Download Mass Effect Patch 1.01aMass Effect 1.01a Patch Notes: added some infrastructure support for additional downloadable content updated the image of the Batarian race in the codex fixed an issue where the center channel for hardware audio wouldn't play correctly sometimes fixed an issue where the hardware mouse pointer would disappear when first selected fixed an issue where Shepard did not auto-crouch when entering cover in some places fixed a tool-tip indicating a game restart is needed before enabling hardware or software audio if the option was changed fixed an issue where ambient conversation would not be heard from rear speakers sometimes fixed a text string to make it clearer on how to exit a vehicle fixed a text string so the tool top for dragging the map is clearer in French languages builds Mass Effect Configuration Utility fixed a crash running on certain multi-core AMD systems fixed an issue where video RAM was not being reported properly on certain cards ...

The long wait is over, and gamers who own the PC version of Mass Effect can download the "Bring Down the Sky" content pack for free. Players must first register the CD key with the BioWare community site before the pack can be installed. "Bring Down the Sky" brings an extra 90 minutes of gameplay to Mass Effect, the critically acclaimed sci-fi role-playing game, and introduces a new and deadly race called the Batarians. They've hijacked a mobile asteroid station in the Asgard system and set it on a collision course for the nearby Terra Nova colony. Only Commander Shepard and and the crew of the Normandy can stop the Batarians and save millions of lives.Register CD key with BioWare community site.Download the Mass Effect "Bring Down the Sky" content pack (309 Mb)Download the Mass Effect 1.01 stand alone patch (35 Mb) ...

It's been over two months since the release of the PC version of Bioware's PC port of their acclaimed sci-fi RPG Mass Effect but today the development finally made good on its word by providing the Bring Down The Sky downloadable expansion for the PC port.The expansion, which was released for the original Xbox 360 version of the game a while ago, adds a new 90 minute game adventure to the title. People who want to download the expansion must register their copy of Mass Effect online. Some may remember that when Mass Effect was first announced for the PC there was some concern on the game's use of the Internet to register their copy. The game's publisher Electronic Arts later pulled that requirement from the game, but kept it if you wanted tot download extra content like Bring Down the Sky...

Rather than moan and groan about the problem, popular developer BioWare has proposed a (possibly perpetual) two-part solution: offer downloadable content and stay loyal to your customers. "We're doing a lot of post-release downloadable content on all of our PC titles going forward," BioWare co-CEO Ray Muzyka said to MTV's Multiplayer Blog. "We think it's a good thing to encourage players to make them want to buy a PC title," Muzyka continued. "That's ultimately the best, most successful path to prevent piracy - to have players that want your games, want to believe in them and think they're high-quality and realize they're going to get a lot of value out of them as platforms for long time afterwards."BioWare's next title, Dragon Age, will be revealed tomorrow and is confirmed to support downloadable content, much like the developer's current sci-fi RPG, Mass Effect.With developers such as Crytek deciding to discontinue developing PC-exclusive content as a means of shirking piracy, it's nice to see a developer as prestigious as BioWare propose a solution that punishes pirates rather than legitimate consumers....

Ahh, the tyranny of the blank page. For a writer, there is nothing more daunting than staring at an empty space with a deadline looming. Yet that's what wordsmiths do every day -- dig deep to find the content, the signal amidst the noise. However, it's one thing to sit and write a novel, where it's just the writer and the story, with the audience taking a static, non-participatory role. When one writes for a video game, the audience becomes an active part of the experience, and the writer must take that into account.Yet often, the player merely sits through the story portion of a game, frequently told through cutscenes. Even those games which tout branching storylines with multiple endings do little more than offer closed choices, offering only the illusion of audience control. Are there any real choices to be had to affect a game's plot? Do narratives merely interrupt gameplay? What exactly is the role of story in video games?...

Age of Conan developer Funcom is still hyping its already-mega-hyped MMO. AoC has consistently topped PC sales charts in most Western markets for weeks now (it even beat Mass Effect in North America in the week that the latter hit the shelves), and Funcom is not afraid to boast of that achievement. Its latest press release claims that 700,000 users have registered for an AoC account. That makes it the most likely contender for the #2 spot behind World of Warcraft. The only subscription-based MMO that presumably comes close in Western markets is The Lord of the Rings Online, but no clear subscription numbers have been released for that title. ...

Never underestimate the selling power of Lego and George Lucas. The latest Lego PC game made its debut on the latest NPD Group list of best selling PC games for the week ending June 7. That would be Lego Indiana Jones from developer Traveller's Tales and publisher LucasArts as it comes in the number three spot last week, behind number one selling Age of Conan and number two selling Mass Effect.The full top 10 list is below and check it out; BioShock has reappeared on the top 10 list after going missing for several months. Looks like Ken Levine just got a new bargaining chip: 1. Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures - Funcom/Eidos 2. Mass Effect - BioWare/EA 3. Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures - Traveller's Tales/LucasArts 4. The Sims 2 Double Deluxe - Electronic Arts 5. World Of Warcraft: Battle Chest - Blizzard 6. The Sims 2 Kitchen & Bath Interior Design Stuff - Electronic Arts 7. World Of Warcraft - Blizzard 8. BioShock - 2K Games 9. World Of Warcraft: Burning Crusade - Blizzard 10. The Sims 2 Freetime - Electronic Arts ...

Demiurge has made itself out to be one of those studios you can depend on. If you have a huge, expensive, killer-IP, AAA title, and you need some extra hands -- Demiurge is the company to call. But since it's (so far) produced little stand-alone, original content, its workers are unsung heroes of the gaming industry. No longer!In the wake of the release of Mass Effect for the PC (a port on which Demiurge did much of the work), Shacknews interviewed head honcho Al Reed, asking him about the company's past, present, and future. It's a great read if you want an inside look at the video game industry.Notably, Reed revealed which PC improvements in Mass Effect were invented by Demiurge rather than BioWare -- configurable hotbar buttons and individual squad mate commands. He lamented the piracy situation, saying "I don't know what the right solution is ... I wish someone did!" Finally, he laid out his company's future plans, which finally include some original, in-house games....

When last we reported on this matter, Funcom's two versions (regular and Collector's) of their MMO Age of Conan were number one and three on the top 10 list of the best selling PC games in the US (as always the list is provided by the NPD Group). This time the list is for the week ending May 31 and it looks like the regular edition of Age of Conan managed to stay on top for the second straight week. It held off a strong showing from the PC version of BioWare's sci-fi RPG Mass Effect who managed to debut in the number two slot last week (the Collector's version of Age of Conan is not in the top 10 list, most likely because it sold out last week).The rest of the list mostly has games that have been on board for the past several months. Indeed, Ironclad Games and Stardock's space strategy title Sins of a Solar Empire returns to the top 10 this week after dropping off the list last week for the first time since it was first released last February. 1. Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures - Funcom/Eidos 2. Mass Effect - BioWare/Demiurge/EA 3. The Sims 2 Double Deluxe - Electronic Arts 4. World of Warcraft: Battle Chest - Blizzard 5. The Sims 2 Kitchen & Bath Interior Design Stuff - Electronic Arts 6. World of Warcraft - Blizzard 7. The Sims 2 FreeTime - Electronic Arts 8. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare - Activision 9. Sins of a Solar Empire - Ironclad Games/Stardock 10. World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade -Blizzard [Via IGN]...

While last week saw the team spending time in Mass Effect, this week finds the team split between the standby favorite of Team Fortress 2 and the new hotness that is GRID. With awesome action like GRID has, nobody can really blame them, though. Coming up hot on their heels was Armageddon Empires.Our resident indie fiend, James Murff said he'll be spending this weekend playing Armageddon Empires, Team Fortress 2, and checking out Zombie Panic! Source. Kyle Horner is taking a chunk of his weekend off from PC gaming to dive into Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition -- but he assures us that he'll be planning everything on his laptop. When not rolling the bones, Kyle said he'll be relaxing in TF2 as well. Both David Craddock and Stephen Wong plan to spend most of their time tearing it up in GRID. Stephen noted that he'll probably also spend some time in Armageddon Empires, EverQuest II and will probably give Devil May Cry 4 another whirl if time allows. I'm on the road this weekend, so I'm limited to gaming on my laptop. Thus, I'll be spending time in EVE Online when I do actually manage some gaming. For this weekend, given all the great games out recently, What aRe yoU Playing?...

Over a week has passed since Mass Effect released for the PC. Although we at Big Download think it's the best version of Mass Effect compared to the Xbox 360 release, many gamers would steer clear of the game due to its restrictive copy protection that only allows a maximum of three installations. PC gaming and annoying copy protection are practically synonymous, ranging from long alphanumeric CD keys to online authentication. Then there are more extreme cases like the whole StarForce controversy, where the copy protection software allegedly damaged computer systems. Mass Effect's copy protection falls just over the line of extremity. It's a feature that has no bearing on actual gameplay but severely impacts the overall user experience. Why? Sound-off after the jump....

This has been an exciting week in PC gaming! The release of Mass Effect, more information on the highly anticipated StarCraft II, and Valve has decided to let us back things up via the upcoming Steam Cloud service. (This is, of course, after most of us spent last week playing On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness - Episode One.) Going into this weekend we figured it would be a no-brainer as to what most of the Big Download staff would be playing....Steven Wong, our fearless all around bad-mutha and Managing Editor is playing Mass Effect as we expected, but will be adding a side of Age of Conan and possibly some City of Heroes or City of Villains in the mix. Samuel Axon, blogger and caffeine fiend will be kickin' it old-school in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Deus Ex. John Callaham and David Craddock, aside from being our esteemed (and crazy workaholic) leads, will both be spending time playing on Steam. John's planning on spending time in Team Fortress 2, and David's got his sights set on jumping into the Get a Life mod for Half-Life 2. (Well, and he'll be checking out some mods for WarCraft III for an upcoming column, but that's work.) As for me, I have a copy of Mass Effect for my PC, and of course will be continuing my own all-over-the-place MMOG adventures for Massively. How about you all? Will you be jumping into Mass Effect as well, or are you still playing through OtRSPoD? Perhaps you're more interested in fragging the crap out of people in TF2 after a (not very) long week? Tell us, What aRe yoU Playing this weekend? ...

Every Friday to come, we'll present to you some of the biggest downloads at Big Download. Sometimes they'll be the most popular, sometimes the best rated. Sometimes they'll be our own personal favorites! There's a little of each in today's inaugural round-up. Thanks to the launch of Mass Effect, the huge Ubidays press event, and all the other exciting stuff this past week, there's a lot of great stuff to check out. Here are the Big Downloads! Beyond Good & Evil 2 Teaser TrailerUbisoft dropped the bomb on everyoneat the Ubidays press event: the esteemed Beyond Good & Evil is getting a sequel! Here's the first trailer, our most popular download this week. Doom 3 Classic ModRelive the 90s in the Doom 3 Classic Mod. It's a remake of classic Doom in the more modern Doom 3 engine. Prince of Persia Ubidays 2008 Teaser TrailerAlso from Ubidays, the Prince of Persia trailer shows off the next installment's colorful, gorgeous visual style. Mass Effect Combat Video 3We can't let this week slip without featuring arguably its biggest release, Mass Effect. Here's a combat video depicting zombies and worse. Get a Life Half-Life 2 ModThe Get a Life mod for Half-Life 2 has been popular in the Big Download offices these past few days. It's a full-length single-player affair that has you uncovering the mysteries of the protagonist's past. ...

In Big Versus we tackle multiplatform releases that land on PC and console and weigh the pros and cons of the PC version against its console sibling. In each installment we compare games based on included content (such as single and multiplayer features), visuals and everything in between. While our mascot may show an admiration for PC gaming, we're all about telling you the truth in Big Versus.In our second installment of Big Versus we're tackling BioWare's epic roleplaying title Mass Effect, which hit retail on May 28--six months after its original release on the Xbox 360.Which version of the critically acclaimed role-playing title comes out on top when we pit them head-to-head. This week we go galactic, so grab a spacesuit and jump in. This is Big Versus....

Another added benefit of picking up the PC release of Mass Effect, besides the fantastic new control scheme, is the availability of free downloadable content that promises to expand the universe. While the first package, 'Bring Down the Sky,' was not included in the retail release, BioWare promised it would be made available when the game launched. Unfortunately the content has been delayed but the legendary Canadian developer is working diligently to bring the 90-minute chapter to PC gamers as soon as possible."BioWare's space hamsters are running as fast as they can in their orbital wheels to bring you your free," reads the Mass Effect PC page on BioWare's site.When the new content is made available BioWare will notify gamers via the game launcher and official site. BioWare also recommends gamers create a BioWare Community Account and register their CD key to prepare for the downloadable content release ....