Sentinel
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Eight top-secret aircraft that definitely aren't UFOs
Since its establishment in 1955, the Groom Lake airfield at Edwards Air Force Base—better known as Area 51—has hosted the development of some of the most exotic and advanced aircraft the world has ever seen. These so-called black projects, named for their ultra-classified nature, have produced planes like the SR-71 Blackbird, which is still the fastest and highest-operating aircraft ever built (that we know about); the F-117 Nighthawk, the world's first stealth attack aircraft; and the RQ-170, a mysterious and seldom-seen aerial reconnaissance UAV.
Range Rover's Sentinel SUV can survive virtually any attack
It's not uncommon for dignitaries and the super-wealthy to get armored vehicles, but Land Rover's new Range Rover Sentinel may be the protected luxury ride of choice -- especially if you're traveling through a warzone. The hand-built SUV looks exactly like the Autobiography it's based on, but has a slew of hidden upgrades that make it impervious to all but the heaviest attacks. On top of expected upgrades like bulletproof glass (it can handle armor-piercing rounds), the Sentinel has a high-strength steel passenger cell that protects against explosions from 33lbs of TNT from the side, and grenades on the floor or roof. That doesn't make it completely impervious, but it would take some deep, deep trouble to put your life at risk.
SWTOR's Sentinel, Marauder discipline changes detailed
No, Sentinels and Marauders, BioWare hasn't forgotten you. Star Wars: The Old Republic's latest class-based dev diary went live today and it's focused on -- you guessed it -- Sentinels and Marauders. More specifically it outlines how your favorite dual-saber class will play after December 9th's Shadow of Revan expansion. Head to the official SWTOR website to read all about the changes.
Sentinel 4: Dark Star is a tower defense star
Strategy and upgrades are at the forefront in Sentinel 4: Dark Star, a tower defense game that challenges players to think on their feet in campaigns. There are 26 maps in the game, each with their own interesting challenges. Some of these challenges include limited locations to set turrets up at and other unique strategy requirements. Sentinel 4 is compatible with iOS devices running 5.1.1 or later. There are two modes in Sentinel 4: campaign and endless. Each mode can have one of four difficulty levels (easy, medium, hard, and psycho). Easy mode is a nice introduction to the gameplay and enjoyable for people new to tower defense type games or those just wanting to play a less challenging level. Medium mode is a good intermediate mode and a stepping stone in difficulty between easy and hard. Enemies become stronger in hard mode and this increase in strength seems natural, adding a new challenge. This is especially noticeable if you are replaying a level you recently beat in one of the easier modes. In psycho mode, each enemy is much stronger and they take a lot more hits to be taken down. It is much harder to get a good defense started and also harder to continue building up that defense. Sentinel 4 rewards players with more weapons, upgrades, and enemy types when they continue to beat levels and progress in the storyline. There are four categories for the weapons (turrets, path, sentinel, and stronghold). The turrets are the basic line of defense for your base and they become stronger the further along in the game you get. The next category of weapons is path, these are droids that can be used in the middle of pathways to block enemies from progressing very far without being damaged. Sentinel weapons are used by the sentinel to attack enemies with more powerful blasts and repair structures and turrets. Finally, the stronghold weapons are similar to the sentinel weapons but is usually stronger and takes longer to charge. All of these weapon categories can be upgraded with anything from auto-repair to increased range and duration of attacks. The upgrading in Sentinel 4 is a lot of fun and enhances the gameplay considerable as it makes the strategy more important. Sentinel 4 features stunning visuals and effects as well which accents the gameplay nicely. The way the lava moves is visually interesting and the lighting looks very natural with the setting of the game. Level progression flows very nicely and fits well with the storyline. However, even though the story fit with the gameplay, defending the base seemed more exciting. Each commander you pick has its own special abilities. For example, the Hyperion, which can be unlocked after completing some campaigns, has the ability to convert enemies killed within its range to energy to charge up your Sentinel. You can upgrade each commander's strength, guns, and tech capacities each with their own benefits depending on how you will be using the commander. Depending on what the level's layout and enemy patterns are, you have to be prepared to adapt your strategy and be conservative with your efforts as a lot of the time you will be limited in your resources and have to make tough decisions. When a level has more than one gate protecting the Sentinel, sometimes you have to make the conscious effort to let the first gate fall in order to protect another area that is getting overrun if you only have enough money to build one turret. Building strong but agile strategies is crucial in this game and with so many options for upgrades Sentinel 4 feels more challenging and addictive than some other tower defense games. Sentinel 4: Dark Star is available on the App Store for US$4.99 and I would highly recommend picking up this addictive game.
The first of Europe's new Earth-monitoring satellites launches today
If the first step in fixing a problem is knowing about it, then Earth's worry-list is about to get a lot longer. The European Space Agency is launching the first of six satellites designed to monitor the choppy environmental conditions down here on our fragile planet. Sentinel-1A will blast off later today, where it'll track floodwaters, deforestation and other natural disasters. When its partner, Sentinel-1B, arrives in 2015, the pair will be able to grab a radar image of anywhere on the planet within six days. Four more satellites will come online before 2020, each one tasked with observing a different element of our ecosystem, including air quality, land changes and sea levels. Think of them as kinda like the team from Captain Planet, only without a "heart" and with more terrifying consequences if they mess up.
WoW Moviewatch: Sentinel
Sentinel is one heck of an impressive music video created by Turel and Khayllys. It involves some incredible music and absolutely breathtaking animation. The video was intended as a thank you to the community that has inspired Turel, so I don't think I'm wrong when I say there are more than a few cameos in the video. You don't see many videos with this kind of quality these days. While the tunes won't be to everyone's liking (kids and their dubby steppy!), you just won't be able to deny that talent that seeps through Sentinel's pores. Take the time to check it out and let us know what you think! Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
Hyperspace Beacon: All SWTOR classes are useful in Huttball, part 1
I'm excited about this week's topic. It's not often that I get to put Star Wars: The Old Republic's misconceptions to rest. As I said last week, my guild does recreational PvP, which is to say that we do it for the fun of it and not because we have to be the best of the best. This helps us enjoy the sport of it without having the pressure of maintaining a ranked-PvP score. Unfortunately, that also means we run into a lot of other players who don't know exactly what they are supposed to be doing in games like Huttball. Those same complaining players are also the ones who claim that their particular class is deficient in one way or another based on the PvP map. The biggest cringe in SWTOR comes from Huttball. Naysayers complain that one class or another does something different or better than they do. Today, I'm going to break down a couple of the classes to show you how each of them can be more effective. Let's dive in.
FBI finally goes digital, Mulder and Scully start throwing out the filing cabinets
The FBI has announced that, after 12 years and $600 million, it has finally abandoned paper records in favor of a computerized system called Sentinel. Resembling a browser, it offers question-and-answer forms, case tracking and an ability to share files across the bureau's network. Assistant director Jeffrey Johnson said that the biggest hurdle was convincing paper-loving agents to get on board, so the system is designed to nag users into adding relevant data that's still extant on dead-trees. With any luck, some enterprising young agent will take advantage of the extensive database to find out the real location of Area 51.
Only Mike Haggar can stop A Sentinel in Metro City
We'll always have a deep respect for Mike Haggar. The guy piledrives sharks and now, apparently, fights Sentinels, evidenced in the impressive stop-motion video above. He is truly a politician for the ages.
The Firing Line: Why you should be playing Tribes: Ascend
Skiing! Jetpacks! Pew pew! Yes, kids, Tribes: Ascend is officially in open beta, and that means you no longer have an excuse. Hi-Rez Studios threw open the doors this morning, and despite the fact that the game's closed beta exceeded all expectations and hosted over 300,000 players since its November kickoff, there's always room for more.
SWTOR: So you want to play a Jedi Knight
If it's true that gamers would rather play Luke Skywalker than Uncle Owen, then the Jedi Knight is the class to put that claim to the test in Star Wars: The Old Republic. The Knight is the Republic side's melee specialist and classic tank-mage, who supplements her melee attacks with taunts, buffs, and Force powers. She operates on the front lines of the war against the Sith, protecting her allies and representing the Jedi Order across the galaxy. Also, lightsabers. Two of them.
Sonim introduces trio of rugged phones, including one with NFC support
Sonim's established a rather solid reputation in the rugged phone genre, with its XP3300 Force claiming the Guinness World Record for surviving the longest freefall this past February. Now it's branching out by announcing three more mil-spec devices at this week's CTIA, two of which will be available in the US starting today. First at bat is the XP1301 Core NFC, a device that lives up to its name by supporting a tag reader optimized for the workforce. It was announced for European availability last month, and is now ready to be sold in the US. Next up is the XP1330 Core PTT, a Push-to-Talk device shipping to select areas in Latin America over the next two months. Finally, the XP3340 Sentinel offers an emergency panic button and a man-down sensor capable of monitoring your phone for any freefalls or impacts, and can make an emergency call in your behalf. All of the above devices include quadband GSM / EDGE radios -- don't expect to use them for hyperspeed browsing -- and have been drop-tested at least 24 times from over six feet. They may not do your laundry, but at least you won't freak out when it drops a story or two. Head to the press release for more specifics.
Hyperspace Beacon: Find your focus
Thanks to the new advanced class page on the Star Wars: The Old Republic website and MMORPG.com's interview with Georg Zoeller, we now know quite a bit about the skill tree breakdown of each advanced class. However, over the next few weeks, I want to take a look at a few of the classes and read between the lines of text. Several abilities are listed for each class, but how do they fit together? What does the complete package look like? The Jedi Knight looks to be one of the most popular classes to play. After all, what kid growing up didn't have a fantasy of wielding a lightsaber just like Luke Skywalker or Obi-Wan Kenobi? I'd like to give a general overview of the advanced class abilities and collate a comprehensive list of the announced abilities. Follow me beyond the cut to see how these puzzle-pieces fit together in SWTOR.
Marvel vs. Capcom 3 patch preps for new mode, tweaks fighters
Capcom launched an update for Marvel vs. Capcom 3 earlier today to prepare for the new "Event Mode" that will be added to the game this Friday -- however, the patch has also quietly introduced a few balance changes to some characters' intricately measured statistics. The most drastic is a reduction in Sentinel's health, which has been dropped from 1.3 million tiny units (the most health of any fighter in the game) to 905,000, according to Shoryuken. The patch also nixes a few fairly unfair loops belonging to Spencer, Akuma and Haggar. Hey, why not remove their grappling hook, forbidden demonic Kung-Fu and impossibly gigantic muscles while you're at it? Those seem pretty unfair, too.
Enter at Your Own Rift: Zero-sum game
Ever since I started following RIFT, I've been entranced by the wide-open -- but not limitless -- class system. After all, the virtual world and everything populating it is only half the game; the other half resides in the avatar that sticks with you while you explore it all. Many MMOs have interesting ways of letting you build and grow your character, but sooner or later they come to a point where there's little more to be done other than incrementally increasing your stats by gaining better gear. Not so with RIFT, as even a level 50 can drop a few coins to shape a completely new build from scratch. No longer are we bound to a rigidly defined creation; we are free to experiment, tinker, and try out these roles to our hearts' content. With RIFT's soul system, there are a few ground rules that everyone learns early in the game. You can have up to three souls in your archetype active at any one time; you can only spend as many points in a build as you have in levels (such as 10 points at level 10); and you'll end up with 66 points at level 50, which means that you'll at least dabble in a second soul tree with every build. And while you can certainly spread soul points across all three trees, today I wanted to look at the benefits of a zero-point soul, the "third wheel," if you will, of builds.
Hsien-Ko and Sentinel confirmed for Marvel vs. Capcom 3, first videos
You might have heard that the Sentinel -- mango or otherwise -- would not be making a return appearance in Marvel vs. Capcom 3. You may also have heard that no more members of the Darkstalkers cast would be joining the roster. You might be inclined to believe these statements because they came from the mouth of Capcom's Ryota Niitsuma himself. Either Niitsuma was misinformed or someone was fibbing. Regardless, here are some videos of Hsien-Ko and Sentinel in Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Hsien-Ko, incidentally, was among the characters mentioned on a purportedly leaked list we posted last year. Sentinel was not, though the this isn't the first time we've seen an unlisted character pop up. [Thanks, Catalyst]
Mass Effect 2 dev profiles Sentinel class, the 'Jack of All Trades'
After Mass Effect 2 lead gameplay designer Christina Norman walked us through the Engineer class and it's sanguinary droid last week, we were wondering how BioWare could possibly appeal to our inner tactician any more. It appears that the developer sought to do just that with this week's introduction to the Sentinel. Skilled in both biotic skills (thats space magic, folks) and tech abilities, Norman says the Sentinel is "the only class that can blast through any enemy's defenses ... with or without your squad backing you up." With only a handful of weeks left before the game's January 26 release date, it won't be long before we get to find out exactly how adept the Sentinel is for ourselves. %Gallery-80283%
Builds, powerhouses and tiny pets in Champions Online's new State of the Game
The big focus for this week's State of the Game for Champions Online is builds, which act as a way to switch your group role on the fly. The four flavors are: balanced, offense, defense and support -- or Guardian, Avenger, Sentinel and Protector, as they're known respectively in-game. Builds are part of a system that's designed to allow for more flexibility, and thus create characters who may be focused on defense for one mission and protection on another.Another point of interest are the addition of Powerhouses, which are the in-game training rooms where players can test out potential new powers before committing to them. They're also where retraining occurs as well, so consider them your one-stop shop for all power selection possibilities.As for the image you're seeing on our post, well, that's an action figure! Everyone loves chibi versions of characters and you can't have an MMO without tiny little personal pets following you around. So, who wants a mini-Foxbat? We know we do, because nothing's cuter than tiny super villains.
All the World's a Stage: So you want to be an Alliance Rogue
This installment of All the World's a Stage is the twenty-fourth in a series of roleplaying guides in which we find out all the background information you need to roleplay a particular race or class well, without embarrassing yourself. Many of the most famous rogues outside of the Warcraft setting have been nuanced and exciting characters. Bilbo Baggins, the Prince of Persia, and James Bond, could all be reimagined as rogues if they had existed in Azeroth instead of their own settings. As an Alliance rogue, you have a certain amount of freedom to borrow from other settings, or from the real world, since the Alliance races tend to be more similar to heroes of other stories we've heard before. To a certain extent, Blizzard has already based its Alliance rogue guilds on stories from other settings, and left some aspects of these institutions rather vague. There is certainly enough room for roleplayers to fill in a bit of the blanks with their own creative inspiration. The only danger is that it could be easy to overdo it and descending into Mary-Sueism: one ought to feel free to reach for a bit of the flavor of James Bond, for instance, without ever believing your character is the single best secret agent Stormwind could ever have.
All the World's a Stage: So you want to be an Alliance Warrior
This installment of All the World's a Stage is the twelfth in a series of roleplaying guides in which we find out all the background information you need to roleplay a particular race or class well, without embarrassing yourself. From the way that warriors are available to nearly every race in the game as a sort of default fighter person, you'd think that they would be the fallback choice for any number of different sort of characters you might imagine. Any sort of regular shmuck could be a warrior right? You just gotta pick up some sort of weapon and start swinging it around at an enemy, yes?No. Even though the Warrior class is available to almost every race in the game, every race has its own tradition of what it means to be a warrior -- it's not just a farmer with a pitchfork running around and trying to kill things. Warriors go through extensive training, learn to wield a wide variety of weapons, and train themselves in staying upright and charging about even while wearing all kinds of heavy metal on their bodies.So today we'll look into some of the ways that the races of the Alliance understand what it means to be a warrior, and see which heroes your character might look up to, as well as the archetypes these heroes represent.
