Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Nvidia GameWorks Features Revealed for Killing Floor 2

Today, Nvidia went ahead and revealed some brand new GameWorks features for the upcoming Tripwire game, the hyperviolent (as the name implies) Killing Floor 2, due out on PC some time next year, followed by a release on the PlayStation 4.
Nvidia confirmed that features such as NVIDIA’s HBAO+, NVIDIA’s Motion Blur D3D Advanced Sample and PhysX Flex will be supported in Tripwire’s zombie shooter. In addition to all of this, Killing Floor 2 will feature advanced graphical features such as  sub-surface scattering based on Jorge Jiminez’s screen space sub-surface scattering , bloom effects, depth of field and screen space reflections.
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Former Star Wars 1313 Developers Working On Brand New Action Game for Xbox One, PS4, PC

Star Wars 1313 remains a tragedy- it looked like a highly promising and ambitious action adventure/third person shooter game set in the Star Wars universe, and might have been a great big success for LucasArts, had they not been gutted, their games in development all canceled. It was also one of our earliest looks at just what we could expect from the new generation of consoles, back before the new generation of consoles was even a thing.

But all that talent is not lost- after doing some digging, we found out that the developers of Star Wars 1313 (not all of them, obviously) are a part of 2K Games’ newest development studio, Hangar 13, which was announced just a while back.

Bravely Default, Chrono Trigger Music Comes to Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy Curtain Call

Even as the Final Fantasy series has seen its ups and downs over the last few years (… and decades), one thing has remained consistent- the incredible and consistent quality of all of its music. The 3DS exclusive Theatrhythm series celebrates this proud musical heritage by giving players a Final Fantasy rhythm game with RPG trappings.
Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy Curtain Call, released earlier this year on 3DS, is the ultimate expression of that, standing as a celebration of the series’ exemplary musical history. Now, its about to get a bit more diverse, as new DLC coming to the game will see the addition of music from Final Fantasy Type 0, and Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn to the game.
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Sifteo’s intelligent cubes go open-source after disappointing commercial run

Sifteo, a system of intelligent gaming cubes launched with significant fanfare in 2011, has gone open-source.

Founded in 2009 by MIT Media Lab graduates David Merrill and Jeevan Kalanithi, Sifteo set out to promote a vision of computers being ubiquitous and on every possible surface. Now, the software behind the cubes is available to anyone.

Designed to be a bit like dominos with video displays, the cubes were meant to form unique interactions when moved, tilted, rotated, or placed together.

Originally sold in sets of three for $150, the cubes were interesting and even exciting in a way, but Sifteo never took off as a commercial product. The company sold itself in July to 3D Robotics, the drone company that former Wired magazine editor-in-chief Chris Anderson founded.

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

The Legend of Korra Co-Creator Explains the Finale and Korrasami

Over the past few days, since The Legend of Korra finale aired, everyone has been talking about that final scene, as Korra and Asami walked into the spirit world together, hand in hand, and then looked lovingly at one another. For many, this was the show firmly ending the series with the two together – as in romantically, making official the idea of “Korrasami” (a much-beloved fan pairing). But there was plenty of debate. The two never kissed, never said “I love you”, and some fans said there was no definitive answer on how the end was meant to be interpreted.

Well, one of the show's creators has now gone on record about what occurred.

Nintendo hires new lobbying firm to convince Washington to take more action against piracy

Nintendo is about to put its money to work in the United States capital.

The publisher has officially hired Washington lobbying firm Choe Groves Consulting, according to Politico. Nintendo wants the federal government to get tougher on intellectual property laws, international trade, and piracy, and Choe Groves will try to convince the people in Washington, D.C. to take up that cause. These are issues that plague all kinds of entertainment companies, and Nintendo has an obvious interest in seeing legislators add more protection for content creators.

Halo: Master Chief Collection Patch Adds Halo 4 Spartan Ops Mode

Microsoft continues its work to improve Xbox One game Halo: The Master Chief Collection, on Monday releasing a new patch, which, among other things, finally adds Halo 4's Spartan Ops mode.

Spartan Ops is a multi-mission, episodic co-op mode for Halo 4. Microsoft announced in October that the mode wasn't going to be available at launch in November, saying it would be released in December so that developer 343 Industries could make "technical enhancements."

Battlefield Hardline trailer shows new tools and non-lethal takedowns

Battlefield Hardline is looking to amp up the speed and double down on the cheesy cop cliches, if today's new trailer is any indication. EA and Visceral's new trailer shows more of what to expect from the Battlefield, both in terms of tools and in terms of the campaign narrative.

The new trailer furthers the atmosphere of the 1980s/90s crime drama, right down to the over-the-top dialogue. It also shows some new tools of the trade, including the zipline, SWAT tools, and grappling hooks. It also offers a glimpse at non-lethal takedowns, which will be used to detain and interrogate suspects.

Grand Theft Auto 5: Rockstar May Be Working On Story Driven DLC

In 2013 while Rockstar were talking about Grand Theft Auto V, they brought up the matter of Heists and DLC, amongst other things. They were talking about new downloadable content that would include the Heist DLC and new story missions. But now that the Heists DLC is on its way, so where are we on the story DLC?

At the time, Rockstar said ““For those ready to jump back into the story of Grand Theft Auto V,”…“we have big plans for substantial additions in 2014 continuing Michael, Franklin and Trevor’s action, mayhem and unexpected adventures in Southern San Andreas.”
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Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Item Customization Detailed

Are you ready to bring your game to the next level, purely from an aesthetic point of view? Then by all means read on. The official Call of Duty Advanced Warfare customisation Items trailer has been revealed to the masses and it brings with it all the flash cuts you would expect.

The new customisation items on offer are, four premium personalisation packs that include a new weapon theme, three new reticles, a player card + emblem and a matching exoskeleton & helmet. Four premium personalisation packs that include a weapon theme, three reticles, a player card & emblem item.
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EA Sports UFC Players Get Bruce Lee Free

Legendary fighting celebrity Bruce Lee, considered to be the father of mixed martial arts though he never actually fought competitively, is now a free character for all EA Sports UFC players.

All five version of Lee (see below) are now free to download through January 5, 2015 on Xbox Live and PlayStation Network in North America, while all other regions get him tomorrow.