The Serpent Theater at PAX was absolutely packed to the gills this afternoon for only the second ever public demonstration of id Software’s Rage. Game director Tim Willits served as the narrator while design director Matt Hooper was at the helm, and both seemed genuinely excited to demo the game to someone other than members of the press. While it wasn’t playable, it was clearly obvious after the demonstration why the team seemed so stoked to show off their game.

The first thing that stuck out was how polished the game looked. The Xbox 360 version was the one being shown, and it was a rock solid 60 frames per second at all times throughout the demonstration. Furthermore, there didn’t seem to be any noticeable bugs. The menus looked fully fleshed out, there wasn’t any pop-in, and nothing glitched out or fell through the environment. The core game screamed ‘retail ready’, which is pretty amazing when you consider that the game isn’t coming out for another year.

The demo opened up near the outskirts of Wellspring, one of the two main towns in the game. After a few small encounters, the audience was shown a short vehicle segment where Hooper took the reigns of a fully loaded deathmobile complete with machine gun turrets and missile launchers, which looked incredibly satisfying to use. He was whipping around corners with ease until he arrived at Wellspring.

Willits continued to stress how varied everything is. The team at id has been busy making sure every part of the game is unique, and the town was full of stuff to do. Check out the local gossip at the bar, gamble away your money, and entering the local racing circuit were all options. The NPCs took note of the player’s appearance, as the outfit the main character was wearing raised a few eyebrows.

After the tour, it was time to head into the sewers to start the shooting part. id specializes in close quarters combat, and their specialty was in full display here. The gunplay looked highly impactful, and Rage gives you the ability to collect parts to make a multitude of helpful creations, such as a RC car bomb and a walking turret like the helpful little guys from Doom 3.

After digging through sewers and gang hideouts, the demo ended in the town of Dead City, which is a highly apt description. Dead City is a completely demolished major metropolis, and it really showed off how good the game is capable of looking. The presentation ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, as Hooper was about to fight a 100 foot tall behemoth, but even with the tease, the audience was highly receptive and erupted in cheers at the end.

Rage continually impressed throughout the entire presentation. It’s clear that the guys at id have worked very hard at creating a huge, lively world with a lot to do and see. It’s still a year away, but Rage looks ready to ship right now, and id promised that it’s only going to get better by the time the game launches next September.

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“Yeah, it surprised us too,” Call of Duty: Black Ops multiplayer design director David Vonderhaar told us at the multiplayer reveal event in Los Angeles earlier this week. What surprised Vonderhaar and the team at Treyarch was the “30 to 40 percent” of Call of Duty players that never venture into mulitplayer, according to Activision research. His goal for Black Ops: To get as many of those people into multiplayer as possible.

With Modern Warfare 2 breaking sales records and its developer, Infinity Ward, in a state of collapse, following the highly publicized departure of the studio’s founders and many of its senior staff, all eyes are on Treyarch to pick up the torch and deliver the most robust and polished multiplayer experience the franchise has seen yet.

But how far does Vonderhaar look to find competition? “The benchmark is always the last game that the studio’s made, or that Activision’s published,” he said. “Multiplayer CoD games command three of the four top spots on Xbox Live right now. We’re filling stadiums of people every night with players.” And that fan base, which is shared across Infinity Ward’s two Modern Warfare titles along with Treyarch’s zombie-infused World at War multiplayer, hasn’t shied away from upgrading annually.

But first, there’s a challenge that Vonderhaar notes: A lot of different kinds of gamers buy Call of Duty games and never go online.

Continue reading Call of Duty: Black Ops multiplayer takes aim at cheaters, looks to recruit more players

Call of Duty: Black Ops multiplayer takes aim at cheaters, looks to recruit more players originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 15:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While flight sims and dogfight combat games are something of a niche market, free browser based shoot em ups are beloved by every gamer. Good news then, as Ubisoft has released an awesome 8-bit SHMUP reminiscent of the classic 1942. …

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High Voltage’s Conduit 2 has been struck with a delay. Previously scheduled for a fall release this year, the FPS sequel is now facing a first quarter 2011 release instead.

The bit comes via Nintendojo who caught wind of the slip from an email exchange with Sega and High Voltage’s PR.

Also confirmed were new control methods. The game will be playable with both the Classic Controller and Classic Controller Pro. MotionPlus is also supported, along with the standard Wii Remote/Nunchuk combo.

The game should be playable on the showroom floor at PAX this weekend, so those itching to see how it’s coming along best give Sega’s booth a visit.

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Last month, Activision announced a Goldeneye 007 bundle with a gilded Classic Controller to promote its upcoming remake of the seminal Nintendo 64 first-person shooter. The publisher’s picked up its promotional activities today, revealing a trio of retailer-exclusive enticements for players to pick the game up when it arrives November 16.

Ideal for Oddjob players with low self-esteem.

Gamers who pick up the title at GameStop or Best Buy can receive exclusive codes to unlock the game’s invisibility and tag splitscreen multiplayer modes, respectively. The invisibility mode (available with preorder) gives players the ability to become invisible for a limited amount of time to sneak up on opponents, while the tag mode makes whoever is “it” unable to score any kills until they touch another player.

The modes are said to be exclusive until December 31, 2010, suggesting they will become available to other players after that date. Both the GameStop and Best Buy codes will need to be authenticated online through the Wii before the modes are unlocked, an Activision representative told GameSpot.

The third retailer-specific incentive is a T-shirt offer available to those who reserve the game from Wal-Mart’s Web site or purchase it from one of the chain’s brick-and-mortar locations at launch. The shirt features the distinctive silhouette of strongman Oddjob’s lethal bowler hat, along with the caption “Cheater.” Playing as Oddjob in the N64 GoldenEye was frequently frowned upon by players, as his shorter stature made for a harder target and gave him a distinct advantage in matches.

For more on GoldenEye, check out GameSpot’s previous coverage.

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More familiar psychopaths and blood-soaked locations. Hit the jump to see the new stages compared with their classic inspiration… …

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That $50 per year PlayStation Plus subscription is about to start paying off; an early access demo of Kratos’ latest killing spree, the Ready at Dawn-developed God of War: Ghost of Sparta, will next week be made available to Plus subscribers and Plus subscribers alone.

No word on what to specifically expect but blood and guts all over the floor is our bet.

Next week will also see the release of a full game trial for Warhawk, just in case there’s someone out there is interested in acquiring a 3-year-old multiplayer-only shooter. You never know.

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The recent confirmation of L.A. Noire‘s delay into the first half of 2011 has prompted Take-Two to talk up the game a bit. Just a bit.

CEO Ben Feder’s words during the publisher’s earnings call just moments ago paint the Team Bondi game as nothing short of amazing; the executive promises ‘revolutionary gameplay never before seen in the industry’.

It was also said that the game was recently showed off at GameStop meeting where Feder says it garnered “incredible response.”

Like said, it’s out in Q1 2011. No dates yet.

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For Resident Evil 5, Capcom upped the speed of the series’ zombie-like hordes. For Resident Evil 6, the publisher might be upping its own pace to match that of the series’ maddened adversaries.

News of Resident Evil 6 could arrive soon.

Speaking with Spanish gaming site 3D Juegos, Capcom managing director Keiji Inafune addressed current plans for a number of its familiar franchises. According to a GameSpot translation, when asked about Resident Evil 6, Inafune said Capcom wants to release the game as soon as possible in light of Resident Evil 5’s great success. Though the developer quickly moved on to other subjects, he did tease that news about the next installment in the survival horror series could arrive soon.

Inafune also talked about the possibility for a Devil May Cry 5. He said that when development on the game starts, it will probably be designed to appeal more to Western audiences. While the series has done well in Japan, Inafune said that Devil May Cry franchise sales in North America and Europe haven’t been especially high.

As for a new Onimusha game, Inafune’s response no doubt included more laughter than fans of the series would have liked. The developer said that nobody ever asks him about the series except the Spanish gaming press. He then jokingly suggested that if there is a next episode in the series, it would surely be set in Spain.

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