preview posts

We were recently granted a preview of Stardock's Elemental: War of Magic by none other than CEO Brad Wardell. While many know this company as the developer of Object Desktop, they've also had success with their Galactic Civilizations series and their publishing ventures Sins of a Solar Empire and Demigod.

It would be a mistake to simply categorize Elemental as just a fantasy-based 4X title; the gameplay offers much more than the assumptions contained within that genre. Read on to find out why you should look forward to this game`s August release.

The Federation got all the attention in the previous Star Trek Online content preview video, and now it's the Klingon Empire's turn to see some action. However, they don't keep the spotlight for long. This video also features a closer look at the upcoming Borg missions and a Fleet Action on DS9 against the Dominion.

Download HD Star Trek Online 'Expanding Universe', Part 2 (176 MB)
Check out all Star Trek Online downloads

The development team at Cryptic Studios working on Star Trek Online gives viewers a glimpse of what's in store for the future. Things are looking pretty hot, including all-new playable races and powerful top tier ships. More conflicts with the Borg are in store, and best of all, an apparent encounter with The Q. This video packs in a lot, and there's still more to come.

Download HD Star Trek Online 'Expanding Universe' Part 1 Video (629 MB)
Check out all Star Trek Online downloads

There are a lot of interesting innovations in Eden Games and Atari's Alone in the Dark reboot. There are so many, actually, that we worry that it's too ambitious -- that it could end up more like Omikron: The Nomad Soul than a successful revolutionary work like Half-Life 2.

Next Generation played a chunk of the game, and expressed some of the same worries, suggesting that "a hint of a masterpiece is most definitely there, but beneath some problems." That said, Next Gen dedicated quite a few words to an innovation it believes might stick -- Alone in the Dark's episodic story structure. Eden Games admitted that the approach was inspired by serial television shows -- 24 and "the big HBO dramas," to be specific. There are several quotes and explanations by the devs in the article.

Eden Games has split the game up into twenty "episodes," each with its own narrative arc and cliffhanger conclusion. Here's the kicker, though: you can skip an episode -- or several of them -- if you want. Eden Games is doing this to throw a bone to gamers who often don't finish games because they get stuck at a certain puzzle or encounter. Each episode starts with a "Last time, on Alone in the Dark" sequence to catch players up to the action. Don't think you can read the last page first, though; you'll have to complete a certain number of episodes before the ending becomes available.

EA Redwood Shores' Resident Evil 4-esque sci-fi game Dead Space has a shot at being a compelling genre title. The genre in this case is Survival Horror, which carries some remnant elements of classic Adventure games. Deep, psychological storytelling (as in Silent Hill 2) is the most prominent of those remnant elements, and the Dead Space team has produced a preview video declaring its dedication to that tradition. Gameplay footage is laced in as well.

According to the video, Dead Space takes place on a derelict mining spacecraft. The ship's crew mine distant planets on behalf of Earth's desperately resource-starved human population. When they crack open yet another planet, they apparently found hostile lifeforms.

There will also be a lot of personal back story information regarding the protagonist and other characters across the narrative arc. For more details, watch the video.

GameSpot shared some initial impressions of Fallout 3 with the world at large, and noted that XBox 360 owners aren't the only folks who will get to senselessly grind -- err, heroically work -- towards Achievements. PC users will be able to earn Achievement points via Games for Windows Live.

Note that you can acquire Achievement points with a free Silver membership; you don't need to pay $50 for a Gold one. In fact, since Fallout 3 has no multi-player, there's no need to invest in a Gold membership at all, unless you've got the money to blow for no reason. If that's the case, more power to ya!

The article also goes into detail about Fallout 3's immersive character creation process, combat, user interface, and the different ways you can use your canine companion Dogmeat (a throwback to the first Fallout) for various tasks. Apart from the Achievements bit, though, most of the content is old news. Then again, a fresh perspective is always nice if you just can't get enough Fallout.