Thanks to Inc Magazine for its article discussing Kuma Reality Games' attempts to promote its downloadable Kuma: War PC videogame. The piece explains of the previously mentioned title, which "lets players march in the boots of U.S. troops... fighting Taliban and al-Qaeda forces in Afghanistan [or] defending U.S. battlefield commanders from assassination attempts in Iraq", that polarizing forces were at work - Keith Halper of Kuma laments: "It's hard when people accuse you, on the one hand, of exploiting the military and, on the other, of working for them." It's also noted of the press campaign around the game: "Gamespot, one of the most popular websites for PC gamers, asked Kuma to alter one ad's content, which some at the site found 'disturbing,' according to RDA's media buyers. Kuma denied the request."

Thanks to Insert Credit for its brief news that Enterbrain's "RPG Maker XP has been released [for Japanese PC users]. Lots of features added, lots taken away. You can download the [Japanese-language] demo, or check what's new on Zepy's page, since he went into a bit of detail about it." An in-game screenshot and several example pages show a complex 2D RPG creation utilty, and Zepy elaborates: "This time you can finally have high resolution/full colour graphics! And Ogg sound! No limit to character and map chip sizes! You can directly program your own scripts... with the triple map layers, you can have cloud or fog overlays!" Although the console RPG Maker series has been released in the West by Agetec, the PC version has yet to be officially translated and released.

Thanks to Ron Gilbert's weblog for pointing out a GameDev.net article discussing the topic of "Designing Games for the Wage Slave" . The author explains: "We balance on the knife's edge between our glorious time-squandered youth, and the commitments of inevitable middle age... If games can adapt to the needs of the working gamer, they can find a lucrative niche." He goes on suggest practical tips for game developers, including 'Don't Waste My Time' ("Make every moment count. I don't play games to punish myself. I play them to be entertained, rewarded, and challenged"), 'Curiosity Killed The Cat...' ("Constant death was a necessity in the days of video arcades... Now, in the comfort of our lounges or offices, what reason is there to keep dumping us out of the game we bought with our hard earned cash?"), and 'I Need Help' ("Make any necessary information available from within the game.")

Thanks to GameSpy for its article analyzing Banc Of America's in-depth report on videogame prospects for Christmas 2004. The report, previously referenced on Slashdot earlier this month, is now available for download [PDF link], and GameSpy explains the report "[isn't] trying to predict what the best games of the holiday are going to be. They're predicting what the best selling games are going to be, and which ones will meet expectations set by company leaders." The Banc analysts predict that Halo 2 "will be the second-best seller of the holiday season, just behind GTA: San Andreas", and suggest that certain titles, specifically "Bloodrayne 2, Terminator 3: The Redemption, The Red Star, 100 Bullets, Crash n' Burn, Predator: Concrete Jungle, and Shadow Hearts 2", should be moved beyond the holiday season entirely, to "avoid big-name products coming out on the same time-frame."

TheAlchemist writes "Applefritter.com has posted recordings of the talks that took place at the Vintage Computer Festival held at Sun's Boston campus July 16th and 17th. One of the talks revolved around the Atari 7800's 20th Anniversary, and was presented by Curt Vendel of Atarimuseum.com and Steve Golson, one of the original designers of the Atari 7800, the successor to the Atari 5200 that has more in common with the 2600 than the 5200. The presentation and accompanying slide show covered the history of GCC (the company that designed the 7800 for Atari, as well as many 7800 games), Atari, and the 7800. Sitting in the front row of the audience were 10 former GCC employees, who provided additional insight during the presentation. You can listen to the full Atari 7800 session here, and can find more talks from the Vintage Computer Festival here."

pretzelsofwar writes "The popular Red vs. Blue: The Blood Gulch Chronicles from redvsblue.com, releases its Season 2 DVD shipping August 2nd. The DVD is available for pre-order if you haven't already contributed to the website for Season 2, which is freely downloadable in lower-quality formats. It is not yet known when and if Season 3 will begin, but many await the arrival of this machinima series based off of Microsoft and Bungie's Halo: Combat Evolved."

Thanks to GamerDad for its editorial focusing on recent attitudes to videogame piracy, in which a change in approach is argued for: "The [ESA] should be less focused on the ratings system... and more focused on educating consumers that downloading games is theft, plain and simple.... Consumers only understand one thing, the game is available freely on the Internet with a minimum of work and that means they don't have to pay for it." The writer continues: "I can't bring myself to download games, even the things at a place like The Underdogs which specializes in supposedly 'out of print' games to download. Out of print used to mean something was rare and worth something. In the digital media world it apparently now means 'Ok to steal.'" He concludes by suggesting ways to make games more attractive again: "One great way to do that is including good stuff in the box. Give me a color manual or include a poster. Maybe a CD with all the music from the game? How about liner notes with each game describing some part of development?"

Thanks to GameSpot for its article discussing issues with the online modes of Sega's PS2/Xbox title ESPN NFL 2005, as "a server update will be released on Friday 'to address the login and roster problems some of you are experiencing.' The problems affect both the PlayStation and Xbox versions of the game." Amidst messageboard rumblings of "AI issues", the high-rated, budget-priced title also seems to have a separate problem with the Xbox Live version, as it's advised if you're "having difficulties getting another user to accept your challenge or if you are not receiving challenges once you've created a match, [to] power down your Xbox and restart" - the developers, apparently wrestling with the previously mentioned Xbox Live "LSP (Live Server Protocol)", are planning to fix this problem by August 6th.

Thanks to DIY Games for its article discussing the possibility of using micropayments to pay for videogames. The author argues: "With the spread of high-speed Internet and some experiments with on-line game authentication, it seems only natural that game developers, especially the smaller ones, take advantage of micropayments", but goes on to point out possible issues, both monetary ("The most obvious argument against micropayments remains the real transaction cost. As the argument goes, each monetary transaction generates certain fees and these fees may be higher than the payment") and technical ("...the regulation of micropayments by European bureaucrats.") Are there situations where you'd prefer micropayments for playing episodic, small, or regularly updated games?

Cryect writes "Appears that Doom 3 is making use of Ogg Vorbis to reduce memory usage for sounds. This comes from id programmer Robert Duffy's latest plan update where he says: 'When we started on memory optimization, most levels used between 80 and 100 megabytes of sound data. We made the choice to move to .OGG for quite a few sounds which effectively removed the problem for us.'" Duffy also comments on texture usage in 'Ultra' mode ("In Ultra quality, we load each texture; diffuse, specular, normal map at full resolution with no compression. In a typical DOOM 3 level, this can hover around a whopping 500MB of texture data") and framerate ("The game is capped at 60fps for normal game play. For render demos, like what was used for the HardOCP stuff, we run those at full tilt which is why you will see 60fps.")

StanTheHand writes "Horizons, the Artifact Entertainment PC MMORPG, has joined forces with PlayVault to 'migrate' users from a bunch of other MMO games - it works by 'fetching your old game currency so [Horizons] can provide you with the proper amount of currency on your new game', meaning you can go from being rich on Ultima Online to rich on Horizons seamlessly." In related news, as noted by Terra Nova, Artifact Entertainment "has now filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors in a move to keep operations alive", although "game play will not be interrupted at all by this decision."

jvm writes "Since my current PC is beefy enough to play Doom 3, I began planning for id Software's next game, the one that will come out _after_ Doom 3, so I've worked out the release date and minimum system requirements. It looks like a 3GHz processor and 1.5Gb of RAM just won't cut it in 2007, although the hard disk requirement doesn't hurt too much. Where's this information coming from? From id Software's past game requirements, a couple of exponential and linear models, and some pretty graphs. Start saving for that upgrade now! (Slashdot recently covered the Doom 3 system requirements.)"

Thanks to GameSpot for its 'GameSpotting' article discussing the longtime game player's "soft spot" for 2D games, and why, in the author's view, "3D polygonal graphics still haven't entirely surpassed 2D game art." He explains: "In a way... I think the cinematic power of gaming almost took a step back with the transition from 2D to 3D. 2D game characters are displayed precisely how the artist chooses to display them to you. There is no extraneous frame of animation to be found. 3D game characters, meanwhile, are yours to control, so you may rotate them and view them from whichever unflattering angle you like." It's also argued: "2D games handle collision detection (or the interaction between two characters or objects) better than 3D games do... [and] I think 2D game characters still have the capacity to display more-lifelike emotions than 3D game characters do."

Thanks to an anonymous reader for pointing to an AdventureGamers interview with ex-LucasArts developers Autumn Moon Entertainment regarding its early-in-development graphical adventure A Vampyre Story. They explain: "With the drop in sales for [the traditional graphical adventure] genre, it became harder to get assigned to new adventure game projects at [LucasArts]. It seemed like the only logical way to be a part of that kind of project again was to create something independently." The late-2005 due project is still seeking a publisher, but is further profiled in the June 2004 Inventory PDF magazine, and the interview also explains the plot ("A young French opera star becomes the object of obsession for a deranged vampire... She must escape his castle and return to Paris"), and possible game duration ("The game will be shorter than Curse of Monkey Island and longer than Full Throttle.")

Ngamer writes "Logan West, a member of a fanatical group of gamers known as "The Elite," recently created a Nintendo fan's ultimate dream: his Nintendo Entertainment Console is a composite of the NES, SNES, N64, GC, and Gameboy, all combined into a single system! With no shortage of electrical/carpentry ability, Logan carefully dissected his consoles, wired them to a central unit, then crafted a wooden vessel to host all five systems as one. Logan has already gotten a response from Nintendo after submitting his creation to them--they were quite impressed!"

Thanks to IGN PS2 for its first look at the unlikely double-licensed Lego Star Wars videogame, which is, as it sounds, "a Star Wars game based on the LEGO license." Apparently, the Traveller's Tales-developed multi-platform title, due out in 2005, "recounts the events of the first three episodes in the Star Wars trilogy -- The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and of course, Revenge of the Sith" with Lego-based visuals, and 1UP.com has a few more details on the game, which "mixes and matches characters and vehicles from all three movies in the ongoing prequel trilogy -- Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn from Episode I are the main characters, but it's possible to unlock many more characters from either side of the force and drop them into free-flowing action sequences." IGN PS2 also has hands-on Comic-Con impressions of X-Men Legends, the Raven-created squad-based console RPG with "4-player co-op... [and a] mixture of classic beat 'em up controls and RPG ideals."

Thanks to Fortune.com for its article exploring the apparent success of often 'budget' publisher Majesco, which allegedly "scores extra points (and stays alive) by going where other publishers won't: the discount bin." The article explains: "Because the average value game costs a mere $250,000 to produce, Majesco needs to sell only 15,000 to 50,000 copies to break even, vs. anywhere from 200,000 to one million for more expensive titles." It also points to other, bigger-budget Majesco titles such as Bloodrayne and the forthcoming Advent Rising, noting: "While big publishers have the deep pockets to ride out a flop, virtually every one of Majesco's major titles - which can cost $5 million to $10 million each - had to hit big", though these larger development costs are somewhat offset by the value titles, of which it's suggested: "Those cheap games may not have flashy, big-budget effects, but parents are often more than willing to snatch one up for their kids on an impulse."

Ant writes "The Battlefield: Pirates v0.31 modification for Battlefield 1942 is now available for download. You can be either be a pirate or a zombie pirate (skeleton), and this neat mod allows you to use various boats (e.g., galleons), various guns, cannons, balloons, kegs, grenades, stone throwing axes, muskets, cutlasses, etc - there are screenshots of the Beta on the official site." What other Battlefield 1942 mods are worth checking out?

redune45 writes "The Halo 2 Theatrical trailer ends with the normal Xbox logo, but it also briefly replaces xbox.com with ilovebees.com. Going to ilovebees.com it appears that the site has been 'hacked', adding to the mystery. The 'owner' of the site set up a separate blog with a post talking about the error. There is a huge thread on the Bungie.net forums on the same issue. The WHOIS information for this site shows that it was first registered on June 14, 2004. But no obvious clues other than that are available. What is going on here?" There's at least one Wiki set up to gather clues. We also mentioned this in an earlier Halo story.

Thanks to GamerDad for its article discussing some of the most recent strategy videogames to get boardgame conversions, including the Age Of Mythology, Civilization, and WarCraft boardgames. The author notes: "In much the same way that it is sometimes necessary for a good movie to stray a bit from a good book, a board game can sometimes play better by not trying to exactly emulate its computer predecessor. Regardless, all three of today's games provide a new way to experience a favorite computer game setting." He goes on to rate the AOM ("a very pretty game... [with] the fatal flaw of its combat mechanics"), Civilization ("quite complex and involved, but... possible to play and finish in a single long session"), and WarCraft ("succeeds in creating a slower paced, simplified version of the computer game") adaptions.