Source: Blue’s News

Steam News announces the Havoc DLC for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is now available for Windows, as its Xbox exclusivity has now expired. Word is: “The first downloadable content pack for Call of Duty®: Advanced Warfare, featuring the all-new Exo Zombies co-op experience, the all-new versatile AE4 directed energy assault rifle, the AE4 Widowmaker custom variant, and four new Multiplayer maps, tailor-made to unleash your exoskeleton’s power.” On a semi-related note, the Call of Duty blog has word on plans to offer “Advanced Supply Drops” for a premium which will include weapons, but they still say these “are optional and do not affect the balance of gameplay”. Here’s word:

Since the launch of Call of Duty®: Advanced Warfare and the immense personalization of operator gear and weapon variants, players have been asking for more opportunities to secure additional supply drops. Coming soon, Advanced Supply Drops will be available from the in game store, to give you the chance for more Weapon Loot and Character Gear to customize your operator, as well as Reinforcements (Advanced Supply Drops will not include Rapid Supply or Orbital Care Package Reinforcements). Advanced Supply Drops are optional and do not affect the balance of gameplay.

Here is what you will find in each Advanced Supply Drop:

• Three items.
• At least one weapon variant.
• At least one Professional rarity item or better.
• All items come with their own Armory slot; all items can be redeemed for XP.

In addition to acquiring items from the current rotation, you will also have the opportunity to get unique cosmetic gear items found only within Advanced Supply Drops. Be on the lookout for the Eco Custom Exo, items from the Arctic Gear set, and more!

Check out these latest hardware announcements for today from around the web. Also included are some hardware news bits, and on some days, a few rumors tossed in for good measure. Click on the links below to read the official press release, visit the products web page, or to an independent news source.

• MSI Unveils an Arsenal of New GAMING Products
• Antec Announces VPF Series Power Supplies
• ASRock Announces X99 WS-E Socket LGA2011v3 Motherboard
• HyperX Releases FURY DDR4 Memory; Adds High-capacity Predator DDR4 Kits - VIDEO
• SilentiumPC Announces Alea M50 Pure Black Case
• EVGA Announces GeForce GTX 960 SSC 4GB
• Tesoro Announces the Excalibur Spectrum Mechanical Keyboard – VIDEO
• Inno3D Announces First 4 GB GeForce GTX 960 Graphics Card
• Sapphire Releases New Radeon R7 260X iCafe OC Graphics Card
• Phanteks Announces Enthoo EVOLV ITX Chassis
• VisionTek Introduces DriveXpander 2.5-inch Drive Expansion Slot Adapter
• BitFenix Announces AEGIS Micro-ATX Chassis
• Fractal Design Announces Venturi Series Fans
• Tesoro Gungnir Black Optical Gaming Mouse with RGB Illumination goes Official
• Thermaltake Announces Riing 12 and 14 LED Radiator Fan Series
• BenQ Launches 27-inch Widescreen RL2755HM Gaming Display

Rebellion releases five minutes of bone-chilling new Zombie Army Trilogy gameplay and essential survival tips

Reports are coming in thick and fast that legions of undead super soldiers are but days away from overwhelming world defences, with owners of Xbox Ones, PlayStation 4s and PCs predicted to take the brunt of the onslaught on March 6.

In response to this alarming news, self-appointed zombie exterminators Rebellion have taken it upon themselves to blast the virtual airwaves with an important public announcement outlining the tactics, weapons and zombie weaknesses that players will need to exploit if they have any hope of surviving.

Long story short? You’ll need rifles, a team of four hard-bitten sharp shooters and explosives. Lots of explosives.

Catch the no-holds-barred five-minute broadcast – complete with creepy disembodied British commentary right here.

Stop by the official website, www.ZombieArmy.com for more game information.

ESL developers are preparing to integrate Wargaming.net’s latest technological development, Battle API (Application Programming Interface), into their online ESL Play platform. As the world’s largest esports company, this is set to significantly improve the esports experience for World of Tanks players from all around the globe. Since ESL and Wargaming.net partnered in 2011, ESL World of Tanks players have secured themselves well over one million dollars in prize money. Battle API integration represents just the latest step the two companies have taken towards paving the way to a higher standard of esports events and user experience worldwide.

ESL will be the first external company to integrate Battle API into their leagues and competitions. Once integrated players will also be able to earn themselves in-game credits and battle experience when taking part in both online and offline competition. This is due to the integrated Battle API negating the need for ‘Training Room’ use.

The Battle API will be built into the World of Tanks game itself and will communicate with the ESL Play platform to automise actions such as in game invites, score postings and bracket updates. This form of game integration also allows for a more meaningful post-match analysis with statistics such as the number of shells shot, shot accuracy and amount of damage dealt available for use just moments after a game is over.

For more information please visit www.eslgaming.com.

Discover the New World and then Make Your Own in Latest Expansion

After a long voyage through rough seas (game development is hard), the newest expansion for Paradox Development Studio’s hit empire-building game Europa Universalis IV has arrived! El Dorado lands with a nearly infinite array of new possibilities and alternate histories, and explorers can begin their voyage into uncharted territories today on PC, Mac and Linux for $14.99.

Take a look at the fabled El Dorado in the launch trailer here.

With its focus on the empires of South and Central America, El Dorado includes three new major Native American faiths for the Aztec, the Maya and the Inca. Sacrifice vassal kings to stave off doomsday as the Aztecs or endure centuries of cyclical rise and fall as the Maya.

If your game choices tend more to exploration and plunder, you can send your fleets on specific missions across the seas or task your conquistadors with a quest to find the lost Seven Cities of Gold!

But, if you tire of “history,” you can now create your own kingdom with the brand-new Nation Designer included with El Dorado. Choose your starting provinces, your national ideas, your starting ruler and everything else you need to prove that you know the value of real estate and strong leadership. Then, for a new thrill, randomize the map and fight a France reborn in Manchuria.

El Dorado features include:

• Nation Designer
• Nahuatl religion for Aztecs
• Mayan religion for Yucatan natives
• Inti religion for Inca
• New exploration system
• Seven Cities of Gold quest for conquistadors
• Treasure fleets, and pirate missions to intercept them
• New limitations on and effects of vassal/subject nation loyalty
• Dozens of new events

For more information, please visit www.europauniversalis4.com.

Nival, an independent game developer renowned for their strategy games, have today announced changes to the business model for Blitzkrieg 3, the long awaited next installment to one of their most beloved franchises, as well as details of the launch of the Closed Alpha Test for the game.

Rejecting the current market trend for so called ‘free-to-play’ with in-game micro transactions, Blitzkrieg 3 will instead require players to only make a one-time payment for the game. Commenting on the business model, Sergey Orlovsky, CEO and founder of Nival said, “The pendulum is swinging once again when it comes to how consumers want to pay for their games. The market is shifting back towards a cleaner, simpler and more transparent model of one-time payments. This trend inspired us to return to the classic distribution model of the series, thus honoring the series’ traditions.”

The digital pre-sale of the full version of Blitzkrieg 3, which includes three single player campaigns, has now launched. Anyone that pre-orders the game will be eligible to join the Closed Alpha Test that begins today. Blitzkrieg 3 will be free from micro-transactions, in-game currency and any other form of in-game payments. In future, players will, however, be able to buy optional additional campaigns as DLC. The premium account system previously announced has also been removed from the game.

The brand new Alpha trailer can be viewed HERE.

The second walkthrough video looking at the defensive side of the asynchronous multiplayer mode can be viewed HERE.

For more information on Blitzkrieg 3 CAT and to pre-order the game head to the games official website.

Allied Commando Raid on Singapore Harbour 26-27 September 1943

By John Dudek @ The Wargamer

Three two-man canoe-kayaks manned by British and Australian commandos paddled silently along and unobserved into the blacked out roadstead of Japanese occupied Singapore Harbor on the night of 26/27 September 1943. Their targets were the dozens of dark and shadowy Japanese merchant ships and tankers anchored throughout the harbor. With some 45 ships to choose from anchored nearby, theirs was a truly target rich environment. One by one, the Allied canoe boats fanned out to choose their individual ship targets. Each boat silently glided alongside their chosen ships to quietly plant magnetic “limpet mines” with attached timers below the waterline before casting off in search of other prey. Any inquisitive Japanese crewman who might have looked over the side of their ships could easily spy the attacker’s menacing canoes lurking below. Yet somehow the merchant ship and tanker crews remained completely oblivious to the sabotage operation taking place around them and the earth shattering explosive climax that was soon to follow. Perhaps their being anchored in an extremely well defended harbor in a rear area backwater of the war played a major role in their complacency, but many of them would never see another sunrise.

Read on…

It is 1965 and the US ground war in Vietnam is in full swing. As a US Army commander, wage a counter-insurgency (COIN) war to secure the La Drang valley, on the border with Cambodia. 

Good News for all ‘Nam fans! Vietnam ’65 will also be available through Steam and the product page is now live.

While you are waiting and preparing your ammo and equipment, check out the page and the cool trailer.

Vietnam ’65 by Every Single Soldier, will be released on March 5th.

This is a game that captures the true essence of the Vietnam War, where airmobile operations are paramount, fire support bases play a critical role and air strikes can save the day.

Rise through the ranks and watch your personalized uniform transform from a junior Lieutenant to General as you relive the Vietnam War.

“Once the mass of the defending infantry become possessed of low morale, the battle is as good as lost.” (Douglas Haig – Commander of British Expeditionary Force)

Early 1915 – After a massive initial push from the Central Powers on the Western Front, the war is bogged down. Commanders from both sides protect their positions with strong defensive structures and fail to find breaches in the enemy lines. Artillery and barbed wire make the assaults deadly and wasteful. But in Breaking the Deadlock, the first expansion of Ageod’s World War 1 wargame To End All Wars, players can develop new tactics to outsmart their opponent and break the stalemate once and for all!

Breaking the Deadlock focuses on key moments of the Great War. It provides a series of short, intense and very detailed scenarios in which every single turn has decisive consequences on the final outcome of the battle!

And It’s not over! We are also releasing patch 1.02 (direct link) for the base game, bringing a host of improvements, including bug fixes, scenario changes and much more!

The game features five historical scenarios:

• Serbia (1915) covers the decisive Central Powers offensive in Serbia dedicated to secure the area and build a safe and effective supply chain between Germany and the Ottoman Empire.
•  Rumania (1916) narrates the entry of Rumania into the war on the Allied side after having been neutral for 2 years, and the Central Powers rapid counterattack in the Balkan theatre.
• Caporetto (1917) begins with the Germans sending support to the Austrian army on the Italian Front, resulting with some unconventional warfare tactics based on gas attacks and use of assault troops.
• Palestine(1917-1918) the British and Ottoman Empires confront each other in the Middle Eastern theatre. Players will have to deal with logistic challenges and unusual terrain types to be victorious on this exotic battlefield.
• 1916 Campaign (1916-1918) is a fresh new starting point of the Grand Campaign. Victory has not picked her side yet!

Get more information on To End All Wars: Breaking the Deadlock from its official product page.

Development on all five platform versions is now complete.

Source: IGN

Battlefield Hardline is officially gold on all platforms and regions ahead of its release next month, publisher Electronic Arts announced on Twitter today.

Visceral Games and EA Digital Illusions CE upcoming cops versus criminals shooter is slated to launch March 17 in North America and March 19 in Europe on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and Windows PC.

Battlefield fans got to go hands on with the title during its beta earlier this month. More than 7 million people participated in the beta earlier this month, with Hotwire being the most popular mode.

We spent hours shooting and driving in the multiplayer beta, and you can find out why we think Battlefield Hardline is mostly the same beast you’ve come to know and appreciate over the years.