X-bit labs

Sunday, July 24, 2005

Doom Movie Set to Be Released This October. Doom Movie Previewed

GameCloud has posted a coverage of Comic-Con Doom movie panel. The organizers showed a couple of short trailer-teasers and also held a Q&A with actors Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Karl Urban, producer John Wells and Lorenzo DiBonaventure as well as id Software CEO Todd Hollenshead. Many were afraid that Doom movie was going to be a “yet another crappy movie-video game adaptation”, but the panel was aimed to show that such expectations were premature.

“We got two clips from the movie itself; the first is the upcoming 90 second teaser trailer that officially reveals that the movie version of id Software’s first person shooter will take place on Mars rather than an unnamed planet as had been talked about in the past. The teaser trailer had a lot of quick cuts of The Rock; Karl Urban and the rest of the cast along with brief looks at the monsters, the environment (and they look right out of Doom 3, by the way; right down to the computer screens on the base) and battles with the monsters. The second clip is the one that got the most reaction; part of the first person shooter sequence featuring Urban’s character,” GameCloud web-site reports.

“The movie will at one point have a viewpoint just like the game, right down to the weapons loading animation. The sequence was, by the producer’s own admission, still incomplete in terms of visual effects and other elements but watching the clip feels like you are watching the game in action, from surprise monster appearance in corridors to shooting parts of the environment to fry the creatures,” informs GameCloud.

The release date for the movie is set on October 21, 2005.

• GameCloud: Doom Movie Comic-Con Panel Report.

Antivirus Software from Microsoft Gets Closer. OneCare Closed Beta Testing Starts

When Microsoft acquired Romanian antivirus software developer GeCad Software back in 2003 the company announced its intention to offer antivirus software. Two years later, Microsoft begins closed beta testing of the yet-to-be released antivirus software.

“Microsoft announced its plans for OneCare in May, and last month it invited people to register for the first beta release of the tools. The first testers are now being asked to download the software,” reports CNET News.com.

“OneCare combines anti-spyware software, which Microsoft is already publicly testing, with antivirus and firewall software and with several tune-up tools for Windows PCs. Pricing for OneCare has not been announced, but Microsoft has said that the final package will be offered as a subscription service. It is meant for consumers, rather than businesses,” the article claims.

• CNET News.com: Testers Get Hands on Microsoft Antivirus Service.