Call it Halo 2: Combat Expanded. After much speculation, Bungie today announced plans to release an expansion for its popular first-person shooter, Halo 2. It will not, however, contain a single-player portion that many hoped might wrap up Halo 2's abrupt campaign mode ending.

The additional content, appropriately called Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack, will contain nine multiplayer maps of varying shapes and sizes. Xbox Live users will have the chance to start fragging one another on four of the maps in late April. Two of the maps will be free, and the other two will be available for $5.99. The remaining five maps will be downloadable for $11.99 on June 28.

Those Halo fanatics who still prefer their multiplayer old-school, via LAN, needn't worry: The entire collection will be available in a packaged retail version on June 28, for $19.99. The retail version will also come with a few bonuses. There will be an "animated side story" detailing events from the single-player portion of Halo 2, set in New Mombosa. There will also be a documentary focusing on the map designers, strategies for playing on the new maps, and detailed overviews of each battleground. The disc will also contain all Halo 2 updates and fixes, as well as, presumably, the first bonus map, Foundation. This particular bonus map was unlockable and later released to the masses over Xbox Live. Bungie has also discussed putting in "possibly one or two other little treats."

Gamers who aren't thrilled about shelling out some coin for additional content will still get the opportunity to play the maps...later. The entire collection will be made absolutely free via download "by late summer."

The first batch of maps to be released over Xbox Live will be titled Containment, Warlock, Sanctuary, and Turf. Each map was created after Halo 2's release last November, and each isn't of your typical "one base on one side and another base on the other" architecture.

The first of the two free maps, Containment, is a large playing field in the frozen tundra of Delta Halo. "One of the largest Halo maps ever," Containment gives Spartans and Elites the option of navigating the terrain by chugging around in vehicles or hoofing it to the many teleporters. A switch in the middle of the playing field, completely exposed to potential snipers, opens vehicle access to the looming bases, similar to the gate in Zanzibar. Containment was designed for large battles, with capture the flag specifically in mind.

Warlock, the second of the two free maps, is loosely based on the map Wizard, which appeared in the original Halo. Built from the ground up to take advantage of Halo 2's graphics engine, Warlock is a small- to medium-sized map with four-way symmetry, making it perfect for such games as four-team territories. The map has a castlelike quality to it, with a shrine jutting up from the middle of the field.

Turf is an urban map set in Old Mambosa. The streets are lined with storefronts, complete with playable interiors, and a catwalk system above the streets, which can be manipulated, thus making this map two-tiered. The initial development on Turf was handled with capture the flag and territories in mind, but Bungie has deemed it "surprisingly flexible."

The final map in the April bunch is Sanctuary. This map, on the surface, looks awfully similar to the stone Covenant stronghold set in the mountain from the single-player game. The map is focused on team-oriented play and features several creeks, pools, and waterfalls.

Little is known about the five remaining maps, save for their names: Terminal, Elongation, Gemini, Backwash, and Relic.

Once available, the free maps will be integrated into the Xbox Live matchmaking sets, and the two premium maps will have their own playlists (for those gamers who bought them). As all the maps become universally available, they'll be integrated into the matchmaking system. In addition, Bungie will be altering the current playlists and will introduce an entirely new two-on-two playlist ...

Its a slow news week for the Dreamcast Scene but i was alerted to a slice of news that may surprise and astonish you, Lik Sang have the new Dreamcast Game Trizeal topping their Top Preorder listing which is a surprise considering the fact that the Nintendo DS and PSP are around. ...

Not many sites get myback up and i have no problems at all with sites with ads/banners, you dont have to click em and theres reasons they are there, but sites that Ban for no reason what so ever are the lamest of them all, i myself was banned from ps2ownz a while ago for letting them know that a newspost claming some nintendo ds emulator was playing commercial games was wrong and even more annoying that the site they linked to was not the authors site and not a mirror page and the cheeky buggers even had a .com addy for this emulator,

anyway i ponted this out and got banned.

I dont always like the way PS2Newz is with newsposts but at least they arent a bunch of idiots like ps2 ownz

the funny thing they tried to make me pay to be unbanned, as if anyone would. ...

News From Console Hardware News

We at Console Hardware News have gone through 5 of the best online sites and posted all the items on those sites for the Nintendo DS Console Heres the Nintendo DS Shop Guide.

...

Zspectrum the Spectrum emulator for the Tapwave Zodiac has been updated, heres whats in this release:

Version 1.1 release. 24/03/05
• Added in game joystick selection
• Better multiple SD Card handling
• Added checks to make sure Spectrum .ROMS are on SD Card

Download at AHE Zpectrum Page. ...

The Gamecube Emu for Windows SITE has seen a sizeable update:

Great news, I've repaired the error with the Javascript for Firefox when selecting a screenshot! Although, I have "The Jedi" to thank, since he was kind enough to email me a possible solution. [Sorry dude, it didn't work. But you got me working on it and helped me realise where the error was! XP]

I'll get to fixing the screenshot order tomorrow, as I know it's a tad bit random..

Oh, right, forgot to mention. The screenshots will look as if they're not clickable. They really are, it's just I had to remove some javascript coding to make them work correctly! :i

[03/23/05] Alright, the cursor fix has been uploaded. If it doesn't work in your browser, drop me an email! Still in the process of repairing the image's order to newest first, however..I updated documents section, and added reversing of some Gamecube library software. Only for developers

http://dolwin.emulation64.com/index.php ...

Homebrew on the Gamecube may be a tad easier soon, heres the details on a new modchip:

Q00B Features

Direct boot of all media, without swapping!
Supports all regions PAL / USA / JAP
On-board MP3 Player included
Super easy USB upgrade system (USB transfer cable included)
DVD Disc upgradeable
Network(*) upgradeable
Bios selection/control supported
Supports all retail hardware (DOL-001 USA, JPN, EUR and DOL-101)
Fastboot of original discs
Compatible with "GCOS" and other IPL replacements, allowing homebrew development via SD card (**) and/or network (*)
Comfortable easy to use Windows PC flash software (in download section)
Supports homebrew and open-source coding
Integrated media compatabilty check (checks all sectors of inserted media)
Streaming Audio Fix
Integrated status LED
Easy Installation, only 6 wires (no soldering on qoob chip required, special cable included)
Multicolor graphical user interface for easy operation
Supports Mini/DVD-R, Mini/DVD+R
16MBit on-board Flash to store homebrew applications
High secure - low power Actel FPGA
Packed in a stable carboard box including all wires, 3D Sticker and USB transfer cable

QOOB Specs

Installation wires connecter
High speed - ultra secure Actel FPGA
High capacity 16 MBit Flash
Integrated Status LED
Flex cable connector
High speed USB controller
USB connector board (removable)
Mini USB B-type connector

More info http://www.qoobchip.com/ ...

Tiger Telematics' upstart handheld Gizmondo has finally launched in the UK - although you could be forgiven for not noticing.

A plush party at London's Park Lane Hotel marked the official release of the device on Saturday, with the likes of Jamiroquai, Girls Aloud, Pharrell Williams, Sting, Busta Rhymes and, er, Kelly from EastEnders in attendance.

Alarmingly, and if the figure in yesterday's Mirror is accurate, Jay Kay's (Jamiroquai's hat-wearing frontman) fee for appearing at the glitzy launch bash was a cool £800,000. Which means that Tiger needs to shift a lot of Gizmondos.

To that end, Saturday also marked the grand opening of Gizmondo's flagship store on Regent Street, currently the only place in the entire country that it's possible to purchase one of the devices.

Despite all the money that Tiger is throwing at Gizmondo, it doesn't appear to be off to the best of starts though. While Nintendo's DS sold a staggering 87,000 units during its first weekend on sale in the UK, Gizmondo could, according to various internet sources, only manage to shift 800.

A spokesperson for Gizmondo puts this number at 1000, while also quoting an astounding figure of 560,000 pre-orders for the machine, which Tiger is "currently in the process of fulfilling".

Either way, opening weekend sales of just 1000 units can hardly come as much of a surprise given that, outside of the solitary central London store, it's literally impossible to get hold of a Gizmondo.

Major retailers such as GAME aren't stocking the machine and, while both Toys R Us and John Lewis are due to begin selling it, there's no stock available from them at present, as evidenced by their websites here and here.

Indeed following last year's "softest of soft launches", this week's launch doesn't really appear to be any more hard-hitting.

Tiger maintains that it's currently negotiating with GAME and other high street retailers, and the company is optimistic that it will be announcing a deal soon. But given that GAME recently told us, "We have no plans to stock Gizmondo. With PSP and DS launching, we simply don't have the room in-store," it remains to be seen how much interest the high street really has in stocking the device.

Gizmondo's ultra-low profile even extends to the games press, which has yet to be given either hardware or software, as evidenced by the fact that you still won't have seen reviews of any of the games yet (see below for the complete list of launch titles).

In spite of all this, the Windows CE-based device has - in theory - a lot going for it. Aside from playing games, music and movies, it's capable of taking digital photos as well as sending text messages and emails, thanks to the pre-pay Vodafone accounts that are bundled with the £229 machine (although you can't actually use it as a mobile phone).

It also supports GPS (Global Position System), allowing it to be used for route-finding, while there's provision for multiplayer gaming via both GPRS and Bluetooth. Assuming, of course, that you can find anyone else out there to play against.

Gizmondo launch titles


Angel Fish
Chicane
City
Colors
Conflict Desert Storm II
Conflict Vietnam
Fallen Kingdoms
Furious Phil
Interstellar Flames 2
Johnny Whatever
Milo and the Rainbow Nasties
Momma Can I Mow the Lawn?
Richard Burns Rally
Speedgun Stadium
Sticky Balls
Stuntcar Extreme
Super Drop Mania
The Great Escape
Trailblazer ...

Like most of the juiciest dirt on the Xbox 360, none of this is substantiated, but a British magazine is reporting that Microsoft’s next-gen console will not be backwards compatible (frustrating, but not the end of the world), won’t come with a hard drive (which sort of jibes with what we’ve heard about MSFT offering an attachable drive), and that there will be different Xbox 360s tailored to different regions (not sure what that means for developers or why there would need to be different regional versions). ...