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The Best of Big Download: February 15 - 21
A ton of huge PC game news surfaced this past week, such as the launch of StarCraft 2's beta test and the announcement of Civilization V. Who says PC games are dead? No, seriously, who? We want names. Let's take a gander at what's happened during the past seven days on our site. Exclusive features StarCraft 2 beta impressions: We take a few hours to play through the multiplayer beta of Blizzard's sci-fi RTS sequel and give you our thoughts. Playing PC games with Alienware's Aurora ALX: Alienware's tricked out Aurora ALX is expensive but very fast. We take it on a test drive. Bioshock 2 review: We give our final word on the first person shooter sequel that takes us back to Rapture Sins of a Solar Empire Diplomacy/Trinity review: We play and review the second and final micro-expansion to the space strategy game Kings and Castles Interview: We are the first web site to chat with Gas Powered's Chris Taylor about their newly announced fantasy RTS game. Opinion: "Always On" should be turned off: We offer our humble opinion on Ubisoft's new PC game DRM policy. Boot Disk: Our retro games feature checks out Team 17's classic turn based strategy game Worms Armageddon. All You Need To Know: We give you the 411 on the upcoming open world action game sequel Just Cause 2.
The Best of Big Download: February 8-14
The news cycle has certainly started ramping up in the game industry over the past week! From major press events to a handful of major announcements, we've been flush with gaming news and original features (you didn't think we'd forget about the original stuff, did you?). Below you'll find said features for the week, as well as our newest downloads -- but if you want all those hot news scoops, you've gotta click past the break, friends. And don't say we never did nothin' for ya: Exclusive features Boot Disk: Our weekly retro game feature checks out the sci-fi RTS game Earth 2150. Freeware Friday: Our weekly look at free PC games takes a gander at Planet M.U.L.E, a revival of the classic sim game. Downloads Free Command and Conquer Games: Download the full versions of Tiberium Dawn, Tiberium Sun and the first Red Alert for free. Tales of Monkey Island: Launch of the Screaming Narwhal Mac Demo: Mac owners can now try out a sample of Telltale Games and LucasArts's episodic adventure game. Fallen Earth 10-Day Free Trial Client: Play the full post-apocalypse MMO for 10 days with this download. Ghost Recon Future Soldier Teaser Trailer: Download this teaser for Ubisoft's next game in the tactical shooter series.
The Best of Big Download: February 1-7
Apparently there's some "foot ball" match or something on today, but, ya know, you're already sitting there in front of your screen -- why not check out some of this week's features and news from Joystiq's PC sister site Big Download? What's that? Because you're a heartless monster? No excuses! We accept doting, loyal readers and heartless monsters alike. As always, features are below and downloads/news are after the break. Get to it! Exclusive features Reviews: We give our final verdict to two BioWare games: Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age Origins: Return to Ostagar. Star Trek Online Stories We Want To See: The newly launched MMO has a ton of fictional history that we would love to see expanded in the game. The Top 10 PC Gaming News Stories of January 2010: We pick out the top news stories of the past month plus a couple of honorable mentions. Sins of a Solar: Diplomacy interview: We chat with Stardock's Brad Wardell on the upcoming space strategy expansion. Boot Disk: Our retro game feature checks out Return to Castle Wolfenstein. All You Need to Know: We give you the 411 this week on Battlefield Bad Company 2. Freeware Friday: Our weekly free PC game feature looks at the rogue-like game Desktop Dungeons.
Altis Gates closed beta download available
IGG.com recently introduced their latest MMO, Altis Gates. Altis Gates is a turn-based fantasy game in which players battle in the continuing aftermath of a 300-year war, long after it was thought to be over and forgotten. The game will begin closed beta at 8:00 pm EST February 2nd, and if you're interested in giving it a try, our sister site Big Download is ready and willing to help you out. Big Download has partnered with IGG to offer closed beta keys. Just head over to their site to read up on Altis Gates, then download the special beta client provided. The file includes a unique "Closed Beta Activation Key" text file. Follow the instructions found in the file and you're all set. The offer is available to anyone who would like to try the Altis Online closed beta, so visit Big Download, get your activation key, and have fun!
The Best of Big Download: January 25 - 31
January 2010 ended with the release of one of the best games of the year in Mass Effect 2. At least -- we assume it's one of the best games of the year. If they get much better than this, we're going to be in good shape. However, PC gamers have even more goodness in store for February. Before we enter a new month let's look back at the events of the last seven days in January. Exclusive Features Independent Games Festival 2010: We look at all of the nominees entered into the annual celebration of indie games. Check out part one, part two, part three, part four and part five of the series. Interviews: We chat with the co-founder of CD Project on GoG.com and more and with Gas Powered Games' Chris Taylor on Supreme Commander 2. Opinion: Apple's iPad - threat or help to PC gaming? - We give our opinion on if the new Apple device will affect PC gaming. Boot Disk: Our retro games feature checks out the original Tropico. Freeware Friday: Our weekly feature on free PC games checks out the rogue-like Tiny Crawl.
The Best of Big Download: January 18-24
It's been a slow first few weeks of 2010 in terms of new game releases, but get ready for things to pick up starting with next week's release of Mass Effect 2. In the meantime check out Big Download's features, downloads, and news items for the last seven days. Or else. Exclusive Features Dark Void Review: We give our final verdict to the third person action game from Airtight Games and Capcom. Boot Disk: Our retro game feature takes a look at the 1998 railroad sim Railroad Tycoon 2. All You Need To Know: Our 411 game column gives you the info you need on Star Wars: The Old Republic. Freeware Friday: Our look at free PC games checks out the classic shooter Tribes 2.
The Best of Big Download: January 11-17
It may have been a slow week for new PC game releases, but that doesn't mean there wasn't lot of news to report and files to download on Big Download this week. Let's check how what happened in the past seven days: Exclusive Features PC Gaming at CES 2010: We examine what PC gaming related items were revealed at this month's Consumer Electronics Show -- everything from Sixsense's PC motion controller to word that Dark Void Zero is heading to PC as well. How about that?! King Arthur Review: We give our final verdict to the recent RTS-RPG game from Neocore Games (spoilers: "Meh.") Boot Disk: Our retro games feature examines the classic WWII war game Panzer General. All You Need To Know: Our 411 game feature gives you the info you need on BioShock 2. Freeware Friday: Our weekly look at free PC games checks out The King, The Queen and The Jester.
Star Trek Online open beta key giveaway [Update]
Today's the big day and we here at Massively are happy to say that we've got oodles of Star Trek Online keys to give away. Okay, we're going to stop with the rhyming for the day. We mean, it's not the kind of thing that can really stay, anyway. Er, what just happened to us? In any case, head over to our special giveaway page to grab yourself one of our 10,000 keys, but hurry while supplies last! When you're warping through space, right up into the grill of your enemy (Picard Maneuver style) and unloading your entire array of lasers and photon torpedoes. Oh and don't forget the client, which you can find at our sister site Big Download. No need for an account or anything, either! [ Edit: If the Big Download file isn't working for you, there are other options to try: http://startrekonline.com/download] [ Update: All the keys have been given out. Hope everyone enjoys their time in open beta! ]
The Best of Big Download: January 4-10
In case you hadn't noticed, CES 2010 dominated the news this week. Heck, there were even a few interesting PC game items to report from the show -- a rarity in recent years! Let's look back at the highlights of the past seven days: Exclusive Features 10 Games We Wish Were Coming in 2010: There are some upcoming games that have already been announced that won't be out this year. We pick 10 that we wish would arrive just a bit earlier. Pretty please? Black Ops PC Games For 2010: There are plenty of games that are still being developed under a cloak of darkness/shroud of mystery/hood of deception. We pick candidates for our "black ops" PC game titles this year. Tales of Monkey Island Review: How about our final verdict on the entire five part adventure series from Telltale Games and LucasArts? 'Cause here it is! Done! Boot Disk: Our look at retro games checks out the original team based shooter -- Counter-Strike. Freeware Friday: Our look at free PC games checks out the paroday game title Merry Gear Solid
The Best of Big Download: December 28-January 3
We're lucky that the period between Christmas and New Year's Day is a tad on the slow side in the news department. Quite frankly, New Years partying combined with the disassembling of holiday decorations and removal of festive trees (we usually get four or five) has us exhausted and a little melancholy. Oh, and we also wrote a whole mess of content over the last week just for you, in case you were wondering. Hit the break for news items and peep some original features below: Exclusive features 2010 Previews: We conclude our look ahead at the next year in PC games with a RPG-MMO preview and an RTS-other games preview. Plus we pick our top 10 most anticipated PC games of 2010, give our predictions for the next year, pick some 2010 console games that should be PC games and offer up some 2010 wishes for the PC game industry. Top 10 PC Gaming Related Failures Of The Decade (2000-2009): Sometimes things just don't go off as planned. We examine some of the biggest failures of the past decade in the PC game industry. Team Fortress 2 Demoman-Soldier Achievements. We conclude our look at the new additions to Team Fortress 2 with part six and part seven of the Demoman achievements and part six and part seven of the Soldier achievements. All You Need To Know: Our 411 column checks out the upcoming BioWare RPG Mass Effect 2.
Big Download picks best PC games of 2009, previews 2010
If you're not already directing your eyeballs to our PC sister site Big Download for all your PC gaming news, well ... why not? Hmmm? That sounds like a personal problem, if you ask us. Anyway, they've recently posted their rundown of 2009's best PC games (as well as writing up a whole mess on what you can expect from 2010), and we figured we'd give you a heads up. Looking for a list of vaporware titles from this year? They've got you covered. How about the top PC games of the past decade? Done. Top 10 consoles games that should be on PC? You betcha! Lessons on how to speak in Na'vi? Okay, not so much. They've gotta draw the line somewhere, right?
The Best Of Big Download: December 21-27
Christmas week was slow in the news department, but busy in the original features section at Big Download. Let's peruse what we've been up to in the past seven days: Original features 2009 In Review: We give our picks for the best PC games of 2009 in our annual Big Download Awards. We also pick our 10 favorite PC game demos of 2009 and point out some PC games and related products that turned into vaporware this year. And finally, we give our picks for the best indie games and which indie games would be great holiday gifts. The Top 10 Most Disappointing Games of the Decade (2000-2009): As a follow up to last week's feature of the best PC games of the decade, we give our picks for those PC itles that didn't live up to their hype. 2010 PC Game Preview: We begin our look at the next 12 months in gaming with part one and part two of what action and first-person shooter games are expected in 2010. Team Fortress 2 Soldier-Demoman Achievement Guides: Want to learn more about the two newly updated Team Fortress 2 classes? Then check out part one, part two, part three, part four and part five of our guide review and part one, part two, part three, part four and part five of our Demoman guide. Gratuitous Space Battles Review: We give our final verdict for the recent space strategy games by Positech. Kung Foo! Interview: We chat with comic book author Devin Grayson on her work adapting the upcoming satirical MMO game. Mac Monday: Our regular Mac games column returns with looks at two games: Osmos and Guns of Icarus. All You Need To Know: Our 411 column returns with a info dump on Star Trek Online. Freeware Friday: Our weekly look at free PC games checks out the title Varia.
The Best of Big Download: December 14-20
Just because many feet of snow have fallen on some of us since we last spoke doesn't mean we weren't plenty busy with news, features, and downloads this past week. Below and after the jump you'll find just some of our highlights from the past seven days -- that is if you're not too busy with snow clearing or going to see movies in the third dimension: Exclusive Features The Best PC Games of the Decade (2000-2009): We celebrate the last 10 years by looking back on the PC titles we think were the tops in the 2000s. The Top 10 PC Game News Stories in 2009: What events shaped the PC game industry in the past 12 months? We have our picks for the news stories that changed the industry last year. Dirt 2 PC review: We give our final verdict to Codemasters' rally racing game. Interviews: We chat with the folks behind the upcoming Stargate Resistance and get a post-release update on Torchlight. The State of Mac Gaming: Part 4: We conclude our look at the current and future state on gaming on the Mac. Boot Disk: This week our retro game column checks out id Software's original Quake. Big Ideas: Our weekly look at game themes examines whether PC games have had a "golden age" of development.
The Best of Big Download: December 7 - 13
The Spike TV Video Game Awards were the source of a lot of new game announcements and reveals last night, but they weren't the only source of major news items in PC gaming this week. Let's look back at the past seven days at Big Download: Exclusives Big Versus: In our latest Big Versus, we pit Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare against Modern Warfare 2. Interviews: We chat with the people behind the upcoming shooter The Scourge Project and also with the head of Smoking Gun Interactive. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed PC review: We give our final verdict to the PC port of LucasArts's action game. The State of Mac Gaming: Part 3: It's the third part of our four part series that examines Mac gaming. Boot Disk: Our retro games feature checks out X-Com Apocalypse. Freeware Friday: Our free PC game column checks out the unusually titled Magic Planet Snack.
Patch 3.3 download mirror
Our sister site Big Download has hosted the patch 3.3 files for easily accessible and speedy downloads. Right now they only have the North American PC and Mac patches available, but they will be getting the international versions of the patch up later today. Head over there and grab the patch if you haven't been using the background downloader the past month. Enjoy! PC NA/US Patch - World of Warcraft Patch 3.3 Mac NA/US Patch - World of Warcraft Patch 3.3 We'll update this post with international versions when they become available. Comments have been disabled on this post. We need to be sure we only link to source we are 100% confident are virus free, and cannot allow outside links to executables. Thanks for understanding.
The Best of Big Download: November 30 - December 6
We may be running out of 2009, but there was still a ton to report and talk about in PC gaming in the last week. Let's check out the big stories from the past seven days at Big Download: Exclusive Features PC Game Multiplayer Holiday Gift Guide: Check out some gift ideas from Big Download from the current year and also some budget titles from past years that are still available. Left 4 Dead 2 Game Guide: Check out the last two campaign guides for Valve's zombie shooter (Flood of Hard Rain and Flee The Parish). Plus go back and check earlier entries in the series. R.U.S.E muliplayer hands-on: We check out the multiplayer beta test for the upcoming and different WWII RTS game from Eugen and Ubisoft. Unreal Tournament and Quake III Arena: 10 Years Later: We look back at the release of two of the most influential multiplayer shooters of all time. The Wake of Guybrush Threepwood: Is the hero of the Monkey Island series really dead? We try to find out in this preview of the fifth and final chapter of Telltale's downloadable adventure series. Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter Review: We give our final verdict to Croteam's FPS graphical remake. The Top 10 PC Game News Stories For November 2009: We give our picks for the biggest PC game news stories for last month. The State of Mac Gaming - Part 2: We continue our look at the current stats of games on the Mac platform in this second part of a four part series. Big Ideas: Our regular look at game thmese continues with an examination of death in games and possible alternatives. All You Need To Know: We give you the 411 on Ubisoft's upcoming stealth action game Splinter Cell Conviction. Freeware Friday: Our look at free PC games checks out the indie game title Probability O. Contests: You still have time to enter our Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter giveaway and check with Big Download next week for even more giveaway contests.
The Best of Big Download: November 23-29
How was Thanksgiving weekend for you? Eat a lot of turkey and then took a long afternoon nap? Watch a lot of football? Put up your holiday decorations? Raid stores for deals on Black Friday? Man, you must be tired. Just sit back and check out what Big Download posted up during the last seven days. Exclusive features Left 4 Dead 2 Game Guide: If you want to be fully briefed on Valve's zombie co-op shooter sequel, then you've come to the right place. We started our Left 4 Dead 2 Game Guide with the first chapters on Identifying New Threats, Knowing Your Arsenal and our first campaign guides Hit 'Em Dead Center, Hosting a Dark Carnival and Catching Swamp Fever. Look for the other entries next week! Holiday Gift Guides: Black Friday may be over but the holiday shopping season has begun. Take a look at our PC gamer gift guide for non-game present ideas as well as our picks for some single player title gift suggestions. And if you want to do some download shopping for your gamer we have evaluated the major PC game download services. Interviews: We chat with the creators of the just released indie strategy game Solium Infernum and the upcoming action game Zombie Driver. Gyromancer review: We give our final verdict to this Square Enix-Popcap puzzle-RPG collaboration. The State of Mac Gaming: In this first part of a multi-part series, we look at the current state of gaming on the Macintosh platform. Big Ideas: In our latest entry in our look at gaming themes we look at if single player gaming is truly becoming extinct.
The Best of Big Download: November 16-22
Was the past week good for you? It certainly was good for us. As usual Big Download had a bunch of exclusive feautures, news items and downloads for any PC gaming fan. Let's take a look back at the last seven days:Exclusive Features Left 4 Dead 2: Check out our review of the PC version of Valve's shooter. Plus you still have time to win one of five Steam download codes for the full game. Interviews: This week we chatted with the creator of the upcoming 8-bit version of Left 4 Dead along with the COO of Reality Gap about the new free-to-play title Battleswarm. Mac Monday: This week we focus on two Mac games: Drawn: The Painted Tower and New Star Soccer 2010. Boot Disk: This week our retro games feature looks at Interplay's Fallout 2. Big Ideas: Our weekly look at game themes examines what, if anything, could be considered taboo in games. All You Need To Know: Our weekly 411 on a game titles gives you the info you need on Assassin's Creed 2. Freeware Friday: Our popular look at free PC games checks out the browser-based Captain Forever.
Rumor: Interplay's Fallout MMO in-game screenshots leaked by ... Interplay
With original Fallout IP holder Interplay currently embroiled in a legal battle with new Fallout IP holder Bethesda Softworks, it's no surprise that the most recently "leaked" images from Interplay's Project V13 are said to be from an "anonymous, but reliable" source. The Vault Wiki even goes as far as to claim that the images are directly from Interplay, saying "These screenshots were actually submitted by Interplay as court evidence to show that the game is in full production already." Putting on our super sleuth detective caps, a Nuka-Cola billboard and the inclusion of a supermutant in these screens certainly confirms they are from some form of Fallout game. Big Download points out that these screens look awfully similar to concept art released by Interplay not too long ago. Without any solid confirmation from Interplay as to the origin of these screens though, we're gonna have to keep it filed strictly under the "rumor" category for now. %Gallery-78209%[Via Big Download]
The Best of Big Download: November 2 - 8
The first full week of November 2009 kept us at Big Download on our toes with a ton of news, downloads, and special features. As usual, we take some time to smell the roses and look back at the past week. Please, won't you join us? Exclusive features Unreal Development Kit: We were all over the release of Epic Games' free version of Unreal Engine 3 with a feature on the UDK itself and interviews with the teams behind the first two free UDK games; Whizzle and The Ball. Reviews: We give our final verdicts for Borderlands, Torchlight, AI War: Fleet Command and Shattered Horizon Interviews: We had interviews with the CEO of the gaming PC maker Maingear and the lead designer behind Shattered Horizon. Serious Sam HD Preview: We go hands-on with a near final version of Croteam's FPS remake. Mac Monday: Our look at Mac-based games checks out two titles: Trapped: The Abduction and Harvest: Massive Encounter. Boot Disk: Our look at retro games checks out the classic space strategy title Master of Orion II. Big Ideas: Our regular look at game themes examines what people's perceptions are on beauty in a game. All You Need To Know: Our 411 feature gives you everything you need to know about Blizzard's upcoming Diablo III. Playing For Free: Our weekly look at online free-to-play games has our opinion on CrimeCraft which recently turned into a free-to-play game. Freeware Friday: Don't turn out the lights. This week's column on free PC games checks out the super-spooky Au Sable. Contest: You still have some time to win one of three Steam download codes for Shattered Horizon.
