Review by Steerpike Defense Grid: The Awakening Developer Hidden Path Entertainment Publisher Hidden Path/TLC Released December 8, 2008 Available for Windows XP/Vista (version reviewed), Xbox 360 Verdict: 4/5 Thumbs Up “While it tastes great, it is less filling. But for all that, it’s simply a joy to play, and I confidently recommend it.”
An official trailer for the long-promised Black Mesa total conversion is available above and on their website. Like all really ambitious fan mods, this attempt to completely recreate the original Half Life using the Source engine threatens to be more than its unpaid, indie dev team can chew… though I must say the trailer looks pretty darn impressive. It’s certainly a sight better than the waste-of-a-download Half Life Source that Valve itself provided with Steam …
Valve Software, lovable koala bear of a game producer that it is, has released interesting stats on who has achieved what, Achievement-wise, in their zombiriffic cooperative shooter Left 4 Dead. That’s… really all I’ve got for you. My take on Left 4 Dead, having now actually played it: it’s another win for Valve, whose commitment to quality and finely tuned gameplay are again on display here. And it achieves the heretofore impossible goal of structuring …
So the Left 4 Dead demo is now available over the Steam network for normal humans like me who didn’t pre-order the game. With Valve’s highly anticipated online cooperative zombie shooter shambling into retail in a week, the demo servers are already packed with smack-talking, team-fragging, headset-wearing eleven year olds eager to describe in appalling detail what they did with your mother last night.
Review by Steerpike S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky Developer GSC Game World Publisher Deep Silver, Steam Released September 21, 2008 Available for Windows Verdict: 3/5 Middlin’ “In the end, Shadow of Chernobyl stood above its many, many flaws because it was a revolutionary title, a game-changer. Clear Sky, though in many ways a far superior game, does not enjoy the same immunity to its flaws, because it’s supposed to be of the second generation, and the mistakes …
Tilted Mill – of Caesar IV and Children of the Nile fame – has just released Hinterland, an intriguing mashup of fantasy action roleplaying and city management. While in trying to manage both it ends up doing neither with much depth, at just $19.99 over Steam, Hinterland may well be worth a look.