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Epic Releases Patch for Gears of War PC

Zach Lott — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 14:23:01 -0600

If you're still playing Gears of War on the PC, then you should head over to the game's official website, where Epic has released a mandatory patch update that fixes a digital signature error.

You can download the patch here.

Next WoW Patch to Bring Major Class Changes

Zach Lott — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 21:30:21 -0600

Big news on the World of Warcraft front: A series of posts from Blizzard employees on the official WoW forums have revealed that big changes are coming for every class in patch 3.1.

Eurogamer was the first to write about the situation, as they reported that the patch will see everything from the elimination of consumable Hunter ammunition to Rogue and Shaman buffs and a major overhaul of the Priest class. Blizzard will also be nerfing mana regeneration for all classes, and the patch is expected to see the opening of Ulduar, a new raid instance.

Instead of doing a complete outline of upcoming changes, check out the forum posts to see what to expect: Priest, Rogue and Shaman; Warlock, Warrior and Druid; Death Knight, Hunter, Mage and Paladin.

Rockstar Releases Second GTA IV PC Patch

Zach Lott — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 10:29:27 -0600

After facing harsh criticism over the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV's bugginess at launch, Rockstar has put together a second patch that, among other things, offers graphical and crash fixes while correcting errors with the first patch.

You can grab the patch at Rockstar's website or by signing into Games for Windows Live. Follow the link to check out the patch notes.

New Gears of War 2 Update Goes Live

Solomon Lee — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 21:03:12 -0600

Epic has released a new patch for Gears of War 2 that fixes various multiplayer glitches and gameplay bugs. Included with the update is a list of new achievements involving the Combustible and Flashback map packs. They are listed below as follows:

Skeletons in your Closet (20G) - Complete waves 1 through 10 on all Flashback Map Pack maps in Horde (any difficulty)
More Mystery, Less History (15G) - Win a multiplayer match on each of the 5 Flashback Map Pack maps (any mode except Wingman)
Bound by a Shared Past (15G) - Win a Wingman match on each of the 5 Flashback Map Pack maps
Trial by, and on, Fire (20G) - Survive first 10 Horde waves on Combustible Map Pack maps as a team
The Roof! The Roof! The Roof... (15G) - Win a multiplayer match on each of the 3 Combustible Map Pack maps (any mode except Wingman)
Forged in the Fire (15G) - Win a Wingman match on each of the 3 Combustible Map Pack maps
Annex: Now With Execution Rules (75G) - Win an Annex match on each Flashback and Combustible Map Pack map (public only)

Maxis releases third Spore patch, includes 24 new limbs

Zach Lott — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 10:40:31 -0600

Over at the official Spore website there's news that the third patch for the game is now available, offering twenty-four new limbs for your creatures. The limbs are intended to be used with the Creepy & Cute Parts Pack, which was released today. Imagine how much freakier your creatures will be now.

There's also a few patch fixes:

Fix for esc key not bringing up Options in Galaxy Game Entry
Fix for creator backgrounds appearing on small sporepedia cards
Update to help keep achievements on the server in sync with achievements in the game

The patch is available for both PC and Mac.

Virtua Fighter 5 Patch Now Available

Solomon Lee — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 19:59:58 -0600

Sega has released a new patch for Virtua Fighter 5 for the Xbox 360 featuring various bug fixes, improved performance and more gameplay options.

Hit the jump to view the full list.

The patch includes the following:

Some characters will now be able to select costume-specific pants in alternate costumes, for example equipping Costume A pants in Costume B.
Replays of online battles can now be saved.
One additional item per character (appear as "Downloaded item" in Costume settings/Item edit dialog).
Gamer pictures will now be shown in online battles.
After winning the World Tournament Final, it's now more likely that rivals you have not defeated will be playing in arcades.
When someone joins an online match, you can now see their connection quality.
Various fixes for minor bugs, including a texture bug.
Easier sorting of rankings.
Rematches in Online VS. Player Matches now possible even when the players haven't added their opponent to their friend list

Crysis Patch Now Available

Solomon Lee — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 18:42:51 -0600

A new patch is now available for Crysis that includes various tweaks, bug fixes and performance upgrades. The patch updates the game to version 1.1 and is sized at 140MB.

Hit the jump for the full list of fixes and tweaks.

Quoth directly from the news story, the patch is listed as follows:

Fixes

Fixed: Potential crash in D3D10
Fixed: Orange boxes apearing when hispec savegame loaded into lowspec game.
Fixed: Inconsistent damage dealt to vehicles when shot by LAW.
Fixed: Reflection resolution on D3D10, MultiGPU reflection update fix
Fixed: Memory leak with FSAA modes
Fixed: Infinite ammo hacks.
Fixed: Memory leak in D3D10 when switching screen modes
Fixed: Muti optimizations
Fixed: When player melees during gun raise animation, their gun will be in a permanantly raised position.
Fixed: Crash when loading savegame with level exported recently by editor
Fixed: Virtual keyboard does not function properly when a game pad is connected
Fixed: Users can lose the ability to look around with the Right Stick
Fixed: Setting screen resolution to "default" stops user from selecting last resolution
Fixed: Bug when changing resolution in D3D10
Fixed: Issues with Depth of field and water droplets in D3D10
Fixed: Crash on NaN warning

Updates

Added: Motion Blur UI and V.SYNC UI options
Optimized: Motion blur
Optimized: FSAA (Full Scene Anti-Aliasing)
Optimized sound id implementation
Enabled VSync functionality in D3D10
New benchmarking files for ice CPU benchmark.
http/xmlrpc password protected remote control session
Marked debug cvars as cheat
F12 (screenshot) now works in restricted mode as well

Tweaks

Reduced LAW splash damage vs. infantry in PowerStruggle mode
Slowed Rocket projectile speed down in MP slightly
Disabled automatic turret bounding boxes on vehicles to prevent issues with LAW hit detection
Reduced grenade explosion radius in multiplayer
Clamped water tesselation to avoid cheating in MP
MultiGPU improvements with depth map updates

Those that wish to download the patch can do so here.

Guitar Hero 3 Gets First PC Patch

Tim Grube — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 21:39:01 -0600

It was a silent release, but Aspyr has released the first patch for Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock on the PC making it v1.1. The new patch fixes several gameplay problems as well as improvements to the game. Some of the changes consist of the addition of the lens flare and crowd settings in the graphics options menu as well as Co-op Quickplay game mode for online multiplayer.

Hit the jump for the full release or grab the download by clicking here.

This official patch for Guitar Hero III will update any earlier version to 1.1. Version 1.1 adds many general fixes and improvements so it is recommended that all users apply the update.

Additions and Fixes for Version 1.1

- Adds Co-op Quickplay game mode for Online multiplayer.

- Adds Lens Flare and Crowd settings in the Graphics Options menu.

- Adds a new UI screen in the Controller Options menu that displays default keyboard controls.

- Improves the whammy bar sound effects.

- The star power electricity effect now displays correctly when using the Low Graphics Detail option.

- The skeleton in the Shanker Island venue now displays correctly on all supported graphics cards.

- Fixes a bug that caused the animations for Lous puppet to fall out of sync.

- The Leaderboards now update more quickly.

- Fixes an issue that caused some rare instability when joining Online multiplayer games.

- Fixes a bug that caused some finished games to be listed in Online game searches.

- Fixes an issue where menus would become corrupted when Demonware servers are under maintenance.

- Fixes pauses, rare freezes, and other strange behaviors that were occurring on the Video Shoot venue.

- Fixes a bug where practicing a section of a song before entering an online match results in starting from that point in the song.

- Pressing Alt+tab during an empty hosted game no longer displays as a disconnection from the previous opponent.

Konami Patches PES 2008, No Need To Buy an HDTV. Still, Though, Get One Already

Aaron Dunlap — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 15:17:05 -0600

A while ago we told you about some problems with Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 on the PS3 when played on a standard-def (oldskool) TV. Their solution at the time was to play the game on an HDTV with HDMI cables. A nice, thousand dollar solution.

Fear not, dwellers of the technologies past, Konami has released a patch that will fix the problem, hopefully.

Oh how I love this age of downloadable updates to free developers from the requirement that video games work before they're released.

If you have a PS3 though and don't have an HDTV, you might as well have a PS2 for cryin' out loud.

Ubisoft to Patch Assassin's Creed (PS3) Soon

Shiva Stella — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 10:20:01 -0600

If you've been playing Assassin's Creed on your PlayStation 3 and experiencing freezes and other errors that make the game unplayable then you might be pleased to know that Ubisoft is aware of the problem and addressing it.

Your level of pleasure, of course, entirely depends upon whether or not you kept the game after experiencing the issues. Here's the info from a Ubisoft forum post:

Following our recent statement regarding the freeze issues that some consumers are facing with Assassins Creed on PlayStation 3, we can confirm that we are actively working on a game update. This update will help improve the stability of the game and will be released as soon as possible. In the meantime thank you for your ongoing feedback and patience.

Note that the problem-and-fix being addressed is for the UK version, but PS3 gamers stateside have already acknowledged that they're getting some of the same errors - and I see no reason why the fix wouldn't be released over here.

Warhawk v1.1 Patch Live

Shiva Stella — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 11:50:00 -0500

The Warhawk v1.1 patch, which was previously leaked, is now officially available world-wide. The patch "addresses the critical issues with stats and connectivity" as you can see at the jump.

Client-side updates for Patch v1.1
Stat connection, fetch/post fixes
Significantly improved client connection stability
Quad ???? Ping display bug fixed.
Added support for Player-Ranked Servers.
Game synchronization fixes due to fluctuating network conditions (packet-drop).
Crash fixes for end of game and split screen.

Here's a run-down of the updating process as delivered by Dylan Jobe, a Warhawk game director:

Once we deploy the patch, when you boot Warhawk, you will be prompted by the XMB to download the v1.1 patch. This is a fast download so its not a time killer. Once the XMB has pulled the patch down, Warhawk will boot back up and be happy! You will also notice a v1.1″ in the lower right corner of the screen.

Another patch is also in the works.

C&C 3: Tiberium Wars 1.09 Patch Released

Tim Grube — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 19:23:20 -0500

Electronic Arts has released a new PC patch today for Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars. The patch will update your copy to v1.09 and comes in at a whopping 263mb. Click on the read more for full list of fixes.

Bug Fixes

* Fixed an error that sometimes caused players to unexpectedly type-select multiple unit types at once due to an interface lag when rapidly switching between unit types during online play.
* Structures now lose Ground Control radius as soon as they are destroyed. Previously they continued providing Ground Control for several seconds while their husks remained onscreen.
* Fixed an error that caused some infantry units to continue approaching their targets while firing, rather than firing while standing at their maximum range.
* Fixed an error that caused upgraded Power Plants and Reactors to continue providing power for several seconds after being destroyed.
* Fixed an error that allowed players to detect enemy structures through the shroud by using the Set Rally Point marker.
* Fixed an error that caused computer-controlled players with the "Turtle" personality to not build base defenses as expected.
* Nod Avatar's flamethrower upgrade now correctly shows a garrison-clearing effect.

Multiplayer Maps

* New: Wrecktropolis
The ongoing conflict between the forces of GDI, the Brotherhood of Nod, and the Scrin have taken a tremendous toll on the world, as evidenced by countless ruined husks of cities. Wrecktropolis is one such example. This is a four-player map available for unranked matches.
* Rebalanced: Barstow Badlands
This map is now slightly larger: There is more buildable area near players' starting bases, and the chokepoints are not as narrow. Garrisonable structures should now be symmetrical for both players.
* Rebalanced: Tournament Tower
This map no longer has a third-tier elevation level in the center of the map, which frees up this area for battle. Expansion Tiberium fields switched from blue to green. Various objects throughout the map have been removed to free up room for base building and combat.
* Rebalanced: Pipeline Problems
This map no longer has pipelines near the northern starting position, to mirror the layout of the southern starting position.
* Rebalanced: Tiberium Gardens III (Kane Edition)
This Kane Edition map no longer has Tiberium fields along the narrow ridges. New expansion fields have been added to the far side of each basin containing a player position.

Balance Changes
The following balance changes are intended to make resource-gathering more strategic and artillery units more viable, while also further tuning the combat forces to ensure even balance across all three factions in any combination.

General Balance Changes

* Harvesters: Carrying capacity reduced by 42% to 1400 credits of green crystals and 2800 credits of blue crystals. Gathering cycle sped up by 8 seconds. Overall rate of income reduced by approximately 35%.
* GDI MCV, Nod MCV, Scrin Drone Platform: Cost/Build time increased by 40% to 3500/35, health and speed normalized.
* Outposts: Health increased by 5%. This prevents them from being destroyed by one use of the Nod Shadow Team's Explosive Charges.

GDI Balance Changes

* Grenadier Squad: Range increased by 20%.
* Commando: Suppression time reduced by 70%. This means the Commando can use his C4 Charges to demolish multiple structures more quickly.
* Juggernaut: Range increased by 25%.
* Mammoth Tank: Turret turn rate reduced by 66%. This makes the vehicle slightly less effective at quickly changing targets.
* Sonic Emitter: Attack power reduced by 25%. This means the Sonic Emitter can no longer one-shot-kill certain vehicles.

Brotherhood of Nod Balance Changes

* Crane: Health increased by 50%, normalizing its health with that of the GDI Crane and Scrin Foundry.
* Fanatics: Cost/Build time reduced by 13% to 700/7.
* Commando: Suppression time reduced by 70%. This means the Commando can use her C4 Charges to demolish multiple structures more quickly.
* Attack Bike: Range increased by 16%.
* Stealth Tank: Attack power increased by 66%.
* Beam Cannon: Range increased by 25%. This does not affect the Avatar's extra weapon gained from commandeering a Beam Cannon.
* Avatar: Health increased by 25%. Pre-attack delay reduced by 33%. Main weapon's attack power increased by 25%.
* Confessor: Upgrade no longer provides a rate-of-fire bonus to affected infantry squads.
* Tiberium Infusion: Upgrade bonus to infantry squads' health reduced by 60%.
* Catalyst Missile: Support Power cost increased by 33% to 2000.
* Tiberium Vapor Bomb: Support Power cooldown time increased by 25% to 300. Attack power increased by 140%.

Scrin Balance Changes

* Disintegrators: When crushed by enemy vehicles, attack power of explosive revenge attack increased by 30%.
* Seeker: Health reduced by 13%.
* Devastator Warship: Range increased by 20%. Rate of fire reduced by 200%. Attack power increased by 100%. Scatter radius reduced.
* The Swarm: Support Power can no longer be used directly on top of infantry and vehicles. Cooldown time increased by 66% to 150. Now spawns 5 Buzzers instead of 7.
* Phase Field: Support Power no longer affects infantry. Cooldown time reduced by 50% to 180.

Other Changes

* Tuning to Classic Command & Conquer (Left-Click Orders) mouse interface: Bridges are no longer selected in favor of issuing move orders. Players can now issue orders on the Radar.
* There is a new Fast-Forward button onscreen while watching Replays or BattleCasts.