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Reminder: Gears of War maps now free
If you're being honest with yourself, you're not going to be paying much attention to Gears of War a little later this month. Now, don't feel bad for Gears, you two guys had a great run. Remember when you tried to stay in the light to avoid getting eaten? Remember the first time you roadie ran? Gears will always treasure those moments, and he knows you will too.But why not give the old guy a proper send off? Why not pop in the disc, give it a spin, and get the "Hidden Fronts" map pack that went free yesterday. Think of it as the last party of senior year, when everybody gets together for one last hurrah. That way, you won't feel too bad when Gears is relegated to its case on the 25th. And remember, no matter which game gets your love next, you and Marcus will always have Emergence Day.
The Joystiq Labor Day Weekend 2007
We hope those that celebrated Labor Day today spent their time catching up on some much-deserved gaming. Or maybe making a fantastic Gears of War tribute in LEGO like legohaulic did (via Brothers Brick). Check out the highlights for the weekend:JoystiqueryMetareview -- Lair (PS3)Podcast Rodeo for Sept. 2: A jury of your earsWeekly Webcomic Wrapup, brought to you by the letter WNewsJapanese NiGHTS trailer sort of a nightmareGears of War 'Hidden Fronts' map pack free starting Sept. 3Google Earth now has built-in flight simulatorBioShock designers talk a lot on Bonus Round *spoilers*Vivendi Games sees 92% increase, gets on knees and thanks Elune for WoWNew games this week: Stranglehold editionAdventure Island headlines Virtual Console MondayWii outsells PS3 three-to-one in Japan, Xbox 360 continues nappingFarCry, Prince of Persia, Rabbids, Ghost Recon for free on PCPlay Lair on PSP with remote playWarhawk is download-only for JapanSid Meier talks about consoles stepping up to strategyESA's Gallagher spends time gaming with Washington PostMarvel vs. Capcom for digital download hopes Marvel exec.Rumors & SpeculationRumor: Master Chief getting waxed for Madame TussaudsCulture & CommunityUnexpected hardcore gamer in the familyMaster Chief vs. dinosaur, Halo 3 marketing in KoreaGames Convention can't leave Leipzig until 2009 and probably won'tCapcom releases partial TGS lineup
Gears Hidden Fronts is now a free download
We just wanted to remind everyone that the Hidden Fronts map pack for Gears of War is now a free download off the Xbox Live Marketplace. The Hidden Fronts pack includes four maps (Garden, Process, Bullet Marsh and Subway) and was previously available for 800 Microsoft points when it released back in May. But now it's free, so you have absolutely no reason not to get back into the game and earn the game's final 250 Gamerscore. We'll see you online playing some new Hidden Fronts map pack goodness, have fun and stay away from those Kryll.
Gears of War 'Hidden Fronts' map pack free starting Sept. 3
Originally available in May for around $10, the Hidden Fronts map pack for Gears of War will be available for free starting Monday. This falls in line with statements made by Epic's Mark Rein earlier this year that they'll try to get content out for free eventually, but it is Microsoft's store they're working with and they do need to make money. According to Microsoft, the map pack was already downloaded by a half-million people and has become the #1 piece of premium downloadable content on the marketplace. Thank gawd, we were afraid if could have been the odious Gears of War COG tag videos. The map pack will be free globally. At this point Gears of War has sold four million copies and, according to Microsoft, holds "the highest cumulative number of hours played by Xbox Live members." Let's see how long Gears of War can hold on to that title starting at the end of this month.%Gallery-2901%[Via Press Release]
Gears Of War Hidden Fronts free this Labor Day
Microsoft has announced that the Gears of War "Hidden Fronts" map pack will become a free download starting this Labor Day (which is Monday for our international friends). The map pack will officially become free starting at 2:00AM PT September 2nd. It should be noted that this isn't a timed promotion akin to the XBLA price drops this weekend, but rather a permanent change. So, if for some reason you still don't want the map pack on Monday, you can always pick it up some other time, free of charge. The "Hidden Fronts" map pack includes 4 maps: Subway, Process, Garden, and Bullet Marsh. If you'd like a refresher on what these maps contain, you can view our rundown after the break.
Rumor: Underworld director to helm Gears of War movie
We don't have any official confirmation on it as of now, but IESB.net is reporting that Len Wiseman, director of the Underworld films and Live Free or Die Hard, is in talks to develop and direct Gears of War, along with a remake of Escape from New York.Again, we don't know if this is official, but it seems a solid enough pick if true. We know Wiseman has some decent visual chops, so nailing the Gears style shouldn't be tough. As far as character direction goes, what is Marcus Fenix if not a half-vampire/half-werewolf crossed with John McClane? Sure, we haven't loved his previous films, but it could absolutely be worse. [Via Ain't It Cool News]
Mark Rein on Halo 3, 360 UTIII mods
Remember the CVG interview in which Epic VP Mark Rein stated that Microsoft's E3 showing hurt Halo 3? Now the first part of the interview has been published in its entirety, giving a further look at Rein's opinions. One of the more interesting tidbits, after his spiel about the Halo 3 showing, he goes on to admit that Halo 3 will break all of the sales records set by Gears of War. According to Rein, "We've had a nice nine, ten months of being the record holder, and now we're going to get our ass kicked. In a good way." Good form, old man, good form. Rein goes on to discuss the various versions of Unreal Tournament III and Gears of War PC and the fate of its exclusive content (hint).Also worth nothing, in the second part of the interview, which has yet to be published, Rein admits that the reason for the delay of the Xbox 360 version of Unreal Tournament III is that Epic has yet to sort out how user created mods will work on 360. Rein notes that in the "worst case scenario" Epic will submit user created mods to Microsoft for certification and offer them as downloadable content. Rein adds that, "hopefully between now and whenever it is we ship on Xbox 360, we figure out a user-managed way to do it." Our fingers are crossed.Read -- Mark Rein interview, part 1Read -- Epic struggles with UTIII mods on 360
Epic's Mark Rein: Consoles will define look of PC games
Speaking to CVG, Epic Games vice president Mark Rein has expressed his belief that graphical advancement in PC games will be partially reined in (OOF!) due to the limitations and financial viability of consoles. "Publishers are generally putting their money where the highest return is, and in the past that's been on consoles and I think that's still the case," said Rein. "So if you build the game that's a really super amazing high-end game, how do you make all the money you could make from that game, because it'll be too high end eventually to be on PS3 or Xbox 360."As a result, Rein expects consoles to "pretty much define what the next five years of games look like on the PC" and titles pushing the DirectX 10 envelope to be in the minority. PC versions should, however, benefit from several enhancements a la Gears of War. "That's the value to me of the PC, that the source content we have is still really high resolution, much higher than we can show on a 512MB machine. You can use that content on the PC, you can express it in higher resolutions and higher frame rates and turn on more effects. I think that's what you'll see, PC games where we turn it up higher." Though it sounds like console technology is cramping the PC's style, the Xbox 360 and PS3 (and those who develop for them) are still immersed in the design transition from single processors to parallel architectures. There's a lot more wind to be coaxed from those sails yet.
Gears of War PC with 20% more
More Marcus, more Dom, more Brumak! Mark Rein, VP of Epic, says to EuroGamer that the PC version of mega-hit Gears of War adds "about 20 percent extra." Rein also reaffirmed that the extra PC content, like the Brumak fight, will not be making it onto the Xbox 360 due to changes in the "codebase." OK, who wants to take the first crack at: "Even Epic can't get their own engine to do what they want? Har, har." Gears of War on PC will have added level content, multiplayer maps, game modes and a game editor. Now, where to find the extra money for upgrading your PC to run the game smoothly? On the bright side, you could always just play with your Gears of War dolls, which we're sure will be a lot cheaper than upgrading a PC. Gears of War on PC is expected this fall.
Gears of War gets all dolled up with action figures
They aren't dolls! They're action figures! And they aren't Gears of War munny dolls either, which makes us sad pandas. The National Entertainment Collectables Association (NECA) has announced they'll be making action figures based on Gears of War "and any potential sequels." Sadly, there isn't a single prototype to show off so we'll just have to keep staring at the cute munny doll."Only once in a while does a property come along that is so rich in content, with amazing character designs and groundbreaking achievements in art, music, and story. While having to turn down most properties made available to us, this was an offer we could not refuse," said Joel Weinshanker, president of NECA. He apparently didn't notice how many dolls action figures his company actually makes. Well, we gamers are suckers for anything with the word "collectible" on it, so collectible action figures probably fall into the same category. At least now some people will be able to fulfill their Marcus and Dom make-out scenes with their dolls action figures.
Gears of War action figures announced
NECA has announced a new partnership with Epic Games, in which it will produce a new line of Gears of War collectibles. Said collectibles are set to include action figures, busts, dioramas, and even "prop" replicas (full size Lancer anyone?). The toys collectibles are expected to be available in 2008, just in time for a possible sequel to the 360's breakout hit. An interesting tidbit in the press release is that NECA has acquired the license for Gears of War and "any potential sequels" to the game, adding fuel to such speculations. For those who are interested, NECA has produced many video game related collectibles, including toys based on Resident Evil, Hitman, Tomb Raider, and an upcoming line of Castlevania toys. No further information, such as which specific Gears of War toys will be made or how much they will cost, has been revealed.
Chainsaw or curb stomp Velvet Revolver this Friday
July's Artist of the Month Velvet Revolver will be partaking in the Game with Fame festivities this Friday by playing some Gears of War. This Friday, July 27th from 10:00PM - Midnight eastern the Velvet Revolver rockers will be online playing Gears, so we advise sending a friend request to "GWFVelvet" for your chance to play with the band. Once your friend request is sent, sit back, wait for a chance to play and ponder how you'll be finishing off the band. We already know how we're taking out Slash as our chainsaw is already greased and ready to rip.
By golly it's a Gears of War soundboard
For those of us who are involved in the art of prank phone calls or simply enjoy hearing video game character quotes we've unearthed a Gears of War soundboard for you to enjoy. The Gears soundboard features multiplayer and campaign quotes from the Locusts and the COG killing crew including Marcus, Dom, Baird, Cole and Carmine. Experience a locust growl, hear the ear pleasing sounds of Baird exclaim "shit yeah!" and the multiple variations of Marcus' "nice". Give the soundboard a listen and be sure to show your friends, because this little online doodad will give you instant Gears cred. Honest.[Via Gearheads of War]
Gears of War, UT3 coming to Macs
At this rate, it's becoming difficult not to play Cliffy B's roadie-running extravaganza. During an interview with Game Head's Geoff Keighley, Epic VP Mark Rein revealed that Gears of War is in development for Mac OS X, along with Unreal Tournament 3. This news follows Epic's E3 announcement that Gears is in development for PC, with additional features not seen in the Xbox 360 version.No development details or release dates were mentioned. Given the casual nature of this announcement, however, one can assume that both Gears and UT3 will be ported from the PC to OS X using Cider, rather than being developed natively. No love for PowerPC users; though it might be time to consider that Intel-based Apple you've been eyeing ...[Update: It appears these are coming to the Mac natively, not through the magic of Cider, according to this comment from MacSoft's Ryan Gordon: "And no, neither game is using Cider." Impressive. Thanks for the link, David!][Via X3F]
Gears of War will be roadie running onto Macs
We thought we heard the extent of how far Gears of War was willing to stray from its Xbox 360 roots, but now we're hearing about an even further departure. In an interview with Game Head's Geoff Keighley, Mark Rein talked up Unreal Tournament 3 and Gears of War and accidentally let the news slip that both games were headed to the Mac platform. Rein confirmed Gears' Mac-bound status when answering Keighley stating that "yes, Gears is going to come to the Mac and so is UT". The news was not followed by a release date or how far in development the Mac versions are.Anyone willing to bet that Gears Mac will have even more content than Gears PC all of which won't be available to 360 owners? Anyone? Nobody? Shucks ...
Gears of War and UT3 coming to the Mac
Back at WWDC one of the most surprising things was the emphasis on gaming. Well apparently Uncle Steve and Co. were serious as Epic has confirmed that the Xbox 360 mega-hit Gears of War as well as the highly anticipated Unreal Tournament 3 are both coming to the Mac. On a video at Gametrailers.com, Epic VP Mark Rein reveals the news. As the resident 360 maven let me assure you that getting Gears on the Mac should make a lot of Mac gamers happy. There's no word on timing, but with announcements like this there's reason to hope that the future of gaming on Intel Macs looks bright.[via MacMinute]
New GoW PC content not coming to the 360
The Advanced Media Network sat down with Epic's Mark Rein and Cliffy B to chat about their big E3 announcements and learned some sad news about the new Gears of War PC content. When questioned about whether or not the new campaign missions or multiplayer maps announced for the PC version would be headed to the Xbox 360, Rein said it was "unlikely [that] we will bring that content to 360". Cliffy B further emphasized their doubt by stating that "if we didn't have any sort of exclusive on the PC, why would people buy the PC version?". The Epic crew explained that bringing the PC content over to the 360 would be an extremely time consuming task and that they're currently focused on other projects like Unreal Tournament 3.Being the Gears fan that I am it's hard to hear that new, exciting multiplayer AND campaign content will be available, but not for 360 owners. And no, there's no way I'm personally buying a beefy computer to run Gears of War PC just to experience the new content. No matter how you slice the news it sucks for 360 owners and Gears enthusiasts ... it's simple as that. Now, I'm going to go cry myself to sleep.[Thanks, Jason S]
Gears of War PC official, not Vista exclusive
It just not a gaming event without a little CliffyB. Lo and behold, he made an appearance at Microsoft's E3 press conference to announce (you guessed it) Gears of War PC. In an announcement that surprised precisely zero people, the game was made official. While the announcement itself wasn't earth-shattering, there were definitely a few choice nuggets of new info worth noting. Cliffy did honor the conference crowd with a quick demo of the game, showing off some of the PC exclusive features. Naturally, the game makes use of Games for Windows Live, which Cliffy demonstrated by playing with a buddy. He also revealed that GOW PC will feature new single player chapters, new multiplayer modes, new multiplayer maps, and an entirely new set of achievements totalling 1000 points. In another surprising revelation, Cliffy announced that the game would be shipping for both Windows Vista and XP. Given the hoopla surrounding the Vista-only releases of both Halo 2 and Shadowrun, it looks like Microsoft may be trying to make things write with PC gamers.Of course, Gears of War PC does raise a few questions. Will the new content be offered to 360 Gears of War fans? Will cross-platform play be available? We tried to get answers from Microsoft, but for now it remains a mystery.
First video of Gears of War on PC
The just-announced Gears of War looks fantastic on the PC. The already-beautiful Unreal Engine 3 is pushed even further on Games For Windows as can be seen in this first ever footage of the game running on the PC. With new levels, a level editor, and more surprises on the way, will Xbox 360 owners cry at feeling neglected by this "super-awesome" version?
Gears of War and Viva Pinata go to PC
Gears of War is no longer a Xbox 360 exclusive. Neither is Viva Pinata. Two of Microsoft's premiere console titles is now getting the Games For Windows treatment. The Game of the Year-winning shooter from Epic will gain a few enhancements on the PC, such as five new levels, a new editor, and "some very big surprises." Could the game look even prettier on a DirectX 10 PC? Believe it. Thankfully, the game will run on both Windows XP and Windows Vista.Viva Pinata and a major list of new Games for Windows titles were revealed at the Microsoft keynote, including titles such as Age of Empires 3: The Asian Dynasties, Stranglehold, Blacksite: Area 51, and Kane and Lynch: Dead Men.
