AMD Radeon HD 7000 Series Video Cards Will Support DirectX 11.2 After Driver Update
Windows 8.1 Preview introduced DirectX 11.2, which brings a host of new features to improve performance in your games and graphics apps. The standout feature appears to be Direct3D tiled resources, which allows developers to easily use both GPU and system memory (RAM) to store textures. Microsoft has confirmed that DirectX 11.2 will be exclusive to Windows 8.1 and the Xbox One. AMD Radeon HD 7990 Video cards based on AMD’s Graphics Core Next (GCN) architecture, the Radeon HD 7000 series and the OEM-rebadged HD 8000 series, aren’t currently compatible with DirectX 11.2. A number of sites reported last week that they will never be compatible, but AMD says that is not the case. The issued the following statement today that says they will introduce a driver update that will enable DirectX 11.2 support on AMD Radeon HD 7000 series video cards!
“The Radeon™ HD 7000 series hardware architecture is fully DirectX 11.2-capable when used with a driver that enables this feature. AMD is planning to enable DirectX 11.2 with a driver update in the Windows® 8.1 launch timeframe in October, when DirectX® 11.2 ships. Today, AMD is the only GPU manufacturer to offer fully-compatible DirectX 11.1 support, and the only manufacturer to support Tiled Resources Tier-2 within a shipping product stack.” - AMD PR
Chivalry: Medieval Warfare getting Deadliest Warrior expansion
This is a bit weird – Chivalry: Medieval Warrior is getting a new expansion in collaboration with Spike TV’s Deadliest Warrior TV show.
The expansion includes new maps and teams from throughout history. Samurai and Spartans have been confirmed so far, with what looks like four more inbound. It’s not clear if the expansion will be free or not; Torn Banner Studios has been quite pro-active about free DLC since launch. The expansion has not been dated. Chivalry: Medieval Warfare has sold 1.2 million units, and mod tools are on the way.
http://www.vg247.com/2013/08/23/chivalry-medieval-warfare-getting-deadliest-warrior-expansion/
DayZ: only networking left before alpha, no release dates
There’s just one more feature to implement before DayZ goes into alpha, creator Dean Hall has said.
Hall told Polygon only networking remains before the game hits alpha release.
Nevertheless, he won’t give a release date, and said the development team no longer even talks about them.
“I’ve made a heck of a lot of mistakes giving out release dates. We don’t have any release dates internally anymore,” he said.
Although Hall gave his original release dates in good faith, later assessment of the DayZ standalone release project revealed much more work to be done than he initially expected.
“We realised we needed to redo everything and that didn’t go over very well. In December we had nothing to show for it, nothing. It was very, very awful. Our worst fears were realised,” he said.
Want to see how DayZ’s getting along? Hall gave us a good look at it at gamescom.
http://www.vg247.com/2013/08/23/dayz-only-networking-left-before-apha-no-release-dates/
Battle Worlds: Kronos due in November
King Art Games has set a beta and release window for its crowdfunded strategy effort, Battle Worlds: Kronos. Joystiq reports the beta launch in mid-November, with an open beta to kick off a few weeks in advance. It’s coming to Linux, Mac and PC, with a mobile launch expected in 2014, and has not yet been priced, although King Art is aiming for under $30, and plans to offer free DLC after launch.
Kronos was funded on Kickstarter and was recently Greenlit.
http://www.vg247.com/2013/08/22/battle-worlds-kronos-due-in-november/
Tropico developer’s next game is Diablo-esque Victor Vran
Tropico and Omerta developer Haemimont is turning its attention to dungeon crawling for its next project.
The new project is called Victor Vran, presumably the name of the dude in the hat. Haemimont CEO Gabriel Dobrev told Joystiq the ARPG is expected in early 2014. Platforms were not announced, but presumably PC at the very least, given Haemimont’s history.
Victor Vran isn’t a straight ttake on the Diablo genre; it includes platform elements such as wall jumping.
Victor can use scythes, guns and “lightning guns”, among other weapons. Although all players will be cast as Victor, multiplayer is possible thanks to character reskins.
Dobrev said Victor Vran is a “pet project” of Haemimont’s which it has ben working on independently around the Tropico series for two years.
The next Tropico game is coming in 2014 and introduces several new elements.
http://www.vg247.com/2013/08/22/tropico-developers-next-game-is-diablo-esque-victor-vran/
So many ARPGS with loot these days
Star Citizen’s first playable module out next week for backers
Star Citizen backers will be able to try out the first playable module next week, Chris Roberts has told Eurogamer.
The module includes a hangar which can be moved about with an avatar, and you can even drive a space buggy in it. A dogfighting module is planned for release by the end of the year and a planetside module is due for release in March 2014.
Star Citizen is now entirely community funded, said Roberts, noting that there are no investors backing up the sim.
“I’m actually not taking money from investors now,” he said. “The budget for what we’re delivering is about $20 million, and we’re almost there – we’ll probably be there before the end of the year.
“The nice thing about not taking the investor’s money is, as much as they’re nice investors, they want a return at some point. If this thing’s a big success, they’ll say, ‘EA and Activision want this for about $100 million and that gives me a certain return on my investment’ – but that may not be the best thing for the game. I like the idea that the game gets 100 per cent community funded because all they care about is getting a great game, and all I care about is making a great game.”
The CryEngine 3 powered PC titles hasn’t been ruled out for next-gen consoles in the future, according to Roberts, as PS4 and Xbox One “are just high-end PCs with custom operating systems.”
However, if the game were to land on living room boxes, console manufactures would have to be on board with the game’s free content updates which react to “what the players are doing… If the platform holders wanted to do that, then great.”
http://www.vg247.com/2013/08/22/star-citizens-first-playable-module-out-next-week-for-backers/
Don’t Starve now has Steam Workshop support on PC
Klei has added Steam Workshop support to its wilderness survival sim Don’t Starve. This will make it easier for players to find and install mods directly through Steam.
Players will now have easy access to language translation packs, new character skins, custom creatures, and world generation mods, as well as a host of other mods created by the community.
Alongside the Steam Workshop update, Klei has added a new level to Don’t Starve called The Ruins. It comprises five different areas filled with new items and creatures. These include an Ancient Guardian and the Dangling Depth Dweller spider, which sounds absolutely terrifying. There is also a new Morgue screen that keeps a tally of how many times you perish. Just so you know how terrible you are at the game at all times.
http://www.vg247.com/2013/08/22/dont-starve-now-has-steam-workshop-support-on-pc/
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