StarCraft Battle Chest

Real-time strategy goes to new levels as three intergalactic species fight for survival. Control the vagabond Terrans, enigmatic Protoss, or the bloodthirsty Zerg as they wage war on the edge of the galaxy. Includes support for Internet play over Battle.net, Blizzard's on-line gaming service.

The full versions of StarCraft and the acclaimed expansion pack Brood War, as well as complete strategy guides for each, make StarCraft: Battle Chest a treasure chest for real-time strategy fans.

Instead of two similarly powered enemies facing off, the three distinct races in StarCraft have unique capabilities and strategies. Everyone still competes in the RTS genre's typical race for resources, but that's the only shared trait. Terrans can move their bulky mechanized bases as necessary, while the reptilian Zerg grow their colonies and warriors from mutating larvae. Meanwhile, the noble Protoss warp in equipment from their home world using psionic powers.

Not only does game maker Blizzard juggle the races' playability and match it with superb art and sound effects, it also weaves together an engrossing three-act plot. Early on, as a Terran magistrate, you spend a breathtaking 30 minutes defending against a Zerg onslaught. As the story unfolds around you, you'll experience the Zerg's hive mentality and decipher the mysterious Protoss by the game's dramatic conclusion.

Missions vary in scope and are effectively framed with dialogue, chapter screens, and in-mission exposition. Multiplayer games are also very well represented by Blizzard's own free Battle.net service. If you'd rather play over a local area network, StarCraft will generously "spawn" up to seven copies so your friends can join in.

In keeping with StarCraft's groundbreaking design, Brood War presents you with three sides of a galactic conflict. Scheming humans, insidious Zerg, and proud Protoss collide again, with stunning new cinematics setting the stage. Old friends and foes and ominous new arrivals give the story a breakneck pace, while a handful of additions to each race's arsenal makes for tense battles. Brood War also features stellar new environments and ambient art, as well as more than 100 additional multiplayer maps.

Some missions require a bit of finesse, breaking the resource-gathering routine while making good use of the new units. Humans now have Valkyrie missile frigates as well as medics who automatically try to heal your grunts. New for the Zerg air force is the acid-spewing Devourer; the new Lurker unit provides heavy-duty (under)ground support. Along with the Corsair fighter, the Protoss reenter the fray with Dark Templar, which can merge to form the devastating Dark Archon. Unfortunately, units old and new still suffer from weak artificial intelligence in path finding.

The Sims Medieval

The Sims go back in time and get medieval! The Sims Medieval takes The Sims into the Middle Ages with all new features, new graphics and new ways to play. For the first time, players can create heroes, venture on quests, and build up a kingdom. In an ancient land of adventure, drama and romance, players will be able to get medieval like never before.

* A living world of Sims in an age of adventure, drama, and romance
* Enhanced graphics, lighting, animations, and more lifelike Sims
* Create heroes, build up their skills and send them on epic quests
* Quests drive your kingdom?s story - Good or evil, cruel or kind, romantic or warlike
* Kingdom Ambitions ? Choose a ambitious goal for your kingdom and work to achieve it. Will you kingdom be the most wealthy, most enlightened, a conqueror or a peacemaker? The choice is yours

Chess Games

Computer versions of one of the world's most famous games. A great way to practice or compete!

What is Chess?

Chess is a two-player board game with an emphasis on strategy. A chessboard contains 8 rows (“ranks”) and 8 columns (“files”). The squares of a chessboard alternate in color between light and dark. The board is positioned so that each player has a light-colored square on the right-hand corner of the nearest rank.

Chess Setup

Each player begins the game with 8 pawns, 2 rooks, 2 knights, 2 bishops, a queen, and a king. One player’s pieces are black and the other’s are white. The pieces are initially positioned in front of the player in two rows. The second row from the player contains the pawns. The other pieces are arranged on the row nearest to the player. The center two squares hold the king and queen; the queen is placed on the square which matches the player’s color (thus the white queen is on a light-colored square and the black queen is on a dark-colored square). The bishops are placed in the empty squares next to the king and queen. The knights are placed on the empty squares next to the bishops. Finally, a rook is placed on each end of the row.

Movement and Capturing

Each type of piece has its own unique movement. A pawn may only move forward one square at a time (except for its first move, when it may advance by one or two squares). Rooks may move an unlimited number of squares vertically or horizontally; bishops may move an unlimited number of squares diagonally. The queen may move an unlimited number of squares in any direction. The king may move one square in any direction. The knight may be moved to any of the 8 nearest squares not on the same rank, file, or diagonal. Its movement is thus shaped like the letter “L”: two squares in one direction and then one square to the side. Only knights may “jump over” other pieces.

Pieces must be moved to an empty square unless the player wishes to capture an opponent’s piece. In that case, he moves his piece into the square occupied by the piece to be captured and removes the latter from the board. All pieces capture in the same way that they move except the pawn, which may only capture by moving one square diagonally, never by moving forward.

There are also certain special moves, such as castling, capturing a pawn “en passant,” and promoting a pawn to another piece.

End of the Game

“Check” means that one player’s king is in a position such that it will be captured in the opponent’s next turn if it is not moved. The goal of chess is to force the opponent’s king into a situation in which it is in check, and also cannot move without going into check. This is called “checkmate” and concludes the game. There are also other possible endings to a game of chess, such as one player resigning, or both players agreeing to a draw.

The History of Chess

Chess evolved in medieval Europe out of earlier games from India and the Middle East. By the Renaissance, the rules of chess had taken the form by which they are known today, with a few minor exceptions. The game proved wildly popular, and many treatises were published on various aspects of the game. In 1851, the first modern international chess tournament was held in London. Ironically, it was not during this tournament but rather during a break that perhaps the most amazing game of all time, the “Immortal Game,” was played between Adolf Anderssen and Lionel Kieseritzky.

Such chess tournaments continue to be popular to this day. The names of some of the most famous chess players, such as Garry Kasparov and Bobby Fischer, are as well known as those of major athletes. Meanwhile, average players also continue to find joy in chess. In recent times, chess video games have been developed. The “Chessmaster” series of games, now in its eleventh incarnation, has been consistently popular since 1986. There are also many websites which offer the ability to play chess online.

Who Will Like Chess?

As perhaps the most recognizable board game in the western world, chess appeals to a wide audience. Its relatively simple rules make it easy to learn, but the infinite variety of outcomes and the need to create a long-term strategy make it difficult to master. Patience, thoroughness, far-sightedness, and flexibility are among the qualities called for in chess players. Those who really like to think, want to take their time before making a move, and love complex strategy usually enjoy chess. Download Free Games

Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City

Get ready to experience the Liberty City of Grand Theft Auto IV on your PC like never before. Originally created as supplemental episodic content for Grand Theft Auto IV, but not available to players on the PC platform, Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City is now available to all pertinent platforms introducing new characters, new weapons, new online multiplayer challenges and two new stories. Available as two standalone games on one disc, these two episodes, The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony do not require the original GTA IV game disc to play.

Episode One: The Lost and Damned
Developed by series creator Rockstar North and set in Liberty City, Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned features a new main character, Johnny Klebitz, and plot that intersect with the storyline of Grand Theft Auto IV. Players will also experience new missions that offer an entirely fresh way to explore Liberty City with new multiplayer modes, weapons and vehicles and a diverse soundtrack with additional music—all with the incredible production values that are the trademarks of Grand Theft Auto.
The Ballad of Gay Tony game logo
Episode Two: The Ballad of Gay Tony
Grand Theft Auto IV's second downloadable episode, The Ballad of Gay Tony, injects Liberty City with an overdose of guns, glitz, and grime. Players take on the role of Luis Lopez, part-time hoodlum and full-time assistant to legendary nightclub impresario Tony Prince (AKA"Gay Tony"), as he struggles with the competing loyalties of family and friends, and with the uncertainty about who is real and who is fake in a world in which everyone has a price.

Mount & Blade: Warband

The first expansion pack for the critically acclaimed Mount & Blade introduces an array of brand new features, highlighted by a multiplayer capability that allows up to 32 players to battle it out in team death-match style combat on a single map. The expansion provides superior graphical fidelity, boasting such flourishes as high dynamic range, bloom effects, bump mapping and a far greater level of detail than before.

Margrave Manor 2 The Lost Ship

Edwina Margrave is summoned by a mysterious letter to a long-forgotten ship, the AURORA DUSK. For more then 10 years, her grandfather's treasure ship has been missing. Now the ship has returned from the stormy Atlantic seas carrying secrets that you must uncover. With the help of Thomas, Edwina must collect clues and solve puzzles to expose the truth. But, hurry, soon it will be sunrise, and you MUST solve the mystery before then!

Help Edwina Margrave find her grandfather`s hidden treasure in this exciting Hidden Object Adventure game! Edwin Margrave was a famed treasure hunter, whose ship disappeared mysteriously over a decade ago. Now, the ship has reappeared and it’s up to Edwina to figure out what happened. Learn about the legendary treasure and follow the clues to discover the secret of Margrave Manor 2: Lost Ship!

Synopsis
Search a derelict and drifting ship for a dark secret in Margrave Manor 2 - The Lost Ship, an original hidden object mystery! Explore the decks and rooms of the abandoned vessel for hidden objects, intriguing clues, perplexing puzzles, and more on a quest to uncover its secrets before sunrise. Collect inventory items to unlock new locations, examine letters and log entries, and find out what really happened to the crew of the Aurora Dusk. Play today!

Features:

* Uncover a dark secret on a drifting ship
* Play again and again - items change position every time you play!
* Solve perplexing puzzles to unlock even more secrets
* Use letters and log entries to discover the fate of the lost crew
* Collect special items and display them in your own collection room

Specifications:

* OS: Windows XP/ Vista / Windows 7
* 1 GHz Pentium 3 or equivalent
* 128MB RAM
* DirectX 8.1

World of Warcraft

- his game requires a monthly fee, and an internet connection to play
- Create and customize your own hero from the unique races and classes of the Warcraft universe

- Explore an expansive world with miles of forests, deserts, snow-blown mountains, and other exotic lands
- Visit huge cities and delve through dozens of vast dungeons
- Adventure together with thousands of other players in an enormous, persistent game world

The Sims 3: World Adventures Expansion Pack

Product Features

* Enjoy a unique all-star soundtrack of songs, especially recorded in Simlish for the expansion.
* Accept challenges, find treasures, discover the dangers lurking in hidden caves and more as you and your sims explore famous landmarks in China, Egypt, and France.

* Learn new skills like photography, martial arts and nectar making (a favorite sim beverage) as your sim pursues new opportunities.
* Meet new Sims from exotic locations and share their cultures.
* Get $10 worth of free SimPoints for use at The Sims 3 Store.