Was Alienware Just the Beginning? Dell Considers a Gaming Handheld

At Dell's European Innovation event in Marbella, Spain, PC Plus (a UK magazine) learned that a gaming handheld may very well be on on the distant horizon for the mail-order PC giant. Dell's gaming boss, Abizar Vakharia, when asked about the possibility of a gaming handheld from Dell, answered

"You know, that's definitely one that's on the radar screen, but we have no plans to talk about anything today."

It's anyone's guess as to whether that this blip on the "radar" will come to fruition any time soon, but there's no denying Dell's increasing interest in the gaming market. Last March, Dell bought out the custom gaming PC company Alienware, making it a wholly-owned subisidiary. Rather than absorb Alienware into it's infrastructure entirely, the smaller company has retained its own branding and continues to produce the same type and quality of gaming machines for the PC enthusiast that it has in the past. Despite the acquisition of Alienware, Dell maintains its own separate line of gaming PCs in the form of the XPS line in its catalog.

Gamers don't make up a majority of computer sales, but they are irrefutably a driving force in the advancement of computer technologies, especially processing power and the almighty video card market. When it comes to the larger gaming demographic, there are several smaller groups (which admittedly sometimes overlap) that a manufacturer must take into consideration.

Very casual gamers, who play a game or two on their family computer, often buy mainstream computers such as Dell's Dimension desktops. Dell has had that market all but cornered for awhile now. The next step up is a group of people who really enjoy their games, but still want a computer that is convenient to order and maintain; possibly still fulfilling the family computer role. Again, Dell has them covered; these consumers are likely to purchase an XPS. The third group is one that games very heavily, and wants a computer dedicated to such from a name they can trust. Last March, Dell's purchase of Alienware secured a large portion of this market.

Lastly, you have two groups that would never, ever buy a Dell PC for its gaming uses: power PC users and console gamers. Power PC users seldom purchase desktops at all, instead building them themselves, and will always build their own gaming PCs. This will only hurt Dell more as laptops become more and more simple to build at home. Console gamers do most or all of their gaming on devices such as the Xbox, Gamecube/Wii, or Playstation consoles. The only way for Dell to make money off of these final two groups in relation to gaming is to sell them something other than a desktop. A gaming handheld from Dell may help them to put something with their logo into the hands of all segments of this small but influential demographic.

For those of you that are wondering, the UMPC mockup image on the PC Plus site is a Samsung Q1.

- Glock

THQ Appoints Gary Rieschel to Company Board of Directors

The board of directors over at THQ has recently expanded from six to seven seats, the seventh being Gary Rieschel. This move by THQ shows their dedication to continue the pursuit of global growth of the company. They have several large titles coming out soon, including S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and the recently announced Saints Row, and are mindful of the need to secure the Asian markets. Brian Farrell, the president and CEO of THQ, comments that

"Gary brings tremendous experience in Asian markets to our board,"

and

"We are delighted to tap into his expertise as we pursue our global growth strategies."

Rieschel holds an a M.B.A. from Harvard University and a B.A. from Reed College.

Full story here.

PS3 might be getting a break!

Today THQ has announced that an award-winning game---Saints Row---will be coming to the Playstation 3. The company states that they are aiming for a Spring release date. The game, originally released for the Xbox 360, has been criticized by some detractors as a Grand Theft Auto copycat. While the general consensus among reviewers is that Saints Row does do everything GTA does, it does many of the things that GTA did wrong...right. The result is a game that while perhaps not as innovative as Rockstar's ground-breaking franchise, still has the power to attract console gamers with it's quality of gameplay and design improvements.

THQ used the same dev studio that helped produce the impressively unconventional Descent as part of Parallax Software, and had this to say about the game:

Developed by renowned internal studio Volition, Inc., Saints Row brings the hugely popular open-world genre to Sony's new console for the first time and will mark the first open world online experience available through the PLAYSTATION(R) Network.

Kelly Flock, the executive vice president, also commented that

"Bringing the open-world genre to the PLAYSTATION 3 system for the first time will help grow the Saints Row fan base and expand the open-world online community."

These statements are what those of us in the gaming world call "misleading", and will undoubtedly by some be referred to as "lies", although we doubt they were intended as such. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is widely considered to be the first open-world game that has been released on the PS3, and there are other titles available for the PS3 that fall into the open-world genre. That being said, Saints Row will be the first open-world game for PS3 to feature a multiplayer mode for online play, so the quotes are only mildly inaccurate.

THQ lauds Volition, Inc. as

"...one of THQ's premier internal game development studios responsible for high-end creations on next generation systems and Windows PC. Its credits include best-selling console and PC franchises, including Saints Row, The Punisher, Red Faction(R), Summoner(R) and Freespace as well as the award-winning Descent as a part of Parallax Software."

Hopefully this will give the PS3 the credit it deserves. Full story here.

From Space Invaders to Space Invaders

The oldest name in the game is back at it. Today, Midway Games issued a press release confirming the development of Blacksite: Area 51. The Chicago-based company states that the game will be released for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360, just as its predecessor; Area 51. Released in April of 2005, the original Area 51 was referred to by some as "Halo for the PS3", although Midway's offering did not generate nearly the fervor that Microsoft's title did. Blacksite is being developed by Midway Studios - Austin, formerly known as Inevitable Entertainment. Due to Midway's declining financial standings in the past few years, Blacksite could be the game that puts them back on track.

Windows Vista drops tomorrow, and with it, DirectX 10. I would like to see them release the PC version of the game utilizing DirectX 10, but since there will very likely still be a lot of people running Windows XP (which is not DX10-compatible) by the time that this game is released, Midway could play it safe and stick with DX9 for releases for the time being. Being on the cutting edge is a wonderful thing---as long as it doesn't cost you customers. If Midway does aim high, planning on a Vista-centered release for the PC version of the game, there's the distinct possibility that this could be a cross-platform game. Actually, it would be borderline foolish for Midway to be daring enough to release a Vista-based game and risk alienating upgrade-reluctant customers but then overlook the option for PC gamers to play against console gamers, and vice versa. If they included cross-platform compatibility, they'd be one of the first to do so (Microsoft is of course leading the pack with Shadowrun).

While we don't know what they may do, we do know some of the things they intend to do. They intend to create a game in which the player is emotionally invested, making choices into more than just a decision based on curiosity, wanting to take the storyline in a certain direction based on a whim, or just to satisfy your obsessive-compulsive need to play the game through and experience every side of the story:

"The player’s modern-day emotions and fears are driven into a world charged with grave responsibility affecting lives hanging in the balance and eventually finding himself torn between his professional orders and his own ethical standards."

I'm interested in how they plan on emotionally involving players in the game, and if that's exclusively a goal for the single player mode of the game, or if they've somehow managed to make gamers online feel connected to the objectives (and not just their scores). Midway says that there will be a "powerful" single player campaign, and what Midway is calling a "multitude" of multiplayer modes for online gameplay.

The game is set in present-day in---you guessed it---the Nevada desert, where the world(galaxy?)-known Area 51 is located. Specifically, the Rachel, Nevada area. The player is placed in charge of a squad charged with fighting off the space invaders. Obviously, this would make Blacksite a prequel to Midway's vintage 1978 Space Invaders.

Blacksite: Area 51 is slated to hit shelves sometime this summer. Until then, we'll keep you updated.

- Glock

What does the future hold for Palm?

Over the past several years the mobile market has literally exploded, and we have come a long way since the Apple Newton. Now companies want more than ever to combine as many devices as they can into one, along with developing a flexible user operating environment. There has always been a fierce battle between Microsoft and Palm for the control of the mobile sector, and it is hard to tell what the future holds for Palm OS. With added pressure from its rivals, Palm is trying to satisfy its business customers, as they will

"now provide automatic wireless delivery of e-mail, calendar, and contact information directly from Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 SP2 or Exchange 2007."

Since Microsoft has this much influence in the computing industry it is hard to develop something that is unique and still holds a competitive edge against such a powerhouse. Of course, there is also an update that

"introduces another feature that's critical to IT administrators: security and central management. "

However even with all these improvements the article brings up a very important point: it is incredibly hard to dedicate thousands of dollars into something that might not be around in a year or two. Palm has a huge challenge standing before them; they need to convince those IT administrators that they are here to stay.

As unfortunate as it would be to fail in that, the home market looks even tougher to acquire a greater presence in. With the recent announcement of the Apple iPhone with its Mac OS, and the already strong Windows Mobile OS, Palm might just continue to spiral down until it is all but forgotten. Perhaps they need a product as revolutionary as the iPod to pull them out the ditch, considering that that was a life saving miracle for Apple. Or maybe they just need bolder management that has the ability to lead instead of follow.

Full story here.

How vulnurable are we?

In most cases when a computer gets stolen it is rarely recovered and only the owner is "out of luck". But what if that computer had your information that you (directly or indirectly) entrusted someone else with? More and more reports are coming about computers that have huge numbers of personal data on them being stole, most recently

"A computer containing financial information on thousands of Vanguard University students and their parents was stolen from the school's financial aid office last week, officials said Friday."

This is something that can happen to anyone at any time, and the scariest part of it is that you don't have a way of preventing such a thing. In fact some people might not even find out until it's too late. In the 21st century computing has brought a lot of good into the world, along with a helpful boom to businesses and such. However it also carries a huge risk with it, as a thief can literally walk away with tens of thousands of vital pieces of information which could lead to millions of dollars in damage. It is always important to know who you are sharing your personal information with, but in cases like these all you can do is rely on the university or other second party to keep that information safely guarded.

Full story here.

A New Breed of PC Gaming

Sometime soon, you may find yourself cursing the bots in your game and wishing for some good, old-fashioned, dumb A.I. That's because Arkane Studios (developers of Ubisoft's Dark Messiah of Might and Magic) is replacing the bots that we're used to battling it out with in single-player games with humans. The Source engine-based game, called The Crossing, is being marketed as neither single-player or multiplayer, but "cross-player", and if done right has the potential to revolutionize how we play games. Valve is working with Arkane to produce a first-person shooter in which you can have fun playing in story mode or hop online and get into a fragfest---player's choice.

Anyone who has been gaming on a PC for very long can tell you that PC title releases with strong, enjoyable single-player (story) modes have thinned out in the past few years. Half-Life 2, F.E.A.R., Doom 3, and Call of Duty 2 come to mind. Not a depressingly short list, but it's hard to deny the growing trend towards multiplayer gaming in recent years: out of the four titles I just mentioned, all of them have well-developed multiplayer modes, and you can even download the multiplayer-only version of F.E.A.R. for free. Players enjoy a good story mode game well enough, but there's a lot to be said for being able to get on and go to war with your friends, or at least some stranger who'll call you a hacker after you kill him seventeen times in a row. Cross-play gaming merges the two.

On the one hand you'll have Elites, players playing the game in story mode. On the other you'll have skirmishers; people just out to play as part of a group and maybe rank up. These skirmishers are what will replace traditional bots that the Elites would normally run into in story mode, be it as allies or enemies. Just like in regular single-player gaming, the "bots" (skirmishers) will be at a disadvantage in the game, but will make up for it in numbers. If a skirmisher logs off or wanders outside the area he's supposed to be in to act as a part of the game, he'll be replaced by an A.I.-driven bot until he can be replaced by a flesh-and-blood skirmisher. Skirmishers can play in a traditional online multiplayer fragfest against other skirmishers in addition to becoming part of an Elite's story mode game, and Elites have the option to play by themselves or in co-op mode with a friend. There's also the option for a skirmisher to join into a game as a mercenary---playing as a dedicated player-killer, much different from a group skirmisher's role in the game.

Microsoft's Games for Windows magazine interviewed the game's producer Raphaël Colantonio and art director Viktor Antonov (Antonov also served as Half-Life 2's art director); the interview is available for viewing at 1up.com.

Some developers may have been satisfied to merely introduce a radical and innovative new way to play your games, but Arkane's premise for the game is just as original as how it will be played. The story is set in modern day Paris, but in two alternate realities. In one, France's government has fallen apart and anarchy reigns the streets. In the other, the Knights Templar were never disbanded (in reality, they were forcibly disbanded in 1307), and maintain strict order in the city. The game takes place in both versions of reality, both of which are distinctly dystopian in nature. Arkane and Valve have a trailer out, which we've made viewable here, courtesy of GameVideos.com:



Regardless of whether or not Arkane and Valve can pull this off with a stable and balanced product, it's a bold and exciting step for the world of PC gaming as a whole, and that can only benefit you as a gamer in the long run.

- Glock

Blu-Ray takes a hit from HD-DVD

It's hard for people to go out and spend hundreds of dollars on a player they aren't sure will last through the next year. This is where each company will try to convince you, the consumer, that they are clearly winning and they have plenty of movie studios backing them. After the CES where Sony claimed they are the preferred choice by the majority of people, HD-DVD comes out with

"[HD-DVD] confirmed they will release more than 100 new film and televison titles in 2007"

This should definitely send a message to all the potential buyers out there that HD-DVD is far from losing this battle. It is probably wise to hold off on such a purchase until a half a year to year so you can see the general direction movie studios are taking, and which company they choose to produce their hi-def entertainment. However if you're the type of a person that wants the latest and greatest tech available it looks like HD-DVD is taking the lead from Sony, but in this market victories are short lived. That being said, additional confidence is being built among the HD-DVD team from what some may consider an unlikely source: the adult film industry. Credited with the success of VHS over the Betamax format, adult film companies have repeatedly and with few exceptions voiced their leanings towards HD-DVD (albeit tentatively---no one wants to have hopped on the wrong prediction wagon, not even porn moguls). Regardless, it's still a big enough question mark to keep us at Gamer Bait from buying a player any time soon.

Full story here.

~nubulicious

Halo 3 Beta for Sale Within a Month

The Halo franchise has been one of the biggest, if not the biggest, name in Xbox's lineup since it debuted in 2001. Six years later, fans are drooling over the third iteration of their favorite console shooter. It wouldn't be much of an overstatement to say that there are a lot of people who would commit a few misdemeanors if it meant that they could get their hands on the Halo 3 Beta. Until now, breaking and entering may have seemed like the only way to be sure of getting a shot at playing the online beta. The only way you could get in was to either be a U.S. soldier serving in Iraq, or register for Microsoft's "Rule of Three" at the Halo3.com site. Registration would involve having been alive for seventeen years and a resident of North America, having an Xbox 360 Pro or Core system, an Xbox Live Gold membership, a copy of Halo 2, and staying up til just after midnight on the morning of Feb. 1st (EST) in order to register (registration ends Feb. 3 at 11:59 PM EST). Oh, and only 13,333 gamers would be able to register. Doesn't exactly sound like a sure thing, considering the popularity the Halo name has garnered in the past six years. But if you don't make the cut for whatever reason, there is now another way to obtain a ticket to the Master Chief Cooking Special...er, Beta.

You can buy it.

You'll even get a free retail game with it! On February 20th, Crackdown will hit stores. If you're interested, Tim over at Ctrl+Alt+Del has posted his thoughts on the Crackdown beta. If and when you purchase Crackdown, you'll receive a free pass for the Halo 3 Beta, according to IGN. So don't sweat it if you don't make the Rule of Three registration. Remember, this is America: you can always plunk down cash.

- Glock

Microsoft has some harsh words for Sony

VS.

So if anyone is still wondering how well Sony is doing, this story should catch your attention. As a rule of thumb a company should not diss a competitor unless they feel that they are so far ahead that it won't come back to bite them in the end. And it looks like our good old friend Mr. Gates has joined the fray, saying Sony went the wrong way with their CPU choice.

"They took their year and burned it by not having a decent CPU strategy and then turning to Nvidia at the last minute."

Considering Microsoft is gambling with a new OS that is just around the corner---one with which the critics aren't terribly impressed---its hard to say who has actually burned the year. And a few days later Microsoft executives Peter Moore and Chris Satchell had this to say:

"It's going to take [Sony] a couple of years to get up to speed on this, and I'm not sure that they necessarily have the talent."

Overall, it's my personal opinion that the PS3 is one of the most underestimated consoles out there. Unfortunately a breakthrough in any kind of technology requires wide support from all the developers across the board. A smart pricing strategy would also have helped, due to a lack of one it's hard to tell if the Playstation will survive the years to come or just go down as another Dreamcast. Only time will tell.

Links to the story here and here.

~nubulicious

A Step Forward for Stepping Back

Sony released the 1.5 firmware update for the PS3 today, which should make anyone who owns games for prior Playstation consoles positively giddy. Well, maybe not giddy, but placated at least. Why? Before 1.5's release, the PS3's backwards compatibility with PS2/Playstation games was painful at best, due to purely abysmal graphics. See for yourself here (video courtesy of Surrey.com; PG):



Glad they got that problem knocked out. Well, that's one less reason for not buying a PS3. I can still think of about six hundred more though...but that's me.

- Glock

A DX9 Game Worth a Look

Here are 5 reasons to look forward to S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. To be released in March '07.






oblivion-lost.de

Introduction

Letters from the Editors

Readers,

Welcome to Gamer Bait. If you're here, I imagine that you're at the very least curious as to what this blog is about. Gamer Bait is the culmination of hours of musing and discussion between two everyday gamers, and a desire to share those musings with others. You'll know us by our callsigns, screen names, handles...whatever you care to call them: headstronGLOCK23 and nubulicious---I'm Glock. At the very least, we're gamers like you. At best we hope to be writers that you can count on when you want to read something dealing directly with your interests. So if you fancy yourself a gamer of any degree, bookmark us, maybe subscribe to our RSS feed, and settle in.

We plan on the scope of GB to be fairly broad, while remaining true to those things that interest the average gamer. We'd like to think that we can directly relate to a more mainstream community than some writers seem to be writing to these days. We're a couple of guys with regular lives, regular friends, and regular budgets.

Just like you.

We intend for GB to offer reviews of products of interest to us and you, how-to guides, opinions on current events, possibly some fiction, some humor, and anything else we can think of. Feel free to send us suggestions on what you'd like to see, and we'll take it into consideration. You can email us with ideas, praise, or criticism at gamerbait@gmail.com. We're already working on a few articles for you, so tell your friends about us, and check back often!

- Glock

---

Hey you:

What he said.

- nubulicious