After the secret source code for its then-unreleased shooter Half Life 2 showed up on file sharing services in 2003, game-maker Valve Software cooked up an elaborate ruse with the FBI targeting the German hacker suspected in the leak, even setting up a fake job interview in an effort to lure him to the United States for arrest.
The gambit ultimately failed, and Axel "Ago" Gembe remained safely in Germany. He was indicted last month in Los Angeles on new charges of creating the Agobot malware, and sharing it with a crew of U.S. hackers who used it to stage denial-of-service attacks in 2003.
In September 2003, the source code for the much-anticipated Half Life 2 game turned up online, and Valve's managing director, Gabe Newell, revealed that the company's network had been breached. In a post to the company's Web forum, Newell asked for gamer's assistance in finding the hackers responsible.
"If you have information about ... the infiltratio... More »
With all the attention being paid to the vaunted New Xbox Experience interface that will launch later this month for the Xbox 360, Microsoft quietly updated the Games for Windows - Live client today.
The update doesn't introduce any new functionality, that is planned later on with the release of a desktop client as well as the Games for Windows - Live Marketplace. However, the update does give the GFW - Live client a whole new look that's better suited for PCs.
The previous GFW - Live client didn't make much use of the bigger displays and higher resolutions that many PCs sport. It focused much of the interface in narrow boxes centered in the middle of the screen. The new client stretches across the top of the screen, and it presents more information much more cleanly than before.
Also gone are the Xbox 360 "jelly bean" buttons, the big colored buttons that referred to the buttons on the Xbox 360 controller. Those will appear if you plug an Xbox... More »
You'll have to forgive me; I would rather be playing Gears of War 2 on my Xbox 360 instead of writing this. Unfortunately, Microsoft's customer support has made that an impossibility.
Now, I'm well aware that the internet has become a haven for Xbox customer support horror stories and with good cause. In fact, I think that these types of stories are quickly catching up to porn as the most popular use of the internet.
I kid of course, and I would think my experiences with these people would be good for a laugh or two if I didn't have a fresh copy of Gears 2 staring me in the face. Before I begin with my multiple tales of woe, let me tell you a bit about how our operation works here at GamingExcellence.
GE is made up of a staff of about two dozen very enthusiastic folks that contribute to the site through sheer love of all things gaming related. We're not doing this for the big bucks, we're not doing this for the fame, we're doing this because gami... More »
Today LPB Dev Sam_Protagonist has squashed recent rumors that LittleBigPlanet would be getting an update this year to allow image importing via HDD by Christmas.
To quote: There are a couple of these rumors flying around today, so to clear things up - image importing is very much technically viable which may have been what Alex is referring to, however there are currently no plans to introduce it for a variety of reasons.
Announcements of future content releases, whether free, paid for, feature update, costume, sticker or whatever will always come through the official Web sites for LittleBigPlanet and Media Molecule, if you hear of updates through any other source please take it with a pinch of salt until it has been confirmed or denied.
Right now there are no plans to introduce image importing to the game, and we'll update if that changes.
Blizzard’s going large for the launch of Wrath of the Lich King, with its central UK event to take place at midnight on November 12 at HMV on London’s Oxford Street.
“We’ve been looking forward to these launch events all year,” said Blizzard boss Mike Morhaime.
“This is one of the few opportunities we get to meet with players in person, and we can’t wait to celebrate the release of Wrath of the Lich King with them.”
Attendees will have the opportunity to purchase the standard edition of the game as well as the limited Collector’s Edition, which contains The Art of World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King hardback book; Frosty, an exclusive in-game frost wyrm pet; a behind-the-scenes DVD; the official soundtrack containing 21 tracks; an exclusive mouse pad displaying a map of the newly opened continent of Northrend; and two World of Warcraft Trading Card Game starter decks with two exclusive cards available only in the Col... More »
A job posting at Future Publishing has revealed that Qore's UK equivalent will be titled 'Official PlayStation Magazine HD'.
To quote: Content Producer - Official PlayStation Magazine HD - Bath
About The Role: This is a key role on Official PlayStation Magazine HD, a new weekly paid-for download delivered direct to PS3 owners via the PlayStation Network Store. Future is working with Sony on the project, which will contain hi-def video, game demos and other content. This is your chance to be part of something key to Future’s digital development.
As Content Producer you will oversee the weekly production of Official PlayStation Magazine HD. You will liaise with Sony and third party publishers to ensure the constant throughput of digital materials and negotiate timed exclusives on content.
Managing the workflow of the Assistant Producer and Video Editor, you will need to ensure each weekly edition is submitted within the deadline. ... More »
The multimillion-dollar ad war between Microsoft and Apple has turned nasty, with Apple firing the latest salvo in an attempt to continue to define Vista as a broken, bug-ridden operating system.
Apple's ads have long lampooned the PC for being staid and uncool but, this time, Apple's target isn't the PC per se, but Microsoft's marketing strategy.
The first of two new ads shows PC, played by John Hodgman, allocating stacks of dollar bills toward either "advertising" or "fix Vista", with the bulk of the money going to advertising.
The ad is a swipe at Microsoft's $US300 million ($430 million) ad campaign to redefine Windows Vista's image, which featured stars including comedian Jerry Seinfeld (reportedly paid $US10 million for his appearance), actress Eva Longoria, singer Pharrell Williams and even the author Deepak Chopra.
A belated response to Apple's highly successful "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC... More »
The latest Sony PS3 Firmware 2.50 update added many great features to all of our Playstation 3’s, but we are also getting many reports of problems as well. The main problem with the latest update seems to be related to the DivX VOD addition.
Some users have video displaying in black and white, although it worked fine before updating. You can read some of the problems users have reported below, feel free to share a comment once reading.
If you have video on your HD don’t get if you have an SD TV unless you like black and white, I found out the hard way.
I downloaded 2.50 yesterday, I also have same problem with my videos showing only in black and white plus small difference in sound. I really hope that Sony fixes this bug fast, because this is n... More »
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