Friday, November 1, 2013

10 zombie games where the undead are the least of your concerns

Zombies are powerful and terrifying enemies. They’re also an endless source of cannon fodder — and sadly, most games with zombies tend to use them for this very reason.

It’s easy to see why people can get tired of that. But we shouldn’t write off the undead just yet. A new wave of games are showing us that zombies have more to offer beyond the cheap thrills of slicing off their limbs. Some of these titles examine how humanity would cope under such stressful circumstances. Others try to replicate the survival experience with detailed gameplay systems built around growing food or making weapons and tools. You still have to kill plenty of zombies along the way, but they’re no longer the focus of these adventures.

Original Call of Duty working title was "MOH killer"

Activision's Call of Duty franchise has not always been the industry-leading series that it is today. That designation was previously with Electronic Arts' Medal of Honor series. Speaking with MCV, former Infinity Ward artist Justin Thomas, who also worked on Medal of Honor: Allied Assault for EA, recalled the first days of what would become 2003's Call of Duty.

"The project was actually named 'MOH killer' until an official name could be found," Thomas said. "We were focused more on fun than success, with the idea that if it was fun, it would be successful. We were just going to make a great game, and do the things better than we did on previous projects. The great thing is that a team learns from previous projects."

Thomas explained that one of the challenges associated with building Call of Duty was making sure it did not too closely resemble the Medal of Honor series.
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Pokemon X & Y hacker discovers unobtainable new creatures

As a series built entirely around finding and capturing rare creatures, Pokemon is the perfect avenue for hidden secrets and surprises. If there's one thing the Internet is great at, though, it's ruining surprises before they're even gift-wrapped. A little digging into Pokemon X and Y seems to have uncovered some Pokemon that aren't otherwise accessible, likely to be given out during special events.

As uncovered by the hacker Smealum and shown on Serebii, the Pokemon are numbers 719-721: Diancie, Volcanion, and Hoopa (above). He also found new Mega Evolutions called Latias and Latios. These are likely event Pokemon, to be given out similar to the current Torchic distribution. Keep in mind, of course, that since these are the product of a hacker, they're not officially confirmed.

Rocksteady's next game aiming for 2014

The latest Batman: Arkham game was not developed by series creator Rocksteady. But, of course the studio is working on something. And whatever it is, it's coming in 2014.

Internet supersleuth Superannuation discovered several job postings matching text of Rockstead's career openings for what is "tipped to be one of the most successful games of 2014." If all goes according to plan, it looks like Rocksteady's next will be ready next year.

It's likely Rocksteady is working on a proper sequel to Arkham City. As clearly labeled by the title, the recently-released Origins was a prequel. Kevin Controy, the de-facto voice of Batman said he was working on an Arkham game--but he doesn't appear in Origins.
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People Can Fly renamed Epic Games Poland

Epic Games subsidiary People Can Fly has been renamed Epic Games Poland, the company has told Pixel Enemy.
Epic also confirmed that the studio behind Gears of War: Judgment and Bulletstorm is currently working on Fortnite, Epic's first Unreal Engine 4 game.

"We've changed the studio's name from People Can Fly to Epic Games Poland," Epic said. "We're a global company with talented people working toward one goal across the world. We think this helps better reflect that. Multiple Epic studios, including Epic Games Poland, are working on Fortnite."

In April, Epic Games VP Mark Rein told CVG that Fortnite - first unveiled in December 2011 and rarely seen since - "might be the best thing we've ever done".
The PC exclusive is described as "a co-op sandbox survival game" that has players scavenging for resources to build fortifications as they battle for survival against hordes of monsters.

GTA Online stimulus package now expected end of next week

Grand Theft Auto Online players are going to need to wait for at least another week to receive the first half of their promised $500,000 GTA$ stimulus package.

Rockstar Games announced today that the next title update for GTA Online (1.05) addressing player progress loss issues will be available early next week. After this, the developer said "we hope" to be able to deliver the GTA$ Stimulus Package by the end of the week.

"A big thank you to GTA Online players worldwide for your continued patience and understanding and we will continue to keep you all updated," Rockstar said.
When Rockstar originally announced the $500,000 of in-game cash for players (to be delivered in two deposits of $250,000) earlier this month, the company said it would not dole out the money until the game was stable.

Grand Theft Auto V has shipped 29 million copies to date, though it is unclear how many have been sold to consumers.

Ryse: Son of Rome gets a multiplayer DLC Season Pass

Did you know that Crytek's upcoming Xbox One exclusive Ryse: Son of Rome has a co-op multiplayer mode? And because it has multiplayer, of course there's going to be a DLC Season Pass.

For $20, you'll be able to score four add-on packs at a discounted rate of more than 25 percent off. The Season Pass will include a total of 14 multiplayer maps, a new mode, six player skins, new level events, and access to a new tier of weapons and armor. In addition, Season Pass holders get an exclusive in-game sword and shield with bonus attributes.

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Exploring the deep themes in Beyond: Two Souls

When I went to play Beyond: Two Souls for the first time, I didn’t know much about it. I tried to stay away from the trailers so I could be surprised. All I knew was that it was made by Quantic Dream, the people behind one of my favorite games, Heavy Rain, and that it was about a girl named Jodie Holmes who has a link with an entity. Little did I know the story was going to affect me emotionally as much as it did.

The reviews for Beyond are mixed, with people on one end of the spectrum saying that it’s one of the best games ever made and those on the other end saying that it’s a complete mess. I’m one of those people on the positive side. I wasn’t so sure about it at first as the anachronistic storytelling threw me off, but I really came to love it.

Titanfall will remain exclusive to Xbox, PC

Zampella was also asked if Respawn Entertainment will make a PlayStation 4 game some day. He replied, "Of course we will, just not the first Titanfall."

The original story is below.
PlayStation and Nintendo fans hoping to play Respawn Entertainment's first-person shooter Titanfall on their consoles appear to be out of luck. The game will remain exclusive to Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC "for the life of the title," Electronic Arts CFO Blake Jorgensen said today during an earnings call.

Titanfall is the first product from Respawn Entertainment, the studio founded by numerous former Call of Duty developers, including Infinity Ward cofounder Vince Zampella. "For the life of the title" suggests that a potential Titanfall sequel could be released on a non-Microsoft or PC platform, though this has not been announced.

Microsoft featured Titanfall prominently in its recently launched Xbox One advertising campaign, rolling out on TV, the Web, and on billboards this month in the lead-up to the Xbox One launch on November 22.

Grand Theft Auto 5: nearly 29 million copies shipped

"Oh, you think you're proud of selling one million copies? Your friend, Grand Theft Auto 5 sold almost 30 million copies! You're such a failure!"

That's probably what an overzealous mom would sound like, if she had mothered a video game. And video games were people. But thankfully, we're safe from this horrifying alternate reality.

"During the fiscal second quarter, we delivered record Non-GAAP results driven by the unprecedented success of Rockstar Games' Grand Theft Auto 5," Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said in a recent earnings call. "The title received stellar reviews, shattered entertainment industry records, and has already sold-in nearly 29 million units to date. The extraordinary success of Grand Theft Auto 5 illustrates the positive momentum in our business and consumers' enduring appetite for the highest-quality interactive entertainment.

The Simpsons: Tapped Out revenue passes $100 million

The Simpsons: Tapped Out has now generated over $100 million in life-to-date digital net revenue, publisher Electronic Arts announced today. The game was released in August 2012 and has been in the top 20 iPhone grossing games in the United States for all but 12 days since launch, EA said.

The news came as part of EA's latest earnings report for the quarter ended September 30. Overall, EA posted a profit of $105 million on $1.04 billion in revenue.

"EA's strong second quarter was driven by great title launches, continued digital growth, and financial discipline," new CEO Andrew Wilson said in a statement.
"While we have made good progress in the first half of the year, we remain focused on executing our FY14 plan and delivering a full slate of amazing games and services to players on current and next-generation consoles, mobile, and PC," he added.

Also in the report, it was confirmed that EA had to pay around $40 million in college football settlement expenses related to the settlement between EA and a group of former athletes.

Tearaway story trailer reveals folk influences

Tearaway is about more than the artistic wonders of papercraft. There's a story involved, too, one based on strong folk influences. To offer some of what the story entails, Sony and Media Molecule have a released a new trailer for their upcoming Vita-exclusive papercraft platformer.

"The actual story is all about this character, the Messenger, with an envelope-shaped head," lead creator Rex Crowle says in the trailer. "Their whole reason for existence is that they have something, they have a message, trapped inside them, which they're trying to deliver. And the person that they're trying to deliver this message to is you, the player, the person that's holding their hold world in their hands."

Pokemon Dev Opposed to the Idea of DLC

Pokemon X & Y may have signaled the maturing of Game Freak’s successful series, but that doesn’t mean the team is interested in implementing other kinds of contemporary features. This includes DLC, according to art director Ken Sugimore in a recent interview (translated by Siliconera).

“When it comes to business, the one thing I’ve always said ‘no!’ to is ‘the act of buying Pokémon with money’. That is something that has been said since the days [creator Satoshi] Tajiri was completely involved in everything.

“The reason being, is because it’s one of things that could ‘ruin the worldview’ of Pokémon. I believe the reason we don’t simply commercialize [Pokémon], is that it’s a way of protecting the brand, and for this purpose, we have the specialty company called The Pokémon Company. Therefore, suppose we sell a Pokémon for 100 yen, then we must prepare something that is worthy of that 100 yen, along with a reasonable consent for doing so.”

Titanfall to remain exclusive to Microsoft

Those hoping to get a taste of towering mechs on their PlayStation 4 will be very disappointed to hear that Titanfall will most likely not find its way to a Sony platform. EA has stated that the game will remain exclusive to Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC for the entirety of its life cycle.

"In the case of Titanfall, it's a brand new IP and it's exclusive only for the life of the title on Xbox One and Xbox 360 and PC," said EA CFO Blake Jorgensen during today's EA financial call (via Joystiq).

This statement contradicts an earlier statement from Respawn, who had previously expressed that a PS4 version was "definitely not out of the question." Respawn's Vince Zampella has weighed in on Twitter, adding that the studio will not release Titanfall on PS4, but will develop future games for the platform.

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Weekend PC download deals: Arkham series for $47

It's hard to believe that we're already approaching some of the bigger fall releases, so you've only got about a week or so until Batman: Arkham Origins, Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, and Battlefield 4 all arrive to consume whatever free time you may have.

GameFly Digital is offering deep discounts on the Company of Heroes franchise, including Company of Heroes 2. If that doesn't tickle your fancy, there are several open world bundles, including a really cool Saints Row bundle, for anyone that's looking for a GTA alternative, and a neat Square open world bundle that includes Sleeping Dogs. If anyone wants some physical goodies to go with their games, GameStop has offered up the collector's edition of Splinter Cell: Blacklist at a discounted rate. And everyone's offering up various Batman deals, though the clear winner here looks to be Green Man Gaming, who's offering up the entire Arkham series (including Origins!) for only $47.

Bonus material for Grand Theft Auto V fans

You spent years waiting for developers to hurry up and release a big game. You buy it, take it home, and play through it in a couple of days. It’s awesome.

But now what?

Read+Watch+Listen is about other material you might want to check out if you’re just not ready to move on. We’ll suggest media that share something in common with a particular game and tell you why it might be of interest. In this installment, we’re going to build on your experience with the latest entry in developer Rockstar’s open-world crime franchise, out now on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Crytek Were More Than Ready For What Xbox One Had To Offer, Ryse’s SmartGlass Support A Huge Step Up

Say what you will about Ryse: Son of Rome, but despite beginning development on the Xbox 360, Crytek producer Michael Read said the team were more than ready for what the Xbox One had to offer when transitioning to the next-gen console.

We asked Read how difficult it was to get CryEngine 3 working on the Xbox One and whether any compromises were made along the way, he responded that, “Given the amount of work we put into our previous titles in pushing PC hardware to its max, we were more than ready for what the Xbox One had to offer. There are always a number of challenges and compromises from many different areas when working with new technology and ways of doing things, but nothing that our team hasn’t been able to handle. One thing people tend to forget is that there are a lot more moving parts with this from us developing an engine, alongside a game, mixed in with new hardware, and new development tools to support that.

Son of Rome's story trailer is a marketing pitch

Whoops, someone forgot to explain to Crytek that a "story trailer" for a game should probably focus on game's story. But when your story is pretty much the story of another popular video game series, it's understandable why you'd want to pivot.

Instead, this new narrated video for Ryse: Son of Rome showcases the many bullet points that make the upcoming Xbox One launch game. unique. Specifically, there's a lot of focus on the CryEngine-powered visuals, motion and performance capture, and the authenticity of the weapons and tactics used in the game.

Infinity Ward on CoD: Ghosts - "Everybody thinks we're going to kill the dog"

Despite Infinity Ward releasing no information that would suggest one way or the other, the consensus is that Riley the dog will die during the Call of Duty: Ghosts campaign, according to executive producer Mark Rubin.

"Everybody thinks we're going to kill the dog," Rubin told the Associated Press. "Maybe that's the expected thing we would do, so maybe it's not what we'll do? We'll see. People around here didn't know, and they had that same sentiment: 'We better not kill the dog.' The emotional investment for the dog here has been just as strong as what's happening out in the public."

In June, Infinity Ward community manager Tina Palacios said "it's a constant debate" at the studio about whether Riley will die or not. "But we do have an answer," she said at the time.

Kids code games: 80M user messaging app Kik jams in NYC

Developers love it when kids code games. That’s why Kik Messenger invited NYC Generation Tech to its mobile game jam this weekend.

GenTech teaches low-income high school students HTML, CSS, and JavaScript as well as the basics of entrepreneurship. About 25 GenTech participants will join Kik and its game development partner TreSensa at the NY Media Center on Sunday to take part in the game jam.

“It’s a great chance for them to learn about game coding and also see and experience a game jam,” TreSensa CEO Rob Grossberg told VentureBeat. “We’ll likely involve them even more deeply in later events.”

This summer, Kik rolled out a feature to its app called Kik Cards, which serves up rich media (like HTML5 web games) right within the chat window. TreSensa and Zynga are Kik’s first two gaming partners.

Zoo Tycoon for Xbox One is timed Wal-Mart exclusive

Are you planning on picking up a physical copy of Zoo Tycoon for Xbox One from your local video game dispensary? Not so fast. Microsoft has confirmed that the next-gen version of the zoo simulator will be exclusive to fellow zoo simulator Wal-Mart for its first few months.

IGN reports that between its launch on November 22, and January 31, 2014, Wal-Mart will be the sole third-party retailer with disc copies the game. Alternately, you could pick it up at a Microsoft store, or download it from the Xbox Games Store. Once February rolls around, it would presumably be on shelves at other shops.

An Xbox 360 version of the game is due too, and it's not exclusive to any retailer. However, it does strip out some features from the Xbox One version, so if you have a choice you'd probably want to go next-gen anyway.

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

XCOM: Enemy Within adds 'save scum' option for players that exploit quicksave

Save. Shoot. Die. Reload save. Take cover. Save.

While many players love the brutal nature of Iron Man mode in XCOM: Enemy Unknown, many other players chose to exploit the game's quicksave options. By saving in between every action, players could always revert to an earlier save if a tactical decision ever goes awry. And in XCOM's case, that is probably very often.

However, in Enemy Within, the dice rolls have already been set when you save the game. So, if you miss a 50% shot to hit an enemy, you'll always miss that shot, no matter how often you reload the game. That feature is going to change in Enemy Within with the "save scum" option.

"It's called Save Scum," lead game designer Anand Gupta told PCGamesN (via RPS) "It resets the random number seed whenever the game is loaded. For people who really want to keep shooting until that 80% shot hits."

Spike TV’s Geoff Keighley to interview Sony Online’s boss John Smedley at GamesBeat 2013

We’re pleased to announce that Spike TV GTTV host Geoff Keighley will interview John Smedley, president of Sony Online Entertainment at our GamesBeat 2013 conference on Oct. 29-Oct. 30 in Redwood City, Calif.

Keighley will talk to Smedley about the democratization of gaming and the evolution of the online game. SOE is working on Everquest Next, the next installment of the popular massively multiplayer online game series. Smedley will paint the landscape of online games, from the rise of eSports, livecasting, and player-initiated marketing to the growing importance of global communities, player-driven economies, and next-generation gaming.

With Everquest Next, Sony Online Entertainment is putting players in the driver’s seat to game development, as it will allow them for the first time to generate their own content and have it appear both in their own game worlds as well as the large online game world.

Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus includes Quest for Booty

Insomniac Games announced today that all physical copies of the $30 Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus will include a download code for Ratchet and Clank Future: Quest for Booty.

Quest for Booty was released in 2008 and was the first downloadable game in the Future saga.

Insomniac Games also announced today that Into the Nexus has gone gold, meaning it is now heading to manufacturing for mass production. The game will be released exclusively for PlayStation 3 on November 12.

Meanwhile, Sony also announced today that Into the Nexus' release in Europe has been delayed a week. The game will now hit PS3 in that region on November 20 (November 21 in Spain; November 22 in the United Kingdom and Ireland).

Into the Nexus will be "shorter" than other entries in the action game series, and this was intentional, Insomniac Games community lead James Stevenson said earlier this month.

Zelda's Eiji Aonuma on annualization, and why the series needs 'a bit more time'

Annualization. Activision is able to push out a new Call of Duty game every year. Ubisoft can make a new Assassin's Creed game every year. And lately, Nintendo has been able to get new Mario games out on an annual basis. But what about Zelda? We spoke to series director Eiji Aonuma about his take on annualization.

The Zelda series is actually no stranger to the one year turnaround. Majora's Mask was intended to come out just one year after Ocarina of Time. "This was an idea that came from Mr. Miyamoto," Aonuma explained. "The challenge he gave to me: to try and make a sequel to Ocarina of Time in just one year."

At the time, Nintendo thought that it would be possible to make a new game every year. "Ocarina of Time was the first 3D Zelda game. When you make a 3D game, you have all these 3D models. But in a 2D game, you're drawing all these 2D images. Even if you wanted to make another game right away, if the background is different, you actually end up having to re-draw everything. But in a 3D game, you can put those 3D models in different backgrounds and animate them," Aonuma told Shacknews. "So Mr. Miyamoto thought 'well, actually shouldn't this make it easier for us to make a sequel?'"

Lineage II expansion Valiance revealed

NCSoft today announced Valiance, the latest expansion for free-to-play massively multiplayer online game Lineage II. The expansion is planned for release later this year.

    "Players have been treated to a sense of peace since Shilen, the Goddess of Destruction, sent Lindvior to destroy Aden some time ago. While the citizens and heroes of Aden welcomed the respite, come the release of Valiance, they will find it a brief one, as old threats resurface and battles long thought won begin anew. Players deep into the game will find themselves faced with new challenges and experiences that will push their skills and dedication to the limit."

The Valiance expansion for Lineage II features the return of the Hellbound zone with updated areas and new hunting parties. A "major overhaul" of the game's skill system is also featured, as well as 25 new skills.

Need for Speed: Rivals PC Requirements Revealed

Black Box’s Need for Speed: Rivals finally has some confirmed PC requirements, both minimum and recommended. Whichever requirements you adhere to, you’ll need at least 4 GB of RAM along with 30 GB of free hard disk space.

The minimum requirements include Windows XP/Windows Vista (SP2)/Windows 7; an Intel 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo or AMD 2.6 GHz Athlon X2 CPU; 4 GB of RAM; 30 GB HDD space; an AMD Radeon 3870 512 MB or better, Nvidia GeForce 8800 GT 512 MB or better, Intel HD 4000 Integrated 512 MB or better; DirectX 10.1 compatibility; a keyboard and mouse (obviously); and a 512 Kbps or faster internet connection.

The recommended requirements include Windows XP/Windows Vista (SP2)/Windows 7 although Windows 8 64-bit comes recommended; an Intel Quad Core CPU or AMD Duo Core CPU; 8 GB of RAM; 30 GB of HDD space; AMD Radeon 7870 3 GB or better, Nvidia GeForce GT660 3 GB or better; DirectX 11 compatibility; 512 Kbps or faster internet connection; and a keyboard and mouse.
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PS4 demo kiosks rolling out today

Chances are many of you have yet to play PS4. That changes today.

Sony is rolling out the "Experience PlayStation" program today, which will place PS4 demo kiosks around the country. You'll be able to walk into select Sony Stores today to try PS4, with "thousands" more coming to other retail stores, like GameStop, Best Buy, Target, and Walmart.

Some of the games you'll be able to try on the PS4 kiosks include Knack, Octodad: Dadliest Catch, FIFA 14, and Contrast.

To find the nearest store with a PS4 kiosk, go here. And remember, more stores will be added later. You can also check out Xbox One early through Microsoft's One Tour.

Monday, May 6, 2013

Shadow of the Eternals crowdfunding campaign goes live

 A crowdfunding campaign for Shadow of the Eternals, a spiritual successor to Eternal Darkness, went live today. Developer Precursor games is asking for $1.5 million through its website to develop the pilot episode in the series, slated to launch during the second half of 2014 for Wii U and PC.

At press time, funding stands at $14,530 from 185 backers with 30 days remaining.

"Featuring an ensemble cast, Shadow of the Eternals will span over 2500 years of human history. Players will question their own perception of reality as they progress through this mind-altering psychological horror," Precursor Games said in a statement.

Worms: The Revolution Collection Trailer and Screenshots Released

You can just never get enough of the Worms. Team 17′s multiplayer title wherein the invertebrates battle it out via rocket launchers, swords, nukes and much more across many dangerous environments is still going strong even after 18 years. To celebrate this fact, Team 17 has announced Worms: The Revolution Collection for Xbox 360.

This collection packages Worms 2: Armageddon along with its five DLC packs and Worms Revolution and its three DLC packs. That’s indeed a ton of content for such a price – though given the amount of variations we’ve seen on the Worms formula to date, it’ll be interesting to see whether Xbox 360 players indeed take the bait.

Valve experiments: sweat-based Left 4 Dead, eye-controlled Portal

Valve has a history of experimental hires, like when it brought on an economist to examine in-game economies. The company has now taken in Mike Ambinder, an experimental psychologist who is tasked with researching biofeedback.

VentureBeat reports that Ambinder talked at a session during the NeuroGaming Conference and Expo last week. He said that the company has conducted experiments that measure factors like players sweat, player calmness, and eye tracking. The sweat levels fed data into Left 4 Dead to modify the game experience, while the player's calmness might impact how much time they have to complete an objective. It also created a version of Portal 2 that you could control with your eyes, since they can move faster than your hands.

The Sims 4 launching in 2014

 Electronic Arts today announced The Sims 4, coming to PC and Mac in 2014. Series creator and EA subsidiary Maxis is developing the game.

No further details about The Sims 4 were divulged, though EA said additional information about the game will be revealed later today. The simulation game series has sold over 150 million units life-to-date.

The Sims 4 is a follow-up to 2009's The Sims 3. That game originally launched for PC and Mac before later coming to Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, and DS. It is not clear if The Sims 4 will remain exclusive to PC and Mac.

Devs create Oculus Rift guillotine simulator

 A group of developers have created a guillotine simulator using the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset. As demonstrated in the video below (via Kotaku), players bend over as if they were to be executed by decapitation as they watch a blade fall and their virtual head roll around on the ground.

The simulator was made in two days during the recent Exile Game Jam by Erkki Trummal, André Berlemont, and Morten Brunbjerg. It is not clear if the developers are shopping the demo around of if it was made simply as an exploration of the Oculus Rift technology.

Splinter Cell: Blacklist Spies Vs Mercs Gameplay Revealed

A new trailer for the upcoming Splinter Cell: Blacklist, releasing this August for Xbox 360, Wii U, PS3 and PC, featured the return of one of the more compelling modes of play in the entire Splinter Cell franchise – Spies vs Mercs.

In this game mode, one group of players takes controls of the stealthy Spies while another group controls the heavily armed Mercs. While the former must assault an objective, the latter must defend it.

The trailer showcases a big shift in how the gampelay is handled – while Spies still navigate based on the usual Splinter Cell third person mechanics, playing as Mercs will be like a first person shooter.

Injustice: Gods Among Us 'Batgirl' DLC confirmed by NetherRealm

Batgirl was leaked as the second downloadable content for Injustice: Gods Among Us last week, and NetherRealm has copped to the addition. Admitting "the bat's out of the bag," it provided a picture of the Injustice iteration of the character, complete with some pretty vicious looking weaponry.

The word came from an official tweet (via Joystiq). The shock of red hair points to this being the (most famous) Barbara Gordon iteration of the character.

Shortly after Lobo was announced as the first DLC, a rumor (via Kotaku) started circulating that the remaining three would be Batgirl, General Zod, and Scorpion from Mortal Kombat. Zod makes sense, as it ties in nicely with the upcoming Man of Steel, and Scorpion would continue the Mortal Kombat trend of borrowing from another franchise for the fourth piece of DLC. So far 1/3 of the rumor has panned out, so we'll have to wait to see about the other two.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Layoffs at Harmonix

 Rock Band and Dance Central creator Harmonix has cut a "small number" of jobs, the Cambridge, Mass. studio has confirmed with Polygon.

"We can confirm that a small number of Harmonix employees were let go today," a Harmonix spokesperson said. "This decision was made due to shifting staffing priorities for Harmonix's multiple future projects."

No greater detail regarding why the cuts were necessary was provided. Polygon has heard from sources that the layoffs, described as part of normal business procedure, totaled around 10 people.

Gran Turismo 6 Appears on Another Online Retailer

Of course, that’s only because the VP of Sony Worldwide Studios accidentally revealed the game will be coming for PS3 and not the next generation PS4 in an interview recently. Again, this may be hearsay and the game could very well appear on the PS4. In fact, CVG earlier stated that an announcement on the game’s release is imminent in the coming weeks.

For now, we’ll just keep speculating. The last title in the franchise Gran Turismo 5 was release in November 2010 to above average reviews. It’s best known as the game that featured World Rally Championship, NASCAR and Super GT licenses for the first time in the series.

Sony would 'hate to see all PS4 games being FPS or very photorealistic'

The first officially revealed PS4 exclusive was Knack, a cartoony adventure from Sony's Japan Studio. While Sony could have opted to debut their new console with a bombastic graphics showcase (like they later did with Killzone and DriveClub), their decision to start with Knack was very intentional.

"We were like yeah we hate to see all the PS4 games being FPS or action-adventure or very photorealistic, you know big-budget blockbuster games," Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida said. "You know people like these games but these are not the only kinds of games that people can have fun with."

No new Darksiders in 2013

 
The Darksiders series will remain dormant for the duration of 2013, new owner Nordic Games has confirmed. Speaking with Game Informer, CEO Lars Wingefors said the company plans to speak with partners to discuss the future of the Darksiders brand in the coming week.

"Officially, we haven't talked to any partners. My colleagues in Austria are handling the business development and are handling all those contacts. We'll be sitting down, I think, in the next week to discuss all those options," Wingefors said. "It takes a very long time to make games. You won't see a new Darksiders this year. I don't believe in bringing out a s***** sequel."

People Can Fly thought of a few ideas for Bulletstorm 2

Bulletstorm 2 may never be greenlighted, the studio that developed the first game has revealed that they had a few ideas for the game.

“The thing is, we did want to make Bulletstorm 2, and actually there was a concept and, I think, it would be an amazing game,” he said adding that it would have fixed issues which were present in the first outing,” People Can Fly founder Adrian Chmielarz told Eurogamer.

“I think it was bad. The way I blamed myself for it was I basically enjoyed it too much. Initially I asked can we do it so it sells the game as an action-adventure, a pulp sci-fi rollercoaster, and not do the Bad Company 1-style of campaign of silliness and jokes? And then they showed me some marketing materials and I was laughing and like, ‘OK that’s funny, let’s do this,’ and that was a mistake.”

Social games popularity shrinking

Social games participation dropped sharply recently, according to market analysts. One research firm claims that 10 million fewer people played social games in March than the months prior, a 5% drop. That resulted in the total estimated number of active social network gamers dipping below 200 million for the first time in more than a year.

A study from SuperData Research (via Forbes) showed the drop. SuperData CEO Joost van Dreunen attributes the contracting market to oversaturation.

"The social games industry received a lot of momentum and funding in early 2011 and early 2012, and that essentially led to a very crowded market," he said. "And like all industries, the games industry operates between supply and demand economics. If you have a massive amount of supply, the prices drop, and invested money creativity dries up. People are switching slowly but surely to mobile platforms. This is something the industry is trying to figure out: where their users are going to go next."

Nintendo to post second straight full-year loss

 According to data compiled by Bloomberg, Nintendo will announce a loss of ¥18.7 billion yen ($189 million) tomorrow as part of its earnings report for the 12 months ended March 31. The data is based on the average of 15 estimates put together by the publication.

If Nintendo does post negative numbers tomorrow, it will be the second straight full-year loss for the company, following last year's first-ever annual loss.

Citing lower-than-expected Wii U sales, Nintendo in January cut full-year sales predictions for the platform 27 percent to 4 million. Nintendo has admitted communicating the novelty of the system to consumers has been a "challenge" relative to the original Wii.

Bethesda’s “Endless Summer” Revealed by Australian Classification Board Listing

The Australian Classification Board has a listing for a Bethesda Softworks’ game called Endless Summer. Which we’d find more or less normal if the company hadn’t already announced The Evil Within, headed by Shinji Mikami, just recently.

The description says it has “strong horror themes and violence”, with both having a “high impact”. The game is multi-platform and has been registered on April 22nd 2013 – but by Zenimax Europe. Perhaps this is an alternate name for The Evil Within in Europe?
So far the game is slated to release in 2014, with a more proper release date to be announced. There being no European release date, it somewhat makes sense that Endless Summer could be its name in Europe – especially since it’s releasing in Japan as Psychobreak.

Splinter Cell's complexity held it back, says Ubisoft Toronto lead

Splinter Cell: Blacklist marks another revival, of sorts, after Ubisoft took a different direction in Conviction. Each new entry seems like an attempt to modernize and update the game, appealing to new fans and old. Its old-school sensibilities have proven problematic, according to Ubisoft Toronto lead Jade Raymond.

"One of the things that held it back is despite all of the changes that have happened over the years, it's still one of the more complex and difficult games to play," Raymond told Eurogamer. "Even though we do have core fans who are like, 'Oh, I want to have more of this experience,' when you play any other game that has stealth elements, they're all a lot more forgiving than Splinter Cell. I guess Splinter Cell stayed with the most pure approach to that stealth experience."

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Injustice: Gods Among Us review: power and polish

Injustice: Gods Among Us presented NetherRealm Studios with a unique challenge--step away from the franchise that made you famous and apply that same magic towards the DC Comics pantheon. The makers of Mortal Kombat were more than up to the task, adopting a whole new fighting system, while simultaneously refining several elements first introduced in 2011's MK reboot. The result is a fighter that will resonate with devoted comic book aficionados, as well as diehard fighting game fans.

It would have been easy for NetherRealm to rely on the classic Mortal Kombat formula, however Injustice is structured more to resemble a more traditional fighting game, doing away with MK staples like the run and block buttons. Quick button inputs are still required for combos, but the truly quick player can juggle opponents and continue working them over even after they've been slammed to the ground.

ARMA 3 Has “Several Future-Proof Technologies” Like DirectX 11 and PhysX

ARMA 3, Bohemia Interactive’s upcoming military shooter, looks pretty good – if you haven’t noticed the plentiful screenshots by now – and part of this is due to the massive scale of the game. Speaking to Project Lead Joris-Jan van‘t Land, we inquired about the engine behind ARMA 3 and how it differs from the second game.

van’t Land stated that, “Our proprietary Real Virtuality 4.0 engine powering Arma 3 is an evolution of the engine. There are several future-proof technologies that make it a big step forward. The key ones are definitely DX11 and PhysX.

Ragnarok Odyssey Ace Delayed, New Release Date to be Decided

GungHo Online Entertainment had recently announced Ragnarok Odyssey Ace, a so-called enhanced port of Ragnarok Odyssey with new quests, a random dungeon and new enemies. While originally set for a July 11th release on PS3 and PS Vita, it seems the game has since been delayed.

Of course, there was only an official release date for the PS Vita version. The PS3 port’s release was still up in the air. As for the reasons behind the delay, GungHo has cited “unspecified circumstances” as the reason for the delay.

Batman: Arkham Origins devs detail relationships, setting

Batman: Arkham Origins is rolling back to an earlier time in Batman's history, making for a tricky minefield of storytelling. We already know where these characters will end up, which runs the risk of making the plot lack stakes. But WB Montreal has explained more about how it will make this piece of the story stand out, notably by playing with its earlier iterations of characters.

"He's used to winning at the start of our story," creative director Eric Holmes told Game Informer. "He's used to being the strongest guy in the room, the fastest guy in the room. That changes tonight, so on some level that's going to crush him, his ideas of himself but it's also a great opportunity to grow."

Illinois library rejects request to stop stocking M-rated games

 Residents of Elmhurst, Illinois will not be barred from borrowing M-rated games at their local library. The Chicago Tribune reports that Elmhurst Public Library officials this week shot down requests from a group of residents seeking to change the library's policy, citing no connection between violent games and violent behavior.

"There's no evidence I can see between these games and violent behavior," library director Mary Beth Campe told the paper.

She and other board members said they believe the inclusion of M-rated games in the library's catalog is a matter of freedom of expression, protected under the First Amendment.

Indie Gala offers indie games... and Mass Effect 2

Indie Gala has launched a campaign to help the Vancouver game development community, and it has enlisted help from some Canadian friends. The name-your-own price game bundle is offering seven games, including Mass Effect 2 from Alberta-based BioWare and Shank 2 from Vancouver's own Klei Enterainment.

Paying the bare minimum of a penny on the Indie Gala will get you Rebuild. If you're slightly less of a cheapskate, you can pay $1 or more to get Kill Fun Yeah!, Shadowgrounds, and Zombie Driver HD. Finally, if you pay more than the average (approximately $6, as of the time of writing), you'll also net Gimbal, Shank 2, Mass Effect 2, and DLC for Zombie Driver. Two more mystery games will be unveiled next week: one for the lower tier, and one for the higher tier. Both will be unlocked if you've already paid. Most of the games activate on Steam or Desura, while ME2 activates on Origin.
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