Over the past few months we’ve been working on creating a system to send users “instant messages” via the Impulse tray program.  Now users who have “Show Promotions” enabled in their “Impulse Now” settings can receive balloon notifications from their system tray on special offers that come in.

Here’s how it works:

[Need a nice screenshot of a balloon showing up <g>].  Impulse has been working to put together a series of special promotions during the month of December. Anyone with Impulse installed and has the tray program running (which it is by default) and hasn’t turned off promotions will start receiving special offers.

These aren’t ordinary sales, however. They’re special deals we’ve put together with developers that only exist for 24 hours and are priced at a level we aren’t able to promote on our main websites.

The first test promotion was Galactic Civilizations for $0.99.  We will be doing some “warm up specials” over the coming week as we prepare for the Impulse “12 days of Christmas” where AAA titles will start to get steep discounts.

To participate, simply download and install Impulse (www.impulsedriven.com).  The tray program, Impulse Now, will automatically be installed (you can also load it immediately by typing impulsenow via the Start menu).

Next week Demigod will begin its third epoch. Part of that will likely include the availability of Oculus.

Each epoch means the zeroing out of the stats. You keep your Favor points but everything else resets. You can still access your epoch 1 and epoch 2 stats on the pantheon but it’s a great way for people to start with a clean slate online.

I’ve been playing Oculus online.  I have some suggestions on him but he’s a serious damage dealer to grunts though.

The team is working on getting Impulse ready to handle pre-loads so that some of the upcoming large-scale titles can be installed onto people’s machines prior to release and then enabled on launch day.

One of the other features is the support for Windows 7 Jump Lists.  These features were originally planned to be all part of Impulse: Phase 5 but the desire to get pre-loading in for the holidays moved what we were working on up.

This should go to the public in the next couple weeks.

I finally got a chance to play some serious Sins of a Solar Empire: Diplomacy today.  I’ll get more to into it over the coming days when Object Desktop gets released and the Elemental beta gets out the door.

But I was really pleased at how fun Sins of a Solar Empire continues to be. I’m biased but the game really has amazing depth. 

Now, the first thing I noticed about Diplomacy was the option for “faster” which I think will be one of the features that people like a lot since it really helps move the game along.

I’d like to see the Diplomacy tech tree fleshed out more. I’ll write more soon on that.

Object Desktop is a suite of desktop enhancement utilities designed to let users turbo-charge Windows. 

The core programs of Object Desktop 2010 include:

WindowBlinds. A program that can customize the look and feel of the entire Windows graphical user interface by applying new “skins” that change title bars, taskbars, scrollbars, and nearly every other part of Windows.

DeskScapes. A program that lets users customize their wallpapers or even apply  animated wallpapers (there are hundreds of free animated wallpapers available to choose from).

Fences PRO. A program that lets users organize the icons on their desktops into groups of easily manageable “fences”.

Tweak. A program designed to make it easy to modify various hard to find Windows settings and control what gets loaded (or not loaded) onto your system.

IconPackager. A program that can apply new icons themes by loading up a package of icons.

SkinStudio. A program that makes it easy for users to create their own user interfaces to apply to Windows.

Theme Manager. A program that ties it all together. Get your desktop just the way you want and save it or apply themes created by others that include WindowBlinds, IconPackager, DeskScapes and other customization program content.

In addition Object Desktop users get a host of other programs to enhance Windows such as DesktopX, WindowFX, IconDeveloper, SoundPackager, Keyboard LaunchPad, RightClick, and more.

Users of Object Desktop don’t just get what is in Object Desktop today but also everything released or updated for it in the year after purchase.  Even now, Stardock’s developers are working on programs that can give new options to Windows 7 users, get the most out of Windows XP, and more.

Object Desktop is only $49.95. For users who want to keep getting updates to the programs after the first year, they can renew their access for only $34.95!

Apparently the Stardock Customer Report 2009 struck a nerve with Direct2Drive’s Sutton Trout who claimed that the report’s findings that Impulse’s market share, at 10% puts it at #2 in market share for digital distribution platforms was “misinformation at best”.

As evidence of Direct2Drive’s superior market share, Mr. Trout points to an NPD report from earlier this year that lists Direct2Drive as one of the leading digital retailers. A report, I might mention, that does not include Impulse, Gamers Gate, Metaboli or other competitors.

This would be akin to Renault accusing Ford of spreading misinformation for saying that it sells more cars than Renault and pointing to an article that lists top car makers in France as proof of Renault’s superiority.

The data on digital platforms (as defined in the report as a digital retailer that allows users to purchase and download third party software that is also available through B&M retailers as well) came from surveying the publishers.

While it is true that if you took out Stardock’s own titles from the mix, Impulse would indeed fall to #3 or even as far as #5 because after Steam, the others are really pretty far behind presently). Then again, if one took Valve’s titles off of Steam, Steam’s total market share would drop drastically as well.

No one ever promised life was fair.

But what I think can be promised is that vendors publicly complaining about the right to claim they’re #2 in getting the scraps Steam leaves behind look silly.

The best thing these services can do is focus on making themselves better. Because they will need to be better if they want to effectively compete with Steam.

Tomorrow is the 20 year class reunion for my high school. I can’t believe it’s been that long.

For me, high school was not fun. Even with the benefit of hindsight the best I could describe the overall high school experience was “horrible”. 

That it was horrible wasn’t due to my classmates (though certain classmates did make a bad situation worse but my main pain from high school is in prison serving a life sentence) but just the situation overall – I was a total nerd and HS isn’t a fun place for nerds. 

I’m finding myself pretty excited though. A lot of the people attending are people I grew up with. Some of them were with me from kindergarten on up and so I’m very excited to see how their lives have gone.

Hope you all had a good Thanksgiving -- even if you’re not in the United States!

The team has today off.

The team is starting on tactical battle work. We’ll be talking a great deal with you guys on the battle system in the coming weeks.

Here’s an old sketch.

If there was a game called Magic: Total War (request to the Creative Assembly – please make this) this is a bit what I’m picturing the tactical battles being a bit like. Players could zoom in as close as they’d like.

It’s not “real time” per say, it’s continuous turns.  Examples of continuous turn battles would be Baldur’s Gate and more recently Dragon Age: Origins where there are rounds and turns but the game automatically will move it forward but players can pause it at any time and cycle it turn by turn if they’d like.

Costs less than $100. Ink lasts quite a while. WiFi network support (i.e. doesn’t have to be connected to a PC), scanning, printing.

Just a great printer.

Got one for myself and then for my mom.

Canon PIXMA MP560 Wireless Inkjet All-In-One Photo Printer (3747B002)

I really need to make sure that Stardock badge shows up everywhere.  When I am “critiquing” Stardock developed/published games I’m doing so as part of my job AT STARDOCK. I’m not bashing our games. I’m just posting feedback. I’m not an anti-Stardock troll. I work *AT STARDOCK*.

Grr.