Joystiq

Max Payne 3 multiplayer event this weekend, triple XP and skulls for all

Mike Schramm — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:00:00 EST

Rockstar has a whole calendar of multiplayer events planned for its titles this winter, and this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday goes to the bald guy with the guns. All players online for multiplayer in Max Payne 3 this weekend get triple XP earnings, and Rockstar devs will play online with everyone on Saturday from 11am - 2pm EST.

There's rewards available, too! All players are getting themselves a "Human Skull Mask" for free, as seen above on the left. The "Wedding Skull Mask," on the right, is going to the top ten player-made crews on the new Crew Leaderboards, so get your gangster bros out there and top some score lists. And finally there's a sweepstakes going on: Just enter on the multiplayer event page for a chance at some Max Payne-related loot. And if you're not around this weekend at all, worry not, because Rockstar has another event like this one on January 11 next year.

Max Payne 3 multiplayer event this weekend, triple XP and skulls for all originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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StarCraft 2 beta getting multiplayer XP progression system

Mike Schramm — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 21:00:00 EST

The StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm beta is still ongoing, and Blizzard has posted a preview of a new leveling feature coming soon to the game-in-progress.

Blizzard's adding a progression system to the multiplayer mode, in which players will earn experience, on a race-by-race basis, as they play in matchmaking and custom games. Gaining XP for each of the various factions will unlock special portraits and decals for player profiles.

Blizzard has plans for XP bonuses as well, either for specific awards like your first win of the day, or for more general happenings like XP bonus weekends and other special events. The leveling system is being added to the beta in the next patch (and will likely be reset a few times during testing), and will eventually be available in Heart of the Swarm when it's released.

StarCraft 2 beta getting multiplayer XP progression system originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 25 Oct 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Full House Poker preview: Know when to hold 'em

Mike Schramm — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 17:00:00 EST

After leaks about the secret beta appeared way back in November, Microsoft finally unveiled its Full House Poker game during an event at CES this past week, and I sat down with members of the gaming press (and celebrity guest Shannon Elizabeth) to run the Xbox Live Arcade poker title through its paces.

The rumors of the game being part of 1 vs. 100's legacy are true. "This is pretty much a spiritual successor" to the popular-in-certain-circles event-based massively multiplayer arcade title, says lead designer John Scott Tynes. But rather than a snappy trivia game show, this is definitely a Texas Hold'em poker game -- there's no celebrity hosts or mob members here. If you don't know your straight flush from your two pair, ace high, the game does have a tutorial to teach you the basic rules, but you'll have to find your own way to figuring out when and how to go all-in.

Gallery: Full House Poker (XBLA)

Continue reading Full House Poker preview: Know when to hold 'em

Full House Poker preview: Know when to hold 'em originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 09 Jan 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Get your ass back to Mars for quintuple XP in Red Faction: Guerrilla

David Hinkle — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:00:00 EST

Ah, Total Recall references -- does it get any better? Well, five times the XP for five days in Red Faction: Guerrilla is a start. Any of you Quaids out there who jump online for some jetpack-fueled fun will get quintuple XP from today up until Monday, December 21.

And if you've not downloaded the multiplayer DLC pack yet, check out Volition's Twitter feed, @RedFaction. Volition's going to be giving away codes for the DLC to a few lucky followers throughout the event.

Get your ass back to Mars for quintuple XP in Red Faction: Guerrilla originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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XNA Game Studio 2.0 coming tomorrow, includes LIVE support

Ross Miller — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 22:50:00 EST

Filed under: PC, Microsoft Xbox 360

Aspiring game developers using Microsoft's free-to-use XNA development toolkit will be happy to know than an upgraded version, Game Studio 2.0, will be released early tomorrow, December 13. The new version sports a reported fifteen new features, among them online play through Microsoft's LIVE system.

According to the press release, "The new version ... includes the ability to create online, cross-platform multiplayer games for Xbox 360 and Windows using Xbox LIVE and Games for Windows - LIVE, respectively." We think that means cross-platforms games and multiplayer games, not cross-platform play for Xbox 360 owners wanting to duke it out with their Windows cohorts - sorry, folks, go ahead and add that to your wishlist of Studio 3.0 features. Matchmaking features, however, are integrated.

XNA Game Studio 2.0 "fully supports game development with all versions of the Microsoft Visual Studio product line." View the entire list of new features here.

XNA Game Studio 2.0 coming tomorrow, includes LIVE support originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 12 Dec 2007 22:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vista-only Shadowrun cracked, playable on XP

Ross Miller — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 17:55:00 EST

Filed under: Hacks, PC, First Person Shooters, Online

Beating Falling Leaf to the punch, members of the hacking group Razor1911 have managed to hack the Vista-only Shadowrun to work on Windows XP, the Inquirer reports. The crack, weighing in at less than 5 MB, reportedly removes the need for DirectX 10. (No, we're not linking to it -- you can find it yourself.)

With the crack, you can only play single-player against bots or multiplayer LAN games. Falling Leaf, who has stated they will be providing free code for those who purchase the game on Amazon via their pre-order page, still estimates cracks for Vista-only Shadowrun and Halo 2 by "late July."

Vista-only Shadowrun cracked, playable on XP originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 26 Jun 2007 17:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft invests in Chinese developer

Ross Miller — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 03:15:00 EST

Filed under: PC, Microsoft Xbox 360, Business

Microsoft has purchased 15 million shares in Sichuan, China-based Changhong Electric Co., valued at 94 million yuan (about US $12 million). That's just one percent off the company, according to the Taipei Times.

Said Microsoft spokesman in Beijing Roger Chen, the two companies will explore "a wide range of scenarios for digital entertainment needs ... The project focuses on in-home network digital entertainment -- how to connect PCs, TVs and the Internet to provide this digital entertainment experience."

The first thought that comes to our mind is the Xbox 360, Microsoft's most prominent living room entertainment device, and potentially is related to their IPTV service. No concrete details have been given about the project, so consider this all speculation at the moment.

Microsoft invests in Chinese developer originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 19 Jun 2007 03:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Geometry Wars XP debuts on Steam

Ludwig Kietzmann — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 22:55:00 EST

Filed under: PC, Action, Weird But True, Opinions, New In Pop Culture

Those hoping to engage in wanton shape genocide without a console's involvement can now look towards Valve's online game distribution service, Steam, now hosting a Windows XP version of Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved. Developed by Bizarre Creations and considered by many to be the Xbox 360's first must-have game, Geometry Wars is being offered at an introductory price of $2.50, half that of its 2005 "supposed to be free" launch price. The game will be shifted to $3.95 starting June 22.

If Steam isn't your thing either, perhaps this holiday season's Geometry Wars: Galaxies on the Wii and DS will be enough to enlist you in the fight against circles and diamonds. Failing that, we'll have to conclude that you're one of them -- a total square.

Geometry Wars XP debuts on Steam originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 18 Jun 2007 22:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wii cursor theme for Windows

John Bardinelli — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 10:03:00 EST

Filed under: Culture, PC, Nintendo Wii

Deviantart user allewund has created a set of 18 hand-crafted Wii-themed cursors for Windows XP, ready to make your PC experience as Wii-like as possible (ringy background music not included). We've got the pointy hand, the grabby hand, the open hand, the blue hand, a left-handed hand, and slanted versions of almost every one. Three of the cursors are animated, including the rotating blue ring as a loading cursor. To install, simply unzip and copy the folder to C:\Windows\Cursors, then head to the control panel under Mouse > Pointers and change each one individually. Download the cursors.

Wii cursor theme for Windows originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 15 Jun 2007 10:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Atari to publish The Witcher

James Ransom-Wiley — Mon, 05 Feb 2007 17:55:00 EST

Filed under: PC, Action, RPGs

Atari has extended its deal with CD Projekt, agreeing to publish the Polish developer's action-RPG The Witcher in North America; in addition to Europe and Asia. Based on Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski's Blood of the Elves book series, The Witcher (originally, Wied?min) was first unveiled in June 2003 and made subsequent appearances at E3 each of the following years. The game utilizes a modified version of BioWare's Aurora Engine and is said to blend fast-paced combat with a twisting storyline driven by players' decisions.

The Witcher's relevance in North America is crippled by a lack of English-translated Sapkowski work (only one short story collection has been translated; to be published in April). Even the awkward name witcher is lost on English-speaking audiences (Sapkowski actually prefers his word to be translated as hexer). Wied?min is derived from the polish word for "witch" (wied?ma), and, as Sapkowski imagined, was invented by magicians as a derogatory term used to describe sterile mutants with (supposedly limited) supernatural abilities. In the game, players are Geralt, Sapkowski's legendary monster slayer, who is a witcher -- "The Witcher."

The Witcher is scheduled for release in North America this fall under the Games for Windows brand, and will be compatible with Windows XP and Vista.

Gallery: The Witcher

Atari to publish The Witcher originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 05 Feb 2007 17:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Carmack blasts Vista gaming initiative

James Ransom-Wiley — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 23:26:00 EST

Filed under: PC, Business

id Software's John Carmack isn't ready for his studio to make the jump to Windows Vista. "Nothing is going to help a new game by going to a new operating system. There were some clear wins going from Windows 95 to Windows XP for games, but there really aren't any for Vista," Carmack recently told Game Informer during a lengthy interview, which also featured id colleague Todd Hollenshead.

While Carmack remains keen on Xbox 360, he thinks the Vista initiative is bogus, accusing Microsoft of using the new OS's "artificial" tie with DirectX 10 to lure consumers (and developers). "They're really grasping at straws for reasons to upgrade the operating system. I suspect I could run XP for a great many more years without having a problem with it," concluded Carmack. Good news for those content with XP.

[Via GamesIndustry.biz]

See also: Games for Windows Vista: how the new brand & OS will change PC gaming

Carmack blasts Vista gaming initiative originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 11 Jan 2007 23:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Was Microsoft's vision for Vanguard Vista exclusive? [Update 1]

Conrad Quilty-Harper — Tue, 16 May 2006 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: PC, Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Online

Sigil Games, developers of the upcoming MMORPG Vanguard: Saga of Heroes, shocked quite a few people by announcing that they were buying the publishing rights from Microsoft so that they could co-publish the title with Sony Online Entertainment. We've already provided some speculation about what the "varying visions and direction for the title's development" between Microsoft and Sigil were, but a tipster (who asked to remain unnamed) from E3 provides another possible reason for the split.

Our tipster claims to have spoken to several developers working at Sigil and at another development company that has Microsoft as a publisher -- we'd say the meat of the tip is on the same level of credibility as someone saying that the Government is tapping your phone (yes, I made a political joke -- the first comment to judge my political affiliation wins my apathy!).

According to our tipster, Microsoft intended to make Vanguard a Vista-exclusive title and Sigil didn't like it. The fact that XP users wouldn't have been able to play the game (limiting the user base quite drastically) and Windows Vista's notoriously slippery release date being the obvious disadvantages of such a move on the part of Sigil. If true, the motivation for Microsoft would have been that the title would be the first MMO to take advantage of Live Anywhere, Microsoft's online games platform which blends Xbox 360, PC and mobile phone devices: more Vista sales = profit!

It's credible that Microsoft wanted to use Vanguard as the first MMO to work with Live Anywhere but that Sigil didn't want its game to be Microsoft's guinea pig and therefore bought the publishing rights. With Vista around the corner, Microsoft wants to provide as much incentive for gamers to upgrade and by making big name games playable exclusively on Vista it can gain that incentive. At the very least we get a kick out of discussing the vague PR explanations of the reasons behind leaving a game's publisher during the beta stage. It's impossible for us to believe that simple, meaningless "varying visions" caused this massive, late in the game move.

Update 1: Brad McQuaid (Sigil CEO, creator of MMORPG Everquest) responds by saying "false rumor", but Joystiq commentator Jack Slater cleverly rebukes: "personally I would just deny everything if I was him, as there is no legal obligation for me to tell the truth on the forums but there is likely a legal obligation to keep the reason for leaving Microsoft undisclosed." Meanwhile, Ctrl+Alt+Del daydreams about how the meeting between McQuiad, Microsoft and Sony went. Funny stuff.

Was Microsoft's vision for Vanguard Vista exclusive? [Update 1] originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 16 May 2006 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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