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The Engineer tells his tale in Team Fortress 2 trailer
The Engineer tells how he solves "practical problems" in the continuing series of trailers about the psychopathic characters from Team Fortress 2. If for some strange reason you've missed The Heavy and The Soldier trailers, we've gone ahead and added their videos again after the break for your easy viewing pleasure.Now's a good a time as any to remind people that if you really need to play Team Fortress 2 (and you're a PC owner), all you need to do is pre-purchase The Orange Box on Steam and you can start playing the TF2 beta next week. Although we don't exactly know how, but we hope some of the humor from these trailers translates to the gameplay. Then again, we've gotten used to the possibility of well-designed trailers being more interesting than the games they are for.
Pre-purchase Orange Box on Steam, play TF2 beta next week
Valve announced today that those who pre-purchase this holiday's über-value The Orange Box on Steam will be invited to the Team Fortress 2 beta next week. Beginning Sept. 17, those who bought the game can download and activate the TF2 beta. If that's not enough, Valve will also toss in Peggle Extreme, a special edition of the game that'll have themed Half-Life 2, TF2 and Portal content.Those who purchase The Orange Box before Oct. 10 via Steam also get 10% off the $49.95 price on PC. Meanwhile, the console versions of Orange Box will both be the "next-gen price" of $60 -- although Amazon currently has the Xbox 360 version for $55 as part of a pre-purchase deal. The PS3 version was recently delayed. The PC and Xbox 360 versions of The Orange Box will be ready to peel on Oct. 10.
The Orange Box delayed on PS3
Gamespot reports that Valve's Doug Lombardi confirmed to them the PS3 version of über-value The Orange Box will be delayed on PS3 by "a couple weeks." The PC and Xbox 360 versions will move forward with their Oct. 9 release. Wonder if those poor Valve employees still won't be able to play BioShock until the PS3 version is done too. Valve overlords, have a heart and let them play, everyone seems to be getting stuck on these delays -- for real, no joke.Per the usual of all these PS3 delay announcements, Valve would not identify the reason for the delay, the game is being ported by EA. Lombardi also wouldn't talk about a specific date, he merely let the "couple weeks" quote float out there. Hopefully Sony can craft some message to explain these delays away, maybe it'll be the first memo by Karraker's replacment.
The Soldier talks to the troops in Team Fortress 2 video
Hilarious and slightly disturbing, The Soldier video for Team Fortress 2, the game bundled with The Orange Box, makes us laugh in that uncomfortable way. Not cute like "The Heavy" video, this clip of The Soldier is just a little bit darker. Team Fortress 2 through brilliant marketing is really turning into the game we've become excited about in The Orange Box. Sure it'll probably be just another frag-fest that the average person won't stand a chance in, but it's oozing with dark charm.The Orange Box continues to be the value bundle of the year. With Half-Life 2, Episodes 1 and 2, Portal and Team Fortress 2 -- that's a lot of value in a little box, especially if you've never played Half-Life 2. We're definitely looking forward to seeing more of these clips, even if we don't think we'll stand a chance in an online match with the actual game.%Gallery-1634%
Joystiq hands-on: The Orange Box
Easily one of the best gaming values to come out in recent memory, Valve's The Orange Box packs a pretty strong punch in terms of content. We got our grubby little paws on it at EA, and while we know there are other games on this disc, we hard a hard time tearing ourselves away from Portal to play the others. However, once someone smacked us in the head with a crowbar, we moved on and got a piece of everything, culminating with a Team Fortress 2 fragfest.Seriously, if you're trapped on a desert island and can only take one upcoming title with you, The Orange Box wouldn't be a bad choice. You've got team games, a first person shooter (with sequels), and a really unique puzzle game. Where could you go wrong? Just make sure that island has internet access, because the press notes for Team Fortress 2 dropped a mega-bombshell of information* that hasn't been reported at all from E3. We aren't sure why. Ready for it? Here you go:* Internet connection required for online play. We're working on a confirmation on that one. Check out our impressions after the break.%Gallery-1634%
PSP attempts iPhone-esque makeover
Portals are quite popular on PSP systems. They utilize the system's internet browser to allow easy access to internet applications, such as mail clients and online messengers. The latest takes the design of Apple's popular iPhone, and attempts to transplant it to the PSP. While it certainly looks sleek, the vertical alignment makes the system awkward. Still, easy to follow instructions and a great self-installer makes this one of the better portals to pursue.Check it out here. [Via iPhone Matters]
The Orange Box gets a much needed makeover
Ever since we laid our eyes on the Half-Life 2: Orange Box cover art we have been a little perplexed by its simplistic design. The cover art featured a mostly orange background with white text explaining the contents and that was about it. We accepted the cover though and never made a fuss. But now it looks like Valve has had a change of heart and design philosophy. TeamXbox is reporting that Valve decided to re-design the Orange Box cover and now it actually features artwork! Indeed, it shows off beautiful Half-Life 2, Team Fortress 2 and Portal artwork! We're glad to see Valve add more art to the cover art and spiffy up the Orange Box, because it really looks good. Check out TeamXbox's supplied Half-Life 2: Orange Box cover viewable after the break.
The portals among us
Many of us have stepped through the Dark Portal into Outland, and in that time dozens of players have mastered the content available there. Now that we have BlizzCon in our sites, all eyes seem to be on what our next expansion will be. As Chris Metzen mentioned at the last BlizzCon, Outland is peppered with portals, each with the potential to open another world for us to explore. I personally know of two such dead portals, empty and devoid of life. The first is in Zangarmarsh, at the appropriately named Portal Clearing, and the second is in Nagrand. Have you found any other portals in your time in Outland? If so, do you think that the locations of the portals could be a clue to what lies behind them? Going with this theory, we might postulate that the Zangarmarsh portal might lead to the Maelstrom, since that zone is riddled with naga. What do you think?
Team Fortress will not have cross-platform play, but Valve plays it that way
Shacknews has a rather exhaustive preview of Valve's Team Fortress 2, coming to PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 as part of the Half-Life 2: Orange Box collection (also available via Steam, natch). One interesting note at the end of the article states that the Valve offices, who are working on the Xbox 360 and PC versions (PS3 version is being done by EA UK), "regularly play cross-platform multiplayer games." However, the studio's Doug Lombardi said that the final game will not have cross-platform because it "introduces more problems than it is worth." He continued to say that if Valve were to implement cross-platform that it would be part of the initial game design. Orange Box, which includes Half-Life 2, Episode One, Two, Portal and Team Fortress 2, is due out October 9.
Indie gaming blog Gibbage turns into a portal
Back in April, Dan Marshall of Gibbage.co.uk announced an initiative to fund fresh new indie projects using the limited revenue from the site. If Dan saw a team working on something that the world needed to see, out comes the sack of cash to help the programmers focus on creating. Now, Gibbage has turned up the heat a notch and transformed into an indie gaming portal featuring the "latest and greatest tippy-top new Indie games". Indeed.We're sorry to see the blog format go, but the portal will help fund more games and serve as a hub for newbies to the indie scene. Like some sort of space-time feedback loop, getting games there magically creates more games in the future.
Half-Life 2: Episode Two, Portal, Team Fortress 2 shipping October 9th
Politely telling naysayers who expected the games to miss their 2007 launch to eat crowbar, Valve has confirmed to Chris Remo of Shacknews that its upcoming Source trio will ship for all intended platforms on October 9th. The suite is comprised of warped puzzler Portal, stylized multiplayer shooter Team Fortress 2, and continued scientist savior sim Half-Life 2: Episode Two. The collection will be sold through Valve's online Steam service as well as in a retail package. The EA-distributed Half-Life 2: The Orange Box, which also contains Half-Life 2 and Half-Life 2: Episode One, will be available on PS3 and Xbox 360 for $59.99, with the PC version priced at $49.99. There once existed a Black Box (containing the three new titles only) for those PC gamers unwilling to take the digital distribution route, but it was promptly buried in the hope of fostering a strange sort of philanthropy amongst gamers. Still, in featuring five games -- two of them proven classics -- there's little question that the Orange Box offers great value, especially if you're a newcomer to Valve's first-person shooters. [Thanks, Gogandantis]
...and Mages and Warlocks too!
Recently, I wrote a post on Rogues having trade windows opened up on them without so much as a word. As I suspected, many other Rogues out there indeed have the same problem. Of course, many had their own ways of dealing with it like picking the box, but not hitting trade until there was a tip in the window. Another idea was just keeping all trades off in their options so that people couldn't open up trades with them in the first place. All of these are things that I've tried from time to time with varying levels of success. What I didn't expect, however, was the sheer amount of people who jumped in and brought up the similar plights that Mages and Warlocks face on a daily basis. As I've got a L59 Warlock and a L61 Mage, trust me when I say that I completetly understand and appreciate what you all go through with the requests you get. I'm not even able to portal others to Shattrath yet on my Mage, but anytime I'm playing her, I almost immediately get asked to open a portal there for someone anyway. Now, nobody has opened a trade window on me without asking and grunted out "food/water" as yet, but I've definitely gotten the tells demanding that I make food or water for them, as opposed to asking nicely.
Palm adds "MyPalm" portal
Owning a smartphone -- regardless of the manufacturer, carrier, or platform -- can be a terribly trying experience, particularly for the uninitiated. Juggling firmware updates and new software downloads while simultaneously looking up how to pair your headset, solve a sync issue, and figure out why the thing's crashing can drive even experienced owners to the edge of insanity (we speak from personal experience here). Palm's looking to take a little bit of that edge off with its new "MyPalm" site, a one-stop shop for learning about the latest goodies for the Treo of your choice. Most every model from every carrier appears to be supported, serving up news alerts about your device, a software and accessory catalog, and a full range of support features, among other things. If that newfangled 755p has you a bit stymied, check 'er out.[Thanks, Abdul]
Valve: our downloadable content will be free
When perusing our comment threads, you may see comments from Team Fortress 2 fans that will be opting for the PC version over the 360 version? Why? Lots of free content. Specifically, lots of free user-made content. While it may be some time before user-made content heads to the 360, we are happy to report that any downloadable content for the Orange Box will be free. Eurogamer reports that Valve will not charge for its DLC. According to Team Fortress 2 designer, Robin Walker, "You buy the product, you get the content," who adds, "We make more money because more people buy it, not because we try and nickel-and-dime the same customers." We imagine that someone at EA -- publisher of the Orange Box -- has just imploded. Free content is always good, especially when you consider that TF2 will ship with only 6 maps.[Via Joystiq]
Half-Life 2 Orange Box -- console owners get a steal [update 1]
For the uninitiated, Valve initially intended to release Half-Life 2 in two different options for the consoles. One was the Black Box that contained HL2: Episode 2, Portal, and Team Fortress 2. The other is the Orange Box that contained the aforementioned plus Half-Life 2 and Episode 1 expansion. Notice our tenses. One was. One is. That's right -- the Black Box is gone. Doug Lombardi, Valve's marketing director confirmed it. "The Black Box has been cancelled. We're going to have one package, The Orange Box, available on the PC (US$49.99) as well as the 360 and PS3 (US$ 59.99)." While we're sad to see a cheaper alternative go down the garbage disposal, it's for the better. Getting the whole package is always a better alternative to getting a partial package. The only ones who seem to get screwed here are the PC owners. If they've already got the original game, they've got to buy it again if they want to get all three new products. Buying them separate might prove more expensive, anyway. Well, at least the console-lovers get everything at once, right?[Update: Changed the title of the article to better reflect the idea of the post -- indeed, the Black Box was due out only on PC, as it would be silly to not give console owners the actual game. But console owners get a fantastic deal with the Orange Box, no?]
Half-Life 2: Orange Box cracks out a Team Fortress 2 video
"Who touched Sasha? Who touched my gun?" is made hilarious once more by this Heavy Weapons Guy video, slated for the Team Fortress 2 packaged with the big Orange Box for the PS3 (it includes Half-Life 2, Episode 1, Episode 2, Portal, and Team Fortress 2). The video is set up like a documentary to show you the inner-workings of Heavy Weapon Guy's psyche and you know what? It's pretty funny. Check out the video, see the style of the game and give us your thoughts. We approve.
Possibility of some Valve action on the Wii
Looks like the folks at Valve are a little late to the Wii party. We can forgive them; after all, they've been busy crafting some of the best games ever. But in this new interview with GameTrailers, Valve's Director of Marketing, Doug Lombardi admits that they didn't really get the console's potential. "I'm just going to be blunt with you -- we missed the Wii," he said. Well, at least he's honest. While Lombardi said they have no plans at the moment to develop anything for the Wii, he did add that he "wouldn't be surprised" if someone came up with an idea they just had to pursue. Well. At least now we have a candidate for today's most vaguely optimistic news award.He did assure us that they are all "super big fans" of Nintendo over there at Valve. We're certainly reassured. Now get in the studio and build us some games! We've included the video after the jump, though the Wii-relevant information is all the way at the end.
Portal a four-hour tour
Portal level designer, Kim Swift, told Eurogamer that her game will last only about four hours in its final version. The demo we saw at GDC looks fun, but only four hours?Portal will be bundled with at least Half-Life 2: Episode 2 and Team Fortress 2 (in the $40 Black version), which takes some of the sting. But ... four hours?We're all for short, sweet games. But our idea of a short game is about eight hours unless we're playing monthly episodes. When we hit the four-hour mark in a game, we're just getting started.[Via Xbox360fanboy]
Valve interview from GameTrailers
GameTrailers has posted an interview with Valve's Doug Lombardi discussing the upcoming Orange Box for Xbox 360. The Orange Box, for those who don't know, contains Half-life 2, HL2 episode 1 and 2, Team Fortress 2, and Portal. Lombardi talks about the revisions to the source engine since Half-Life 2 first launched and what is possible with multiple core processors. He discusses some of Gabe Newell's comments about the PS3 and Valve's current opinion of the Wii as well. Also, sprinkled throughout the video are some very pretty snippets of the games included in the Orange Box. For fans of Half-Life, it's definitely worth a look. Give it a watch and tell us what you think.
GameTrailer's GDC video wrap-up
Our 2007 Game Developers Conference has come to an end, we've had a fun ride, but there is still more to see. And the nice folks over at GameTrailers have their GDC section quarantined off and ready to showcase some of the best Xbox 360 media. You can sit back and watch a new Portal video, maybe some Mercenaries 2, a Fable 2 dog demo, or The Darkness. It's every video they have to offer from GDC that is Xbox 360 related. And we definitely recommend watching the Fable 2 dog demo, because it just might make you think differently about this new "revolutionary" feature. GDC may be over, but your video watching has just begun.
