Slashdot: GamesNews for nerds, stuff that mattersActivision To "Monetize" Call of Duty Online Play- September 17, 2008 With Call of Duty: World at War set to hit store shelves this November, Activision has been making plans to monetize the online component of the game. "Infinity Ward-developed CoD4 has paid downloadable maps available on digital storefronts, but with CoD5, developed by Activision studio Treyarch, downloadable content will be a considerably bigger priority. Griffith added that Activision 'plans to increase online monetization' with CoD5, offering '3x the amount of content available for download..http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/gksrw8SWMqs/article.pl Study Finds Video Games Are Not Bad for Kids- September 16, 2008 mcgrew writes with news that a study done by the Pew Internet & American Life Project has found game playing is all but universal among teens, and it provides a "significant amount of social interaction and potential for civic engagement." 97% of teens responding to the survey said they played games (75% played weekly or more often), and roughly two-thirds of teens use games as a social experience. The full report (PDF) and the questionnaire with answer data (PDF) are both available for...http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/fDCn8BDkzUo/article.pl Designing Difficulty Options In Games- September 16, 2008 Gamasutra is running a story about how the "hard" modes in games can be designed to include difficulty, but not frustration. They give some examples of the changes made to several games as their difficulty settings are increased, and they discuss some of the simple options, such as increasing the number of required button presses, or increasing the relevant numbers by an arbitrary amount (a boss on easy may hit you for 10 damage, whereas a boss on hard may act the same but hit you for 100...http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/zp0HOl2-HOw/article.pl Fable II Previews, Molyneux Opinions- September 16, 2008 Fable II is due out next month, so it's been making the rounds for previews. So has its creator, Peter Molyneux. He talks with Joystiq about the game's Co-op feature, which allows players to drop into the games of others, getting a look at how it would have played out had they made different choices. Molyneux also offered a frank interview to CVG about flaws in the game, such as poor lip-syncing and the occasional "low-spot." (This comes two weeks after he unabashedly rated it as a 910 game.)...http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/N0iGl3VMxa0/article.pl EA Abandons Efforts To Take Over Take-Two- September 16, 2008 Erik J writes "Electronic Arts has abandoned plans to absorb Grand Theft Auto IV publisher Take-Two Interactive, the company announced earlier today. Following over half a year of hostile buyout offers by EA, the pair went into talks under a confidentiality agreement in late August. From the official announcement: 'EA continues to have a high regard for Take-Two's creative teams and products, but after careful consideration, including a management presentation and review of other due diligence..http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/T2rSk0TAhq4/article.pl WoW: Wrath of the Lich King Release Date Announced- September 15, 2008 Mini-Geek and many others tipped news that Blizzard has announced the release date for Wrath of the Lich King , World of Warcraft's second expansion. It will be in stores on November 13th in the US and Europe. They've also released details about the contents of the Collector's Edition. Wrath will be preceded by a large content patch, which will expand the talent trees and include many of the gameplay changes set for the expansion (including the consolidation of spell damage and healing into...http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/CeDlj2SouqA/article.pl The Best Gaming Laptop Money Can Buy- September 15, 2008 Parz writes "Gameplayer has gone live with their winners for the best gaming laptops money can buy as of Q3 2008. The analysis is broken into three sections to cater for three different budget requirements. There is a detailed explanation of why each laptop was selected, going into each hardware component individually. Regular Slashdot users will remember the site's article from a few weeks ago, which analysed the Best Gaming PCs that Money can Buy. Prices may vary depending on where you...http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/YHzistc8dfY/article.pl Spore DRM Protest Makes EA Ease Red Alert 3 Restrictions- September 14, 2008 Crazy Taco writes "The heavy Amazon.com protest of Spore's DRM appears to have caught the attention of executives at EA. IGN reports that DRM for the upcoming C&C: Red Alert 3 will be scaled back. Unlike previous Command and Conquer games, the CD will not be required in the drive to play. The online authentication will be done just once (rather than periodic phone calls home), and up to five installations will be allowed, as opposed to three for Spore. While I still think five installations.http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/qSkaxjoWe6k/article.pl Loot Theory In Modern Games- September 14, 2008 HDRL is running an analysis of loot systems in modern games. They talk about how in-game rewards, formerly the domain of RPGs and adventure games with powerups, have expanded to exist in every genre, as achievements and unlockable bonuses have become standard fare. "For the majority of gamers, once the novelty is gone, they move on. To keep players interested, rewards are required. ... The Diablo series is a perfect example of the theory in effect. Just as in the story of the donkey and the...http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/D2gOnOYSqLg/article.pl The Development of Braid- September 13, 2008 Gamasutra sat down with Jonathan Blow, creator of the successful independent game Braid. He talks about going through the three-year-plus development cycle as a one-man team, and how his concept of the game changed as he worked on it. He also discusses what he feels is the difference between "natural rewards" and "artificial rewards." "... for the most part, when you're playing Tetris, you're enjoying it because you enjoy fitting the blocks together. Whereas when you play World of Warcraft...http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotGames/~3/6M8cqZU6ltc/article.pl |