A Dose of Virtual Reality?

Over the course of the last decade, the use of Virtual Reality has been widely accepted as a tool for the treatment of numerous psychological conditions, allowing users to confront their fears in a controlled virtual world. Given how far Virtual Reality and the quality of games has developed over the last ten years, it comes as little surprise that doctors are drawing on videogame technology to treat Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among Iraq war veterans:


Given the amount of negative coverage First Person Shooters receive in the wider press (the old "teaching people to kill" schtick), it is great to see a positive example of how these types of games are being used to help improve the lives of individuals who may have once gone untreated and ignored.

The entire Business Week article by Carlos Bergfeld can be read here.

In-game advertising company IGA Worldwide has struck a deal with Codemasters to place static and interactive ads in a range of forthcoming games. Confirmed titles at the moment are Brian Lara (and Ricky Ponting) International Cricket 2007 and Colin McRae: DIRT.

- IGA Worldwide

There's one thing to be said about putting ads into sports games: it's realistic.

Free Red Orchestra trial week and booster pack

Tripwire Interactive, the creators of Red Orchestra, has announced a free full-game trial for Red Orchestra: Ostfront 41-45. From Wednesday August 2 through to Monday August 7 (US time), players have the opportunity to download and play Red Orchestra via Steam and experience the game in its entirety before deciding to purchase it.

Along with the free trial, Tripwire Interactive has also released the latest free booster pack via Steam, which adds the following new features:


Few multiplayer games on the market contain the kind of depth and realism of Red Orchestra, so if you've ever thought about giving it a go, now is the time.

Information on downloading the free Red Orchestra trial can be found here.

Gamepolitics brings word of this Yorkshire Post article about the forthcoming Reservoir Dogs game, which British police chiefs have described as "disturbing" and "offensive" for its level of violence towards police.


Politicians have also expressed disapproval of the game's content. Harrogate MP Phil Willis is concerned about the level of violence towards police, and said he is "absolutely staggered" that Reservoir Dogs will be sold in shops.

These comments all involve the violence inflicted on police officers, rather than the "torture moves" that prompted the Australian and New Zealand classification boards to effectively ban the game. The British Board of Film Classifiction (BBFC) has given Reservoir Dogs an 18 rating for "strong bloody violence", and a BBFC spokeswoman told the Yorkshire Post that the level of violence is no higher than most games in the 18 category.

She also ascribed Australia's recent decision to effectively ban Reservoir Dogs to our lack of an R18+ rating. However, New Zealand has provisions for 18+ ratings and still banned the game for its extreme violence.

Storm Eagle Studios has released a trial version of Distant Guns, their strategic naval warfare simulation. Set during the 1904-1905 war between Russia and Japan, the focus is on destroyers firing on each other over vast distances (hence the title), with the laudably authentic gameplay portraying just how long such battles could take. Both single and multiplay modes are included.

The 279 MB trial is limited to thirty launches over a period of thirty days, but these limitations can be removed by purchasing a full license. The trial can be downloaded from 3D Gamers - however a name and valid e-mail address is required for activation.