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Wednesday, September 26, 2007
 
This Weekend's LAN Party Update - written by JAG

Hey everyone! It’s almost here!! I’ve finally worked up a *rough* schedule of the gaming events for this weekend. And remember, IT STILL NOT TOO LATE TO SIGN UP! Sign ups end online Thursday at noon.

Rough Party Schedule:
This is just a rough schedule that we can shoot for. By no means is this set in stone.

Friday 5PM-9:00PM-----------------  Setup your PC, FPS (Team), and general warm-up
Friday 10:30PM-Midnight----------  Racing Tournament
Saturday Midnight-2AM------------  RTS Tournament
Saturday 2AM-5AM------------------  Late night WOW & Halo 3
Saturday 5AM-9AM------------------  Anything goes (Sleep?)
Saturday 9AM-10:30AM------------ FPS warm-up and RTS rematch
Saturday 11:00AM-NOON---------  FPS Tournament
Saturday NOON-1:00PM----------- Lunch
Saturday 1:00PM-4:00PM---------  Racing rematch and RTS rematch
Saturday 4:00PM-9:00PM---------  FPS (Team)
Saturday 9:00PM-10:00PM-------- Anything goes
Sunday --------------------------------- Shall we???  :P

JAG’s Gaming Suggestions:
Since we can’t seem to come to a general consensus on what to play, I’d like to make these suggestions. These are merely suggestions.

First Person Shooter----------------- Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, Halo 3, Quake 3 Arena
First Person Shooter (Team) ------ Team Fortress 2, Battlefield 2, Call Of Duty 2
Real Time Strategy-------------------- World In Conflict, Starcraft, Rise Of Nations
Racing------------------------------------- Toca Race Driver 3, Re-volt
Other-------------------------------------- World Of Warcraft (either online, or private server), something silly…

BBQ:
We'll have hamburgers and hot dogs and fixens for everyone! You're welcome, however, to bring your own meat in case you wanted something specific or wanted food for another meal.

Please Be Gentle!
Since we're going to be playing at someone's house we'd sure appreciate it if you could do as much as possible to keep the place clean. Disruptor's house is brand new and he has unused carpet where we'll be so it would be a real bummer to have stains after everyone leaves. Thanks!

Sleeping-Over:
Sleeping-over is optional but encouraged! The sleeping accommodations aren’t that great (the floor) but it saves a trip all the way back home and back. Plus you can get more gaming action in! You're welcome to bring a pad or air mattress to sleep on if you’d like. PLEASE shower before you attend!

Directions:
We're going to be playing at Disruptor's house. He lives about 20+ minutes north of Natomas up highway 99 and then 70 towards Marysville.
Directions will be emailed to all attendees directly before the event starts.

Also for more preparations go here...

 
 

Wednesday, August 15, 2007
 
September 28-29th LAN Party Announced - written by JAG

Hey! I know it’s been a long time coming but we have a LAN party scheduled for September 28-29th and we hope you can make it! We’ll be hosting this event in Plumas Lake at Disruptor’s place (30 minutes north of Sacramento) so it will be a drive and we are limited on space to around 20-25. But on the plus side the cost is only $5 which includes a BBQ meal at lunchtime. We will still be counting on everyone to bring some sort of drinks and snacks for everyone to share.

There will be tournaments in the FPS and Racing genres. A schedule with tournament details and times will be posted ASAP.

If we have enough interest we may extend the event through to Sunday afternoon around 3PM. If you are interested in that then add “Sunday” to the list of days you’ll attend on the sign up form.

Also, keep you calendar’s open for the Intel LAN set for December 1-2. More details on that and our involvement soon to come…

 
 

Tuesday, April 10, 2007
 
April 13-14 Party Cancelled - written by JAG

For the first time that I can remember, we're going to cancel the April 13-14 LAN party this weekend due to a low turnout rate. I was unable to cover the costs to rent the building with just a handful of people. I will let you know when this event will be rescheduled as soon as I hear back when the building is available.
 
 

Tuesday, February 20, 2007
 
New Jaguar Mod Pack Released! - written by JAG

   

I have updated the "Jaguar Mods" section on the left-hand side of this website to include a new mod pack for the free racing game "TrackMania Nations ESWC". Each custom map was designed and compiled by our very own Ranchan! Check out the link to learn more and see the video preview posted on YouTube.com.
 
 

Saturday, November 11, 2006
 
Party Review - written by JAG

Battlefield 2, Quake 4, TOCA Race Driver 3, TrackMania Nations ESWC were mostly played.


Those Who Attended:
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. Nicole Sheahan
  5. ---
  6. CoolSpot
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. ---
  5. Scott "Moose" Sanstad
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. Birks "Freakyspud" Joshua
  5. ---
  1. Sami
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. Hirez
  5. ---
  6. Tim "Pouncer" Melton
  7. Joshua "Alston" Morgan
  8. ---
  9. Ranchan
Sever Tables:
49. Ajax
50. Bulldog
51. Server console
52. JAG
 
 

Wednesday, September 13, 2006
 
ShowDown LAN Party Review - written by JAG

 
 
     
 
 
 
       
 
 
 

I’ve compiled NickMarine’s, Sami’s and my photos from the ShowDown LAN event in San Jose on August 25-27th and posted them HERE for your viewing pleasure! Here, the upper-left thumbnail is us with PC Gamer coordinator and magazine editor Norman Chan (from left to right - JAG, CoolSpot, NickMarine, Sami, and Norman Chan).

Sami won an ABit motherboard and I was fortunate enough to win a Danger Den water cooling kit! Sami won his prize through a raffle from Zalman's booth and I won my prize by being 1 out of 10 to catch a water balloon while were all at the park (see photo). And of course all of us got tons of free swag including T-Shirts! I think NickMarine came away with over 30+ TShirts!! Woot! Woot!

Overall, it was an awesome event and I wish those of you who missed the sign up window could have made it!
 
 

Saturday, July 29, 2006
 
Party Review - written by JAG

Even though we had an exciting change of rooms, we still managed to pull through without any power or networking issues. Due to the fact that our building was accidentally double booked by those we rent from, our group had to use a different smaller room. Internet access was provided thanks to Postal's and Ungadano's unlimited Verizon web access from their phones (around 2Mb). Prey, Quake 4, TOCA Race Driver 3 and Rise Of Legends were mostly played.


Those Who Attended:
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. Scott "Moose" Sanstad
  4. ---
  5. Alex "mOvingt@rget" Carter
  6. ---
  1. ---
  2. Lassen "Demosthenes" Jones
  3. ---
  4. Mike "Postal" Lightner-Young
  5. StormBlood
  6. ---
  7. Arctic Wolf
  8. Dan "Ungadano" Ocenar
  9. ---
  10. Dobie "AkiraYasha" Wollert
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. Brandon "AbsurdHero" Bremen
  4. Adam "HeartGabriel" Lowe
  5. ---
  6. Antonio "Axd1244" DeSilva
  7. Jared "mrjaypeg" Wilson
  8. ---
  1. Satnam "Sami" Badyal
  2. ---
  3. Cameron "CooLSpoT" Moody
  4. ---
  5. Tyson "audio" Wolf
  6. ---
  7. LiL_J
  8. Creepy McCheese
  9. ---
Sever Tables:
49. Ajax
50. JAG
51. Server console
52. Cyberop5
 
 

Saturday, April 1st, 2006
 
Party Review - written by JAG

It was no April Fools joke! F.E.A.R., Quake 4, Trackmania Nations ESWC and Empire At War were mostly played.


Those Who Attended:
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. ---
  1. SatansFist
  2. ---
  3. Hirez
  4. ---
  5. ---
  6. ---
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. Synapse[chico]
  5. ---
  6. Cyberop5
  1. Sami
  2. ---
  3. *Joe "BlueX80" Borcz
  4. ---
  5. *Ranchan
  6. ---
  7. LiL_J
  8. Roland78
  9. ---
  10. Creepy_McCheese
Sever Tables:
49. Disruptor
50. JAG
51. Server console
52. Ajax
 
 

Saturday, January 7th, 2006
 
Party Review - written by JAG

We managed to get some good TOCA Race Driver 2 action in. Also debuted Call Of Duty 2 since it came out soon after the last party in October. We managed to have internet access available Friday night but it went down Saturday morning. Had a great time and thank-you volunteers for all your help!

Those Who Attended (By Seat#):
  1. Bobby "Oskor" McAllister
  2. ---
  3. Steve "Syclick" McAllister
  4. Mike "TwEaK!" McVey
  5. ---
  6. Kyle "UnluckyWhiner" Blair
  7. Zach "Brittle" Blair
  8. ---
  9. Alex "mOvingt@rget" Carter
  10. ---
  11. Matthew "Nooma" Groom
  1. Nathan "Eer" Lee
  2. ---
  3. Nicholas "Pheonix" Lee
  4. Ryan "Enigma" Vaughn
  5. ---
  6. Shane "Parker" Vicars
  7. Sean "Mr.Bill" Morgensen
  8. ---
  9. Matt "Recognize" Draws
  10. ---
  11. Travis "Travlar" Rhodes
  1. Creepy McCheese
  2. ---
  3. Chris "Roland78" Brancaccio
  4. ---
  5. Detin8or
  6. ---
  7. Luke "Smooth Beaver" Dotta
  8. Cyberop5
  9. ---
  10. J-Money
  1. *Ranchan
  2. ---
  3. LiL_J
  4. Jim "GoDcOmPLeX" Stilwell
  5. ---
  6. Josh "Meet2x4" Landis
  7. David "Arcticwolf" Levenight
  8. ---
  9. Dragonfire
  10. Stormblood
  11. ---
  12. Dan "Ungadan" Ocenar
Sever Tables:
49. Ajax
50. JAG
51. Server console
52. Disruptor
 
 

Saturday, October 22nd, 2005
 
Party Review - written by JAG

What a great week in new releases! We got to try out lots of new games including F.E.A.R., Quake 4 and Age Of Empires 3. We had good luck with the 1.03 Battlefield 2 patch and were able to use the VOIP feature. Many of you weren't able to make it out this time but we hope to see you at the next event January 6-7th! And thanks to all the volunteers who helped!

Those Who Attended (By Seat#):
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. Alex "mOvingt@rget" Carter
  5. Cameron "Salanis" Lloyd
  6. ---
  7. Roland "Zahvah" Rush
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. Hirez
  5. Luke "Smooth Beaver" Dotta
  6. ---
  7. Detin8or
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. Nightwolf
  5. Matt "Recognize" Draws
  6. ---
  7. Spare Machine
    (J-Money)
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. Sami
  4. ---
  5. Roland
  6. Creepy McCheese
  7. ---
  8. LiL_J
Sever Tables:
49. Bulldog
50. JAG
51. Server console
52. Ajax
 
 

Saturday, July 16th, 2005
 
Party Review - written by JAG

Battlefield 2 rocks! Complications occured though because EA released the latest 1.02 patch on Friday afternoon. Many thanks to all the volunteers who helped and also our sponsors.

Those Who Attended (By Seat#):
  1. ---
  2. Alex "mOvingt@rget" Carter
  3. Scott "Moose" Sanstad
  4. ---
  5. Brandon "Zacciah" Beck
  6. Shane "Parker" Vicars
  7. ---
  8. +Nick Lee
  9. Matthew "Nooma" Groom
  10. ---
  11. Ryan "Enigmus" Vaughn
  1. Stephen "Larkalius" Scott
  2. ---
  3. Ollie
  4. ---
  5. Weston "PainKiller" Tanton
  6. Cyberop5
  7. ---
  8. Synapse [chico]
  9. David "The David" Harmon
  10. ---
  11. Newmanic
  1. Slippo
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. ---
  5. ---
  6. Cameron "CooLSpoT" Moody
  1. Sami
  2. ---
  3. Roland "Zahvah" Rush
  4. Cameron "Salanis" Lloyd
  5. ---
  6. Deriol
  7. ---
  8. *LiL_J
  9. Roland
  10. ---
  11. Creepy McCheese
Sever Tables:
49. Ajax
50. JAG
51. Server console
52. Ranchan
 
 

Monday, July 11, 2004
 

Back From Vacation --> Party This Weekend - written by JAG
Well, I've just returned from a two plus week vacation on the east coast (what a blast!). So if you emailed me in the last three weeks I'll be getting back with you ASAP. Please bear with me as I try to catch up... TIA. ;)

Although the website is greatly out of date, the LAN party for next weekend (July 15-16) is still on! There are currently 15 people signed up. I sure hope more of you can make it to our debut of Battlefield 2 since that would make for better team play!

BONUS!!! I've extended the $5 late fee deadline from Monday night to Tuesday night at 11PM to help encourage more attendance. Don't put off signing up. Sign up today!!

We'll be playing Battlefield 2, Trackmania Sunrise, Rise Of Nations, as well as others from our previous events. NOTE: If you are interested in playing Trackmania Sunrise, you MUST bring your original disc copy to the event or you won't be able to participate in that game. It's available at NewEgg for $26.90.

PARTY SIGN UP HERE!!

Don't expect too many prizes this event as that has not been the focus as of late. Do, however, expect a great time gettin' in some BF2 action and chillin' with your friends!!!
 
 

Saturday, April 9th, 2005
 
Party Review - written by JAG

Many thanks to all the volunteers who helped and also our sponsors.

Those Who Attended (By Seat#):
  1. ---
  2. Dan "Ungadano" Ocenar
  3. ---
  4. Alex "mOvingt@rget" Carter
  5. *Mr. McKee
  6. ---
  7. ZeRO
  8. Detin8tor
  9. ---
  10. Detin8tor's Friend
  1. ---
  2. Ollie
  3. ---
  4. Danny "d@nNy" Machal
  5. Cameron "CooLSpoT" Moody
  6. ---
  7. Newmanic's Friend
  8. Newmanic
  9. ---
  10. Cyberop5
  1. Adam "Doobs" Louvau
  2. ---
  3. Khoi "thinkguy" Vu
  4. David "Surrender Monkey" Brown
  5. ---
  6. Mario "Joe_Rockhead<cDv>" Machado
  7. Mikey "Monkey<cDv>" Machado
  8. ---
  9. Ramon "UltraMan<cDv>" Cavallero-Machado
  10. Frank "Uncle_Monster<cDv>" Machado
  11. ---
  12. J-Money
  1. Sami
  2. ---
  3. N0F@C3K1LL@
  4. Hotnickels
  5. ---
  6. Roland "Zahvah" Rush
  7. LiL_J
  8. ---
  9. Roland
  10. Aaron "AWHN" Earnest
  11. ---
  12. Creepy McCheese
Sever Tables:
49. Ajax
50. JAG
51. Server console
52. Disruptor
 
 

Saturday, January 7-8th, 2005
 
Party Review - written by JAG

     

Played Half-Life 2 multiplayer for the first time but with some complications thanks to the not-so-wonderful Steam client until we got internet access which just made things easier. Yes, a Backman Hall event had internet access for the first time! Parker Humes from LANAddict.com made it out again and let us use his PCMCIA cell/modem card which gave us a dedicated 56K internet connection. Not too fast but fast enough to get drivers and verify with Steam etc. Many thanks to all the volunteers who helped and also our sponsors.

Those Who Attended (By Seat#):
  1. ---
  2. Dan "Ungadano" Ocenar
  3. DragonFire
    Michael "Postal" Leitner-Young
  4. StormBlood
  5. Arctic Wolf
  6. ---
  7. Dr. Freeze
  8. David "Chaos" Forsberg
  9. ---
  10. Jackal
  1. ---
  2. *J-Money
  3. ---
  4. Hirez
  5. DJ "MR_FAT_GOAT" Hubka
  6. ---
  7. Chris "MasterDecoy" Cunha
  8. Zebbie
  9. ---
  10. Cyberop5
  1. ---
  2. N0F@C3K1LL@
  3. ---
  4. Detin8or
  5. Luke "Smooth Beaver" Dotta
  6. ---
  7. Newmanic
  8. ---
  9. Parker Humes
  1. ---
  2. Sami
  3. ---
  4. LiL_J
    Pirate78
  5. Creepy McCheese
  6. ---
  7. Roland78
  8. Ranchan
  9. ---
  10. Deriol
Sever Tables:
49. Ajax
50. JAG
51. Server console
52. Disruptor
 
 

Saturday, October 2nd, 2004
 
Party Review - written by JAG

     

The release of Doom 3 would be the highlight of this event. A new sponsor, Parker Humes from LANAddict.com, arrived Friday night and was able to hang out with us until late Saturday morning. Many thanks to all the volunteers who helped and also our sponsors. See you in January '05!

Those Who Attended (By Seat#):
  1. Jim "Cyberman0" Stilwell
  2. ---
  3. Jamie "SiGhCoTiC" Durrill
  4. Dan "Ungadano" Ocenar
  5. ---
  6. Alex "m0vingt@rget" Carter
  7. Brent "Casco" Patterson
  8. ---
  9. Scott "Android Kikaider" Sanstad
  10. Brandon "Zacciah" Beck
  11. Matthew "TribalCross" Groom
  12. Shane "Ororu" Vicars
  1. Michael "Postal" Leitner-Young
  2. ---
  3. Stormblood
  4. Dakota "Dakkat" Pelletier
  5. ---
  6. Neil "AeRO" England
  7. Ollie
  8. ---
  9. Synapse[chico]
  10. Zebbie
  11. ---
  12. Cyberop5
  1. Roland "Zahvah" Rush
  2. ---
  3. Adam "doobs" Louvau
  4. Justin "N0FaCEKiLLA" Klooster
  5. ---
  6. Matt "McG-Killa" Green
  7. Paul “Hotnickels” Nguyen
  8. ---
  9. Kirk "Nickmarine" Stenroos
  10. Parker Humes
  11. ---
  12. Ajax
  1. Sami
  2. ---
  3. Jason "Deuce7" Lee
  4. Matt "Recognize" Draws
  5. ---
  6. Thomas "Detin8or" Perry
  7. Luke "Smooth Beaver" Dotta
  8. ---
  9. Nightwolf
  10. Paul "ShadowFox" Phelps
  11. ---
  12. phU|CrUM
Sever Tables:
49. Disruptor
50. JAG
51. Server console
52. Jackal
 
 

Thursday, September 30, 2004
 

New Sponsor LanAddict.com - Friday Night Tourney & Prizes! - written by JAG

We have a new last-minute sponsor! LanAddict.com is going to sponsor a UT2004 tournament Friday night around 9:00PM. Parker Humes from LanAddict.com will be present with us only Friday night so the prizes they are donating will be given away Friday night after the tournament. All other prizes from our other sponsors will be raffled off as usual on Saturday afternoon.

   

LanAddict.com Prizes for UT2004 Tournament Friday Night
- ABIT AN7 Motherboard with AMD 1600+ CPU (Barton)
- More!

   

Here is a photo of the rest of the prizes to be raffled off to all attendees Saturday afternoon. Many thanks to sponsors Altec Lansing, Alienware, NVidia, GearGrip, Seasonic & Antec!

List Of Raffled Prizes
- Altec Lansing XA3021 Speakers
- Super Tornado 400W Power Supply
- GearGrip CRT
- Rise Of Nations game
- Antec Green LED Case Fan 120mm
- Alienware & NVidia/Final Fantasy TShirts
- Alienware visor
- NVidia Fan grill
- Posters and stickers
- More!!
 
 


Tuesday, August 10, 2004
 

Convert Doom 3 CDs to a DVD! - written by Disruptor
You purchased Doom 3 and were angry that they did not release it on DVD, well here is how to make yourself a backup copy on DVD.

I modified the Doom3.msi to not check for the volume label. Follow the below instructions to make Doom 3 a DVD.

  1. Copy the contents of CD1 to a temp directory named "Doom3."
  2. Then copy the contents of the Setup\Data\base directories on CD2 and CD3 to the Doom3\Setup\Data\base directory on your hard drive.
  3. Copy pak000.pk4 and pak001.pk4 from CD 2 to the base directory.
  4. Copy pak003.pk4 and pak004.pk4 from CD 3 to the base directory.
  5. Download my modified Doom3.msi and replace the old one.
  6. Burn to DVD, create an ISO with the volume label DOOM3 and burn to a blank dvd. DO NOT CHANGE THE VOLUME LABEL, IT MUST BE DOOM3 OR IT WILL NOT WORK!
 
 

Saturday, July 31st, 2004
 
Party Review - written by JAG

     

Because we had the smallest tournout in years it was easier to play a more varied selection of games. We were able to finally get in some great Rize Of Nations action (two games of four on four) and all of us got into a sweet racing match of ToCa Race Driver 2 late Saturday afternoon. Other games we played were Unreal Tournament 2004, Far Cry, and even Quake 3 Arena. The gang decided to skip the UT2004 tournament until next party since we were having so much fun checking out other stuff. Many thanks to our sponsors!

Those Who Attended:
  1. Ajax
  2. Cyberop5
  3. Deriol
  4. Disruptor
  5. Hirez
  6. JAG
  1. LiL_J
  2. phU|CrUM
  3. Ranchan
  4. Sami
  5. Slippo
  6. Tom "Detin8or" Perry
 
 

Monday, July 26, 2004
 

TeamSpeak - written by Ajax
Yo, Jaguar LAN Fest gamers!!

It is going down THIS FRIDAY! YES!! Is everyone ready to play?

For the upcoming LAN party, we're going to run a TeamSpeak server www.teamspeak.org. For those of you who have never heard of TeamSpeak, here's a quick breakdown of just what the program is from their website:

"TeamSpeak is an application which allows its users to talk to each other over the internet and basically was designed to run in the background of online games. TeamSpeak uses as little latency as
possible, which makes TeamSpeak one of the best online gaming communication programs."

If you don't already have a copy of the TeamSpeak client, you can download it here:
ftp://teamspeak.krawall.de/releases/ts2_client_rc2_2032.exe

I wanted to put together a (really) quick setup guide for those of you that wanted to use the TeamSpeak application at the LAN party but were unfamiliar with the program. What I'll attempt to do in the next few paragraphs is give you the best TS setup for LAN play so that you can hit the ground running come Friday night or Saturday morning.
-----
Once you've installed the TeamSpeak client and you run it for the first time, you'll want to go into "Sound Input/Output Settings" under the "Settings" tab. Under "Voice Send Method", change the setting from "Voice Activated" to "Push to Talk" and bind a key on your keyboard to use as your universal "Talk" key. Be sure that it doesn't overlap with the controls in your other games as that could cause you to broadcast your to your team when you don't necessarily want to. Next, under "Local Test", change the test Codec to the last one, "Speex 25.9 KBit" Since we're playing at a LAN, latency isn't going to be a major issue, and some of the lower settings result in degraded speech playback. Select "Activate Local Test Mode" and test you mic or your headset to make sure that you can hear yourself at an acceptable volume. Once you've got your mic/headset ready to go, close the window.

The next place you'll want to go is back under the "Settings" tab, but this time click on "Options". In the portion of the panel that says, "DirectSound Buffer Size", move the slider over to the right and choose "Better Sound Quality". This will ensure not only that other people on TS sound good to you, but that you sound good to everyone else as well. Next, click on the "Bandwidth" tab and set both the upload and download speeds to "unlimited". Once you're finished there, click "Apply" and then click "OK" to close the window.

The last thing that we're going to set up are the keybinds. You can download the JLF keybind file here:
http://ajax.shackspace.com/JaguarBind.kbn

Go back to "Settings" again and select "Key Settings". Click on the "Import" button and link to the JaguarBind.kbn file. That will automatically map buttons on your keyboard which to allow you to switch back and forth between channels. When you first connect to the TeamSpeak server, you'll start in the "Default" channel. To talk to your individual teammates, you've got to switch channels. Note that you can change which keys switch channels by selecting the key combo bind and clicking "Edit".

The only information that I don't have for you yet is the actual server address. Once we get the network setup on Friday night, I'll fire up the TeamSpeak server and let everyone know the address.

I hope this points people in the right direction! If you have any questions about TeamSpeak, either visit their site at, www.teamspeak.org, or send me an e-mail. I'll also be available to answer TS questions at the party on Friday.

I will see you guys then!

 
 


Friday, June 25, 2004
 

Party Date Set!
July 30-31st is confirmed for our next LAN party date. Sign up here. A full Unreal Tournament 2004 tournament is scheduled for Saturday morning and possibly one for Rise of Nations and ToCA Race Driver 2 as well.

Hope to see you there!
 
 

Saturday, May 29th, 2004
 
Party Review - UT2004 Tourney Stats

     

A more laid back event with lots of fun gaming. It was great to rejoin the ranks in a small Unreal Tournament 2004 tournament (see ending tournament stats above). Special thanks to Altec Lansing, Antec, and Bawls for sponsoring us with great prizes. A date has not yet been set for the next event but we'll keep you posted.

Those Who Attended (by seat number):
  1. Tom "Detin8or" Perry
  2. ---
  3. Luke "Smooth Beaver" Dotta
  4. ---
  5. *Khoi "Thinkguy" Vu
  6. *Paul "Hotnickels" Nguyen
  7. ---
  8. ---
  9. Jackal
  1. Chuck "Grim" Smiley
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. Zebbie
  5. ---
  6. Ollie
  7. Hirez
  8. ---
  9. SatansFist
  1. ---
  2. Roland "Zahvah" Rush
  3. Justin "NoFAcEKiLLA" Klooster
  4. ---
  5. Matt "McG-KillU" Green
  6. ---
  7. Chrone
  8. Greg "FAngel" Olson
  9. ---
  10. Lodebeck
  1. Dagg Nabbit
  2. ---
  3. Sami
  4. ---
  5. ---
  6. ---
  7. LiL_J
Sever Tables:
49. Ajax
50. JAG
51. Server console
52. Disruptor
 
 

Friday, May 7, 2004
 

ToCA Downloads - written by Ajax
Since I've been loving ToCA Race Driver 2 so much since I got a hold of it, I wanted to come through and pimp a couple of nifty little TRD2 mods for that make a major difference in the game's immersion level.

First off, ToCA Race Driver 2 Edited Sound Levels
http://ajax.shackspace.com/ToCA_RD2/RD2SoundLevels.zip

This file adjusts the sound volumes for each of the camera views. The sounds are particularly enhanced when using the in-car and bonnet camera views.

And next up, ToCA Race Driver 2 Active Cockpit Utility
http://ajax.shackspace.com/ToCA_RD2/RD2ActiveCockpitCam.zip

From the readme: The "Active Cockpit Camera" ("ACC") option gives the camera a few degrees of motion, allowing the camera to move in response to the vehicle's actions. This essentially makes the cockpit view behave like Live for Speed. It shouldn't have been an addon, IMO - the in-car cam should behave like this by default.

So there you go. Like I said, I've been loving both of these mods since I got a hold of them. I was skeptical at first, but the community came through bigtime on these two. Give these mods a shot and see what you think!
 
 

Thursday, April 22, 2004
 

ToCA Race Driver 2 Full Review - written by Ajax - Official Web Page
  TocaRaceDriver2-01.jpg TocaRaceDriver2-02.jpg TocaRaceDriver2-03.jpg  
  TocaRaceDriver2-04.jpg TocaRaceDriver2-05.jpg TocaRaceDriver2-06.jpg  
Okay, I was trying to fight off the rabid fanboyism since the original title was underwhelming, but I'm going to just geek it up here and say that ToCA Race Driver 2 is the best PC racing title on the market right now. Its phenomonal. Now, given the current crop of titles I know that's not saying much, but this game is something special. Its right up there with Porsche Unleashed and Motor City Online in tems of overall enjoyability.

The 4-point physics are very well done, and the adjustments that you can make to your car not only make a difference, but they make a much more realistic difference in the performance of your vehicle, as opposed to an overexaggerated caricature of performance. If anything, one could accuse the vehicles of feeling a bit too light overall - perhaps the only artifact of the physics engine - but even mildly tweaking the downforce settings alleviates this issue.

The difference in the two play styles, Simulation and Pro-Simulation are immediately obvious, with the latter of the two being handled extraordinarily well. I supposed Codemasters paid attention to what SCEA's Gran Turismo 4 was bringing to the table in terms of realism and attempted to counter that. The default Simulation mode is solid, but from the start its pretty obvious that it has been abbreviated a bit to appeal to that less hardcore audience.

What's unfortunate about the title is that as good as the racing is, there is a surprisingly limited number of vehicles to actually race with. For the 48 tracks included in the game (not a true number, as some tracks have longer/short/oval/rally variations), there are only 36 vehicles, and often times a Race Series is limited to one type of vehicle only. However, all of the 36 vehicles included in the game do have their own distinct and realistic feel. Even in the regular Simulation mode you can easily tell the difference between racing a Subaru Impreza and a Mitsubishi Lancer, despite their similarities in size and wheelbase. The same holds true with the DTM, High Performance and V8 Supercar vehicles. They all handle differently, and cater to different driving styles.

Another potential drawback to other race fans may be in the ambitious nature of the title. ToCA Race Driver 2 bills itself the Ultimate Racing Simulator, and to that end it attempts to cover a very broad number of racing styles. For what it attempted to do, it did very well. Each of the classes from the Land Rover Rallycross to the hulking Super Truck Championship all the way up through Ice Racing portrays the vehicles in its respective class very, very well, with physics that fit both the racers and the environment to a tee. Of course, Super Truck racing isn't everyone's cup of tea.

Neither is Rallycross. Or Ford F-150 oval racing. While these particular races are well represented, some players might not care for those particular racing styles at all. Of course, Career Mode will force players through the drudgery of some of these series, so be prepared to take the good with the ASCAR. Also, for an Ultimate Racing Simulator there are several prominent racing styles and Championships notably absent from this release. Drag Racing is very popular, yet there is no drag race type in the game. The GTR series is gaining popularity, yet it to is strangely absent from the game.

There is a distinct possibility that licensing conflicts were the cause of the omissions, since there were some manufacturers whose vehicles could not appear in the game for that reason (*sniff* Porsche you are sorely missed). There is a patch on the way for the PC version (as well as downloadable content for the XBOX version) that looks to make improvements to the game. Due to an overwhelming demand, a rear-view mirror option has been added. I already know what you're saying... "no rear view in a racing game? wtf Ajax?" I said the same thing, but the racing is quite compelling even without a rear-view.

It is nice that Codemasters decided to listen to their fans on this one. There is talk of dedicated server support as well, and given the way that the game handles races and championships it would be a welcome addition.

After having played through the game's Career Mode, I can't tell if there's an retail expansion/DLC on the way, or if the title had some of its corners cut to make the release date. Its a great game, don't get me wrong, but there's something about it feels incomplete to me.

The content that is here is well worth the $29.99 price tag though, and I highly recommend this title to the gearheads and race lovers out there.
 
 

Sunday, April 18, 2004
 

ToCA Race Driver 2 Preview - written by Ajax
J-Money and I tested it this past Friday and the netcode is VERY SOLID. No collision issues, no floating opponents, and no sync problems even when you fill the race grid with AI players. Good stuff. After having to suffer through abysmal online racing experience that was last year's Pro Race Driver, its nice to see that Codemasters listened to their fanbase and corrected all the errors on this new title. I picked up the full version on Friday (yeah - taking one for the team) and have slowly been making my way through it. I'll have a full-blown write-up once I've made some significant progress through the game. I'd call the shot and say that this should be the official race title at the next LAN, but you guys give it a whirl and see what you think.

Multiplayer Demo Download Link
http://www.bhmotorsports.com/download/5755
 
 

Saturday, April 17, 2004
 

Unreal Tournament 2004 Tips - Part #2 - written by SatansFist
The Element of Surprise - The element of surprise is one of your greatest allies. Make the most out of spotting the enemy before they spot you. The person that gets the first shot in almost always has the advantage in the fight. That first shot usually has a better chance of hitting its target when the element of surprise is in your favor so make the most out of it. If your enemy is being careless and running in a straight line, whip out the lightning gun and fry his head off instead of opening up on him with the rocket launcher or flak cannon.

Also, when you come across two people duking it out and they haven't noticed you (you're above them, for example), try to take out the person with the most skill first. I know I said earlier that you should always gun for the skilled player but it's even more important for this reason. Think about it. Who would you rather deal with when the moment of surprise passes and they start to fight back?
 
 

Tuesday, April 13, 2004
 

Unreal Tournament 2004 Tips - Part #1 - written by SatansFist
Well one of the guys that showed up for the LAN party asked me how I dominate in UT2k4 and wanted a few tips. I started typing something up but it quickly blew up into this huge page-long write-up that was pretty convoluted so I figured I'd sit down and type something up using a little structure. So I present to you "SatansFist's tips on owning in UT2k4 Deathmatch". It's still a little messy (I typed it up in my spare time at work) but it should have some valuable advice for tearing it up.

Movement:
Movement is key to staying alive in UT2k4. Standing still for even a second can mean your death (especially when people are using the shield gun or sniper rifle). This means that you need to get good at dodging and double jumping. I find that dodging using the up arrow doesn't work too well because you end up stopping for just a second and you lose momentum. I dodge to the side and turn my body towards the direction I dodged in order to keep my momentum.

When in a firefight, always keep moving/dodging/jumping. You want to be on the ground as little as possible (due to RL/Flak splash damage) and you want to move in a way that your opponent won't suspect. Time your dodges to your opponent's shots. As soon as he fires you should be dodging out of the way and returning fire. The key is not to fall into a routine. If you do, you'll be toast.

Weapons:
Here's a list of each weapon and when/how I use them:

Shield Gun - One of my favorite weapons, especially since you start out with it. The real fun with this gun starts on a small level, or a level with a lot of players. Chaos is your best friend with this weapon. I just hold down the primary fire and run around looking for people to dodge into. Once I locate a target, I try to get close enough without them realizing what I'm trying to do. Catching people off-guard with the shield gun is the only way to go. You don't want them backpedaling, launching [explitive] at you (unless they back themselves into a wall, and then its gg). Once you're close enough, use dodge and double jump to close the gap and seal the deal. It takes a bit of practice, since you need to get used to lag/hit detection.Did you know that you can use the shield (alt-fire) to prevent falling damage? Just aim at the ground and keep it on while you're falling (this helps a lot in Onslaught, trust me). Also, you can use the shield gun to reach high places (just don't over-charge it or you'll kill yourself). If you know how to rocket jump from your quake days then you'll get this down pretty quick.

Assault Gun - Probably the best use is to lob grenades down a corridor full of people or into a firefight. I'll also use the gun to finish off someone I just shot with the lightning/sniper rifle. 90% of the time I'll switch to my shield gun rather than use this one though. Just not enough power…

Bio Rifle - Another gun I don't use much… Sometimes charging up the goo will get you a kill or two, but most of the time I end up killing myself with it. The gun has it's uses though… It's quite helpful when you're running away from someone.

Shock Rifle - I've been trying to practice more with this weapon. I see a lot of people own with it online but I still have problems. The best way to get kills is obviously the combo (alt-fire and then shoot the ball with primary fire), which is good to use when there's a firefight near you and you want some free kills. Both fire modes by themselves have their uses as well. The primary fire is good for taking someone out at range (or just disrupting them since it pushes you back) and I like to spam the secondary fire if it gets too frantic to combo. Definitely one of the best weapons in the game, especially if you're good with sniper weapons. Also gets a lot better in low-gravity situations (same with the sniper rifles).

Link Gun - We all know what to use this for in Onslaught, but in DM I use primary fire 90% of the time. It's a good gun to just spam down hallways or to take someone out who's stupid enough to stand still. I'll only use secondary fire if I know my opponent is low on health because the beam is hard to keep on someone.

Minigun - Another one of my favorites… Best way to use this gun is to look for people who are bleeding/on fire and target them aggressively. The gun can do a lot of damage fairly quickly and is pretty easy to hit people with (IMO). I don't really ever use the alt-fire, but it does have it's uses I
suppose (since it does have splash damage, albeit a tiny amount/radius). This gun combos well with the sniper/lightning rifles since one bodyshot puts a person at 30 health (from 100). From there its only a second or two of the minigun to seal the deal.

Flak Cannon - My stats tell me that I'm a flak monkey, and I believe it ;) The flak cannon is my second-most used weapon (close behind the RL) for a reason: It owns. I use both alt-fire and primary fire a lot since each has its own use. Primary fire is great to bounce off walls/shoot down hallways/etc. Its also good for those close-up kills that send gibs everywhere. Secondary fire is good when you want to hurt multiple enemies, or if you need to hit someone with some splash damage. Not much else to say about this gun…

Rocket Launcher - Ah yes, the good ole rocket launcher. Not really much to say about this one other than there are a few different ways of firing rockets. You can fire them individually or two/three at a time, and you can have them home onto your enemy if you want to (I rarely do). You can also have them fire in a different formation (after loading up the RL with 2 or 3 rockets, press alt-fire as you release primary fire to have them shoot in a tight spiral). When I'm running around a level I'll usually load up some rockets right before entering a high-traffic area. That way, if there's any targets I already have 3 times the firepower ready to be unleashed. And if there's no one there, oh well, I just lost 3 rockets. Big deal.

Lightning Gun/Sniper Rifle - I personally prefer the lightning gun, mainly because I can easily tell where my shots land and also because sometimes even though you'll miss your shot, the lightning will bounce off the wall/floor and kill the guy you were shooting at. Like I said above, these weapons are good to use in combination with the minigun. Try to always aim for where a person's head should be when running around a level. Sometimes you'll get some insanely lucky shots.

Phew, so that was an overview of the basic weapons. I'm not going to go into Redeemer/translocator/ONS weapons…

General Gameplay Tips:
-Learn the levels and all of the secrets/item locations in each level. This was the main reason I was able to own so much at the LAN party. Knowing where the health is when you need it is essential, as well as knowing where the "good" weapons are (Redeemer, Flak, RL, etc). You'll also want to know where the shields are as well as the keg o health.

-Know where your enemy is or will be. After playing the same map over and over, you will realize where the "hot-spots" are. This knowledge allows you to prepare for the fight by gettting the right weapon out/loading up rockets/etc.

-Always keep tabs on the big ticket items in each level (redeemer, ion painter, shields, keg o health, double damage). Try to anticipate when they'll respawn and make sure you're around them when they do. Not only do you help yourself by doing this, but you hurt your enemies by keeping them understocked.

-Always try to go after the guy you think has the most skill (this is why I dog Ajax so much!).

-Be unpredictable. I said something like that above, but it's very important. Sometimes when I'm fighting with someone I'll do weird [explitive] like run behind a pillar and then just stand there for a second. Usually the person chasing me will think I won't stop so he'll aim ahead of the pillar and as he takes his shot I'll dodge out and cap him. Even though I said never stand still, sometimes you just need to in order to stir things up. I think that's everything I can think of for now…. I hope that helps you guys out, even a little. Feel free to give me feedback on this write-up. Let me know whether or not it was helpful. Also, shoot any questions you have my way and I'd be glad to answer them.

 
 

Saturday, April 10, 2004
 
Party Review

     

What a great time! Thanks to Intel for providing the two complete pizza meals (Friday night and Saturday afternoon), drinks, covering the costs for the building space, and the four 3.2 Extreme Edition Pentium 4 CPUs for prizes! Thanks to another sponsor, Seasonic, for providing the Super Silencer 350W power supply. We had a great turnout, JLF's biggest event ever. Many thanks to all those who helped with setup and teardown. Thankfully, there were no power issues with the new facility. Congratulations to all the prize winners and see you at the next one in May!

Those Who Attended:
  1. Kirk "Nick Marine" Stenroos
  2. Phalanx
  3. Jackal
  4. Ollie
  5. Ajax
  6. phU|CrUM
  7. JAG
  8. Charles "chizzle" Craft
  9. 91SIXIN
  10. LiL_J
  11. Kevin "WaBo" Silveira
  12. SpecOps
  13. Disruptor
  14. Newmanic
  15. Ozone
  16. Cyberop5
  17. Nightwolf
  18. Bulldog
  19. Spoon Of Death
  20. Rat Attack
  21. QueenRabbit
  22. Sami
  23. Valderos
  24. Brodie "Develan" Griffin
  25. Paul "Hotnickels" Nguyen
  1. Greg "FAngel" Olson
  2. Seth "Chrone" Olson
  3. John "Lodebek" Van Straalen
  4. Brandon "mp5" Moyer
  5. Dr. Death
  6. Roland
  7. Mark "Sobedragonz" Schneider
  8. Alan "Punl<" Gareau
  9. Wil "A_Dreamer" Mar
  10. Timothy ">XF< GrayMatter" Davidson
  11. Neil "Gremlin" George
  12. Daniel "Goodfella" Rankin
  13. Hirez
  14. Matthew "CalQdeX" Modica
  15. Brandon "N3oBud" Killmeyer
  16. Ben "B34M3R" Winter
  17. Justin "MaDInSAnE" Klooster
  18. ZeRO
  19. Alan "COUGAR67" Rea
  20. Kevin "Kilgore" Roe
  21. Weston "Zebbie" Tanton
  22. Mark Lai
  23. Ethan Eldridge
  24. Zachary "FLG_Poncho" Kranich
  25. Chris "GotNoRice" Brown
  1. Nicholas "[TMC]ActiveMonkey" Brown
  2. Todd "DeadLamb" Hoppman
  3. Deriol
  4. Doug "aftermath" Clesh
  5. James "Silly" Smith
  6. Ranchan
  7. Greg "[TMC]Warhawk" G
  8. Pirate78
  9. Jonathan "Lagmaster" Wing
  10. David "TBRO" Campbell
  11. SatansFist
  12. J-Money
  13. Steve "ubersteve" Zito
  14. Franklin "Optyx" Rossi
  15. Todesengel
  16. Darrin "Slippo" Marquez
  17. Will "Slappy" Stahr
  18. Dan "Ungadano" Ocenar
  19. Kevin "Rise" Wan
  20. Zombie
  21. Jordan "Zombie'sLilSpawn" Fick

Intel Tag Line Winners


     

Out of over 200 submissions from JLF the folks at Intel narrowed down our submissions to these top ten winners (see previous post on March 18th, 2004 for details about this contest). The winners were announced at today's party. There was a pleasant surprise too in that all three processors donated were 3.2GHz instead of what we were expecting (2.6, 3.0 and 3.2). Thanks to Intel for this great opportunity and to all of you who submitted your ideas!

Tag Line Winners
  1. 3 out of 4 Gamers Recommend Intel -Queen Rabbit
    Prize Awarded = Intel 3.2GHz Extreme Edition Pentium 4 CPU
  2. CTRL-ALT-DEFEAT... -Ajax
    Prize Awarded = Intel 3.2GHz Extreme Edition Pentium 4 CPU
  3. Please frag responsibly. -Hirez
    Prize Awarded = Intel 3.2GHz Extreme Edition Pentium 4 CPU
  4. Nine lives won't even get you through the front door. -Spoon Of Death
    Prize Awarded = Call Of Duty baseball hat
  5. If you can read this, you’ve just been fragged. -Brandon "Braindead" Curtis
    Prize Awarded = Call Of Duty baseball hat
  6. You mean some people actually need to RESPAWN? -Spoon Of Death
  7. Life's too short. Play more games. -Hirez
  8. You can run…. but you’ll only die tired. -Valderos
  9. Gamers open doors with Pentium 4’s -Queen Rabbit
  10. Warning campers will be shot. -Jake "Col. Lawndart" Scharosch
 
 

Thrusday, April 1, 2004
 

We're Full!!
Well, we've had an overwhelming response to the upcoming party!! Thanks to those who've spread word. This is going to be a ton of fun! I will email more details regarding the event to all who've signed up as we get closer. If you have any questions feel free to ask.

If you're already on the list and are no longer able to make the event, please let us know ASAP.
 
 

Monday, March 29, 2004
 

Sign Up Form Online!!
To get on the list of attendees for the FREE April 9-10th LAN party sign up here. If you've already emailed me requesting to get on the attendance list please sign up again using this form. My sincere apologies for the inconvenience, I wasn't really sure how soon we'd be able to get the sign up form online.

Also note the new option on the menu bar that will display the results of what games people voted for at the party (labeled "Voting Results")!
 
 

Thursday, March 18, 2004
 

FREE LAN Party Thanks to Intel!!!
We're gonna have a free LAN Party April 9-10th all decked out with free food plus really cool prizes!! Does it get better than that?!? Sign ups will be online ASAP.

JLF Tag Line Contest Sponsored By Intel = Three CPU Prizes!!
All of those already on the JLF Yahoo Groups email list have already heard about this but I wanted all the folks on the web to be able to be a part too. Intel is working on a few tag-lines for their upcoming marketing posters and are looking for ideas. For the top three best ideas Intel picks from ideas submitted by anyone from the JLF group will get the following prizes!
1st Place = Pentium 4 - 3.2 GHz
2nd Place
= Pentium 4 - 3.0 GHz
3rd Place
= Pentium 4 - 2.6 GHz
The winners will be announced in person at our next LAN party April 9-10th. If you want to submit any "Tag Line" ideas email JAG and he'll pass it on for you. Better hurry while there's still time!
-----Original Message-----
From: Jeff Fick
Sent: Wednesday, March 03, 2004 9:47 AM
To: jaguarlanfest@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [JLF] JLF Gaming Tag Line Contest

JLF Crew,

OK JLF guys, here is the deal.

I’d like to come up with a really cool tag line that will be used on the Posters and Marketing collaterals that we use for the gaming market. So who do I turn to? Fellow gamers of course. :)

The last time Intel developed material like this it was for the CPL event in Texas. However, the tag line they came up with was the following:
“CONQUER, LOL, REPEAT”

I think the JLF crew can come up with something better than that. So I’m going to challenge you guys. Please submit you best tag line to me through email. If I can get it through our marketing, legal, and brand identity cops, I’ll make it worth the winner’s effort.
I think John [JAG] can vouch for us when we deliver the goods. :)

So send me your best 3 to 5 word tag line that you think is a great catch phrase for gaming, and be sure to include your name and contact information so I can get back to you. We’ll announce the winner by having John send an email out to this list. We’ll be picking a winner regardless of the decision to use the tag line or not, so show me what you got.

Best regards everyone!

Jeff Fick
Intel Corporation
 
 


Monday, February 23, 2004
 

Unreal Tournament 2004 Demo

  UnrealTournament2004-01.jpg UnrealTournament2004-02.jpg UnrealTournament2004-03.jpg  
  UnrealTournament2004-04.jpg UnrealTournament2004-05.jpg UnrealTournament2004-06.jpg  

In case you haven’t heard, there’s a new downloadable demo version of Unreal Tournament 2004 available for download here (http://www.unrealtournament.com/ut2004/downloads.php).

The designers of UT2004 seem to be targeting game-play rather then graphics (over UT2003). This is welcomed as the new game adds many great enhancements such as voice over IP (for online chatting) as well as in-game vehicles (driving, tanks, flight, etc.).

Here’s a listing of some enhancements taken from the official web site.

Vehicles

Rev-up and ride out in an array of land-, air-, and space-based vehicles that play critical roles in a successful combat strategy in Assault and Onslaught. With vehicles ranging from single man fighters to five man behemoths, Unreal Tournament 2004 provides players with plenty of choices when shopping for a mechanized implement of destruction.

New Technology

  • Voice-over IP support - command and coordinate. Give orders, rally your troops or talk smack with the enemy.
  • Voice recognition - give orders to bots; no more typing when you should be fighting!
  • Completely redesigned menus, including a new server browser with right-click menus and many brand-new configurable features.
  • Improved AI: vehicle control, advanced dodging and wall-dodging, improved aim, better team coordination.
  • Deeper single player mode with comprehensive team management options, challenge matches, multiple endings and more.
  • Integrated map vote and match set-up for Internet play.
  • UnrealTV - a proxy broadcast system allowing a huge number of spectators to watch a match live over the Internet.
  • Pixomatic software renderer allowing incredible performance with no 3D card required. Play UT2004 on your laptop!
  • A re-designed HUD, improved weapon effects (bullet decals, incredible explosions), improved first person weapon rendering and innumerable improvements for mod authors, new announcer voices, rendering optimizations...the list goes on!
 
 

Saturday, January 24, 2004
 
Party Review

     

Although we were shooting for some Quake 2 "Re-Evolution" action and didn't quite get to it, this party was still jam-packed with tons of kewl goodies. First of all, with our new LAN switch the network ran much smoother (just like we hoped). Second, we had a chance to try out an "unofficial LAN-able" beta of the FarCry game and it was quite impressive indeed. Third, we were able to get some NFS Underground LAN play in after all using an IP client that was able to "trick" the game to think that we were on the internet. Finally, the prize giveaway was especially awesome because of the rockin' Falcon Northwest "FragBox" that Intel donated! Overall, we had a good turn out with lots of new comers and were able to get in lots of game-play. Hope to see you at the next one (probably near the end of May)!

Those Who Attended (by seat number):
  1. Zero
  2. ---
  3. Brandon "Jerky Junky" Laurin
  4. Paul "Hotnickels" Nguyen
  5. ---
  6. Kevin "XeroCool" Wilkinson
  7. Tim "SLiM-TiM" White
  8. ---
  9. Kyle "Pezcore" Green
  10. Steve "ubersteve" Zito
  11. ---
  12. Zack "Cottonman" Cottman
  1. Zebbie
  2. ---
  3. Ollie
  4. Cyberop5
  5. ---
  6. SatansFist
  7. Hirez
  8. ---
  9. Newmanic
  10. Ajax
  11. ---
  12. Jackal
  1. Richard "86abcsam" Berglund
  2. ---
  3. Duane "Treefrog" Lopez
  4. Jason "VB69er" Melthratter
  5. ---
  6. Justin "MaDInSaNE" Klooster
  7. Lifter
  8. Jake "Col. Lawndart" Scharosch
  9. J-Money
  10. Bulldog
  11. ---
  12. Valderos
  1. Sami
  2. ---
  3. LiL_J
  4. ---
  5. pirate78
  6. Creepy McCheese
  7. ---
  8. Roland
  9. Deriol [Xombie]
  10. ---
  11. Ranchan
Sever Tables:  
49. Disruptor
50. *Brandon "Braindead" Curtis
51. JAG
52. Server console
 
 
 

Thursday, January 15, 2004
 


Falcon Northwest "FragBox" To Be Given Away!!
It’s official! Intel has confirmed that they will be bringing a Falcon Northwest “FragBox” as a prize to our party NEXT weekend!!

     

  • Intel®Pentium®4 2.66GHz 533MHz Front Side Bus Processor - Intel®i845 Chipset
  • 80 GB Hard Drive, 7200 RPM
  • 512MB DDR Memory
  • nVidia GeForceFX 5600 Ultra 128MB Graphics Card

This just rocks!!!

 
 


Sunday, December 21, 2003
 

Next Party Date Set!
Our next party date has been set to January 23-24th. Sign ups are already online.
 
 

Saturday, November 8, 2003
 
Party Review

     

Thanks to all who helped setup/tear down we had another successful party! Will be scheduling the next party as soon as possible.

And congratulations to Scott "Creepy McCheese" Hosner for winning the 3.20 GHz EXTREME EDITION WITH MOTHERBOARD processor donated by Intel!

Those Who Attended (by seat number):
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. Alex "alrunner" Carter
  4. ---
  5. Hirez
  6. ---
  7. Disruptor
  1. ---
  2. Neil "Phrag Burger" England
  3. Weston "Zebbie" Tanton
  4. ---
  5. Ollie
  6. Dagg Nabbit
  7. ---
  8. Ops
  9. ---
  10. phU|CrUM
  1. Slippo
  2. ----
  3. ---
  4. J-Money
  5. Michael "Dr. Dog" Sherwood
  6. ---
  7. Caligula
  8. Valderos
  9. ---
  10. Bulldog
  1. Sami
  2. ---
  3. =WCE= Zero
  4. =WCE= Blisster
  5. ---
  6. Chris "Roland" Brancaccio
  7. Creepy McCheese
  8. ---
  9. LiL_J
  10. Deriol
  11. ---
  12. Ranchan
Sever Tables:  
49. Jackal
50. Ajax
51. JAG
 
 
 

Monday, November 3, 2003
 

Party Getting Close!
Sign up for the party while there's still time! If you sign up before 11PM tonight you'll save $5.00 by avoiding the late fee! Sign ups will still be open until Thursday at noon.

Looking forward to it!!
 
 

Saturday, September 27, 2003
 

Battlefield 1942 Update - written by Ajax
There's a new mod for Battlfield 1942 that just got released yesterday. It's called Forgotten Hope. Give it a whirl and see what you think.

The files you need are right here:
http://www.fileshack.com/file.x?fid=3755 <-- The main modfile
http://www.fileshack.com/file.x?fid=3756 <-- Updated maps

I've only been toying with it for a short period of time. It seems like the team is attempting to eliminate some of the randomness of some of the combat, and adding a level of realism. Granted, I haven't been playing very long so my opinion of the mod is subject ot change.

Oh yeah... did I mention that IT'S BEAUTIFUL?!?!? Seriously. It's like expansion pack material. Give it a look-see and let me know what you guys think...

See you on the Battlefield.

 
 

Wednesday, September 24, 2003
 

Looking for an excuse to get an XBOX...? - written by Ajax
... well, you just got it.

Good news for those of you holding out on an XBOX purchase, care of the folks at Kay-Bee Toys. I stole this blurb from http://www.passwird.com/

Get Ready: 30% off everything at KB Toys during Oct. 8-14

Oh my shizzle. Legal mumbo jumbo quoted from the KB Toys website

Defendants will distribute the Net Settlement Fund by providing a discount at the cash registers of all KB Toys, KB Toy Works, KB Toy Outlet, Toy Liquidator and KB Toys Express stores nationwide, including Guam and Puerto Rico, equal to 30% off all qualifying purchases of $30 or more during October 8-14, 2003. This distribution (the "In-store Distribution") will be done without requiring a request of any store customer and will be separate and apart from, and in addition to, any previously planned promotional events for 2003. Defendants will not advertise or otherwise promote the distribution in advance of the In-store Distribution. Signs detailing the terms of the In-store Distribution, however, may be displayed in or around the stores during the In-store Distribution and up to 48 hours in advance of the In-store Distribution.

Can you say $126 PS2s and XBOXs? I knew you could. CHA-CHING!!

Also, in the same XBOX news vein, Steve over at [H]ardOCP posted info about an Xbox To PC Adapter:
Check this bad boy out. I grabbed one of these adapters from X2VGA.com to run an Xbox off of one of the monitors I have laying around. The difference is PHENOMENAL. For people that don't have an HDTV and want to get in on the HiDef Xbox gaming, this is THE way to go. I was surprised at how damn cool these are.

Your link is here: http://www.x2vga.com/x2vga_info_eng.php

HALO running Hi-Def on a 17" monitor? I'll take two!!
 
 

Monday, September 22, 2003
 

Party Date Moved!!
Due to reasons beyond my control, I must push out the next LAN party date from October 17-18th to November 7-8th. This may prove to be a good thing for those who weren’t able to make the event in October!! But nevertheless, my sincere apologies for any inconvenience... Sign-ups should be online within a day.

Looking forward to the annihilation!
 
 

Saturday, September 20, 2003
 

Traffic in Midnight Club 2 - written by Ajax
Wassup!! It's the Jaguar LAN Fest's offical PC racing fanatic spamming you guys yet again with more Midnight Club 2 info.

We had a blast playing Midnight Club 2 at the last LAN party, but I do know a couple people were curious as to whether or not you could have a race with the traffic enabled. My apologies if I'm spreading news that's already common knowledge, but I just found out that you CAN race with the traffic on in Midnight Club 2! There are two different ways, in fact.....

The first (and easiest) way to do so is to use the Single-Player races in Multiplayer. You may have to beat the game in order to unlock it - I don't know for sure, as I've beat the game a few times over and I never paid attention before now. All the Single-Player races in Multiplayer have traffic enabled.

The second way (which was news to me) was the Track Editor mode. I played an online game with a guy who had created his own track in LA, and a nice one at that! As soon as I wrapped up my online gaming, I took a stab at the Race Editor to see what I could create.

For those of you who haven't messed with the Track Editor in Midnight Club 2, know that it is really simple to learn. Each one of the three locations (LA, Paris & Tokyo) have an overhead map with dozens of pre-existing checkpoints. You simply activate the checkpoints you want in the order that you want them, and you're set! There's also another menu that lets you specify if its a circuit race or a free-for-all checkpoint race, the number of laps, the time of day, weather conditions, traffic (and how dense you want it), pedestrians, you name it!

I'll put together a couple of tracks in a couple of locations just for fun. If any of you racers out there feel so inclined, throw together a track or two of your own, and we can go back & forth trying to best each other on our respective "Home Courts"!!

When I found the Race Editor and put my own track toegther, I had a total flashback of my old NES playing days, buiding impossible tracks in Excitebike to torment my neighbor friends down the street with!

In the meanwhile, keep racing! I will see you guys in October!!!!
 
 

Friday-Saturday, August 1-2nd, 2003
 

Party Review - Tournament Stats

     

Well, we had a small turn-out this time but we still managed to have a good time. It was almost nastalgic of the days back when JLF used to have a "less-than-25 people" in our events held out of our homes.

We were also lucky to see Duck for the first time in person who flew all the way down from Eugene, Oregon just for the event. Many of you know him since he has played with us many times online...

And congratulations to Chris “Roland” Brancaccio for winning the 3.20 GHz processor given to us by Intel!

Those Who Attended (by seat number):
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. Dagg Nabbit
  4. ---
  5. J-Money
  6. Bulldog
  7. ---
  8. Duck
  1. ---
  2. ---
  3. Hirez
  4. ---
  5. Ron "91SIXIN" Dobson
  6. ---
  7. phU|CrUM
  1. ---
  2. Valery "pirate78" Romanovich
  3. ---
  4. Chris “Roland” Brancaccio
  5. LiL_J
  6. ---
  7. Creepy McCheese
  8. Synapse[chico]
  9. ---
  10. Ops
  1. ---
  2. Sami
  3. ---
  4. Ranchan
  5. ---
  6. Deriol
  7. ----
  8. Disruptor
Sever Tables:  
49. Ajax
50. Jackal
51. JAG
52. Server console
 
 
 

Thursday, July 31, 2003
 

Party! Party! Party! - Sign-up extended! Intel CPU???
Wow! Only about twenty people have signed up for our party this weekend! We could have done this one in my garage and be a lot cheaper! ;) Ahhh… the good ol’ days of LAN parties in the garage…. *sigh*

Anyways, in hopes to draw in a few more “late-comers” I’ve extended the the SIGN UP deadline until tomorrow, Friday at noon.

Oh, one more thing…. Intel says they will “probably” donate a CPU processor for this gig if that helps motivate any of you… I like the odds for this one! ;)

Duck to attend this weekend!!!
Yes! It has been confirmed that the elusive Duck will be attending this upcoming LAN party all the way from Eugene, Oregon! I think that will be the farthest anyone has traveled to make it to a JLF LAN party!

Many of you know Duck “virtually” because he played with us online quite often back when we used to have “Online Wednesday nights”. Everyone, please welcome my brother Duck if you see him at the party this weekend.

Boooyaaa!
 
 

Wednesday, July 23, 2003
 

Web Site Back Up
Upon returning from vacation I realized that this web site was down. Thanks to the quick folks at Midtown Micro the site is now fully functional once again. Apologies for the inconvenience.
 
 

Friday, July 18, 2003
 

LAN Party Racing Update - written by Ajax
Hey y'all... It's Ajax here with a quick State of LAN Racing address (and I promise I'll refrain from my usual long-winded race game rants).

Two things, real quick.

First, I fixed the "bouncing car" issue that we had at the last party with Pro Race Driver. We'll be able to fire up 12 player games with no problems if everyone so desires.

...and second, I found this nifty Midnight Club II PC demo. Normally, I'm vehemently opposed to arcade racing, but this is too fun. Dare I say it's more fun than ReVolt. I had a "Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit/High Stakes" flashback playing it. I still play PRD, but I think Midnight Club II is worth a look-see.>
http://www.fileshack.com/file.x?fid=33388


I'll have it ready by the time the LAN party rolls around. You guys tell me what you think. Peace!

 
 

Wednesday, May 21, 2003
 

Online Game Night (BF1942-RoadToRome) #93
Between changing the server IP address and me not being home to see that although the server was up, it wasn't functional; we still got in some gameplay around 9:10PM. Our next online event will be announced once the new location for our game server is finalized. A special thanks goes to Dr. Freeze for hosting the server for these last few months! Unfortunately, because he is moving, the current 10Mbit WAN connection that he has been providing us will no longer be available...

Those Who Played
  1. Duck
  2. JAG
  3. Sami
 
 
 

Tuesday, May 20, 2003
 

E3 Review - written by Balbados
E3 [explitive] rocked. That about sums up my thoughts on the entire trip ;-).

Seriously though, from the moment I walked into the South Hall I was overwhelmed visually, audibly, and tactilely. Konami’s booth had at least 4 games that immediately grabbed my attention, the choices were daunting. Then I saw Konami’s Metal Gear Solid 3 trailer playing and I was in heaven and hooked. A quick jaunt over to the Midway booth after the amazing MGS3 movie and I saw a booth babe that Teddy was already taking pictures of, looking at her outfit it was difficult to tell which game she was supposed to be a part of, I later found she was supposed to be from Spy Hunter 2. About the only good thing Midway had was the women, so around and around we walked taking in everything we could. There was so much noise and so many places to look at, with people from all the booths almost tauntingly asking you to try out their games.

One, of many, surprise titles was Lineage II, for the PC and from a company I’d never heard of in all my scouring of games. This game took up more of my time when we got separated on other days, as did some more of NCSoft’s games; this company seemingly popped out of nowhere and already they can pretty much be expecting my money for two titles. The other title being Shining Lore, a PC title from the same world of one of my favorite Tactical RPG’s in the past; if you’ve been a console gamer you probably already knew this was coming as I did – but again I had no idea who NCSoft was. Apparently they’re a company from the godfather country of online, Korea, which promptly explained Lineage being a sequel. Exarch Online was another title they were displaying and while fun, it felt a bit shallow in comparison to Lineage II, yet seemed to compete w/ the same genre. After further play testing I found Exarch Online to be more akin to Diablo. Lineage II is similar to Diablo but quite a bit deeper in character development and world, I’m definitely going to be keeping my eye on this one.

After wandering ‘round some more I found that Half-Life 2 wouldn’t be shown on the floor, you had to wait in line; quite depressing really, but I right next to Half Life 2’s area in the ATi booth was yet another of my favorite companies, SquareSoft, now known as Square Enix. I made mental note to return later to try out some of their games I had already been anticipating with caution, Final Fantasy X-2 and Star Ocean III. Final Fantasy XI was being shown as well for the PS2 & PC, it looked interesting but there were so many other MMORPG’s to be had I didn’t even bother. Final Fantasy X-2 is a helluva game indeed, everything enjoyable about FFX was here, but even better. While the opening movie was a bit off-putting the gameplay came through, thank goodness. The new job-system is probably the best execution of jobs classing Final Fantasy has had since the SNES days (yes better than Final Fantasy Tactics). You’re able to change class at anytime during or outside of battle, which makes for some interesting strategy’s to be had w/ only 3 characters to play as. Rikku & Yuna the Summoner return to your control along w/ Paine (pronounced Pine) a definite bad-ass, and the guys as everyone well knows are secondary non-playable characters only to be met in the world instead of used as PCs. The outfits for the different job classes range from outrageous (in a good way) to extremely cool in appearance, and with the change of outfit comes different weapons and means of using the same weapons or magic. Before actually playing the game I was pretty hesitant on the whole idea of there being no guys in the game, thinking that it was going to end up being a lot of fluff and skin for the male driven audience out there. I can safely say that Square is not just trying to pawn the game off on people using a similar name, it really seems that the game will improve the original story and is needed. I can’t wait to find out what happened to Tidus now. Star Ocean 3 was in Japanese so I didn’t understand the story whatsoever, but the battle system is as all Star Oceans have been, Real Time, yet pause-able action only now it’s gorgeous and more entertaining than before. I honestly can’t think of much to talk about since the core of any RPG is story and character development and the build at E3 showed neither off too well, but I’m going to be keeping an eye out for more information about it for sure.

Microsoft’s booth was at the opposite end of the hall, and on the way over I got to see both Namco’s and Ubi-Soft’s booths. Soul Calibur 2 in Namco’s area is going to be THE fighting game of the year. It’s just as flawless to control as before, and a lot better looking. Amazingly the PS2 is so close visually to the X-Box version the only problem in choosing one is going to be which character you want. Link (Gamecube), Heihachi (PS2) or Spawn (X-Box). I’ll probably get them all eventually, but Spawn was the most entertaining of the bunch for me. I played a few rounds w/ a well dressed older than I am man and a well dressed Japanese man who dropped by right after him, the Japanese guy and I were pretty good competition for one another, the other was just a button masher. I was happy to see that the game has retained it’s simple to get into hard to master routine, because it always makes it interesting depending on who you’re playing. If only 3D Fighters would get some X-Box Live! Or PS2 Online access L. R: Racing Evolution wasn’t playable unfortunately, but the movie was quite impressive. This game is the 5th in the Ridge Racer series, and before seeing it in action I was afraid Namco was making a GT-Wannabe game…which the console industry does NOT need, there are too many as is. I didn’t spend too much time in Ubi-Softs booth, but I did get a chance to play XIII, the cell-shaded First Person Shooter and it too was surprisingly more entertaining than I thought it would be. I guess I’m just a bit too pessimistic about some things. It’s not a keeper for me, but at least now I can see why people would enjoy it. Prince of Persia made a surprise entrance at the show for me, I had no idea that they were working on a new one. And this one didn’t look as disappointing to play as the 3D venture on the Dreamcast, here’s to hoping.

Onto Microsoft’s amazingly gigantic booth, wow pretty much covers it. MS seemed to have pulled out all the stops when it came to their booth. They had some beautiful X-Box ladies walking around, and probably 100 kiosks available to play games on. Honestly, the choices were too many, but SW: KoTOR, Amped 2, Starcraft: Ghost (RIP PC) caught my eye on the X-Box along with Mythica, Halo and Rise of Nations on the PC. Let me just say that all of these games were a blast to play and I’ll be getting them all one way or another and because of these games Microsoft had the Booth of E3 for me. I spent a lot of my time in it playing SW: Knights of the Old Republic, StarCraft Ghost and Rise of Nations. Mythica is probably going to be the MMORPG I stick too when it comes, I absolutely love Norse mythology and this games got tons of it, plus the blonde booth babe here was one of the best in the show, right behind the Vampire chicks in Activisions booth for Vampire The Redemption: Bloodlines (oh yes, another Vampire game…I should pre-order this now. If you played the first and love it as much as I did you don’t even need to be convinced of its fun). Capcom across the floor had too many games to play as well, Product No. 3 though was the game I HAD to play because of the less than stellar reviews coming out of japan. This game is going to be accepted like GUNVALKYRIE on the x-box was, not as wanted as I think it should be. Combos are fun to pull off once you actually figure them out (RTFM is something I have to tell myself more often) and the entire time having Vanessa, the main character, moving to the beat makes it my kind of game for sure. The Onimusha 3 video playing here showcasing Samonuske’s return to modern day France and having none other than the Professional himself as a protégé was enough to make many of the people around it gawk the entire time it was running.

If I continue to talk about all these games I’m going to literally have a 3 page essay on my hands, because this is just a few of the booths we got to see. It’s entirely too much for me to write about at the moment, so I’ll leave this bit here for now. Perhaps I’ll write more, perhaps not *shrug*. I’ll leave these impressions to stand as soon as I let you know about Savage: Battle for Newerth. This going to be a game we all have to play as soon as we can at the LAN’s, RTS/FPS = lovely for everyone, it’s part Tribes, part Warcraft, part Sacrifice, part Unreal Tournament. A truly impressive game from a company I’ve never heard of before…I love suprises! The people in the booth (lead programmer amongst others) are very cool people, and I hope for their sake that everyone buys this game. Phu|crum will probably be writing more about the game as he actually got to play it, the booth was far too busy when I got to visit it, but from what I got to watch….wow. You have a commander person which is doing the job that in tribes would have your guild leader at the command station pointing out orders for everybody on your team to adhere to; and to win I think people WILL need to work in teams. This commander is able to build new buildings using the NPC workers that do the menial tasks nobody on the battlefield would want to, so they definitely thought of that (though you can help build if you so choose). The warriors in the game are what the players can be, and basically it’s like any other FPS but w/ the commander there strategizing it gives the game a much deeper sense of teamwork than I’ve seen in any game since Tribes. It’s set in the future so you have many sci-fi weapons, but it seems like there was a fall of technology so it’s rugged and old seeming, while you’re using the new weapons…almost Mad Max or Fallout like, but on a lush green planet much like our own (think Yosemite, as that is the closest thing in reality I can think of as being the map in the game). Buy Savage people, this company needs it and can hopefully deliver what they’re trying to…it’s up to the community with a game like this though if it’s going to float or sink, pricks or good people will make this game. So I hope that we can perhaps have some interesting LAN parties if we can’t have fun online because of the pricks.

Lates

 
 

Friday, May 16, 2003
 

The JFL Crew Is Back From E3!!

     

Well... Viper, Zero, Blisster, Jan, Francois, Ajax, phU|CrUM, Balbados, and myself have returned from our adventure in Los Angeles at E3!! And let me tell you, it was a BLAST!!! We had a huge of a great time and wish all of you could have been there. Thanks to nVidia for sponsoring us!
 
 

Wednesday, May 14, 2003
 

Online Game Night (UT2003) #92
Since I was away at the E3 Expo, I am not really sure who played tonight. :) However, our next online event will be Wednesday, May 21, at 8PM.
 
 

Monday, May 12, 2003
 

nVidia Video Released Online With Us In It!!

     
     
    NVidiaWebsite-01.jpg  

nVidia has indeed made a comercial taking clips from our trip out to their facility last month and guess who's in it?!? Well, both Beau Degraaf (one of the guys from the WCE clan) and myself made it in! Woohoo We're famous! :P

If you'd like to check it out for yourself go here and click on "GeForce FX Experience":
http://www.nvidia.com/object/geforcefx_5900_videos.htmll

Or you can download it off the JLF web site here:
FX_Experience_Final_full.wmv (Windows Media)
 
 

Wednesday, May 7, 2003
 

Online Game Night (BF1942-RoadToRoam) #91
Our next online event will be Wednesday, May 14, at 8PM.

Those Who Played
  1. Bulldog
  2. Deriol
  3. JAG
  1. LiL_J
  2. Ranchan
 
 

Friday-Saturday, May 2-3rd, 2003
 
Party Review

     

Awesome party!!

Those Who Attended (by seat number):
  1. Mark "Dagg Nabbit" Covert
  2. ---
  3. ---
  4. Dr. Freeze
  5. ---
  6. Rat Attack
  7. Queen Rabbit
  8. ---
  1. ---
  2. Slippo
  3. ---
  4. Michael "Lyon" Long
  5. Nathan "Morgoth" Long
  6. ---
  7. Zombie
  8. Richard "noeffort" Gardner
  9. ---
  10. The Puffer
  1. Hirez
  2. ---
  3. SatansFist
  4. J-Money
  5. ---
  6. Bulldog
  7. Lifter
  8. ---
  9. Dr. Death
  10. Mr. Buns
  11. ---
  12. phU|CrUM
  1. ---
  2. Sami
  3. Creepy McCheese
  4. ---
  5. LiL_J
  6. Ranchan
  7. ---
  8. Deriol
  9. Balbados
  10. ----
  11. Disruptor
Sever Tables:  
49. Ajax
50. Jackal
51. JAG
52. Server console
 
 
 

Wednesday, April 30, 2003
 

Online Game Night (UT2003) #90
Our next online event will be Wednesday, May 7, at 8PM.

Those Who Played
  1. Deriol
  2. Duckk
  3. JAG
  4. Q-Berry
  1. Ranchan
  2. Sami
  3. Synapse[chico]
  4. T-Bucket/TeEZ
 
 

Wednesday, April 23, 2003
 

Intel Donating A Processor For May 2-3rd Party!!
Intel will be donating another SCREAMIN-CUTTING EDGE CPU for our next LAN!! It will be raffled off in the usual manner so anyone who pays and attends can win!

Online Game Night (BF1942-RoadToRome) #89
Our next online event will be Wednesday, April 30, at 8PM.

Those Who Played
  1. Bulldog
  2. Dr. Death
  3. Duck
  4. Jackal
  5. JAG
  1. Lifter
  2. Ranchan
  3. Ronin
  4. Sami

Pro Race Driver Impressions - written by Ajax - Official Web Page

     

Uh-oh... Ajax just found a new racing game. And you KNOW what that means... You're absolutely right! Another REALLY BIG post to the JLF forums! :)

If you know me then you know how much I love (beating Jackal in) a good racing game (and how embarassed I've been since I recommended that last NFS title to you guys - ugh). So in an attempt to redeem myself and perhaps regain a shred of credibility as a competent race gamer, I took one on the chin and picked up a copy of Pro Race Driver to see if it was worth the CD's it was pressed on.

Brief summary for those not interested in sifting through another one of Ajax's rants: Pro Race Driver is better than Need for Speed (by a looong shot), but not quite the Gran Turismo killer it was touted to be... D'OH!

I'm still getting the hang of driving with my gamepad, as it seems they've catered control to the Steering wheel/Foot pedal drivers, but the graphics and sound are very well executed.

The good folks at Codemasters have implemented a motion blur in the PRD game engine (uhh, wow!) which really gives you the sensation of moving at high speed. Talking about it won't really do it justice - it has to be seen to be appreciated. (think 'Pre-rendered Cutscene')

PRD also has quite the damage engine, which works very well (almost too well!). Cars scrape and crumple realistically, and will leave the track littered with stray bumpers and shattered glass - all top notch stuff. The racetracks are all real-world locations, varying from twisting and turning grand-prix tracks to high-speed NASCAR ovals, all of which are beautifully rendered.

The sound is also top-notch. All of the car engine and racing sounds in-game have been taken from their real-life counterparts. Motorheads will have no problem distinguishing between the putt-putt of a Mini Cooper and the low-end growl of a Mercedes-Benz CLK-DTM. I'll keep my thoughts on the single-player game to a bare minimum since I just started playing and haven't spent enough quality time to make an accurate assessment. Suffice it to say that at this point the AI in the game isn't exactly struggling with the learning curve that I am... :)

Multiplayer content is very solid. MP racing servers hold up to 12 people (But no dedicated server yet - D'OH!) and there don't appear to be any outstanding latency issues. I did notice that there was some slight lag when I collided with another driver, but I'm thinking that was ping related (calculating/sync'ing the damage). In fact, driving alongside other players *online* felt more solid than Need for Speed's LAN play! I didn't see any 'jittering' or drive by any 'jumping' competitors at all.

All is not coming up roses, though. The game does have it's share of issues. First off, the in-game GUI doesn't have any mouse support. It's not too much of a surprise considering that this game was simultaneously developed for all three major gaming consoles as well as the PC, but the fact that you *have* to use the keyboard (you can't use the joystick/gamepad either) tends to be a bit of a pain. Hopefully Codemasters will address this in a future patch. You have the ability to change several settings on your vehicle like gear ratios, downforce, suspension, brake bias and tires. Changing these settings will make a noticable difference in the way the car handles and responds, but in some cases, it can make for some very exaggerated and unrealistic results. The cars still have very sensetive steering and still have that awkward weight shift when braking, but at the same time these same cars have the ability to negotiate tight corners at (unrealistically) high speeds.

Yeah - I don't get it either..

Don't get me wrong, the game is still plenty of fun, but the physics don't seem to mesh as well with the visuals as they should, due to that lack of realism. They aren't bad, per se, but to me the game just doesn't *feel* quite as good as it *looks*. All in all I'd have to say that I'm happy that there's finally a PC racing game out there that doesn't suck (and isn't soley NASCAR). It's about time! I can whole-heartedly recommend this game to every one of you who are looking for a good excuse to uninstall Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2. Look no further, my friends!

Seriously though, Codemasters has put together a really solid racing game, and despite some of the issues that I pointed out, Pro Race Driver is still very much worth a look-see.

Well, there's my $0.02.

Here's to hoping that a few of you take the plunge (*cough*Jackal*cough*) and grab a copy of PRD so's I can rough you up at the next LAN party (*cough*cough*hack*Jackal*cough*cough*)!
 
 

Friday, April 18, 2003
 


Back From The "Test Drive" At nVidia
Building-01.jpg

Well the group of us is back from the nVidia preview. We got an eye full for sure! We previewed a card that hasen't released yet. We were able to see it run real time all the while they video taped us to capture our reaction. They're supposed to use this video footage for a comerial of sorts, let's hope somebody from JLF makes the final cut!

Overall, this unnamed card flies! And the best part about it is that they got rid of the noisy fan. This one is MUCH quiter than the cutting edge GeForce cards out today. Thanks again to nVidia for the show and grub too!

Those from JLF who attended:
Zero, Blisster, Jan, Viper, Francois, Beau Degraaf, Rat Attack, Queen Rabbit, Storm and JAG.

 
 

Wednesday, April 16, 2003
 

Online Game Night (UT2003) #88
Our next online event will be Wednesday, April 23, at 8PM.

Those Who Played
  1. Xombie
  2. Disruptor
  3. Duck
  4. JAG
  5. Lifter
  6. Mike "Mike-Oppa" Choe
  7. phU|CrUM
  1. Q-Berry
  2. Robert "Ranchan" Corey
  3. Slippo
  4. Synapse[chico]
  5. T-Buckett
  6. Zero
 
 

Party Date
 
PARTY DATES
September 28-29

TIME
Fri. 5PM-Sleepover
Sat. 8AM-10PM
Sun.?? - Possibly!!

LOCATION
Disruptor's Place
Plumas Lake, CA

OTHER EVENTS
Intel LAN Dec. 1-2


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