"Sometimes I feel a franchise loses something when it's shifted off to another shop," Bleszinski told Develop Magazine, speaking of the alternating development used in the Call of Duty series. "You get the primary studio that really understands the franchise, and sometimes the other studio that takes over can do well, but there's something lost in translation, like the game's soul has gone."

Howdee all, I'm Ryan Miller, the newly-appointed PC Gaming Apostle, here to spread the gospel of all things PC Gaming. Just a quick few words about me: I've been playing PC games since I was 12 (programming games in basic on a Commodore Vic 20, tape deck drive and all!!) and have been hooked ever since. I've been working as a game designer for the past seven years for companies like Sabertooth Games and Wizards of the Coast, working on all sorts of card games and miniatures games - I was also on the digital team there and worked on a few yet-to-be-released online games.

PC version coming to Steam "soon."

After an age of warfare, the superpowers of the land of Valoran have come together to form a governing body that will settle all disputes behind the closed doors of the Institute of War. Their task is a noble one — to lift the impossible weight of bloody war off the shoulders of the world and place it upon a select few — The League of Legends. On the Fields of Justice, legendary Champions forge alliances and resolve their differences in battle arenas. In the League there is one rule that reigns over all else: Winner rules all.

In League of Legends, players take on the role of a persistent Summoner avatar that gazes upon the battlefield from above and influences battles by taking command of a chosen Champion. During each online multiplayer play session, gamers will choose one of dozens of unique Champions wielding diverse skills and abilities, and engage in fast-paced team-oriented combat to bring their foes to ruin. Champions will gain levels, items, and abilities that enable them to slay their opponents and augment the strength of their allies by battling with enemy minions, foul beasts, deadly turrets and enemy Champions. Players also advance their Summoner’s rank and power to gain new abilities and items, assisting their Champions in battle.

League of Legends emphasizes team-oriented gameplay and players must work together in order to defeat the opposing team. Players will be able to communicate easily through in-game lounges and chat rooms, and forums will act as a conversational hub for a wide variety of discussions amongst community members. League of Legends will feature custom-built multiplayer support including matchmaking, stat tracking, clan support, anti-cheat systems, dedicated in-game ladders and Leaverbuster technology. In addition to extensive multiplayer features, League of Legends will include a single-player mode where players can learn how to play and practice new strategies by engaging robust Bot-AI.

The League of Legends community will feature an abundance of ongoing events including tournaments, leagues and contests. The Riot development team will open their doors for community input, allowing gamers to have their opinions heard, have their ideas implemented in League of Legends and continue to shape the game as it evolves post-launch. Gamers can already join the community forums to begin tracking the new title, engage with the Riot team and other players and become a part of the development process for League of Legends.

Alex: Game rules aside, how do you think it played compared to, say, Call of Duty 4?

Martin: Hmmm... When we first got the single-player code in I wasn't that impressed with how it looked and played, and that was on a 360, as was our multiplayer experience. Unfortunately the main shooting mechanics of Far Cry 2 don't stand up to the opposition, it's not as fast or precise, and that's quite obvious in multiplayer. It's not as solid a shooter as either Halo 3 or Call of Duty 4, and I'm not sure if it does enough different to oust either of those games from the top spot. Gamers - even the most dedicated hardcore - only have time for one or two multiplayer games, due to the dedication needed to get good and learn the maps, so I'm not sure Far Cry 2 has enough to take from either of those.

Alex: That's what I was saying earlier - it does what it does well, but it's nothing outstanding. I did think some of the levels looked gorgeous though, especially the VIP level that had the sun setting over the horizon. In fact I really like the fact you can play the levels at different times of the day - that's a really nice touch. It's the same with the weather effects - it's all customisable.

The Xbox 360 version is still in development, but how is development for this version going? Are you planning any big changes, due to the problems that you have found with the PC version of age of Conan?

Development on the Xbox 360 version is not our key priority as there are a massive amount of PC gamers already playing the game, and we rightly have the focus on them. While there is a dedicated specialist project team working on Xbox, the PC version will remain our top priority for now.

If anything I think that the console version is greatly benefiting from the many updates and improvements we are constantly making to the PC version, and the launch issues we had will only serve to make the Xbox version a much better experience.

Seeing how a console and a PC is inherently very different in control input, HD space, patching cycle, available memory and so on, there are naturally many challenges involved in this work, and while we have overcome many there are more to go, not just from a design and tech standpoint, but also from business, community and marketing. The time will come for MMO games, or similar experiences, to do great on the consoles though, and hopefully Conan will be one of the pioneers in that regards.

EndWar creative director Michael de Plater has said those waiting for a PC version of Tom Clancy’s EndWar have a good reason to smile.

“Yeah,” he said, when asked if it’s likely we’ll see a PC version somewhere down the line. “There’s no reason not to.”

The exec, speaking to VG247 at a London event last week, added that his previous experience at Total War developer Creative Assembly meant the voice-controlled RTS was very much rooted in PC strategy gaming.

Benchmarks

• HardwareOC Crysis Warhead Benchmark v1.0 - Gamershell

  Boards
  

• ECS X48T-A Black Edition Motherboard - Motherboards.org

  Cases
  

• Hiper Osiris Case - Hardware Logic
• NZXT Khaos Full Tower Enclosure - Tweaktown

  Cooling
  

• OCZ Gladiator MAX Heatsink - FrostyTech

  Memory
  

• Corsair DDR3-1,600MHz - Hexus

  Mice
  

• Microsoft Blue Track - 3DNews

  Power Supply
  

• Cooler Master Ultimate Circuit Protection UCP-900WATT - Tweaknews
• SilverStone ST60EF 600 Watt - NinjaLane

  Video
  

• ASUS EAH4870 TOP Radeon HD 4870 - HotHardware
• HIS Radeon HD 4850 ICEQ4 TurboX - Guru3D
• Palit Radeon HD 4870 Sonic Dual Edition - TechGage
• Sapphire Toxic Radeon HD4870 512MB - Big Bruin
• XFX 9800GTX+ SLI - Gamepyre
• Zotac 9500GT - XS Reviews

Rise of the Argonauts Team Q&A; #4
We ask the developers at Liquid to point out some interesting things that we may want to watch for when playing

Legends of Norrath: Ethernauts Wallpaper #2
SOE's Denver studio offers up a second desktop in anticipation of the impending addition to its collectible title - An exclusive desktop in three sizes

Iconic Japanese developer Grasshopper Manufacture has licensed Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 3 for a new multiplatform action horror game to be published by Electronic Arts Inc. The new game is produced by legendary Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami and directed by innovative game designer Suda51.

“Unreal Engine 3 is a powerful, easy-to-implement game engine that is helping the creative team at Grasshopper quickly bring our vision to life,” said Goichi Suda, CEO of Grasshopper Manufacture. “The innovative tools and technology in Unreal Engine 3 help developers create games faster, easier and with less risk.”

“It’s an honor to work with Mikami-san and Suda-san on their next project,” said Jay Wilbur, vice president, Epic Games. “Grasshopper Manufacture is one of the most daring and innovative studios in the world, and we can’t wait to see what they’re able to do with Unreal Engine 3.

Nick Burton didn’t sound so optimistic. “It’s incredibly hard to solve because there’s so many licence holders involved,” he told Videogamer, “it’s just what happens legally sometimes. Not necessarily with games, but you see it with music and films. Things get locked in this legal limbo. Even most of the parties involved, probably all the parties involved want to solve it.” That wouldn’t be the case of GoldenEye, since Nintendo deliberately banned the release even when they got the opportunity to launch the game themselves.

This is a version of the story that even the third party involved backs up. “It’s not up to us, we want to see that game out there,” another source from Activision told us, “you’ve seen it, it looks amazing and we would love to play it. It was Nintendo’s fault.” In fact, the people at Activision should be the first in line fighting for GoldenEye. “You know, they have nothing to lose. It’s only good for them to get it released,” our Microsoft contact said, “they would make a lot of money they are not making the way things are right now.”

In the meanwhile, Nintendo keeps quiet. Ever since the GoldenEye issue heated up back in January, no website or printed magazine on a worldwide basis has been able to get a single statement from them. “It’s probably going to go down in the annals of gaming history as one of the big mysteries,” Nick Burton concluded.

Head on over to the VN boards to submit them to the Age of Conan Vault.

IGN PC: Spore's been out a while now and there's already an unbelievable amount of content available. Can you give us a brief overview of the galaxy and its varied populations? What's the perception within Maxis and EA of the way the game has been received?

Caryl Shaw: The Spore Universe is off to an amazing start as we've just reached a huge milestone of more than 30 million creations made! When we launched Spore, the community had made 3 million creatures alone with the Spore Creature Creator, so it's pretty impressive to see that number jump so high in just three weeks. Our players' creations are not only a testament to how people have embraced the game, but how they've embraced their own creativity as well. From a 1950's robot creature and a human skull spaceship to a swimming pool building -- there's some very cool stuff on in the Sporepedia at spore.com.

In Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard, videogame action hero Matt Hazard gets his chance to prove once and for all that he is the king of shooters when the new owner of mega game publisher, Marathon Megasoft, gives Matt his comeback role starring in a new title for next-gen consoles that pits him against all of his memorable foes from videogames past. In the world of Eat Lead, however, everything stops being a game and becomes reality when it is clear that someone is using the new game to bring about Matt’s death once and for all. With only the mysterious “QA” to help him, Matt must fight against a legion of Marathon Megasoft catalogue of videogame characters to keep it from being “Game Over” forever.

Eat Lead pays homage to the games of yesteryear with a menagerie of classic enemies such as zombies, space marines, cowboys, genetically mutated super snipers, and more and an expansive level environment design that reflects videogame history in a next-gen package. The game fires on all cylinders with explosive artillery and combat moves to help gamers escape from a variety of predictaments including radically-changing environments during gameplay via “hack effects” Hazard’s nemesis uses by altering the game’s code on the fly. Throughout the adventure, players will utilize a strategic cover system dubbed “point and cover”, upgradeable weapons and different interactive melee moves to attack and outsmart foes.

• Computer Games.ro
• FilePlanet
• Gamershell
• Worthplaying

The demo clocks in at 700MB and lasts just three minutes, as shown in our video capture, which is considerably smaller, by the way.

In Mosby’s Confederacy you command small bands of skirmishers, scouts and guerilla fighters on opportunistic missions to scout, ambush, steal supplies and harass a larger and better armed force of Union soldiers, in this game of turn based strategy and real time tactical combat for the PC.

“John Singleton Mosby was one of the Civil War’s most interesting and dynamic leaders,” said Jeff Fiske, the Tilted Mill designer who came up with the initial concept for the project. “Mosby’s Confederacy is not about the clash of massive armies, but about choosing, equipping, training and caring for a small company of soldiers, and also earning the respect and loyalty of the local populace, which is vital to your success.”

Missions and their objectives are highly randomized, so you’ll need to approach each game differently, carefully planning your strategy for success. Throughout the campaign your progress is tracked, with a full report of your accomplishments provided at its completion.

“Mosby was often outnumbered, often outgunned,” said Matt Zimmitti, the project’s lead designer. “What he had on his side was the element of surprise, a keen understanding of the terrain and individuals that mattered in the moment. The combination of a strategic “Confederacy Level” and a real time tactical combat level allows us to deliver a fast paced real time combat experience without sacrificing the deep and engrossing strategy game.”

Offering entirely new content specifically designed to extend the Tomb Raider: Underworld experience, Tomb Raider: Underworld – Beneath the Ashes and Tomb Raider: Underworld – Lara’s Shadow will deliver two very different single player gameplay experiences. Tomb Raider: Underworld – Beneath the Ashes takes place after the Underworld story has finished and will feature an incredible new environment to explore, additional secrets to unlock and different enemies to fight. Tomb Raider: Underworld - Lara’s Shadow will introduce players to a new kind of playable character and create a unique Tomb Raider experience.

The first new chapter, Tomb Raider: Underworld – Beneath the Ashes, will be available for download exclusively on Xbox LIVE Marketplace this Christmas. Tomb Raider: Underworld – Lara’s Shadow will follow in early 2009.

“We are constantly looking at ways to extend our franchises, whilst developing a deeper relationship with our players. The retail release of any videogame is just the start of the player experience, from there it all depends where you want to take the player in terms of ideas and innovation,” said Sean Vesce. “With these additional chapters and the online reach of Xbox LIVE, we are able to deliver exclusive content to millions of gamers worldwide.”

A demo will also be made available later this month, exclusively through Xbox Live.

Realm vs realm fever hasn't taken hold of our server yet. Occasionally someone will raid a random keep or a tower, but for the most part, people are busy leveling their characters. I have gone on a couple keep captures though, and if you've ever played Dark Age of Camelot, the process is eerily familiar. Keeps have an outer wall and an inner door inside the courtyard. Rams are used to bust them down. The Keep lord and guards are inside to defend even if you aren't. Hook points to buy siege are all over the place, the only difference is that you can actually see them in WAR without having to shift-right click the ground or wall first. Oil can be purchased above the doors to rain fiery death to the siegers below, and you can fight people on the walls and other fun stuff like that. As a Dark Age vet, the idea of going on keep sieges makes me throw up a little bit in my mouth (been there, done that, far too many times) but I am hopeful that group vs group combat will be a more compelling, competitive, end-game option. At least for players like me...

“He was quite reserved about doing our game at first because he didn’t want to be involved in a shoddy product. We had to show it to him three times before he would sign up. When we went to Pinewood Studios we were held up for half an hour because he was playing Guitar Hero.

“They were about half way through making Quantum Of Solace and he got to play some levels of the game that related to scenes he was actually –filming at the time. The fact that he was –evaluating our game made it very high stakes for us. It was quite tense but the end result made it a much better game.”

“Craig is very serious about his roles,” said Gascoine. “You can’t just go in there joking and laughing. You have to establish you are there to do business. If he says he doesn’t like it, you have to listen. He’s also built like a brick shithouse so you don’t argue with him.”

Boards

• Foxconn A79A-S на чипсете AMD 790FX - 3DNews

  Cases
  

• Apevia X-Sniper G-Type Mid-tower Case - Virtual-Hideout

  Cooling
  

• ‘FAN-ATIC’ 5-port Military Switch Baybus - Modders-Inc
• Thermaltake PW 850I Pro Water CPU Liquid Cooling System - Tweaknews

  Video
  

• Palit HD 4850 Sonic - 3DNews
• Sapphire Radeon HD 4550 - Tweaktown
• Sapphire Pure PC-AM2RX780 - OCC

Today's question:

Have any super awesome question of the day or poll suggestions?

P.S. Lego Left 4 Dead!