The Texan Gamer

Peace Love and Rockets TOMORROW!

2011-11-04T08:14:00.003-05:00

Peace Love and Rockets 14 is tomorrow! Can you believe it!?!? It has been a long long wait from August when we announced this event and we are very excited that we finally get to present this amazing event to everyone! With more than $2500 in equipment and swag to hand out, 100+ cables crimped, and a event venue change in the past few weeks, we can honestly say that we are prepared and can not wait to get everyone in to game and have some fun! PLR will start at 11am at the Sterling Hotel in Dallas, you can see the hotel from 183. Pre-pay has closed for the event but you can still register, but the cost at the door now is $15! If you pre-paid then your seat will be reserved for the entire event, if you registered but didn't pre-pay, then your seat is reserved through 1pm. Don't forget your powerstrips and competitive spirit, your going to need those! First 45 people that check-in and are already registered will receive a swag bag in which all have special prizes!

We want to thank all of our sponsors for helping us make this event possible, here is the list of companies that have pitched in and helped this PLR become what it is!

EVGA, Epic Games, Trendnet, Gunnar , Velocity Micro, Spire Coolers, Thermalright, CPU Magazine, Alpha Grip, Shuttle PC, WASD Keyboards, Coolermaster, Rosewill, Zotac, MEElectronics, Bethesda, Clunky Computers, eDimensional, Xoxide, Rude Gameware, Cyber Snipa, Tripwire Interactive, 2K Games, Steelseries, CS Hyde, Mythlogic, Splitfish, Matias, Greenman Gaming, Vroom Foods, Xigmatek and Shock Coffee.

We hope to see everyone tomorrow and keep watching your email for more PLR updates today and tomorrow morning!

Valve Wants to Pull Players Off CS 1.6 with CS: GO

2011-09-28T08:31:00.001-05:00

Valve wants to merge the two Counter-Strike communities with the release of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.

The original, 11-year-old Counter-Strike (1.6) game is currently Valve's most-played title on Steam, and its successor, Counter-Strike Source, is the studio's third-most played game. Yet with the release of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Valve is essentially faced with the daunting task of luring those two communities away from their beloved games and stick with the newer product. That said, how will Valve end the seven year division between the two without shutting the games down completely?

One way to get them interested is to implement suggestions made by the pro Counter-Strike community. In an interview with Develop, Valve writer Chet Faliszek said they didn't take that route with Counter-Strike Source. "With Global Offensive we want to make sure that we’re doing what they want," he said. "Or that we at least understand the implications of what they’re asking for."

Other ways to get the long-term fans interested in the new game is to bring them into the closed beta so that they can help mold the shooter into what it should be, and to even bring them directly into the studio itself to play-test the beta right in front of the developers' eyes and ears. Feedback through forums is one thing -- doing so face-to-face with the game's creators can lead to a better understanding of what the players want, and what the developer is trying to create.

"It’s a really good way of testing your ideas," he said. "As a developer we may have what we think is a great idea, but then we realize people aren’t playing the game the way that we want them to. So you have to lead them to play it that way, and then you’ll find out the adjustments you have to make for that to happen."

"With Global Offensive, we’re making it to be the best version of Counter-Strike, and the one that people should be playing – but we can’t force that," he added. "We need to talk with those players and try to understand their concerns. But we know the 1.6 players and the CSS players are looking for something new. I think they’d like something from us that can incorporate them into being one."

Possibly one of the big selling points of Global Offensive is a possible support for cross-platform play between the Mac, PC and PlayStation 3. This in itself could open up a whole new batch of players who may have been unable to play a Counter-Strike title on their PC. Previous reports indicated that the PS3 to PC cross-platform support was a done deal, but Faliszek seems to indicate otherwise.

"We’re looking at it," he admitted. "It’s something that we’ll find out during the beta. We don't want to hamstring one platform to another."

He goes on to indicate that there's still details to hammer out in regards to Steamworks functioning at its full potential -- including handing out incremental updates -- on the PlayStation Network. And so far, there's still no sign of Steamworks support on the Xbox 360, but that hasn't been crossed off the list just yet.

"We’ll see," he said when asked about Steamworks on Microsoft's console. "That’s something Microsoft will has to decide. There’s some things going on with Portal 2 right now, but we’ll see. "

To read the full interview, head here.

Provided by: Tomshardware

46 More Days!

2011-09-20T08:59:00.008-05:00

46 day till Peace Love and Rockets and we are oozing from the ears with great news! 3 new great sponsors, video card giveaways, and only more good stuff to come! Don't forget to register for the event if you haven't done so yet, and if you have, don't forget it is cheaper to pre-pay now then to wait and pay at the door! Now for what you have been waiting for...MOAR SPONSORS!

Peace Love and Rockets would like to spotlight Zotac for jumping on the PLR extravaganza!

Established in 2006, ZOTAC is the world’s largest and most innovative manufacturer of graphics cards, mini-ITX motherboards and mini-PCs. ZOTAC system components, and mini-PCs can be found in all continents around the globe. Derived from the terms “zone,” for being distinct in the PC components and systems business, and “tact,” for our superior skill, experience, quality and manufacturing capabilities. Combined, “ZOTAC,” represents technological strength and experience blended with a fresh approach on the industry’s ever-changing needs.

Zotac is also asked us to help spread the word about their weekend competitions that they host weekly. They are called Zotac Cup, games that are included are Starcraft II, Quake Live, Warcraft III, and FIFA 11. You can find the tournaments at this location!

Peace Love and Rockets would also like to welcome this non stranger of a sponsor Coolermaster!

Cooler Master was founded with the mission of providing the industry's best thermal solutions. Since its establishment a decade ago, the company has remained faithful to this mission, emerging as a world leader in products and services for companies dealing with devices where heat issues must be resolved. We are excited to bring back aboard Cooler Master and look forward to seeing what they will give all our great attendees, we are especially excited about their CM Storm product line!

Last but not least we are very happy to bring aboard Rosewill!

Not long ago Rosewill had an idea - bring quality hardware and affordable prices together. From that idea Rosewill was born. Formed from a top team of hardware professionals, Rosewill is dedicated to our mission to compete and win on price, quality, and service. Rosewill works only with the best partners - businesses Rosewill knows and businesses we trust. What can we say? We are ecstatic that Rosewill will help sponsor PLR and can't wait to see what they have in store for us!

Keep watching for more updates!

Tribes: Ascend Closed Beta Now Accepting Applicants

2011-09-15T09:01:00.001-05:00

Hi-Rez Studios is launching the first wave of its Tribes: Ascend closed beta in the next few weeks, and is now accepting applications.

Wednesday Hi-Rez Studios sent over a quick note announcing that it's now accepting applications for the first phase of the Tribes: Ascend closed beta which begins in a few weeks. Although the actual launch date wasn't given, Hi-Rez plans to grant access to thousands of "hand-selected" players worldwide.

"During this initial beta phase, Tribes: Ascend players will experience 4 multiplayer maps, 2 game-modes and 3 vehicles as they progress through 12 playable classes in fast-paced, high-flying online multiplayer matches of up to 32 people," the studio said. "Hi-Rez Studios will continue to increase the number of beta participants through the end of this year in preparation for a general game release in Q1 of 2012."

As noted, the game has been officially delayed, pushed back from its original Q4 2011 release schedule. However, when launched, Tribes: Ascend will be the first new Tribes game to be released since Tribes: Vengeance hit the PC way back in 2004.

According to the studio, Tribes: Ascend will be the official multiplayer successor to 2001's Tribes 2, and will be brought to the PC as a digital download using Epic Games' Unreal Engine 3. The game will also arrive on the Xbox 360 console, launching alongside the PC version when they both go live early next year.

To sign up for the closed beta, head here.

Provided by: Tomshardware

Insane in the Membrane!

2011-09-14T11:52:00.003-05:00

The Texan Gamer has gone MAD! Free video card WHAT?!!? Thats right! If we can get The Texan Gamer facebook page up to 200 likes and Peace Love and Rockets LAN Party facebook page up to 60 likes, we will post a form in which you can fill out and qualify for the chance to win a EVGA GTX 560! How cool is that?!?!

The Texan Gamer has also gone LAN party CRAZY! This Saturday join us on our LAN Party Extravaganza when we attend the NGC LAN Party in Greenville then high tail it back to Richardson to host our own LAN party in Richardson at Shadow LAN! It is sure to be a blast and we would love for everyone to join us.

There are also rumors that LeXXon will be handing out Pre-PLR swag?!?! He has gone off his rocker!

Frag ya later!

PLR Tournament Information

2011-09-11T14:50:00.009-05:00

In preparation for November 5th, we have posted the tournament information far enough ahead so that everyone has a equal shot at competing in them, here is a sneak peak of what you will get by winning one of the top prizes of each of the tournaments. You can find the tournament sign ups here!The tournaments for this PLR are as follows:

Quake Live 1v1 Double Elimination
Top 3 Winners will receive one of the trophies to the left and more!

Starcraft 2 1v1 Single Elimination
Top 3 Winners will receive one of the trophies to the left and more!

Unreal Tournament 3 FFA
Top 4 Winners will receive one of the trophies to the left and more!

For those of you that already registered, watch your emails in the next upcoming weeks, we have some exciting announcements and giveaways, for those who haven't registered...well you will be on the wait list but you can still register!

PLR Partnership

2011-09-02T14:53:00.006-05:00

Good News Everyone! We are happy to bring aboard Gamerz Unite!

Gamerz Unite has agreed to run a tournament or two and introduce their community to the PLR family! We are excited to have Gamerz Unite aboard and can't wait to show you what we have in store for you! Below is what they just announced about what they will be contributing to Peace Love and Rockets!

"Today we're announcing our sponsorship of the Peace, Love & Rockets lan party that will take place in Addison, TX on Saturday, November, 5 2011. The festivities kick off at 11am and end at 10pm. The lan itself is pretty much full at the moment but guests are always welcome to come check out the event. The gaming event will feature several tournaments which include the following;

We'll be giving away various prizes for the tournament which will include:

- CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory
- Kingston HyperX Blu 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory
- 2 x Patriot Supersonic Xpress 16GB USB 3.0 Flash Drives
- 2 x Kingston DataTraveler 100 Generation 2 8GB USB 2.0 Flash Drives
- Official PLR/Gamerzunite.com branded t-shirts

We'll announce what tournaments these prizes belong to later.

For further information on how to register and the LAN itself, visit this thread:
Peace Love and Rockets November 15h, 2011, North Texas LAN Party"

Could this LAN get any better?!?! Well yes it can! Keep watching in the coming weeks for more sponsors, prizes, and news on Peace Love and Rockets coming to you on November 5th!

Registration Full! More Could Open!

2011-08-31T10:54:00.004-05:00

I don't know about everyone else...but I believe we have a LAN party on our hands! Registration filled up in 1 week and 1 day within going live, and we even have 6 people on the wait list! We have surpassed our original estimated filled date and are moving plans a little faster than we expected! For all you people on the wait list, don't you worry, we will be opening up to a additional 20 people once we have 10 people on the wait list, and by this rate it looks like we will hit that very soon! Don't forget to remind your friends to register for PLR, it isn't going to be a event to miss, trust us on that!

www.peaceloveandrockets.org

Also...I hear there is a new logo in the making...are you as excited as us?!?!

Few Seats Left! Sponsor LOVE!

2011-08-26T17:46:00.010-05:00

Only a few seats remain for PLR! After that it is waiting list until we get enough interest to open up some additional space! Tell your friends that they better register or they may not have a seat! Go to www.peaceloveandrockets.org and register quickly, this event will be filled and it will not be something you want to be on the outside looking in on! Registration is free, but you have the option to pre-pay for $10 but the price at the door the day of the event is going to be $15! With this post, we want to also announce a few more sponsors!

We would like to welcome aboard 2K Games!

Founded in 2005, 2K develops and publishes interactive entertainment software games for the console, PC, and handheld gaming systems through its three divisions: 2K Games, 2K Sports, and 2K Play. 2K publishes titles in today's most popular gaming genres, including first-person shooters, action, role-playing, real-time strategy, sports, casual, and family entertainment.

2K Games is the producer of such games as Bioshock, Duke Nukem: Forever, Borderlands, and the future Borderlands 2! Be sure to swing by their facebook page and show them some love!

Peace Love and Rockets would also like to welcome aboard Greenman Gaming!

Green Man Gaming is a digital retailer of PC games. We sell games globally and have sold to over 89 countries. We're based in London, UK, and our offices are in Bloomsbury which sounds much more posh than it really is.

Unlike any other digital retailer, our customers can trade-in their digitally downloaded games for credit in their account and this credit can then be used for new purchases. We have some very clever patent-protected technology that allows only us to do this.

Greenman Gaming has so kinda accepted being a official sponsor of PLR! Check them out next time you decide to purchase a game online, constant discount on current and upcoming games which activate on Steam!

Remember everyone, register for PLR! You aren't gonna wanna miss this!

EA's Origin Sends Personal Data to Third Parties

2011-08-25T09:00:00.000-05:00

Part of Origin's EULA allows Electronic Arts to snoop through your system -- including installed and uninstalled software -- and send that information to third-party service providers.

Honestly EA, what are you up to now? The gaming publisher is currently under fire by outraged consumers after a close examination of the End User License Agreement for Origin reveals that it grants EA the right to snoop through desktops and laptops once the user agrees to the terms. If that wasn't invasive enough, the agreement also allows EA to share all that information to third party service providers.

"You agree that EA may collect, use, store and transmit technical and related information that identifies your computer (including the Internet Protocol Address), operating system, Application usage (including but not limited to successful installation and/or removal), software, software usage and peripheral hardware, that may be gathered periodically to facilitate the provision of software updates, dynamically served content, product support and other services to you, including online services," the agreement reads. "EA may also use this information combined with personal information for marketing purposes and to improve our products and services. We may also share that data with our third party service providers in a form that does not personally identify you. IF YOU DO NOT WANT EA TO COLLECT, USE, STORE, TRANSMIT OR DISPLAY THE DATA DESCRIBED IN THIS SECTION, PLEASE DO NOT INSTALL OR USE THE APPLICATION."

Now here’s the kicker: if EA customers don't agree to the company's snooping and sharing of private data to third parties, then they won't have access to exclusive PC games like Battlefield 3 and Star Wars: The Old Republic. The Origin agreement also doesn't allow the user to opt out at any time after the initial acceptance, meaning that they either must choose to share their personal information indefinitely, or not play EA's exclusive PC games at all.

Reddit is currently rallying EA gamers to contact the company by email or snail mail to protest against the invasion of privacy. According to EA's privacy policy instructions, consumers can first try to settle the matter with the company directly using the contact info at http://www.ea.com/1/privacy-contacts. Consumers can also drop an email to the relevant statutory privacy body or advocacy group, presumably the Electronic Frontier Foundation which typically stands up for gamer privacy rights.

Then again, Origin's invasive nature may have been one of the reasons why EA chose to launch its own client in the first place: to see who is pirating EA games... if it indeed scans all installed and uninstalled software on a system, that is.

So far EA hasn't publicly responded to the complaints.

Provided by: Tomshardware

Intel LANFest in Austin on Labor Day Weekend!

2011-08-21T09:32:00.001-05:00

Intel LANFest returns to Austin for the benefit of the local Capital Area United Way. Like other Lanfest events; 100%* of the ticket proceeds will be donated to the United Way.

This event is open to the general public. Please help spread the word so we can show how much of a positive impact Gamers can have to the local communities. Kids are welcome but are the responsibility of the parent or guardian. 16-18 year olds are allowed w/o parent with a signed waiver. Under 16 must have a legal guardian present at all times.

The LAN will be held at the Austin Intel Campus on Friday, Sept 2nd 8pm through the Monday, Sept 5th noon. The event will run nonstop from 8pm to noon on Monday. There are 70 seats to fill.
You can register for the Bring Your Own Computer or Console (BYOC) at http://lanfest.intel.com/?page=event&eventid=1747

Games and Tournaments are still being discussed with possible events to include World of Warcraft, Lead and Gold, Team Fortress 2, and Left4Dead 2.
Have a favorite game you'd like to play? Talk about it on the forums and/or volunteer to run a tournament.

When:
Sept 2nd 8pm (Friday) to Sept 5th noon (Monday)

Where:
Intel Corp
1501 S Mopac Expressway
Suite 150
Austin, TX 78746

If they fill enough seats, they might even get BBQ from Rudy's. I'd also like to emphasize that this event is open to EVERYONE and they have a ton of prizes up for raffle. It's a nice facility with plenty of parking, power, and even some internet bandwidth.

Pre-Registration Anouncement!

2011-08-19T15:27:00.003-05:00

Pre-Registration tonight! Want another sponsor? Well here ya go!

Peace Love and Rockets and The Texan Gamer are proud to bring aboard Shuttle PC!

Established in 1990, Shuttle Computer Group Inc. is the American arm of the world renowned Shuttle Inc. Based in Taiwan with an extensive worldwide network of subsidiaries, resellers, partners, and suppliers, Shuttle Inc. is recognized as a premier manufacturer of motherboards and barebones systems. Shuttle Inc. has received numerous awards and accolades from independent media and analysts, affirming the superior quality of Shuttle products and services.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, Shuttle Computer Group Inc. services a nationwide network of distributors and resellers with superior Marketing and Sales, Technical Support, RMA, Repair and Accounting and Inventory services. A commitment to customer satisfaction has made Shuttle Computer Group Inc. the first choice of many system integrators, VARs, OEMs and ODMs.

Shuttle PC has sent us some amazing swag in which we get to hand out to the attendees of Peace Love and Rockets and we can't wait till you see what they have given you! Don't forget to Pre-Register!

Pre-Registration Sponsor Announcement!

2011-08-19T13:38:00.003-05:00

Today is the day people! Pre-registration for Peace Love and Rockets starts at 7 pm CST and we are ready to get this show on the road! We have lots of surprises coming in the upcoming months leading up to the actual LAN party but will give you a great one ahead of time!

The Texan Gamer and Peace Love and Rockets are happy to announce Alpha Grip as a sponsor of the November edition of Peace Love and Rockets!

Write emails, instant messages, and take notes comfortably from any position at 50 words per minute and enjoy 10-finger touch control for enhanced, desk-free gaming with an iGrip Ergonomic Keyboard, a handheld keyboard and mouse that has the look and feel of a game controller on steroids. With a scientifically designed button layout, Enhanced Qwerty, the iGrip gives you fast, comfortable access to all the keys you need for high speed typing and gaming. Its handheld design enables powerful desk-free computing from any location in any position: leaning away from your desk, standing up, riding in a vehicle, relaxing on a sofa in your living room, sitting on the floor, leaning back in a recliner, or even lying in bed. The iGrip is also the best all around input device for laptop and notebook computers, whether in the office, on the road, or at home.

AlphaGrip has agreed to showcase their iGrip Ergonomic Keyboard at Peace Love and Rockets in November! Also, two lucky attendees will be walking away with these iGrips to take home and enjoy! Be sure to check out the AlphaGrip website and read all about the iGrip and what it has to offer, you will be able to try it out at the LAN also! We are happy to have AlphaGrip as a sponsor and look forward to working with them again!

Don't forget everyone that Pre-Registration for Peace Love and Rockets starts at 7pm! Price for pre-pay is $10 and the cost will be $15! 50 spots are available for now, but I can promise you we will be expanding to 80 spots very soon so keep registering and if you are on the wait list, don't worry about it!

Check back later for yet another amazing sponsor!

Sponsor Announcement

2011-08-18T08:50:00.007-05:00

1 day left till registration opens, and we are as excited as you are! We can't wait to get this show on the road and get this LAN started! We are sorry about the past two days of no post but hopefully this post will make up for it! We will be announcing 3 sponsors with this one post!

Peace Love and Rockets and The Texan Gamer are happy to bring aboard Spire Coolers!

Spire is a leading premier brand for computer thermal solutions, power supplies and enclosures. In order to meet the requirements and demands of the global market, we have established our production facilities and corporate office in ShenZhen, China. Our overseas branches are located in USA, The Netherlands, Germany, France, Japan and Brazil. All locations are strategically located to better work with the customers we serve.
We are happy to bring Spire aboard for the first time and look forward to working with them in the future! They have donated some swag, so you have to come out in order to be eligible to receive some!

Peace Love and Rockets and The Texan Gamer are happy to bring aboard Thermalright!
Thermalright is an elite design house that manufactures cooling products for computer components for the best quality and performance your money can buy. In 2002, AMD released its first generation Thunderbird CPU and since then we have been there every step of the way to counter high voltage and high heat with innovative design and highly acclaimed cooling solutions not only for AMD but for Intel as well. One of early well known solutions was the SK-6. With many positive and rave reviews under its belt Thermalright bolted to the top as the heat sink manufacturer mostly preferred by Overclockers and enthusiasts around the World. To this day, innovation never left our vocabulary as we keep coming up with leading edge designs staying ahead of the competition.

Looks like we have all the cooling covered for the LAN! This will also be the first time that Thermalright has sponsored PLR and it looks like they are happy to be our sponsors! We welcome them aboard and hope they enjoy the PLR Love!

Peace Love and Rockets and The Texan Gamer are happy to bring aboard CPU Magazine!
Computer Power User is a monthly print publication aimed at people who breathe, eat, and sleep technology. The kind of person who gets his kicks upgrading graphics cards and smashing benchmarks. The type of person who reinstalls Windows at 2 a.m. because his system keeps crashing while he's encoding video. Or the person who repartitions his drive to create a dual-boot system and install Linux so he can learn more about how the OS works.
CPU Magazine is no stranger to LANs around the area and we are happy to have them as a sponsor once again! Get ready for some free magazines!

Don't forget about registration tomorrow night at 7! We will be announcing 2 more sponsors that we are sure you will jump for joy about! Keep watching the Texan Gamer and Peace Love and Rockets for more exciting news!

Sponsor Announcement!

2011-08-15T09:28:00.006-05:00

4 More Days till Peace Love and Rockets Pre-Registration and more sponsors to come! Are you ready?

Peace Love and Rockets is happy to announce Gunnar as a official sponsor of PLR!

Gunnar s are high performance computer eyewear optimized for the digital screen.

Comprised of a proprietary lens material in an advanced geometry tuned for specific viewing distances and finished with custom formulated lens filters, tints and coatings - Gunnar with i-AMP lens technology delievers a noticeable advantage when viewing any digital LCD.

Gunnar will be providing us with a promo code for a discount on their product! The only way to get it though is to Pre-Register for the LAN!

Keep watching for more updates!

Sponsor Announcement!

2011-08-14T08:51:00.004-05:00

With 5 Days remaining till PLR Pre-Registration, we are happy to announce another sponsor! We are happy to bring aboard Velocity Micro!

Velocity Micro is the premier high-performance computer provider in North America. Based in Richmond, VA, Velocity Micro meets the specific needs of consumers and businesses with an extensive range of custom-designed, custom-built, award-winning gaming systems, enthusiast PCs, notebooks, professional workstations, servers, and small business solutions.

Velocity Micro has been a helping sponsor of The Texan Gamer and their LANs for 3 years now and are very excited that they wanted in on PLR also! Velocity Micro always pulls through for us so go show them some love on their facebook page!

Catch tomorrow's sponsor announcement! Lots more to come!

Sponsor Announcement!

2011-08-13T13:50:00.004-05:00

With 6 Days remaining till PLR Pre-Registration, we are happy to announce another sponsor! We are happy to bring aboard TRENDnet!

TRENDnet is a global provider of award winning networking solutions to small and medium size business and home users. Building networking solutions since 1990, TRENDnet enables users to share broadband access, multimedia content and networked peripherals for true anywhere connectivity. TRENDnet's diverse product line includes Wireless, Fiber, Switch, Gigabit, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), Keyboard/Video/Mouse (KVM), Internet Camera, Print Server, Powerline, Bluetooth, Storage Server, Power over Ethernet (PoE), and Multimedia Accessories.

TRENDnet will be providing us with some awesome swag in which of course we can not announce until the day of, but you aren't gonna wanna miss it!

Keep watching The Texan Gamer and Peace Love and Rockets for sponsor announcements all the way up to Pre-Reg and beyond! We have a great LAN party planned out and as the date comes closer, the more details we will release!

Counter-Strike: GO Confirmed Coming in 2012

2011-08-12T13:58:00.002-05:00

Valve Software has confirmed Counter-Strike: Global Offensive for an early 2012 release.

Chatter over Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS: GO) first began this week over on Reddit thanks to a few gamers who personally tested the unannounced title while spending a day at Valve's headquarters in Seattle.

"We didn't have to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement, but they did ask us to not give out any pictures or videos from there before it is released," reads one testimony. The post in itself verified previous reports that Valve was shuttling top Counter-Strike players to Valve's HQ in order to "discuss the future" of Counter-Strike.

After the Reddit post, the E-Sports Entertainment's official Facebook page was updated with a message reading "Counter-Strike: Global Offensive... More info in the morning" along with a picture of Craig Levine turning the gigantic valve in Valve's lobby. A Valve employee dubbed "Cliffe" also posted "Global Offensive" on a Steam forum thread, essentially backing up the unofficial news.

If that wasn't enough to get the rumor bees buzzing, ESL Pro manager Bastian Vieser teased Twitter readers with a message reading "Just spend all day playing the new Counterstrike Global Offensive #CSGO at the #Valve HQ ! God I love my job.”

That should be enough evidence, right?

Then it happened. This article wasn't even complete before Valve Software sent over the official announcement via email. Indeed the new installment is called Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS: GO), and it's coming to the PlayStation Network, Xbox Live Arcade and Steam (PC/Mac) in early 2012.

Acording to the hot-n-fresh press release, CS: GO is being developed by Valve in cooperation with Seattle-based Hidden Path Entertainment, and will expand upon the team-based action gameplay that it pioneered when it was launched exactly 12 years ago (CS beta 1, August 1999). It features new maps, characters, and weapons and delivers updated versions of the classic CS content (de_dust, etc.). In addition, CS: GO will introduce new gameplay modes, matchmaking, leader boards, and more.

"Counter-Strike took the gaming industry by surprise when the unlikely MOD became the most played online PC action game in the world almost immediately after its release in August 1999," said Doug Lombardi, VP of Marketing at Valve. "For the past 12 years, it has continued to be one of the most-played games in the world, headline competitive gaming tournaments and selling over 25 million units worldwide across the franchise. CS: GO promises to expand on CS' award-winning gameplay and deliver it to gamers on the PC as well as the next gen consoles and the Mac."

Valve said CS: GO will be playable at this year's PAX Prime and Eurogamer Expo 2011.

From : Tomshardware

Sponsor Announcement!

2011-08-12T09:34:00.005-05:00

From today until Registration we will be announcing one sponsor that will be helping to make Peace Love and Rockets happen! Keep watching each day to find a new sponsor!

Today we would like to thank Silverstone! Silverstone has agreed to supply us with some swag in which we will hand out randomly and as prizes! Oh I bet you want to know what they gave us, but we won't tell, you will have to make it to the LAN to find out and have a chance to bring home some Silverstone products! Check out their website and go to their facebook page and show them some love for helping Peace Love and Rockets continue!

Check back tomorrow to see our another sponsor, and don't forget that Pre-Registration for PLR is August 19th starting at 7:00pm!

Peace Love and Rockets Pre-Registration!

2011-08-08T20:45:00.005-05:00

The Peace Love and Rockets Pre-Registration will start on August 19th at 7pm CST! You will be able to take advantage of the $10 pre-pay or if you would like, you can pay at the door for $15! The current seat limit will be 50, if we get enough interested we will expand it, but we will need AT LEAST 65 people interested! So invite your friends, get pumped, and get ready for Peace Love and Rockets on November 5th!

We will be announcing all of the sponsors thus far this upcoming Friday, so you will want to stay in tune for that, we have a amazing list already!

www.peaceloveandrockets.org

Is AMD Going Into the Memory Buisness?

2011-08-08T15:05:00.001-05:00

AMD has released Radeon-branded DDR3 modules in Canada and over in Japan.

Typically when we mention the name AMD, we're talking about processors, chipsets and GPUs. That said, it seems a little strange connecting AMD to actual DDR3 chips – even more so seeing the actual sticks being held by human hands. But they're real, and apparently already on the market in some territories.

On Saturday, images of AMD Radeon-branded DDR3 modules -- photographed in Japan -- went live, but according to reports, the memory sticks actually went on sale in Canada a few weeks ago. That means they’re not only available to OEMs, but to retail consumers as well.

AMD's website reports that the Radeon Memory will come in three flavors: the Enterprise Series, the ULTRA PRO Gaming Series, and the Entertainment Series. The Enterprise version is marked as "to be determined," but the Entertainment version will operate at 1333 MHz with timings of 9-9-9; the ULTRA PRO Gaming version will operate at 1600 MHz with timings of 11-11-11.

Otherwise, all three versions will come in 2 GB sticks and a PCB height of 30.0-mm. The package itself will be a 240-pin socket type dual in line memory module (DIMM), and will be both lead-free (RoHS compliant) and Halogen-free.

AMD Radeon DDR3 System Modules are ideally suited to our CPU and APU products," the company said. "Components are tested to the highest industry standards on AMD platforms to guarantee reliability and performance."

So far we haven't received anything official from AMD, but the chips are reportedly on sale over in Japan for around $20 USD apiece. We'll keep you posted.

Snatched from - Tomshardware

Woman goes into labor at QuakeCon 2011

2011-08-06T18:15:00.004-05:00

Wow...just wow.....

You might be asking yourself why the couple didn't bolt for the hospital at the first sign of labor, but Chaz says they initially thought it could have been false labor. So they waited it out to see if the contractions continued, which they did. Chaz says they "...stayed for the rest of the demo because she is a trooper and LOVES Skyrim."

Full story via the link:
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/08/05/woman-goes-into-labor-during-skyrim-presentation.aspx

QuakeCon 2011 Keynote

2011-08-05T12:55:00.001-05:00

Peace Love and Rockets Offical First Sponsor!

2011-08-05T09:09:00.004-05:00

The Texan Gamer is proud to announce our first sponsor for the November 5th LAN!

SPIRE!

Spire is a leading premier brand for computer thermal solutions, power supplies and enclosures. In order to meet the requirements and demands of the global market, we have established our production facilities and corporate office in ShenZhen, China. Our overseas branches are located in USA, The Netherlands, Germany, France, Japan and Brazil. All locations are strategically located to better work with the customers we serve.

We are excited to have them on board and can't wait to show you all what we have in store for you during PLR in November!

More to come!

Cyber Sports Network takes over for The Texan Gamer

2011-08-04T15:36:00.000-05:00

Cyber Sports Network has been named as the Official QuakeCon 2011 BYOC Events Organizer, a role that is very near and dear to our hearts here at The Texan Gamer.

Welcome to QuakeCon! The BYOC’s already open for business, so we wanted to make sure you knew about our partnership with Cyber Sports Network (CSN), who will serve as the host for this year’s competitive events in the BYOC. The events include this year’s QuakeLive Open Duel Tournament, which will include over $1,000 in cash and prizes for the top three finishers.

We wish them the best of luck managing this hectic task. Long live the BYOC!

Day 0 - Setup

2011-08-04T15:17:00.001-05:00

Day 0 - The Crowd

2011-08-04T15:16:00.003-05:00

Borderlands 2 rolling in sometime after March 2012

2011-08-03T10:12:00.000-05:00

Borderlands 2, which Gearbox described as a "no-brainer" sequel following the success of the first title, has been officially announced. The game will head to Xbox 360, PS3 and PC during 2K's next fiscal year, which begins on April 1, 2012.

The sequel will bring to the unexplored regions of planet Pandora, and introduce "all-new characters, skills, environments, enemies, weapons and equipment."

Borderlands 2 will be shown for the first time two weeks from now at Gamescom, and then come stateside for a PAX Prime presentation August 26 - 28.

League of Legends Tournament

2011-08-01T12:29:00.002-05:00

Shadow LAN is once again hosting a 2v2 League of Legends Tournament! If you aren't heading to Quakecon this week then head over to Shadow LAN to check out the LoL tourney! Its bound to be fun!

Next League of Legends 2v2 August 6th!

Shadow Lan will be holding the next League of Legends 2v2 tournament on Saturday, August 6th at 2:00 pm! Be sure to bring your best League partner to DOMINATE!

www.shadowlangaming.com

Can you survive Baltimore's 5K zombie run?

2011-07-31T22:22:00.001-05:00

Unique competition has you racing for the finish line with hordes of brain-hungry, bloody zombies hot on your trail.

Run For Your Lives

One of the first rules to surviving an attack by the living dead, as related to us by the main character in the film "Zombieland", is cardiovascular health. The undead may be clumsy, but they're also fairly quick and extremely unrelenting, so being in top shape when the time comes to escape the brain-hungry masses should be a priority.

What better way to measure how you're stacking up against the competition then by participating in this year's "Run For Your Lives" race? The 5K (3.1 miles) event, taking place an hour outside of Baltimore, has you frantically running through a forested obstacle course - all the while attempting to avoid a horde of zombie volunteers nipping at your heels.

Participants receive flag belts that represent health. The zombies' goal is to grab all of those flags, effectively killing your entry in the race (and turning you into one of the undead). Just like a video game, additional health flags will be scattered throughout the course. Runners can choose to avoid one of the 12 man-made and natural obstacles, but missing even one will make them ineligible for prizes. The ultimate goal is to make it to the finish line (which has its own zombie challenge) with at least one health flag remaining.

While organizers have established a beginning and end, the course itself features enough twists and turns that could quickly turn your 5K run into a 10K.

“We’ve always been huge fans of zombie folklore and wanted to create a live action experience that provides fans with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Ryan Hogan, managing member of Reed Street Productions. “For training, we recommend some running, along with in-depth studying of zombie movies – it’s not the fastest who will win, it’s the one that can best out-maneuver his foes.”

Even automaker Subaru has gotten in on the fun, sponsoring the event with the tagline "The official escape vehicle of the zombie apocalypse".

While the race takes place October 22nd, you'll need to register before October 1st. Those wishing to forsake the living and join up with the brain-eating masses in hot pursuit can meander here.

Check out a well-produced promo for the event below.

Peace, Love, and ROCKETS! ITS BACK!

2011-07-29T14:54:00.002-05:00

We are proud to announce Peace Love and Rockets! This will be the first Peace Love and Rocket in over a year so you know its gonna be good! We have planned and come together to give you this great LAN experience! The location will be at the Holiday Inn Express Hotel meeting room in Addison on November 5th, be sure to mark your calendars and keep watching for upcoming announcements of sponsors, tournaments, and Pre-Registration!

Also keep a eye on http://www.peaceloveandrockets.org/ for updates!

DICE Talks Battlefield 3 Console/PC Differences

2011-07-27T11:28:00.000-05:00

The console version will only allow for 24 simultaneous players compared to the PC's impressive 64-player military mayhem.

We already know what DICE is focusing on the PC as the primary platform for its upcoming shooter, Battlefield 3. But recently DICE revealed some of the differences between the PC version and the version planned for the consoles, and they're enough to fill any PC gamer with pride (finally).

"The biggest difference between the PC and console version of Battlefield 3 is that we have 64 players on PC and 24 players maximum on console," said DICE boss Patrick Bach. "The rest is more or less the same: we use the same engine, the same technology, the same animation system, the same lighting system. Our aim is to give the player the exact same experience and not try to dumb down the console version."

OK, so maybe the differences aren't that drastic. But then Bach started to elaborate on the "more or less" aspect, admitting that the team tried to squeeze more players into the console version but realized it required the team to scale down all the graphics, scale down all the destructibility, and in some cases scale down the map sizes.

"Everything is a compromise," he said. "It's not that we're evil or stupid. We didn't choose not to have more players - we would love to do 64 players on console but then we would have to cut away so much; people would get very upset that it looked worse, played worse and wasn't as fun as the PC version. We would never do that because the fun is always more important."

Adding more than 24 players also meant removing the vehicles, as they require a lot of data that's shoved through the network and the CPUs. "If you had more vehicles, that would mean less players and vice versa," he said.

So what about the maps? Will they be smaller than what will be available on the PC? Or will both versions be the same? Here's where he really elaborates on the "more or less" aspect.

"When we say they are smaller, it's not that we have cut them in half," he said. "But we tried to compact them slightly to keep the action up. If you compare it to Battlefield: Bad Company 2, the maps weren't really small on console. We actually had huge maps even for console. We have the same kind of angle on it right now [in Battlefield 3]. We want to create the same experience for PC as for consoles."

Battlefield 3 is slated to hit the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Windows PC in October.

Provided By: Tomshardware

LAN TONIGHT!

2011-07-23T09:49:00.003-05:00

The LAN is tonight! Are you ready! Well we are and we can't wait to see everyone there! It would be to your best interest if you are bringing a computer to get there earlier than later in the event! There is only 30 BYOC spots and they are FCFS, but no worries, if we fill all the spots, we will still have PS3, Xbox360, and Wii to play on if you would like to play consoles all night long! Event starts at 9pm at Shadow LAN in Richardson! Remember, only 1 monitor and 1 computer will be allowed per person, any other monitors/tvs or extra computers will be not be permitted to enter. Please be respectful of your space.

Facebook Event

Catch everyone there!

LAN is Tomorrow Night! Are You Prepared?!?!

2011-07-22T13:07:00.006-05:00

Yes, time has flown by and the event is upon us! Tomorrow night will be a epic old style LAN, filled with gaming, friends, and good times! Lets conduct ourselves in a good fashion and bring back the glory days of competitive gaming in a LAN setting.

Remember that this is a 30 BYOC FCFS! We will start allowing computers in the venue at 9 p.m. We would truly love to fit everyone in but we have our hands tied for space and power consumption. There will be some LAN center computers also available to use, so if you desire you will be able to pay to play on those all night! Consoles and Console games are welcome, Xbox 360 and Wii will be on hand!

These costs cover for all night!
BYOC Gamers is $15
Consoles Gamers is $15
LAN Center Computers Gamers is $20
In the Door - $5

Please remember to be on your best behavior (like this should be told), respect others and their equipment, No Cheating (You will be thrown out with no refund), and most of all have fun!

Please be sure to bring a your power strip (just in case we need it), and remember to download any games/patches you need before you turn off your system and disconnecting.

Don't forget, you will want to stay at the LAN till the end for a exciting announcement!

Can't wait to see everyone there!

Big Congratz!

2011-07-22T09:27:00.005-05:00

The Texan Gamer would like to Congratulate Jacob and Wendy Woode on their marriage last night! These two are very close friends of the Texan Gamer and we can only hope everyone has the chance to meet these two!

Best wishes to the both of you! Enjoy your honeymoon!

QuakeCon 2011 Tournament Line Up Announced

2011-07-20T08:55:00.000-05:00

Incase you missed this....

With QuakeCon just over two week away, we’ve got details on this year’s tournaments. Get the full scoop in the press release below…

QUAKECON 2011 TOURNAMENT LINE UP ANNOUNCED

July 18, 2011 (Rockville, MD) – The world’s very best QUAKE LIVE® players will once again gather in Dallas, Texas to take part in intense online tournaments at QuakeCon® 2011, being held August 4-7, 2011 at the Hilton Anatole. Top professionals will compete in the Intel-sponsored QUAKE LIVE Duel Invitational Masters and the Intel® QUAKE LIVE Team Deathmatch Invitational Masters and contend for a share of over $40,000 in prize money. Also new to this year’s QuakeCon®, up-and-coming players will have the opportunity to prove their gaming expertise in the Brink™ Open Championships.

This year, players competing in the tournaments will all be using the same kind of computers thanks to Dell. Players will be using the Alienware Aurora, which combines the latest in gaming technology to deliver a premier gaming experience to even the most demanding hard core gaming fan.

QuakeCon, which is free and open to the public, offers an opportunity to see the greatest players in the world compete in highly-competitive tournaments. Matches will also be broadcast live each day of the competitions on large screens with play-by-play commentary from this year’s shoutcasters who will capture all of the energy, excitement and behind-the-scenes drama, with live match coverage, player interviews and expert analysis.

The QuakeCon 2011 Tournament Lineup:

The Intel® QUAKE LIVE Duel Invitational Masters
The Intel QUAKE LIVE Duel Invitational Masters will feature known professionals and top QUAKE LIVE competitors in their own exclusive tournament. Sixteen (16) of the world’s best QUAKE LIVE players, hand selected by tournament staff from the open online registration, will face-off in the 1 vs.1 duel for more than $14,000 in a single elimination bracket, with each match played in a best-of-three-games format. With two competitors remaining, thousands will gather to watch as these two best-of-the-best survivors go head-to-head in a single elimination, best-of-five-games throw-down with an $8,000 check written to the champion. Matches will feature a pool of five arenas.

The QUAKE LIVE Team Deathmatch Invitational Masters
The Team Deathmatch Invitational Masters will feature 4 vs. 4 competitions for eight (8) teams battling it out in a single elimination bracket and best-of three-games format using five arenas. Players who come out on top will share prizes of $28,000, including $16,000 for the team of champions. Matches in the tournament will feature five arenas.

The Brink Open Tournament
Available for up to sixteen (16) teams of amateurs with five players per team, the Brink Open will offer up-and-coming competitors a taste of the excitement and pressure of professional gaming. Battling for prizes ranging from top of the line video cards to autographed copies of Brink, players will compete in a stopwatch single elimination bracket. Matches for the Brink Open Tournament will feature Aquarium, Resort, and Terminal.

Registration Information
Players may register online by going to registration.quakecon.org between July 15^th and July 31^st.

Registration for the Brink Open Championship is first come, first served. Additional on-site registration will be available to fill any remaining tournament slots. Interested parties please visit our tournament area on-site at QuakeCon from noon to 1:00pm CST on Thursday, August 3^rd for participation availability.

Players with professional gaming experience or extensive QUAKE LIVE experience interested in receiving an invite to the Intel QUAKE LIVE Duel Invitational Masters or Intel QUAKE LIVE Team Deathmatch Invitational Masters must register online at registration.quakecon.org. Tournament invites will be delivered to qualified competitors selected by our competition committee. A complete list of qualified participants will be posted at www.quakecon.org following the selection process. Players selected for Intel QUAKE LIVE Master Championship are not eligible for the Open Tournament.

For official rules, requirements, prize money distribution, pool of arenas and additional information, please go to www.quakecon.org/tournament.

AMD: Xbox 720 to Have Avatar-level Graphics

2011-07-19T11:11:00.000-05:00

We've been hearing snippets of information about the Xbox 720 over the last few weeks and now AMD has put its two cents in.

We've already heard talk of DirectX 11 and an E3 2012 launch for the newest Xbox console and now AMD is adding that the console will be capable of producing graphics with Avatar-levels of detail. Referring to the smash-hit movie that put 3D on the map, Examiner cites director of ISV relationships at AMD, Neal Robison, as saying Xbox fans have a lot to be excited about.

Aside from stunning graphics, Robison is quoted as saying that the next-generation console from Microsoft will boast A.I. and physics capabilities that will allow for every pedestrian in a games like Grand Theft Auto or Saints Row 'to have a totally individual mentality'. That means no more of the mob mentality that sees everyone just running away screaming, each character will do something different.

The Examiner is using August's issue of Official Xbox Magazine as a source for the information, but AMD has not confirmed that it is working on the Xbox 720. Similarly, Microsoft has not confirmed any details regarding the new system. Elsewhere in the market, Nintendo just introduced the next generation Wii, the Wii U, which is scheduled for launch next year. Sony is also rumored to be working on the PS4, which is also expected in 2012.

Steam Speeds Up, Teases of DoTA2

2011-07-18T15:46:00.001-05:00

Steam has announced some kind of thing that does a clever something or other that tweaks this thing and tinkers with this other thing, and the result is that downloads are faster. Or, at least, they will be. It involves caching at ISPs, more firewall-friendly protocols (downloads will be coming via good ol’ HTTP ) and, best of all, a system that means more incremental patch downloads, instead of having to re-grab big huge chunks of game. Here, I’ll let them explain – as well as share some bonus good news.

With the Steam content system that’s been in place for a few years now, if an individual file on disk were modified by a game update, your client had to download the whole file. That can be painful when the file in question is really large. The new system supports delivering only the differences between the old and new files, meaning game updates will be much smaller overall.

Given some games do merrily contain multi-gigabyte single data files, that does sound like good news. Better news still? “Soon, Dota 2 will be delivered using it.” Ooh! Ooh! Ooh. With other rumourflies a-buzzin’ around mutters of a possible unveiling soon (some are even claiming GamesCom), DoTA2 suddenly seems to be looming large.

More details on the new system here. They also reckon Steam will be able to shrug off high demand a lot more competently as a result of this system. If that means an end to popular games downloading slowly or being deemed temporarily ‘not available’, I am all for it, yes sir.

Provided by: RockPaperShotgun

WOW Everyone! Truly Apperciate the Feedback!

2011-07-13T17:51:00.006-05:00

I want to take this very short time to thank EVERYONE for the amazing feedback we have gotten for our upcoming LAN! We were planning for a small LAN due to short notice and possible lack of interest, but everyone seems more ready than EVER!

With this being said, I am going to have to announce some good and bad things. First with the bad, if the numbers turn out like the feedback we have gotten, we won't be able to fully sit everyone at the LAN center, because of this, there is going to be a 30 person limit for BYOC. We will hopefully be expanding this with our next LAN but at this time we will not be able to fit that many computers with the current layout, so the LAN is completely FCFS!. Get up there early, get up there quick if you want to have a confirmed spot! If you plan on playing consoles all night then you are more than welcome to come and play those at the same price. With this being said also, if you are not interested in coming to game and just want to hang out and socialize then we will be charging $5 at the door. One last bit of bad news, no alcohol at this LAN (but there will be Bawls for sale!), we will be planning a 21+ LAN very soon!

Now for the AWESOME news! We have our main games for the LAN, so prepare your rigs and get ready to FRAG!
Focus Games -
Call of Duty 4
UT2K4
League of Legends
Quake Live
Starcraft II
Counter Strike Source
and any other LAN games you want to fire up! (Not in any particular order)

We will be hosting mini tourneys of just about each of these games throughout the night, prizes will be bragging rights! This is going to be old style LAN where everyone comes in, sets up, games/socializes, has a good time, then goes on their way!

Don't forget to join the event on Facebook and suggest The Texan Gamer page to your friends!

Thanks again everyone! This is going to be a AMAZING LAN!

All Three Next-Gen Consoles Sporting AMD GPUs?

2011-07-12T12:47:00.002-05:00

Will all three next-generation consoles feature IBM processors and AMD GPUs?

Although AMD already announced that Nintendo is using a custom AMD Radeon RV770 GPU in the upcoming Wii U console, there's now talk that AMD GPUs will also be used in the next PlayStation and Xbox consoles. The news is based on a rumor stemming from E3 2011 claiming that it's literally a "done deal" with Microsoft and Sony. Unsurprisingly, this is the first we've heard of this particular GPU tale... there wasn't any mention of AMD hardware in a gaming console outside the Wii U, public or in private, during or after the show.

On the CPU front, we already know that IBM is providing the 45-nm multi-core "heart" of the Nintendo Wii U. As for the third generation Xbox, IBM is also supposedly lined up with a possible Cell processor. Current rumors indicate that Microsoft will reveal the console next year at E3 2012, but there's indication that the company may hold off an additional year or two due to the success of the Kinect. This little tidbit doesn't make much sense given that the next console will likely support both Xbox 360 games and Kinect anyway.

As for Sony's effort, reports on the PlayStation 4 processor are a bit more murky than the other two, ranging from an AMD APU (Bulldozer) to a newer updated 32-nm IBM Cell processor. The new Sony console is also expected to make an appearance next year at E3 2012, so we expect to hear something more solid before then. Again, like the Xbox, it is all mere rumor until we start getting closer to the next show and tidbits of more information are "leaked" out.

Honestly, if the Big Three manufactured consoles with IBM processors and AMD GPUs across the board, development would seemingly be a lot easier for those creating multi-platform titles. Even more, if all three integrated native support for a mouse and keyboard, there wouldn't be such a wide gap between PC and console gaming. The OnLive service and its mini-console, which is about the size of a Nintendo DS, has already proven that mouse/keyboard and gamepad control setups can coexist on one device.

Just recently OnLive's VP of Engineering Joe Bentley said that the company is now talking with Microsoft and Sony about bringing its tech to the consoles. "There are OnLive guys chatting [with Sony and MS], but we'll see where it goes," he said. "But it would absolutely work, we're ready to work with everybody. Our controller is a hybrid between a PS3 controller and an Xbox controller. It's all compatible, it would just work."

Provided by: Tomshardware

Windows 8 Will Play Very Nicely With Windows 7

2011-07-12T12:40:00.000-05:00

Over 400 Million Windows 7 Licenses Sold!

Kicking off Microsoft's annual Worldwide Partner Conference, CEO Steve Ballmer today thanked partners for helping make Windows 7 the fastest-selling operating system in history, now with more than 400 million Windows 7 licenses sold in less than two years.

Echoing that point, Tami Reller, corporate vice president and chief financial officer of Windows and Windows Live, emphasized that Windows 7 is the path to Windows 8. Noting that there are still more than 200 million PCs running Windows XP, which was launched in 2001, Reller told partners they have a real opportunity to deliver more value to customers in the short term and "set them up for the future."

In providing an overview of the road ahead with Windows, Reller told partners that despite the record growth and success of Windows 7, there is tremendous Windows 7 deployment opportunity now and well into the future. "We see a future with a heterogeneous enterprise environment of Windows 8 devices and apps alongside Windows 7 PCs and apps," she said.

"At the heart of our ability to deliver Windows 8 is the flexibility Windows has consistently shown; its ability to adapt over time is what ensures Windows will continue to be highly relevant in the future," Reller added.

Given that current expectations are for Windows 8 to arrive sometime in 2012, it's in everyone's best interest that Microsoft is making Windows 8 as compatible as possible with any business migrations to Windows 7.

Provided by: Tomshardware

Bungie Officially Says Goodbye to Halo

2011-07-11T16:10:00.000-05:00

Bungie officially says goodbye to Halo and its long-time fans. Sniff (sob).

ZoomSee you starside, writes Bungie in its official farewell to the Halo franchise. The studio said that management of the Halo multiplayer playlists will be handed over on August 2, thus severing its last connection to the popular franchise. The Bungie website will thus shed any signs of Halo in a complete makeover, and then the studio itself will "go dark" as it focuses on creating a brand new universe for parent company Activision-Blizzard.

"As we prepare to become fans of the universe our studio began creating more than ten years ago, it's nice to know that we'll be counted among such esteemed company," the company writes. "Some might consider the upcoming transition a bittersweet occasion punctuated by a sense of loss and sadness. We feel otherwise. Halo is in great hands…yours."

"These last two weeks have been a celebration for us – a reminder of just why these last two decades have been so uniquely special for Bungie," the company adds. "More than ever we are humbled by your dedication and your loyalty (and now, even by your Halo: Reach skills…ouch)."

Bungie will release a ViDoc on August 2 called "O Brave New Worlds" which will offer the studio's parting thoughts on the last twenty years. That's right – Bungie has been around since 1991, originally founded by University of Chicago undergraduate student Alex Seropian. The studio managed to squeeze out a few Marathon and Myth games before taking on the FPS genre with the release of Microsoft's original Halo: Combat Evolved Xbox and Windows PC game in 2001.

"Our next project demands an unwavering focus," the studio writes. "We owe it to ourselves to make something better than we ever have before. We owe it to you, as well. So, this isn't a goodbye. It isn't The End. Instead, it's the very beginning of a new journey that will stretch the limits of what we are capable of.

Hmmm. Bungie's new franchise for Activision-Blizzard wouldn't be Starside, would it? Details surrounding the new project are scarce at best save for a few tidbits reporting that it’s another FPS with MMO elements. This new franchise is also supposedly set in a science-fiction setting and slated for the Xbox 360 and Windows PC simultaneously.

As reported back at E3 2011 in June, Microsoft will release a revamped Halo: Combat Evolved (aka Halo: Anniversary) for the Xbox 360 in November. Under Microsoft's watchful eye, 343 Industries, Saber Interactive and Certain Affinity are rebuilding the classic shooter from the ground up using an in-house engine while also throwing in support for Kinect.

“It’s no surprise we’re exploring ways Kinect can enhance game experiences in authentic and meaningful ways,” said Microsoft Game Studios head Phil Spencer in an interview. “The Kinect features we’re exploring with Halo: Anniversary are additive and will not affect the core gameplay experience or alter our mission of delivering a faithful recreation of the original game. That said we have nothing else to share just yet.”

Provided by: Tomshardware

Verizon: Unlimited Data Officially Ends TODAY!

2011-07-06T08:07:00.001-05:00

Verizon will no longer offer unlimited plans to new customers starting Thursday.

ZoomVerizon Wireless representative Brenda Raney has reportedly confirmed that the Big Red will officially close its unlimited data doors on July 6, thus kicking off the dreaded tier pricing plans the next day, July 7. Starting Thursday, new customers will have three options at their disposal: $30 for 2 GB, $50 for 5 GB or $80 for 10 GB.

"This change sets the stage for all the promise of 4G ... [and] when much of the computing we do will be wireless," Raney told the Wall Street Journal. "It's preparing for the future and setting the stage where people will pay for what they use."

Raney added that customers will pay $10 for each additional GB they use beyond their plan, but there will be safeguards set in place to warn users of their data usage before they cross the allowed limits. And while the wireless tap will seemingly be narrowed to a trickle, here's a bit of good news: 95-percent of Verizon Wireless customers typically consume less than 2 GB a month anyway. Raney said that number equals to around 2,000 emails (with attachments we assume) or 20 hours of streaming video.

"Those customers who are the heavy data users are going to pay for what they use," she said. Additionally, feature phones – those which typically offer basic Internet access – will require users to pay $10 for a measly 75 MB instead of the previous $29.99 unlimited monthly plan. Freestanding users – those that don't want a subscription – will be required to pay $1.99 per MB.

Verizon customers who have already signed on prior to July 7 will be able to retain their unlimited plans, even when upgrading to a new phone, Raney said.

Provided by: Tomshardware

LAN Announcement!

2011-07-05T09:42:00.003-05:00

TXG is proud to announce our TXG Welcome Back LAN!

We have found our new LAN location and are wanting to introduce the place to everyone! Bring your rig, bring your skillz, and don't forget to bring your GAME! Check the events tab on our Facebook page for more information and to RSVP!

Charge for the event is $15
Charge for the event using the location's computer is $20

I also hear that BIGGER and BETTER LAN announcement will be made while at this event....Hope to see you all there!

PS4 release date coming 2012 with Kinect style gaming?

2011-07-04T08:18:00.002-05:00

Sony is to begin production of the eagerly awaited PlayStation 4 console later this year ahead of 2012 release date, new reports have suggested.

Having unveiled the Sony PlayStation Vita at E3 last month, Sony is expected to officially unveil the PS4 at next year’s Los Angeles based industry showcase ahead of a pre-Christmas 2012 release with Microsoft Kinect styled movement-based gaming.

The reports which come courtesy of tech blog Digitimes suggest Taiwan-based technology manufacturers Foxconn and Peagtron Technology, both responsible for putting together the PS3, will begin work on the fourth generation PlayStation console later this year in order to meet the 20 million unit stock demand of a 2012 launch.

These latest PS4 release date reports come after it was suggested Microsoft was planned an E3 2012 unveiling for the mooted Xbox 720 sparking rumours that the two giants of the gaming market could go head-to-head next year.

Provided by: T3

Age of Conan MMO Subscription Free!

2011-07-03T08:00:00.003-05:00

Funcom has re-launched Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures as a free-to-play/subscription-based hybrid MMORPG called Age of Conan: Unchained. It's reportedly naughtier too.

Friday Funcom announced that its popular MMORPG Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures has officially taken on the free-to-play mantle and is now re-branded as Age of Conan: Unchained. The news follows the launch of Blizzard's pseudo demo World of Warcraft Starter Edition and T3 Entertainments open beta of Hellgate, both of which also launched this week.

"After 1.4 million copies sold, having experienced fantastic critical acclaim, and still to this day going strong with a large active player base embarking on thousands of daily adventures, there is no doubt that ‘Age of Conan’ has made a significant impact on the online gaming genre," said Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing Morten Larssen. "The great potential provided by the hybrid business model, and with the ever growing interest for free-to-play games, bringing ‘Age of Conan’ into this market is undoubtedly the logical next step for the title."

Age of Conan: Unchained now offers a "hybrid" business model: players can roam Conan's backyard for free, or go old-school and cough up a monthly subscription fee. As seen with other free-to-play models, an in-game store will be inserted into the realm so that players can purchase exclusive content such as weaponry and mounts. But naturally there will be limitations placed on free accounts so that players get hooked to the point of going full-blown premium.

As seen here, several major differences divide the Free and Premium accounts. Those who don't want to take the subscription route will be locked down to four available character classes. They'll also have access to non-premium dungeons, two raids, two characters slots (although there's a max of 18), and only basic mount training. Free players can't partake in sieges, they only have 50-percent of the personal bank space available, they can't level offline and they can't earn veteran points.

"For the team working on the game, going free-to-play is great because it opens up this great fantasy world to an even larger audience," said Creative Director and Executive Producer Craig Morrison. "Not only can players now enjoy the content for free, we will continue to add new gameplay features and new content and make improvements to the game. ‘Age of Conan: Unchained’ will offer a fantastic experience for both new customers and players who have already roamed the online world of Hyboria. An engrossing story, brutal combat and savage world is waiting for those who dare explore the lands of Hyboria."

To jump in and explore the virtual world of Hyboria now, head here to grab the installer. The actual client is an extra 7.51 GB download.

Provided by: Toms Hardware

New LAN Center & New Fun!

2011-07-02T20:38:00.003-05:00

Welcome back to The Texan Gamer! We are back and more prepared than ever to provide you with the best LAN parties and gaming news in all of Texas!

After a bit of a hiatus, we are proud to announce that we have a new location for LAN parties and are looking forward to bringing back the local LAN scene! We are proud to announce that Shadow LAN is our newest provider for a fun location to bring everyone together to LAN! Follow the LINK to their website to check it out!

Keep checking back for more updates! I hear there is a LAN party in the plans for the very near future to break in the place.....

Quakecon Tournament Announcement

2011-07-01T12:27:00.002-05:00

Quakecon has just announced some of their tournaments that they will be holding this year!

"Tournament lineup at QuakeCon 2011 to include QUAKE LIVE Duel Invitational Masters, QUAKE LIVE Team Deathmatch Invitational Masters, and Brink Open Championships! More news coming soon!"

Remember, Quakecon is August 4th-7th this year at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas!

Be sure to keep watching for more news on Quakecon and other exciting gaming events!

Looking for contributors!

2011-02-08T20:13:00.004-06:00

Think you have what it takes to bring gaming news to the masses? Want to rep your skillz, clan, team, site, or company on thetexangamer.com? Send an email to admin@thetexangamer.com if you're interested in helping publish content to the site!

Your mom hates Dead Space 2

2011-01-18T15:13:00.004-06:00

http://www.youtube.com/v/jri8LFci4xQ

New MSI GT680 Gaming Laptop

2011-01-11T17:32:00.002-06:00

The Laptop was announced at CES 2011, and is expected to be quite the beast:

5.6 “1920 x 1080 LED backlight display with webcam
2nd gen Intel Quad-Core Processor like on Acer Veriton Z410G 21.5-Inch Desktop
Up to 16 GB of RAM
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460M GDDR5 1.5GB
1x HDMI, 1x VGA (output)
120GB SSD + 500GB RAID 0 HDD/640GB/1TB
Blu-ray / DVD Super Multi
2x USB 3.0, 2x USB 2.0
1x eSATA
1x ExpressCard/54
SD (HC / XC) / MMC / MS (Pro) / xD
2.1-channel speakers Sound by THX Dynadio TruStudio Pro
802.11 b / g / n WLAN + Bluetooth v2.1 + EDR
1x Gigabit LAN
9-Cell Li-Ion Battery
15.5 “x 10.5″ x 2.16, 7.7 lbs (w / battery)

Via thinklaptops.net

Left 4 Dead Plush Zombies

2010-12-30T08:25:00.003-06:00

Who knew that Left4Dead plush zombies could be soo cute and cuddly. Several Left4Dead character are now available at the Valve Store.

Razor Creating Tron Gaming Gear

2010-12-23T07:57:00.003-06:00

"Razer announced with Disney, the TRON:Legacy -themed TRON Gaming Keyboard Designed by Razer, TRON Gaming Mouse Designed by Razer, and the exclusive bundle with TRON Gaming Mouse and Mouse Mat Designed by Razer all incorporating the distinctive blue glow and custom features inspired by the upcoming Disney film TRON: Legacy, releasing Dec. 17, 2010 in Disney Digital 3D and IMAX 3D, and compatible with TRON: Evolution the video game. Together with Disney, Razer is offering gamers and TRON fans alike a set of definitive gaming peripherals to get the true TRON experience."

Via Guru3d

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFm6UOLltAk

Activision Blizzard to add EA to a $400 Million Lawsuit

2010-12-23T07:51:00.004-06:00

"In April, Activision countersued former executives Jason West and Vincent Zampella, saying that they tried to hijack the company's assets, threatening the future of "Call of Duty," a multi-billion dollar brand."

Reuters Technology

Forums!

2010-12-16T15:41:00.002-06:00

Greetings all! I hope by now your DNS has updated and you should have gotten a chance to see the new site/read the big announcement. I wanted to remind everyone that the new forums are prepped and ready to accept new members. I want to take a moment to welcome Steven "h3ll/gdisteve" as our first TXG member to sign up on the new boards and say hi.

I went ahead and changed the "forums" link to point directly to our TXG Computer and Video Games forum so that it would be more apparent that you are indeed in the right place when you click on forums. You are of course still welcome to post in all areas of the forums, but I wanted to bring the above image to your attention to remind everyone to come over and say hi in the welcoming stickies.

Welcome to the NEW TXG!

2010-12-13T14:52:00.001-06:00

Welcome all to the brand freakin' new TXG website!

TXG officially launched in January of 2009 and has seen it's share of successes and failures. We went from a small North Texas Website to building a network state wide and supporting dozens of Gaming Centers and LAN Parties all within our first year. The Texan Gamer has been placed at the help to manage and operate the official QuakeCon Community Competitions two years in a row, and has provided countless hours of support to gaming efforts over the past two years.

As with everything, people have come and gone, and our visions has changed considerably from when we first opened the doors. Most of us have more going on in our lives than just gaming, and we are looking for a simple yet effective outlet to share ideas and stay close. To help with this new vision, we have decided it would be easiest to wipe the slate clean and start from scratch. With that, I bring you the all new TXG Network! We have a newly redesigned homepage, twitter account, Facebook page, and all new forums.

Keeping with the theme of having more than just gaming in our lives, we have merged our forums with DFWMustangs.net. This forum is already going strong and hosts a place to discuss not only games and computers, but cars, guns, working out, political debate and MUCH more. We are proud to join such a well rounded and active user base. Do to the extreme variances in each board - you will need to re-create your forum account. Look for a sticky in our home forum for details on how to regain your join date and post count. Our home base will be "The Texan Gamer Computer and Gaming Center" forum - however feel free to roam around and post everywhere including the off topic form labeled "The Back Porch"

Look for more exciting announcements coming soon!

EA Announces first expansion to Bad Company 2

2010-12-09T11:12:00.001-06:00

Oh wait, that's the OTHER Vietnam edition lolz. Seriously though, check out the video and key features for the all new "Battlefield Bad Company 2 Vietnam"

KEY FEATURES
5 Multiplayer Maps.
Phu Bai Valley, Hill 137, Vantage Point, Cao Son Temple, and Operation Hastings. All game modes from Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (Conquest, Rush, Squad Deathmatch, and Squad Rush) are playable on all 5 maps.
15 Vietnam-era Weapons.
Everything is unlocked from the get go (this is also true for the launch version). One of our biggest new additions is the flame-thrower (see below). We have also made sure to give the weapons a rusty and tarnished look and feel..
6 Vietnam War Vehicles.
Skim the treetops in the iconic American Huey helicopter. Drive the sturdy Russian T54 tank and the nimble US PBR "Pibber" patrol boat, plus three more vehicles immortalized in the Vietnam War.

New Trophies/Achievements.
Collect 10 new achievements/trophies. Earn new weapon proficiency stars specific to your skills with the weapons in this expansion.

Hard|OCP hardware giveaway this weekend!

2010-12-08T20:55:00.003-06:00

Image says it all

Killing Floor Twisted Christmas Event with Pyro From TF2

2010-12-08T20:53:00.002-06:00

Christmas is coming early for Killing Floor fans, as Tripwire Interactive is happy to announce the massive Twisted Christmas event starting next week, just in time for the holidays. Featuring Christmas themed specimens replacing all of the regular baddies, a brand new level – Santa’s Evil Lair, Christmas themed achievements with a special unlockable character, an all new difficultly level and loads of new achievements this is THE gaming event of the holiday season. And if a pile of free content wasn’t enough for you, the Killing Floor crew have enlisted the help of a special guest to battle these Yule-tide baddies - Team Fortress 2’s Pyro. And the sharing doesn’t end there as the Pyro will be bringing back a special Killing Floor item to TF2 with him – Mr. Foster’s trademark gas mask and business tie!