Retired baseball pitcher Curt Schilling has a thing for MMOs. Having lots of time and piles of money lying around, he started his own game company, 38 Studios. He brought in all the big names. R.A. Salvadore is the Director of Creative Content. Todd McFarlane is the Executive Art Director. They even hired Travis McGeathy, the lead designer of Everquest. Schilling wasn’t messing around.

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Publisher: Red Wasp Design
Developer: Red Wasp Design
System requirements: Windows XP/Vista/Win 7, 1.8 GHz CPU, 1 GB RAM, OpenGL-compatible graphics card
Genre: Strategy
ESRB rating: Not rated
Release date: Available now

Oh, what is man? What can pierce the sky with metal and fire? What can split the foundations of the universe into kindling for laptops and iPods? What god is man? And yet, when we stare at the universe, either through a telescope or a microscope, we see the same things. Beyond the banality of planets and particles, we see a large darkness. No matter how much we look into it, it never looks back. This is our modern horror, the unthinking, unfeeling insanity of H.P. Lovecraft’s lauded Cthulhu mythos. These century-old works of fiction have gripped the modern mind and spread through Internet culture like a mutated cult. Heck, even Batman’s Arkham Asylum is a nod towards Miskatonicly minded individuals. However, when the awakening cults finally hit gaming, I expected a Korean MMO, a card-battle game, or something equally insane. What we got was The Wasted Land, a turn-based strategy game originally on iOS. Much like the works that birthed it, what The Wasted Land lacks in body it has in soul.

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Big Finish Games wants to revive the classic sci-fi noir detective Tex Murphy, and they need your help. Codenamed Project Fedora, this will be the sixth game in the full-motion video adventure game series. All the original elements are coming back: creators Chris Jones and Aaron Conners (with Jones reprising his lead role), strong character-driven plots, and FMV. New this time are branching story paths, giving a little more flexibility to the man of mystery. Project Fedora promises to not only introduce Tex Murphy to newcomers, but also to resolve the cliffhanger ending from Tex Murphy: Overseer. Kickstarter funding for the endeavor ends on June 16th.

The following article first appeared in TuneUp: Blog About Windows. It is reprinted with permission of the author.

Author: Tibor Schiemann, President & Managing Partner, TuneUp

The resurgence in classic gaming has spurred both the nostalgic and the simply curious to explore treasures like Monkey Island (1990) or Wing Commander III (1994). Back in the old days, you could power on your trusty computer running DOS, Windows 3.x or Windows 9x and point-and-click the day away. But enjoying such classics on modern machines isn’t so easy, especially considering how much hardware and software architecture has changed over the past few decades. About 90% of the time, the good old DOS, Windows 3.x or Windows 9x games won’t even start. There are, however, some tricks for running these retro games on today’s PCs.

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Publisher: Remedy
Developer: Remedy
System requirements: Windows XP SP2/Vista/Win 7, 2 GB dual core/2.8 GB AMD or better CPU, 2 GB RAM, 512 MB DirectX 10-compatible graphics card, DirectX 9.0c-compatible sound device, DirectX 9.0c, 8 GB hard-drive space
Genre: Adventure
ESRB rating: Teen
Release date: Available now

One of the most powerful weapons a storyteller has in his arsenal is ambiguity. Think about the ending of Inception. The spinning totem in the final shot has inspired countless hours of discussion about its significance. Now comes the PC version of Alan Wake, a third-person action-adventure game initially released two years ago for Xbox 360. Through the narration of its protagonist, a best-selling author of horror novels, developer Remedy has fashioned a world of compelling ambiguity: How much of what we see is a memory? A dream? The product of a damaged psyche? For that matter, is the narrator even telling the truth?

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Publisher: Beatshapers
Developer: Beatshapers
Genre: Arcade puzzle
ESRB rating: Everyone
Release date: Available now

PlayStation Vita, Sony’s fancy new handheld, released in early 2012 in North America with more than two dozen launch games. Many of them, such as Uncharted: Golden Abyss and Unit 13, were the type of game that require a considerable time investment in each play session. But most adults who play portable game systems only really use them in small chunks of time, such as on public transportation or while waiting for the end of the final spin cycle. Developer/publisher Beatshapers has helped to fill this void with Stardrone: Extreme, a fast-paced, sometimes-maddening arcade game that only takes a few minutes of your valuable time for each addictive level.

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Publisher: Her Interactive
Developer: Her Interactive
System requirements: Windows XP/Vista/Win 7/OSX 10.5, 1.5 GHz Pentium 4 or better CPU, 512 MB RAM, 3 GB hard-drive space, 128 MB DirectX 9.0-compatible graphics card, 16 bit DirectX-compatible sound device
Genre: Adventure
ESRB rating: Everyone
Release date: May 9, 2012

Nancy Drew has a long history as a book series. More recently, the PC game series is making a name for itself as a continuation of the tradition. As the 26th game in the collection, Tomb of the Lost Queen has a well established framework to not just match, but also hopefully to surpass.

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Publisher: Telltale Games
Developer: Telltale Games
System requirements: Windows XP SP3/Vista/Win 7/Mac OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard), 2.0 GHz Pentium IV or better CPU, 3 GB RAM (4 GB for Mac), 512 MB graphics card, DirectX 9.0c-compatible sound device, DirectX 9.0c, 2 GB hard-drive space
Genre: Adventure
ESRB rating: Mature
Release date: Available now

Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead graphic-novel series has become a cottage industry since its original publication in 2003. The television series based on the comics has become one of the AMC cable network’s most popular shows, several board games have been released, action figures by Todd McFarlane are available. You can even get drinking glasses and beer steins emblazoned with Walking Dead graphics. And now, adventure-game publisher Telltale has added to zombie lore with the first of five video-game episodes, giving you the chance to guide a troubled hero through the opening days of the zombie apocalypse.

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Publisher: Hi-Rez Studios
Developer: Hi-Rez Studios
System requirements: Windows XP SP2/Vista/Win 7, 2.4 GHz Core2Duo/2.7 GHz Athlon X2 or better CPU, 2 GB RAM (XP)/3 GB RAM (Vista/Win 7), 512 MB graphics card with Shader Model 3.0 support, DirectX-compatible sound device, 10 GB hard-drive space
Genre: FPS
ESRB rating: Teen
Release date: 2012

My my, what an exciting time to be a gamer. The Internet has created a host of independently developed games, digital distribution and F2P are chipping away at the $60 price point, and Kickstarter is busting up the traditional publishing model. Now, developer Hi-Rez Studios has rescued the Tribes license. Tribes 2, featuring class-based team play and pinpoint-accurate weapons, was a game before its time. Even now, years after officially being shut down, you can still find players skiing around base defenses on community servers. As unique as it is, Tribes has never truly been emulated. Soon it will come to the masses in the form of a free-to-play online shooter. Thankfully, this release is looking to be more second coming than blasphemy.

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Tired of traipsing around the Elder Scrolls universe all by yourself? Reinforcements are on the way. Today Bethesda Softworks announced that The Elder Scrolls Online, an MMO set in the sprawling fantasy worlds of games such as Skyrim and Oblivion, is currently under construction. Details are sketchy at the moment, but it was revealed that the game will be available for PC and Mac, and has been in the works for several years. ESO game director Matt Firor says that he and his colleagues have been “working hard to create an online world in which players will be able to experience the epic Elder Scrolls universe with their friends.” Firor has set the bar high for ESO: “The entire team is committed to creating the best MMO ever made – and one that is worthy of the Elder Scrolls franchise.”

Gaming website Mass Luminosity today announced that Gaming Tribe, the company’s in-development social network portal for gamers, has moved into Beta 2. The new version of the site features many improvements, not the least of which is its independence from Facebook. Members can now see an accurate count of the number of Tribe members, a list of giveaways in which they’ve participated, and an archive of their messages. You can also see the current status of recent giveaways. In the future, Gaming Tribe will be running promotions reserved exclusively for its first 25,000 members. Currently the site lists just better than 15,000, so you still have time to get in on the action. Cooler Master is sponsoring the first event on the Beta 2 site on May 8. Click here to sign up.

Publisher: Mumbo Jumbo
Developer: Mumbo Jumbo
System requirements: Windows XP/Vista/Win 7, 1 GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM, DirectX 9.0c-compatible graphics card with Shader Model 2.0 support, 150 MB hard-drive space
Genre: Puzzle
ESRB rating: Everyone
Release date: May 1, 2012

There are many genres of games that seem to be content to never change. Match-threes, hidden-objects and time-management games seem to cater to a market that likes their games predictable and easy. Luxor Evolved, however doesn’t want to fall into that pit. As its name suggests, it wants to take that same universal game and turn it into something even core gamers can appreciate. Hold onto your moonstones; Luxor’s evolving!

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Publisher: THQ
Developer: Illfonic
System requirements: Windows XP/Vista/Win 7, 2.0 GHz Core2Duo or better CPU, 2 GB RAM (3 GB for Vista), 512 MB GeForce 8800 GT/Radeon 3850 HD or better graphics card, DirectX-compatible sound device, DirectX 9.0c, 3 GB hard-drive space.
Genre: FPS
ESRB rating: Teen
Release date: May 10, 2012

The other day I was standing in the shower when suddenly I was stung with an awareness of my mortality. I wondered that, if I died today, would I have left anything of worth behind? My life’s achievements, the friends, the debt, that nice thing I did once, what did they mean? But one stood out: that one time I dominated so much at a UT2K4 LAN party that I wasn’t invited back. I smiled, basking in the glow of my former glory, until I realized that I was about to be late for my retail job. I might withhold these deep personal truths from my counselor, but that’s only because he doesn’t understand. Developer Illfonic, however, has an uncanny understanding of my pains and desires. Their latest game, the oddly-titled Nexuiz, seems tailor-made to let you relive your better times, assuming those times involve classic FPS action.

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Publisher: Focus Home Interactive
Developer: Cyanide Studio
System requirements: Windows XP SP3/Vista SP2/Win 7, 2.0 GHz dual-core CPU, 256 MB GeForce 7900 GTX/Radeon HD 2600 XT or better graphics card with Shader Model 3.0 support, 2 GB RAM, DirectX 9-compatible sound device, 4 GB hard-drive space
Genre: RPG
ESRB rating: Not rated
Release date: Available now

“Foretold by many prophecies, the Rag’narok is the war of the age of darkness, the battle during which the gods will choose their champions before putting Aarklash to fire and sword.” Yes, the setting of Cyanide Studio’s Confrontation is grim. A strategy RPG with a rather detailed fantasy setting, Confrontation sees you gathering your group of heroes and going deep into the heart of the enemy’s territory, fighting innumerable battles to overcome your foes, using swords, spells and cunning strategies, emphasizing strategy over RPG elements.

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Publisher: Paradox Interactive
Developer: Turbo Tape Games
System requirements: Windows Vista/Win 7, dual-core CPU, 2 GB RAM, 512 MB GeForce GT 240 or better graphics card, 4 GB hard-drive space, DirectX 9-compatible sound device, DirectX 9.0c
Genre: Simulation
ESRB rating: Not rated
Release date: Available now

I’m not cut out for Navy life. Being crammed into poorly-lit metallic rooms filled with smelly people in the middle of nowhere reminds me too much of my college experience. There’s also my problem with authority. While I don’t think I’m cut out for taking orders in a tuna can, sitting in a climate controlled C&C bunker giving orders is entirely different. Turbo Tape Games is there to fulfill my curiosity with their new strategy game, Naval War: Arctic Circle. Featuring a depiction of modern naval combat so detailed it borders on simulation, Naval War has more than enough depth to drown in. But is it worth braving the cold?

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