Episode #20 of the DogHouse Podcast is available on iTunes or direct download! Show notes can be found at http://podcast.doghousesystems.com

PC Gaming

Clark Petri reviews “World of Goo”

Congratulations to Chuck Stanley for being the winner of the Dirt 2 Contest!  We also spend some time talking about the game and we look forward to the upcoming race which will include Chuck, John, Keith, Sina, Jeff, and Scott Johnson!

Technical Corner

We go over a great 3 part question from one of our listeners in this extended Technical Corner.

Under the Hood

The winner of the “Name the Segment Contest” is announced.  Grats to Brandon for the winning entry of “Under the Hood”  Brandon wins 2,000 J!NX gold and Left 4 Dead 2.  We also have a runner up, Daniel for “Voiding your Warranty with Cornelius”.  Daniel wins a copy of Left 4 Dead 2!

In this segment, Jeff discusses lapping your CPU.
The forums have been updated and the layout should be much easier to navigate.  Special thanks to Jeff on helping us revamp the forum and we encourage everyone to check it out and be a part of the growing community!

We are getting closer to announcing the Armor TL giveaway.  Stay tuned!

Dear Pacman,
Thanks for all the good times. Happy 30th birthday and many more to come.

When and where did you first play pacman?

I kinda dig the idea of using gameplay footage as the official trailer, you get an honest feel for the game before it releases. On that note, the game looks fairly similar to its previous monster release, Modern Warfare 2. Hopefully this time they are allowing dedicated servers and an anti-hack that works….well anti hack would be nice at this point. Enjoy the clip! (Facebook readers goto: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSfWHD8tZQY )

EXPLOSIVE ARROWS!?!?

Google TV was annonced this week. What is Google TV you say?
Gizmodo reports:
“It’s a software platform…
You know how the Nexus One is a piece of hardware by HTC that runs Android, a piece of software by Google? That’s how Google TV will work. At its heart, Google TV is a platform. It’s software. Hardware makers will need to step up to use it in their devices.

…that Logitech, Sony and DISH will support…
Right now, there are three places we’ll see Google TV: a set top box by Logitech, Sony televisions (and one Blu-ray player) and an upcoming DISH box. They all share the following common specs: An Atom (or better) processor, discrete GPU, HDMI-out, Bluetooth, IR (with a transmitting “blaster”), Wi-Fi, and Ethernet, all while supporting a keyboard and a pointing device, as well as more traditional remotes such as Logitech’s Harmony universals. From what we understand, all of these products will be available at Best Buy in fall of 2010 (though it’s possible DISH may be later).

…that works with your existing cable/satellite box…
Equipped with an IR blaster to change channels, Google TV can sit on top of your existing infrastructure. So while new hardware is in the works, it should be compatible with whatever you’re using now—cable or satellite boxes, with all relevant subscriptions.

…that works just like a Google search…
When you start any Google TV device, you’re greeted by a simple search bar. You type what you’d like to watch. That can be a television station, allowing you to select and tune that channel. Or it can be a show, which will point you to places you can find the show—be that through a cable subscription channel, Netflix or somewhere on the web.

…that combines the web with TV…
So say you want to watch something that only exists on Amazon’s streaming service. You’ll be taken to Amazon’s webpage through Chrome, where the video will stream. Random websites might look crumby on your television, of course, which is why Google asks that sites optimize for Google TV (full SDKs available in 2011). With this mix of web and television, you can also view multiple sources of information in multiple panes. So you can watch the Sox game on one part of your screen while reading Paul Konerko’s realtime stats in another.

…that combines your TV with your phone…
Thanks to required Google TV hardware specs like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, you’ll be able to load a webpage on your Android phone and beam it to your TV. You can also use your Android phone’s voice recognition, effectively making it possible to change channels or search for shows just by talking.

…that runs apps…
Oh, Google TV includes complete access to the Android App Store. And Google suspects that most any app will run fine on the platform, though those designed with cellphone-specific hardware in mind might not work with 1:1 compatibility. But when the SDK is available in 2011, we can expect Google TV-specific apps, too.

…that supports Flash…
I’m pretty sure the audience cheered at this part. And when Google says Flash, they mean the videos and the games.

…that still has some tricks up its sleeve…
As of yet, Google has barely scratched the surface of what this seemingly unparalleled integration of TV and web can do, but they demoed one wow-worthy function: firing closed captioning through Google Translate—translating a program in real time. Just try to tell us that’s not neat. (We will translate any negative comments into a language we don’t understand—in real time.)

…that is not Chrome OS.” “

http://gizmodo.com/5543822/what-is-google-tv

Little bit late but here is the teaer from Activision on the new Call of Duty. Release date is set for November 9, 2010.

Facebook readers go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98BSroF_2sw&feature=player_embedded

MWF2 PC map expansion is now available, steam is offering it at $14.99.

Google Chrome

This is probobly what SHOULD have been their google superbowl placement advertisment. Hats off to google, very nice. It worked on me, i’m downloading Chrome now.

Facebook readers go here:
http://gizmodo.com/5531741/chromes-unconventional-speed-tests-are-incredible

Very cool article on PC PRO this morning.

“Intel has provided the first hands-on demonstration of a laptop running its Light Peak technology, at the company’s inaugural European research showcase here in Brussels.

Light Peak is an optical interconnect that can transfer data at 10Gbits/sec in both directions. Intel hopes Light Peak will one day replace the host of other PC interconnects, including USB, DisplayPort and HDMI.

Intel has fitted Light Peak into a regular USB cable, with optical fibres running alongside the electrical cabling. Intel provided a visual demonstration of how data is passed through the cable, by shining a torch into one end of the cable, with two little dots of light visible to the naked eye at the other end.

The demonstration laptop was sending two separate HD video streams to a nearby television screen, without any visible lag. The laptop includes a 12mm square chip that converts the optical light into electrical data that the computer understands. The technology hasn’t yet been integrated into the screen, which explains the ugly black box sitting between the two devices.

Intel’s chief technology officer, Justin Rattner, claimed that the bandwidth afforded by the optical technology is practically unlimited. “Light Peak begins at 10Gbits/sec, simultaneously in both directions,” he said. “We expect to increase that speed dramatically. You’ll see multiple displays being served by a single Light Peak connection. There’s almost no limit to the bandwidth - fibres can carry trillions of bits per second”.

Rattner said the technology will find its way into everything from home PCs to server farms. “The potential of that headroom will lead people to rethink the design of their systems,” he said. “We’ve very, very excited about the potential of Light Peak.”

An Intel spokesman said Light Peak hardware should start to become available to manufacturers by the end of this year.” - PCPRO

Looks like Intel will be making another commericial soon, this one is my favorite though:

What about Diablo 3!?!?

Facebook readers: http://blog.doghousesystems.com to see clips

Crysis 2 release has been labeled a “sandbox game with borders” by the developers at Crytek. Developers have set the scenery in downtown New York with an upgraded suite and new aliens to boot. Crysis 2 is being released for the Xbox as well as the PC so the visiual effects are being limited due to hardware factors. I’d imagine some sort of scalling effects will be bundeled for the “eye candy” hungry PC enthusiets.

The “wall” trailer is out, game looks impressive as expected. Hopefully the multiplayer is cleaned up this time around but without a doubt the single player will be entertaining.

Crytek 3 engine:

And the suite:

It’s that time again! New talents, new specs, and new adventures. World of Warcraft expansion beta is around the corner and the release will be huge! Blizzard has revealed some of the class highlights, here is a quick recap:

(See mmo-champion for more detailed information on class previews)

Death Knight:

Necrotic Strike (level 83): Necrotic Strike is a new attack that deals weapon damage and applies a debuff that absorbs an amount of healing based on the damage done. For context, imagine that the death knight can choose between doing 8,000 damage outright with a certain ability, or dealing 6,000 damage and absorbing 4,000 points in incoming heals with Necrotic Strike — the burst is smaller, but a larger overall amount of healing would be required to bring the target back to full health.

This ability is meant to bring back some of the old flavor from when death knights could dispel heal-over-time (HoT) effects. It also gives the class a bit more PvP utility without simply replicating a Mortal Strike-style effect.

Dark Simulacrum (level 85): The death knight strikes a target, applying a debuff that allows the death knight to copy the opponent’s next spell cast and unleash it. Unlike Spell Reflection, Dark Simulacrum does not cancel the incoming spell. In general, if you can’t reflect an ability, you won’t be able to copy it either.

Druid :

Thrash (Level 81): Thrash deals damage and causes all targets within 10 yards to bleed every 2 seconds for 6 seconds. The intent here is to give bears another button to hit while tanking. Talents will affect the bleed, such as causing Swipe to deal more damage to bleeding targets. 5-second cooldown. 25 Rage.

Stampeding Roar (Level 83): The druid roars, increasing the movement of all allies within 10 yards by 40% for 8 seconds. Stampeding Roar can be used in cat or bear form, but bears might have a talent to drop the cooldown. The goal of this ability is to give both bears and cats a little more situational group utility. 3-minute cooldown. No cost.

Wild Mushroom (Level 85): Grows a magical mushroom at the target location. After 4 seconds the mushroom becomes invisible. Enemies who cross the mushroom detonate it, causing it to deal area-of-effect damage, though its damage component will remain very effective against single targets. The druid can also choose to detonate the mushroom ahead of time. This is primarily a tool for the Balance druid, and there will be talents that play off of it. No cooldown. 40-yard range. Instant cast.

Hunter (pew pew)

Cobra Shot (level 81): A new shot that deals Nature damage instead of Physical damage. This ability will share a cooldown with Steady Shot. This will give hunters an alternative to Steady Shot on heavily-armored targets, and we will have talent incentives in the Beast Mastery tree to make this a signature shot.

Trap Launcher (level 83): When used, the next trap can be shot to a location within 40 yards. This provides the current Freezing Arrow treatment to all traps and, as a result, we will be removing the current ability Freezing Arrow. 1-minute cooldown. No global cooldown.

Camouflage (level 85): The hunter enters an obscured state that prevents him or her from taking ranged damage. The character would still be subject to melee or area-of-effect attacks, and dealing or taking damage will break the Camouflage effect. The hunter can move and set traps when under Camouflage, and will receive a damage bonus when attacking while under Camouflage (which will then break the effect).

Mage:

Flame Orb (available at level 81): Inspired by Prince Taldaram’s abilities in Ahn’kahet and Icecrown Citadel, this spell allows the mage to cast a flaming orb that travels in front in a straight line, sending beams that cause fire damage to passing targets. Once it’s cast, the mage is free to begin casting other spells as the Flame Orb travels. While the spell will be useful to any spec, Fire mages will have talents that improve it, possibly causing the Flame Orb to explode when it reaches its destination.

Time Warp (level 83): Grants a passive Haste effect much like Bloodlust or Heroism to party or raid members. It also temporarily increases the mage’s own movement speed. Time Warp will be exclusive with Bloodlust and Heroism, meaning you can’t benefit from both if you’ve got the Exhaustion debuff, though the movement-speed increase will still work even when under the effects of Exhaustion.

Wall of Fog (level 85): Creates a line of frost in front of the mage, 30 yards from end to end. Enemies who cross the line are snared and take damage. The mana cost will be designed to make Wall of Fog efficient against groups, not individuals. This spell is intended to give mages a way to help control the battlefield, whether the mage is damaging incoming enemies (Blizzard can be channeled on top of Wall of Fog) or protecting a flag in a Battleground. 10-second duration. 30-second cooldown.

Priest

Mind Spike (level 81): Deals Shadowfrost damage and puts a debuff on the target that improves subsequent Mind Spike damage. The intent of Mind Spike is to fill a niche missing in Shadow DPS, though it may be occasionally useful for healers as well. Mind Spike provides a quick nuke to use in situations where the priest doesn’t have time to set up the normal rotation, such as when adds are dying too fast or you have to swap targets a lot. Spamming Mind Spike will do about as much damage as casting Mind Flay on a target afflicted with Shadow Word: Pain. The idea behind the debuff is that when you cast Mind Spike, we expect you to cast a lot of them; we don’t intend you to fit it into an already full Shadow rotation. It also provides Shadow with a spell to cast when locked out of the Shadow school. (School lockouts will no longer affect both schools for multi-school spells.) 1.5-second cast. 30-yard range. No cooldown.

Inner Will (level 83): Increases movement speed by 12% and reduces the mana cost of instant-cast spells by 10%. This buff will be exclusive with Inner Fire, meaning you can’t have both up at once. Inner Fire provides a spell power and Armor buff; Inner Will should be useful on a more situational basis.

Leap of Faith (level 85): Pull a party or raid member to your location. Leap of Faith (or “Life Grip”) is intended to give priests a tool to help rescue fellow players who have pulled aggro, are being focused on in PvP, or just can’t seem to get out of the fire in time. Instant. 30-yard range. 45-second cooldown.

Rogue (lol smoke bomb)

Redirect (available at level 81): Rogues will be getting a new ability to help them deal with changing targets. Redirect will transfer any active combo points to the rogue’s current target, helping to ensure combo points aren’t wasted when swapping targets or when targets die. In addition, self-buff abilities like Slice and Dice will no longer require a target, so rogues can spend extra combo points on those types of abilities (more on this below). Redirect will have a 1-minute cooldown and no other costs.

Combat Readiness (level 83): Combat Readiness is a new ability that we intend rogues to trigger defensively. While this ability is active, whenever the rogue is struck by a melee or ranged attack, he or she will gain a stacking buff called Combat Insight that results in a 10% reduction in damage taken. Combat Insight will stack up to 5 times and the timer will be refreshed whenever a new stack is applied. Our goal is to make rogues better equipped to go toe-to-toe with other melee classes when Evasion or stuns are not in play. This ability lasts 6 seconds and has a 2-minute cooldown.

Smoke Bomb (level 85): The rogue drops a Smoke Bomb, creating a cloud that interferes with enemy targeting. Enemies who are outside the cloud will find themselves unable to target units inside the cloud with single-target abilities. Enemies can move inside the cloud to attack, or they can use area-of-effect (AoE) abilities at any time to attack opponents in a cloud. In PvP, this will open up new dimensions of tactical positional gameplay, as the ability offers a variety of offensive and defensive uses. In PvE, Smoke Cloud can serve to shield your group from hostile ranged attacks, while also drawing enemies closer without the need to rely on conventional line-of-sight obstructions. Smoke Cloud lasts 10 seconds and has a 3-minute cooldown.

Shaman ( QQ no elemental spells yet)

Unleash Weapon (level 81): Unleashes the power of your weapon enchants for additional effects (see below). A dual-wielding Enhancement shaman will activate the effects of both of their weapon enchants. Instant cast. 30-yard range. 15-second cooldown. Undispellable.

Here are a few examples of effects we’re considering for this ability:

• Windfury Weapon – Hurls a spectral version of your weapon at a target, dealing 50% weapon damage and increasing the shaman’s Haste for the next five swings.
• Flametongue Weapon – Deals instant Fire damage and buffs the shaman’s next Fire attack by 20%.
• Earthliving Weapon – Heals the target slightly and buffs the shaman’s next healing spell by 20%.

Healing Rain (level 83): An area-effect heal-over-time (HoT) spell that calls down rain in a selected area, healing all players within it. There is no limit to the number of players who can potentially be affected; however, there are diminishing returns when healing a large number of targets, much like the diminishing returns associated with AoE damage spells. This should give Restoration shaman another healing tool that improves their group-healing and heal-over-time capabilities. 2-second cast time. 30-yard range. 10-second duration. 10-second cooldown.

Spiritwalker’s Grace (level 85): When this self-targeted buff is active, your spells are no longer interrupted by movement and possibly even by your own attacks. This will give shaman of all three specs another way to heal or do damage when it’s necessary to move in both PvE and PvP. Instant cast. 10-second duration. 2-minute cooldown.

Warlock:

Fel Flame (level 81): Quick-hitting spell dealing Shadowfire damage. This is similar to the mage ability Frostfire Bolt, in that the lower of the two resistances (in this case shadow and fire) on your target will be used for calculating its damage. Additionally, Fel Flame refreshes the duration of Immolate and Unstable Affliction. Our goal for Fel Flame is to provide a spell that’s good for mobility and for use by Destruction and Demonology specs. Also, did we mention it uses green fire? Yep. Instant cast.

Dark Intent (level 83): Increases the target’s chance for a critical effect with periodic damage or healing spells by 3%. When the target lands a crit, you get a buff to your damage for 10 seconds. This effect stacks up to three times.

Demon Soul (level 85): Fuses the warlock’s soul with his or her demon. This provides warlocks with a self-burst cooldown to use. The specific effects granted by Demon Soul depend on the demon chosen. Demon Soul lasts for a certain number of charges or until it expires (around 20 seconds), depending on the demon used. 2-minute cooldown.

Warrior (MS reduced to 20% from 50%)

Inner Rage (Level 81): Whenever the character reaches a full 100 Rage, he or she will gain a buff that causes attacks to consume 50% more Rage and do 15% more damage for a short amount of time. This is a passive ability so it won’t need to be activated by the player. The goal for this ability is to provide a benefit for hitting max Rage instead of it feeling like a penalty. However, we also don’t want warriors to feel like they’re supposed to pool Rage and do nothing until they hit 100, so we’ll be closely monitoring how this plays out during the beta testing, and making adjustments as needed.

Gushing Wound (Level 83): This ability will apply a bleed effect to the target. If the target moves, the bleed gains an extra stack and refreshes its duration, up to a maximum of three stacks. The ability is currently planned to have no cooldown, cost 10 Rage, and have a 9-second duration. Gushing Wound is designed to be weaker than Rend with one stack, but better with three stacks, which will be reached when fighting a moving target.

Heroic Leap (Level 85): This ability makes the character leap at their target and apply the Thunder Clap ability to all enemies in the area when they land. Heroic Leap will be usable in Battle Stance and shares a cooldown with Charge, but the Juggernaut and Warbringer talents will allow Heroic Leap to be used in any stance and possibly while in combat. The cooldown for this ability might be longer than the Charge ability, but it will also apply a stun effect so you can make sure the target will still be there when you land.

Paladin (No info yet)

Also, Paragon has releaed the world First Lich King Heroic mode Kill video: This is currently the last and hardest boss of 3.3.3.

SPOILER

Penny Arcade, i love you.

WoW 3.3.3 launched this week, and the honor is INSANE. Maui helped me do some honor farming yesterday and each game we played lasted less then 15 minuets and grossed over 6k honor each game. Looks like Blizzard has put the game in easy mode for the pre launch of Cataclysm so take advantage of it for the time being and farm up your main spec and off spec gear. The Cata launch events were also embedded in this last patch as well as the last pve content for Wrath of the Lich King. Have you killed Arthas yet? Is it game over for you or do you turn the page and look forward to the next “big boss”?

Note: Dear Thielwin, please hit level 80 before Cataclysm, thanks. Please root him on Earthen Ring.
(Shout out to Pals For Life, fun 5v5’s )

MWF2 Maps in action, you decide if it’s worth the $15. Post up your thoughts!