Wednesday, April 10, 2013

You Can’t Spoil BioShock Infinite With Three Words

There are no spoilers here. Not for BioShock Infinite, anyway. I will shortly be spoiling Fight Club, The Sixth Sense and Soylent Green, so if you’ve only recently been introduced to the wonders of electricity I’d suggest you hustle down to your nearest motion picture emporium and go fossicking for those fine films. But no. No BioShock Infinite spoilers.

Not in this article, anyway. Those of you yet to begin, or complete, BioShock Infinite should remain clear of the comments. Do not read them. I can't stress that enough.

PlayStation Vita update: Sony adds folders and more

The PlayStation Vita’s homescreen can get quite messy after you install a few games. Sony is finally addressing this in the latest system update.

Sony revealed that it will release v2.10 of the PlayStation Vita operating system today in the U.S and tomorrow in Europe. The patch adds folders, browser enhancements, and usability features.
The biggest addition is a new folder system. You can now organize up to 10 Vita apps and games in the fully configurable folders.

The Vita’s web browser is now capable of streaming web videos. While some file types still won’t work, sites like YouTube are fully operational through the browser.
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Guacamelee review: more behind the mask

The ability to boil down a game's premise to an elevator pitch can easily do it a disservice. Guacamelee has been called Metroid-vania with luchadors, a description Drinkbox hasn't exactly shied away from. But that description, and its pun-y title, make the game seem more like a gag, and gags don't have longevity by definition. They're an object of fleeting fun, and the game is much more inventive and lasting than this glib explanation would suggest.

Guacamelee takes place in a vibrant, stylized version of Mexico, rife with references to pop culture and video games. This is a world in which a luchador named Juan can have superpowers and goat changelings chew him out for destroying a beloved statue, before grudgingly giving away a new power anyway. Plenty of games attempt magical realism, but the setting of Guacamelee is such a radical departure from the norm that it truly feels like anything can happen. The game is also genuinely funny. Its dialogue and nods to other games often surprised me by eliciting actual laughter, a rare feat for games in general.

Zynga sued over stock sales

 A former Zynga product manager has sued the Farmville maker. As reported by Bloomberg, Wendy Lee claims Zynga barred non-executives from selling their shares following the initial public offering in 2011, while management was able to cash out.

According to the lawsuit, Zynga executives "nearly doubled the proceeds from their [stock] sales" by being allowed to sell early. When Lee and other non-executives were allowed to sell, Zynga's share value had fallen 49.3 percent, she said.

DOTA 2 Now The Most Played “Core” PC Game in West

The DFC Intelligence PC Game Meter service has reported that Valve’s DOTA 2 has surpassed League of Legends as the most played “core” PC game in North America and Europe. This information has been compiled from multiple sources, including stats from Xfire which has 23 million users. It doesn’t include browser-based or social games, however.

DFC analyst Jeremy Miller stated that, “Usage of League of Legends has been steady the past year and surprisingly the huge success of DOTA 2 did not seem to cut into its popularity as much as would be expected.”

Batman: Arkham Origins revealed, coming October 25

Time Warner had said a new Batman Arkham game was coming this year, and now we know what it is. Batman: Arkham Origins has been revealed and, as suspected, is not being developed by series creator Rocksteady. Instead, it's being developed by Warner Bros Games Montreal, who worked on the Wii U port of Arkham City. It will be released worldwide on October 25 for PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Wii U.

The game, revealed in the May issue of Game Informer, is a prequel to the Arkham games that will focus on a young Batman meeting many supervillains for the first time, including the assassin Deathstroke. The game will use Rocksteady's version of the modified Unreal engine "to capture the look and feel of the Arkhamverse."

Muramasa: Rebirth Releasing on June 25th in North America

Vanillaware’s Muramasa: Rebirth, released for the PlayStation Vita in Japan recently, will be heading to North America on June 25th. It will be published by Aksys Games and is a remake of the classic Wii title but with new scenarios and four new playable characters.

A limited edition version of the game has also been revealed that will include a PS Vita face cover, PS Vita skin, PS Vita pouch and a high resolution framed lithograph by creator and lead designer George Kamitani. Additionally, those who pre-order from GameStop or Amazon will receive an exclusive Abridged Soundtrack for the game.

PSN 'Spring Fever' promotion offers indie discounts

Sony is kicking off its annual "Spring Fever" promotion on PlayStation Network today, and this year it has decided to shine the spotlight on indie games. For the next four weeks, a new indie game will drop each week. All of them will feature cross-buy functionality, and discounts for Plus members.

It starts this week with Guacamelee, then continues next week with Dragon Fantasy Book 1, then Thomas Was Alone, and finally Zombie Tycoon 2. The first three will launch at a 20% discount for Plus members ($11.99, $7.99, and $7.99, respectively), while Zombie Tycoon will be free.

Game Developer Magazine closing

 The Game Developer Magazine will soon be no more. After 19 years, the magazine will publish its final issue in July, parent company UBM Tech announced today. In addition, the magazine will cease distribution of digital issues, though some features will live on at a special portal on sister website Gamasutra.

Existing paid subscribers (digital or physical) will be contacted in the next few days and provided with options for refunds or a fulfillment of their subscription with an alternative product.

Halo 4 “Has Potential” for Microtransactions in Future – 343 Industries

In an interview with DigitalSpy, executive producer Dan Ayoub talked about the kind of cosmetic items that Gears of War is offering for a fee and how Halo 4 could incorporate the same in the future.

He states that, “I think Halo certainly has the potiental for those kinds of things. We don’t have too much to talk about in terms of our plans down that line, but it’s certainly something…we’ve seen the fans of Gears are enjoying, and if it’s something we think our community is going to enjoy, it’s something we’ll seriously talk about.”

Metallica songs being pulled from Rock Band DLC library

Harmonix will no longer be releasing DLC songs for its Rock Band series, and a few songs will soon be disappearing from the existing library because of expiring licensing deals.

In a post on the game's official Facebook page, Harmonix said three songs, released on Nov. 20, 2007 in Metallica Pack 01, have already been pulled: "Ride The Lightning," "And Justice For All," and "Blackened." If you already have those tracks, you aren't affected, but until the music team can acquire a new license, the songs will be unavailable until further notice. If other song licenses cannot be extended before they expire, those songs could be pulled as well, Harmonix said, adding that term limits on music licenses is a common practice.
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