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Doom 4 to be compatible with Oculus Rift VR headset
Doom 4 will be compatible with the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset (the one that was over-funded via Kickstarter in less than 24 hours last week), just like its baby brother, Doom 3 BFG Edition. id Software has been involved with Oculus Rift for some time, showing off Doom 3 BFG running on Rift at this year's E3 and including a copy of the game with every Rift dev kit."I'm excited for once Doom 3 ships, and gets out there, I'll put all this stuff into the Doom 4 platform, which will be nice to take our current top-of-the-line stuff and have that in virtual reality," id's John Carmack told Polygon at QuakeCon. "I'm looking forward to doing that."The Oculus Rift Kickstarter has so far raised more than $1.26 million of its desired $250,000, with 26 days to go.
Stripped down version of Rage used to bring classic Doom games to PS3
The PlayStation 3 runs Doom, thanks to technology developed 18 years after the game's debut on PC. A stripped down version of id Tech 5 was used to port both Doom and Doom 2 to Sony's current-gen console for the upcoming Doom 3 BFG Edition.Speaking with Joystiq contributor Britton Peele at QuakeCon 2012, id Software Creative Director Tim Willits said the "easiest way" to get network support working on PlayStation 3 was to start with Rage, the 2011 shooter in which id Tech 5 debuted."We never released Doom 1 and Doom 2 on the PlayStation Network," Willits said. "So we're like, 'OK, what's the easiest way to do this?' And what the guys did instead of rewriting all the network support, [support for] friends, and all that kind of stuff, is they took Rage, took out all the 'Rage' bits and put Doom 1 and 2 on top of it." Despite the update in background tech, the classic games look identical to their original '90s counterparts.Willits added that when PS3 players launch the classics this October, they will actually be "launching most of id Tech 5," with a "game loop that runs Doom 1 and Doom 2." Isn't technology grand?
Steam featuring QuakeCon-inspired bundle, Rage $10 today
To celebrate the festivities of QuakeCon 2012, Valve is slashing prices on select games from id's stable until August 6. Today's deal is Rage at 50% off – down to $9.99.Aside from the daily deals, Steam is also selling a special $100 QuakeCon bundle that includes pretty much everything in Bethesda and id Software's current library. Pre-purchasing Dishonored on Steam will net users an additional discount on the bundle, which features over thirty games, DLC for included titles, and a few special QuakeCon-inspired Team Fortress 2 items.
id taking a break from mobile to work on Doom 4
QuakeCon is happening in Texas this weekend, and id software head John Carmack has been giving interviews to the press on hand. He told The Verge that id software has decided to step away from mobile development long enough to focus on the forthcoming Doom 4. "We did make the decision to close up our mobile development," says Carmack, "which saddens me a lot ... I hope we get back to mobile in various ways in the future, but the big real aim is blockbuster, AAA titles, and for id that means Doom 4, it means that we get the whole company behind that after we get Doom 3: BFG Edition out the door, essentially everybody will be focused on Doom 4 as a project." In the past, id has had some solid success on the App Store, both with ports of old id games, as well as versions of newer games like Rage. But it looks like for the moment, id is done with putting out new releases on the App Store. I wouldn't worry too much about this. Clearly, Carmack knows and loves Apple's mobile platforms, and its a common practice in big studios to focus the team on a sigle project, especially when its as big as Doom 4. For now, the team may be focusing in on an AAA title, but I don't think it'll be long at all before we see some more mobile work coming out of id and its developers. #next_pages_container { width: 5px; hight: 5px; position: absolute; top: -100px; left: -100px; z-index: 2147483647 !important; }
The Lost Mission of Doom 3 BFG Edition
QuakeCon kicked off today with a batch of screens and a new video for Doom 3 BFG Edition, showing off The Lost Mission, a pack of new content exclusive to BFG's remastered homicidal action. As you can see in the above video and screens below, the new Doom 3 can be just as jump-worthy as the original, but supposedly with more Bs, Fs and Gs (Blood, Flaying and... Geese?).Doom 3 BFG Edition is scheduled to drop on October 16 in North America, for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.%Gallery-161678%
id Software hiring for next-generation console game
id Software is preparing to create something on next generation consoles – something with a user interface, which narrows it down to any software of any kind. Luckily, the UI Programmer job listing that reveals this information also states id is specifically working on "an unannounced game on future-generation consoles."As superannuation (who spotted the listing) points out, the listing calls for "Familiarity with id Software games, characters, brands and universes," which suggests the new game may be part of one of id's existing franchises: Wolfenstein, Doom, Quake, Rage, or ... Commander Keen. Probably not that one.
QuakeCon 2012 schedule has panels full of Valve, Bethesda, id
QuakeCon 2012 begins Thursday, August 2, with a keynote address from id Software co-founder John Carmack – and then the con gets real. Literally, it will be a real convention with a few interesting panels and people, as announced in the final lineup today.Friday begins with "The Making of Games," featuring Bethesda's Todd Howard and Insomniac's Ted Price. Then comes "Capture the Fan: Making Multiplayer Games That Last" with Chet Faliszek from Valve, Marty Stratton from id Software and Max Hoberman with Certain Affinity. "Looking Back at Looking Glass," and "Talking Shop: Skyrim, Modding and Steam" have Valve and Bethesda representatives, and "Virtual Insanity" closes out the night with Carmack.Saturday has "GameTrailers' Bonus Round" with Michael Pachter and others; "Celebrating id Modding" with Blendo Games, id Software and Double Fine; and the Idle Thumbs Podcast with Double Fine, Telltale Games, Bethesda and The Fullbright Company.Doors are open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. Check out the full schedule below.
QuakeCon 2012 to have playable Dishonored, Doom 3 BFG Edition
QuakeCon 2012 kicks off August 2 in Dallas, Texas, and details about its sweet gaming offerings are coming in. First, the Quake Live tournament will see professional and amateur players compete for a share of $30,000 in the Duel Invitational Masters Championship, Capture the Flag Open, Duel Open and Free For All, the last of which will be available to attendees at the Quake Live Free Play booth.Registration for the Quake Live tournament is open now through July 31 on the Quakecon site.The annual keynote address will be handled by id Software co-founder John Carmack. The full panel lineup is set to be announced in a few days, but it will include "Marty Stratton from id Software; Ted Price, President and CEO of Insomniac Games; Chet Faliszek and Tom Leonard from Valve Software; and Geoff Keighley, host of Spike's GameTrailers."Minecraft EDU and PVP will also have a presence at QuakeCon. At Bethesda's own booth, QuakeCon attendees can get their hands on both Dishonored and Doom 3 BFG Edition.
'Rage: The Scorchers' pops up on PEGI, smells like DLC to us
When Rage launched last holiday, it made reference to a faction that didn't make it into the final game: The Scorchers. It appears that The Scorchers are back, as a listing on Europe's PEGI game rating website outs something named "Rage: The Scorchers" for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC.Siliconera spotted the listing and dated it to less than a week ago. For its part, Bethesda hasn't offered a comment, though we've reached out for more info. Thus far, Rage has zero DLC beyond a day-one "Anarchy Edition" bonus. Ahead of the game's launch last year, id Software's Tim Willits told GamesIndustry.biz, "Our immediate plans, of course, are some DLC for Rage," so it stands to reason that DLC of some form for the game is still planned.
Doom 3 'BFG Edition' bringing Hellspawn to retail on Oct. 16 in NA, Oct. 19 in EU
Smack in the middle of the busiest game release season of the year, Bethesda is re-launching Doom 3. The publisher announced this morning that Doom 3 "BFG Edition" – which includes "re-mastered versions" of Doom 3 and its "Resurrection of Evil" DLC, as well as the new content dubbed "The Lost Mission" – arrives on October 16 in North America and October 19 in Europe.Should all that Doom 3 content not be enough, both Doom 1 and 2 are included in the repackaging, and the whole schebang runs $39.99 on 360/PS3, while it's $10 cheaper on PC. Of course, if you wanna play it in virtual reality, Lawnmower Man-style, that's gonna require a heck of a lot more money. And being friends with John Carmack would also help.
Doom 3 'BFG Edition' brings Hell to 360/PS3/PC 'this fall' with entire back catalog in tow
Are you experiencing a dearth of Doom? id Software is worried about just that possibility, as evidenced by today's announcement of Doom 3 "BFG Edition." Doom 3 is getting remastered and repackaged, with the "Resurrection of Evil" expansion and seven brand new levels, which id are wrapping up as "The Lost Mission."Beyond remastering graphics, id's also adding Achievements, Trophies, and 3D. In the gameplay department, a "new check point save system" is being added, and the ever-frustrating flashlight issue is being resolved with "the new armor-mounted flashlight." If that weren't enough, the BFG Edition includes both Doom 1 and 2, so you can truly vanquish every single last demon in all of the space hells, all in one package. Finally!
The Soapbox: Games-as-a-service sucks for the consumer
Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column. If you pay close attention to game industry marketing-speak, you've probably heard of something called games-as-a-service. It's an initiative that's been gaining momentum in recent years, as publishers and development houses look to increase revenue, strangle used game sales, and clamp down on both PC and console piracy. It's also championed by a few of our more clueless game "journalists," more often than not due to their (desire for a) cozy relationship with the aforementioned industry players. Put simply, games-as-a-service seeks to change both the definition and the public perception of the phrase "video game" from a product that you buy to a service that you rent, thereby granting developers and publishers complete control over the end-user's experience. If that sounds somewhat nefarious, that's because it is. It's also something that MMORPGs have been doing for two decades.
Wolfenstein 3D celebrates 20 years of machine guns and flag-obscured passages with free web version
To commemorate the big two-oh years since its release, Bethesda has offered up the full Wolfenstein 3D experience to play for free in your web browser. Not only that, you'll also be able to play the id original on iOS devices gratis (at least for today) and creator John Carmack has decided to offer us a director's commentary on the game's development while shooting his way through a few levels. Watch, nod and reminisce right after the break, then hit up the source to play for yourself.
Wolfenstein 3D celebrating its 20-year history by going free on browsers, iOS
Yesterday, Wolfenstein 3D was a measly 19 years and 364 days old. Puh-shaw, we say. Today, however, the game is a full 20 years old, and id Software is throwing the classic FPS a celebration. Rather than sending all the game's fans party hats and individual slices of cake, though, id's ported Wolf 3D to web browsers, making it totally free!But perhaps you're not around a computer at the moment, and you'd prefer to play on the go? id's got that covered too, making the iOS port of Wolfenstein 3D free for today only (the iTunes page still reflects a $1.99 price as of this writing, but Bethesda says it'll flip to free "later today").Or maybe you've already played Wolf 3D more than you'll ever need to? Creator John Carmack recorded a director commentary aimed at superfans of the series, which we've embedded just below the break. Let us know if he talks about rockets at all!
Free premium week on Quake Live, new content
Quake Live is receiving a hefty load of new premium content and, to celebrate, it's all free for a week. The classic shooter gains five new game modes, including one-flag CTF, Domination (territory control), Red Rover (zombies) and more. The update also packs in four maps, two from Quake Arena Arcade and two inspired by the popular Campgrounds map.The content will be free to all Quake Live users through this Sunday, May 6. The $1.99 per month premium wall goes back up after that, so get it while the gettin's good. Head over to the Bethesda Blog for details on all the new maps and modes.
Quake 4 is up for download on Macs
Quake 4 has been around the console block for almost a decade, and no, that's not an insult. For the first time since its initial launch in 2005, Quake 4 is available to download through the Mac App Store, GameAgent and other distribution hubs for $19.99.Quake 4 offers cross-platform PC-Mac play, so even if you're late to the party and on a Mac (two handicaps, we like to call it) you'll be able to strap in and take out some Strogg.
Quake 4 relaunches on June 19 for $20
The Xbox 360 is getting up there. Maybe you missed out on the Raven Software-deveolped Quake 4 during its initial launch, way back when in 2005? Bethesda is giving everyone a second chance to take on the Strogg this summer.The Bethesda Blog has announced that the Xbox 360 version of Quake 4 is being re-released at a new $19.99 price point on June 19. Currently, the only ways to pick up a copy of Quake 4 are through Steam (on Windows PC) and at the bottom of your local game retailer's bargain bin.Or maybe your cousin Carl? He told us he liked Quake once. Borrow his copy!
Id responds to alleged DOOM 4 image leak
Rumors began swirling earlier this week that Doom 4 had been canceled. Accompanying said rumors was a batch of supposed screenshots or artwork, one of which you can see above. In addition to refuting the cancellation rumors, id has now responded to the images as well.While not directly denying their relationship to Doom 4, id's Matt Hooper, design director of Rage, tweeted that the images "have nothing to do with what you're gonna see in Doom 4." Hooper added, "When we officially show things you'll see awesome." Responding to another tweet, Hooper noted that when the official reveal is made, "fans will be happy." For what it's worth, the leaked images show what appears to be a ravaged planet Earth, perhaps giving a nod to Doom 2: Hell on Earth.
Sit down, relax and release some Rage tonight for $15 on Steam
It's the end of the day, you've set aside work for the night and just enjoyed a delicious dinner of something breaded, fried and dipped in a seasoned dairy product, and now you need something to do -- something that doesn't require too much movement. Steam has predicted your desires with today's Daily Deal, Rage at 50 percent off, for $15.If you don't already own it and want to give id Software's shooter a try, now might be a good time to pick up Rage. It's not called the Daily Deal for nothing.
Rage: Campaign Edition available on Mac for your pleasure, anger
Rage has officially launched on Mac with the Campaign Edition, which includes the complete single-player campaign, the Wasteland sewer missions and Anarchy Edition content for $40. Rage: Campaign Edition is available through the Mac App Store, publisher Aspyr's Game Agent, and other Mac retailers (excluding Steam, it seems).Obviously Rage: Campaign Edition doesn't include multiplayer, but we assume that's why it's not called Rage.
