=VG= SemlerPDX

Steam Console by Alienware? The internets are all abuzz about the rumors of a Steam Console that will combine capability and simplicity into one small box. I'm going to go out on a limb here, to show you that these "rumors" are anything but. All signs point to an official announcement within the next few months at E3, perhaps even this week during the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, California. What is known is that the specs of such a system would allow it to be small, yet very powerful, and able to play modern PC games. Back in 2009, Alienware and Steam began a relationship where Alienware PC gaming systems would come with Steam pre-installed. Since then, Steam had reportedly hinted at using the well known hardware company to develop this rumored Steam Console, citing that they (Steam) are a software company - willing to outsource hardware ideas. Compare that to Alienware's X51 Gaming System, and you have all the makings of a wonderful conspiracy to revitalize the PC gaming industry and give consoles such as Playstation and Xbox some worthy competition. According to online sources, potenial partners had a chance to demo an early version the Steam box at the Consumer Electronics Show. Apparently, the specs include an i7 2600 CPU, 8GB RAM, a 1TB hard drive, and an NVIDIA GPU, all powered by an external Power Supply Unit to better manage space and heat. On May 5th, 2011, Valve Corporation filed a patent application for a "Video Game Controller having user swappable control components". Obviously, this controller would be part of the console system, if developed, and perhaps part of the system's biometrics which would track player motions. The cooperation of Alienware and Steam is a good step towards simplifying the PC gaming experience and opening the market to gamers previously relegated to Playstation and Xbox systems. Back in 2009, Steam had this to say about working with Alienware: "Entertainment, specifically gaming, is a primary use of PCs in the home and on the road," said Jason Holtman, director of business development at Valve. "Alienware is a household name among PC gamers who want the most out of their hardware. The combination of Alienware hardware and Steam equals a superior gaming experience." VETERANS-GAMING will continue to keep you updated with new developments from the GDC, and E3 this Summer. Stay tuned for all the latest info! by Aaron Semler, Senior Editor VETERANS-GAMING

Up, Up, and Away! The new patch 1.2 for MineCraft is out, and the host of new additions reaches to the sky - literally. Along with new units, items, blocks, and even AI, the sky of MineCraft has been given new limits, from 128 to 256, allowing real mountains and truly hidden castles in the sky. Also, the new Jungle biome brings with it new trees and climable vines. Now, Iron Golems protect cities, Zombies break down doors and behave with new mob AI, and ocelots roam the wild places - ready to be tamed by players with a nice piece of fish! Tamed wolves can have puppies, and Villagers can have children (space permitting); it seems like the world is becoming more alive with each new patch. Unstoppable now, the MineCraft phenomenon continues to grow, and the MineCraft Team has just brought on board four community members who were key in developing bukkit, a community-based MineCraft server implementation. Nathan Adams, Nathan Gilbert, Warren Loo, and Erik Broes are now official MineCraft Team Members. According to Jens Bergensten at Mojang's website, "(the four) will work on improving both the server and the client to offer better official support for larger servers and server modifications. "The plan is to build a fresh server API, and then extend it to support client-side modding (in one way or another). We will try to make it easy for bukkit users to convert if they wish to do so, but backwards compatibility is not guaranteed. We will, however, help bukkit to be compatible with 1.2, to avoid having a long gap while you wait for the official Minecraft server to catch up. "Many of you may ask why we decided to work with bukkit instead of other Minecraft teams, such as Spout or Forge.", Jens continued, "The reason is that we want more than just modding, and these guys have always had server admins in mind when developing their additions to the game. We hope that this will help the quality of Minecraft multi-player to improve, both for large and private family servers, while still being able to add fun stuff for the bigger audience." A full changelist for the new MineCraft Patch 1.2 can be found here: http://www.minecraftwiki.net/wiki/Version_history by Aaron Semler, Senior Editor VETERANS-GAMING

A Second Flagship for BI Studios Bohemia Interactive has been hard at work reinventing the classic 1980's game Carrier Command. Mixing strategy, action, and amazing visual effects, Carrier Command: Gaea Mission is shaping up to be one of the hottest additions to BI Studios' expanding lineup of pc games. Players take command of their own aircraft carrier in a vast sea with 6 different climatic zones and over 30 unique islands suitable for bases, and even mining and manufacturing. Resources are an important strategic element, and move the story forward as you grow through the ranks to become a proficient adversary. All of these commands and orders are managed with the programmable battle computer aboard your carrier. Everything from fuel to ammunition plays a part in your ability to dominate the enemy. Carrier Command: Gaea Mission is slated to launch Spring of 2012. Gamers had a chance to ask some questions to BI about Carrier Command: Gaea Mission, one of them wanting to know how much freedom players would have in the game, versus linear game flow, compared to the original Carrier Command. Here's what Bohemia had to say: "The Gaea Mission campaign will be a bit more linear in the sense that it follows a narrative. For example, in the beginning you'll be eased into the game via story-based tutorials. Later, the game opens up to offer a more freedom-oriented gameplay experience, yet it'll still be centered around the Gaea Mission. Also, as a tribute to the original Carrier Command, we've implemented a strategic campaign. Our goal was to make it similar to the 'Action Mode' in the original, plus adding some options for changing the starting conditions (ratio of captured islands, tech level and initial resources). All in all, it will mostly be up to you how you will play the game." In a recent announcement, BI Studios has launched their Carrier Command Competition Part Deux. The prize consists of 1 out of the 5 available downloadable bundles including Arma X Anniversary, and Take On Helicopters. Competitors need to answer 5 questions about the game, and all answers can be found by reading their blog called The Commanders Blog, at the Carrier Command website. This competition runs from February 27th, 2012 through Sunday March 4th, 2012. There will be 5 winners, picked at random from those who answered all the questions correctly. by Aaron Semler, Senior Editor VETERANS-GAMING

The New Kid on the Block This hot new pc game has been getting a lot of attention lately, leaving many video game players wondering, "Just what is Wargame: European Escalation?" In a nutshell, Wargame is a Real Time Strategy game developed by Eugen Systems and published by Focus Home Interactive. It is based in the Cold War Era and allows players to pit their armies head to head in online gameplay. But it doesn't stop there! The sheer depth and involvement make it one of the most interesting and innovative RTS games to hit computers in a long time. To read more about this amazing new game, check out the in-depth player reviews by Raven800 here: Raven800's Player Review of Wargame: European Escalation Raven800's Follow-Up Review of Wargame: European Escalation This video describes the online multiplayer elements and gameplay of Wargame: European Escalation As the developers continue to work with this game, we hope that player suggestions and gameplay elements are examined and evaluated so that Wargame can be all that it can be. Truly a refreshing addition to the new age of RTS games, and a great new military game for the masses! by Aaron Semler, Senior Editor VETERANS-GAMING

Aftershock to Players: "Thank you" You may be dismayed if you are looking to download Electronic Arts (EA) Battlefield 3 Aftershock App, or perhaps not so much. EA has removed the App from download and a statement was released recently regarding quality commitment. In the Battlefield 3: Aftershock App, players had limited options, but the graphics were decent for an iOS App. Only 4 weapons were available to choose from and there was no Single Player mode - a constant internet connection was required to play this game. A single 3-tier map called the Factory pitted United States Marine Corps against Russian Spetsnaz in a Team Deathmatch Mode for 6 minutes, or a score of 2000. I was rather surprised to see how smoothly basic FPS elements worked on a tablet, but the lag was the real killer. In a Multi-Player only iOS App game, the need to have constant internet made playing on a public hotspot a frustrating thing with dropped matches and jumpy enemies. Even with optimum connections, players complained about a host of connection issues. Like most free Apps, this one featured ads intermittently, particularly promoting the upcoming war movie, Act of Valor. By watching a trailer for the movie, players unlocked a fifth weapon for use in the game. Act of Valor was set to release on February 17th in the US, to coincide with President's Day, but delays have pushed the release to February 24th 2012. As Aftershock was missing many of the elements announced pre-release, and gauging by the general lack of quality and subsequent removal of the download, one can only conclude that Battlefield 3: Aftershock was largely part of a viral marketing campaign for the movie, Act of Valor. Perhaps this explains the "thank you" players received from Electronic Arts: They released a statement saying, "EA Mobile is committed to delivering mobile entertainment experiences that are on par with the content and quality users have come to expect from their favorite EA gaming brands. To this end, we have decided to remove Battlefield 3: Aftershock from the App Store and are currently re-evaluating the app in response to the consumer feedback we've received. We thank all the fans who have downloaded the game to date." Electronic Arts is not alone in the viral marketing campaign for Act of Valor. Our own favorite YouTuber, FPSRussian was partnered with the film production, and released a "wideo" with interlaced scenes from the movie, and the full trailer at the end. With spots in the NFC and AFC Championship Games, and even the Super Bowl, Act of Valor has had some serious promotion to date. On the official Battlefield 3 website, players could watch a trailer which offered free dog tags for download and use in any Battlefield 3 game in North America. Act of Valor was made much in the same way many FPS and military shooter games are today, with actual military personnel as consultants. The movie centers around a squad of Navy SEALs who must rescue a kidnapped CIA agent from anti-American terrorists - a very real and very dangerous mission akin to actual SEALs operations. As a matter of fact, when they realized that only real Navy SEALs could act out the roles convincingly, they became the actors and will be featured in the film (albeit anonymously, unnamed in the credits). With any luck, more effort will show in Act of Valor than in it's marketing gimmicks, but preliminary reviews are not so hopeful. by Aaron Semler, Senior Editor VETERANS-GAMING