Welcome
to the DEN Soldier!
Lion's
Daily Blurb
-
This week I was watching the
students protesting at the UCLA campus in California
where a vote is coming down to raise the tuition fees
another 32% for next year (STORY
HERE). The state of California can't help out
cause...well, they have no money to give. The federal
government has bailed out the banks and auto companies,
so why not help with education costs? Many students and
their families cannot afford an increase in college
fees, but it's happening all across America because many
states just don't have the funds. Unemployment is over
10% now, and in certain job markets like construction,
it's closer to 20%. In my neck of da woods many small
business are failing. I've seen first-hand 'going out of
business' signs at quite a few places recently. Most are
mom & pop stores, small construction businesses, farms,
etc. It's a little alarming. I can't speak for the rest
of the country, but clearly the HUGE stimulus package
that the federal government thought would bring us out
of the recession is not working at all. Small businesses
ARE the backbone of America. They provide a huge tax
base for the states they are in. When they start falling
like they are now, America is in trouble. I'm NOT
blaming the Obama administration for the trouble our
economy is in right now. That is something that has been
brewing in the works for years. But the direction they
are taking this country is wrong. Add on that crazy
health care plan that congress is trying to pass, and
the next thing we can look forward to is a depression.
But you won't hear them use the word depression. What
economists are saying right now is we may be headed for
a 'double dip' recession and unemployment going to 15%+
across the board sometime in 2010. When work does run
out, I may put in for one of those government grants and
do a study on why cow poop stinks, and the effect is has
on people when they step on a cow pattie...Lion
Pre-Order E-Mails for Beta Code Thu - Nov 19, 2009, 4:12 pm [EST] posted by Lion
Some clarification from APOC concerning C&C4 pre-orders and the beta.
Hey everyone,
Lets keep RA3 Premier code talk in one thread, and pre-order e-mail thread talk in another, so we don't confuse. Everyone understand?
If you pre-order C&C 4 from the EA Store at the US store (i.e. North America), you should get the e-mail with your promo code within 24 hours or less, if not near instant.
If you pre-order C&C 4 from the EA Store UK, I believe they are sorted and should be sending your code e-mail asap. Apologies for this, we are on their tail.
Direct 2 Drive is sending codes out pretty quickly with pre-orders, so that should not be an issue for most. I do not have an update on Amazon for Germany, but I suspect the same as D2D.
If you pre-order from GameStop, you do not get Beta acces, as is clearly explained on our pre-order page. The benefit to pre-ordering from GameStop is if you want an awesome personally signed KANE autograph headshot, yes not a copy, a real signature. Unfortunately, GameStop policies for early code distribution are beyond our control, so if you want the pre-order + Beta deal, you'll need to go through the EA Store or Direct2Drive.
We will keep monitoring.
If you have not received a pre-order e-mail with your code, please note:
- what retailer you pre-ordered from - what country/location (this is critical)
Thanks, APOC
Original post on the official C&C4 forums is HERE.
RA3 Premier Edition Instant Access to the C&C 4 Beta Now Tue - Nov 17, 2009, 9:04 pm [EST] posted by Lion
Here's the word from our community leader APOC.
GO GO GO! If you bought the Red Alert 3 Premier Edition and registered your "Future Beta Access" code at this site, then congrats, it's time for you jump in and play the Command & Conquer 4 Beta. Simply follow the steps below and you will be granted instant access to the Beta! Please note, there are a couple of battle orders as well that you need to be aware of, Commander.
Starting today and continuing every Tuesday/Thursday, we will open up a large amount of C&C 4 Beta spots. Instant access to the C&C 4 Beta for RA3 Premier Owners will be on a first come, first-served basis. Once we hit our limit of open spots, access will close for that day (time period), and you will be asked to come back the following Tuesday/Thursday to try again. If spots remain open, we will keep the registration open and continue to ramp up the online player base.
Head right HERE for instructions on how to get into the beta. I'm in and will be playing this week.
Renegade X Released New Version Tue - Nov 17, 2009, 3:06 pm [EST] posted by Lion
A little late with this news...a new version (V0.40) of the Renegade X mod has been released. You can check out details HERE, and watch the November launch trailer below. As I've said before, this mod is C&C Renegade on steriods!
IncGamers C&C4 Preview Tue - Nov 17, 2009, 11:18 am [EST] posted by Lion
IncGamers.com has posted a new PREVIEW for C&C4. This 'hands-on' preview is targeted at the multi-player aspects of the game. Here's a snip:
We played a few games of 5v5 multiplayer, GDI vs Nod, on one map. The goal was to capture and hold five areas on the map; holding more than your opponents raised your team's points faster than theirs, and the first to reach a points cap won. Actual cash appeared to have no relevance whatsoever, but matters were complicated with occasionally-spawning Tiberium crystals. When brought back to friendly bases, these furnished your team with upgrade points that could be used to increase, say, railgun range, or explosive damage, or even level up your Crawler further.
Despite all of the changes - no real bases, Crawlers are mobile and can respawn, lack of cash, take-and-hold gameplay - it felt familiar enough that it was very, very hard to shake off the usual concepts of the genre. As soon as I began, I sat my Crawler down and had it start pumping out as many units as my command cap would hold. Then I realised that two of my allies had started wandering off towards points with their Crawlers, building units on the way.
Ah. Right. I don't have to stay at the starting point...
Getting in the C&C 4 Beta and YOU Tue - Nov 17, 2009, 10:55 am [EST] posted by Lion
Our community leader APOC posted the following message on the official C&C4 forums concerning the C&C4 beta.
Hey everyone,
I know there are some questions and concerns as to how you can get in the C&C 4 beta, and more importantly when. So I will try and fill you on the exact details and keep this short and sweet.
If you are a Red Alert 3 Premier Edition owner
If you registered your RA3 Premier Edition code, then you are on our list of RA3 Premier owners who will be activated for the C&C 4 Beta starting tomorrow (Tuesday). We every Tuesday/Thursday going forward we will open up a larger amount of spots in our C&C 4 beta queue for RA3 Premier Edition owners. A communication will be on our website to inform you, all you will need to do is login in to our site, instructions will be provided, and if you made it in our queue, you'll be in instantly. The number we let in every Tuesday/Thursday will be in the thousands and grow quickly, so do not worry. I am certain everyone who is concerned on these forums will be amongst the first. That starts tomorrow (Tuesday), keep your eyes peeled on our webiste.
If you pre-order Command & Conquer 4
If you pre-order C&C 4 from any of our current supporting online retailers - EA Store, Direct2Drive, Amazon (Germany only), they should send you your promotional code quickly. We have zero control over the retailers, but they have all committed to distributing codes quick. If you bought RA3 Premier, and don't want to wait until tomorrow or for some reason miss the queue before it fills up, you can pre-order C&C 4 and get in. Or, if you didn't buy RA3 Premier, you can pre-order C&C 4 and get in the Beta. Its extremely simple.
If you are a Total Access subscriber on Gamespot
You can in to the C&C 4 beta near instantly. This is a special program Gamespot desired to setup with us, and Gamespot being a massive venue for gamers, we'd be crazy to deny =) That said, we are focusing on getting in RA3 Premier Edition members quickly. We always knew the two programs would clash in close timing.
If you won the Name the Game, Name that Unit contest or another C&C 4 beta contest
You will be let in this week as well.
So, all the above is the process by which YOU can get in to the C&C 4 Beta. I expect anyone on these forums who wants to be in the C&C 4 Beta now, should be by the end of this week via any of the above processes. We will do our best to accommodate in a timely manner. See you in there.
-APOC
I was a Red Alert 3 Premier Edition owner, so I should be good to go for the beta. But hopefully APOC will let me in regardless, that is IF they allow us Lions to play.
Electronic Arts To Hire Back Workers In Low-Cost Locations Mon - Nov 16, 2009, 10:21 am [EST] posted by Lion
(thanks PCNC & Ant) That headline above is from an article that was released a few days ago. EA's Chief Financial Officer Eric Brown weighed in on what EA has planned to survive the tough economic times we now face. They already announced laying off 1,500 people. Anyhoot, here's the word from Mr. Brown.
"We will be hiring back positions in low-cost locations to maintain capacity," he said at the BMO Capital Markets Digital Entertainment Conference in New York, which was broadcast over the Internet.
Brown didn't specify how many workers the Redwood City, Calif.-based company expected to hire, nor did he say when and where those hires would occur.
EA said this week that it expects to save at least $100 million annually by closing several facilities and eliminating 1,500 jobs by next March. The cuts, which follow the closure of development and publishing facilities a year ago, will enable EA to focus on fewer games amid an industry-wide slump.
Not sure what 'low-cost' locations mean, but I assume some of the game development will be farmed out, perhaps where the cost of living isn't so high, and cheap labor. Some places of opportunity could be Mexico, China, India, the back-hills of West Virginia, etc.
I said back in August I'd bring that poll question up again after several months had passed and see if anyone had a change of heart after learning more about C&C4. Three months have passed, and oodles of new info has been dumped on us. So, the new poll question asks:
With what we now know, are you happy with the direction C&C4 has taken?
It will be interesting to see which direction the poll goes this time around, and IF those undecided voters have made up their minds.
Would The REAL Nod Avatar Please Stand Up! Fri - Nov 13, 2009, 7:19 pm [EST] posted by Lion
In that screenshot down yonder, one of those Nod Avatars is an imposter, and one is the REAL deal...outfitted with the very deadly and dangerous Crayola Crayon cannons with their MASSIVE fire power. All of GDI quakes in their shoes when these puppies come on the scene. See if YOU can spot the imposter that is carrying the cheap imitations!
C&C 4 Gameplay Trailer Fri - Nov 13, 2009, 10:16 am [EST] posted by Lion
Gametrailers.com has released the new gameplay trailer for C&C4. You can watch it in SD or HD HERE.
The trailer is also available for viewing on the official C&C4 website HERE.
Plenty of action to check out. Some input on my part...music reminds me of Star Wars. Not necessarily a bad thing as I'm a Star Wars fan. I noticed in the trailer that just about all of the ground units can fire at air units...some that I wouldn't thought would have that capability, hmmm. The GDI units I saw looked good and acceptable. Some of the Nod units looked a tad weird. The Nod Avatar looks rather strange with those 'Crayola Crayon' looking barrels. Do NOT like that unit at all. It needs a redesign.
Anyhoot, not a bad trailer. I've seen worse. Please feel free to post your opinions in the comments section.
Command & Conquer 4 Hits Store Shelves March 16 Thu - Nov 12, 2009, 5:59 pm [EST] posted by Lion
Here's the official announcement from EA.
November 12, 2009 08:00 AM Eastern Time Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight Hits Store Shelves March 16
Best-Selling RTS-Series Launches New Installment with Special Pre-Order Incentives
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Welcome to the beginning of the end! Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) today announced that gamers worldwide will experience an all-new way to play RTS games when Command & Conquer™4 Tiberian Twilight hits store shelves beginning March 16th. Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight brings the 15 year-long fan-beloved Tiberium saga to an epic and stunning conclusion and offers players innovative and compelling strategic depth through its new class-based gameplay, mobile bases and experience system throughout all game modes. EA also announced the first pre-order incentives for Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight. Fans who pre-order the game now will receive early access to the upcoming beta program, the game’s official soundtrack and an exclusive prequel bonus mission.**
“Finally, fans will learn what happens to Kane, Nod, GDI, Earth and Tiberium when Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight hits store shelves March 16th,” said Mike Glosecki, Lead Producer of Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight at EA Los Angeles. “We can’t wait for fans to experience the trademark C&C action with the new level of strategic depth we have added, especially with our new experience system.”
Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight throws players into the epic battles between the Global Defense Initiative (GDI) and the Brotherhood of Nod with its enigmatic leader Kane. With its new experience and class-based systems that are persistent across all game modes, Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight sticks to the action-packed gameplay fans have come to love while offering them entirely new ways to play Command & Conquer. Whether conquering alone, in co-op mode or in an all-new 5v5 objective-based multiplayer mode, Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight delivers an innovative social real-time-strategy experience never seen before in a Command & Conquer game.
Pre-orders are now available HERE, and include early access into the multiplayer beta program, the official soundtrack of Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight as well as an additional bonus mission.
Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight is being developed for the PC at EA Los Angeles and will be available in North America on March 16th 2010 and in Europe on March 19th. The game has not yet been rated by the ESRB or PEGI. For more information about the game, please visit www.commandandconquer.com or follow the community and development team on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ea_apoc. Gametrailers TV on Spike TV will reveal the very first gameplay trailer for Command & Conquer Tiberian Twilight in tonight’s episode and on www.gametrailers.com.
So March 16th is the official date for the release of C&C4.
Gamespot Total Access Members Exclusive Wed - Nov 11, 2009, 4:04 pm [EST] posted by Lion
On November 16th at 12:00 P.M (PST) Gamespot will be giving away C&C4 beta spots.
NOTE: This closed beta test offer is only available to GameSpot Total Access subscribers. An open beta offer will be made available to all GameSpot members in early 2010.
Status Update from APOC Wed - Nov 11, 2009, 3:28 pm [EST] posted by Lion
In light of the recent rumors of the axe pointed at some folks at EALA, our community leader APOC has chimed in with a few choice words about the C&C4 game currently in production.
Hey guys,
EALA is dedicated and passionate about C&C 4. We want to assure you that the game is on track for a great launch next year. We’re nearing the Beta, and we hope many of you will participate. Once you have the game in your hands and give it a good test drive, you’ll be able to provide constructive feedback that will help the dev team continue to finesse the game. We’re eager to hear your thoughts.
See you on the battlefield, APOC
So there's the confirmation that C&C4 is safe, and will be released next year.
