Video Games

MaddoxX, a member of hacking group no-steam recently cracked one of VALVe’s file servers and obtained strange bits of confidential information, including credit card numbers, Valve software assets, and private security keys. Steam-review claims that because a Steam server was not compromised, there is no danger. Doug Lombardi, director of marketing at Valve, issued a statement with a similar sentiment:

There has been no security breach of Steam. The alleged hacker gained access to a third-party site that Valve uses to manage the commercial partners in its Cyber Cafe program. This Cyber Cafe billing system is not connected to Steam. We are working with law enforcement agencies on this matter, and encourage anyone with more information to e-mail us at Catch_A_Thief@valvesoftware.com .

Is this an authentic break-in at Valve, or just hype spun out of proportion by the blogosphere? Our favorite gaming site, 1Up, sheds a bit more light:

We ran all of MaddoxX’s proof by a software security expert who requested anonymity. “This looks real to me. He found a way into [Valve’s] Cyber Café software,” the security expert confirms, “but what I’ve seen — the files pulled down — don’t indicate whether or not he breached Valve itself.”

The data MaddoxX released includes:

- Screenshots of internal Valve web pages
- A portion of Valve’s Cafe directory
- Error logs
- Credit card information of customers
- Financial information on Valve

It’s our opinion that the hack is legit, and that Valve’s security model is flawed. If one file-server can be compromised, they all can. If they can’t, then Valve is deploying servers haphazardly, leading to the possibility that flaws will sporadically exist which can be used to exploit their customer base. If you play Counterstrike or Half-life, be scared.

This weekend is the second DoD: Source free trial weekend that Valve has sanctioned.  The free trial period for Day of Defeat: Source features all the new content added for summer, “including the new gameplay type (Detonation), new missions (Jagd, Colmar) and gameplay and technology enhancements”.  If you have Steam already, then follow this link to take advantage of the free trial; there are no strings attached.  If you are Steam-less, then go here to download Steam so you can give DoD: Source a spin at no cost to you!  Please note that if you have a Steam account, you can also view loads of promotional media, including some DoD sketches and trailers, here.  If you are new to the whole Half Life franchise, this is definately the time to give it a spin!

Ever since Half Life 2 went episodic on its fan-base, people have been interested in plot developments, screenshots, and all sorts of media and information. What this means, in the words of marketing director Doug Lombardi, is that there will be a regular flow of content that will be delivered by Steam, or purchasable in stores, for the new expansion of the Half Life series. Here are the official trailers for both Episodes 1 & 2:

Although it’s impossible to get Half Life 2: Episode One for free, you can snatch it for the super-low price of $8 USD in a American Circuit City stores nationwide, according to SlickDeals.net.  This game continues the long chain of successful expansions and sequels of the original Half Life, and is best summarized by Amazon.co.uk:

In a nutshell:
Gordon Freeman returns with the first in a series of follow-ups to the most highly rated first person shoot ‘em-up ever on the PC. There’s no five year wait for a sequel this time, however, as the war against the Combine continues.

The lowdown:
Originally intended as a standard expansion pack entitled Aftermath, this is the first in a new series of episodic content for Half-Life 2, to be released far more frequently than normal expansions and which do not require the original game to play. This chapter focuses as much on the beautiful Alyx Vance and her robot bodyguard “Dog” as Gordon, and deals with the direct aftermath of the end of Half-Life 2, and the exodus from City 17. Graphically the game uses an enhanced version of the original graphic engine — beefed up using the new high dynamic range (HDR) lighting technology from the Lost Coast technical demo. There are also two multiplayer games include in the package: one based on Half-Life 2 and the other on an enhanced version of the original Half-Life.

Most exciting moment:
Watching Alyx’s pet Dog throwing cars and soldiers around like toys as they battle alongside you in one of the most graphically impressive environments ever seen in a PC game.

Since you ask:
Valve has already confirmed an Episode Two expansion for Half-Life 2, as well as similar episodic games for a sequel to 1998’s SiN using the same graphics technology.

The bottom line:
The best FPS ever is back and looking and playing better than ever.
Harrison Dent

Manufacturer’s Description
Half-Life has been named Game of the Year by over 35 organizations worldwide. Half-Life 2: Aftermath is an all-new episode created by Valve that extends the Half-Life 2 single player adventure.  

You can view the Circuit City ad in their flyer. 

Start Half-Life using hl.exe -dev -toconsole. This will let you access the console using “~” key. To do this, create a shortcut to hl.exe (by right-clicking on hl.exe and selecting Create Shortcut). Then right click on the shortcut, go to Properties and add -dev -toconsole to Target: box so it reads “c:\whatever\hl.exe -dev -toconsole”. Use this shortcut to start Half-Life.

You may have to type “sv_cheats 1” in console first.

The following commands are available in console:

• /GOD - god mode.
• /NOCLIP - walk through walls/fly.
• /MAP xxxx - go to map xxxx. Map names are of the format c#a#, (c1a1, c2a1, etc). We do not recommend using this command as it will serious distract the gameplay. See the map list for names of all levels.
• /NOTARGET - invisible to enemies.
• /GIVE xxxx - give item xxxx. The following items are available:
  • item_airtank
  • item_antidote
  • item_battery
  • item_healthkit
  • item_longjump
  • item_security
  • item_sodacan
  • item_suit
  • ammo_357
  • ammo_9mmAR
  • ammo_9mmbox
  • ammo_9mmclip
  • ammo_ARgrenades
  • ammo_buckshot
  • ammo_crossbow
  • ammo_egonclip
  • ammo_gaussclip
  • ammo_glockclip
  • ammo_mp5clip
  • ammo_mp5grenades
  • ammo_rpgclip
  • weapon_357
  • weapon_9mmAR
  • weapon_9mmhandgun
  • weapon_crossbow
  • weapon_crowbar
  • weapon_egon
  • weapon_gauss
  • weapon_glock
  • weapon_handgrenade
  • weapon_hornetgun
  • weapon_mp5
  • weapon_python
  • weapon_rpg
  • weapon_satchel
  • weapon_shotgun
  • weapon_snark
  • weapon_tripmine