half-life 2
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HL2 plushie headcrabs...you know, for kids
I'm not sure how many little kids are gonna be trading in their raggedy teddy-bears for Valve's official plushie headcrab, but I do know one grown man-child who is seriously considering plunking down the relatively steep $25 asking price. C'mon, for that price you could get Half-Life: Episode One and have enough left over to pick up an authentic crowbar, for that real Gordon Freeman experience.We all know these are gonna sell like crazy...question is, how many people are gonna be lazy and just name it Lamarr? How about Hedy? The name's Hedley!Click the "Continue" link to check out some additional pictures of Valve's plushie cuddlies.[Thanks, Muskie, Alex, and mofomojo]
Half-Life 2 storyline cheat sheet
Once Half-Life 2: Episode One rolls around this June, there may be plenty of gamers scratching their heads, getting their Citadels confused with their City 17s; their Black Mesas confused with their Wallace Breens; and don't forget about the G-Man. Who the eff is that guy?If you've been unfortunate enough to play neither Half-Life nor Half-Life 2, you may want to avoid Chan Karunamuni's thorough timeline of the Half-Life epic thus far. If you have played them, you'll want to freshen up before Episode One drops, which is sure to bring levels of Lost-like confusion to each installment. Pop quiz: Who "unknowingly helped the Combine campaign by launching a Lambda satellite into space?"[Via digg]
Garry to sell his mod through Steam
Garry's Mod, one of Half-Life 2's most popular mods (which is like a big sandbox for middle aged men the Source engine), is to be sold for $10 on Steam with half of the profits going to Valve and half going Garry. The latest version will become the first release of the mod requiring payment, with a slightly earlier version becoming a free demo.People usually get angry when something that was previously free suddenly requires money. However this deal is a good thing for the GMod community and gaming in general. Like Garry says, "I planned to release a few bug/security fixes and leave it at that. This deal bought GMod back." It's about time that hard working modders were provided with the ultimate form of motivation: cash.
Gordon Freeman goes to Boot Camp on a Mac
Consider this a followup to our earlier post about Half-Life 2 running on an Intel Mac hacked to dual boot both Mac OS X and Windows. Now, with Apple's Boot Camp software and the official drivers bundled therein, Macs can not only run PC games (like Half-Life 2) in Windows, but can run them "shockingly well."The test computer -- an Intel-based iMac, with an ATi Mobility Radeon X1600 graphics chip -- does indeed appear to run Half-Life 2 swimmingly. If the embedded YouTube version is acting up, be sure to check out the higher quality Quicktime version on Cabel's site.[Thanks, kevan]
HL2: Episode One site is up, with plot details
Following in the footsteps of fellow Source-based, Steam-distributed episodic title SiN's announcement earlier this week, the website for Half-Life 2: Episode One is now live. Featuring the obligatory media page, the obligatory overview, and the obligatory release information. The site details a June 1st retail and Steam release; the Steam version will be available for pre-load on May 1st with a 10% discount for pre-purchases.What is interesting here is the plot synopsis, a sort of "previously on Half-Life 2" refresher course on the twists and turns of the story. As episodic games accrue the same complicated (or convoluted, if you're the cynical type) narratives that define television shows like Lost or 24, you can expect to see more of these updates, whether in-game or online. The "Story So Far" describes the aftermath of HL2, and the setting for Episode One, this way: Consciousness returns. Gordon and Alyx discover they've somehow escaped both the reactor explosion and the G-Man's malevolent grasp. Before they can ponder their miraculous survival, the crippled Citadel lurches back to life just long enough to initiate a self-destruct sequence. With Alyx at his side, Gordon must flee a city in chaos before the Citadel's final detonation turns City 17 into a toxic, mutant-infested crater.[Thanks, AndrewNeo]
Half-Life 2: Episode 1 set for June release
Pro-G is reporting that the release of Half-Life 2: Episode 1 has been pushed back to June 30. Originally titled Aftermath, this first expansion to the award-winning 2004 shooter had been given a May 31 launch date at the GDC last week.In related news, Valve boss Gabe Newell says it should take roughly seven hours to play through Episode 1. Read Game Informer's interview with Gabe.
Half-Life 2 running on a Mac... and there goes a flying pig
The moment that many Mac gamers have been waiting for has arrived: Half-Life 2 is playable in at least one way, shape or form on a Macintosh computer. The video shows a MacBook Pro booting Windows XP, opening Steam and running HL2 in what appears to be software mode. Full 3D acceleration is still a while off (the hackers have only just managed to get the Mac mini's integrated graphics chip to work, albeit very flakily) but hopefully it won't be long until ATI or another enthusiastic Mac gamer/hacker steps up to the task of providing dual platform video drivers for Intel Macs.[Thanks, Jay. Via TUAW]
Battlefield 2142 scans of PC Gamer cover story leaked
The Battlefield 2142 hoopla is starting to look more and more real as scans of the PC Gamer issue in question have surfaced online with BF 2142 featured as the magazine's May cover story. Digg contributor Iced_Eagle has pointed us to an 8.5MB archive of images from the mag, with 9 pages concerned with 2142 and 2 pages having to do with Half-Life 2: Episode 1. If you're interested in knowing "where your unstoppable 20-foot Mech is," then you'd best get to that reading online or off ASAP. For those still skeptical of any gaming news outlet coming out with such a story in the general vicinity of April Fools' Day, keep in mind that the game appears to not only be the magazine's cover story, but that its coverage also fills up all those pages of print mentioned earlier. EGM merely dedicated a single page with a brief line in the table of contents to its Apple iGame prank this year, so this would seem like a lot of effort on PC Gamer or some extremely dedicated Photoshopper's part to fool the gaming public. Will this fall prove to be the point when the BF franchise finally frags in the future? At this point, it would certainly seem so. Read on for further details about the game; the cover pic links to the scans.
Half Life 2 on a Mac
So we all know that last week, the solution was released to allow Intel Macs to dual-boot between Mac OS X and Windows XP. And a lot of people (even a few of our readers...gasp!) have been rending their clothes, twisting their undergarments, and gnashing their teeth at the thought of a Mac running WinXP. Oh, why oh why must people besmirch the glorious Mac and sully its gleaming perfection with an OS as vulgar and nefarious as Windows XP? Oh, the travesty, the inhumanity!Yeah, blah, blah blah...whatever. It's about games, plain and simple. And I knew that the first thing people would do once they got their Intel Macs to boot Windows would be to install games. Witness this video of Half Life 2 running in Windows on a MacBook Pro. Not all is perfect, however. There is no fan control on the MacBook Pro running Windows XP and so you risk cooking your MacBook Pro if you run WinXP for too long. Update: [Okay, so the jury's still out on this one; some people are reporting significant fan and heat problems, and others are not. As always, know that installing WinXP on your Intel Mac may violate your warranty, and that if you fry your Mac because there isn't actually any fan control, it's not Apple's fault, or even Microsoft's fault. It should go without saying of course: be careful. Know what you're doing.]In my own WinXP on Mac experiments, I've as yet been unable to get WinXP Pro to install on my 20" Intel iMac. Even with the newest xom.efi file, the WinXP install hangs at 0% and won't continue. So I'm playing the waiting game until the people writing the xom.efi boot loader(s) figure out the problem and release a new one.
Half-Life 2: Episode Two confirmed by Valve
You didn't think it would end with Aftermath, did you? As a follow-up to Aftermath (now entitled Episode One), Valve has confirmed that Episode Two has been in development for quite some time ("about as long as Episode One," according to IGN). No other details are available right now, but it's safe to say that Episode One/Aftermath (whatever you wish to call it) will not be answering all of the questions left open by the Half-Life 2 ending. According to CVG, who will soon post an interview with Episode One designer Robin Walker, the initial release will offer around 5 hours of gameplay and will give more details as to the G-Man's involvement and the fates of the Breen and the Citadels. [Thanks, Jon D and the "almighty" Ludwig]
Valve does a little two-step
Gamers don't like to be dicked around. When thieves stole the source code for Half-Life 2 a number of fans set out to find those responsible. If the guys in custody are actually guilty then it's fair to say hell hath no fury like a gamer scorned. But perhaps Valve should watch their step, as well. The game company keeps a tight hold on their properties which includes keeping their games out of cybercafes. Turns out a cybercafe that offers Counter-Strike has been informed they are to pay Valve for use of the license. No warning from Valve that the cafe should stop offering the game. No courtesy call. Nothing. You could call that hardball or you could call it thin skin, but it definitely reeks of a bad taste. Is that any way to thank the gaming community?
