm. Procrastinators, take note: you'll be introduced into the public beta just a week later on January 28th. Or, break the cycle of lethargy and pick up the expansion in order to grab an early beta spot.

We got a closer look at Dawn of War 2 during CES, and fans of real-time strategy games will not be disappointed ... unless you don't own a PC (but c'mon, how could you be an RTS buff without owning a PC?). Dawn of War 2 will be a PC-only release with Games for Windows Live features like voice chat and Achievements.

Joystiq hands-on: Dawn of War 2

by Kevin Kelly { Jan 12th 2009 at 4:29PM }

We learned a valuable lesson at CES last week: Don't demo an RTS game on a trade show floor. Why? Because it's nigh-impossible to hear a developer's instructions over the deafening noise of geek-outs. It turns into something like this dialogue snippet from our hands-on experience with Warhammer 40000: Dawn of War 2:

Relic: "So, you'll quickly want to set a rally point here." *taps screen*
Joystiq: *clicks on random units* [units march off-screen]
Relic: "Okay, so if you look at this icon, you'll see that your character is earning zeal. You might want to build some heavy firepower units for support."
Joystiq: *attacks enemy power generator* [cue: bad move!]

It was just too darn loud at CES to get good instructions, and Relic only had one demo station on hand, which obviously did not feature any PVP gameplay. Naturally, we had StarCraft 2 in mind as we fooled around with Dawn of War 2, measuring Relic's RTS against what we've played of Blizzard's next blockbuster. We can say that Dawn of War 2 is currently winning in the looks department. As we watched an Imperial Tank literally roll through walls and crush them into powder while Space Marines jumped over the action with jetpacks, we were remiss to have left our drool bib back home in the hamper.

We've embedded a pair of videos from our session after the break, including producer Mark Noseworthy blowing stuff up!

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GameTap Thursday: A Grimm Christmas Carol, Dawn of War: Gold

by Alexander Sliwinski { Dec 18th 2008 at 3:00AM }

Grimm's second volume ends this week with the negative gnome's (dwarf?) take on A Christmas Carol. The good news is that, instead of the standard 24 hours of free play, the latest episode will be available to freeloaders from now until New Year's Eve.

Grimm: A Christmas Carol (Windows) - Scrooge vs. Grimm: FIGHT!
Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War: Gold (Windows) - The original Dawn of War, plus the (arguably) superior Winter Assault expansion. RTS fans owe it to themselves to play this.

GameTap adds King of Fighters 2003 to the free games list for one week. Check out the full gratis rundown after the break.

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Why you buggin? Tyranids playable in Dawn of War II

by Jason Dobson { Aug 20th 2008 at 5:00AM }

It's time to load your storm bolter and wrap up your last prayer to the Emperor, cuz we're huntin' Tyranids! IGN has confirmed that everyone's favorite galactic bugs will be clawing their way onto Relic's forthcoming Dawn of War sequel, not only as an opponent but as a playable race as well.

The blood news was spilled during the Leipzig Games Convention by Dawn of War II senior designer Philippe Boulle, who noted that the space insects behave as "a single organism, not an army of individuals," and that the swarm is composed of disposable "meat shields" and more specialized alien troops serving the Tyranid Hive Mind. For more, check out the pre-rendered pure awesome below while we wait for the bugs to digest their fill of Space Marine, Ork and Eldar in early 2009.

[Thanks Damn Lucky]

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THQ games joining GameTap this summer

by Alexander Sliwinski { Jul 22nd 2008 at 4:30PM }

Gaming buffet GameTap just announced that THQ- and ValuSoft-published titles will begin finding their way onto the service starting this summer. Notable titles include:

Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War and expansions
Company of Heroes
Red Faction
Supreme Commander
Saints Row 2
Puzzle Quest
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.

It's nice to see relatively new titles like Supreme Commander make the list. We're also curious to find out if Saints Row 2 releases on the service the same day as retail, similar to GameTap's deal with Codemasters. The THQ agreement is apparently a "long-term partnership" and some titles will also be made available on GameTap's free ad-supported service. This THQ announcement comes only a few months after Interplay returned and Take-Two committed to the service.

Glimpse some Dawn of War II gameplay footage

by Alexander Sliwinski { Jun 7th 2008 at 7:00PM }

Cleanse the heretics and long live the Emperor! The latest Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War II video gives us an amuse bouche of in-game footage to check out until we (cross-fingers) get to see at lot more at E3 next month. With the series back in the hands of Relic studios, hopefully the game will help THQ's bottom line when it releases early next year.

For those who missed out on the original Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War series (which is three games -- four, if you count Soulstorm), it still holds up well and can be found in a boxed Platinum Set, and on Steam, for around $30. For the sake of DoW II's sales, we hope Starcraft II isn't released anywhere close to the same time.

The sun rises on a Dawn of War II trailer

by Alexander Sliwinski { Apr 5th 2008 at 4:00AM }

THQ has unleashed a teaser trailer for Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War II to imbue the masses with the righteous fervor of the Empire. The real-time strategy sequel was officially confirmed just a couple days ago and will apparently feature a fully co-operative multiplayer campaign. Don't go getting too excited just yet -- DoW II won't be out until Spring '09. In the meantime, for those who need a 40K RTS fix stat, there's always Soulstorm, which will grant entry into the sequel's multiplayer beta at some point in the future.

THQ makes Dawn of War II official, coming Spring 2009

by Jason Dobson { Apr 3rd 2008 at 9:15AM }

After numerous expansions to its Relic-founded Dawn of War license, THQ has confirmed that a medic has braved the field of battle and returned with the franchise's treasured gene seed, officially announcing Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II for the PC. While the game is not expected to drop until Spring 2009, THQ notes that players who pick up the current game's latest expansion, Soulstorm, will score themselves an invite to the sequel's upcoming multiplayer beta.

According to THQ, Dawn of War II will be built upon the Relic's proprietary Essence Engine 2.0, and will feature a fully co-operative multiplayer campaign. As for what races this latest chapter in the RTS series will offer up, we're left guessing, though the publisher has confirmed that the Space Marines and the Orkish green tides will be included. More information is promised in the near future, and as we get word from the Emperor, we'll let you know.

THQ's Squad Command-themed PSP is sexy, ridiculously limited

by Jason Dobson { Nov 23rd 2007 at 12:00PM }

THQ is excited about its recently shipped Warhammer 40,000: Squad Command for the PSP. How excited? Unphased by the handful of lukewarm reviews, it seems that the company has had crafted a very limited set of Warhammer 40K-themed PSPs to celebrate the game's release. Unfortunately, limited is the name of the game, as THQ has seen fit to have just six of the handhelds forged at the hands of Games Workshop and a squad of professional modelers, making this both one of the rarest game console variants ever created as well as something of a cruel joke.

So far, the fate of only one of these handhelds has been revealed, as it will be given away to one extremely lucky gamer in the UK care of a competition on THQ's website. As to where the other five ~~golden tickets~~ PSPs will end up, it's anyone's guess. We have a call into THQ's US office at the moment, but as their phones just rang off the hook, it's entirely possible that their staff still suffers from a tryptophan-induced stupor.

Sisters of Battle, Dark Eldar lead charge in Dawn of War: Soulstorm

by Jason Dobson { Nov 23rd 2007 at 10:00AM }

If comments are any indication, many remain unsure of the direction Relic intends to take the latest expansion for its tabletop-inspired RTS Dawn of War, Soulstorm. While some may have continued to hold out hope for a bug hunt against galactic menace and fan-favorite Tyranids, gameplay designer Shawn Frison has revealed via a dev diary that the game will in fact pit the previously revealed Dark Eldar against the estrogen-charged Orders Militant of the Adepta Sororitas, otherwise known as the Sisters of Battle.

The stand alone expansion's factions will join others from the series, from the genetically enhanced Space Marines to the Orkish green tides, and will offer additional units and vehicles with which to wage war in the 'grim darkness' of the 41st millennium.

Among these new units will be the Sisters' Canoness, who is described by Frison as "a battle-hardened veteran" who is apparently able to call down the wrath of God at a whim to smite her foes, not unlike my mother-in-law. Not to be outdone, the Dark Eldar also come to play with their "lords of malice" called Archons who, along with a retinue of Incubi bodyguards, look to give the opposition what for by siphoning their souls and being generally unpleasant. So, given these two choices, which race will win your favor next spring when Soulstorm arrives at retail?