Somewhere between completely loathing the difficulty of the last level and finishing the game, I finally "got" Osmos. You see, Osmos was able to do what no other zen (or ambient) game has actually made me do—chill out. Osmos has made me contemplate the very essence of human existence, evolution, consumption, and so much more. The difficulty of Osmos’ later levels was very frustrating at first, and often caused me to quit the game rather angrily; I was approaching Osmos like I would any other game, swiftly trying to complete all given goals in the pursuit of completion. Once I started approaching Osmos as not a game, but as an experience, I was able to fully appreciate the genius behind it.

Osmos is an indie game developed by Hemisphere Games, a startup development studio of six contributors. In Osmos, you control an organic "mote", which is essentially a one-celled organism with hopes of one day devouring everything around it. There are two important laws of how things work in the world of Osmos. Firstly, bigger things consume (and thus gain the volume of) smaller things, but never the other way around. Secondly, in order to accelerate forward, an object must expel some of its own mass behind it; much like Newton’s third law, every action has an equal and opposite reaction.

A mote.

With a few exceptions, the goal in Osmos is to "become the biggest”. In order to do this, you must hunt down smaller motes and dodge bigger ones. In order to hunt the smaller motes down, you must propel yourself by ejecting chunks of your own mass behind you. This dynamic alone is what can make the game so challenging, as an edible mote can quickly become your predator after you expel the mass necessary to chase it down in the first place. Even worse, perhaps you’ll see two tasty motes ahead, both a bit smaller than yourself; while on your way to snatch them both up, they collide and one devours the other entirely, suddenly you have no choice but to flee or die. Though most motes are just dummy organisms without the ability to think or move at will, if you wait too long to hunt down prey these dummy organisms will eat each other up and make it impossible for you to win. Things get a bit more complicated when you encounter more advanced organisms like the Biophobe. The Biophobe has the ability to sense danger, and will avoid being eaten by you at all costs. The more advanced organisms are skilled hunters, and will quickly become very large if the player does not act fast.

Every moment is Osmos is beautiful.

Once you pass the initial tutorial segment, you are given a choice of three paths to follow in the game. Following one path will have you facing off against other sentient organisms (like the Biophobe) and testing your instinctual survival skills. Ruthless consumption and hunting is the only way to survive this part of Osmos, bringing Darwin’s concept of survival of the fittest to mind. The second path contains some of the most head-scratching portions of Osmos. Some of the levels on the second path put you into a big space with many other motes just floating around, like previously mentioned, these levels require speed and accuracy to win. Later on you will encounter "impasse" levels which are incredibly cramped with huge motes sitting in your way. These impasse levels require players to employ creative strategies, and will take a lot of thought and patience to win. Finally, there is the third path which focuses on physics. This third path introduces "attractors" and "repulsors". Repulsors simply push away from any other mote, and can be tricky to hunt down. Attractors act as potent gravity wells which will suck in and devour any mote smaller than itself. Some levels will start off with you and hundreds of other motes orbiting one attractor; as usual, your goal will be to "become the biggest", or possibly "absorb the attractor", something which will destroy the gravitational balance and send the remaining motes into the distance. These orbiting levels become more advanced later on, and will require plenty of patience and skill to perfect.

If patience really isn’t your thing, Osmos features the ability to manipulate time. With the press of a button, you can instantly slow down or speed up time. This can make long trips from one side of an attractor to another fly by, while making precision movements in impasse levels much easier to pull off. Time manipulation even has the neat side effect of eerily speeding up or slowing down the game’s soundtrack.

Sentient motes are your prime target.

Osmos features ambient music from various artists. In most cases, the tunes match the gameplay perfectly. The music and sounds work together to make a very chilled-out environment, and will even dynamically change in certain levels. Occasionally, however, the calming music will directly contradict with the frantic competition between you and another mote. Graphically, Osmos is fantastic and minimalist. The color palette helps drive home the soothing essence of the game, while the swirling and glowing of the motes can be absolutely entrancing.

Blast Factor: Whether it’s relaxing meditation or challenging gameplay you seek, Osmos has you covered. Hemisphere Games has produced a zen gaming experience unmatched by any developer before it. For the price, Osmos is the perfect end to a long work day or stressful gaming session.

Osmos is available for PC, Mac, and Linux for $10.00, it can be downloaded directly from Hemisphere Games, Steam, Direct2Drive, or Games for Windows. A copy of this game was purchased for reviewing purposes.

Logitech bills the G13 as a “game changing experience,” and it’s both true and false.

If you are a dedicated PC gamer — an elite WoW player, Call of Duty, Fallout 3, etc. — then the G13 can completely change the way you play. This is especially true online, where the customizable buttons on the G13 can give you a decided edge.

There’s just one thing that you have to get past: A game changing experience means you have to change the way you game. If you’re in your 20s and have been using control to shoot, alt to strafe, and space to open doors for the past 15 years, then the G13 is going to feel like a foreign object for a while. Younger players have the advantage here. Their minds aren’t as hard-coded as ours.

Getting past the difficulties of old age, the G13 has 25 programmable keys that you can set and switch with five savable profiles. You can also customize the backlight to four different colors. There’s also a 160×43-pixel LCD panel that can show messages between players and live game stats. The LCD panel is a bit of a gimmick, and the viewing angle isn’t great since your fingers are right above it.

One of the most useful functions of the unit is the ability to program macros to script commands as you see fit.

The unit is also nicely sized and won’t slide around your desk.

The control profiles are stored in the unit, so you can take the G13 with you with no software reconfigurations to worry about.

Still, a lot of us are used to what we do with the existing keyboard and mouse, but I do like the G13 even more as a laptop gaming solution. The mini joystick on the right of the unit is really handy in that regard.

While I never really got used to using the unit, with PC gaming on the downturn, it might be a blessing in disguise that something totally different has come along. The G13 works with PC or MAC and comes with a free World of Warcraft trial, which is one of the games it’s meant to be used with.

Blast factor: If you’re still an avid PC gamer, the G13 is a great solution with built-in profiles for the top games. The backlit keys and LCD really add to the appeal, too.

For those of you who don’t like to pay for your first-person shooter experiences, the U.S. Army is here to help you yet again, this time with the announcement of America’s Army 3 for the PC. It looks like everything people loved about the first two entries in the series will be included, along with new features that were conceived through feedback from the players.

America’s Army is meant to teach its players about how the Army works, and about the values the soldiers within it hold. It’s a fun (and free) experience whether or not you are on the fence about joining the armed forces though.

The game will be built using Epic’s Unreal Engine 3, but as of now the Army weapon researchers haven’t worked out the kinks on their chainsaw bayonets.

From the U.S. Army:

U.S. ARMY ANNOUNCES AMERICA’S ARMY 3 PC ACTION GAME
New Game in Hit Series Features New Missions, Training and Gameplay Features

Silver Spring, MD January 20, 2009 – Six years after the U.S. Army revolutionized military action games with the launch of the free PC game America’s Army, the U.S. Army today announced the upcoming release of America’s Army 3 (AA3). America’s Army 3 is the only free action game that delivers an authentic and entertaining Army experience by reflecting the training, technology, actions and career advancement of a Soldier within a unique exciting game experience. AA3, which will be rated T for Teen by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), will be released in 2009. As with previous versions of America’s Army, AA3 will be constantly updated to include new features and missions and to highlight new technologies being incorporated in today’s Army.

Using the state-of-the-art Unreal Engine 3, America’s Army game developers brought the most popular trademark gameplay features from the previous versions to AA3. Highlights include authentic weapons and technologies, realistic training and exciting gameplay missions. AA3 provides players new insights into the Army and Soldiering while making the game easier to play, easier to install and easier to download.

“In AA3 we’ve taken all of the best features in AA2, incorporated feedback from the AA community and added the latest technology to develop a high-tech game that can be customized by the player to create a much more detailed interactive experience,” said Michael Bode, executive producer of the America’s Army game. “One of our key design philosophies is to make the game easily accessible to a new player, while at the same time keeping a deeper layer of complexity for the more advanced players to discover and take advantage of.”

AA3 highlights different aspects of the Army from Army Values and the Warrior Ethos to Army career opportunities and lifestyles both on and off duty. Through their in-game characters, AA3 players will be able to experience the way Soldiers train, live, and advance in the Army. AA3 players will also experience different types of technologies and equipment used by the Army’s high-tech Soldier. Players are bound by Rules of Engagement (ROE) and gain experience as they navigate challenges in team-based, multiplayer, force on force operations. In the game, as in the Army, accomplishing missions requires teamwork and adherence to the seven Army Core Values. In the game, a player’s actions and demonstrated Army values will have consequences that are integral to success in gameplay and will affect a player’s career progression.

“With AA3, we’re taking military gaming to an all new level where every detail counts,” said Col. Casey Wardynski, originator and Director of the America’s Army game project. “We want our America’s Army 3 players to have a greater understanding of the Army and its values. Our Soldiers are aspirational figures and our players are able to virtually experience many aspects of a Soldier’s life from their training, to their missions, to the way the Army has influenced their lives.”

As with the previous America’s Army games, AA3′s authenticity is second-to-none. Our Army development team worked closely with Subject Matter Experts from across the Army to make sure that everything about the game is as realistic as possible. AA3 has more authentic military elements including training, technology, weapons, and audio than any other military game. Built on Unreal Engine 3, AA3 delivers stunningly realistic environments, lighting effects, animations, and team-based experiences so that America’s Army players can experience how the Army has strength like no other within its game that is like no other.

AA3 players will have persistent characters that they customize by embarking on career paths in which they advance by completing specialized training and accomplishing missions. The evolution of the player’s career follows the same progression as it would in the Army. Players are rewarded at significant milestones, such as graduation from basic training or returning from a deployment, through pride moments — vignettes represented visually as an achievement screen, movie or a slide show. These pride moments transition the player from one state of training or character progression to another.

Initially, the core of the gameplay focuses on an Infantry Soldier (11B). Players can select from a variety of roles that the 11B performs such as Rifleman, Automatic Rifleman, Designated Marksman and Grenadier. The first additional Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) players can explore is 68W Health Care Specialist (Combat Medic) which will be added this summer. Players who complete advanced individual training modules can take on new MOS roles that will affect gameplay. For example, by completing medic training players will be able to treat minor and major injuries in single player training missions and render advanced medical aid in multiplayer missions. In subsequent game releases, players who complete Combat Engineer training will be able to assist in mission pre-planning, such as emplacing an obstacle to impede the mobility of enemy forces.

Training is a key element in the AA3 game just as it is in the Army. The game offers a variety of new training levels that will give players an advantage in the game. After completing basic training players can go to advanced training to increase their in-game skill level and progress in their Army career. Success in the game earns players the privilege of taking specialized training. This specialized training allows players to unlock new abilities and gear, and to customize the gear they carry as well as their equipment loadout. As players advance, they will be able to ‘cross-train’ on many different MOSs available in today’s Army. Such players will be highly sought after due to the capabilities they bring to multiplayer missions. Additionally, as a new feature, players will have the ability to join online games with limited capabilities using the “instant action” feature.

About America’s Army
The Army creates and distributes America’s Army so that young Americans can virtually explore Soldiering in the U.S. Army like Soldiers experience it – as individuals and as members of teams. Through the Game’s virtual experiences, young Americans can explore the Army from basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia, and medic training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas to operations in defense of freedom. Along the way, they can join elite Army units and experience the strength of Army teamwork, values and technology within an engaging environment. The game has become an online phenomenon, consistently ranking among the most popular PC action games played online. The games are rated T for Teen and can be downloaded free from various partners listed on the www.americasarmy.com site. They are also distributed at local Army Recruiting stations, ROTC Detachments and Army events.

In the America’s Army game, players are bound by Rules of Engagement (ROE) and grow in experience as they navigate challenges in team-based, multiplayer, force on force operations. In the game, as in the Army, accomplishing missions requires teamwork and adherence to the Army’s core values. Through its emphasis on team play, the game demonstrates these values of loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal courage and makes them integral to success in America’s Army.

The Army launched America’s Army in July of 2002, and has released major updates to the game every few months. These releases feature new technologies, missions, Army units and occupations. In keeping with the dynamic nature of Soldiering, the America’s Army game will continue to expand and will allow players to explore the Army of today, tomorrow and the future. An entirely new version of the game, America’s Army 3, will be released in 2009.

A slight whimper was heard the world over when Microsoft officially canned the highly anticipated Marvel Comics MMORPG. Luckily, fan boys the world over will still have a chance to realize their spandex clad dreams – just in another universe entirely.

This week, Sony Online Entertainment released details on its upcoming DC Universe Online in the newest issue of Edge magazine. While the PS3 and PC game was officially announced earlier this year, little was known about it besides the fact that it would be the first online title to be set in the fabled universe home to Batman and Superman, even though players will not be able to directly control the legendary heroes.

Much like long running action title City of Heroes; gamers will create their own hero or villain from scratch, setting everything from your character’s look to his superpowers. Much like any other RPG, players will level up as they progress through the game but unique to DC Online – leveling up will give players access to new moves and abilities based on their original choices. Choosing flight as your ability will give you immediate access to the skies, but only through leveling up will you be able to pull off unique acrobatic maneuvers mid-air.

Although you won’t get to actually control any of the DC heroes or villains, they will show up – and play a major role in the game’s events. Wannabe heroes could end up teaming up alongside one World’s Finest, while a villain looking to make a name for himself may be able to force a showdown with big blue by causing enough carnage.

With an ever expanding and changing universe, DC Comics is well aware of the marketing potential it has on its hands. “We can tie-in future DC tent-pole events and translate the stories for the gaming world, and have them occur simultaneously,” said executive creative director Jim Lee. “The possibilities are numerous and very exciting.”

While no release date has been set for the superhero sim, it’s widely believed that gamers will have take to Metropolis, Star City and Gotham sometime in 2009. DC Universe Online is expected to be on display at this year’s E3.