Red Army Clan

Steam evolution

Comrade Chez — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 09:43:41 +0000

I'm a surprise...

As I have mentioned elsewhere, Steam has come a long way since its initial release, but there’s still swathes of potential to be unlocked if only the development team would make some steps in the right direction. So I’ll get ready to eat a couple of my words when I say that there are some very welcome changes being worked on under the hood.

If anyone’s been brave enough to try it, there’s a new beta UI* that was released a wee while ago, which promises various enhancements to the current look, as well as swapping out the IE-powered browser for a Webkit model (same engine powering Safari and Chrome). Aside from being faster, more standards compliant and generally more up-to-date, the browser engine is safely cross-platform. Along with some files hidden away in the new UI, and some leaked adverts and whatnot, the latest information is that Valve plan to port Steam to Mac OS X to be released some time this year, and that the upcoming Portal 2 will indeed be playable on Mac.

Some pretty decent news all round, in my opinion. There are already a number of titles on Steam that could potentially be played natively on Mac, if the service had supported it on release, and this news can only have a positive impact on the number of games sold and released for the system. And presumably if Portal 2 is released successfully, Valve may make it their policy to release games for both systems in future, just as id once did for ‘coding practise.’ Now the question remains, just how long will we have to wait before Linux compatible binaries are released?

*Quick word of warning, when I tried the new UI my fonts disappeared and I had to re-download some games that somehow went missing.

Source Wars: Day of Defeat vs. The Hidden

Comrade Chez — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 10:45:17 +0000

As part of their little series pairing off various Source-engine games and mods, machinima.com contributors Xanatos and the Janus Syndicate set up a match between The Hidden and the Wehrmacht from Day of Defeat: Source. The Germans fare about as well as we used to. Watching this actually brings back fond memories of the original Aliens vs. Predator!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Left 16 Dead Server Hack

Comrade Chez — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:04:41 +0000

Ever wondered why Valve restricted Left 4 Dead to just four players? Aside from the fact that they could make a catchy title out of it? This video shows a server hacked to allow a bit of extra support to join. Well, I say a bit, the zombies even find themselves outnumbered at some points. But aside from the worse pings, lack of tension, outnumbered zombies, and the hours waiting for people to enter the safe house, it seems L4D could at least technically cope with it. So if you’re finding the game hard, one of these servers just might be for you!

Click here to view the embedded video.

[Via Hot Blooded Gaming]

Dr. Blu Parody

Comrade Chez — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 10:46:36 +0000

I’ve heard of sneak teasers, but this is going too far. After combining two of the greatest forms of entertainment, this little video cuts off just before the episode’s about to start! Very well made little parody of Dr. Who. And as someone pointed out on the original thread, nice use of the supply cabinet as Tardis stand-in! How else does all that ammo and health fit in there?

Click here to view the embedded video.

[Via ubercharged.net]

Left 4 Dead: 8-bit

Comrade Chez — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:43:02 +0000

Finally, a version of Left 4 Dead that will run smoothly even on this machine! With today’s release of Left 4 Dead 2 obviously stealing all the limelight, I thought it only fair to spread a little love for this rather amusing creation from Eric Ruth. Just turn the clocks back twenty years and imagine the hype that would’ve surrounded the release of Left 4 Dead in 8-bit fashion, this is what is rather modestly termed a ‘de-make’ of the original. Slated for free release in January, and including all of the maps and monsters of the original, be sure to check it out!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Monkey Island: The Deleted Scenes

Comrade Chez — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:37:09 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

We’re all fairly used to seeing the deleted scenes of our favourite movies, or at least we know that they’re there on the DVD should you ever actually bothering to watch them, but here’s something you don’t often see: the deleted scenes from a computer game!

Apparently, whilst flicking through the original source code during the development of the Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition remake, developer Adam Bormann (no relation?) came across segments of the game that had been commented out by the original creators. Admittedly, it’s mostly extra dialogue and a few extended scenes, but if you were a fan, you can read it all up here. Makes you wonder what other surprises could be lurking around in commented SCUMM code.

Left 4 Dead 2: A censortional performance

Comrade Chez — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:32:38 +0000

Pinned! Now with higher FPS...

Owing to various laws and classification arrangements, Valve will be releasing two versions of their upcoming zombie thriller sequel Left 4 Dead 2. At least in Australia and Germany, the game will only officially be released in a censored form, with milder levels of gore, and fewer body parts. Whilst the versions are entirely compatible, as far as I understand it the bought version is entirely distinct, so players wanting the full version should make sure to buy their copies abroad if they don’t want to end up with a crippled version in their Steam accounts. Fortunately, one of the advantages of Steam, is that the game really can be bought abroad without ever having to leave the country—at least until the political animal catches up with that loophole and forces a stop to it!

However, the censorship leveled at gamers in those countries does at least bring with it a modicum of solace. Tests over at PC Games Hardware have shown that the censored version of the game demo runs perhaps up to FORTY PERCENT faster than the uncut version. Which makes a lot of sense, when you consider the extra gore and body parts the latter has to contend with.

For our benchmarks we use a 60 second real-time demo sequence which takes place in the park from the second chapter of the “The Parish” Campaign. In the scene we have several Bommers and a Splitter [sic] as well as a lot of ordinary enemies. We use a Radeon HD 5870 to display the demo at 1680 x 1050 with maximal details, 4x MSAA and 16:1 AF. So all in all the setting is quite challenging for the CPU.

The direct comparison between cut an uncut version reveals huge differences in performance. It doesn’t matter if we use a dual-core E6600 or quad-core Q6600 processor, the less violent version of the demo runs about 40 percent faster that the uncut version. Furthermore the difference between the two uncut results (dual-core vs. quad-core) is bigger, too, what indicates a higher CPU workload.

Since the games are entirely interoperable online, that could be giving underpowered players in the affected countries something of a decent advantage when it comes to tackling their equally equipped opponents from the rest of the world. But for those living in sensible countries, all is not lost. At least they have the option of turning the gore levels down themselves!

Flame on!

Comrade Chez — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:27:43 +0000

A slightly tongue-in-cheek look at the W+M1 Pyro. Fairly decent quality video, though some real tards on the game end. With such a manic Pyro around, why the hell would half the opposite team play Spy? And watch out for the player’s attempt to turn himself into a S+M1 Pyro!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Minesweeper: The Movie

Comrade Chez — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:29:49 +0000

It was pretty much waiting to happen. I mean, after such runaway crossover hits like Street Fighter, Doom or Alone in the Dark, it was only a matter of time before someone went ahead and made a film version of one of the most popular titles ever to grace a computer monitor. And joking aside, I wouldn’t be surprised if Uwe Boll had considered it.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Street Fighter in 15 pixels

Comrade Chez — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:56:07 +0000

Gaming minimalism at its finest. I don’t imagine there are too many games out there that could be played with just 15 pixels, but here’s Street Fighter in lite/light mode. Reminds me of the graphics settings I used to use for Counter-Strike.

Click here to view the embedded video.