Coffeestops 2.0! » Games

Starcraft 2 vs AI Maps Missing

Christopher — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 11:04:26 +0000

Many people seem to have an issue with versus AI on Starcraft 2. Not that there is an issue with the AI or gameplay but rather they can’t even start a game! I have access to an original copy of Starcraft 2 (my housemate’s) and played as a guest on it. Finished the campaign and wanted to try some versus AI action. However, as some people would, I was dismayed to receive a “No Content Found”! Looked up the web for possible solutions to the problem i.e. leaving the game long enough while online to have it download the maps but to no avail. However, I did find a solution to the problem in one of the forums albeit a little hard to understand (as there were no pictures for reference).

What you want to do is create a “Map” folder in your starcraft 2 folder located at C:\Users\USER\Documents\StarCraft II (replace USER with your windows username). I don’t think that you have to necessarily place the “Map” folder at the specified directory. You will see why later. Go online and download your favourite maps or any maps that interests you. Extract/Save it into the “Map” folder you have just created.

Then, what you do is right click the map you would like to play and open it with the starcraft2.exe. The game should load you are ready to go!

So how do customize my gameplay i.e. select race? Double click the map to start up Starcraft 2 Map Editor. Then, look at the top toolbar for “Map”. Click it to find “Player Properties” and then click it.

You will get a pop-up window similar to the one shown below. You can then select of each player (even yourself of course) and possibly many more options are available. I haven’t had the time to explore them yet. Once satisfied, save the map (or save it as a separate map file) and launch it with the steps prescribed above.

PS – I don’t know how to set the AI difficulty. If anyone has any idea, care to share? Cheers!

EDIT

I think I might have found a way to set the difficulty of gameplay. Load any map you want to play with starcraft 2 editor, then click File->Preferences. Then, find the “Test Document”, click it. You will be able to set game speed and difficulty. Run the game by clicking CTRL + F9. Enjoy!

EDIT 2

Seems that if you’ve logged into your Battle.net account and played a match or two on a computer, the next time you choose to play as guest, the maps will be there. Cheers!

Left 4 Dead Screenshots

Christopher — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 05:47:49 +0000

“Hang on to the pipes!”

Now I wonder who is going to save me.

“Hangmen!”

Looks like one of the zombies lost a game of hangmen.

“I’m going to eat your brains!”

This zombie was trying desperately to get my brains but unfortunately it was stuck, lol!

Valve Announces Left 4 Dead 2

Christopher — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 05:11:49 +0000

Sequel to Best-Selling Co-op Thriller Coming This Holiday

June 1, 2009 – Valve, creators of best-selling game franchises (such as Half-Life and Counter-Strike) and leading technologies (such as Steam and Source), today announced Left 4 Dead 2 (L4D2), the sequel to the best-selling and critically-acclaimed co-operative multiplayer thriller.

Coming exclusively to Xbox 360 and PC, L4D2 promises to set a new benchmark for co-operative action games and become one of 2009′s marquee titles.

“A large part of how Left 4 Dead became 2008′s top-selling new IP on Xbox 360 and the PC was the custom-tailored gameplay made possible by the AI Director,” said Gabe Newell, president and co-founder of Valve. “With the knowledge gained from creating the original, new technology, and a passionate team, L4D2 will set a new benchmark for cooperative action games.”

Set for release on November 17, the title adds melee combat to enable deeper co-operative gameplay, with items such as a chainsaw, frying pan, axe, baseball bat, and more.

Introducing the AI Director 2.0, L4D’s dynamic gameplay is taken to the next level by giving the Director the ability to procedurally change weather effects, world objects, and pathways in addition to tailoring the enemy population, effects, and sounds to match the players’ performance. The result is a unique game session custom fitted to provide a satisfying and uniquely challenging experience each time the game is played.

Featuring new Survivors, boss zombies, weapons, and items, Left 4 Dead 2 offers a much larger game than the original with more co-operative campaigns, more Versus campaigns, and maps for Survival mode available at launch.

Supported by a $10+ million marketing campaign, Left 4 Dead has sold over 2.5 million retail copies since it was released in November of 2008. Left 4 Dead 2 is targeted for release on Xbox 360 and the PC on November 17, 2009, and will be launched worldwide with a multi-million dollar marketing campaign across TV, Outdoor, and Online.

“Left 4 Dead was backed by our most aggressive advertising campaign to date, and resulted in a top 5 showing on two platforms during holiday 2008,” said Doug Lombardi, VP of marketing at Valve. “Left 4 Dead 2 is a larger game and will be supported with even more consumer and retail advertising programs than the original.”

Left 4 Dead 2 will be featured as the cover story on PC Gamer and Official Xbox Magazines this month.

Taken from http://store.steampowered.com/news/2552/

Plants vs. Zombies

Christopher — Sat, 16 May 2009 03:31:09 +0000

Blowing zombies into bits never gets old. From the advent of computer games, there has always been a surplus of blast-them-zombies games. As for me, I look forward to these games especially if they have a cooperative mode. However, for Plants vs. Zombies, it is not like any of the typical zombie games you would expect. Heard of tower defense before? Any Warcraft III player would. The creators of Plants vs. Zombies took the concept of tower defense and made it into their own game with some differences.

First impression, Plants vs. Zombies do not offer the state of the art 3D graphics but it is done well enough to be pleasing to the eyes. When I saw the game, I immediately thought of the games I played as a child – those educational ones. In short, Plants vs. Zombies gave an impression that it was meant for children. But who cares! It is still a heck lot of fun! The main game mode of Plants vs. Zombie is the adventure mode ( something like story mode ) where you unlock new plants and other game modes.

So you have decided to start your adventure. On the first level, the game will guide you on the basics, so you need not worry. Before the start of each round, you will be able to have a look at the types of zombies that would be attempting to get your brains. It is very important as it will be a deciding factor on which plants you choose as there is a limit to the number you can pick for a level. When you’re satisfied, click “Let’s Rock” to start!

The currency in Plants vs. Zombie is not gold but sunlight. Instead of killing zombies to earn ( a common practise in tower defense games ), you are required to manually click on the sun icons to collect sunlight. In levels where the sun is up, sunlight is randomly spawned and vice versa during the night. To boost the production of sunlight, growing plants such as sunflowers and sun shrooms would be it.

A seasoned tower defense player knows that it is essential to create an effective maze to maximize the damage output from the towers. However, in Plants vs. Zombies, this is not the case. Instead of creating a maze, players are only required to plant plants along each of the five lanes. Zombies do not change the lanes at which they are coming for you. That somewhat makes the game easier too. As seen above, the zombie walks right into the first plant it encounters and starts munching on it. Depending on the plant, some plants can take a greater hit before going down.

As you progress through a level, do not expect the zombies to come at you one by one. There are events in the game ( noted by the flag with a brain logo on it at the progress bar ) that can change the tide in an instant. Make sure you plan ahead so that your yard is well prepared for the wave of zombies!

At the end of each level, you are sure to meet a final wave of zombies. Even though the game looks simple, the game actually takes common sense into its gameplay. For instance, if the peashooter shoots a pea over a torchwood ( it has fire burning perpetually on its top ), the pea will catch fire and cause more damage to the incoming zombies. However, if the snowpea shoots a froze pea over a torchwood, it melts and becomes a normal pea.

After clearing the final wave, an item will pop up on the ground. It would be either a new plant, a note or the almanac ( at the first level I think ). Just click on it and proceed on to the next level!

This game is quite addictive and it should run smoothly on any decent computer. The game file size is only a mere 50 Mb. Besides the adventure mode, there are also other modes to prolong gameplay! If you can get your hands on a copy, try it and you might just plant yourself on the chair!

Half-Life 2 Episode 2

Christopher — Wed, 13 May 2009 13:01:03 +0000

Half-Life 2 Episode 2′s splash screen

Gordon Freeman, Dr. Breen, Combine Soldiers, Headcrabs. Sounds familiar? Half-Life 2 Episode 2 takes off where Half-Life 2 Episode 1 left fans of the game ( like me ) in a limbo. Did Gordon or Alyx survive the blast at the Citadel? Did the G-Man save the day for them? Well, the main character ( Gordon ) and Alyx definitely survived the blast as Episode 2 starts off with Gordon escaping from a wreck. A Half-Life ( Half-Life 2 in particular ) would quickly identify the world around him/her. The first well-known object you would see is the zero-point energy field manipulator or simply the gravity gun.

You’ll spend your days in tunnels, drains and abandoned buildings

So what’s the story in Episode 2? Remember that Alyx downloaded some data from the Combine at Nova Prospekt? Yeap, you guessed it! Now you are tasked to deliver the data safely to Dr. Eli at a resistance base in White Forest. Like the rest of the franchise, you will be treading through underground tunnels, caverns and in short, tight spaces. Make sure you are not claustrophobic! Besides that, there’s the usual problem solving thing too. It’s not too hard to solve but still requires some thinking.

New wheels

One new addition to the lineup of Half-Life 2 Episode 2 vehicles is the Jallopy. I noticed that the vehicles in Half-Life 2 series tend to veer of course at the slightest nudge or sudden turns. I wonder whether that is intended to simulate the real world. Although fun, it’s not easy to drive, especially on rough terrain! Episode 2 dedicates a big chunk of it’s game play on the wheel. It adds to the fun factor as you ram into brainless zombies and Combine soldiers. Don’t forget to drift!

Dr. Magnusson expressing his gratitude

Graphic wise, Episode 2 is an eye candy. High dynamic range, detailed textures and facial movements. My system was running on everything maxed out and I could get roughly 60 fps. I’m using an AMD64 x2 3800+, 3GB SDRAM and a ATI 4760 graphic card. As for the finale of Episode 2, the portal ( the origin of the perpetual beam from the skies ) was closed. So how does Episode 2 connect with Episode 3? Well, fans were left with the death of Dr. Eli and the mission to find and destroy the Borealis ( a giant ship with immense powers, it seems ). All we can do now is to wait for Valve to release Episode 3. Till then, cheers!

Demigod

Christopher — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 09:45:47 +0000

All info taken from http://www.demigodthegame.com

That’s the Rook with the crowd.

Near the end of the 87th migration, when the minions of Hel-Gorgath were in rebellion and the balance between light and dark was under threat, the Ancients convened a Gathering. The Gathering found that one of their own, the so-called God of the Progenitor, had intervened by sharing Names and Ways with his underlings and allies on the other side of the Veil.

In punishment, the Ancients cast down The Progenitor from the Deep Places and all of the beings in his ken were laid low and utterly destroyed.

An angel like demi-god?

The Ancients, known as Gods to mortals, therefore sought a successor. It was known that the Progenitor had many offspring, begat by mortal consorts, who retained sufficient divinity to stand for Induction. But, not all agreed, for some were offended by the obscene co-mingling of Essences, crude flesh, and the rank perversity of the Progenitor’s dalliances. For this reason, a game was proposed for the offspring to prove themselves worthy.

So it was made to be that messengers were sent to the Dark and Light Places to summon the pretenders to Rokkur. There, they would throw down their brothers and sisters in the arenas to win the favor of the Ancients and ascend to their ranks.

Looks similar to DotA

Minimum System Requirements:
* Windows XP SP3 / Vista SP1
* 2.4 GHz Processor
* 512 MB Available System Memory
* 8 GB Available Hard Drive Space
* 128 MB 3D Video Card (ATI Radeon X1600 / Nvidia GeForce 6800 or better)
* Sound Card
* Broadband Internet Connection for Multiplayer
* Stardock’s Impulse Required for Updates/Digital Download

Recommended System Requirements:
* 3 GHz Processor (Multicore Supported)
* 1 GB Available System Memory
* 256 MB 3D Video Card (ATI Radeon 2600 / Nvidia GeForce 7600 or better)

Games for fun!

Nicholas — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 16:00:36 +0000

For those who are concerned, first of all, we at coffeestops would like to wish you good day and happy celebrating Thaipusam! =)

As for those who are not celebrating, it’s obvious that we all get to enjoy a day of public holiday =DDDDDD. So, how are we gonna spend the day? I wouldn’t be surprised many would have stayed home to warm the beds xDDDD.

However, I guess I have something to offer here. If you are bored of DoTA, sick of Maple, tired of Counter Strike, lazy for Ragnarok Online, etc and whatever online games the world has today lololol, I guess you could try this out. Its a simple gaming website, where its more suitable for people who seeks some brief entertainment without wanting to spend too long infront of the monitor.

http://www.npcfreegame.com/

I have provided some screenshots from the site, just incase some of you might be wondering how the site looks like.

Mini games to play! =DDDDD

The picks of the public!

If you ever get bored of these minigames, or find them too lame to even start playing. Chill! The site has got something else to offer.

Flash animations!

You can check out these flash animations! Some of them are quite entertaining haha. I don’t know about you, but I find some quite intriguing. =D

Some of the games are quite worth playing, especially when you are just looking for something to keep yourself occupied for awhile. Some are quite addictive! xDDDD but I guess all these are up to one’s discretion.

So now you got something to keep yourself occupied for the day? =p and if you’re lazy to scroll all the way up again to look for the link. Just click here.

Enjoy the day! =D