Square Enix, today announces it has released a demo of Supreme Commander 2 on Steam today. Developed by Gas Powered Games, SC2, is set 25 years after Supreme Commander, and it features numerous game enhancements in the form of in-depth campaign mode, online multiplayer and a unique storyline.

The demo has two levels of the tutorial as well as two missions for the United Earth Federation (UEF), one of the three factions of the Colonial Defense Coalition. In the game, the Cybran invasion force is on the run and sensors have picked up a number of operational Cybran Mass Extractors off the coast of the Weddell Strait. Players will need to explore the islands in the strait and successfully destroy the extractors.

After refusing orders and refusing to surrender their Armored Command Unit, players are now public enemy #1 in the UEF. Colonel Rodgers has targeted New Cathedral, a colony where the players’ wife and child reside – they will need to take the most direct route to defend the colony. Unfortunately, that means traveling through the ruins of the Boolon Industrial Complex.

All gungho about it? Go ahead, download it.

E-xpress will be releasing the game in India in March 2010 and pricing of the game will be as follows:
PC: Rs 999    Xbox 360: Rs. 2499

As always, here are a few screens

“Dude.. Balu… where have you been? Why haven’t you been posting anything?” The couple of guys who read this blog but refuse to comment, asked me that in the past few days. The main reason I have been away from the blog, has been due to BYOC, which by the way, was a lot of fun. (I was tired after 24hours of standing around, talking, gaming etc etc)

Speaking of BYOC, Bangalore killed the concept of ‘Bring Your Own Computer’ altogether, even I’m to blame. Hardly anyone brought their own

computers along, from that I hope you understand that most people who registered, came for the tourneys.

While I was there at the event on and off, taking breaks to make a few pub owners richer, I noticed that most of the crowd hung around the CS and DoTa tourney leaving anyone who wasn’t part of these groups to ogle to Alienware laptops or play Quake 3 on the few other systems around. (at least that’s what I did) As it got dark, the crowd swindled and only about 80 of the 250 plus registered participants were around. Most of them were again DoTa CS clans who were taking part in the imbagamer tourney which was also being organized there. Nice arrangement overall.. The crowd was noisy and they kept at it despite an old security guard doing his own round of yelling (ehmm… at the gamers).

Being a participant driven event, it wasn’t required for organisers to hang around and see to it that everything’s organised in a civilized manner. It just happened. Though it was very well organized, there were a few complaints though. Around 8 teams registered for the CoD4 tournament, but by he time it started (10pm) only one team was left. Another team volunteered to participate later on, this confusion could have been avoided. The console space, set up by Consoul.in saw hardly any particpants and they decided to pack up pretty early. Can’t really blame them.

When I spoke to Ashish Gupta, Director of Xteme Gaming who organized the event, he said that every city’s been different. “Delhi’s big on LAN gaming, Mumbai had a good share of both, while in Bangalore it’s all for the tournaments. We’ll need a different strategy for each city. The turnout was good enough considering it’s being organised for the first time. Plus, we were really busy with other events as well and did not get enough time to promote this event,” he said.

Publicity aside, there a few things which could have made the event better.

1> The console section was in a corner, most gamers would have missed it as there was indication anywhere that such a section exists.

2> An separate space for LAN gaming and only for LAN gaming. The space allocated for LAN gaming was taken over by clans who were eager to practise.

3> DVD drives in systems. Not all of us carry around games in a pen drive

4> More goodies =D There were plently already to offer to winners and to a few lucky guys. But more’s always welcome.

5> Get some console manufacturers on board. Are you listening Microsoft, Sony?

6> There were lot of outstation participants, get more Bangaloreans to participate

Here’s a full list of winners as posted by Eports India

FIFA

1 – Akshay Sundhareswaran [Chennai]
2 – Sabeel [Bangalore]
3 – R.Kartik [Chennai]

Need for Speed Most Wanted
1 – Deb kumar
2 – Mohan S
3 – Aashik

CS tourney
1 – ETOS
2 – DsP
3 – Step

IMBAGAMER  DOTA tourney
1 – A clan that comprised of Vishak (Max), Kashif (spoon), Devilrules21, Str_I_ke, Varun_Nightwolf, RajtheImmortal (players from Chennai and Bangalore) came first at the BYOC.
2 – Spindix’s clan from Bangalore’s Zapak came second.
3 – D_Destructor’s clan from Hyderabad

Few pics from the event, courtesy of the organisers

We had earlier written about Bring Your Own Computer (BYOC) LAN Party and gaming tournament which will be organised across the country. The event will be held on the same dates as announced earlier, so start packing your PCs or do some last min modding to add extra oomph to your rig. In the tournament section however, you will be able to use the systems provided by the organisers alone.

And all you console gamers, please don’t stay away, there will be a lot of console action as well at the BenQ Console Zone.

Meanwhile, Consoul might be arranging a few Xbox360 consoles which gamers can rent out at Bangalore. The organisers of BYOC will rent out PCs and monitors to gamers who find it inconvenient to carry their rigs along, but it’s not sure if it’s restricted to Delhi or if it’ll be available in all locations.

This is the first time the event’s being organised outside Delhi and we wish the organisers best of luck, as we need such events to really encourage gaming culture in India.

The venues and the dates for the event are as follows

Delhi : 7-8 Nov.

Venue: Global School, NBCC Plaza, Pushp Vihar, Saket.

Mumbai : 14-15 Nov.

Venue: Ajivasan Hall, Juhu Tara Road, Near SNDT College.

Bengaluru : 21 Nov.

Scared Heart School, Behing Good Shepard Auditorium, Museum Road.

Hyderabad : 28 Nov.

The games for the tournament

Counter Strike, DoTa, Call of Duty 4, NFS Most Wanted, Fifa09

See you there folks

PS: The organisers say there’s Rs10lakh worth of goodies for taking.. okay stop drooling

I used to love playing NFS series of games as a kid; as a matter of fact, it was one of the first games that got me totally hooked on to video games. But through the years the charm wore off as the developers used their tried and tested formulae way too many times.

I gave up on the series and moved on to other Flatout and Burnout which were not just fun to play, but also different in their own unique ways. That being the context I had high hopes for NFS Shift, for in the game I saw something that would get me back to liking the series yet again, and I need to say it has done so successfully.

Shift is not a racing sim, nor is it a total arcade racer either. It finds itself in between these two groups which have their own top games and franchises. With the car modelling and control, it works somewhat like a sim, but when it comes to overtaking and catching up, it’s still  an arcade game. You can still catch up after an initial spin out, provided it’s a three or four lap race and you can even push opponents off the road with ease.

Where the game really shines is with the cockpit view. The screen goes blurry when you crash, you get an real sense of speed as surrounding flash by, but you’ll also end up slamming on the brakes way too late. The last issue however is a temporary one and once you get used to the tracks, it’ll be a non-issue. In the beginning of a race, when all cars are trying to crowd around and push ahead this camera angle makes it even more difficult to navigate through the road ahead. You might say that’s how life is in a real race, but then in a real race the driver has 360 degree vision, he doesn’t need to press a few keys on the numpad to look around. That being the case, I ended up starting most races with normal, helicopter view.

Track Record

Apart from the staple races, Shift brings to us a few special events which have some of the most interesting races in the game. The best are those in which cars from the same company are placed against each other. My favourite mode in the NFS series, the drift mode, however, is almost impossible to get used to. I tried and I tried and I tried.. yet failed. I’ll keep trying mind you, but the level progression system in Shift is such that you can keep going even if you haven’t won all races. You can avoid almost all Drift races and still do pretty well.

Levels are dependent upon the number of stars you get for each race. Every race will have different criteria, in completion of which, you’ll be awarded stars. So when you first play a race, you can concentrate on winning a race, and the second time, you can try to achieve those points you missed out the first time. It could be ‘mastering all curves’ or ‘clean overtaking’ to name a few.

Going Faster

To keep winning races you need to upgrade your car on the way and the [smartads] tuning settings have progressed a lot since the last version. Because of the lack of time, I opted for the  Quick Tuning mode and set the car to perform the way I wanted it to. If you’re an automotive freak, you can hit the Advanced Tuning and fine tune your cars performance. Another point to note is that certain upgrades don’t work well until another upgrade is bought. I realised this after I installed a few performance updates only to find it almost impossible to control my car. Once I installed the weight reduction package, things fell into place. My Porsche returned to its normal self.

Paying for all thee upgrades will never be a hassle considering the kinda money you win in each race. A friend of mine who played a few races, thought money was showered on the driver more than what was necessary — ehmm you’ll feel like a member of  Indian cricket team .

Around 70 cars are available in the game, but me being me, stuck to Porsche cars for most parts of the game, except for the first stage when I was driving a Mazda.

How Hardcore is It?

One reason why racing titles appeal to everyone is its simplicity and the level of complexity it could be pushed to, NFS Shift is no different. IN the beginning of the game you’ll get to drive a car with minimal assists and aggressive opponents, just to check your driving ability. Depending on how well you fare, you might be slotted to the most difficult setting — realistic damage, no driving assists, aggressive AI — and if you screw up you’ll be thrown lollipops in the form of, easy AI (will skid out way too often) driving assists (brake last moment and still get away with it!) to name a few.

Verdict

Overall, NFS Shift is a good game, and a great way to take the franchise ahead and the game has brought me back to liking NFS franchise again. The graphics are beautiful and the cars sound too sexy. Great going, EA, Slightly Mad (developer), you got the trick right this time

The Good

Racing modes

Graphics

No Story line.. Yay!

Cock pit view

The Bad

Drift is daft!

Too easy to reach championship mode

We need more bling :-/

The latest game from Pixar, UP, based on the movie by the same name, is enjoyable if you have watched the movie and liked it, else you might find it a little dull and childish.
The game has almost the same story as the movie; but doesn’t engage one the way the movie does. Carl an old man, decides to travel to Paradise Falls, just as he promised his wife he would while she was in her death bed. He manages to get his house to fly by using hundreds of hydrogen balloons. Mid-way he realises that Russell, a boy scout, was standing on his house porch while the house lifted-off. He gets him into the house and after heading through a patch of rough weather, they reach Paradise Falls. Now both of them begin a chase behind the house which drifted-off when they got off at the falls.
Most of the game time will be spent hiking through jungles and jumping over narrow cliffs along waterfalls. So you’ll get Carl and Russell to run, jump, run, jump through the forest floor. To add a little variety to the mind-numbing action you have an option to collect items, which will unlock personal skills through the game.
Apart from running around on the forest floor, you’ll get a chance to get Carl and Russell to travel on a raft and fly a plane.
Also, gamers can switch between the pair at any point during the game and this will be mainly to do certain tasks only one of them can perform. For example, Russell can lift up Carl up a steep cliff and he can in turn lift him up by dropping his cane down.
Graphically, the game is a disappointment considering how good the characters look in the movie. The PC version of the game could easily pass-off as a PS2 game, even if you turn on all the bells and whistles of graphics settings on.
The game however might appeal to children and the tasks and gameplay are easy to learn and get used to. But in an attempt to make a game aimed at kids, I think the developer of the game, THQ, ended up making dumbed down version of the movie.

Rating:

So I finally got my hands on the latest in the NFS franchise, NFS Shift. I haven’t been a big fan of the series off-late and I have been playing Burnout series more. But I need to say that Shift is a welcome change to the series. No more story lines- it was fun once, twice but then on it started feeling sloppy.

I like the sun – It’s hot out there now go melt the tracks with some hot driving.

Camera – Before I got the game, I swore I’ll drive only in the first person view. Why? Because it feels just like a first person shooter. Every time you crash everything turns blurry much like it happens when someone drops a smoke bomb in many FPS titles. But after trying it, I realised it’s not for me, may be I’ll go back to in-car camera after I get used to the cars and tracks a bit.

The AI is not as easy as in previous titles, of course, I had to try it out in a race to realise it. I only managed to finish 7th out of a lineup of 10 as I skid out of track once. In a race which spans two laps that’s unforgivable.

Here are a few screens. Longer preview, and a full-blown review in a weeks time

All okay in there?

Just past the first curve of the race =) Didn’t crash **grin**

Hope you’re enjoying playing as the cape crusader. Don’t worry about being jobless once you play through the game in a hurry. Eidos has announced that a map pack – Insane Night Map Pack – of the game will be available on September 17 for PS3, Xbox360 and PC.

In the ‘Totally Insane’ FreeFlow Combat map, players will be tested to their fullest as scores of escaped lunatics bear down upon Batman as they make their escape through the asylum’s secure records facility.

These fast-moving foes will challenge all but the most practiced players, with quick reactions and expert timing needed to fend off wave upon wave of insane inmates, bent on taking down the Dark Knight.

In the ‘Nocturnal Hunter’ Invisible Predator map, players take on a wholly different approach, practicing their predatory skills to remain in the shadows, utilizing the Arkham watchtowers and Batman’s arsenal of gadgets to gain the upper hand on The Joker’s army of goons patrolling below.

Batman: Arkham Asylum is rated “T” and is available for PS3 and Xbox 360 for the suggested retail price of $59.99. It will also be available for Games for Windows LIVE at retail outlets for the suggested retail price of $49.99 on September 15. For more information, please visit www.batmanarkhamasylum.com.

We certainly enjoyed playing Ashes Cricket 2009 by Codemasters a lot, and now we have been informed that e-xpress interactive, the distributors of the game in India, has tied-up with NRG Gaming Lounge in Mumbai to organise a Ashes Cricket 2009 tournament in the city. The tournament will feature PC and Wii versions of the game. From what I have heard, the Wii version is fun to play and much simpler than the PC version.

Below is the schedule for the event which will be held this Saturday (Sept 12)

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm     Registration

1:00 pm – 1:30 pm       Introducing players to the game, explaining the rules

1:30 pm – 6:30 pm       Ashes gameplay event (tourney time) between all the players

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm       Exhibition match on Wii and interaction with media

7:00pm – 7:15 pm        Prize distribution

Venue: NRG gaming lounge, 74 Krishna kunj, RA Kidwai Road, Near SNDT College, Matunga, Mumbai-19

Timing: 12pm onwards.

Prize sponsor: Leadtek

Also Read: Ashes Cricket 2009 PC Review: Howzat

As soon as I got my hands on Ashes Cricket 2009, I ran towards the PC all excited and launched the game. The game is interesting, but I need to say the game has failed to meet my expectations.

As you would expect, Ashes Cricket 2009 allows you to play through the entire Ashes Test Series, as well as several other game types such as one day internationals, Twenty20 and test matches.

While the Ashes remains the full 5 sets of 5 days worth of cricketing action (I mean rain doesn’t affect the game as often as it does otherwise in England) there’s enough instant action right here with the included T20 games. These essentially offers all the breath taking swift bouncers, and long range sixes that the part-time fans adore so much.

Training

But before you take to the wicket, it’s a good idea to take a peek at the training options on offer, for your own sake. Splitting up the sport’s main disciplines, you’re walked through all the batting and bowling techniques you could ever desire. You are guided by the Legends of Cricket, Sir Ian Botham and Shane Warne. The voice overs are nicely done and fun while you practice the batting or bowling. The training mode over all is very helpful to get used to all the aspects of the game. Once you’re done with training you realise the game is all about training, no matter what you’re doing — batting, bowling or taking a catch — you realise that the game is all about training, pressing the right button at the right time.

Batting

The control system is quite simple. Select the direction you want to play the shot in. Chose if you want to play on front foot or back foot and select the kind of shot (defence, grounded, lofted) just at the right time.
To me, batting is where all the fun lies, and those who ‘re new to cricket can leave the decision of which foot the play the shot in to the AI. In easy mode you can just scores fours and sixes without blinking your eye. But in hard mode things turn nasty to an extant. But hey it doesn’t become impossible to score runs just a tad difficult.

Bowling

Bowling is a different prospect. Like in all the cricket games till now, you get to nudge a circle to the specific area of the pitch you want to direct the ball towards – with a colour-coordinated option allowing you to see where this specific bowler pitches perfectly.

The problem I have with bowling is that, when in hard mode unless you bowl full speed you stand a chance of being hit for a six or a four. For example try bowling slightly below full and the AI will score at a rate of 8 runs per over even in a test match. After around 20-30 overs when the ball wears out fast ballers will be able to perform reverse-swing. If weather is perfect you will see a few balls which swing in arcs.

Spin bowling again is again not so enjoyable because spin is not just about moving the ball around on the pitch. It’s also about flight. There are zilch options to change the flight of the bowl. Once you manage to bowl well continuously, spinners will be able to perform special deliveries such as a doosras.

Bowling overall feels more flexible than ever before in a cricket game, but it would have been much better if Codemasters do something about manic AI.

Fielding

Never has it been so much fun to field. A wide range of preset formations are available, with the option to set your own custom fields. Fielding itself is automated in the main, though you can choose which end you throw the ball back to from the outfield. And catching takes the form of a close-up Quick Time Event. I have a little love for QTEs, but here it actually works pretty well in creating a snap moment of drama. To catch, make sure you press the return key when the colour turns green.

Graphics

The stadiums, the shots all look so good but player likeliness is totally absent. Pitches feature an excellent level of detail that portray realism. The cricket grounds also feature a nice level of detail although the sprites used for the crowd look seriously out of date and would have looked poor on the last generation of consoles.

Quite bugged up

Despite being solid overall, there are a few problems that stop it being a perfect sports game. The main bug is the run out goof-up. Sometimes the AI doesn’t run the full length of the pitch while taking a run and stops in the middle of a pitch. The result an easy run out. Now who wants that?

Another bug is while throwing from the outfield. In case it’s a flat throw, a fielder in an in-between position will dive to grab the ball. This time you lose a chance of a run out.

LBWs are a rarity thanks to the in-game umpires who rule it not-out despite hawk-eye (yes, the game has hawk-eye ) showing it’s out.

Other problems

This particular problem I am going to refer to cannot be blamed on Codemasters. Electronic Arts holds the usage right for all the names and jerseys of international teams. So most teams have older jerseys (India wears the ‘99 kit) and names are all jumble up and players look nothing like they’re supposed to look like. But hey, you can change  the names from within the game.

RATING: 7 outta 10

Trident Hotel in Mumbai, the target of 26/11 terror attacks was buzzing with gaming enthusiasts today.

Folks from EA showcased their latest & greatest upcoming works here with EA India Showcase 2009. With a  quick look to their anticipated games & sequels to their already established ones.

With an array of consoles set up with each game it gave me a chance to try my hand on some. I could stand by those remotes all day long but time constraints didn’t allowed me so. To top it all, Christopher Ng, General Manager for Electronic Arts Asia Pacific Pvt Ltd, was there to showcase EA’s offerings.

I don’t mean to make you guys jealous, but I got my hand on some highly anticipated releases of this year like FIFA 10,Need For Speed Shift and Brutal Legend. Other games which were announced & showcased were- Army of Two- The 40th Day, Battlefield Bad Company 2,  Dante’s Inferno, Dead Space Extraction, Dragon Age Origins, GI Joe- The Rise of Cobra, Grand Slam Tennis, Madden NFL, Mass Effect 2, MySims Agents,  Need For Speed NITRO, Spore Hero- Arena & The Saboteur. Trailers of Command & Conquer 4,NBA Live 10 were also showcased.

Games like Fifa 10, Brutal Legend & NFS Nitro will be, for now, launched over selected platforms only like Xbox360, Playstations’ & the Wii’s.

With games like Brutal Legend and others EA is trying to cater a more select audience & looking at the continuing sequels there’s a lot more which they can offer. Looks like a festive season ahead for gamers here.

COMING SOON: Stay with us for more updates & previews of the games showcased at EA India Showcase 2009.