If you love your Ghost Recon fun, then you should probably take to heart this little bit of news we found on the Ubisoft website. They've just released patch 1.04 for the PC version of the Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2, which adds some additional functions and fixes to the game.

Here's the list of changes that will come with every download of GRAW 2's 1.04 patch:

• GameSpy reporting and server info fixes.
• Added clean versions of landscapes without backdrop buildings for modders.
• Tutorials updated.
• Servers with unknown ping moved to bottom when sorting on ping.
• Server Screenshot function updated.
• Player list id number corrected in the console.
• Server password settings fixed.

Fans of the game would do well to download the patch ASAP. New owners will also want to grab the patch, if only for the ability to take an updated version of their tutorial system. Enjoy!

E3 is over and done with, leaving some of us hopeful for games queued up for the next couple of months. That doesn't necessarily mean we should turn a blind eye to this week's releases though. There are still a couple of gems not worth passing up.

While Nintendo doesn't have anything up for this week, it's going to be a busy one for the Sony and Microsoft camp as things heat up on the gridiron with All-Pro Football 2K8 and NCAA Football 08, both available on the 360 and PS3.

Over at the handheld side, we've got a rapping dog in the form of PaRappa the Rapper and Namco Bandai's latest Tales installment, Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology, for the PSP.

Desktop gamers also find a treat this week: the PC version of GRAW 2 is to be released, as well as the Mac OS X version of World War II Online.

On with the festivities then! We've got a touchdown to score.

All-Pro Football 2K8. Sports-buffs wanting to scratch their jock-itch for more football titles might want to give this a try. Boasting realistic football mechanics and, more importantly, a roster of football legends like Jerry Rice and Joe Montana could make this a sports title that competes with the likes of Madden.

• PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 - July 16, 2007
• US$ 59.99
• ESRB E (Everyone 10+)
• 2K Sports

PaRappa the Rapper. Kick-punch-block your way through this rhythm-based remake of the classic PSOne title. Help PaRappa rap his way to Sunny Funny's heart, as this journey into music will have you encounter a strange lot of characters, including a moose as your driving instructor, a Rastafarian frog at a flea market, and the ever-famous Master Onion.

• PlayStation Portable - July 17, 2007
• US$ 29.99
• ESRB E (Everyone)
• NaNaOn-Sha and Sony

Check out this week's "On Shelves" list by clicking on the Full Article link below!

Lucky ghost-wannabes who got a taste of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2 know that the game is beyond just the pretty physics or nostalgia factor. For the doubtful, a couple of guys, Grin CEO Bo Andersson and Lead Mission Designer/Lead Artist Rickard Johansson, from GRAW 2's dev team sat down to answer a few questions from the fans.

As usual, squad tactics will be the major focus of the game. Even so, the PC version aims to deliver an authentic FPS experience. CrossCom 2.0 is leagues better than the previous version. You can now issue orders much smoother, and command your support team around with a few button touches. Tactical map will offer more details to open up a plethora of new strategic choices.

If you haven't tried demo yet, now is a good time. Meanwhile, watch the video for yourself to get more info.

The PC version of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2 is getting some enhancements thanks to AGEIA's proprietary game physics engine PhysX. Not only does the accelerator make jobs for devs easier, it also enhances the overall gameplay experience of the action title.

PhysX makes efforts easier for the developers because with it on board, they don't have to use their own code to do the game's physics. In the case of GRAW 2 for the PC, the time cut away from coding the physics was used instead to create an additional level called "AGEIA Island" which demonstrates the full capacity of the engine by giving players a vibrant, fully destructible environment that looks, moves and feels like never before.

Bo Andersson, chief executive officer of GRIN says "with PhysX, we are able to bring gamers a realistic combat experience they will crave to play over and over again because it's never the same twice."

"When something explodes, the physics engine kicks in to create superb explosions, emitting debris which affects gameplay," adds Anderson as he explains how everything in the game is built on to the engine to make characters and onscreen objects behave the way they would in real life.

We've got a trailer of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter Throwback Pack for the PC, Sony PlayStation 3, and the Microsoft Xbox 360. As the developers promised, the game lives to the franchise's tactical FPS tradition with a hodgepodge of past and current maps in store.

Such maps as Bonfires (Ghost Recon 2 DLC), Desert Gulch (GRAW), Fishing Village (GRAW), and many more are available to add more replay value and to invoke nostalgia among fans. The old maps look a little better than they did before with the advances in 3D modeling and that can only spell out more fun for all you soldiers out there.

The GRAW 2 Throwback Pack is now available for you. If you don't have it yet, this video should help you decide. Chances are you'll shell more cash out.

 

What do 3volution Productions, Tom Clancy, and Jeremy Blair have in common? 3volution Productions is a company that produces songs, remixes, ambient sounds and voice-overs for video games, films, and the net. It is further noted for having done the soundwork for Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter for the Xbox 360, and PC. Jeremy Blair, on the other hand, is the latest addition to 3volution's crew, as the company announces that he (Jeremy) is their new chief engineer and producer.

"Based on our previous experiences with Jeremy, and the extensive list of hit records he has been involved with, we are confident he will help 3voultion realize its goal of being the premium music production company for Videogame, TV and Film music," said 3volution Productions co-producer Raymond Herrera. Stationed at the 3volution Production’s Temple Studios in Los Angeles, Blair is expected to be in charge of all music engineering for the company.

Blair himself is noted to be a trained guitarist, bass player, and keyboard player, and has been credited with engineering for albums like Guns N Roses’ "Live Era" (1999), Coal Chamber’s "Dark Days" (2002), Fear Factory's "Archetype" (2004) and Mnemic’s "Passenger" (2007). On the gaming side, Blair is accredited with helping produce Frank Black & 3volution’s "Gimme Danger" track, which is part of the GRAW 2 soundtrack.

Popular Mechanics asks that question: how does the technology used by Capt. Mitchell and his Ghosts stack up to that used by the Army today?

Okay, Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 is a (Xbox 360, PS3, PC, PSP) game, so there are compromises made so that it can be played by someone who hasn't gone through boot camp or Ranger School or its equivalents. Still, with the Tom Clancy prefix as a hallmark for researched (and at least plausible) realism, PopMech wanted the comparison.

The closest equivalent and real-world inspiration to CrossCom 2.0 and the rest of the Ghosts' combat system is the US Army Land Warrior System, a similar integration of high tech and hot lead. Of course, the plausible-fictional tech of 2013 is most certainly a (fictional) step forward from the still-being-evaluated tech of 2007, but there are drawbacks that bite into their tactical utility. For example:

• While CrossCom's ability to keep track of friendly assets is real-time, Land Warrior's equivalent GPS tracking was found to have a lag time "of at least a minute." It's better used as a strategic tool to help in the deployment of large forces in conventional warfare, than at the squad-level urban combat as in GRAW2.
• Land Warrior literally is a load on a grunt's shoulders: that plus the soldier's basic load equals eighty pounds to heft - and it affects his movement. Ghost tech certainly didn't feel that heavy to Capt. Mitchell.
• PopMech suggests it's going to take a massive leap in real-world AI for a computer to tell the difference between a neutral and a bad guy, and superimpose a red "Shoot Me" diamond on the bad guy, as it's done in GRAW2.

To be fair - and not fair as in "the tech will get smaller and lighter, the AI will become smarter" that PopMech used - GRAW was deigned to be playable, so even if it draws its inspiration from real-world equivalents like Land Warrior, because it's still a game, accessibility and fun factor are still priorities over "unflinching realism". On the other hand, PopMech's suggestion that

it's time for a game where military planners make mistakes, high-tech gear falls short in the field, and warfare feels as visceral, as uncertain and as terrifying as it always has been

might not be too bad either. The high-tech really is ultimately meant to make the soldier's job easier (or at least more survivable). It would be interesting (if not pants-wetting harrowing) to see a GRAW where the tech ultimately fails you in the middle of a firefight.

We know that everyone may be familiar with the online video game news site called Eurogamer. Now, this site recently put up a new community portal for -who else?- video game fans and players.

Basically, the portal is somewhat like MySpace, or Friendster for that matter, and Eurogamer itself is not ashamed to admit this. Community members will be able to set up their own page, update their profile, join and create user groups, and ultimately communicate with other members.

Eurogamer Managing Director Rupert Loman is quite happy with this development and mentioned that they are actually planning to launch the site in five different European languages later this year. He added that there is more to come but for now, they are quite contented with what they have,

The Eurogamers launch is the first step in our plan to offer new ways of interacting with gamers. The reaction to the site from our group of beta testers has been overwhelmingly positive, and we're looking forward to developing the site to its full potential.

Lastly, Ubisoft pledged its full support to Eurogamers by promoting its latest Xbox 360 title Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 (GRAW 2), which will also become available in Europe on PlayStation 3 (PS3) a little later.

With Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2's launch nearly banging at our doors, Ubisoft has released another treat. The GRAW 2's launch trailer hits just a few days before the release.

Of course, PS3 and PC fans of the Tom Clancy franchise would have to wait a little bit longer. But hey, it's all worth it. In the launch trailer, we see the team getting orders to do recon on the Mexican insurgence near the US border. As with the other Ghost Recon titles, GRAW 2 has the insane action with all the explosions and gunfight. We really can't expect them not to engage when they're being shot at, can we?

Are you ready? GRAW 2 is about to hit the shelves and it's bound to hit the ground running. We'll shut up now, so you can watch the launch trailer. Enjoy!

Buy: [Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 for PS3]
Buy: [Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 for Xbox 360]

So we've given the impressions on GRAW 2's multiplayer feature. And we're pretty sure you guys have checked out the demo that came out in the Xbox Live just a couple of days ago. But for those of you who haven't, then here's yet another chance for you to peek in all that patriotic terrorist-fighting action.

This vid right here shows you how to get it right in the Multiplayer Assault of GRAW. A lot of ducking, crawling, and application of stealth mode is obviously necessary for you to survive. A keen eyesight and efficient tactical skills are important as well. So get it good and flex those trigger fingers while you still can.

GRAW 2 comes out for the Xbox 360 on March 9, for the PC on March 30, and just a little later for the PS3.