Total Annihilation - Spring Engine

Make no mistake, fatal even, femmes 'n mechs - Total Annihilation is, simply put, the ultimate in futurisitic, firepower-packed and explosive RTS Games made by that Canuck Chris Taylor, the man large 'n in charge of it, also responsible for its equally explosive spiritual sequel, Supreme Commander. This one's got it all: 2 sides (Arm and Core) in an extragalactic fight to the death, hundreds of robotic military machines thrown into battle, crashin' smoulderin' hulks o' metal, explosions, mayhem and victory - to paraphrase Taylor. What's even sweeter, TA's even moddable, just like SupCom is. Take Talon for example - a 3rd faction consisting of the Core's betrayed cyborg clones filled with hatred, ready to tear the other 2 to shreds with their advanced military technologies... but our Arm 'n Core friends have some new techs up their long, metal-covered, nanolathed sleeves too.

But sometimes, 3D troops on 2D enviorments just won't make the cut. Something more... full-scale, in a completely 3D enviroment, ready to adapt to ANY kind of war, anything, anywhere, anytime, is in order. And take a wild guess what would fill the bill...

That's right, femmes and mechs:

Nanolathed by them Swedish Yankspankers folks and licensed under the GNU GPL, Spring intends to bring the gameplay experience of Total Annihilation (TA) into three dimensions - and guess what, it's even fully moddable. From the most innonatively active Complete Annihilation to fresh originals like P.U.R.E. to the completely at balance Balanced Annihilation, no 2 battle's EVER the same in the Spring Project - and no 2 enemies are spared the agony of having themselves rained upon by barrage after barrage of heavy fire.

But there are some battles where strategy alone just won't be enough to bring your enemy to knees. What last choice leaves you? You guessed it... go into FPS mode in one of your units and charge into the white-hot middle of the battle in 4 millenia of war, gunz'a'blazin' and full steam ahead! If you thought Machines, BattleZone and Urban Assault are the only RTS/FPS games on the block... too bad for you.

So what are you waitin' for like an idle Construction unit? Report to http://springrts.com/, grab the Spring RTS Engine and hit the frontlines, soldier - clone or pattern!

SOLDAT - 2D Run 'n Gun TPS

What will you get when you take Liero, Scorched Earth, combine with elements from Worms and Counter-Strike, threw it all into a nasty-lookin' blender and let it rip? Well, 1 picture = 1000 words:

From the twisted minds of Nick "EnEsCe" Cooper & Michal Marcinkowski comes this blood-soaked, online, 2d run 'n gun, third person shooter gem from our Polish friends. From gripping on each other's throats on gun-point in ever-classic DeathMatches to goin' Rambo on your enemies' sorry bottoms in Rambomatch, you won't let Soldat's lack o' 3D catch ya off guard in this ultimately gory fragfest - and with some jetboots thrown in for REAL good measure. Just visualize givin' your opponent the anti-armor bullet-based pain from the nasty ol' M82 or even the Ol' Painless Minigun from Predator while flying with jetboots, and multiply the pleasure of the kill a hundredfold... then you'll get the picture.

Too bad Soldat's SHAREWARE - but that's OK, registration unlocks extra aesthetic options, such as colored jet flames and custom interfaces, to liven things up. And speakin' o' which, Soldat can also be modded - take X-COM: Soldat and Eradication Wars for examples. The X-COM mod brings to you the weapons, technology and aliens from the realm of X-COM, while Eradication Wars puts the "Heavy Metal" into "Heavy Metal War" with nasty, gun-totin', 30ft tall humanoid mechs.

Oh yes - and the F.E.A.R. mods, both Henito Kisou's and wolfbr's versions? Shows you how it feels to be the pointman of the First Encounter Assault Recon in Replica-rippin' tactical combat fun... combined with the fast 'n furiously paced deathmatch of Quake.

Convinced enough to play Soldat? Then why not take a leap into http://www.soldat.pl/ and go get 'em, Tiger? Trust me - you won't regret this rip-roarin' 2D fragathon of a lifetime.

As a finishing note, while Soldat is the apogee of Polish game design, the priveledge of Hungarian Sci-Fi games is... you guessed it:

NEXUS: THE JUPITER INCIDENT.

Alien Arena - Retro Sci-Fi FPS

Do you like fast paced deathmatch?

How about rich, colorful, arcadelike atmospheres?

How about...retro Sci Fi?

Then you know what that means, folks...

Creating the perfect marriage between Quake and Unreal Tournament, between retro sci-fi and futuristic tech, and between casual gamer and advanced expert, and wrapped up in a package with quality that could rival that of commercial games, Alien Arena will send you to arenas never before fought on, strange new weapons with unique features, and against opponents that are out of this world - literally speaking, of course. If you have imagined giving those Martians from Mars Attacks! their plasma-based just desserts or jumping into the eternal depths of space, guns blazin' in the battlefields of yesterday's Worlds of Tomorrow, then imagine no more. From DeathMatch to All Out Assault (DM with vehicles), Capture the Flag to Team Core Assault, no 2 battle's the same - and no 2 aliens will be spared from a few well-placed Rockets (heheheh...).

Being a fast, fun and free FPS for Windows, Mac and Linux, all you need to do is download the game, install wherever you like it, and get your frag on. Oh - and as for the game? Right here at http://icculus.org/alienarena/rpa/.

Overall, a highly recommended FPS game for all the Retro Sci-Fi - and hardcore FPS Action - fans out here.

Se7en Transformation Pack

SE7EN TRANSFORMATION PACK
Transforming Windows XP into Windows 7

by Lucifiar (Windows X) - http://www.windowsxlive.net

First Vista Inspirat from CrystalXP, now this beauty of a shellpack. By 2009.10.22., Windows 7 will be hittin' computerstore shelvesand by 2010, TRON Legacy will hit theaters - and if they do, then you'll bet your life I'll be there like freeware, programs.

But ask yourself this: can you make your Windows XP look like Windows 7 - without having to purchase Windows 7 or any 3rd-party applications to get Windows 7 UI experiences? Windows X's Se7en Transformation Pack can be taken as a "yes".

From Lucifiar, the one who brought you the eXPerience and Vista Transformation Packs, and Lee, the man responsible for the Vi-series feature enhancers, come the Seven Transformation Pack 2.0, guaranteed to give your Windows XP OS the look 'n feel of Seven, yours truly after waiting patiently for months for the right time to strike - you don't want insignificant changes from the real deal, plus bloated stuff from prototype screenshots and become obsolete in no time anyway, do you?

All you need is your Windows XP, download the transformation pack from http://www.windowsxlive.net, install the fella and... lo and behold - for thine Windows XP is blessed with the look and feel of Windows Se7en. No need to buy or pre-order Windows 7, which is, in my book, the most important part. Best of all, the 7TP is freeware.

The 7TP's features are as follows:

Seven Transformation Pack will replace many of the resources in Windows XP/Windows Server 2003. It can change such things as:

• Boot screen
• Welcome Screen / Logon Screen
• New msstyles files (visual styles)
• New desktop and file icons
• New toolbar icons
• Progress Dialogs
• Sounds scheme
• System Tray icons
• New Wallpapers
• Some of Windows 7's popular features
• And much more

And there you have it, boy 'n girl programs. New clothes for your good ol' XP OS - and with some Vi-series simulators for that extra feel. I highly recommend 7TP if you want your XP look like Seven - so go for it, your time, your call. Trust me, you'll thank me later.

Project M41A

Of all of the fictional, sci-fi weapons existing today, no gun is more famous and beautiful than a pulse rifle, one that starred in ALIEN, one that is the weapon-of-choice of the US Colonial Marines, one that spits out caseless lead death, the one, the only...



You guessed it - the M41A PULSE RIFLE. This site's purpose to offer information and links for those individuals interested in building and learning more about one of the most beautiful badboys in the science fiction genre.

Now THIS is why I love guns, futuristic ones technically.

Joe's Top 15 Rockin' Cool Things

And now, ladies and gentlemen, femmes and mechs, boils and gargoyles, it's time for my Top 10 list for the things I love the BEST, aptly named...

Joe's Top 15 Rockin' Cool Things


15. Human Assisted Robots (HAR)
Neural-controlled mechanized gladiators, size times 30. Need I say more?

14. Military Mechs
From small-and-sneaky war surgeons to oversized robotic havoc-makers (such as the Mammoth Mk. II), they're the best of the best the military of the future can bring. Rock 'n Roll.

13. Pipe Organs
Something to play the March of Deaths for the losers' remains with...

12. Space Battleships
Platforms of DEATH in space.

11. Hungarian Sci-Fi
Nexus: The Jupiter Incident is a perfect example of that.

10. Powered Armors
Especially those Japanese girls wearing them... armed and armored to the teeth is what I do best.

9. Tanks
From giant, nuclear cybertanks to biometal-powered antigrav tanks, these are my #1 choice in frontline havoc-wreakin'. OGRES FOREVER!

8. Transformers
Military and Civil vehicles in one moment... oversized, armed-to-the-teeth Cybertronian robots the next... and back again. All in one neat, hi-speed sci-fi/action package.

7. Guns
LOTS and LOTS of guns, kinetic, energy, light, heavy, close combat, long range, modern, future...

6. Space Battles
360° degrees of guaranteed intergalactic PAIN.

5. Militant Aliens
Can't live with 'em. Can't play war without 'em. Take the Strogg for example.

4. Freeware Games
Whoever said the best guns in life can't be free has picked the WRONG day to do so.

3. Luigi Colani
EVERYTHING ol' Colani makes is of sleek, round bio-design. Don't believe me? Take a look.

2. Anti-Gravity Fighters
Every pilot's #1 choice in fighting the enemy in a 360° enviroment.

And the #1 best thing in my life is:

1. JESUS CHRIST.
Whose shedded blood can wipe everyone clean of sin - all you need to do is REPENT to Him. Need I say more?

TAGAP - The Apocalyptic Game About... PENGUINS?!

What do you get when you mix a penguin with cybernetics, bio-engineered drugs and arm it to the... err... beak with enough heavy weapons to turn an army of enemies into gibs? That's right - you get Pablo the Cyber-Penguin, the star in Jouni Lahtinen's
and his team Penguin DT's freeware Soldat-Turrican hybrid sci-fi/action game...

TAGAP - The Apocalyptic Game About Penguins

As far as Jouni and PDT's concerned, we adore penguins - but testing experimental military stimulants on animals like them is SICK enough stuff, and this game, boils and gargoyles, is a worst-case-scenario of pyrotechnical sorts.

[Pablo - one mean lil' penguin, armed to the beak]

Here's the rundown on this said scenario, accordin' to Recon:

A short time ago, a certain military supplier has succeeded in connecting a living brain into a computer. This was done with the aid of Dr. Glowenko's design-drug, TAGAP (Tissue-Augmenting, Green, Addictive Pill). Glowenko then, without warning, went insane and decided to get his death-grip on the world with an army of (guess what?) cybernetic PENGUINS!

One of the penguins, codenamed "Pablo", wasn't too happy about being used in the "mad scientist" act and revolted against Glowenko, who soon decided to put a TAGAP-price on Pablo's head and sent his penguin army – led by the fearsome "Pedro" – after him.

This is where YOU, as Pablo the Penguin, come into the world of TAGAP.

'Sides, if someone has the guts to actually try penguin world domination, we're all up for it. But wait, femmes and mechs, there's more:

TAGAP 2 - Meaner penguins, bigger guns and more pills!


According to sources, the story about this sequel takes place a couple of months after the events of TAGAP. It seems that Dr. Glowenko was actually hired by an international organization, Random Evil Pharmaceuticals (REP), to build the cyber-army. However, Dr. Glowenko soon went nuts with his cyber-penguins and cut his connections to his REP benefactors, leaving them with nothing but a step-by-step guide for creating killer penguins. When Pablo and Pedro track the supply-trail back to the remote warehouse, they stumble on an even bigger cyberzombie penguin army, leaded by general Primo, the latest and most advanced cyber-penguin ever. More advanced and better equipped, Primo and his troops are going to finish what Dr. Glowenko’s own private army once started:

To conquer the world!


Here is Surveiliance information about REP, straight from the blog:

Aptly named Random Evil Pharmaceuticals (or REP for short) is the fabric that ties everything in TAGAP 2 together. While concentrating mainly on drugs and health care products, being a massive multi-sector, multi-national enterprise, REP has subsidiaries all around the world. One of those happened to be Glowenko Industries, the REP CEO's own pet contracted to create an invincible army of killer cyborgs. Unknown to the CEO, Dr. Glowenko (being the nutcase he was) abandoned the proper research and went on for a "penguin apocalypse".

Their genius Dr. Glowenko going AWOL and solo, REP finds themselves left with perfected blueprints of a cyborg army... of penguins. Still eager to continue the project, but lacking a visionary leader able to adapt the technology for use with other species, REP restarts the project creating a new penguin army – and a new general, Primo.

And when Pablo and Primo stumble upon it all, the game is on.

And one more thing: this is why I LOVE indie, freeware games. I HIGHLY recommend TAGAP for all those freeware, sci-fi and action fans - includin' Soldat and Turrican ones... not ta mention the penguin-lubbers.

Trust me - you'll be addicted to those green bio-modifyin' pills in this indie fragfest. Just don't overdose, right? (One more note: judging by the names in the Office level, is Jouni a DooM addict, or is it just me?)