Starcraft, the legendary RTS developed by game developing legend Blizzard Entertainment was and still is a multiplayer icon. It is played from Seoul to Sultan Kudarat and on many PCs and internet cafes all over the world. Blizzard announced recently, something that may change all of that in the upcoming sequel Starcraft 2. There will be no LAN support.

Yes, you will need to login to the newly revamped Battle.net to play multiplayer. Meaning, you and your pals will need to get an internet connection and create battle.net accounts just to play with each other. This may not be a problem to countries with very good ISP infrastructure but there are still many in the Philippines without 24/7 internet connection.

Bad move Blizzard, bad bad move.

Is it just me or has Blizzard made a lot of booboos lately, the public outcry over the color scheme of Diablo III and now the no LAN support of Starcraft 2. What is going on? Is Blizzard slowly slipping from their developing throne?

Bayan DSL has started showing their new TV commercials featuring a grandmother. Its a nice video actually and quite hilarious.

Bayan DSL has been one of my favorite broadband providers here in Metro Manila due to their attentive customer support and quick response whenever I am suffering from intermittent connection.

Here are two tips for you to speed your Bayan DSL connection.

1. Use a proxy. Bayan DSL subscriber weren’t told about the availability of proxy servers until you specifically ask for it. Basically proxies store webpage content to their own local servers when accessed for the first time by one of its subscribers. Once you made a request to access a particular webpage that was already stored on their local server, instead of going straight to the host server of the website you’re accessing, it instead just fetches the data it stores thereby downloading it faster. Oftentimes the speed is tremendous, doubling the download speed. Bayan’s official proxy server is proxy.skyinet.net:3128.

2. Speed on Demand (SOD). Yes they advertise it but do they tell you how to enable it? Oftentimes they do not! Speed on Demand increases your bandwidth speed during off peak hours from 10:00PM to 10:00AM the following day. To enable SOD, bring up your dialer and append your username with @sod. Example: salleh@sod

Please note that this two tips are only for Bayan DSL subscriber.

Microsoft will begin to offer Windows 7 for excited folks via pre-order through their website.

Microsoft’s new flagship operating system Windows 7 will cost consumers $199.99, $299.99 and $319.99 respectively for Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate box. But for those who already have Vista and XP may opt to get the upgrade package for a lower price: $119.99, $199.99 and $219.99 for the same set.

It is also expected that PC manufacturers will offer free upgrade to Windows 7 if they buy a computer today with Vista loaded so if your planning to buy a new PC or laptop, be sure to grab the upgrade coupon and keep it until Windows 7 officially debut.

Windows 7 has been assailed as the most stable OS by Microsoft so far as evidently showed by its beta and RC builds. Enthusiasts who downloaded a copy of the said builds remarked their excitement as Windows 7 being better in terms of speed and compatibility compared to Vista.

Microsoft officially announced that Windows 7 will be available on October 22nd.

Nvidia will refresh its GT200 lineup with new GPUs capable of DirectX 10.1 instruction.

Recent ATI Radeon GPUs already support DirectX 10.1 since 2007 but Nvidia has become reluctant and didn’t bother to upgrade their chipsets past DX10.

According to tech insiders, Nvidia will release its new 40nm GPUs this coming September and might be branded as GT210 and GT220 however Nvidia hasn’t released an official statement about this.

Later this year or probably early 2010, Nvidia is scheduled to introduced GT300 with DX11 support while ATI will release their new flagship DX11 GPUs alongside the release of Windows 7 on October 22, 2009.

Both Nvidia and ATI is in a tight race on releasing the first card to support DX11 and so far it seems ATI will win this round.

DirectX 11 is the next graphics api that Windows 7 will introduce to market.

It is very rare that a game-movie tie-up yields positive results. It’s either the movie will suck based on a game, or a game will suck based ona movie. Wanted: Weapons of Fate will undergo the Pinoygaming Network Movie-Game gauntlet. Already, it has failed on one simple ommission, NO ANGELINA JOLIE! gaarrrr….

Wanted: Weapons of Fate is loosely based on the movie expanding to its universe. You are the previously weak now super soldier bullet bending dude. You go by the Weapons of Fate (WoF) universe looking for clues to who killed your dear old mommy. What results however is a series of revelations and shocks, right after the guns and explosions of course.

The story is told with ingame cutscenes that so very much look like they got ported from the console versions. Well, it IS a console port but they could have beefed it up a bit for the PC crowd. No surprise there. Graphically speaking, Wanted is not very impressive. Anti-aliasing is enabled ingame but it doesn’t do much to help the bad textures and even worse special effects.

There are several events in the game that you come up to an enemy and have to stab him in the throat. The satisfaction of that kill is ruined because blood splatters on the monitor ALL THE FREAKIN’ TIME and it does so with the same predefined pattern that obscures the kill. When you are hit, the screen turns bloody red then blood splatters then the screen goes black and white. Too much!

The game sounds are satisfying none the less but could use a little more umphf. Too bad there are only a few weapons in game that you can use, two types of handguns and a sniper rifle. Had the developers added a few more guns for the player to experiment with, this would have been a totally different game.

As for the gameplay, its not totally bad to our surprise. The cover system is done pretty well in conjunction with the bullet time features and the bullet curving features. I love curving the bullet on this game, especially when the enemy hides behind several pieces of cover from yards away then BAM! Bullet curves to his position and hits him square in the nose. You can only curve bullets if you get enough adrenaline though, thankfuly adrenalin is easy to get, you just have to kill an opponent normally and it recharges.

The controls are fairly easy to pick up as well, however we have some complaints. To cancel out of the bullet curving aim procedure, you need to let go of one button at a time, if you let go of 2 buttons, the gun fires completely missing your target. A minor annoyance, but won’t ruin the experience.

Wanted: Weapons of Fate is a game made for fans of the movie (it would have garnered more players if Angelina was involved). There is little to no replay value except to play the game again with another difficulty, discover hidden codes to unlock “gameplay enhancers” and additional characters to play as.

Overall, its a good game for gunfight fans akin to those who follow Gears of War cover system. But for anything else, it’s a good rental.

Graphics - 5

Sound - 7

Gameplay - 6

Replay value - 3

I already owned three netbooks since february of this year but my desire to own new one hasn’t end.

Last february, I bought an MSI Wind U100 for Php15,900.00. It was my first portable computer since I came to know the bits and bytes of digital world. The unit came with no bluetooth and has limited 80GB of hard disk space.

Later on, after a month of craving for a bluetooth and larger disk space, I decided to purchase a new one hence I picked Lenovo S10. This unit came with probably all the features I needed for a laptop. Finally I could share my MP3’s and 3GP movies to my friends celfone. The larger 160GB of disk space enables me to store more than 40 movies and thousands of MP3s. Heck, I could also bring my copy of World of Warcraft and transfer it to my friend’s desktop to play.

I was almost satisfied with my Lenovo S10 until Aris, a very good friend of mine, pursuaded me to consider purchasing the new Asus Eee PC 1000HE. This new netbook from Asus boasts remarkable battery life of around 9 hours of light usage. To make the story short, I caved in and bought it at Greenhills for only Php20,000.00 ($421.00). 1000HE proved its worth when I used it during a long trip from Manila to Olongapo back and forth.

Yet, one week hasn’t passed and I missed the features I have with my old Lenovo S10. The One Key Recovery which is standard to Lenovo’s notebook has been a valuable tool for me to backup and restore my system. Unfortunately Asus does not provide such a similar feature except for the standard system restore partition and DVD disk.

It seems that data protection is much more valuable for me than the extra juice I can get with 1000HE’s battery.

Lenovo already announced the availability of Ideapad S10-2 netbook. It features sexier design, better keyboard layout, a Dolby sound and glossy display.

Ranns of Netbooks Philippines was kind enough to take a picture of his new Lenovo Ideapad S10-2 netbook and posted it at the forum.

“As for the initial testing, I find it very solidly built, with a 6-cell battery already. Initial charge gave me a solid 4 hours and 30 minutes continuous browsing with WIFI on and a wireless mouse receiver plugged in on one USB port before it showed me a 10% reminder. Its energy management utility software which controls the battery is set at low power. Other settings are Performance, Balanced, and Super Energy Saver mode.” as Ranns described the new netbook.

Without further ado, here’ some of the pictures he shared to us. You can visit Netbooks Philippines to see all the pictures posted and read the comments of other netbookers.

Quick glance of Lenovo Ideapad S10-2 specs:

• Intel Atom Processor N280 1.66GHz CPU
• 1GB RAM
• 160GB Hard Drive
• 10.1-inch 1024×600 LCD Display
• WiFi 802.11b/g
• 1.3 Megapixel webcam
• 6 Cell Lithium-Ion battery

I went to SM City Annex and I found one shop that sells it for Php21,000 ($439.00) cash, or Php23,000 ($481.00) if paying via 12 months installment.

I don’t care if my Eee PC 1000HE is still a week new, what matters now is that I want the features I once have with Ideapad S10. And now that S10-2 has arrived, the only reason I should delay my next purchase is if Lenovo Ideapad S12 will hit the shelves anytime this June.

Recently on E3, Microsoft unveiled their new baby project named Natal. It offers unprecedented contol over the the xbox 360. Particularly NO CONTROLLERS! You are the control system. It scans you and remembers your face and your voice. This alone is a technological leap. Now here comes Peter Molineux, the dude responsible for the hit game Fable. He introduces the Natal project to his own baby, Milo. And the results, AWESOME SAUCE.

The smash coop zombie survival shooter of 2008 will be a spawning a sequel and it promises to be just as badass or perhaps even better than the first. What made the first a complete success was the AI Director. This piece of software directs the “zombie movie” that you’re in. It will increase zombie population and control their spawns. On the upcoming title, Left 4 Dead 2, AI Director 2.0 will control much more than that. It will put obstructions to prevent you from moving somewhere, making you look for alternate routes. It will also control the weather. Oh yeah, we now have frying pans, baseball bats, hacksaws and oh yeah… CHAINSAWS! Release date is on November 17, 2009.

Lenovo today announced the release of its improved version of Ideapad S series of netbooks, the Ideapad S12.

The Ideapad S12 is the first netbook that offers Ion platform from Nvidia. The 9400m graphics chipset promises better support for 1080p video decoding with h.264 playback acceleration, Blu-ray playback, and moderate gaming capabilities.

The new netbook will be available in two different version, the S12 with the old Intel Integrated GMA 945 graphics from Intel which will be available on June and the S12 with Nvidia ION Graphics which will be available on mid August.

As expected, Lenovo will charge additional $50 for the ION S12 while the base product with Intel GMA 945 will be priced at $449.

Lenovo still maintains the same old components found on its S10 netbooks such Atom N270 processor, 1GB DDR2 memory and 160GB 5400 SATA hard drive.

Screen was upgraded to 12.1″ WXGA Backlight with 1280×800 display resolution. Keyboard as well was made full sized.

Full summary of specs are as follow:

• Screen: 12.1″ WXGA (1280 x 800), LED Backlight
• Processor: Intel Atom N270 (1.6GHz)
• Graphics: Intel Integrated GMA 945 graphics (available June) Nvidia ION Graphics (available mid-August)
• Memory: 1GB
• Storage: 160GB (5400 RPM) 2.5″ SATA HD
• OS: Windows XP Home
• Battery: 6-cell battery rated at 6 hours
• Dimensions: 292 mm x 216 mm x 22 - 28.9 mm (11.5″ x 8.50″ x .87 - 1.14″)
  Weight: 1.55kg (3.44lbs)
• Ports: 3 x USB2.0 ports, one 34mm Express Card slot (Intel graphics platform only), 4 x1 card reader (SD/MMC/MS/MS pro), Ethernet RJ45, VGA, Single Built in MIC with Echo Cancellation and
  noise reduction; Headphone, HDMI (only on ION platform)
• Camera: 1.3MP web camera
• Software: OneKey™ Rescue System; Lenovo Energy Management; Adobe Reader; NIS2009;
• Windows Live Toolbar; VeriFace™; Lenovo Quick start
• Pricing: $449 for Intel graphics version, $499 for Nvidia graphics version.

Woot woot!!! Watch the trailer of the most anticipated first person shooter game that will hit this year. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 trailer is nearly two minutes of footage.

The first-ever in-game footage of the sequel to Call of Duty 4. Lots of shooting and lots of explosions shown in the footage.

Modern Warfare 2 will be available on November 10 so make sure your rigs is ready.

Version 2 of Intel’s Moblin has arrived promising better compatibility and stability.

Intel announced Moblin 2.0, a stripped-down distribution of Linux optimized for smaller screens on netbooks and mobile Internet devices (MIDs). The new Linux flavor is fine-tuned to run on Atom powered netbooks to maximize its power efficiency and performance.

Netbooks such as Asus Eee PC and Lenovo’s Ideapad S10 are low cost laptops with under-powered Atom processor, maximum 2GB memory, 7 inch to 10.2 inch display and has Microsoft Windows XP as standard.  Early netbooks were run by different Linux distributions such as Sandros and Novell’s Suise.

Intel placed a new user interface to the beta which is optimized for netbook’s 10″ screen.The new UI aggregates social networks under a single interface, which should make interacting with friends easier, Fisher said. He also added that Moblin incorporates features that take advantage of Atom’s sleep state to extend battery.

Development of the Moblin OS was initiated by Intel in 2007 and was last month handed over to the nonprofit Linux Foundation, though Intel continues to contribute to the efforts.

The beta version of the Moblin OS is available on Moblin’s Web site.

Wizards Magazine rated Wolverine as number one in the top 100 comic book characters of all time. Wolverine’s solo outing in “Wolverine” comicbook has been selling like fishballs. Movies with Wolverine in them do pretty well in the box office. Now, he gets his solo game. Let’s see if it lives up to the hype.

The game is loosely based on the movie, so if you haven’t seen the movie, SPOILER ALERT! You play as wolverine (obvious ba?) and the game is set in two periods of time. First was during Wolverine’s army days during a mysterious mission in Africa and second is right after he got his adamantium skeleton. All this happens as a flashback from a Wolverine in the future.

The game is basically a beat them up. Although it sets itself apart from other beat them ups by adding an RPG element. Yes mga kapatid, naglelevel up si Wolverine. As you level up you get new skills that increase the damage of your claws, increase your Hit Points and your rage points. Also you can find “Mutagens” hidden all over the levels that make the gameplay a bit more unique.You can actually build your own version of wolverine.

On our first play, we made a vampire like Wolverine. We upgraded our vitality, used a damage dealing mutagen and also a mutagen that gives us health as we deal damage. So everytime Wolverine hits really hard, he gains a certain HP. The more you kill, the more you stay alive. (ishlash gee gee).

Alright, just to set things straight, THIS IS NOT FOR KIDS. The game is rated M for mature. There’s blood and gore in this game and we expected as much since you’re controlling a character with unbreakable razor sharp claws. Something is bound to get cut and somepeople are bound to bleed.

You beat the opponents up with lunges, combos and killer special attacks (yung mga naglalaro ng arcade diyan, he has DRILL CLAW!). You can also opt just to execute the enemy by throwing them into spikes and cliffs.

Graphically speaking, for a console port, this is a stunning game. It doesn’t WOW the eyes right away but you’ll give your respects to the Unreal Engine it uses afterwards. We however give props to the crazy action sequences the game offers. We jumped off a building into a chopper, ran from end to end on an exploding bridge, fought a giant Sentinel and it all went smooth and pleasing to our critical eyes. One thing to note as well is that well is when Wolverine takes damage, it shows on his body. Severe damage and Wolverine will start to look like meat in a butcher shop. We’ve seen bone, we’ve seen innards hanging from his body. Thank goodness he heals up pretty fast, not a pretty sight.

We have noticed a few camera problems though. There are some levels that the camera angle is pretty much retarded that controlling Wolverine equals solving a parabolic equation problem while getting hit on the head with a huge freakin’ rock.

The game sounds are impressive as well. Pretty much what you’d expect from a movie tie-up game. It’s funny to hear soldier yell “Nooooooo” when only a few seconds ago they’re saying “Kill the bastard!” The difference? A few seconds ago, Wolverine’s claws weren’t coming straight at his face. We have to point out however that after a few hours of gameplay, you’ll be noticing repetitions. LOTS of them. The same enemies yell the same things over and over. Also Wolverine says his catch phrases like “I’m the best at what I do.” repeatedly. It kinda gets to you after a while but does not hinder gameplay.

The game has little replay value. You are given a choice of three difficulties; easy, normal and hard. Hardmode is unlocked after you play through the game for the first time. Also there are “Action Figures” hidden all over the game. When you get them, they unlock a costume for Wolverine to wear. Sa mga babaeng gamer diyan, ito na pagkakataon niyo makita si Hugh Jackman na naka yellow spandex (original yellow costume ni wolverine). You can also try new wolverine mutagen builds but that’s as far as replay value goes.

All in all X-men Origins: Wolverine is a pretty solid console port but still has the console problems. The PC edition does not offer anything new. However, if you’re looking for a solid beat them up game, this is a great game to get. If you’re a Wolverine or X-men fan, this is a must get.

Graphics - 8

Sound - 7

Gameplay - 8

Replay Value - 4

Our affiliate’s portal has gotten a scoop on the upcoming, very much awaited shooter, Modern Warefare 2! The release will be on November of this year and Infinity Ward has just released a new teaser!

Details here

Toy Kingdom, Hasbro and Cybertron Philippines will kick off the Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen promotions by launching the TF:ROTF toys on May 30, 2009 (Saturday) at the Atrium, Building A, SM Megamall, Mandaluyong.

We will post details here asap.

What we know so far:

1. There will be no price increase for Deluxes and Leader Class. Deluxes will stay at P700 at Leader Class still remains at P3,000
2. There will be a wide assortment of ROTF toys during the launch.
3. Gifts with purchase will still be present
4. Three (3) chances to get major TFs and ROTF prizes.
5. Winners of the Customized Transformers Toy Contest will be announced during the event. The entries will be put on display. Exclusive Items and Official Hasbro Trophies will be up for grabs.

More will be revealed soon! So please mark your calendars!

AKBAYAN representative Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel  advised the students of University of the Philippines Cebu to stay away from playing online games.

“DOTA, or any role-playing game for that matter, may be fun, but it won’t be able to teach you the skills you need for your first job, or for higher education.” she exclaimed while addressing students during their commencement exerise.

Hontiveros-Baraquel said that online games should be treated as an addictive game and should be played in moderation.

“You may protest and extol the virtues of being Mogul the Axe for five hours, but unless you are in the brink of developing gaming software and needs the game to test your theories, then play DOTA or any RPG in moderation,” she said.

She made these remarks while stressing the importance of having the appropriate skills for the job being applied for.

On the other hand, Rep. Baraquel praised Google for its search service in helping students find jobs.

“What’s true with Google is somehow true with life. There are certain keywords that we must learn to live by. The more we hone our keywords, the better the search result is,” she said.

Diwa de Leon, a composer and arranger, supported Baraquels’ sentiment regarding playing online games.

“I agree with her stand on this. When I became addicted to online gaming several years ago, the only thing I really learned was expanding my social network a little bit. But there are truly no rewarding qualities in online gaming that will truly improve your skills as a professional, with the only exception being if you work in the gaming industry per se. But if you’re profession is something else, play minimal or no online games at all. I myself am not proud of the online gaming stage of my life as it put my real life to (a) halt. It’s a good thing I was able to stop completely before it was too late.” he said.

What’s the representative’s advice instead? Take up sports to be physically fit.

The most anticipated product for this year is now available to public to test.

Windows 7, Microsoft’s next operating system is rumored to hit the shelves on October as revealed by Acer’s Vice President for Europe Massimo D’Angelo.

But for those excited to try the new operating system for free without compromising to pirating and cracking may download Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC) on Microsoft’s website. Consumers can use the next flagship Windows OS on their PCs until June next year.

Microsoft says that Windows 7 RC can be downloaded until June.

You can almost run Windows 7 on any machine with lower specs than Vista OS. The minimum system requirements are as follows:

• 1 GHz or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
• 1 GB of RAM (32-bit)/2 GB of RAM (64-bit)
• 16 GB of available disk space (32-bit)/20 GB (64-bit)
• DirectX 9 graphics device with Windows Display Driver Model 1.0 or higher driver

DX9 capable cards ranges from Nvidia’s Geforce FX series and ATI’s Radeon 9500 series. If you have that GPU then you can enable the fancy Aero desktop.

It was advertised to this editor that DemiGod is a game with fantastic graphic sequences in large scale maps. Also that the battles in the game are intense, large armies moving against each other in all its epic glory. I opened the box and installed the game with all this in mind. Taking pinch of salt now.

The game installed pretty easy, no complications there. Starting the game up you immediately feel that there’s something familiar about it, although you can’t quite put your finger on it. You are brought to a start console with single player, multiplayer and achievement options. Once you start the game up, there are no tutorials whatsoever, you are instantly put right into the thick of battle. Again, something oddly familiar.

You are made to choose one character amongst two sides, the side of the light and darkness. There are two groups of “DemiGods”, assassins and generals. Each Demigod plays differently from the other. As one may be faster and more agile the other is heavier but deals more damage. Each Demigod has special skills and abilities as well. You control these Demigods the way you would control a unit in a real time strategy game, simple point and click. There are item shops you can buy items from and you level up as you kill “minions” working for the other side.

There are game modes as well, domination and the assassinations. One is to control all the flags on the map, the other to get to a certain number of Demigod kills.

Its also important to note that there are “spires” or towers that bolt magical energy towards you and your minions which have to be destroyed if you plan on reaching your goals. Yet again, something oddly familiar.

We started our play and as we did killed two Demigods in quick succession, DOUBLE KILL! Suddenly it came to us. Tts DOTA! (yung di nakakaalam kung ano yung DOTA ewan ko sa inyo kung saang liblib kayo nakatira - DOTA or Defense of the ancients is a popular mod map to Warcraft III). It has more maps and more game modes but its DOTA!  Yes there are fewers characters (yung iba nga pare pareho ng tunog sa DOTA heroes!) but its still DOTA!

If Defense of the Ancients were developed solely as an independent game, we guess it would look just like this. It takes what’s good with DOTA and improves upon it with new game modes, finer graphics and bigger scale.

There are a few minor problems though. The “epic” battles weren’t there. The minions that spawn to aide you in your conquest are just small platoons, no armies to speak off. You can build your hero in anyway you choose as well in terms of their skills. However, the customizability of the characters dont matter much if you want to win. You will have to stick to a certain build if you want to dominate.

All in all if you like DOTA and don’t mind the serious RIP OFF, this is a good game to play with friends. Singleplayer is fun in itself but you’ll get bored after a while. Its a good game all on its own but nothing impressive. Gaya gaya parin sobra. At least the game’s developer admits that they were really making it more like DOTA.

Graphics - 7

Sound - 3 (for lack of originality)

Gameplay - 8

Replay Value - 7

In cooperation with Freedocast, Pinoygaming Network is proud to bring you Free Live Video Streaming of the Pacquiao vs. Hatton Fight… nuff said! Watch on!

Just click to close the add when a button appears. If video does not load right away, refresh the page.

No its not another unofficial leak released on torrent sites hahaha. Finally Microsoft revealed on their official Microsoft Windows 7 blog that the Release Candiate (RC) will be available for the public on May 5th. This means that folks all around the world can download and run Windows 7 RC on their PC legitimately.

Brandon LeBlanc confirmed the details on Microsoft blog about the availability.

I’m pleased to share that the RC is on track for April 30th for download by MSDN and TechNet subscribers. Broader, public availability will begin on May 5th.

For those who are curious, Windows 7 is the next flagship operating system by Microsoft. It features vastly improved kernel upgrades which can be evidently felt by its speed and compatibility compared to its predecessor Windows Vista.

Windows 7 beta was tested and proved fast and stable even on underpowered netbooks running 1.6GHz Atom microprocessor with 1GB of RAM. upgrading your system to at least 2GB of RAM is highly recommended though.

A while back Pinoygaming.net posted news regarding the upcoming title from Infinity Ward Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare 2. This much awaited title was rumored to come out December. Well good news to those waiting for this title, the release date has been posted and it’s a month earlier than the rumor! Also, infinity ward has posted a trailer on their site.

The trailer depicts a group of guys preparing to assault a civilian function. Does this mean Modern Warfare 2 is all about anti-terrorist operations? We’ll just have to wait!

Click here for the teaser!