There are two kinds of people in the world: those who need to play more Portal maps, no matter the cost, and those sour wretches who'd be well advised to hide, woefully unaware of just how badly the first group needs a fresh Portal fix. Since we're quite certain bloodletting won't bring you more Portal maps, news of an updated Source SDK should prove to be more promising. You see, the engine that powers the wonderful worlds of Valve has "been updated with content and tools to create maps, models, and textures for Half-Life 2: Episode Two, Portal, and Team Fortress 2."

Yes, we know, that's all well and great for the PC crowd out there (they couldn't even wait, getting a headstart on the fun courtesy of a Bethesda level designer) but what about their console counterparts? Hey Valve, we got a news flash for you: Portal prints money. Drop some DLC on the Xbox Live Marketplace, charge like a bajillion Billy Bucks for each level, and build a real Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device. And then invite us over, okay?

At the ongoing Ubidays event in Paris, Ubisoft has announced a console port of the first-person fantasy title, Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. The singular use of "console" should be emphasized, as the Xbox 360 will be the sole recipient of Arkane Studios' Source-powered adventure.

Eurogamer reports that Dark Messiah of Might and Magic: Elements will be the same as last year's PC version, with the exception of a clumsy subtitle and new content. Presumably, said content includes technical stability and a framerate that can be taken seriously. A release date has not yet been announced.

Weighing in at 160 MB, this map is one you're going to have to require everyone to download in advance if you plan on playing online. The creator, Soenke C. "Warby" Seidel, has an impressive collection of artwork and maps, including some 3D Shadow of the Colossus-inspired scenes, if you would like to peruse the artist's portfolio.

Color us impressed. Very impressed.

[Via bit-tech]

Steam's winter update -- due next week -- will roll out a few significant changes for Valve's digital distribution service. At the top of the list are 'Guest Passes,' essentially free trials that Steam game owners can extend to their friends (or strangers). Unfortunately, Guest Passes will be limited to select games, the first being Day of Defeat: Source.

The update will also see improvements to the user interface, including a 'Favorites' tab for easy access to your choice games. In addition, support for background client updates will be added. Oh, and now the GUI will be viewable in five different colors! Now that's an update worth mentioning.

[Via press release]

The 22-man team working to modernize Goldeneye 64 with the Source Engine have given everyone the perfect Christmas gift: a public beta showing off the fruits of their labor. (It's just a step above last year's present, the alpha version.)

The mod, which requires a Source-based game to work, has already garnered much attention over the years for the level of detail in its stage design and weaponry. All information, including known bugs, can be found on the developer Wiki. Here are some suggestions, via the mod's main website, on how to stabilize the game:

• Check for and download latest video card drivers
• A server with 10 people seems to work better
• Have the Base SDK installed
• Download the mod again on another mirror and reinstall the mod.
• Turn HDR off
• Turn shadow detail on low

A patch is being planned but no date has been determined.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Mindless everyman violence news now, with the coming of Postal 3 being officially announced by high-lariously satirical and edgy game developer, Running With Scissors. Utilizing the Valve-developed Source engine, the game and soon to be Uwe Boll anti-masterpiece will reportedly (and repeatedly) hit the Xbox 360 and PC sometime in 2008. The developer told Firing Squad that the sequel would be made and published in conjunction with Russian software company, Akella, and that it would feature an open world design similar to that of the previous Postal.

Running With Scissors also noted that fan feedback (helpful summary: bleurgh) from Postal 2 would be noted as they work on the sequel. Those looking forward to having their next run-in with a polygonal Gary Coleman will be pleased to learn that a Postal collection with new extras is on the way, as is a CD filled with music "inspired by" the series. We imagine Shirley Manson features heavily on it.

See also: Joystiq interviews Doug Lombardi about Xbox 360 Source

Yesterday, Valve released the Source Engine middleware for the Xbox 360. But what does that mean for Xbox 360 games, PC games, and modders who use Valve's free version of Source? Valve intends for big developers to fluidly move between the two platforms. But the announcement also means one less hurdle for home developers to release an Xbox game, assuming they attract a publisher to clear the maze of licensing and distribution.

Valve's Director of Marketing, Doug Lombardi answered a series of emailed questions to delve deeper into these issues. He explained the general difference between the free and middleware versions of Source, how this announcement could still apply to modders, and how PC and Xbox versions of Source games could technically be networked immediately.

In an effort to ensure a more diverse usage of armaments, Valve is implementing a Dynamic Weapon Pricing system into Counter-Strike: Source. Essentially, all guns are divided into two categories: pistols and everything else. Within each category, data is collected from the servers as to how much money is spent on each gun. Every Monday, the price of guns will be adjusted to correlate with its popularity from the previous week -- the higher its demand, the higher its price.

With this system, Counter-Strike users will be able to balance the game through their habits. Players will continue to have a starting bank of $800, but each week will be forced to tweak their strategy in order to accommodate for market trends. The MAC-10, for example, is on a downward trend and the price is falling. As soon as the gun becomes viable for its respective price range, the demand will increase. Eventually, we foresee, an equilibrium will be reached where the change in price from week to week will be marginal.

The projected value of each gun and piece of equipment can be tracked on the DWP market page, where Valve has also provided a more in-depth explanation of their price-adjusting algorithm.

[Via Pro-G]

A team of fans is rebuilding GoldenEye 007 with the Half-Life 2 Source engine; that ought'a teach today's kids about good game design. The team just released an impressive trailer of its efforts, showcasing many of the recreated environments. While the project is still unfinished -- we'll call it "pre-cease-and-desist" -- you may soon be able to relive that Bond classic on a PC.

But let's take a moon-walking step backwards here. These rebuild-the-classic game projects seem aimed at the gamer who looks at how perfect life was back then, with the velour car seats and prom date. And wait a minute, GoldenEye came out less than ten years ago. (Replace "moon walk" with "pop-n-lock," "velour" with "neoprene," and "prom date" with "internet porn.") It's not like your N64 won't work with your new TV. You might even be able to download the original on the Wii.

Modders, we salute your ingenuity and desire to bring your GoldenEye experience to today's dirty, ungrateful youth. Judging from the video (embedded after the break), we know you've put a lot of work into the project. But why not spend that energy on making something unique? We know you can, and we want to play it.

[Thanks, nowhere]

If talking about music is like dancing about architecture, then what is writing about architecture like? Anyone with an affinity for the art and science of designing great buildings knows there is no better way to experience them than to walk through them; to experience the sense of scale intimately; see how light affects the space; see how the location affects the light, and so on. Unfortunately, that dictum still holds true, but for how long?

One architecture student slash level modder chose Frank Lloyd Wright's tree-nestled modern masterpiece Fallingwater (aka the Kaufmann House) to recreate using Half-Life 2's Source engine. Anyone who's visited western Pennsylvania and taken the time to stop by Fallingwater knows the value of experiencing it first-hand.

The video walkthrough (embedded after the break) does give some sense of scale, but lacks the same polish that all video games exhibit on closer inspection. Though you miss the craftsmanship in the details, you do get an unparalleled appreciation for the way Wright tucked his house into the woods. Using "noclip" mode, the video's tour guide takes us up above the house and the waterfall providing a point-of-view entirely absent from the real experience.

[Via Boing Boing]

Valve has been busy piling up games with hearts of gold in their increasingly popular, and increasingly cramped, Steam bordello. With the recent additions of Introversion's DEFCON and seventeen members of the burgeoning PopCap clan, Steam is really (steaming up/under pressure/on fire). Sure, a little service called Xbox Live ain't doing so poorly, but they're not delivering highly anticipated AAA retail titles yet, so there.

Today, Valve announced a deal with Ubisoft to distribute their Source-based, first-person RPG, Dark Messiah of Might and Magic over Steam. More importantly, the release will be simultaneous with the retail release this October. Unlike Half-Life 2, which is distributed digitally over Steam and in stores by EA, Valve does not own this property, they're just the messengers. Ubisoft is acknowledging the demand for digitally distributed AAA content and using the largest platform they can find to promote it. We're still waiting on governement-distributed protein pills and personal submarines, but the third pillar of our future vision is now realized.

Check out a video of Dark Messiah, and today's press release, after the break.

If you've recently witnessed the news on TV or your disagreeable neighbor's house getting blown to smithereens, you'd likely be aware that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq, was killed in a decisive US air strike earlier this month.  If this is the first time you're learning of it, the news is reaching you in a way quite dissimilar to the way in which the people behind Kuma Reality Games want it to. Reaching you is just the beginning for them -- they want it to grab you by the arm and yank you into a Source-powered, 3D recreation.

The goal of Kuma\War is elaborate and intriguing, though much like a minefield, it's also laced with topical traps that require careful movements to navigate successfully. For every major battle or newsworthy event that takes place in the ongoing war on terror, Kuma\War offers a free, downloadable counterpart, plunging you right into the war-torn boots of an American soldier and tasking you with carrying out the very same mission. Just a scant few weeks after al-Zarqawi's death, Kuma\War will be offering "players" the opportunity to call in the airstrike that killed him or, alternatively, rush his house with a group of comrades in tow.

Our friendly anonymous source at Microsoft has provided us with a few more details concerning the 360 accessories announced back at E3.

Perhaps the most important involves the bundling of the Xbox Live Vision camera with a wired headset, the popular Live Arcade title UNO, and a month of Live Gold service for $39.99 when it releases in the States on September 19, 2006.

Granted, this is still an unofficial report (based on a leak of "official" info), so understand that you're probably not gonna get much confirmation from MS until they're good and ready to give it. If you'd like information on what other peripherals are coming out "Holiday 2006" (so sometime in the 4th quarter) and at what price, read on for more.

Recently erected EB Games and Gamestop listings of Half-Life 2 for Xbox 360 have ignited rumors that Valve's acclaimed sequel is again headed to a Microsoft console. Despite a somewhat stripped-down version of the game being released for Xbox last November, an Xbox 360 version would presumably include added features akin to the upcoming PC 'Platinum' edition (also scheduled for February 2007), which is said to contain Half-Life 2: Deathmatch, Counter-Strike: Source, and Day of Defeat: Source. In addition, Valve could use the Xbox Live service to deliver the long awaited expansion episodes*, just as we speculated back in April.

In responding to the listings, Valve would not confirm the project, stating, "We've only announced development for 360. No specific titles to reveal just yet, but folks can expect to hear more before the end of this year."

*See: Half-Life 2: Episode 1 set for June release; Half-Life 2: Episodes Two and Three confirmed