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British Mac game publishers Feral Interactive have recently updated their web site with news on current and upcoming releases.

Firstly, as reported here at IMG last Friday, Feral has released a demo for their earthy multiplayer puzzle game Worms Blast. The Snood-style game features side-by-side multiplayer puzzle action, as two worms battle multicolored blocks with their own personal bazookas. The game, which is currently scheduled for a February 28th release date, has very low system requirements and will be available for both OS 9 & OS X. The game can be pre-ordered through the Feral website, but a much better deal can be found at IMG's very own web store. Click on the links below to find out.

Soccer fans who've been yearning to get their hands on the latest release of Championship Manager won't have to wait much longer. According to Feral, the soccer (excuse me, 'football') management sim is nearing completion. Feral expects to have a demo for the game ready for general consumption "around mid-March." As for the full version of the game, Feral is working hard to assure fans a simultaneous PC/Mac release, however, given the intricacies of the code, they warn the Mac port may get released a few weeks after the PC version.

Finally, Feral has announced two new game packages sure to please Mac game lovers. Labelled the "Big Blue Box" and the "Big Red Box", the game packages contain a plethora of Feral titles. The Big Blue Box features Bungie's Oni, simulation title Theme Park World, soccer management title Championship Manager 00/01, and racing game Racing Days R. The Big Red Box contains the dictator-sim Tropico, fun top-down sheep herding challenge Sheep, the current edition of Championship Manager 01/02, and the Brit-TV-show-turned-US-TV-show-turned-computer-game Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

Interesting news for soccer and Feral fans alike. Click on the links listed here for more details.

Update: After our story this morning, Feral's Camille Thouvenin sent us an update on one of their other upcoming titles, Warrior Kings. According to Camille, the game is now in beta testing and looking spectacular. "You can't imagine how great this game is looking. Picture this: hundreds of solders attacking your fortified city with the support of dozens of knights on horse back and several catapults, you'll get the
picture of how huge this real time strategy game is."

Feral Interactive (add to watch list)

MGF: Worms Blast Demo

IMG has reviewed Logitech's top of the line mouse, the MX700. In the five short months since Logitech announced the MX-series mice, it has easily became one of the most awarded wireless optical mice on the market. Featuring a doubly sensitive 800 DPI optical eye, eight programmable buttons, and a self-recharging station built-in to its receiver, it's not hard to imagine why the MX700 is so highly regarded. Here is more from the review:

Out of the box, the MX700's shape was instantly more comfortable than my old favorite, the Logitech Cordless Mouseman Wheel. The MX700 isn't as tall, but seems to fill my hand even better. Obviously, from looking at the shape of the mouse, it's for righties only, so those left-handed folk will need to look elsewhere. The black and buffed metal look of the mouse is very slick, as well as the matching receiver station. Setup just involved connecting the receiver to an open USB port and plugging in the power supply. Remember, the receiver is also the recharging station and Logitech notes the mouse needs less than two hours to fully charge the included batteries.

IMG Review: Logitech MX700

MX700 (add to watch list)

Logitech (add to watch list)

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Playmyth.net, a server for the multi-player Myth games, recently announced a Public beta of their server software for Myth III: The Wolf Age would be out soon. To participate in the test, all you'll need is a copy of Myth III, although a version of the demo that is able to connect to the PlayMyth server will be available later. PlayMyth also mentions that they will have a huge announcement by the end of February, but don't give too much of a hint as to what that is.

Here's their announcement:

We're getting very close to the start of public Myth 3 beta testing. When this happens, we'll have several convenient web-links for you all to download the latest files and play. You will need to download a new update in order to take advantage of all the cool things we've added and fixed. We won't be releasing the beta until we're sure that the tag files are worked out. We appreciate that the patch will be very large and are trying to ensure that you won't have to download a new set of tags every time we update the game.

Be advised you will need to OWN MYTH 3 in order to test. Our patches are updaters to your existing games. We cannot distribute full copies of the Myth 3 game - however once the update goes gold, we will be releasing a new demo that can be played on PM.net. This will have some multiplayer maps and a few solo levels and have the ability to have the Classic Map Packs as plugins. Look for that soon.

Also - you may experience some intermittent down time as we prepare the updates to the PlayMyth.net server. We're preparing for something big. And by big I mean big. Look for an announcement on this in the next week, but we will have a major community announcement around the end of February. This announcement will coincide with the release of the beta Myth 3. We're working behind the scenes to get this done.

Myth 3 MP Beta Preperations

MacSoft (add to watch list)

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A quick new progress log update at Ambrosia Software announced the hacker-themed strategy game Uplink is now in beta testing for the Mac. The addictive PC title found popularity among those who fantasized about breaking into computer systems and manipulating data, without all the legality issues surrounding FBI raids.

The Ambrosia status page has a number of screenshots, along with a short description. Here's a clip from it:

You use the money you earn to upgrade your computer systems, and to buy new software and tools. As your experience level increases you find more dangerous and profitable missions become available. You can speculate on a fully working stock market (and even influence its outcome). You can modify peoples academic or criminal records. You can divert money from bank transfers into your own accounts. You can even take part in the construction of the most deadly computer virus ever designed.

Ambrosia Uplink Progress Log

Uplink Status Page

Contraband Entertainment (add to watch list)

Ambrosia Software (add to watch list)

Uplink (add to watch list)

Blender, a program development application from Blender.org has been recently updated with a slew of bug fixes, improved features, and most exciting is the announcement that this version is officially open source. Here's an excerpt from the announcement on their website.

A great achievement for all volunteers, and an important milestone; the first actual open source release! Blender 2.26 includes new features, bug fixes, and is ready for further development by the community. Although not all 2.25 functionality has been restored - the game engine is temporally disabled - this version will be the new reference for users to file bug reports and to provide us feedback on.

Check out the link to the rest of the new version announcement below. A link to Blender's download page is also provided.

Blender Open Source Announcement

Blender Download Page

Blender Homepage

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Computer gaming site BonusWeb recently ran an interview with the New World Computing team about the upcoming expansion to Heroes of Might and Magic 4, Winds of War. The expansion adds many new features to the game, including 25 new single player campaigns, 20 new fan created single player scenarios, and a slew of new editor features. The interview covers all of these new features and more.

Here's a excerpt:

BonusWeb:First, I'd like to ask, who is working on the second expansion pack for Heroes IV, how far is progress and when will it be on stores?
NWC:The entire NWC team has been working on the Winds of War expansion, which we recently completed and sent off for duplication. It should be in stores in the coming weeks.

BonusWeb:Could you please sum the innovations and new things the expansion will bring to our PCs?
NWC: The Winds of War expansion has many new features for players and mapmakers alike, including:
-6 campaigns
-25 single-scenario maps created by New World Computing
- 20 contest-winning single-scenario maps created by the fans
- 3 new level 4 creatures
- 6 new creature generators
- A Help file for the Campaign Editor
- An Object Paintbrush tool that allows you to create your own "object mix" that can be painted across large or small parts of the map
- A Find feature to search for the Editor that allows you to find any object placed on the map
- The ability to cut, copy, and paste objects on the map
- A new tool that shows water passability
- A "random conservatory" structure

Interview Talks Future of HoMM

3DO (add to watch list)

Contraband Entertainment (add to watch list)

Heroes of Might & Magic IV (add to watch list)

Buy Heroes of Might & Magic IV

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