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Homefront PC details reveal on official web site; updated system requirements

Homefront is getting closer to its March 8 release date and today the first person shooter's official web site posted up a detailed article and FAQ on the PC version with info on the PC specific features which are being put in by developer Digital Extremes.

Some of the features that will be unique to the PC port will include having both third person and first person viewpoints when driving vehicles in the game. There will also be three difficulty settings for flying the game's helicopters for those who want the choice of a more arcade experience or a more sim-like flying gameplay design. There will also be a Practice Mode for those who want to try driving the vehicles outside of combat. Look for a dedicated server executable to be made available for download about two weeks after the PC game is released and the game will also support Nvidia's 3D Vision tech.

On the down side it sound like there won't be a demo of the game, at least before launch. Mod tools might be released sometime after Homefront ships. The PC game uses Steamworks for its DRM and won't be using the controversial Online Pass that THQ will have for the console versions

You can check out some updated Homefront PC system requirements after the jump. The update is mostly the same as we reported a few days ago but adds the requirements for Nvidia's 3D Vision set up.

[Via VG247.com]

Homefront timeline web site and novel reveal back story for game

If you have been following the development of Homefront, you know that the upcoming first person shooter from publisher THQ deals with a near-future invasion of the US by South Korea. Today the game's official web site has posted up a page that goes through the fictional time line that starts in 2010 and leads up to the events in the Kaos Studios-developed game.

For more on Homefront's back story you can read the newly released prose novel Homefront: The Voice of Freedom. Written by novelist Raymond Benson and movie director John Milius, the novel follows the saga of Ben Walker, a journalist who after the South Korean invasion becomes a guerrilla radio correspondent that tries to help the American resistance.

Dawn of War II Retribution to add new map and hero to Last Stand mode

Fans of the Last Stand survival-style mode that is a part of the sci-fi RTS game Warhammer 40,000 Dawn of War II will be happy to know that the upcoming stand alone expansion pack Dawn of War II Retribution will be adding some new content to that popular mode. PC Gamer is reporting that the mode from developer Relic and publisher THQ will add a new hero and a new map to the Last Stand mode.

The new hero is the Imperial Guard's Lord General which PC Gamer says "relies on summoned reinforcements and deployable turrets". The new level is unnamed but is described as a "volcanic-themed map" that will become a big challenge to even veteran Last Stand players. The new content will be included when Retribution is released on March 1.

Company of Heroes Online to get major update soon

While technically the game is still in open beta, the persistent online WWII RTS game Company of Heroes Online is already prepping up some new content for the game. Developer Relic Entertainment has detailed what will be in the next big update called Operation Menace.

The update will have some balance changes for both the American and the Wehrmacht armies. The American faction will have an "Exhaustion" period of 10 second for their units if those units use its Fire-Up or Sprint abilities. There's also been a bug that has been fixed that made some vehicles invulnerable to attacks if they got down to 5 percent health.

Dawn of War II Retribution dumps Games For Windows Live for Steamworks

When developer Relic released Warhammer 40,000 Dawn of War II back in 2009 it used Microsoft's Games For Windows Live clients for updates, achievements and other features, The first expansion pack Chaos Rising, released earlier this year, also used Games For Windows Live. Today, Relic announced that the next game in the sci-fi RTS series, Dawn of War II Retribution, will switch over and use Valve's Steamworks system.

Relic stated that the switch to Steamworks will allow them to do things for Retribution like "guest passes, free multiplayer weekends, pre-loading and the ability to provide fast turn-around on future patches and updates." Unfortunately Steamworks support won't be added to the original game or Chaos Rising nor will the content in Retribution be added to those to games when Retribution is released in the first quarter of 2011. The good news is that owners of the original game and Chaos Rising will be able to participate in a multiplayer beta of Retribution via Steam sometime in 2011.

This is the latest game franchise to dump Games For Windows Live for Steam. Bethesda Softworks announced earlier this year that Fallout: New Vegas would use Steamworks after using Games For Windows Live for Fallout 3 and Square Enix used Steamworks for Kane and Lynch 2 after using Games For Windows Live for the original game.

Download HD Dawn of War II: Retribution Announcement Trailer (165 MB)

Ghost Pirates of Vooju Island coming soon to US retail stores?

Last year, Telltale Games, made up in part of former LucasArts adventure game team members, released its five part revival of the classic Monkey Island series. Oddly enough another developer made up of former LucasArts team members, Autumn Moon Entertainment, released its own adventure game in 2009, Ghost Pirates of Voojo Island.

So why haven't you heard about this game? Because it was released in Germany, where the PC adventure game industry is still pretty strong. It was also released in the UK in February 2010. However the GameStop web site has posted up word that ValuSoft has plans to release the game to retail stores in the US on August 30.

The game itself has three main characters out to stop a demon god from coming back to life. The kicker is that not only do each of the main characters have their own special skills, they can also turn into ghosts which allows them to wall through walls, among other things, in the game. We plan to contact Autumn Moon to get more info on the title's US release.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine officially announced for PC

After months of speculation and even some fan petitions, publisher THQ finally caved in and announced today that the upcoming third person action game Warhammer 40,000 Space Marine would indeed be released for the PC. The game, developed by Relic Entertainment, was first announced back in May 2009 as a console only title.

Due for release in early 2011, the game is the latest title from Relic and THQ based on the Games Workshop table top war game series. It will feature players controlling a Space Marine as he attempts to defend a imperial Forge World against a massive Ork invasion with both ranged and, as you can see above, melee weapons.

Homefront follow-up, Homefront London, already planned

Last week at E3 2010 we got another quick gameplay glimpse of Homefront, the upcoming first person shooter from developer Kaos Studios and publisher THQ that will depict a near-future invasion of the US by North Korea. While the game isn't due out until the first quarter of 2011 it appears that THQ already has plans for a follow-up that takes place in the UK.

Computer and Video Games reports that THQ exec Danny Bilson is already promoting the follow up, titled Homefront London. He is quoted as saying, "We haven't got there yet but you're going to see Homefront: London later on in the franchise. This is not just a game in the US." We suspect any second game will be contingent of how the first title does in sales.

New Dawn of War II patch includes new map

Developer Relic Entertainment continues to provide regular updates to their sci-fi RTS game Warhammer 40,000 Dawn of War II. This week came a new update via Steam that added the map that you can see above you, Hive City. The new map was made by a member of the Dawn of War II community who won a recent map contest.

Besides the new maps there are quite a few unit balance changes in the new update for the game's playable factions. In addition there also been some changes and improvement in how units seek cover. You can check out an extensive look at this feature on the game's official community site.

New Dawn of War II patch released via Steam

With the Warhammer 40,000 Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising expansion pack now out in the field for the past few weeks, the team at Relic Entertainment has been collecting feedback from players for a pretty big update to the original RTS game. That 2.2 patch is now available for an automatic download via Steam.

The patch contains a number of bug fixes as well as a fairly extensive amount of unit balance changes among the game's various playable factions. It also has a new feature that lets players modify their keybindings in the game, including camera control, by altering the keydefaults.lua file.
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