Developer id has unveiled the much-anticipated release of the official RAGE modding toolkit - the same tools used to create RAGE and its DLC, The Scorchers - via the Bethesda blog. The modding tools will be available later today on Steam free of charge and weighing in at a whopping 35GB+, which you will be able to find in the tools section of Steam.

Later today on Steam we will be releasing the official tool kit for RAGE – the same tools used to create RAGE and it’s DLC, The Scorchers. From the game’s world building tool, idStudio, to game maps and assets, the kit provides everything you need to get started with modding the first-ever idTech 5 title.

Interested? Before you start downloading the hefty 35+ GB file, the RAGE team has provided some documents to read. As described in the welcome document, these tools provided are complex and aimed towards “technically sophisticated and adventurous” modders.

For those interested, two documents have been released detailing all that is needed to get straight into modding. You can find these documents here and here.

Continuing their post-release support of the all-new RAGE IP, id Software and Bethesda have announced new downloadable content for RAGE, due to hit PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 next week.

In this brand-new adventure spanning six all-new areas, you will fight alongside new allies to defend the Hager Settlment from a maniacal bandit clan known as The Scorchers. Along the way, you’ll participate in a new season of Mutant Bash TV, encounter new mini-games, and wield the overpowering and brutal Nailgun.

The Scorchers DLC also offers a new difficulty mode: Ultra-Nightmare and also lets you finally play past the ending in order to continue collecting everything and finishing the game 100%.

We have a single screenshot of the new content you can check out right here, otherwise The Scorchers will set you back around $5 or 400 MS Points.

After a delay that seemed to be quite annoying to many PC gamers, the 1.2 patch for Rage has finally arrived. The biggest new feature seemed to do with the texture detail problem that caused hassles for many at release:

Texture Detail: Enabling Texture Detail will improve up-close texture quality by performing upsampling with adaptive sharpening. This does not update or increase the resolution of the base textures included with the game but improves the perceived resolution and crispness of textures. This is an intensive operation and is only recommended if you have a quad-core CPU or higher. Please disable this feature if you encounter poor performance, stability issues or are given a notification that the game has run out of memory after loading a map. The Texture Detail option can be found in the Settings -> Video Menu.

The full patch notes, including list of bug fixes, are available here. If you're interested in checking this game out, make sure you check out our buy page for the lowest prices (~$24 from ozgameshop).

A Mac version of the game is also available - OS X users can check it out at the App Store or from Aspyr (no mention of Steam?).

Bethesda and id Software were kind enough to hook AusGamers up with a special game and swag pack for RAGE, featuring a copy of the game on all three platforms, a T-Shirt, a signed A3 poster by Tim Willits and Matt Hooper and a replica Wingstick.

These are in short supply though. In fact we only have three of them -- one for each platform -- so you need to get in quick.

And how do you enter, well if you're an AusGamers regular, you know how, and we know just how much you love it, but for everyone else, just tell us in 50 words or less:

If you had your own working Wingstick, who would you aim it at and why?
Obviously we're looking for the most creative responses (because we actually wouldn't expect you to realistically ever want to throw a Wingstick at someone), and need you to remember to tell us your preferred platform of choice.

Click here to enter!

As noted by Reverend in the forums, the first patch for id Software's recently released Rage is now available - the Bethesda blog summarises the changes:

Implemented workaround for AMD driver crash right after intro cinematic on Win 7 32-bit systems.
Disabled UBOs because they are causing animation issues with AMD drivers. Don’t allow swap-tear to be enabled on AMD while the extension is not exposed because it may crash.
Support for new video settings: “texture cache”, “vsync”, and ”anisotropic filter”
Automatically adjust vt_maxPPF based on the number of available cores.
Improved performance for SLI cards when GPU transcode is enabled.
Fix for GPU Transcoding option being disabled after exiting gameplay.
Added safe mode to restore video settings to default values.
Allow g_fov to be changed from the RAGE launch options in Steam.
Server now forwards text chat from clients to all other clients while in-game.

There changes are covered in more detail on the Steam announcement.

There's been quite a few complaints from PC gamers disappointed in the visual quality of the game on the PC - particularly around the texture popping issue (which seems to be a combination of driver and game issues), the appearance of lower resolution textures, and the comparative lack of ability to tweak the visual settings. id Software's Todd Hollenshead acknowledged that so far the driver updates provided haven't fixed everyone's problem but indicated that they - and the video card companies - are still working on the problem, which will hopefully bring hope to the PC gaming community.

Let us know if this new patch makes a difference for you in the comments!

So here it is. Our RAGE review.

The burning questions have been answered for those of you wanting to know the score. Has id managed to modernise their game-design? Does id Tech 5 live up to its promise? Is this just a Fallout 3/Borderlands clone? Is it any good?

We can't answer all of those in a news post though ;) what would be the point in that. Instead, we've compiled a lengthy, in-depth review for you to digest, that goes into the game's shortcomings, where it wins, and how both sides coalesce into the final, retail product.

Click here for our full review.

As the global launch for id Software's long awaited RAGE draws ever closer, Bethesda have released a new trailer featuring yet another extended section of gameplay.

In this video, the Resistance has heard rumors of an Ark surfacing in Jackal Valley and they need you to search the site for a valuable data decrypter. Finding it won't be easy as the valley is home to one of the Wastelands most brutal factions, the savage Jackal Clan.

Watch the traile embedded below or click here for the HD option.

RAGE is due on Australian shelves next Thursday, October 6th 2011.

If all goes well, we should have a launch-day review online so keep an eye out for that one and hit up our RAGE game page for our past extensive coverage.

Bethesda have sent along another new gameplay trailer for RAGE, this time offering the first look at some co-operative multiplayer action in id Software's upcoming first person shooter.

Get the first look at RAGE's co-op mode as the Shrouded clan come to Wellspring to destroy the town’s water supply and two warriors join forces to fight off the invasion. It's up to a duo of heroes to disarm bombs, take out bandits and save the town once again.

Watch the trailer below, click here for the HD stream, or here to download the very high bitrate source video.

RAGE is due on PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 October 6th 2011.

Bethesda and id Software have released the minimum and recommended PC system requirements for RAGE, which we have for you below.

Minimum

• OS: Win XP SP3, Vista, Win 7
  
• Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo or Equivalent AMD
  
• Memory: 2GB
  
• Hard Disk Space: 25GB
  
• Video Card: GeForce 8800, Radeon HD 4200

Recommended

• OS:Win XP SP3, Vista, Win 7
  
• Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad or Equivalent
  
• Memory: 4GB
  
• Hard Disk Space: 25GB
  
• Video Card: GeForce 9800 GTX, ATI Radeon HD 5550

RAGE also features full Steamworks support and includes Steam Features, VOIP and friend support for the desktop platform. The game is due for release on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 October 6th.

Bethesda and id Software have released another extended gameplay trailer from their upcoming post-apocalyptic shooter RAGE, showing off more lush visuals in the id tech 5 engine.

Today's clip is titled "Gearheads Vault" and takes a 4 minute stroll around an urban section of the game. Watch the video below or click here for the HD option.

RAGE is due on PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on October 6th 2011. For more details, check out our recent interviews with id Software's Tim Willits and Todd Hollenshead.