Free Left 4 Dead 2 Xbox Live Weekend Planned

Valve and Microsoft are teaming up to give Xbox Live silver members free online play. This event will taken place on the weekend of January 15 through January 17. If you do own Left 4 Dead 2 and are only a Silver member, you should be very excited. I hope you are awaiting for this event.

GamePosts

Team Fortress 2 Major Update

Valve has released a major update for its FPS Team Fortress 2, now available for download. The patch brings a list of fixes, balance tweaks and other improvements to several different areas and features of the game.

Server Browser (for TF2 and DoD:S)

* Added a client-side server blacklist
o Supports blacklisting of specific servers, all servers on an IP, and all servers on a class C range
o Saves the server list to a file, and has an Import button to allow easy sharing (cfg\server_blacklist.txt)

Balance changes

* Reduced the health penalty on The Sandman
* The Force-A-Nature knockback on target now
o Only applies to hits that deal more than 30 damage and are in close range
o Factors in the firer’s angle of attack when determining the knockback direction
o Has less of an effect on grounded targets
* The Dead Ringer now
o Reduces cloak to 40% when uncloaking early
o Has a 35% cap on the amount of cloak it can gain from an ammo pack
o Has a quieter de-cloak sound

Changes / Fixes

* Fixed a performance & stability issue with AMD processors
* Improved the stability of the game server -> item backend connection
* Fixed a rare server crash related to dispensers
* Added min/max values to viewmodel_fov convar to match the settings in the slider
* Reduced the number of moons in ctf_doublecross, sadly
* Demo playback now ignores sv_pure settings, allowing demos to easily contain custom content
* Fixed a crash related to sv_pure and the wireframe_dx6 shader
* Players can no longer shoot while stunned
* Fixed a bug that caused movement speed reductions to not work on stunned players
* Soldier Rage bar no longer resets when touching a resupply cabinet

Achievement fixes

* Fixed the “Second Eye” Demoman achievement
* Fixed a bug in the “Play Doctor” Medic achievement
* Changed the requirements for the “Medals of Honor” Soldier achievement
* Updated description for the “Blind Fire” Demoman achievement to better explain the requirements
* Fixed an issue that affected several achievements requiring the use of the Equalizer

Community requests

* Added “skip_next_map” server ConCommand to skip the next map in the map cycle
* Added “Play a hit sound whenever you injure an enemy” option to the Multiplayer->Advanced options menu
* Added server “tf_use_fixedshotgunspreads” convar. When set, shotgun & scattergun pellet spreads will use a non-random distribution
* Added a “show_htmlpage” command to allow server operators to display custom web pages to clients

Changes to the TF Bots

* In KOTH mode, Bots are now
o More likely to roam around and hunt enemies if there is lots of time left
o Become more likely to push for the point as time runs down, or their teammates start to capture it
* Medic bots now
o Opportunistically “overheal” nearby friends when they can
o Prioritize healing of injured nearby friends more
o Don’t focus on Heavies quite so exclusively
o Don’t spam their Medigun continuously at round start
o Won’t choose cover far below their heal target so much (koth_nucleus)
o Fight back with their syringe-gun appropriately
* Various improvements to combat behaviors
* General bot improvements
o They no longer stand still on the point when capturing or defending it
o They choose more varied routes now
o They choose better defensive spots around captured points
o They fall back to another weapon when they entirely run out of ammo
o They adjust their FOV when using zoomed in sniper scope
o They treat in-range Sentries as the most dangerous threat
o They fire their weapons is more realistic bursts
o Engineers use their shotgun properly
* Added a “virtual mousepad” concept to rework how bots track enemy players
o They now periodically estimate the position and velocity of the enemy they are tracking, instead of “locking on”
o After rotating beyond a maximum angle, they will pause for a fraction of a second to re-center their “virtual mouse”
o Allows for over/undershoot “slop” in aiming. Looks more natural, and allows skilled players to dodge
o Addresses the “180 spin around and fire”, “Heavy bot is OP”, “Sniper is OP”, and “I can’t fight a Heavy bot as a Scout” issues
* Tuned Sniper spot finding algorithm to generate more diverse locations, partially addressing the “Predictable Sniper camping spots” issue
* Soldier bots are more careful to not fire rockets that will explode on nearby geometry and kill them
* Fixed a bug where bots tried to heal from a Dispenser being carried by an Engineer
* Tuned scoreboard logic to guard against malicious server operators spoofing bot pings to hide the “BOT” tag
* Added more bot names as suggested by the TF community

GamePosts

Mass Effect 2 PC Specifications Revealed

Planning to purchase Mass Effect 2 for the PC? Before you do, take a look at the specifications:

PC MINIMUM System Requirements
OS = Windows XP SP3 / Windows Vista SP1 / Windows 7
Processor = 1.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo or equivalent AMD CPU
Memory = 1 GB RAM for Windows XP / 2 GB RAM for Windows Vista and Windows 7
Hard Drive = 15 GB
DVD ROM = 1x Speed
Sound Card = DirectX 9.0c compatible
Direct X = DirectX 9.0c August 2008 (included)
Input = Keyboard / Mouse
Video Card = 256 MB (with Pixel Shader 3.0 support). Supported Chipsets: NVIDIA GeForce 6800 or greater; ATI Radeon X1600 Pro or greater. Please note that NVIDIA GeForce 7300, 8100, 8200, 8300, 8400, and 9300; ATI Radeon HD3200, and HD4350 are below minimum system requirements. Updates to your video and sound card drivers may be required. Intel and S3 video cards are not officially supported in Mass Effect 2.

PC RECOMMENDED System Requirements
Windows XP SP3 / Windows Vista SP1 / Windows 7
2.6+ GHz Cure 2 Duo Intel or equivalent AMD CPU
2 GB RAM
ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT, NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT, or better recommended
100% DirectX compatible sound card and drivers
DirectX August 2008

GamePosts

Upcoming Game Release For Week of January 4, 2010

The first new games of 2010 are out this week. Here is the updated list:

January 5, 2010
Bayonetta (PS3, Xbox 360)
Darksiders (PS3, Xbox 360)
Divinity II: Ego Draconis (PC, Xbox 360)

January 12, 2010
Army of Two: The 40th Day (PS3, PSP, Xbox 360)
Vancouver 2010 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
Walk It Out! (Wii)

January 19, 2010
Dark Void (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories (PS2, PSP)

January 26, 2010
MAG (PS3)
Mass Effect 2 (PC, Xbox 360)
No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle (Wii)
Shadow of Destiny (PSP)
Tatsunoko Vs Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars (Wii)

GamePosts

World of Warcraft – Power Leveling Guide to 1-80

No matter whether you are new to the World of Warcraft or want to hone your skills of the game, Zygor Power Leveling Guide to 1-80 will prove handy for you. The guide is definitely one of the best WoW guides available in the market. There are no two opinions about the fact that the guide is simply the best as it includes all the secrets of the game revealed by a team of professional gamers.

Zygor Power Leveling Guide to 1-80 provides you with the step-by-step instructions on how you can reach at the level 80 as fast as possible. The guide informs not only about the quests you have to accomplish, but also the order in which you should do them and which quests you can skip. Additionally, there is also an innovative map mod that can be used within the game, thus you will not have to read it from the desktop. It simply means that you no longer need to press alt+tab every time you want to know about the next step as the complete guide is available in your game itself.

Now, are you wondering about the term ‘team Zygor’; it is simple to answer as the game is played by a multi-gaming team. However, it is significantly known for their leveling record. The team proudly holds the world’s fastest 1-80 leveling record i.e. 6 days and 5 hours per player. The guide is the outcome of their long-standing and extensive experience in the World of Warcraft. The aim of the guide is to teach the present and prospective players the intricacies of the game and also guide them to how similar leveling speed can be achieved. You can also purchase or read reviews at Zygor Power Leveling Guide to 1-80

The foremost feature of Zygor Power Leveling Guide is that it is an entirely in-game guide. The map mod offered in this guide keeps it separate from other alliance guides available. In other guides, you need to press alt+tab again and again every time you want to know the next step. On the other hand, with the map mod in Zygor Alliance Leveling Guide, you do not have to do so since the map mod itself points the coordinates.

All the steps in Zygor Leveling Guide have been enlisted in chronological order along with comprehensive instructions as well as coordinates, shown right on the in-game map. All you need to do is to open your quest log and look for the name of the quest you want to complete and there you find a blinking dot on the map and it is done! Just follow the instructions and you will be on your way to level 80 successfully.

To conclude, it can be said that Zygor Power Leveling Guide to 1-80 is simply meant for hardcore warcraft gamers who love to play the game fast.