Information Review

Paradise Beach 2: Around the World is a simulation video game developed and published by NevoSoft for Apple Macintosh computers. In Paradise Beach 2: Around the World, some time ago you coped to become the proprietor of a resort on a paradise beach. You were the designer behind stunning gardens, paths, beaches, and bars. Bare beaches came to life and were packed with lots of joyful travelers across the world to enjoy your man-made paradise. Now you’ve determined to work your way to the top and control the creation of the world's most beautiful beach resorts in Paradise Beach 2: Around the World.

Mac Minimum system requirements:

•Mac OS X 10.6 or later

Paradise Beach 2: Around the World game features:

•40 levels

•Eight various settings

•More than 7 hours of gameplay

•Two modes

•Lovely graphics and animations

•Unmatched number of buildings, decorations, and accessories

Storm: Frontline Nation is a turn-based strategy video game for PC system, release date to be announced later. The game is developed by Colossai Studios and published by SimBin Development Team.

Set in a near future Europe. Unprecedented war is upon us. Former alliances have withered and every nation is now on their own. Nationalism and militarism dominates the politics, which has allowed sinister leaders to take charge. Secretly they build their armies and make up plans how to annihilate their enemies.

Frontline Nation consists of two different gameplay levels, a strategic and a tactical. The strategic level is where the player manages production, diplomacy, research and coordination of military forces. The tactical level offers the player full control of its military units in a dynamically created hexagon-based battlefield. Form alliances with important nations, and honour them as long as they serve their purpose as you conspire to game control of over 45 countries.

Need For Speed Shift 2 (NFS2) Unleashed is a racing video game for Mac system, release date to be announced later. The game is developed by Slightly Mad Studios and published by Electronic Arts.

The game Unleashed builds on the true driving experience that the Need For Speed Shift franchise is renown for by introducing the driver's battle, an even more authentic and primal feeling of power and speed which elevates the fundamental competitive race into a struggle for supremacy against other drivers and even the track itself. In Shift 2 Unleashed, players' hands sweat and ache as they clutch onto the controller, their pulse races from the break-neck speeds experienced through the first-person cockpit view.

The game features an all-new rendering engine with a massive graphics overhaul that puts the player in the heart of the racing action. With an innovative helmet camera view simulating the physical experience of driving at 200mph, the thrilling experience of night racing and authentic degradation of tracks and cars, this is tomorrow's sim for today’s adrenaline fueled racer. Shift 2 Unleashed also incorporates the next generation of Need for Speed Autolog -- the groundbreaking network that connects friends for epic head-to-head races and compares player stats for the ultimate social racing competition.

Diablo 3 is a third-person action RPG video game for PC and Macintosh, release date to be announced later. The game is developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment.

The game picks up the story twenty years after the events of Diablo II. Mephisto, Diablo, and Baal have been defeated, but the Worldstone, which once shielded the inhabitants of the world of Sanctuary from the forces of both Heaven and Hell, has been destroyed, and evil once again stirs in Tristram. Playing as a hero from one of five distinct character classes, players will acquire powerful items, spells, and abilities as they explore new and familiar areas of Sanctuary and battle hordes of demons to safeguard the world from the horrors that have arisen.

Xenocell is an online RPG video game PC and Mac, system requirements and release date to be announced later. The game is developed and published by BitGap Games. In the game, after mankind's first attempt to reach for the stars, upon entering the target system, our flagship, the UNS Eden is forced to crash land on the harsh alien world of Ibelis -- because of reasons unknown at the time. As a survivor, the player's primary role is staying alive in the unfriendly environment. The planet's wildlife, the weather, and even other survivors will risk the player's life continously. However, by gradually evolving through the help of the DNA of the local wildlife, it will be possible to survive on the harsh planet while gaining abilities that surpass those of humans.

Create is an adventure video game for Macintosh (Mac), Sony PS3, Xbox and PC , set for release on November 16, 2010. The game is developed by EA Bright Light and published by Electronic Arts. Create is a game powered by imagination, a title for the whole family that rewards players for being creative. The game presents imaginative gameplay challenges where the solutions are fueled by the creativity of the player. The more players explore the game, solve level-based challenges, and customize their world, the more rewards will be unlocked. Creativity will be unleashed as players design environments with easy-to-use brushes and tools, including textures, props and animating objects that bring the scene to life. Players can share any of their creations, solutions or challenges with the community through the console and also via the official Create website at www.create.ea.com. Friends can download and remix solutions and set challenges for other players to download and complete.

World of Warcraft (WoW): Cataclysm is the expansion pack for MMORPG World of Warcraft, set for release Q4 2010. The game is developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment for PC and Macintosh. The central plot of the expansion is the return of the evil dragon Deathwing the Destroyer. Last seen in Warcraft II, Deathwing has spent that time licking his wounds, so to speak, and plotting his fiery return from the elemental plane of Deepholm. His return tears through the dimensional barrier with Azeroth, causing a sweeping cataclysm that reshapes much of the world's surface.

World of Warcraft: Cataclysm game features:

• Level cap raised from 80 to 85

• Redesigned and updated zones within Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms

• New towns and quests

• The use of ammunition will be abolished.

• Redesigned low and mid-level quests to accompany updated zones

• Around 3000 new quests

• Players will be able to use flying mounts inside Azeroth zones (flying mounts were previously restricted to Northrend and Outland)

• Nine new dungeons and six new raids (with more planned to be released with later patches)

• Two previously released dungeons — Deadmines and Shadowfang Keep — will have an added Heroic Mode for level 85 players

• New battlegrounds and a new world-PvP zone, Tol-Barad (similar to the Wintergrasp world-PvP zone introduced in Wrath of the Lich King)

• A new secondary skill: Archaeology

• A new type of glyph: Prime

• A rated battleground system, along with associated new rewards

• Newly accessible areas such as Uldum, Deepholm, the Sunken City of Vash'jir, the Twilight Highlands and Mount Hyjal (previously only featured as a time travel destination within the Caverns of Time)

• Two new playable races, Goblins and Worgen

• Introduction of new stats such as Mastery, which will enhance certain abilities (both active and passive) depending on the player's class and talent specialization

• Revamp of the stat system, removing such stats as mana per 5 seconds (MP5), armor penetration and defense rating and integrating them in other ways such as talents or the new mastery stat.

• Changes to some major cities

• New starting areas for Trolls and Gnomes at levels 1-5

• Player talent trees have been reworked and players will have a total of 41 talent points at level 85. Consequently, the talent trees are being "trimmed", and will look (superficially) much like the talent trees players had available on WoW's launch.

• Unlike the current talent system where a player learns his or her first talent point at level 10 and is able to place that point and any subsequent point wherever he or she chooses, in Cataclysm, at level 10 a player must choose a talent specialization (spec) and only spend points in that "tree" until they have reached 31 points. Once 31 points have been spent, he or she is able to use the rest of his or her attained points in any of the 3 trees. When the player chooses a specialization at 10, they will gain one major active skill that sets that spec apart from the others, and 2-3 passive skills that support that particular tree. This was done in order to make players feel as though they are actually specialized in a specific talent tree as soon as they are able to choose one, rather than at higher levels where enough points have been placed into the tree of their choosing to make that feel like their specialization.

• Experimental support for DirectX 11 through the command line.

Stay tuned for more information

Six Days in Fallujah is a shooter video game for Macintosh (Mac), system requirements and release date to be announced later. The game is cuurently in development by Atomic Games.

The game lets players experience the historic battle of Fallujah as a US Marine fire-team leader and places them in the heat of the action against the insurgency. Players are able to physically shape the battlefield just as US Marines did during the battle in Fallujah. Create new lines of attack by kicking in doors, blowing up walls, eliminating enemy cover and destroying the environment around them. To make the battle even more authentic, heavy emphasis has been put into the environments using real world satellite maps, weapons from US Marines and vehicles used in the conflict to fully immerse players in this epic confrontation and experience what it was like to be a Marine on the ground. In addition, Six Days in Fallujah will include multiplayer functionality - allowing players to team up with other fire team members in co-op and online modes.

The destiny of the kingdom rests in the players' hands. Will players build up their kingdom through internal expansion, or perhaps look for a more imperial type of domination, expanding their rule by conquering territories? Will they take on quests in pursuit of fame, or focus on the health and wellbeing of their people? The choice is theirs! With the start of every new game, players will be able to select a new ambition for their kingdom, and embark on a new set of stories.

Everything in The Sims Medieval is crafted to create an immersive medieval world, from the quest-based gameplay, to the medieval objects such as swords and stocks and thrones, right down to the warm look of the characters, and the painterly approach to the world itself. Players can choose to customize every new Hero that comes to the kingdom, including selecting their traits and their fatal flaw. Players get close to their characters, not only sending them on epic quests, but also making sure they carry out their daily responsibilities such as healing the sick, trading for exotic goods, or forging armor. From having a baby to competing in a royal tournament, what happens to their Sims is up to the player. The time of romance and chivalry is back with The Sims Medieval.

The Sims Medieval game video

The Sims Medieval game features:

Kingdom Ambitions: Run your kingdom your way. Will you focus on improving the health of your people, pursuing fame, amassing wealth or building up your kingdom?

Heroes: Build up a medieval kingdom, controlling characters from all walks of life, from Kings and Queens, to Knights and Wizards, Blacksmiths and Bards. Customize the Heroes you bring to your kingdom, including selecting their traits and their fatal flaw.

Quests: Bring medieval stories to life – everything from crafting a legendary sword, to arranging a royal wedding, to protecting the kingdom from an evil sorcerer, to finding the fountain of youth. Every quest plays out differently depending on which Hero Sims you choose to control.

Tasty Planet: Back for Seconds is a video game published by Dingo Games for PC and Mac. It is the sequel to their successful indie game Tasty Planet. Players will take control of a tiny ball of grey goo with the unique ability to eat anything smaller than itself. The more it eats, the bigger it gets. Players will travel to six different time periods while eating increasingly huge objects.

Tasty Planet: Back for Seconds expands upon the original Tasty Planet in almost every way. Players can now grow from the size of an amoeba to the size a galaxy - all seamlessly within a single level. The game adds a true two player cooperative campaign mode in which each player controls their own goo. The number of different objects has also increased dramatically - each time period features its own unique set of objects to eat. 

Comic strips throughout the game tell the story of the two scientists who accidentally create the grey goo. Made out of nanotechnology, the grey goo has the ability to consume anything smaller than itself. The goo starts traveling through time after it eats the scientists' newly created time machine.

First look at upcoming video game Torchlight 2 for Macintosh (Mac) system and PC (Windows), release date to be announced later. The game is developed by Runic Games.

Torchlight 2 is a sequel to the action-RPG video game Torchlight. The game includes new character classes, quests, monsters, and dungeons. Torchlight 2 also now includes cooperative play through a free, peer-to-peer matchmaking service.

Torchlight 2 game features:

Multi-player – Play with your friends over a local area network, or over the Internet. A free matchmaking peer-to-peer service lets you make new friends for exciting co-op play.

Customizable Characters – Players create and customize a character from one of four classes available and choose an animal companion. Through cosmetic, class, and gender choices, skill path decisions, and the treasures they acquire, each character can be custom-tailored to each player’s needs.

Moddability – Torchlight 2 will release with an updated version of TorchEd, the Torchlight editor. Players have the option to create their own mods, adding even more content to the world. You and your friends can download the same mod and play together!

New User Interface – Torchlight 2 boasts an entirely new, improved user interface, designed to be easier than ever for new players to pick up and play. Thanks to this intuitive interface, players have immediate access to a rich and varied world, with little experience necessary.

Overworld Areas – Torchlight 2 has large randomized overworld areas to explore with weather, time of day cycles, and random events that provide players with even more content to experience.

Random Dungeons – Delve into randomly generated dungeons within the game at any time for extra experience and rare loot. Dungeons in Torchlight II have even more branching paths to explore with friends filled with random events, rewards and dangers.

Retirement System – Once characters are sufficiently leveled up, they can “retire” and bestow specific benefits and perks onto new characters.

Pets – Players choose a pet to accompany them. Pets level up along with the player, and help in battle, learn spells, carry items, and perform a variety of support services.

Fishing – Fishing returns in the sequel! Players can take a break from the high-energy pace of adventuring to relax by one of the many fishing holes and see what they can catch. Fish have unique benefits for the player and pet, while a number of other rewards

can also be discovered.

Torchlight minimum system requirements for PC

Operating System: XP or later

Processor: x86-compatible 800MHz processor

Memory: 512MB RAM

Hard Disk: 400MB drive space

Video Card (graphics): DirectX-compatible video card with at least 64MB of addressable memory (such as an ATI Radeon 7200, NVIDIA GeForce 2, or Intel GMA 950)

Torchlight minimum system requirements for Mac

Operating System: Mac OS X 10.4+

Processor: Intel-based Mac

Memory: 1GB RAM

Hard Disk: 800MB drive space

Video Card (graphics): OpenGL 2.0 compatible video card with 256MB dedicated RAM (ATI Radeon X1600 or nVidia equivalent)

Stay tuned for more information

Macintosh (Mac) minimum and recommended system requirements (hardware specs), for PC video game Amnesia: The Dark Descent.

Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 or newer

Processor: Intel 2.0 Ghz (Universal Binary)

Memory: 1 GB RAM

Video Card (graphics): Radeon 9600/GeForceFX

Amnesia: The Dark Descent is an adventure and a first person survival horror video game. A game about immersion, discovery and living through a nightmare ... an experience that will chill you to the core. The game puts you in the shoes of Daniel as he wakes up in a desolate castle, barely remembering anything about his past. Exploring the eerie pathways, you must also take part of Daniel's troubled memories. The horror does not only come from the outside, but from the inside as well. A disturbing odyssey into the dark corners of the human mind awaits.

By using a fully physically simulated world, cutting edge 3D graphics and a dynamic sound system, Amnesia: The Dark Descent pulls no punches when trying to immerse you. Once the game starts, you will be in control from the beginning to the end. There are no cut-scenes or time-jumps, whatever happens will happen to you first hand. You will be thrown headfirst into a dangerous world where danger can lurk behind every corner. Your only means of defense are hiding, running or using your wits. Do you have what it takes to survive?

Portal 2 is a puzzle video game for PC (Windows) and Macintosh (Mac), system requirements and release date to be announced later. The game is currently in developement at Nuclear Monkey Software / Valve.

Portal 2 will continue to challenge the player by solving puzzles in test chambers within the Aperture Science Enrichment Center using the portal gun (the Aperture Science Hand-held Portal Device), a device that can create two portals connecting two surfaces across space. Players, as the silent protagonist Chell from Portal, solve puzzles by using these portals to move unconventionally between rooms or to use the ability to fling objects or themselves across a distance. The functionality of the gun has not changed between the games, but within Portal 2, players can take advantage of the bleeding of other physical effects through the portals. Game Informer identified two examples of this: one was the ability to use air currents created by Pneumatic Diversity Vents, a series of transport pneumatic tubes, through a set of portal openings to push a turret over or to draw objects into the suction. The second example was to use the power of Excursion Funnel tractor beams through portals to bring Chell or other objects to otherwise inaccessible areas. The game also introduces special paint-like gels that can be used to impart certain physical effects to a surface such as Propulsion Gel that boosts Chell's speed as she crosses a surface, and Repulsion Gel that allows her to jump from a surface.

The player will be required to determine how to transport that gel to appropriate surfaces using portals in order to progress. The gels can also be applied to objects, such as the Weighted Storage Cube crates, that affect their own physical nature. In addition to the Storage Cube, there are new types of portable objects that assist the player, including Redirection Cubes with mirrored, reflective surfaces used to redirect Thermal Discouragement laser beams, Aerial Faith Plates that can launch objects placed on them, and spherical Weighted Storage Balls, which made a brief appearance in the original game in one of the advanced chambers.

While most of the single-player game will take place in the test chambers created by GLaDOS or her personality cores, there will be times where the player will need to move behind-the-scenes in areas beyond the test chambers as they are reconfigured, leaving the player free of GLaDOS's observation and control.

The game will include a two-player co-operative mode in addition to the single player mode. Both players control separate portal guns and can use the other player's portals as necessary; the second player's portals will be of a different color to help distinguish between the two sets. Because of the number of possible portal combinations, the test chambers that the players proceed through are much more difficult than the single-player campaign, encouraging the two players to work together. This includes complicated laser redirection using both series of portals, or working in two separate chambers, performing actions in their side of the chamber to allow the other player to progress in theirs. The game includes voice communication between players for this mode as well as split-screen for players playing locally. Online players will have the ability to temporarily enter a split-screen view to help coordinate actions. Players have the ability to place icons on the game's levels as a means of informing the other player what they need to do

For more information, please visit: http://www.thinkwithportals.com/

Darkspore is an online action RPG video game for PC and Mac, system requirements and release date to be announced later. The game is developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts.

In the game, join the universe of Darkspore, a fast-paced, sci-fi Action-RPG in which you battle across alien worlds to save the galaxy from the mutated forces of Darkspore. Fight in co-op and solo battles against hordes of Darkspore enemies and bosses.

Collect an arsenal of living weapons - genetic heroes with different combat abilities - and upgrade them with tens of thousands of collectible body parts and armor. Make your heroes truly unique and deeply customized in an enhanced version of the award-winning Spore Creature Editor. Pit your customized, upgraded collection of heroes in PvP arena battles against other players. Destroy the infestation of Darkspore and liberate the galaxy in a unique and highly replayable sci-fi action campaign.

Darkspore game features:

Collect an arsenal of hundreds of genetic heroes and wield them as your living weapons.

Collect strategically which heroes to send into battle against the forces of Darkspore.

Combat hordes of mutated enemies and dangerous bosses in fast-paced, intense action

Join forces with up to three other players in a co-op campaign or compete with other players in PvP arenas.

Postal 3 is a third-person shooter video game for Macintosh (Mac), system requirements and release date to be announced later. The game is developed by Running With Scissors and published by Akella. Postal 3 will continue and expand upon the sandbox-style design of its predecessor, Postal 2, as well as include motion captured performances by a wide array of celebrities, including film stars and Playboy Playmates. It has also been stated that Uwe Boll, director of the Postal film, will appear in the game.

In Postal 3, The Postal Dude emigrates to Paradise's sister town of Catharsis (he blew up Paradise with a nuclear bomb). Unlike its predecessor, the game will not be based on the Unreal engine but rather on the Source engine. Also, Postal 3 will be a third-person shooter, rather than its predecessors Postal 2 which is a first-person shooter and Postal which is isometric.

Broken Hearts: A Soldier's Duty is an action video game for Macintosh (Mac) system, developed by Gold Sun Games and published by Tri Synergy.

In Broken Hearts: A Soldier's Duty you will be swept away by a heart breaking romantic tale of love, romance, deception, and tragedy seen through the eyes of Maria Lopez and her soon to be military husband David Fox. Broken Hearts: A Soldier's Duty boasts intuitive puzzles, relaxing re-playable mini games, well over 150 achievements, and 12 Chapters of beautifully detailed scenes layered over by custom matching film quality music.

City of Heroes (CoH): Going Rogue is a persistent online RPG video game for PC, set for release on August 17, 2010. The game is developed by Paragon Studios and published by NCsoft.

The first major expansion for the City of Heroes franchise since the launch of City of Villains in 2005, Going Rogue will blur the line between heroes and villains in the first and longest-running super-powered comic book MMO game. Hero and villain characters will become immersed in the new parallel universe known as Praetoria, which is governed by Tyrant, the evil incarnation of the game’s main protagonist, Statesman. As gamers search for Tyrant and the rest of his Praetorian guard, implacable foes and fierce resistance will arise to face them from all sides, causing heroes and villains alike to question their loyalties.

City of Heroes Going Rogue introduces a new alignment system that helps players explore the shades of gray that lie between good and evil. For the first time, hero characters can become villains and vice versa, enabling hero archetypes to cross over to the Rogue Isles and villain archetypes to experience Paragon City. Clearly marked missions, in addition to behaviors and decisions made by the player, will move a hero's or villain's moral compass, which could eventually change the hero's or villain's alignment. Going Rogue will also introduce two primary new fictional characters representative of this alignment shift in the game's lore: Maelstrom, a pistol-wielding hero gone rogue, and a Desdemona, a demon-summoning villain who has been redeemed.

City of Heroes (CoH): Going Rogue Macintosh (MAC) minimum and recommended system requirements (hardware specs) are as follows:

Overgrowth is an action video game for Macintosh (Mac), Linux and PC, system requirements and release date to be announced later. The game is currently in development by Wolfire Games.

The game takes place in the savage world of Lugaru where rabbits, wolves and other animals are forced to use paws, claws and medieval weaponry to engage each other in combat. Overgrowth is a seamless integration of brutal close quarters combat and fluid platforming. Powered by Wolfire's brand new Phoenix Engine, Overgrowth has cutting edge graphics, brutal physics, realistic AI and intuitive combat controls that will immerse players and tap into their primal survival instincts.

Team Fortress 2 (TF2) is an action video game developed and published by Valve. TF2 is now available for the Mac via Steam.

TF2 is the sequel to the game that put class-based, multiplayer team warfare on the map. This year's most anticipated online action game, TF2 delivers new gametypes, a signature art style powered by Valve's next generation animation technology, persistent player statistics, and more.

Unlike other "class-based" games that offer a variety of combat classes only, Team Fortress 2 packs a wild variety of classes which provide a broad range of tactical abilities and personalities, and lend themselves to a variety of player skills.

Play as the flame-throwing Pyro, the room clearing Heavy, or the Spy, a master of disguises. Other classes include: Scout, Sniper, Medic, Engineer, Demoman, or Soldier.

TF2 features the most advanced graphics of any Source-based game released to date - and the most exciting class-based action ever created.

For more information, please visit http://www.teamfortress.com/macupdate/