2010 July 11 | The Warp Pipe

The Best of Big Download: July 5 – 11

Jul 112010

Summer is in full swing and that means the PC game releases are few and far between. How many of you are just waiting patiently until StarCraft II comes out on July 27? In the meantime there are still some stuff to write about in the PC game world.

Exclusive Features

The Best PC Games of 2010 (So Far); We take a mid-year inventory of the best PC games released so far in 2010
Rock of Ages Interview: We chat with ACE Team’s co-founder about this upcoming and unusual strategy game.
The Asskickers Interview: We chat with AGO Team’s co-founder about its upcoming retro 2D brawler title
Reviews: We give are final verdict for All Points Bulletin and Singularity.
Boot Disk: Our retro game feature checks out Team Fortress Classic.
Freeware Friday: Our free game feature this week checks out the arcade action game RobotzDX.

Continue reading The Best of Big Download: July 5 – 11

The Best of Big Download: July 5 – 11 originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 11 Jul 2010 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: China to ban violent, sexual marketing of online games

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Jul 112010

China’s Ministry of Culture is once again cracking down on the online game industry in an attempt to limit the amount of “unwholesome” content the sector produces. According to a report from China Daily, the nation’s officials are prohibiting the use of sex, violence or gambling to market Chinese developers’ online games. Like the other regulations under this initiative, these restrictions will be effective as of August 1.

According to the government’s report on sexually-charged advertising, hiring adult film stars to serve as spokespeople for online games is a surprisingly common practice in China. Over here, we get Mr. T and Ozzy Osbourne. That’s a pretty fair trade-off, right?

Report: China to ban violent, sexual marketing of online games originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 10 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Maxis' Spore-based action-RPG to be announced at Comic Con

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Jul 112010

The schedule for San Diego Comic Con 2010 was updated earlier today, adding a few game-centric panels focusing on titles like Guild Wars 2, Red Faction Armageddon, Epic Mickey and more to Saturday’s proceedings. However, one panel in particular caught our eye: “Video Game Reveal: Maxis Studio.” According to the event’s details, the panel will see a handful of members from the Maxis dev team unveil “a brand new, Sci-Fi Action-RPG based on the DNA of Spore.”

This sounds like it could be the Spore title referenced in EA’s Q3 2010 investor’s briefing, the name for which may have surfaced in the company’s recent trademark of “Darkspore.” We might just learn what happens when good Spores go bad when the panel unfolds Saturday, July 24.

Maxis’ Spore-based action-RPG to be announced at Comic Con originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 10 Jul 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tweet Defense free on iPad and iPhone this Sunday

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Jul 112010

Promethium Marketing Group’s Twitter-enabled tower defense title, Tweet Defense, will be very on sale tomorrow for just 24 hours. Like, as on sale as anything could possibly be. Both the iPhone version and recently launched iPad version of the game will be downloadable for free from FreeAppaDay.com on Sunday, July 11.

The game usually retails for $2.99 on iPhone and $7.99 on iPad, so we’d suggest taking Promethium up on this temporary offer. Unless, of course, you’re one of those people who thinks that every time you Tweet, part of your soul gets siphoned away. You guys should probably go play something else.

Continue reading Tweet Defense free on iPad and iPhone this Sunday

Tweet Defense free on iPad and iPhone this Sunday originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 10 Jul 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yoot Saito's 'The Tower' headed to iPad

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Jul 112010

Though his last potential outing on Apple’s mobile platform was denied for being too “unpleasant,” Yoot Saito is taking another stab at the App Store. According to TouchArcade, a rough translation of Saito’s blog reveals that the idiosyncratic developer is bringing his skyscraper-crafting sim, The Tower, to the iPad.

For those unfamiliar with the series, The Tower (or, as its sometimes titled Sim Tower or Yoot Tower), is reminiscent of the SimCity series, only more … vertical. Players are tasked with the construction and management of a tower, all the while pursuing that prestigious five-star ranking. We’ve got our fingers crossed for a U.S. release. Or, for that matter, any kind of release — though we don’t see how strategic building maintenance could be considered too off-putting for Apple’s lofty standards.

Yoot Saito’s ‘The Tower’ headed to iPad originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 10 Jul 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mafia Wars Vegas VIP access: Casino chip racks + lots of luck = early access

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Jul 112010

Filed under: Mafia Wars

mafia wars las vegas high roller

Mafia Wars is turning on the promotion for the upcoming Las Vegas expansion, with a special Vegas event, called Whack the Rat Jimmy Vegas, this weekend, plus offering a lucky few VIP access to Sin City once the beta launches.

mafia wars las vegas VIP access

It’ll take a little luck and a lot of Casino poker racks (available as a free gift sent from fellow mafiosos) to gain access to Mafia Wars Vegas early. To see if Lady Luck is on your side, you’ll need to collect 50+ racks to get a 20% chance of winning early access and then visit the Las Vegas High Roller Access page (via the drop down Travel menu at the top of the page).
If you don’t win, you’ll get a popup that says ‘Bad Luck’ and have to wait 22 hours to try again. Ouch.

mafia wars bad luck

If you win aceess, you’ll receive a notification that says “You’re In,” but won’t be able to get into Mafia Wars Vegas right away. This just guarantees you’ll be one of the first people to check it out once the beta actually launches, which doesn’t have an exact release date, though I suspect it will be soon with all of this build-up.

mafia wars las vegas VIP access you're in

Image courtesy of gengiskahn

So, this is all sort of a tease, but if you’re dying to be one of the first to get their hands on Mafia Wars Las Vegas, start sending lots of Chip Racks to friends and encourage them to send them back.

Did you get early access to Mafia Wars Vegas? Were you PO’d that you can’t actually access the game yet?

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Mafia Wars Whack the Rat Jimmy Vegas event: Everything you need to know

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Jul 112010

Filed under: Mafia Wars

mafia wars whack the rat jimmy vegas

As the classic saying goes, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” In this case, it would be referring to the new limited edition Mafia Wars Las Vegas jobs that kicked off Saturday, July 10.
mafia wars whack the rat jimmy vegas jobs

Just like previous special events, Whack the Rat Jimmy Vegas includes three new jobs:

Hack into Hotel Records
Time required: 5 Minutes
Energy required: 16
Bonus: 8XP, 20% chance of rare Whack the Rat collectible or event item

Bribe a Guard for Roof Access
Time required: 8 Hours
Energy required: 25
Bonus: 50% chance of rare Whack the Rat collectible or event item

Position a Sniper
Time required: 24 hours
Energy Required: 33
Bonus: 16 XP, 100% chance of rare Whack the Rat collectible or event item

mafia wars slots collection

A new collection and achievement are directly tied in with this special job. The Slots Collection is comprised of seven items:

Liberty Bell (from a Jimmy Vegas job)
Plum (Jobs)
Triple Bar (Fights won)
Orange (Free gift)
Lucky 7 (Jimmy Vegas job)
Lime (Jobs)
Cherry (Fights won)

mafia wars slots collection

Once the Slots Collection is completed, you’ll be rewarded with a One-Armed Bandit, with 28 A, 50 D. The stats on that guy isn’t that impressive, so this job is really aimed at you completists out there who want to make sure every Collection is collected and every Achievement is achieved.

what happens in vegas mafia wars achievement

Speaking of achievements, the Whack the Rat job also comes along with a new achievement: “What Stays in Vegas,’ which can be earned by vaulting the Slots Collection and mastering the Whack the Rat job.

This event ends on Friday, July 16 at 11:59 PM PST, so you have all week to work on sending Jimmy Vegas (whoever he is) to sleep with the fishes.

Got any tips on how to get this job done fast? Want to trade collection items with other mafiosos? Leave a note in the comments below.

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