News via http://www.aep-emu.de/

REminiscence is a cross-platform virtual machine (using SDL) for the game Flashback.


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release 0.2.1 (2011/03/15)
- added missing music playback to PC SEQ cutscenes
- fixed some palette and sprite issues with Amiga data

release 0.2.0 (2011/03/11)
- added support for PC CD SEQ cutscenes
- added support for Amiga data files (experimental)
- fixed minor sound glitches ...

Google has released an early WebM plug-in for Microsoft's latest and greatest browser, IE9 -- stepping in to fill a gap that Microsoft itself refused to fill. You may remember the firm's decision to not build in support for the new standard natively, but that it was "all in" with HTML5, WebM's close cousin. Billed as a "technology preview" at this stage of the game, the add-on will enable users to play all WebM video content just like the good Internet overlords intended them to, despite the fact that an additional download is needed. Microsoft said that it would allow for support and it appears to be following up on its word, regardless of other harsher comments made separately. Isn't it good to see big companies getting along? Now if only these same niceties played out in the mobile landscape, then we'd really be getting somewhere.
http://www.engadget.com/2011/03/15/i...w-plug-in-fro/
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The new Linux 2.6.38 kernel is now out, and it's got a long list of performance improvements that should make Linux a whole lot faster. The kernel includes support for Transparent Huge Pages, Transmit Packet Steering (XPS), automatic process grouping, and a new RCU (Read/Copy/Update)-based path name lookup. '"This patch series was both controversial and experimental when it went in, but we're very hopeful of seeing speedups," James Bottomley, distinguished engineer at Novell said. "Just to set expectations correctly, the dcache/path lookup improvements really only impact workloads with large metadata modifications, so the big iron workloads (like databases) will likely see no change. However, stuff that critically involves metadata, like running a mail server (the postmark benchmark) should improve quite a bit."'http://linux.slashdot.org/story/11/0...-2638-Released ...

Call of Duty director Keith Arem has told GamesIndustry.biz that the team creating games for the billion dollar franchise know their content will cause controversy, but once they commit to levels such as the infamous No Russian scene, they have to follow it through.
Arem, who has worked on all the Modern Warfare games and the latest Black Ops, said that during the development process the team can become "desensitised" to the subject matter, and need to remind themselves of the impact it can have on those seeing it for the first time.
"Going in on those decisions everyone's going to be aware that there is going to be some sort of controversy behind that. And I think in the end what's creatively best for the project and what's going to tell the story and what's really going to give the team the satisfaction of enjoying what they're working on is really the primary focus," he said.
Some of the actors were very tearful saying the lines because it was a pretty emotionally charged scene

Keith Arem, director, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

"So when we decide to execute on an idea that's been approved both by the developer and the publisher we're pretty committed going in. So knowing that we're going to be dealing with that some times we sort of have to be very careful in announcing that. We knew that the No Russian level was going to be extremely controversial and obviously what happened in Russia and a lot of other areas was a sign of that."
The No Russian scene puts players alongside ultranationalist terrorists murdering innocent civilians, leaving them with two simple options to progress - watch the unfolding carnage or blend in with the protagonists and open fire.
The level proved divisive on release, and caused controversy in the mainstream press for its levels of violence. It was also blamed for a terrorist attack on Moscow airport in January this year. Activision had already removed the scenario from the Russian PC version of the game.
The "brutal" content is something Infinity Ward was well aware of, and Arem admits that it's important to anticipate player reaction to such violent content.
"When you see it actually come together and you hear all the voices and you see what the team bought to that, it's very brutal. It's a difficult experience for anyone to go through.
"At the same time, creatively, when those decision are unanimous between the team we try to make them as engaging as possible. Unfortunately we're pretty much committed once we make that decision because the development cycle is so far in advance of the release of the game.
"Sometimes we become desensitised to the fact that this is going to be so controversial and when it comes out we have to remind ourselves that people are seeing this for the first time and they're also taking in the complete experience for the first time as opposed to seeing it in the various stages of production."
Arem, who is currently working on THQ's latest Saint's Row game, praised the actors taking on the roles of the terrorists in Modern Warfare 2, and revealed that for some the scene caused very real human responses.
Director Arem says he couldn't bring himself to shoot civilians the first time he played the game.

"Sometimes they bring something to the performance that is actually even more tragic or more powerful than anything that we would have actually envisioned. By them bringing that to life, it really engages the player emotionally," he said.
"It's a difficult moral question for the player and directing the actors and hearing what the actors are saying in Russian is actually almost worse than seeing the action on screen, because these families [in game] are separated, fathers telling their wives to take the children and everything will be okay, and knowing that it's not... it was a difficult thing to work with a lot of the actors.
"Some of the actors were very tearful saying the lines because it was a pretty emotionally charged scene."
And Arem confessed that once the final game was complete, he himself found the level hard to play and couldn't bring himself to pull the trigger on the innocent civilians.
"The first time I played it - when the team brought the idea to me I actually raised the point of how controversial this was going to be - and then playing through the game the first time, and actually seeing it put together, at least for me, I didn't engage any of the civilians.
"I was hanging back although I was forced through this level and to go through the experience."

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...-controversial
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Blizzard could potentially release its next next super-hit on console as well as PC, the firm has told MCV.
CEO Mike Morhaime said the firm has been conducting ongoing exploration into the viability of Diablo on console.

The third game in the franchise was announced in 2008 but was only confirmed for PC. Speculation has been rife since that it will also be released for 360 and PS3.
The 'Diablo on console' rumour had new life breathed into it last month when Blizzard posted an ad its website, looking for a senior producer with top level console experience
http://www.develop-online.net/news/3...o-for-consoles ...

Electronic Arts has taken top spot on the UK retail chart with Dragon Age II, but also holds three other top ten places with Fight Night Champion holding third, FIFA eighth and Bulletstorm sixth.
Pokemon Black and White's figures were split across the two SKUs in UKIE and ChartTrack's data, with White taking second and Black in fourth. THQ's Wii accessory title, U-Draw Studio was another new entry at ten.
Perennials Just Dance 2 and Call of Duty: Black Ops are in fifth and ninth respectively, with PS3 exclusive shooter Killzone 3 slipping to seventh from last weeks fifth, having spent only one week at number one.
The chart again showed a definite bias to Xbox 360, as Dragon Age II sales showed a 57 per cent slant twoards the system and Bulletstorm showed a 74 to 23 per cent 360 favour, with the remaining three per cent of sales on PC.
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C)2010 UKIE Ltd.


http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...-second-fourth
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News via http://www.aep-emu.de/

DoomRL is a Rogue-like clone of the Doom series for various platforms.


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v.0.9.9.2
[add] -- TR#---: Asynchronous animation system!
[add] -- TR#---: Assemblies! Play around with different combinations of mods to create new equipment!
[add] -- TR#---: Hell Armory revisited! Now with a special prize!
[add] -- TR#---: Lava Pits now have a guardian and special reward!
[add] -- TR#---: The Vaults are now openable!
[add] -- TR#---: New powerful configuration system!
[add] -- TR#---: advanced error recovery mechanism (error.log and recovery)
[add] -- TR#---: Command line switch -config filename.lua
[add] -- TR#---: JC level and Unholy Cathedral MIDI track added (by Simon Volpert)
[add] -- TR#---: 15 new medals (most of them hidden) and 20 new badges!
[add] -- TR#---: alternative reward for Cathedral... sometimes...
[add] -- TR#---: two new options for Config -- IntuitionColor and IntuitionChar
[add] -- TR#---: Single monster level type added! (Xander)
[add] -- TR#---: 3 more exciting exotics and 2 unique items!
[add] -- TR#---: the ultimate ending...
[add] -- TR#---: new more powerful Lua API
[mod] -- TR#---: Finesse works now on melee attacks
[mod] -- TR#---: Ao100 badges rebalanced -- Platinum requires UV and Diamond requires N!
[mod] -- TR#---: more arena-type level layouts
[mod] -- TR#---: only wider mazes will generate now
[mod] -- TR#152: durability of armor is no longer limited to 255
[mod] -- TR#165: finished special levels are also marked blue
[mod] -- TR#153: more varied death reasons
[mod] -- TR#164: Proper demon melee sound
[mod] -- TR#117: Uniques can now be fully soundbinded
[mod] -- TR#173: You can now change colors of tiles in colors.lua
[fix] -- TR#---: Conqueror/Explorer fix
[fix] -- TR#---: Typos and grammar fixed (Tavana)
[fix] -- TR#147: Berserker damage reduction bug fixed
[fix] -- TR#118: Shotgun unique sounds fixed
[fix] -- TR#166: Nightmare! may now be autochosen
[fix] -- TR#117: "CENTER" can be used in ini-file (by default means wait)
[fix] -- TR#---: on challenge info fixed
[fix] -- TR#148: item generation glitch fixed
[fix] -- TR#---: blood eating walls in vaults fixed
[fix] -- TR#167: enemy telefrag bug fixed
[fix] -- TR#149: sniper mod fixed
[fix] -- TR#160: N! mortuary AA multispawn fixed
[fix] -- TR#155: unique mods on AoI fixed ...

News via http://www.aep-emu.de/

"StepMania is capable of playing many game types. Currently, it supports games similar to Dance Dance Revolution, Pump It Up, EZ 2 Dancer, and Para Para Paradise. In the future, it will support games similar to BeatMania, Guitar Freaks, DrumMania, and more.

The games played by StepMania are rhythm games. Notes scroll up from the bottom of the screen, and the player must hit the corresponding button on the controller in time to the. All games can be played using the keyboard, but the real fun comes when using specially designed controllers, like a dance pad or hand sensors." Quoted from the homepage. StepMania is available for Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.


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Changes:
- experimental JSON song export (see F3 debug menu) for use with StepMania Micro
- "Launch Now" button now standard on SM download pages - uses SM4´s in-game download
- in-editor song upload removed in favor of improvements to stepmania share upload
- minor bug fixes ...

News via http://www.aep-emu.de/

Free Heroes2 Engine is a free implementation of Heroes of the Might and Magic II engine using SDL.


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SVN - up to r2334

Update: translations
Added: game: quick info: penalty cost
Added: game: plural descriptions for artifacts
Added: android: latest changes
Fixed: game: CampFire gold value
Fixed: game: invalid game focus for load game type
Fixed: game: gameover loss condition
Fixed: game: hotkey hero move ...