3D Gamers reports Codemasters has issued the first retail patch for Colin McRae Rally 2005, accelerating their modern rally simulation sequel to version 1.1. This release addresses a handful of graphics issues, corrects all engine tests to use the same amount of time, and fixes the randomized weather feature on online races.

LucasArts has issued the first patch for Star Wars Battlefront, upgrading the sci-fi 3D multiplayer action game by Pandemic Studios to version 1.00a. This release enhances NAT negotiation for online games, and applies a minor fix to the server browser screen.

3DCenter have updated their Doom 3 Investigation!

Newest insights invalidate parts of the theory in this article. We stated, that R420 is clearly slower in discarding pixels during the Z/Stencil-Pass. As a result, the whole rendering process would be slowed down. This doesn't seem to apply as strongly as we stated. The NV40 might have a lower peak-performance when discarding pixels, but possesses finer granularity. In the end there might very well be a small advantage for the NV40. There's also some situations where R420 can't use its HierarchicalZ mechanism.

The fourth phase of the Half-Life 2 preload begins to Steam account holders today.

This will allow users to download the majority of Counter-Strike: Source in encrypted form. No purchase is required to pre-load Half-Life 2, but is required to activate the game. The moment the game is made available, those who have pre-loaded and purchased the game via Steam will be ready to start playing.

Mario over at GenGamers has posted some new UnrealEngine 3 pictures!

The playable demo for Psychotoxic has been released, offering the first opportunity to try out the recent first-person shooter by NuClearVision Entertainment. This demo includes two levels from the full game titled 'Der Hafen' (the Harbor) and 'Die Kathedrale, zweiter Teil' (the Cathedral, part two)

We were invited by Atari to come and visit their ?Atari Proudly Presents? private presentation. Two people from Gameconnect including myself were present in Rotterdam. We had some interviews with the PR managers from Atari and Sega, a demonstration of Atari?s new upcoming title ?Football Manager 2005?, that goes gold on 5th of November, and got to play some other upcoming titles from Atari. There were multiple pc?s, Xbox with Live!, PS2 and Nintendo Gamecube?s present for gaming. In the rest of the article you will read all about our experiences, interviews and see photographs we took at the GameSyndicate.

Epic Games have released the Editor's Choice Edition bonus pack for Unreal Tournament 2004, expanding their futuristic multiplayer first-person shooter. The pack requires the latest (v3323 ) patch, and includes six new characters, three new vehicles (the Paladin, the Cicada, and the SPMA), and four unique new Onslaught maps.

3D Gamers reports Codemasters has released a multiplayer demo for Colin McRae Rally 2005, renewing the opportunity to try out their contemporary rally racing simulation sequel in development. This demo offers a new German track, the same Swedish track as in the single-player demo, and the Peugeot 206 car to take the game for an online spin.

Two major online gaming shops - GameStop and EBGames, have posted the possible contents that will be included in the Half life 2 Collectors Edition. Continue reading for more information!

The official 1.01 patch for RBR has been released on SCI's website ,

Fixes and updates
- Fixes Thrustmaster compatibility issues. Users will need the latest Thrustmaster drivers (10.0.5) from www.thrustmaster.com.

Aus Angst vor Raubkopien verlangt Electronic Arts bei Sims 2 die Deinstallation von CD-Emulatoren wie Nero, Clone CD und Roxio. Sobald die Software auf dem Rechner zu finden ist, läuft Sims 2 nicht - falls das Spiel auch nach Deinstallation der CD-Emulatoren nicht läuft, empfiehlt EA das Patchen von Windows. Mehr Infos bei Golem

OK Peeps you can stop the emails, yes we know that the soon to be released retail version of Star Wars: Battlefront was leaked.

We wont be posting any links , so please don't ask or post links! I will leave the comments section open for now! Unless we get muppets posting links.

If you really want a copy of Star Wars: Battlefront! we at Warp2search suggest you go buy a copy.

The demo for Doom 3 is now out, weighing in at 472 megs and offering 3 maps: Demo_mars_city1, Demo_mars_city2 and Demo_Mc_underground.

Silent Hill is the prototype little town from hell. It?s a place that attracts all sorts of demons, parallel dimensions, freaky cults that worship demons and parallel dimensions, and monsters born out of the deepest crevices of human consciousness.

Atari has released the single-player demo for Shadow Ops: Red Mercury, offering an opportunity to try out the imminent military first-person shooter by Zombie Studios. This hefty download, includes a mission located in Syria, where you battle terrorist forces while destroying anti-aircraft emplacements.

The playable demo for Full Spectrum Warrior is now online, allowing the chance to experience the imminent squad-based tactical action game by Pandemic Studios. Details on the contents of this demo are not yet available.

Activision have released the single-player demo for Call of Duty: United Offensive, allowing you to sample the newly released World War II first-person shooter expansion by Gray Matter Studios. This standalone demo offers the intro level from the add-on, set during the Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes.

Half-Life 2 Fallout reports Gabe Newell confirmed today on our forum, that the Half-Life 2 release candidate was handed over to Vivendi Universal 15th of September. Vivendi Universal would still have to approve this release candidate, which could take several weeks. When the release candidate(s) are approved, an gold announcement should follow.

3D Gamers reports that Ubi Soft sends along an updated SDK for Far Cry, the tropical island first-person shooter by CryTek Studios. This version 1.1 release includes a number of additional Max and Maya plugins and exporters, along with applying some fixes and adding more documentation.