COLUMN #151; BY PYARAY (27 January 2001, 23:39 EST) In his article entitled "How And Why Do Bad Games Get Made And Published", ex-Activisioner David "Pyaray" Ray gives us an exclusive look at his work that investigates games from bad to worse.
Comments/questions welcomed in our forums, or you may opt to contact the author directly. If you are looking to write for The Column yourself, see our Article Submission Page for more details. -DanQ
GC: NO TBS AWARDS FOR 2000 (27 January 2001, 1:16 EST) In announcing the GameCenter Computer Game Awards For 2000, the gaming branch of online technology giant C|Net offered up a very specific genre of strategy games that is in and another that is out in the awards circle: RTS is the former, and TBS is the latter.
There were no TBS nominees and thus, no winners in the category either. Does this simply spell C|Net's doubt in faith for the future of the TBS genre, or does it carry a meaning of something greater, something ominous? For now, the answer remains elusive. -DanQ
FORUM HICCUPS (25 January 2001, 19:17 EST) For those who experienced difficulties in accessing our forums earlier this evening, we apologize for any inconvenience.
There was simply a heavy traffic load on the server and were forced to shut it down for a few minutes while we performed some routine maintenance. There was never any risk of loss of data associated with this now resolved situation.
Thank you for your patience and making our forums and, indeed all of Apolyton, the harbour of Civilization discussion on the Internet. -DanQ
Apolyton Friends News
21-27/Jan 2001
INTERVIEW WITH BRIAN REYNOLDS (25 January 2001, 15:58 EST) It's a discussion with the man behind the Big Huge Games vision like no other.
Brian Reynolds, Presndeit of BHG, recently took some time out of his busy schedule to answer some questions we threw his way about all things from his departure from Firaxis more than a year ago to when one can expect a BHG booth at the annual E3 Expo.
Eleven questions in all, Reynolds disseminates his opinions on issues such as the Internet as a medium for game patch distribution and how he and his team shrunk their list of potential ideas for a debut product from six to one. -DanQ
PC DATA: JANUARY 13, 2001 (24 January 2001, 16:43 EST) For the week ending January 13, 2001, the Top 10 Selling PC Computer Games based on sales data gathered by Reston, Virginia's PCData are listed below.
1) The Sims | Electronic Arts 2) The Sims: Livin' Large | Electronic Arts 3) Roller Coaster Tycoon | Hasbro Interactive 4) Hoyle Casino 2001 | Havas Interactive 5) StarCraft: Battle Chest | Blizzard Entertainment 6) Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 | Electronic Arts 7) Age Of Empires II: Age Of Kings | Microsoft 8) Diablo 2 | Havas Interactive 9) Who Wants To Be A Millionaire | Disney 10) Sim Theme Park | Electronic Arts
This chart is developed from data provided by 42 retail chains comprising more than 80% of the U.S. market. -DanQ
FAVORITE ALIEN CROSSFIRE FACTION (26 January 2001, 9:55 EST) After a ridiculous amount of time and 3590 votes, here are the results of our Favorite Alien Crossfire Faction poll
Cyborgs
1066 / 29%
Data Angels
408 / 11%
Manifold Caretakers
246 / 6%
Manifold Usurpers
191 / 5%
Cult of Planet
195 / 5%
Drones
419 / 11%
Pirates
1065 / 29%
If you have any ideas for a new poll, feel free to mail us! -MarkG
STAR WARS MOD! (24 January 2001, 7:09 EST) After a bit of a long development time :) , Jasonian released his Star Wars Mod
The 7 factions are: Empire, Rebels, Naboo, Trade Federation, Jedi, Republic and Bounty Hunters. The mod is separated in two parts, for a total of 2.2MB -MarkG
ONE-HUNDREDTH WEEK ON G100 (21 January 2001, 20:47 EST) In the 420th installment of the Top 100 PC Games, published every week by Global 100, Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri/Sid Meier's Alien Crossfire grabs onto 10th spot in its momentous 100th week(!) on the charts.
1066 / 29%