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GameTap Online Gaming Service |
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Written by Nathan Loehlein
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Friday, 06 July 2007 |
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Page 1 of 2
In 2004, Turner Broadcast System, better known as TBS, launched the broadband gaming service GameTap. The premise behind GameTap is that subscribers pay a monthly fee for access to an entire library of game titles. Presently, GameTap hosts over 900 such titles for its subscribers to play.
More recently, GameTap changed its subscription model to include two free plans which allows access to a limited number of games. The “Visitor” plan allows anyone to visit the GameTap website and play a small number of games (about 40) which rotates every week without registration. The “Green” plan requires registration but gives users access to the GameTap Lite client and allows them to play a slightly larger library of games supported by pre-rolled ads. The “Deluxe” plan requires a credit card and a payment ranging from US$6.95 a month to US$9.95 a month based on how long you sign up for, but gives you access to all games as well as GameTap TV. Additionally, there are over 450 games which you can purchase through GameTap, similar to other online game purchases.
Once you’ve chosen a plan, it’s time to download the player appropriate for your choice. The Lite player is approximately 15 MB and the Deluxe player is approximately 35 MB. The system requirements for the Deluxe player are as follows:
- Internet Connection: Broadband service: DSL, DSL light, or cable modem (minimum 384k)
- Hardware, Software, and Other Requirements:
- Operating System: Windows 2000/XP and Vista.
- Mac users on versions 10.4 and up can now play GameTap on the Lite Player. For more info on using GameTap with a Mac, please refer to our Mac FAQS.
GameTap is not supported on 64 bit for Windows Vista/Windows XP.
- Processor: Pentium III or AMD Athlon 800MHz or better
- RAM: 256MB RAM
- Hard Drive Space: 5GB available storage (for application)
- Video Card: 3D-capable video card with 32MB VRAM or greater
- DirectX Version: DirectX 8.X and OpenGL 1.1
Once the install has completed, simply click on the shortcut and you will be greeted by the login screen. Enter your information and hit login to launch the application.
Here is where everything happens. On the lower part of the screen you are given three options: My GameTap, Game Vault, and GameTap TV. My GameTap is the section where you can add usernames (up to a total of 8), change your display and storage settings, set parental controls for users and view your high scores. Game Vault is where you can browse the GameTap library or view your playlists. GameTap TV hosts various online TV shows such as Space Ghost: Coast to Coast and SeaLab 2021 as well as interviews with musicians, game creators, and many other celebrities.
At the very bottom of the screen and to the left are your three download slots. After browsing the Game Vault you need to download a game to play it. Some games are well under a megabyte (think Joust or Space Invaders) and others can be over a gigabyte (Railroad Tycoon 3). You can control how much of your hard drive is allocated to GameTap under My GameTap. In the middle of the bottom are your five latest games for easy access. To the right are the toggle sound options as well as a quick link to GameTap Help.
Across the top of the screen, from left to right, you have GameTap Home, which features the latest updates to GameTap. Next to that is an option to bring up the messenger as well as a rudimentary version of AIM which you can use while in GameTap. This is very convenient as it means while in the GameTap application you don’t have to Alt-Tab to continue your conversations with your buddies. On the far right you can view incoming challenges for multi-player games, log off GameTap, or minimize, maximize or close the application.
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 07 July 2007 )
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