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The long-awaited sequel to the best-selling game of all time, The Sims 2, has hit the beta stage, according to Aspyr Media. The game is currently scheduled to be released in June. In the game, players for the first time ever control their Sims over an entire lifetime taking them through life's greatest moments.

Here's more from the press release:

Every choice that is made has a relevant and dramatic effect on the life of a Sim. Players can now fulfill their Sims' life dreams as they take them from the cradle to the grave. More life-like Sims, all-new aspirations gameplay and the ground-breaking addition of genetics, with the DNA of Sims passed down through generations, gives players a more vivid, realistic, and in-depth Sims experience. All of this takes place in a new amazingly realistic 3-D world.

Players can create and play their own virtual sitcom by choosing one of five different aspirations - Popularity, Fortune, Family, Knowledge, and Romance. These aspirations in life cause your Sims to have wants and fears. Will you give them a long successful existence or leave their life in shambles?

The Sims 2 preliminary system requirements:

• Operating System: Mac OS X 10.3.4 or later
• CPU Processor: PowerPC G4 or later
• CPU Speed: 1GHz or faster
• Memory: 256 MB or higher
• Hard Disk Space: 4.2GB free disk space
• Video Card (ATI): Radeon 8500 or better
• Video Card (NVidia): GeForce2 MX or better
• Video Memory (VRam): 32 MB or higher
• Media Required: DVD Drive

Maxis

Aspyr Media

The Sims 2

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IMG has posted a review of the popular shareware RPG from Spiderweb Software, Blades of Avernum. Here's a clip from the review:

It has depth that is rarely available in most RPGs, and a storyline that, while filled with clichés, still is enjoyable. The dialogue is a bit stilted, but better than average. Most importantly, and unlike many of its competitors, Blades of Avernum is not very taxing on either you or your computer. It comfortably sits in the background, and lends itself to a few minutes of play at a time. Of course, once you start playing it takes a bit of doing to stop. It falls into the "five more minutes" category of games, and that five more minutes usually ends up being an hour or so.

IMG Review: Blades of Avernum

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A forum user at QuakeSRC is currently attempting to create a complete family tree of the venerable Quake series. This includes spinoffs and other titles that utilize the engine, such as the Star Wars: Jedi Knight series and GLQuake.

This is a documentation project for Quake. Its a attemp to map a few map engines on a "family tree". This grown with your contributions. The information here its not accurate or complete. I need you help to fix problems and add more engines.

QuakeSRC - Quake Engines Family Tree

id Software

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True Crume: Streets of LA is currently listed as being in Final Candidate status. Currently being brought to the Mac by Aspyr, True Crime puts players in the shoes of Nick Kang, allowing players to drive, shoot, and fight their way through various crimes.

Merciless gangs have taken over the streets of Los Angeles. The city is in the middle of a vicious crimewave. The only hope to restore order is an out-of-control ex-cop whose unconventional methods leave him rejected by the police and feared by criminals. Experience the deepest driving, fighting and shooting ever in one game. This is True Crime.

Aspyr Media

True Crime: Streets of L.A.

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Arcade Mac, maker of the Macintosh shareware shooter Space Strike, has posted a new version of the demo for the game. This brings the demo in line with the registered version, listed at version 1.1. The full version of the game features the following changes:

• Improvements made in several levels.
• A new music file added.
• Level 02 extended.

Arcade Mac

MGF: Shareware - Arcade - Space Strike

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The development section of the World of Warcraft community site has recently been updated. It lists a number of new features and fixes to be expected in the next update of the popular MMORPG.

Beyond the normal round of bug fixes, players can expect to see a new dungeon, UI and class improvements, and a new "meeting stone" in the next revision:

•Meeting Stones:
Meeting Stones are located outside of each dungeon to help players find a group to adventure into the dungeon. The meeting stone will try to find you a viable group by finding a tank, a healer, and so on. As time goes on and you are unable to find a group, the meeting stone will become less picky about who it chooses to group you with.

World of Warcraft Community Site - Info - Under Development

World of Warcraft

Blizzard Entertainment

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World of Warcraft community site Allakhazam.com has posted an interview with cartoonist Bill Amend, creator of the popular comic strip Foxtrot. It turns out that Bill is an avid World of Warcraft player, and has recently incorporated the game, or at least a parody of it, into his strip.

In the series of strips, which ran in papers last week, main character Jason becomes addicted to an online game called "World of Warquest". Bill came up with the idea for the series of strips as he was preoccupied with his druid hitting level 20 and gaining the cat form ability.

Bill had this to say about what he likes and dislikes about the game:

I’m pretty hooked. I love the design of the various regions. It’s like traveling to Middle Earth. I like the social aspect. None of my real world friends play online games, so it’s fun to have online friends who share the interest. I do wish some of the quests didn’t take so long (BFD, Gnomeregan, etc.), as it’s hard to find huge chunks of time in my life to do them, but that’s part of the challenge of them, I guess.

Foxtrot's Bill Amend Discusses World of Warcraft with Allakhazam

World of Warcraft

Blizzard Entertainment

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Mac games publisher Aspyr Media announced that their title Command & Conquer Generals: Zero Hour has arrived in retail stores and should be available for purchase immediately.

The new expansion, developed by i5works features the following:

• Unload on your enemies with an all-new, hi-tech arsenal featuring 30 new units and 20 new upgrades from the Chinese ECM Tank to the United States Spectre Gunship.

• Enlist in the all-new Generals Challenge mode where you match your strategies-and your next-generation arsenal-against 9 enemy AI Generals with unique personalities, tactics, and taunts.

• 15 new missions rattle veteran Generals as they root out a splinter cell in Cairo, steal deadly toxins from a U.S. lab, and more.

• All new weather effects further immerse you in a more realistic combat environment.

• Prepare for multiplayer mayhem with 25 new multiplayer maps!

Aspyr Media

Command & Conquer Generals: Zero Hour

Order Command & Conquer: Generals Zero Hour

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