Devil's Island Now Available!

Fans of our pinball game Balls of Steel are sure to want to check out this news article..

Several months ago, we reported that Wildfire Studios (the creators of Balls of Steel) were hard at work on an add-on table to Balls of Steel called "Devil's Island". As you may recall, Devil's island is the name of the table that got displaced during development of Balls of Steel to make room for the Duke Nukem table. Well, after the original BOS was released, discussions started on reviving the lost table. After many months of delay and work, it's finally available!

Devil's Island actually does not require the original Balls of Steel to run - it's a standalone product, and can be purchased online either for immediate download, or shipment. Wildfire Studios sent out a newsletter over the weekend on this subject, and you can see that here:

The big news is that Devil's Island is finally finished! There is an Internet download version available from RegNow:

https://www.regnow.com/softsell/nph-softsell.cgi?item=3244-1

The download version is available immediately via credit card for US$9.95, and offers resolutions of 800x600 and 1600x1200, along with all the other features you'd expect from a BOS pinball table, including a firing cannon, squishable scorpions, and an erupting volcano multiball.

Devil's Island is a standalone product which doesn't require the original Balls of Steel program to run. We have also reduced the chances of technical difficulties by removing VESA in favour of DirectX support.

A boxed version of the game is available via mail-order for US$12.99 plus shipping from Expert Software, and includes support for some additional resolutions.

http://www.expertstore.com/v2.0-img/operations/expertsw/desc/gameroom.html

If you are a fan of the original Balls of Steel, then you should check this out, as it's an all new table! If you've never checked out Balls of Steel before, why not download the free demo table, Darkside? That download is available in our Master Download page (under Balls of Steel) right now!

Please note however, that Devil's Island is not being distributed by Apogee Software, 3D Realms, or Pinball Wizards - we have nothing to do with order taking or fulfillment on Devil's Island (although we still distribute the original Balls of Steel). If you have problems with ordering or obtaining this product, you need to get in tough with RegNow, Expert Store, or Wildfire directly. Thanks.

For further information on the Devil's Island table, check out the Wildfire Studios Devil's Island web page. That has details on the technical aspects of the table, requirements, etc...

Posted by Joe Siegler at 3:00 PM

Website stuff

From Joe Siegler... "As many of you have noticed, not much has been updated here in the last couple of weeks. There's a few reasons for that. First, not a whole lot is going on news wise, and second, I've begun converting the web site again to a new web look.

As some of you may remember, I did this once before back in in late November, early December. After it was completed, the decision was made that it didn't look good enough, so the site went back to the drawing board. Last Wednesday the 19th, I got final approval for a new graphic design to the web site, and I started changing over the data from the old new site (which you won't see) to the new new site (which you will eventually see). As annoyed as I was at this prospect, I have to say, it's for the best - the newer design is much sleeker, and looks much cooler. Once I get done with the data conversion, it's on to one other small secret for the new web site (which is not Duke Nukem Forever), and then I'll launch. If all goes well, and there aren't any further problems, we should be ready to go with everything in a couple of short weeks.

Also, I forgot to mention the other day that I've extended the length of the current Camera Captioning Contest due to this - I don't have the time at the moment to sift through all the emails that have been submitted for the last couple of contests. Once I get a few minutes to do this, I'll post winners, and update the contest as needed. Thanks for checking us out during the delay, and we guarantee you that the new site will be something worth waiting for. It's much more streamlined, and is much easier to navigate than the current site you're seeing this message on."

Posted by Joe Siegler at 1:00 PM

Lee Jackson is a Neologism Champ

Here's an item from the 'Slow News Day Department'.. :)

Our own Lee Jackson has been awarded the monthly Neologism award by the Washington Post Newspaper. What's that, you ask? It's an award given out for best "pun" sent to them. Lee is an expert (and award winning) punster, and it came as no surprise that he won this award.

If you'd like to read up on this award, as well as see what it was exactly that Lee said that was so funny, you can check out the article on the Washington Post paper Web site.

Posted by Joe Siegler at 2:45 PM

Every 100th Order is free!

The entire order, including merchandise and applicable fees, is shipped to the lucky winners free of charge. We'll even ship the winning orders via Priority Mail so the winners can begin enjoying their games and other items right away. To be eligible to win, simply place an order through one of our toll-free 800 numbers listed below. There's no limit to the number of times you can win, so the more orders you place, the more chances you have of winning. Since every 100th order wins, you have just as much chance of winning by calling at 6:00 a.m. as you do at 6:00 p.m. Winners will be notified by mail and their names will be posted on this page. Call 1-800-337-3256 or 1-800-276-4331 to place your order today!

We've had several winners since this promotion started giving away several hundred dollars of free software away free! If you were thinking of ordering something, you should do so now, you might be our next free winner! If you need ordering information or a price list, that info is just a click away!

The 100th Order Free promotion is for a limited time only, and may be discontinued at any time without notice.

Posted by Joe Siegler at 10:15 AM

Interview with Scott & George

Gamespot has an article up now entitled "Millennium Gaming: 20 Gaming Visionaries Usher in the Next Millennium of Gaming". Long title, but it's a great article. It was done by our good friend Geoff Keighley - several major players in the gaming industry are interviewed about where they thing gaming is going starting in the new century. Our own Scott Miller & George Broussard have been interviewed, here's a bit of what they had to say:

Q: Do you think the gaming industry is underestimating one aspect of interactive entertainment that will take us all by surprise in the early 21st century?

A: (George) There are too many investors/publishers/developers spending "stupid money" to develop games that are simply no fun to play. It's beyond me. And it's sad to watch all that effort and money go down the drain in a day of comments on gaming newsgroups.

Q: Far too often, our industry doesn't do enough to highlight up and coming designers and those who tirelessly work behind the scenes to bring games to life. Is there one person you think deserves more recognition?

A: (Scott) I think Todd Replogle went unrecognized by our industry. He was the primary game programmer of the first three Duke Nukem games, including Duke Nukem 3D. He's now retired. Todd had a design sense for doing the impossible, and he was the fastest coder I know, but not the best or the cleanest. He simply got things done and did them fast and often implemented brilliant features. I also must throw long overdue recognition at Allen Blum, who's also been involved with Apogee since 1991, having worked on each Duke Nukem game, including Duke Nukem Forever. Allen is a coder and a level designer on par with the best in the industry and probably more creative than most.

There is a lot lot more in this article - I urge you to check it out - it gives a great insight into Scott, George, how they perceive themselves, the gaming industry, and where we're going from here. Check it out today (if you haven't already done so).

Posted by Joe Siegler at 11:00 AM

Eurogamer's Picks for 2000

Recently, the gaming site Eurogamer ran an article entitled simply, "Picks for 2000". This article covered their games that you should watch out for this year. In the article, they picked Duke Nukem Forever & Max Payne. Here's a bit of what they said about each game:

*Duke Nukem Forever: "Duke Nukem Forever. Hail to the King baby!" So says Nick Loman. And who can blame him for getting excited at the prospect of a new Duke Nukem game based on the gorgeous 3D engine used by Unreal Tournament?

*Max Payne: Our hardware specialist, Peter Male, has his eye on this one. "Looking at 3D Mark 2000, which uses the same engine technology as Max Payne, I think that Remedy's first game will be truly awesome."

Make sure to check out the entire article to check out the other games Eurogamer says you should be on the look out for in the year 2000!

Posted by Joe Siegler at 11:00 AM

Welcome Back!

From Joe Siegler: "No big Y2K blowup, no power outages, and no need to be hiding in a bomb shelter. We're all still here - and today's the day that most of us are back in town after the holiday break. It's good to be back, saw a lot of movies over the holiday, and spent time with family - you know, important stuff. Anyway, now that I'm back, I'll have some news to report on.

But before I get to the news, I want to pass along another Holiday card to everyone - this time from Remedy Software, the makers of Death Rally and the forthcoming Max Payne. There is a front and a back to the card - click on either thumbnail below to see a larger image. Also, don't forget to check out the 3D Realms Christmas card that is also available online.

Posted by Joe Siegler at 11:00 AM