RavenGames News Archives

October 2003

Dannifilth brings us the [LOF] Clan Map for Jedi Academy. Now, upon loading this up, I was presented with quite the startup screen. It looks REALLY awesome. The music (taken from FF7 - "Ahead on Our Way", I believe) is a beautifully orchestrated song and fits the map well.
Well, the awesomeness almost ends there. The map is well-structured, but lacks architectural quality. There are a couple of raised platforms where you can duel, but the over-use of glass really takes away from the theme of the map. The main problem here is the lack of lighting (complete no-light here). The map's edges run into the map, so you end up hitting an invisible wall at some places where a wall would have done better.

The overall look of the map is rather nice, ranging from teleporters to a hidden area, to a wide open area for massive FFAs. The use of texturing and brushes shows well in most of the parts of the map. Again, too much glass (and it's hard to see it, because there's no lighting at all in the level). Then we come to the clan offices for the members - very nice idea (especially the area that leads to a Marko Ragnos statue with flames in front of it) but again...they are simply empty offices with nothing of interest at all in them. It's almost as if the LOF members themselves JUST finished building the place and hadn't moved in yet.

The map feels very blocky, very rushed, but overall it isn't too bad. I could see this being a rather successful map if it was compiled with light and touched up in some spots. Adding a few things into the clan offices (such as the leader's room. A practical shrine to Marilyn Manson but NOTHING but a couple of pictures and a big open waste of space) and making the map feel more full would be a great idea.

Lack of bot support and decent architecture also add to the list of negatives on this map. It is a good effort (a great effort if it's your first) but please try to map intelligently next time. Maps are all about functionality, and less about eye-candy. Once you get the hang of doing this, you can add eye-candy while you map and still not have to worry about serious playability issues.

(News comments and review by Chrono)

You can find it at Jedi Knight Files.

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This is a skin pack containing various characters "Terminated"...You'll find Picard, Barclay, Munro, Tuvok and a generic female to use, as well as good ol' Ah-nold (though he isn't in his Terminator get-up). They all vary slightly, with different parts of their skins cut out to reveal the machinery within. All of them have a glowing eye that actually pulsates! Besides Tuvok and Barclay, the other skins only change the head.

For the most part I found the skins to be fairly interesting and well done, though lacking a bit of dimension and realism. Perhaps using a shader to get a metal sheen on the machine parts would be great to really make them stand out. There are some superfluous TIK files in the pk3, but that's not too much of a biggy!

Check it out at Elite Force Files.

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This map you have just got to try, scared the crap out of me while testing it... All it needed was for someone to jump out on me and well...you can imagine what would of happened. This map has some very nice effects only thing missing is loads of spiderwebs every where. The house and surround buildings are massive, plenty of places to hide and explore, you just wait till someone jumps out on you!

The map supports dm, tdm, ctf, inf gametypes and will host 32 players, and plenty of room for them too. This is a must download and a must for custom servers, the map is dark but thats ok, it adds to the atmosphere, anyway enough of this, just go download it and see for yourself. ...jeeze what was that noise ???

Go get it at SoF II Files.

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Well. I told you all I love reviewing maps. And this is no exception. Why RavenSoft didn't include in Jedi Academy a map based on this level (for dueling) is beyond my understanding, but Keiran decided to give it a shot:

I don't know if this is his first map, but he did an excellent job with the architecture. Great use of the Rift theme throughout the entire map. My only argument against this map would be the lack of a bottomless pit (since you are in the Rift area), but he still tackles the theme arguably well. The map consists of a platform with bridges running into a central area - small corridors line the outskirts of this area. Ramps lead past exits that lead back up to the upper-area of the dueling map.

This is a good map for small FFAs, but it's best used for duels. Great job on the map Keiran! I look forward to more work from you!

(News comments and review by Chrono)

Take a look at Jedi Knight Files.

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Another "Raven Quality" map by MAD Mike for Soldier of Fortune II! This map is great for whatever gametype you prefer. It's kind of symetrical for CTF, has great demolition sites for DEM, nice briefcase and extraction points for INF, and good weapon placement for DM and TDM.

It supports DM, TDM, CTF, INF, DEM, ELIM gametypes and is recommended for 6 to up to 32 players, but watch out, it has a limit of 64 players maximum!

Take a look at SoF II Files.

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Here we have a Soldier of Fortune II mp map that is based on and around a bridge. A cool map to play and a map that's full of action.

It was developed by [CE]Darkone for the Chaotic Existence Clan, it supports DM, TDM, CTF, INF, ELIM and up to 20 players in team games!

Go get it at SoF II Files.

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When I first look at this skin, I'm reminded of Pirates of the Caribbean. Stay with me, because this is a rather nice-looking skin. It turns the cultist morons into really tough-looking creatures. This stand-alone skin by maddog is a rather nice departure from normal skins. Just in time for Halloween no less! The face has been replaced by a very ominous skull wrapped in headgear with various chains/chainmail hanging around the clothes.

This is a very well-detailed job. I especially like the face on this guy. You can't tell from the screenshots, but if you get real close it looks unmistakably like a skull. The CTF colors are palette swaps, but are pretty well-done regardless. Add some bot support into the mix and you have a recipe for a long-lasting skin. Great job Maddog!
(news comments by Chronos)

Take a look at Jedi Knight Files.

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The <|FeaR|> Headquarters for JK2 was a well-liked map. Many downloaded it and it kept a high rating. A recently released map by Storm, <|FeaR|> Outpost, also has a decent rating. So I'm baffled that the quality in Storm's latest map, <|FeaR|> Headquarters is less than what we've come to expect from him.

The map seems to be one big hallway, with the sides being mirror images of each other. There are many staircases and ramps up and down the hall and small doors that lead to practically empty rooms with more staircases and platforms for dueling. There seems to be at least two ways of getting to each room here. The only thing added for decoration seems to be those big statues and then some custom textures with the <|FeaR|> logo and stuff on 'em. Speaking of textures, there are some missing. :/ Moving onto another room and it seems that it's kind of a shrine to a player. In my opinion, there's only one really interesting place for a duel or FFA and that's outside with that one huge statue of Ragnos. At the other end of the map is the same room as what you see in the beginning, but with snow.

Sometimes there are maps with a monotonous look to them, but still have great gameplay. As I've said many times before, eye candy doesn't make a map great. But in this case, this map has nothing going for it. No bot support, no new music, the new textures do nothing to add to the ambiance of the map and finally, the map isn't fun to play. The layout seems awkward, being just one big hallway with rooms here and there and no real center for FFA's. You seem to have some fans out there, Storm, so maybe this is just a small hitch and you'll really impress us with your next map.
(news comments by AmosMagee)

You can find it at Jedi Knight Files.

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Here's a great file that contains flags,a hud, icons and a loading screen! Its a very cool file that is nicely done a must have for your collection, besides the authors give us some advice on how to make your custom skins work on a pure server:


"If you don't know about this, then this might make you a happy person. If you are like me (and my fellow clan members), you really love to play this game with your custom skins, or the custom skins you download. Well, as we all know, skins and huds, and such don't work on all servers!

Here is a pretty simple way to always play with custom skins:

1) Find the server you want to play on.
2) Find out what map they are currently playing on.
3) Go to the create a server option, and create a server to these specs: a)unpure
b)non-dedicated
4) Make sure you select to play the same map as the on-line server you want to play on.
5) Start your server. Once your server is loaded and you are in, select a team and make sure your skins are workin.
6) Now that you are in your own server and your skins are working, exit out to the main menu.
7) Join the server you originally wanted to play at.... since you already loaded the current map, you will connect in no time.
8) Wa-la!.... your skins will now work on any server you play on (until you shut down your game. You must repeat this everytime you start up SOF2 to get your skins to work!)

Now we know this seems like a lot to do, and that it would take forever...but it really doesn't take anytime and you get to play anywhere with your custom skins. So give it a shot!"

Both the skin pack and this amazing explanation were brought to you by (TNB)_FOGGrindPunk & (TNB)_Bruce Dassole from the (TNB)Clan!

You can find it at SoF II Files.

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Looking for more variety in your saber selection for JKA? Well, look no further! This saber pack here has 18 sabers for you to choose from. If you played JK2 then most of these sabers here will seem a tad familiar. I'll just give a few words on each saber.

-Desann: We should all recognize this saber, carried by the most lethal lizard/dragon Dark Jedi thing. Enjoyed by many in JK2 and now available for JKA!
-Luke: This is a saber hilt from a pack by a guy who did none of the saber hilts either. Yeah. I'm thinkin' this is just Luke's saber. Then again, I don't pay much attention to the hilts.
-Oniwan: Before you even start, I know that looks like a typo, but it's not one by me! HA! That's what whoever made this hilt called it. It's his typo! Decent hilt.
-Dooku: From the same guy who gave us the Luke and Oniwan hilts, here's the Dooku hilt. Wildly popular, I saw this hilt everywhere in JK2. While it looks like good craftsmanship, I can't stand this hilt. Maybe because it's curved like that, I dunno. Personal preference, I guess.
-Yoda: The final hilt from the pack that included the last three hilts, this one is called Yoda. Though, I think it looks a tad too big for Yoda. Very plain hilt.
-Nazgul: And now onto the Lord of the Rings (LOTR) hilts. This first one looks like the kind of sword the Black Riders would carry. Dark in color, sharp at the points. Looks like it could inflict pain on someone no matter which end you swung with.
-Morgul: A dark city in Mordor, Morgul (actually Minas Morgul) had this hilt made with its namesake and I think it fits its name nicely. Small and unassuming.
-Glamdring: Ah, Gandalf's sword. It's large and regal and it just really has a presence about it. Nice lookin' hilt.
-Sting: This helpful little sword was given to Frodo by Bilbo. I do like this LOTR hilt. It has more personality and character than the other hilts I've seen so far.

-Ranger: I'm assuming this sword is fashioned after one that Strider/Aragorn carried, or belonging to one of his kin. It's a great looking hilt and is well worth the download just for this one, I think.
-Ring_Wraith: Another great LOTR hilt, made with the Ring Wraith in mind. The detail on this sword is lovely, but would be lost in gameplay.
-Morgul_Sword: Again we see another hilt with Morgul in mind, and its style is very much the same as the first one we looked at. Not much more to say about it.
-Black Widow: Oops. I kinda cut off part of the hilt there at the front. Well, trust me, this is a great looking hilt. One I may consider keeping myself. It's very evil looking.
-Yun: Some may prefer the simpler saber hilts and for those, I suggest Yun. It's a nice hilt, decent size, not too big or small, all chrome. It has a solid look about it - if that makes sense.
-Fierce Deity: And finally, the sword that was included with the Link model. This thing is huge. I mean, seriously. Use this sword and people will question what you're compensating for. No one needs a sword that big!

And there you have it. One download ... 18 saber hilts. Is it worth the download? Sure, if you like variety. I would take too long deciding which hilt to use, so I'll stick to the base hilts.

(news comments and review by AmosMagee)

Take a look at Jedi Knight II Files.

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SeeMePlayMe is releasing a new version of its software to the public as early as tomorrow that will include features such as:

-Custom Profile Pics
-File Transfer
-Ability to add additional command line parameters
-Quake 1 support
-Known bug fixes

"We are a new online gaming community similar to the former mplayer.com software. You can create your own server of Jedi Outcast, Jedi Academy or Soldier of Fortune II, and many other popular games in a matter of seconds. We also have the best voice and video chat on the market. Download our software and give us a try at our homepage!"

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This mod was created to add some more texture to Soldier of Fortune II multi-player. Some of the stuff is not exactly realistic but more of a unreal tournament gameplay. I been tryin to get admin and a bunch of other goodies to go with this but i have absolutly no idea on how to code (qvm). That is a whole diff language for me. Fortunatly this mod can be used along side other mods so that you can enjoy the textures without sacrificing admin, tokens, etc... (works with phycho mod, sneaky mod, all 3rd person mods, all osp versions)

It features new textures, new sounds, new effects, art, weapon values, and ingame radio!

Check it out at SoF II Files.

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Finally, salvation has come. Wolf has done what most people only dreamed of. He has taken the nasty gray icons that appear when you are using a custom character and replaced them with nice, colorful ones. Unfortunately, I find them to be a tad too colorful.

But it is a great idea. What I would have done is maybe put some sort of image back there. The colors just don’t seem to fit the overall Jedi mood. When I think of Jedis I think of their clothes, earth tone shades, not emotional greens and blues and pinks. I really like the idea but I personally feel it could use some refinement. In the meantime, though, these are staying in my base folder because I absolutely cannot stand the nasty gray icons the game came with.

The only error I found with these icons came with the Twi’Lek heads. When you adjust the shade of your Twi’Lek’s skin, the color of the background would change. It ended up looking very ugly and very distracting. But, it was still better than the gray. Good work, Wolf. I’d love to see some refinement!
(news comments by Daku)

You can get it at Jedi Knight II Files.

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This simple mod from Master_Xalius will make your saber blades thinner and sleeker, a form he believes to be more like that of the sabers seen in Episode I. In addition to changing the look, this file will also change the sounds from your sabers. While the sounds are pretty good, I think I prefer the sounds that come with the game. These tend to be a little long for my liking. For instance, when you put your saber away the sound continues long after it has been deactivated. Seeing as how it’s no longer there, the humming really shouldn’t be there either.

I do agree with him on the look though. I decided to bust out Episode I again, just for fun and because I thought it’d be good to check, and I think these are a fairly accurate depiction of the sabers seen in Episode I. This is a pretty decent mod if you don’t like the current sabers or have a desire to be back in Episode I again. But I think it would be much better if it were a visual only mod. Take out the new sounds and I’d probably keep it around for a while, but with these new sounds I don’t think it’ll stay very long.
(news comments by Daku)

Take a look at Jedi Knight II Files.

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Kengo sent us a long and detailed article up at Map-Review.com written by Wedge, author of high quality JO maps such as Mars, City of the Ancients and Orbital Transfer Station, looking at deciding on and maintaining a consistent look and style in a map. Wedge explains how all the major aspects of a map, from architecture to lighting, can make a successful whole if they compliment each other effectively:

"You go to start a new mapping project. You click on the Radiant icon and are faced with a blank grid, a blank camera view, tools and textures at your fingertips, and infinite possibilities. Whether you are trying to make the next Colosseum single-player mod, or are trying to usurp Duel of the Fates as the most-downloaded free for all - even if you're merely building a clan map or just starting your first mapping project ever, you are always going to have to deal with certain problems. The first thing that any mapper is going to have to decide is what sort of theme the map will have. What are you going to build, anyways? Echo Base? Jabba's Slime Spa? Hobbiton? The NSEA Protector II? An abandoned Imperial outpost on the volcanic world Zparrut? The realm of the jungle pygmies of Kreekitch? Some of these ideas, and some of the ideas all mappers have, come purely from the mapper's imagination; while others are recreations of movie sets, the real world, etc. In all cases, though, mappers ought to keep one thing in mind: maintaining a consistent style throughout the map. It doesn't matter whether that style is determined by a movie set or just a vague image in your head, but I will focus mostly on the "non-recreative" sorts of maps in this article."

A must read for all you mappers out there! Take a look at Wedge's full article at Map-Review!

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GtkRadiant 1.3.12 is available. The big new thing is support for Raven Software's Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy. 1.3.12 has gone through more testing, many bugs have been fixed, and they also added support for Quake II editing.
The release is split into two files depending on the games you want, GtkRadiantSetup-1.3.12-IdHL.exe for Quake II, Quake III Arena, Return to Castle Wolfenstein, Enemy Territory and HL/CS. GtkRadiantSetup-1.3.12-Raven.exe for Raven games, EF, JKII, SoF2 and Jedi Academy.

The files are available from the files section of the Radiant homepage, you can use the download selector to find the right files.

Radiant wants to thank Raven for help and testing on Jedi Academy support. They used GtkR in house to produce the game, but there is still a bit of effort to package everything into a public release, and the Radiant team is thank them for helping with that.

You can get it at the Radiant homepage.

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You know it. You loved it, hated it, and were deathly sick of it. Bespin Streets is back. Tysplo has kindly ported ffa_bespin to JKA. And that's all it is. Just a port. No changes made, just good old Bespin Streets FFA!

And that is not necessarily a bad thing. Obviously, all the familiar areas make a return, such as the landing pad, the streets themselves, and the rectangular building. There's not all that much that can be said about this, as it is simply a port. A most welcome port, however. I find the base maps in JKA to be rather boring, and there is only five of them. The base maps in JK2 managed to stay fresh the entire year and a half I played the game. Bravo, Tysplo!

(news comments by Lord Griever)

Go get it at Jedi Knight II Files.

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Spector brings us a really, really, really...WOW CTF map. It's times like this I love being a developer because it gives me an edge in my reviews. And I've done it all people. This map is a very nice CTF map, with beautiful crystal shaders (by jk2 standards ^_^). It has one single room where the flag rests on a gigantic crystal, with hallways leading to the center courtyard, where crystal gates block the opposing side's flag room entrances.

The platforms are wonderful, as are the different ways to capture the flag. My only complaints are that there are too many entrances and too many different ways to capture the flag. It seems as if there are too many ways to get in and not enough ways to get out. I like the fact that there is bot support and the music is really nice...but the team play factor on this is a little sketchy. I'd have to physically play a CTF to see if it works.

There are a couple of missing textures, but overall the flow of the map is nice and it is very well constructed. Great job Spector! Looking forward to seeing much more from you.

(News comments and review by Chrono)

Take a look at Jedi Knight II Files.

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A CTF map for Elite Force based on Proton maps. It's not very B&W, there are blue and red lights, brown rocks, so it's not perfectly "proton":

There are 2 ways to get to the other flag, short way over the upper bridge or a LOOONG way around. I do not think many people will take the long way...

Developed by {SFEF}Red-Rum with new textures and new shaders, you can find it in Elite Force Files.

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Not since JKR have I seen such a great "mod" for JA! Created by KOTORMRJay, this map is called KOTOR Flight School. There are several ships to choose from, and even an AT-ST, for those who prefer to stay grounded. (Like me ... I should stay out of the air ... notice the last screenshot there ... yeah.) Throughout the space nearby are many rocks, or asteroids for your target practice pleasure. Perhaps you just want to swing your saber a bit? No problem - plenty of room for that too. I can't tell whether the vehicles included in this map respawn or not, I didn't stay alive long enough to find out. LOL Also, I'm sure there are other elements that I can't comment on simply because I tested the map alone, not with others who would be attempting to blow me up. What I can say is: this map has HUGE potential. I had fun flying around on my own, shooting at, well, everything ... hehe ... and just testing out the different ships kept me busy for a while. I wonder what this would be like with bot support?

As I hinted above, there is no bot support, but that's almost a non-issue here. This is definitely intended for multiplayer servers, not to play alone. There are new textures and sound effects and music. Okay, a comment on the music here - AAHH! That is all. I didn't really comment on the textures and whether I liked the map itself. There was just too much to play with for me to notice the look of the map. LOL Honestly, though, it's not something I'd even come close to calling eye candy, but it's not an eye sore either. It doesn't need to look good to be fun. Overall, this is a great idea. It isn't simply a map, it's a mod and a map ... sorta. Okay, it's a map, but like, so much more. Great job and I can't wait to see the updates!

(News comments and review by AmosMagee)

Check it out at Jedi Knight II Files.

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Two bases on either side of a huge sea. That’s all this map is composed of. Each base has platforms outside it. These platforms are designed to hold vehicles. Flying vehicles, to be exact. The sea between the two bases is vast. So huge that at one point both bases cannot be seen and it would seem as if you’re alone in the middle of nowhere.

I had a lot of fun playing with this map. It’s huge sea is perfect for having dogfights, especially since the ceiling is so high. It is nearly impossible to accidentally run into the ceiling or ground or wall once you achieve a decent height. Ties versus X-Wings, Lambda Shuttles versus Tie-Bombers, and when new models are made even more fights can be done. The potential is very high for this map. The biggest problem with this file, though, is the vehicles do not spawn themselves. In order to activate the ships, cheats must be enabled. I can see that fact keeping this file from many servers. But I don’t see it being a problem playing on this map between friends who can be trusted.

One item I found really neat about this map is CTF support. Grabbing the flag, jumping into a plane, then flying across the ocean while avoiding oncoming blasts from enemy ships is really exciting. Another fun tidbit of the map is the destructability of the bases. Launch a few attacks at them and in a flash stuff will be missing.

This map is pretty cool to pop up every once in a while for a game or to practice your flying in. Other than that, though, I don’t see it being huge on servers because of the whole cheating thing. But give it a shot, it’s pretty fun.

(News comments and review by Daku)

Take a look at Jedi Knight Files.

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XI Station. 2 bases separated by water. In the base are 4 transporters. The one in the back leads to the flag. When you fly out of the transporter u can if you jump right make a run to the other side without touching the water. This is a nice design. It adds much to the gameplay and makes some interesting matches.

Developed by {SFEF}Sniper, you can find it at Elite Force Files.

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This is a nice new map for Soldier of Fortune II made by someone anonymous from Only For Fun , I bet he only forgot to sign up his name!

Its a great all round map thats fun for 6+ players in a western setting featuring new sand textures!

You can find it at SoF II Files.

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I’ve seen some pretty good maps in my day, but not many have blown my mind like this one. I’m really upset I never saw it before. <|FeaR|> Storm has taken his original map for Jedi Outcast and resubmitted it for Jedi Academy with updated textures. Aside from its beauty it is also very functional for pretty much anything you might need.

The map is based on a giant ship. There are a bunch of rooms with all kinds of cool stuff. There’s an X-Wing, a couple Ion Cannons and all over the walls are recruitment signs. Those are my favorite part of the map. “Do you feel the Darkside? Want to become a Knight or Guardian or maybe even a Lord?” one of the signs says. Most are accompanied with the clan’s site. While this could be annoying to some I find it to be a nice touch.

While this map is relatively large I feel it best suits duelers. There are a couple rooms large enough for the occasional FFA, but most of the rooms are small. They are the perfect size for duels. One of the best rooms is the tiered room. It resembles one of the rooms in the Death Star map from JK2. Very nice for duels. Another room is simply a bridge stretching across a huge chasm. This could be used for some good duels, but there’s something tricky there. The bridge can break and send the two fighters tumbling to their deaths. I see it as an added challenge, myself.

This map is really great and very creative. I’m glad the author has decided to port it over to JA. This is also only the first he’s ported over. I can’t wait to see the rest that I never saw before. Good job.

(News comments and review by Daku)

Check it out at Jedi Knight Files.

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The 800th entry has just been added to the Raven Clan Index. The lucky clan to get some extra publicity is the SoF2 clan called -=TNA=-.

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Despite being very late for this interview, and it being held up yet further by a badly timed fire alarm practise in my building, Lasse “Lassev” Vääriskoski remained admirably amiable throughout our discussion. We talked about Lassev’s exceptional single player campaign- Project Lighthouse , its origins, construction and completion, as well as looking at what projects Lasse has planned for the future, and whether what they say about Finland is true...

Kengo: First off Lasse, I was wondering if you could tell us a little about yourself, and how you first began Project Lighthouse. What inspired you to begin the project?

Lassev: My greatest inspiration was the notion that mapping wasn't that hard. And it was a great way of achieving something very visual, yet dynamic. And of course I wanted very much to tell a story.

Kengo: Would you say you're a bit of a wanabee director then?

Lassev: Perhaps you could put it that way. I have years back written some manuscripts (didn't make it to publication) but the need to tell stories stuck. And of course the Outcast engine offered a great way of making cheap movies in the form of cinematics. The more cinematics I directed, the more I loved them.

Kengo: Can you tell us where you got the ideas for the story and the setting from?

Lassev: When I began mapping, I had no idea you could replace Kyle with a custom character. That's the biggest reason why the plot wasn't more intimate. I chose a remote location so that it wouldn't interfere with the established, "official" story of Katarn, yet I wanted to integrate the story to a bigger picture. It's just another mission, basically. The potential for a sequel wasn't planned in the beginning.

An interesting interview made by Kengo that you can read entirely at Map-Review!

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This map is Tanner_6984's second map for Elite Force II. It is baised on the Labyrinth from Greek Mythology. The two bases are mazes that are conected by a force field bridge in the middle. There are sinper positions in the bases but you have to find a way up there. Ohh yes and on more thing, if you do find a way to the sniper points you will be able to shoot through the force fields that are in place to keep you up there. And watch out, the bases are heavily booby-traped. Have fun, and watch out for the Minotaur.

Well, what the title says: It's a labyrinth with all kinds of doors, doorways and small corridors. Not much gameplay in this, it's to easy to hit someone since you can't evade in those corridors...

Take a look at Elite Force Files.

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Here we have a top notch map that supports dm,tdm,ctf,inf and is a fun map for 4+. The settings take place in a prison like building, directly extracted from the Hong Kong SP levels:

Developed by *GSG*Snoopy, you can find it at SoF II Files.

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This single player map was made for Jedi Knight II and I had a great time playing it. You have the option of playing the level with a lightsaber or guns. I chose the former. It isn't necessary to read the background story to find out who your character is or where you are - it's obvious you're a prisoner from the beginning. Also, if you're not too dense, you can figure out that the mission here is to escape (and some other stuff). The enemies were fairly easy to kill and the map is laid out well enough to get through. Though I have to say that this map is incredibly dark in some areas. So ... like ... watch your step.

I had fun playing this, though I didn't finish it completely. There are some new textures here and there, some are questionable however. What I mean by that is ... why the hell was there "wallpaper" of Britney and Marilyn? That just baffles me. Oh well. The background music choice was perfect - added to the ambiance, it didn't take center stage. Bottom line: This is a fun little distraction.
(news comments by AmosMagee)

It features new textures and new music and can be found at Jedi Knight II Files.

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As each sequel of Star Wars continues to charm moviegoers, the same applies to each new sequel of Star Wars PC games. From Dark Forces to Jedi Outcast, players were challenged and thrilled by their gameplay, fervently following the adventures of Kyle Katarn, the New Republic commando turned Jedi Knight.

In this sequel, things are a little different. Kyle Katarn will still be in the game, but not as a playable character. This strong and reluctant Jedi in the previous Jedi Knight games has become a teacher at the Jedi Academy. And you will play as Jaden, one of Katarn’s students.

The unique part of this game is that you are able to customize Jaden's race, sex, light saber beam colour, and even the light saber hilt! You could even do a Darth Maul look-alike, complete with the infamous double-sided light saber called a light staff.

You can read it all at Khabal Gaming.

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PsychicWarvet has released the latest version of the popular mod, PYSCHO. This forum post details all of the additions and bug fixes.

14) OK, this one I hesitated on putting in, but only for a moment, lol. As admins, we all just LOVE it when some moron comes onto our servers and starts talking a bunch of trash (your definition of trash and mine might be different). A lot of admins merely kick or ban right away via the Punkbuster enabled functionality within the PSYCHO Mod. However, I prefer to mess around with certain people. One of the rotten things about such players is they never apologize for their rude behaviour. :( Well, now, you can make them apologize. :) Via the ‘/adm forcesay “saytext”’ command, you can make any player say anything you want (except admins). An example would be if the player with ID of 8 is talking a bunch of trash, *one* approach might execute the following command sequence:

/adm mute 8
/adm forcesay 8 “Sorry guys for being a complete jerk”
/adm pbkick 8 10 “Come back when you’ve learned some manners”

(news comments by [PSOF]Reaper)

You can find it at the Psychomod homepage!

(Source: Planet Soldier)

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This is a pretty cool map, and it's his first! Well done. It features 2 bases with corridors and stairs to get to them. It has BOT support, but I couldn't help noticing that the BOTS aren't too happy with the stairs. They also hang around one place to often. But this is his first map and what a map: Lightning is perfect, only in the middle of the map is a room wich isn't mirrored perfectly wich could mean an advantage for one team. But I let you all decide that for yourselves.

The item placement could be better, there are some weapons and hyposprays scattered around the map, I would have loved to see them placed more tactically. But that's just an opinion...

Check it out at Elite Force Files.

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Yet again, a stunning sniper map for SoF II from Dead Man Walking, this time he has had some help from DRAKO. As usual plenty of places to play hide and snipe for all you snipers out there. The map supports TDM CTDM and will host the number of recommended players, 18. If you liked his other maps you will love this one. Go give it a test and see what you think, and get it added to your map cycles:

"Designed by KUBA. Created by Dead Man Walking & DRAKO. This is a medium sized outdoor map. There are so many hiding places I lost count !! Should be good for alot of players."

Go get it at SoF II Files.

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Ladies and gentleman, the Duck is back! Yes, you read right. If you don't know what Duck I am talking about, you are probably new to the JK community. Allow me to enlighten you. ShroomDuck is easily the best-known mapper in JK2. I'm sure most everyone has played on ffa_tmbj at least once. Of course, Shroom had released many maps prior to that, such as the Clan WoV map, Hail the Boognish, and many more obscure maps. Well, it has been 11 months since we have seen work from the Duck. But now that JKA has been released, the Duck is back! And Shroom brings his personal vision of what the death star really should have been. Sit back, and enjoy the ride.

As soon as you enter the map, you are greeted with a techno mix of Darth Vader's music. Somehow, the music fits the traditional Shroom style of... eclectic music. The main hangar area looks similar to that of the hangar area found in JK2, except this one has more goodies. For instance, in the middle you will find the Millenium Falcon. Look at the ceiling and you will notice a large tube jutting from the ceiling. It's a stormtrooper dispenser! It doesn't appear to serve any real purpose, but it is rather hilarious when you drop a stormtrooper over someone's head! Perpendicular to this module is a button that allows you to open the bay doors, and do some exploring on the outside. Not too much to see out here, but if you wait, you'll see a tie fighter drift past. Scattered about the rest of the maps are various control rooms, and down in the depths there is a generator room. Did I mention that this is Shroom's first star wars-flavored map for JK?
(news comments by Lord Griever)

Take a look at Jedi Knight II Files.

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Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy is an offshoot of the Jedi Knight series that was recently released to some accolades on the PC. Now, LucasArts and developer Raven Software are working on porting the game to the Xbox. We got to take Jedi Academy for a brief test drive today on Microsoft's console, and, based on the current state of the game, it looks like Xbox owners will soon have access to a faithful reproduction of the original PC experience.

We got to play a little of both the single-player and multiplayer modes in our time with Jedi Academy. The multiplayer demo was set to the power duel mode from the PC game, which has you teaming up with a partner to fight one drastically more-powerful dark Jedi. The game uses a typical split-screen view to facilitate two-player action, and it will also support Xbox Live for competitive players who want to go online and find a greater number of opponents. The demo station had a number of saved games from the single-player campaign, so we fired up specific levels, like Vader's Castle and Tatooine, to see how well Jedi Academy has translated to the Xbox. Initial impressions tell us that the game will indeed be quite similar to the PC version--which is obviously a good thing, given its critical success.

Jedi Academy is running pretty well on the Xbox right now. The frame rate was even, for the most part, and, thanks to the Xbox's PC-like graphics hardware, it didn't look like any of the original game's graphical niceties had been sacrificed. Gameplay on the Xbox controller worked pretty well too. Jedi Academy features a mixture of first- and third-person perspective gameplay, so you can expect typical FPS-style controls, like free look with the right analog stick and attack with the right trigger. The D pad is used to cycle between your weapons and force powers, and, generally, it was pretty easy in our demo to navigate the game's environments and to use various attacks.

Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy is currently slated for a November release on the Xbox, and the solidity of the build we played today gives us the impression that it won't have trouble making the date. We'll bring you more on the game soon.

You can read it all at Gamespot.

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VoyBR adds a spot of creativity to the Voy universe.. though not a huge change. The bases are like those of Voy1 except you have the flag at the very top and three transporters at the very bottom. The transporters are your basic configuration, one goes to the flag, other two go to the bunkers. Dividing the two bases is a large body of water. Spanning the water are three bridges, one is open-air, while the other two are shielded by glass.

Some things I liked about this map were the mini-bridges going underneath the centre bridge, and the little sniping-guard bunkers on the sides of the bridge. What I thought could use some improvement was the flag area. It's a little cramped and often I found myself falling over because there wasn't enough room to get around there.

Overall a very decent map, it's got some good points though I know we're all a bit tired of seeing Voy stuff over and over. You can find it at Elite Force Files.

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Here we have a huge Kamchatka Map for SOldier of Fortune II with 50 player respawn points! A very high quality map and a very fun map:

Developed by El Grande dgx [BBC] it supports Mandown & Goldrush SoF II mods and features new textures from BBC,Prometheus and sof2maps.de.

You can find it at SoF II Files.

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V-tecc brings us an update to Clan DBD’s official skin. This new version comes with 4 new looks: Ice, Jungle, Urban and JA(which is for their sideline clan), along with bot support. Each of the skins has it’s own unique taunt. The taunts are cool, but a little bit muffled.

These are beautiful skins. Although, I’ve never really seen a point to release clan skins, other than a reason to show off your work. And maybe that’s all this is? IMO, when you make skins for your clan, I would think that you would only want members of your clan to be able to use the skins, to keep that cool, unique feeling. A few beefs that I have with this is that the team colors for all 5 of the skins are identical, and the red team skin is identical to the default skin. A little more effort here would be nice. But hey, these skins are still pretty darn good looking. More variety between the skins and team colors is needed, but otherwise, these are still good skins.
(news comments by Lord Griever)

Check it out at Jedi Knight II Files.

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AFOVoy gives the feeling of bases set inside a large canyon. The base structures are the first thing that struck me as being rather well done. It does indeed follow Voy1's base theme (as said in the readme) but giving different gray textures really helped to make certain parts stand out and bring some more contrast than to other light-gray-washed Voy maps.
You will find the bases to be made up of 4 different levels. The lowest level has transporters to take you to the different levels inside the base and to the bunker in the middle of the map. The second level is mostly protected by glass but for an opening in the middle through which you can snipe through. The third level is has no walls blocking you from enemy fire, but it does house the tetryon and sniping ammo. The fourth level is where you find the flag centered on a bridge. Besides transporters, you can also find trusty ladders joining up levels for you to get around.
The middle arena of the map has various obstacles for you to hide behind and stock up on ammo. The bunker has two transporters, one takes you to the blue base while the other goes to the red base.

I'll just come out and say it, the base designs caught my eye from the beginning. It's one of those voy maps that bring something new to the table. I recommend a check-out in the least!

Bot Support: No
New Textures: Yes
New Sounds: No
New Models: No

You can get it at Elite Force Files.

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Today we got a night mission multiplayer map for Soldier of Fortune II. I definitely like the feeling of it, a village in a tropical set with a pond in the middle and lots of houses to strafe around:

The best thing about this map is its night atmosphere so don't go turn on your brightness just to see "better", it wont work and will ruin the entire setting.
Developed by {fui}STEKO NI,UK this map supports all gametypes, deathmatch, team deathmatch, infiltration, elimination and capture the flag!

Take a look at SoF II Files it is worth it!

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Chris Sharpe brings us this simple little map, entitled “The Sandpit.” The title made me immediately think of shooting range sandpits. For all intensive purposes, that’s exactly what this appears to be. There is one small room in the back, with a large, opened window fit for firing out of. Of course, this could also serve as a quaint little area to duel in. Or, if you wanted to, you could also hold an up-close and personal FFA! One little odd thing that I noticed, is when you walk inside the window frame, it makes the noise like you’re wading through water? Odd. This map comes with support for FFA and duel, no new textures, no bot support, and no new music.

Well, there’s really not all that much to this map. It’s just a small little room which is nice for dueling. This map would be great on an FFA or duel server with a max of 4 to 6 players, otherwise, anything larger would get to be way too crowded. I like this map. Again, it is perfect for one on one duels, or small-scale FFAs. If you run a small server, this would be a nice, simple addition to your rotation.
(news comments by Lord Griever)

Check it out at Jedi Knight II Files.

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This just came in from -=H@ze=-, Head admin of ClanWarz.net and the SOF2 Real Damage Ladder. These are the matches that had taken place and their scores. Join their Ladder today!

Real Damage Ladder | 10/12/2003 8:00 p.m.est

OutCast overcomes ETF

Match One: .Jor1. ETF [3] OutCast [1]
Match Two: .Kam4. Tie 4 all
Match Three: .Shop2 Outcast [7] ETF [1]

All screen shoots, for this match, can be seen here.

Real Damage Ladder | 10/12/2003 9:00 p.m.est

-=]sMk[=- over comes -=WMW=-

Match One: .Shop2. -=]sMk[=- [7] -=WMW=- [0]
Match Two: .Jor1. -=]sMk[=- [3] -=WMW=- [1]

Check it all out at ClanWarz.net!

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This is a small multiplayer mod by Sanj. The purpose of this mod is to simulate the ki blasts from the "anime" series, Dragonball Z, by removing the bryar (or briar) blaster and having the character shoot the blasts directly from the hands. It uses the coding from The Eternal's & RenegadeOfPhunk's jetpack modification and some effects from aS^Tetsuo's Nuclear mod, as Sanj credits in the readme.

This idea has definite possibilities. With the ability to fly and shoot the ki, you can almost go "super-Saiyan" on someone. Unfortunately, I was disappointed that you don't see the blast build up or shoot, just hit the target. With a little more tweaking, I think it would be incredibly smooth to see the energy ball up around your hands, then shoot out in a steady beam to hit the target. Try using coding from the tenloss to get a long beam, or possibly coding from Raven's Elite Force phaser (Interesetingly enough, you'll find a whole lot of leftover coding in JKII from EF, like bot/NPC species and ranks.).
(news comments by JEDIofONE)

Go get it at Jedi Knight II Files.

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This is the second version of [KB]Backalley and this version has some nicer look. Maybe its not bigger but its a real shoot em up map for the original Soldier of Fortune! There is more light and objects here than in the older version.

A good DM map for you SoF1 fans out there, go give it a test at SoF Files and see what you think!

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Here it is, another map by map guru James Nukem. Can it get any better? This map is "based" on the Beta station of Elite Force 1. Though it's very different the gameplay is almost the same. He added two sniper towers on each side. This time no flying ships over your head. Also the music in the map adds a certain feeling to it. Lightning is perfect, texturing perfect.

The skins: This pack contains 4 skins: Sidney, Katarina Scott, Telsia and another girl. They wear some kind of purple hazard suits.

Go check it out at Elite Force Files.

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Here we have the multiplayer version of LeonSof 2 map, an original single player Soldier of Fortune II level and a cool map that supports dm - tdm download it now and give your feedback

This is the Multiplayer able LeonSoF2 Map "Kamchatka Station". The author had it only converted to operate as an Multiplayer Map. You can find the original single player map here and this new mp version here at SoF II Files.

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This is a re-skin of the Gray-Fox model. No longer the secretive figure from MGS, it is now Spawn. Al Simmons, once the U.S. government's greatest soldier and most effective assassin, was mercilessly executed by his own men. Resurrected from the ashes of his own grave in a flawed agreement with the powers of darkness, Simmons is reborn as a creature from the depths of Hell. A Hellspawn. Now Spawn must choose between his life on Earth and his place on a throne in Hell.. Cloaked in original black and white, with sinister green eyes and skull accessories, Todd McFarlane's Spawn can be yours for the minimal price of 1.37MB.

Wow. It's been a while since I've seen a skin this good. Although it's not entirely perfect (some seams are mismatched), the final result is astounding! The subtle shader is an excellent choice for this skin, giving a very comic book feel of vinyl or leather to the costume. Two big thumbs up to the author, LightNinja. All it need's now is bot support to be an easy 10.
(news comments by JEDIofONE)

Take a look at Jedi Knight II Files.

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For us, there is no such thing as a "too old" game... for those who still want to give Take No Prisoners a shot and are afraid to get stuck, our new TNP walkthrough is here to abolish the fears.

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A total of 13 pages of new info have been added to our Jedi Academy section, including a walkthrough, a detailed cheat guide and more. Be sure to check it out at our Jedi Academy section.

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Y'know, it's all about accessorizing. I've found that the perfect pair of earrings will just really make a dress work, y'know? Any other pair and the dress may seem boring or too casual. And sometimes, you have no choice but to make your own skin that'll work perfectly with your favorite oversized sword for JK2. *points at the first screenshot*

The author gave this skin the same bright quality as the sword pictured with his robed version. It's bright, light and colorful. The shader looks like a constant flow of electricity from one shoulder to the next in blue and red bolts. On the back, you can barely read the name of the clan: Prodigal Outcasts. And on the sleeve: Tenshi. The red and blue team skins are the same, except for an added punch of color (red and blue) at the collar.

It seems there are new sounds and several taunts to choose from. The author made sure to include bot support and it just seems to me like this was an important skin for the creator here. While it may not be a skin I'll keep in my base folder, I can see that he put time and effort into this skin and for that, I applaud him.
(news comments by AmosMagee)

Bot Support: Yes
Team Colors: Yes
New Sounds: Yes

You can get it at Jedi Knight II Files.

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Citadel of Fire is a 'space' map in the sense that it takes place out in space, though the theme leans over to an alien temple of which nothing is known about.
The entire map is open, flag areas placed at the highest points with ramps coming down on 3 sides. The main area has a few pillar structures as well as ramps on the side to get down to a third area. Weapons are kept to the sides of the map, while health/armor pickups can be picked up while 'on the go'. The flag areas have sniper weapons (IMod, Sniper Rifle, Comp Rifle) while the main area has more heavy weapons (Tetryon, Quantum).

In terms of improvements, I'd say a different trim texture in the least would bring some visual separations between wall/floor. Oh, and the halo around the red flag is upside down (fades down instead of fading up). I would have liked to see some more detail to really get that feeling of a temple. Great job on the lighting, though! Love the shadow effects from the fire pits!

Take a look at Elite Force Files.

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The awaited v1.10 patch for Elite Force II is out, containing community maps, multiplayer fixes and more! Here we go:

General

* Mouse 4 and 5 are now key-bindable in the Configure menu.
* The game can now load machine names and .cfg files that contain non-US characters.
* The sniper rifle now reloads automatically in all game modes. It no longer waits for the player to let go of the fire button.
* The point of view for demo recording will now follow the direction in which the player is looking.
* Saved games issues with long computer names fixed. Long saved game names are also now supported.
* The Ultridium Explosive damage has been increased.
* You may find that some saved games no longer load as expected. We've tried to minimize the impact, but we do not recommend that you load in saves from before the patch.


MultiMatch

* Jumping physics can be adjusted by setting "sv_crouchJumpVelocity" and "sv_jumpvelocity" to new values. Setting these variables to 0 and 270 respectively will closely mimic the jumping physics found in Star Trek: Elite Force.
* Scores in MultiMatch Capture the Flag matches now only exist to show successful flag capture and flag recovery. Each time a team captures the other team’s flag they score 100 points. Frags do not count towards winning or losing a match.
* Dedicated servers no longer require a CD in the drive.
* When playing a Disintegration match in MultiMatch, the reload delay for the sniper rifle is now shorter.
* GameSpy and All-Seeing-Eye support have been fixed and now display player lists and players in game.
* Players can no longer hear taunts originating more than 20 feet away in MultiMatch matches.

And many more changes and improvements including four(4) fan-created maps!

Go check it out at Elite Force Files.

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Welcome to "UNF104 – MAXIMUM PAIN"!
Do you love violence for violence’s sake… do you thirst for realistic blood soaked head popping rapid fire combat? Of course you do.. that’s why we all bought SOF2 to begin with!
Unfortunately, for most of us SOF2 MULTIPLAYER was never developed to be the game we hoped it would be. Sure it’s hella fun and better than your average G-rated FPS shooter, but still it fell short in two major areas: 1) It lacked the full-out violence of the single player game and; 2) The weapons were rather disappointing compared to single player or even anything close to the real world weapons upon which they were based.

UNF104 – MAXIMUM PAIN changes these 2 shortcomings forever!

Completely based on “MANDOWN Chris’s” original UNF104 mod (that never recieved credit for being the truly revolutionary mod it is)…UNF104 – MAXIMUM PAIN takes up the gauntlet to bring you the addition of realistic and deadly weapons modifications that will literally blow your entrails out of your ASS!
Everybody always hated the M4 "Noob Launcher" and viewed it as an unfair or cheaters way of playing. But the problem isn’t that the Grenade Launcher was overly powerful… it’s was that the other weapons were severely underpowered both in terms of knockdown power, accuracy and Rate of Fire by comparison. I mean 7 shots to kill someone with an AK…. WTF…right?
MAXIMUM PAIN is the culmination of over a year and a half of tweaking the default weapons profile that powered SOF2 MULTIPLAYER’s lackluster weapons performance. Now instead of a game of “Tag with Machineguns”, you’ve got a game where the first person to flinch is the first person to die!

How is gameplay affected?

There are no longer any grossly disproportionate advantages of using one weapon over another. Rather, each weapon performs the way you expect it to based upon the way they did in the great action films of yesteryear. Your weapons feel like weapons again and they’ll command a healthy respect from your adversaries as well.
If you come up behind 2 or 3 players you can now potentially waste them all before they have a chance to react… just they way you would expect it to play out if it happened in real life.

Thanks to Chris’s original UNF104 mod (based from his original work on ManDown), you can now enjoy mutilating the corpses of your fallen enemies and show him/her just how much you really care by dumping the rest of your magazine into their freshly tenderized cadaver. Nothing truly spells satisfaction like reducing your virtual friends into gurgling piles of entrails and dismembered body parts if you so desire to... AHHHHH!
NOTE: Make sure gore is set to “EXCESSIVE” in the performance menu for maximum carnage!

It was developed by Uncle S.H.I.T and you can get it at File Planet.
In addition, the core version of UNF104 supports BOTS and additional game tweaks.

(Source: Planet Soldier)

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This is a nice sound pack from Evo for use in your Soldier of Fortune II MP gameplay, listed below are some of the new sounds:

*AK - new clip sound
*Frag grenade - New boom sound
*Sniper - New fire sound
*Demoltion c4 - new C4 planted sound and beep sound
*Menu - new menu sounds
*RPG7 - new fly by sound
*Incendiary nade - new fire sound
*New radio sounds
*5 new death sounds
*Volume on footsteps increased

Sound mods seem popular at the moment so give this a test at SoF II Files and see what you think !

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DragonBall Z! Everybody loves DragonBall Z! So, if everyone loves DBZ, why aren’t there any Goku skins? asgWULF has now provided us with what he claims to be the first Goku skin in the JK2 world. Unfortunately, it’s not a very good one, but I do see potential.

By using the Cloud model, the author has managed to create three skins, a Goku skin, an SSJ skin and an SSJ 4 skin. As can be expected, at least by fans of the series, SSJ skin is Goku with gold hair and the SSJ 4 skin has weird red fur. I don’t know about the fur because I don’t know what goes on that far into the series, and neither does the author. So it might be accurate, it might not be, I don’t know. All I know is it doesn’t look very good.

All the skins have some potential, but the current execution is in dire need of bettering. First off, there is no texture. Instead of looking like pants or a shirt or fur, it looks like everything is painted on. The quality is just not very good at all. I think if maybe some light wrinkles or something were added it would create another level of realism instead of these perfectly starched clothes. The fur on the SSJ 4 skin looks like it’s wearing some kind of strange, red vest. I feel the best of these, though, would be the SSJ skin. The hair is accurate and the cuts on the body look ok, not good, but ok. The muscle outline in the chest and abdomen areas is also decent, but could still use some touching up.

It also has no new sounds since it still uses the Cloud sounds and it has no bot support and no team support. Also, the icons for the Goku and the SSJ 4 skins would not show up for me at all. Also, because of the way it is packaged, this will overwrite your Cloud skin in game, so be prepared for that. Plus, if you don’t have the Cloud skin you’ll be hearing Kyle’s sounds, since the sound.cfg is directed toward Cloud’s sounds.

The Cloud model is the perfect choice for this skin. The hair is right, the body is right; I feel a really good Goku could come from this if some serious time and effort were put into it. As for this skin, if you’re a serious fan, download it.
(news comments by Daku)

Take a look at Jedi Knight II Files.

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As I reported some time ago, SeeMePlayMe is an online gaming community decided to bring you fast servers for your gaming experience:

Would you like to create your very own dedicated Jedi Academy server, running on fast servers with a fast connection, but without all the maintenance and high bills that come with it, just a couple of clicks and your off gaming?

Then I've found what you are looking for: SeeMePlayMe. SeeMePlayMe is an online community which provides the ability to create your own dedicated games server, running on the servers of SeeMePlayMe. But not only that, a list of public games-servers, cam/voice chat, keeping up with buddies, a pager for fast instant messaging...SeeMePlayMe has everything, and it's all packed in one easy to use piece of user-friendly software, a client.

It's not like GameSpy, GSA doesn't host games, they only let you search for games. It's what Mplayer used to be, if you can remember.

Not only can you play Jedi Academy on SMPM, but also:

-Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
-Soldier of Furtune 2: Double Helix
-America's Army (100% free download of the full version available at SeeMePlayMe)
-Battlefield 1942 : Desert Combat
-Descent 3
-Halo
-Half Life : Day of Defeat
-Medal of Honor
-Quake I, II and III
-Quakeworld
-Rainbow Six : Raven Shield
-Unreal Tournement 2003
-Wolfenstein : Enemy Territory (100% free download of the full version available at SeeMePlayMe)

Lots of more games and features will come in the future, SeeMePlayMe will always try to get the best for their users. So all you gamers, and especially the JEDI ACADEMY players, download SMPM now and enjoy a new experience of online gaming... Not only search for a game to join , but create and moderate a dedicated server, running of SeeMePlayMe's highbandwidth servers.

You can check SeeMePlayMe homepage here, download the SeeMePlayMe free software and go to a live help chat, IRC through a JAVA applet. You can take a look at the SeeMePlayMe forum here or check the online guide here. If you still got any questions after that, you can always mail SeeMePlayMe support.

To get started after you have downloaded and installed the software and created an account:
-When you've logged on to SeeMePlayMe you see a list of game lobbies, tournament/ladder game lobbies, chat lobbies and a help lobby. Select your Favorite game, you enter the lobby. You can now either select to play a game from the public-server list or go to the private section of that game to create a private server( public/private buttons, left top). In the private section select "create room", enter a room name, password if desired and a URL for a website to be displayed in the room, click ok and you will enter your room, now select game settings, set up the game the way you like it and click ok, now click ready and launch to go directly into the game. If you like to cam/ voice-chat before or after you go into the game, simply click the "CAM" tab, allow SMPM to let your cam and/or mic to be used with the SeeMePlayMe Chat software, then click "TALK" to talk!

Due to technical dificulties the main servers have been down since the end of September but they are back online at full speed, go check it at the SeeMePlayMe homepage!

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A short while after its debut, the gamer community crowned Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast “the best game created in the Star Wars universe”. Jedi Outcast took the control of a sword to new heights, well beyond the one in Die by the Sword and pushed the Quake III engine to its limits, and due to its excellent multiplayer, managed to create a very powerful gamer community. Despite this, at the end of 2002, when the game press award titles for the best games of the year, Jedi Outcast passed unnoticed. The reason for this is thought to have been the spring date release of the game, which plunged the game into oblivion. Therefore, Raven Software decided to give it another try, and after 8 months of waiting, Jedi Knight III: Jedi Academy has hit the store shelves.

This time around, the main character is not Kyle Katarn, but the young (him or she) Jaden Korr, which arrives on Yavin VI to answer the call of Luke Skywalker to start the training at the Jedi Academy. Despite not being yet a Jedi, Jaden already has a light saber, which he made it himself, this serving as a pretext fro the player to have a saber from the start of the game. This is a departure from Jedi Outcast, where the player would receive a light saber only after a good deal of the game had been completed. Following the crash landing of the transport shuttle, Jaden finds himself involved in discovering the secrets behind a secret cult, called the Cult of Ragnos.

You can read the whole review at Computer Games!

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Now, while I'm not exactly clausterphobic, I don't really like being closed up in tight places. Like mazes. Especially mazes made up of large cargo boxes. Where it's really dark in some corners, and you're not quite sure what's around the next corner. And you're carrying a gun and there are like, 5 other people somewhere around you, in the same maze, also with guns and mines and rocket launchers and - need I go on?

This map is soooo made for gun FFAs. There are weapons everywhere! Once you make your way out of the maze, you'll find yourself in a hallway of doors. Only a few you can go through and each one will take you into another room full of boxes. The textures are appropriate for what this map is. The map looks the way it should look for a cargo ship. In fact, this is a good example of a map that was made specifically for the gameplay rather than for eye candy.

The music choice for this map is interesting, to say the least. It's definitely not what I expected for a map like this. One thing worth noting here is that the author included Jedi Master as a supported game type. Brilliant! This map seems to be made just for that game type! Oh, and bot support is included. Yay! Great work here, Grets Sirob!
(news comments by AmosMagee)

Take a look at Jedi Knight II Files.

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The ultimate bot torture map set! Built for disintegration, the object of these maps is to shoot bots out of the sky, running around, or standing still! Blue team: shooters; red team- targets. This mappack has 9 maps!

Bot gametypes: Catapults - shoot the bots flying upwards coming up from a random hole; Catch - shoot the raining bots; Come and Go - shoot the bots running downhill; diee - shoot the bots getting launched into the air; Madness - shoot the bots running around in a circle; Mortardie - you launch the bots and then shoot them!; Pusher - shoot the bots before they fall into the void; Statues - shoot them standing still; and finally Tubular - shoot them while they bounce up and down!

Check it out at Elite Force Files.

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This is a very nice map for Soldier of Fortune II, medium sized and based around the Jordon Market Siege map. Remember the gates at the rear of Blue spawn point? well now you have access through them to a whole new area never seen before. There are plenty of places to hide above and below ground, and plenty of outside cover from crates and buildings:

This map supports DM, TDM, CTF, DEM, INF, ELIM, NUKE and the map can support 24 players for team games. This map is a must have for your collection, go download it now and see what you make of it, should do very well on custom map servers!

You can get it at SoF II Files.

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The biggest, and most noteworthy change in this update is that Chrono has found out how to make the swoops respawn themselves. This makes the mod fully functional, without cheats! But then again, that doesn’t mean you won’t need cheats if you want to see something… special? I’ve been with this mod since it’s early days, and it is just wonderful to see it blossom as it is right now.

I noticed something that could become a problem. I moved one of the swoops not too far from the starting line, and destroyed it, right? Well, 2 of the other swoops also caught on fire and exploded. Well, due to the swoops respawning, this resulted in an endless cycle of the swoops spawning, catching fire, and exploding. I’ve included a few screenshots below to show this. Maybe in the next update, if it’s possible, delay the time between the destruction of one machine and the spawning of the next? Also, if you wanted to have organized races, then you’ll have to dig around, play around, or find some way to not allow the vehicles to move until after like, a 5 second countdown or something? Maybe it’s not possible, maybe it is. Either way, if this is to become a serious thing, then it will be necessary.

I really like this mod, and it could be one of the top mods for JKA as it is! But of course, there is always room for improvement. So, I look forward to even more updates and upgrades, and soon, maps! For all of you, like myself, who wish the best for this mod, should step up and help the cause by making some darn maps! Chrono’s tutorial is very detailed, and should help you to get on your feet making a JKR map.
(news comments by Lord Griever)

Check it out at Jedi Knight II Files.

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"Some noticed that Phantomas came back during these last months, which was a nice sight for us all. However, just recently he has succumb to that thing we call Real Life™ again and asked us to place him as 'inactive'. On a very belated side note, we did find a sound artist in the form of a man calling himself Sgt.Scully. Not only that, he has finished all the sounds for our first set of weapons; aside from any tweaking and fixing. Very Impressive! He is a great addition to the team and fits in very well.

During these last months, Raptor and Effekted came up with a really nice idea to use a movie as our menu background. So, Effekted drew up a sketch of the scene and Raptor put it all together. The result? Awesome! Even for such a short movie, it is very cool; especially because it features our first player model in uniform and ready to go. Below is one frame of the movie that was posted already in the forums, but I wanted everyone else to see it as well.

With Phantomas having to leave his platoon duties behind, Torchy has filled in quite nicely. He has finished two maps and is currently working on two more. All I can say is that they are sensational and the detail is top notch. They would make very nice places to go camping, do some fishing...if of course you don't mind the constant assault by neighboring Vietcong who want to kill you!!"

You can check the 45th Platoon homepage here.

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Finally, we get the actual model of Solid Snake here from the Metal Gear Solid game series. This model was often reskinned, but no other reskins could match the quality of these here by the original author, Graves.
The difference between the two versions have something to do with two different games. The first one is a bit darker, with less detail of his body showing. The differences really are quite subtle. I'm quite impressed by the attention to such intricate details in both skins. The team skins for the first version are muted colors, which I like. It's definitely better than a bold red and blue, which is what a lot of skins do simply because that's what's expected for the team skins. I do prefer team skins to keep with red and blue, so there's no confusion when playing a game and your teammate is like, orange or purple or something. The second version is a more traditional red and blue, but they still have a bit of personality to them.

The lines in his face, the scowl, the squint of his eyes. Really, this is beautiful work. I have to say this is one of my favorite models. The detail is incredible - he looks almost real. And the author didn't stop at making a great looking model and skins - he includes bot support and new sounds. I would be surprised if this isn't considered a staple in your collection. Great work Graves!
(news comments by AmosMagee)

Take a look at Jedi Knight II Files.

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This is a medium sized map for Soldier of Fortune II made up from two levels, above and below ground. The map has plenty of places to hide and wait for your next victim to pass by, there is also access to the roof tops, the map supports DM, CTF, INF, ELIM, TDM and will host up to 20 players.

A good allround map, go give it a go at SoF II Files.

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