Forgotten Hope 0.66 Released

The Forgotten Hope Mod has released the .66 version this morning.

The list of mirrors hosting the 295MB incremental patch are here

A listing of all of the changes to the mod is at .65 to .66 Change Log

There is also a very useful FH instructional page at Forgotten Hope School which highlights some of the major changes in play between the mod and Vanilla BF42. I learned a few things here, and you could too.

Lets go play!

EA Intent On Buying Digital Illusions

It seems Electronic Arts (EA) is intent on buying Swedish games developer Digital Illusions (DICE). EAs recent offer required them to purchase 90% of the companies stock, but 2 major investors held 28% of DICEs stock and did not want to sell. That offer was set to expire on December 16th. That time has passed and EA has made a new offer. From the article:

…extended the acceptance period until January 20th 2005 in a move that demonstrates the publishers determination to acquire the firm

However, EAs latest move conditions the offer upon a lower acceptance level of more than 50 per cent of the total number of shares…

Get the full scoop here.

Slipknot Touring The Us Again

Slipknot will be heading out on tour starting March 4th with Lamb Of God and Shadows Fall. Check below for the venue closest to you. And if you are a fan of Slipknot, but have never seen them live, you really need to check them out.

3/4 – Hartford, CT @ Meadows Music Theatre
3/5 – Philadelphia, PA @ Wachovia Spectrum
3/6 – East Rutherford, NJ @ Continental Airlines Arena
3/8 – Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena
3/9 – Cleveland, OH @ CSU Convocation Center
3/11 – Rosemont, IL @ Allstate Arena
3/12 – Detroit, MI @ Cobo Arena
3/13 – Indianapolis, IN @ Conseco Fieldhouse
3/15 – Lowell, MA @ Paul E. Tsongas Arena
3/16 – Fairfax, VA @ Patriot Center
3/18 – Hampton, VA @ Hampton Coliseum
3/19 – Atlanta, GA @ HiFi Buys Amphitheatre
3/20 – Pensacola, FL @ Pensacola Civic Center
3/22 – West Palm Beach, FL @ Sound Advice Amphitheatre
3/23 – Tampa, FL @ USF Sun Dome

Homie Dont Play Dat!

In a suprise twist of events, 2 groups of shareholders representing 28% ownership of Digital Illusions (DICE) have declined the offer by Electronic Arts (EA) to buy Digital Illusions.

From the article at GameIndustry.biz:

…enough to prevent the acquisition from happening, according to Swedish financial news site di.se, which explains that 90 per cent of shares must vote in favour of the deal for it to be passed.

The shareholders who oppose the deal believe that the developers performance and future prospects are strong enough to make remaining independent into a more attractive option, in particular given the planned launch of Battlefield 2 on the PC and Battlefield: Modern Combat on current and next-gen consoles next year.

Dimebag Darrell Murdered On Stage

It is being reported that Pantera Guitarist Dimebag Darrell and another member of his band Damageplan were killed while playing on stage tonight at about 10pm in Columbus, Ohio. A third person identified as the shooter who ran up on stage and opened fire was also killed.

Here is a little more information.

Update to the story posted last night from the associated press:

The guitarists brother, Vinnie Paul Abbott, the drummer for Damageplan, was rushed to safety offstage and tearfully tried to learn his brothers fate from officers who couldnt even tell him which hospital he was taken to.

Read a lot more information here.

Be sure and read our more informative news story here

Video Games Show #34 – 2 Hour Christmas Extravaganza!

Hello all you shoppers out there. Its that time of year again when we take out the checkbooks and credit cards (and aspirin) to buy our loved ones the things they need or that we think will give them a little joy. And what brings joy to peoples lives more than anything? Video Games! Thats right, Video Games! For those of you that cant decide what game or games to get for your family or friends, you definitely dont want to miss this show. Weve got two jam packed hours of information and entertainment coming your way this week.

Our first hour starts off with all the news from the past couple weeks, and theres a lot since we didnt do a show last week. In this trip through the news headlines, youll get updated on some of the forthcoming releases for Nintendo as well as the upcoming Video Game Awards. Also in the news, well discover what some analyst say are the most violent games out there. Weve also got a warning for you users of the Sony PS2 demo disc.

With all the news we had to go through, theres only a little bit of time left in hour one. So, what better time than this to get to the Reviews Of The Week. In preparation for the special holiday part of this show (coming up in hour two), we wrap-up hour one with not 1, not 2, not 3 but 6, yes, 6 games going under the knife this week! The games of choice this week are Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude, Texas Holdem, World Championship Poker, Fight Club, SpongeBob Squarepants: The Movie and ESPN NBA 2K5.

Now that the first hour is out of the way, we can move onto what youve all been waiting for, its the Holiday Special part of the show. Its a good time to be a gamer, and to prove it we start things off with a conversation about the biggest thing to come out this season, the Nintendo DS. Hoss and Rich have gotten there hands on this new portable and put it through its paces. Theyll give us the lowdown on how it handles and tell us about some of the games that are available for it.

Once we get through talking about the DS, its time for the guys to go through each system and give you some picks to consider getting those on your list. First up, the Xbox. This is by far Richs preferred system for gaming, but Hoss has some input on it as well. Moving on, we set our sites on the GameCube, which has some of the best exclusives on the market, and the Game Boy Advance. Last but not least, the boys will go through their picks for the PS2.

If you think thats the end of this show, youre wrong. To end things with a bang, Hoss and Rich will us give their top 5 games for the year. The freak will even chime in and tell you a couple of games that you should avoid this holiday season. And just to prove that were equal opportunity gamers (ok, maybe not equal), the guys will give you a couple picks for those PC gamers on your list. This is without a doubt one of the biggest shows yet, so click the links below and arm yourselves with the info you need to get through this tough time of year. Enjoy!

Showtimes for this 2 hour special are as follows:
Tuesday – 9pm-11pm CST
Saturday – 1pm-3pm CST
9pm-11pm CST

Linux Server Patch Available Soon for BF42 and BFV

Good news from the EA Battlefield Vietnam Website:

“12.3.04 – Community Update

Listen Up Soldiers,
News from the front lines tells me that Linux server versions of the latest update is coming early next week. While I can’t say exactly when it will hit, I can tell you that you won’t have to wait too much longer for it. Both Battlefield 1942 and Battlefield Vietnam will be supported with an update.

Punk Buster
EvenBalance has resolved any issues that were occurring between PunkBuster and the latest Battlefield 1942 and Battlefield Vietnam updates. To this point, you shouldn’t be seeing any further issues with the update and PunkBuster.

Until next week, this is EAComMike signing off for the rest of the Battlefield team!”