Wikipedia:Main Page history/2018 February 19

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Dungeon Siege is an action role-playing game developed by Gas Powered Games and published by Microsoft for Windows (2002) and by Destineer for MacOS (2003). Set in the pseudo-medieval kingdom of Ehb, the high fantasy game follows a young farmer and his companions as they journey to defeat an invading force. Instead of manually controlling characters, the player sets their overall tactics, weapons and magic usage. Chris Taylor and Jacob McMahon aimed for a role-playing game stripped of the typical genre elements they found slow or frustrating, including all loading screens, to keep the player focused on the action. Development took over four years, often with 12- to 14-hour workdays. The game is listed by review aggregator Metacritic as the third-highest rated computer role-playing game of 2002. Critics praised the graphics and seamless world, as well as the fun and accessible gameplay, but were dismissive of the plot. The game sold over 1.7 million copies. An expansion pack, Dungeon Siege: Legends of Aranna, was released in 2003, followed by Dungeon Siege II (2005), Dungeon Siege III (2011), and other titles. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

National Coalition Party poster, 1964

... that in 2011, the National Coalition Party (poster pictured) became the largest political party in the Finnish parliament for the first time in its history?
... that British Army researchers developed SLC radar in their spare time after they grew tired of watching how "searchlight beams swung wildly about the sky but rarely found and held a target"?
... that Africa's large population of youths and children makes it the youngest continent, with 60% of residents younger than twenty-five?
... that Joseph Stamler allowed a lawsuit opposing mandatory school sex education to proceed, stating that the U.S. Constitution protects "the one person who is sincere in a conscientious religious conviction"?
... that in 1976, an air traffic controller error caused two aircraft to collide over Anapa in the Soviet Union, killing all 70 people on board both planes?
... that Amazon's spherical employee lounge in Seattle was opened with an Alexa voice command?
... that the Atlantic batfish uses its pectoral and pelvic fins to "walk" over the seabed?
... that war correspondent Philip Jacobson placed bets on horse races while reporting from the battlefield?

In the news

The ATR 72–200 operated as Iran Aseman Airlines Flight 3704

Iran Aseman Airlines Flight 3704 (aircraft pictured) crashes in the Zagros Mountains, with 65 people on board.
South African president Jacob Zuma resigns amid corruption claims, and is succeeded by Cyril Ramaphosa.
A gunman kills 17 people and injures 15 others at a school in Parkland, Florida, United States.
Scientists announce the discovery of malacidins, a new class of antibacterial chemicals.

On this day...

February 19: Family Day in various regions of Canada (2018); Washington's Birthday (Presidents' Day) in the United States (2018)

Old Trafford stadium

1600 – The Peruvian stratovolcano Huaynaputina exploded in the largest volcanic explosion in South America in historical times.
1811 – Peninsular War: An outnumbered French force under Édouard Mortier routed and nearly destroyed the Spanish at the Battle of the Gebora near Badajoz, Spain.
1910 – Old Trafford (pictured), a football stadium in Greater Manchester, England, hosted its first match between Manchester United and Liverpool.
1948 – The Southeast Asian Youth Conference, which is believed to have inspired armed communist rebellions in different Asian countries, opened in Calcutta, India.
1999 – U.S. President Bill Clinton issued a posthumous pardon to Henry Ossian Flipper, the first African American graduate of West Point, who had been accused of embezzlement in 1881.

Dorothe Engelbretsdatter (d. 1716) · Émilie Gamelin (b. 1800) · Choekyi Gyaltsen, 10th Panchen Lama (b. 1938)

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The Japanese video game company Square Enix is known for its role-playing video game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Kingdom Hearts series. Square Enix formed from the merger of video game publisher Enix absorbing developer Square on April 1, 2003. Since its inception, the company has developed or published hundreds of titles in various video game franchises on numerous gaming systems. Of its properties, the Final Fantasy franchise is the best-selling, with total worldwide sales of over 130 million units. The Dragon Quest series has shipped over 71 million units worldwide and is one of the most popular video game series in Japan. Square Enix has owned Taito, which continues to publish its own video games, since September 2005, and acquired game publisher Eidos Interactive in April 2009, which was merged with Square Enix's European publishing wing and renamed as Square Enix Europe. (Full list...)

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William III of the Netherlands (1817–1890) was the King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg between 1849 and 1890. The son of King William II and Anna Pavlovna of Russia, William came to the throne after his father's death. During his reign, he instituted a new constitution in Luxembourg and considered selling that country to France.

Painting: Nicolaas Pieneman

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