Alan Wake's essential post-credits DLC is now free on Xbox One and 360
If you played all the way through Remedy's Alan Wake , you know it has one of the biggest twist endings in video games. But if you stopped once you reached the credits, you've missed out on some pretty big revelations that occur in the game's duo of DLC epilogues, dubbed "The Signal" and "The Writer." Well, now's the perfect time to revisit the story-within-a-story thriller, since both The Signal and
Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified coming to PS Vita
During the PlayStation press conference, Jack Tretton (President of Sony Computer Entertainment America) announced that the PS Vita will be getting another first-person shooter. There haven't been too many FPSs on the system as of yet, but gamers will get to make use of the Vita's dual analog sticks when Call of Duty Black Ops: Declassified releases this holiday season. No other details have been released at this time, but be sure to check back for when we get new details on the next portable Call of Duty. Topics E3 Shooter Call of Duty Black Ops: Declassified PS Vita We recommend By Zergnet Load Comments
Alan Wake is now backwards compatible on Xbox One
Xbox One received another backwards compatibility update today, making Alan Wake , Pac-Man, and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night playable on Microsoft's latest console. With the exception of Pac-Man, it's a decidedly spooky selection of games (though I guess you could have a phobia of brightly-colored ghosts, in which case Bandai Namco's arcade classic would be just horrifying for you). If you're
Sweetheart Deals for Valentine’s Day Weekend
Valentine’s Day has come and gone.
Valentine’s Day has come and gone. We all know that now we get to enjoy the most important part of the holiday: discounted chocolate! And you know what goes great with discounted chocolate? Discounted games!
HeroCraft Ltd.is excited to announce that this weekend only, they’re offering select hits at amazing rock-bottom values! With two titles available through Google Play and two more available via the Apple App Store, there’s something for every mobile gamer.
– The highly regarded puzzle game has you protecting oblivious alien creatures from the dangers that surround them. Regularly $1.99, now 50% off from Google Play!
– Visit TinyPlanet, a beautiful but devastated steampunk world, and use all your wits to restore it to its former glory. Regularly $2.99, now 70% off from Google Play!
Solve puzzles, unveil mysteries, and forge paths for yourself through 77 levels of exciting puzzling fun. Regularly $2.99, now 70% off from the App Store!
– The expansion pack to the popular kingdom-building sim. Send your wizards, priests, rogues and rangers on exciting new quests in Ardania! Regularly $2.99, now 70% off from the App Store!
Sadly, these decadent deals are just like the chocolate; they’ll melt away quickly! The sale ends on Sunday, February 16th, so hurry and snap them up today!
Xbox One will require game installation to hard drive
According to an exclusive look at the Xbox One by Wired , you'll have to install games to the console's hard drive to play them. Following the installation process, you'll be able to boot games up without the disc at all, and they'll be tied to your Xbox Live account. Wired states, "Microsoft did say that if a disc was used with a second account, that owner would be given the option to pay a fee and
Remedy files trademark for 'Alan Wake's Return'
Alan Wake 's future has been shrouded in mystery and darkness for years, and not the kind that goes away when you point a flashlight at it. But with Quantum Break just weeks away from its release date, it looks like Remedy Entertainment is starting to shine some light on Alan Wake's Return. No, really, "Alan Wake's Return" is the name, according to a European trademark application apparently filed
Nonprofit sees success using motion controls for educational games
"In exploring the use of Leap Motion Controller and the SMALLab motion capture environment, GameDesk has opened up rich possibilities for the use of such devices to help students understand complex Earth and Science topics."
There's a bit of notable new research out today detailing how the L.A.-based nonprofit GameDesk Studios has been experimenting with using games -- and in particular, motion-based games -- to help students better understand complex subjects like math and science.
- An excerpt of the nonprofit GameDesk's whitepaperon "Learning Geoscience Concepts Through Play & Kinesthetic Tracking"
While games have a long history of being used as educational aids (Broderbund and The Learning Company sold millions of themin the '80s and '90s) GameDesk's latest research is notable because it revolves around how motion-controlled games can be used to enhance kinesthetic learning -- the practice of teaching students through physical activities, rather than lectures or bookwork.
Developers with an interest in educational game design may appreciate GameDesk's recent whitepaperon the topic, which lays out how it researched and designed games (in concert with science experts like Bill Nye) using the Leap Motion gesture controller and a floor-based motion capture system to augment lesson plans on topics like continental drift and plate tectonics.
Pre- and post-game testing suggests playing these games did help students better understand the topics at hand, though GameDesk took pains to quantify this testing as "a quasi-experimental study" and did not compare its methods to other game-based learning programs.
By the way, if you're interested in developing educational games don't forget that you can totally get grant money for that from the U.S. government.
Regular internet connection required for Xbox One
UPDATE: Microsoft's having a little bit of a messaging problem. The company told Polygon that Phil Harrison's comments on connection requirements were just a "potential scenario," and that it has not officially confirmed any related information yet. The original story follows below. Xbox One needs a regular internet connection to function. That's not the same as a continuous connection as feared, according
BattleBlock Theater’ Review
‘BattleBlock Theater’ Review
BattleBlock Theater has finally arrived after 5 years of development.
has finally arrived after 5 years of development. Created by The Behemoth , the same studio that brought us the incredibly successful Castle Crashers , BattleBlock Theater is a multiplayer platformer that is brimming with content. The sheer amount of things to do make this game a great value, even if it’s far from the best indie platformer on the Xbox.
One of the things that The Behemoth does exceptionally well is humor and Battleblock Theater is arguably their funniest title to date. The game opens with a hilarious video describing a bunch of friends enjoying an adventure on the sea with their best bud, Hatty Hattington. Of course everything doesn’t go according to plan and the groups of friends are shipwrecked on a mysterious and rundown island. Like most islands, the place is inhabited by technologically advanced and sadistic cats. The cats put an ominous hat on Hatty’s head, which possesses him and makes him the master of ceremonies. You see, these cats like to force their prisoners into deadly theater performances where the player has to fight for their own survival.
If that premise isn’t cracked and ridiculous enough, the entire game is narrated by a hilarious and manic announcer. This narrator adds a lot to not only the story, but the actual gameplay as well since his commentary is witty and corresponds exactly to what’s happening onscreen. He’ll mock you when you die, yell “Goodness Gracious” when you burst into flames, and isn’t above the occasional fart joke. The humor extends beyond just the audio and story though. There are plenty of sight gags, ridiculous animations, and oddly dressed cats. It’s a silly game which is even more fun when played with friends.
The audio and story aren’t the only fantastic thing about BattleBlock Theater . Dan Paladin’s art and animation is as bright and charming as it was back in the flash version of Alien Hominid . From the nefarious cat security guards to the ravenous raccoon with antlers monsters, BattleBlock Theater is expertly animated and stamped with The Behemoth’s signature look. The island theater that serves as the game’s stage select is filled with background details that add a lot to the overall package. Battleblock Theater is like playing a sick and demented Saturday morning cartoon, —just looking at it in motion will often bring a smile to your face.
The core game mechanics are actually the weakest part of BattleBlock Theater . It’s a decent enough, if generic, platformer, but the fighting mechanics are clunky. I found it far less frustrating to avoid fighting enemy cats then attempting a beat down. Running past them leads to the cats killing themselves due to a lack of enemy artificial intelligence. Items and weapons range from useless joke to overpowered and seem like a peripheral add-on.
What the core gameplay lacks, BattleBlock Theater makes up for in quantity and variety. Every level of BattleBlock Theater is filled with a variety of blocks, traps, enemies, items and power-ups. Most of the campaign levels task you with collecting at gems and making your way to the exit, but there are time challenges at the end of each chapter. The game does a good job of mixing time and skill based jumps with puzzle solving segments. There’s never much repetition and things change dramatically when you play the campaign cooperatively.
Battleblock Theater is more than just a single player and cooperative campaign. There are a slew of multiplayer game types in the Arena mode that range from Color the World (touch blocks to turn them your team’s color) to Basketball to Racing. Everyone is likely to have their own multiplayer favorites and some are more balanced than others, but the fact that there are so many, and such a good variety, means that players will be hard pressed to find nothing they enjoy. Add to this a level editor that lets you create your own levels and hundreds of collectibles and you have a game that you can spend years playing.
You can get out of BattleBlock Theater what you put into it. The Behemoth had a lot to live up to after Castle Crashers and five years of development, but you can tell that they crafted the game with a lot of love. I’m not quite sure that BattleBlock Theater was worth the wait, but that certainly doesn’t make it a bad game. If you hate platformers, you probably should avoid this game, but otherwise there’s a whole lot of fun to be had…plus there isn’t a game around with more cats.
[review pros=”Fantastic story, manic narrator, and humor. Heaps and heaps of content. Great level variety.” cons=”Core Gameplay mechanics are weak. Poor enemy AI. ” score=86]
Luigis Mansion: Dark Moon We scare the crap out of everyones favorite little brother
Last year fans of the brother trapped in Mario’s shadow got a surprise gift, as Luigi’s Mansion 2 premiered on the 3DS, and we played a brief demo in 2011. Back again for E3 2012 and newly renamed as Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, the handheld sequel is much farther along. Today we creeped over to the Nintendo booth, played through three different haunted mansions and lived to tell the tale. The game
Alan Wake, five years on: How Remedy's accidental hero re-wrote the AAA rules
Released five years ago this week, a remarkable weight has always pressed down upon every aspect of Alan Wake, both in-game and upon the production itself. Firstly, the weight of expectation: between its May 2005 announcement and May 2010 shipping, a new console generation had landed and firmly bedded in, with the five-year window seeing huge single-player experiences like BioShock, Assassin’s Creed
...
Jump to Section: Best Price Comments Pros XP and challenge-based rewards are a fun way to progress Escalation mode is still hugely enjoyable Smashing Decepticons as Grimlock is fun Cons Flat pacing Frustratingly uneven difficulty Very little gameplay variation It was really only a matter of time before Activision mashed its dueling Transformers universes together. War for Cybertron and its sequel,
Wii U power debate: Iwata swears it will keep up with next-gen. Microsoft says 'it's a 360'
Phil Spencer, Corporate President of Microsoft Studios, has said in an interview with GamesIndustry that Nintendo is "building a platform that is effectively a 360 when you think of graphical capability", referring to the Wii U. But Nintendo's President, Satoru Iwata, while not entirely disagreeing with the core sentiment, has told investors that Wii U will not be left behind in the next generation
Star Citizen turns to Kickstarter after crowdfunding site troubles
Wing Commander creator Chris Roberts and his studio have launched a Kickstarter campaign for Star Citizen after facing difficulties with running a crowdfunding campaign outside of the platform.
The servers that Roberts' Cloud Imperium set up for its custom crowdfunding sitecollapsed due to traffic, and made it impossible for would-be pledgers to donate money to the campaign for several days. So the studio has decided to turn to a "stable and scalable crowd funding platform" in Kickstarter.
But just last week, Roberts told Gamasutrathat he preferred to avoid the platform: "The problem I have with Kickstarter is that it's better than the publisher setup, but it's still another party. Essentially you bifurcate your audience." He argued that having a single site that fans visit, instead of both a Kickstarter page and the official hub, simplifies developers' relationships with players.
"I'd rather have one site that I can theme, like the idea of [Cloud Imperium subsidiary] Roberts Space Industries," he added. Roberts then admitted, "The downside is that they've had a lot of time to work through the kinks. Our site's gone down quite a few times because there are too many people visiting it."
Kickstarter is seen as the standard for crowdfunding among game developers, but more and more studios are experimenting with running campaigns outside of the platform -- Introversion has already managed to raise over $270,000 through its site, while Infinite Game Publishing attracted $5 million in preordersearlier this year.
Cloud Imperium will continue to raise money for Star Citizen 's development through its standalone site as well, and those who previously pledged donations should not be affected. Even though Roberts was vocal about his Kickstarter criticisms, he notes that the crowdfunding platform's team was "quick to offer help and have been great as we put together a solution."
Despite these problems, the campaign has already managed to raise around half of its minimum funding goal of $2 million since announcing the space simlast week. He is also seeking funding for the PC game from private investors.
Watch the Alan Wake 2 prototype which Remedy says might not be totally dead
It’s never fair when someone shows you something you could have had but that’s exactly what original Alan Wake and Quantum Break devs Remedy has done. A prototype for Alan Wake 2 from back in 2010 has been released and in an interview with Polygon , creative director Sam Lake has talked about the original plans for the sequel and the potential future of the noir franchise. Built on the Alan Wake engine
New Year’s Wish List: Bonnie Burgette
I often don’t pay attention to game releases until I see other people talking about them on social media (and, of course, here on IGM).
I often don’t pay attention to game releases until I see other people talking about them on social media (and, of course, here on IGM). It’s a habit from when I was younger, and wasn’t much into gaming as a whole. These days, with over 500 games in my Steam library, I’m clearly over that phase, but the “wait and see” attitude is still present. However, there are a few games I can’t ignore, and that I can’t wait to see released, either because I’ve already played demos, or because they just look so cool I want to try them.
Fran Bow is a little girl who had the misfortune of finding her parents dead, and is sent to an asylum after trying to run away with her cat. This is how the game opens, and it doesn’t get less morbid from there. The paper-doll-style animation belies a dark side that is fairly disturbing, but only if you pay close attention…but that’s necessary to advance, so we’ll just say this game is probably for those over 16. Killmonday released a demo last year, and the puzzling nature of this point-and-click adventure gained many loyal fans, and it even surpassed its goal on the fundraising site, IndieGoGo. The game has been a long time coming, and as soon as it’s finished, I will be among the first to buy it. (It’s also looking for votes on Greenlight, if you’d like to help.)
Braid was a huge hit for a lot of gamers. Once I got the hang of the mechanics, I quite enjoyed it, myself. Now, Jonathan Blow is following up his previous success with The Witness , which has been described as “ Myst with iPads.” Essentially, you explore an island, solving puzzles (I love puzzles, in case you haven’t already guessed) that involve making specific patterns on strange grids in order to progress, whether by changing your path, or opening doors. The art style, as in Braid , is very much like a watercolor painting, and is almost dream-like. The first-person perspective looks like it will create immersion, which is always a plus for me. I knew I had to buy the game the moment I saw the trailer for the first time.
I love horror games. It says so in my writer’s bio, and people who watch me stream know I love them. Having said that, I rarely finish them. I get into them, and then I get so stressed and freaked out that I just don’t see the end unless I watch someone else play it, either in an LP or on a stream. I sure have fun not-finishing them, though, and thus will have loads of fun playing the beginning of Soma over and over, attempting to get further before wussing out and giving up. By the makers of Amnesia , Soma features the same style of gameplay: You wander around, see horrible things, hide from horrible things, and try to figure out what the hell is going on (puzzles!). The first-person perspective and visual anomalies help add to the terror, as do the strange electronic world you find yourself in. While I’ll wait until it’s on sale to buy, I will be getting it, and my viewers will watch me squirm and wuss out live, because that’s how I roll.
And there you have it. I’m looking forward to horror games moreso than anything else, and a big part of that is how much graphics have changed in just a few years. I really do like the style of Fran Bow , where the animation makes the story all the more creepy, but the newer and more realistic gore with the Frictional Games development team always wins my approval. Also? Puzzles, puzzles, and more puzzles.
What games are you looking forward to in 2015?
Luigis Mansion 2 explores exotic and spooky mansions in new screens
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Wing Commander creator returns to game dev with new space sim
Industry pioneer Chris Roberts, who created the seminal Wing Commander and Privateer franchises, has returned to game development after a more than decade-long absence to release a new CryEngine 3-powered space sim, Star Citizen , announced at GDC Online on Wednesday.
Roberts is best known for creating popular space combat titles during his time at Origin Systems. He left the game industry not long after selling Digital Anvil ( Starlancer, Freelancer ), a studio he helped found after resigning from Origin, to Microsoft in 2000.
Burnt out by the game industry, he spent the last decade working as a producer and director on films like The Punisher (2004) and Lord of War. But he is now seeking to crowdfund a new game project that's reminiscent of the space titles he used to produce. Roberts said the game is also funded by private investors.
"I was frustrated with the technology that was available to express the vision I had in my head," he told GDC Online attendees in Austin. Production cycle lengths were also getting longer and longer, and he was "fairly frustrated with that" as well. The game industry was getting bigger and bigger, and he became disillusioned with how corporate the business had become. "It was just a couple years ago when I felt like I had something to say again," he said.
Already 12 months into production, Star Citizen will release for PC, and is under development at Roberts' new studio Cloud Imperium Games Corporation. The developer was founded in April 2012 with Roberts' business partner and media attorney Ortwin Freyermuth.
Roberts showed a highly-detailed trailer that was rendered using the game's engine. He also took control of a real-time prototype that showed off impressive detail in characters, space ships and environments.
Star Citizen will have online and offline elements -- players can take part in a single player campaign, and friends can also jump in and be wingmen. "In today's world where you can be connected and build a world with constant updates, it's a totally different equation."
"I'm going to build a universe," said Roberts of Star Citizen . "Citizenship is very important in this universe. You have to earn it." Player earn citizenship by performing business, military service or civic duty. Players also don't need to be a citizen, if they want to live in a gray area of society.
Star Citizen 's gameplay will feature space combat and adventure in a persistent open universe. Roberts says he wants to capture great things about the open adventuring and entrepreneurship of Privateer and Freelancer but also inject elements of Wing Commander .
Though many game industry veterans have transitioned to mobile or social game development, Roberts says he wants to stick with PC for Star Citizen . "The PC is still incredibly capable of presenting an experience that doesn't take a back seat to any other platform out there, including consoles," he said in a press statement.
"In recent years, game designers have stopped innovating and pushing the boundaries of what you can do in this genre," Roberts added. "I plan on bringing that kind of development mentality back into PC gaming and space sims in particular."
He said during his session, "I want to say hey, you know what: PC games are cool, space games are cool, and I think it's kind of a community. ... I want to pull a community together and build a great universe and build on that relationship."
"I feel [genre fans are] underserved. I can play ports of console games.... I don't feel like people are pushing the PC like they could. ... A lot of PC gamers, this is my guess, is that they want something that pushes new hardware."
"Most of the big publishers aren't interested in building a PC-specific game, or a space sim game, because it's a genre that hasn't been big for the last 10 years or so," he continued. "I think the genre can be as compelling and vibrant as it's ever been."
He doesn't expect Star Citizen to ship for another two years, but fans who contribute to the game's crowdfunding campaign early will be able to play an early build of the game a year from now. The final game will feature microtransactions for ship customizations and other items.
Near the end of the session, he was passed a note that said his websitewas getting millions of hits and was down -- so interest in PC-based space sims does still seem to be there.
Gamasutra is at GDC Online in Austin this week. Check out our event pagefor the latest on-site coverage.
Watch the Alan Wake 2 prototype which Remedy says might not be totally dead
It’s never fair when someone shows you something you could have had but that’s exactly what original Alan Wake and Quantum Break devs Remedy has done. A prototype for Alan Wake 2 from back in 2010 has been released and in an interview with Polygon , creative director Sam Lake has talked about the original plans for the sequel and the potential future of the noir franchise. Built on the Alan Wake engine
Cloud Chamber Brings Fantastic Noir and Social Science into Gaming
The highly-anticipated Cloud Chamber , by Investigate North , tells of a hidden message from space, the lengths gone to keep it a secret, and the implications of actually deciphering that message.
, tells of a hidden message from space, the lengths gone to keep it a secret, and the implications of actually deciphering that message. This tale is presented through a highly unusual method, using “found footage” to tell the story, and the in-game Crowdscape software to communicate with other players ( real players) to discuss the events happening and progress through 10 playable 3-D landscape levels.
Kathleen Petersen is being groomed by her father, Gustav, to take over the Petersen Institute, a prestigious scientific organization in Europe. Her mother, Ingrid, became obsessed with discovering the meaning behind a signal found in sub-atomic particles, and found herself in so deep that she suffered a mental breakdown and eventually died. The mystery of the signal is one the player must solve using a plethora of information, but you’re not alone on your journey.
A crossroads in gameplay – how will you decide where to go, next?
Inspired by sites such as Reddit, the Crowdspace software allows you to read comments, reply to threads, and up- or down-vote comments based on whether or not you agree with the theories they present. Make no mistake, Cloud Chamber is a massively-multiplayer game, and is just as much an experiment in social science as it is a collaborative puzzle-solving effort.
An example of the social gameplay involved.
Cloud Chamber is releasing in early July, with footage shot by the crew behind The Killing , and such notable actors as Gethin Anthony ( Game of Thrones ) and Jesper Christensen ( Casino Royale , Quantum of Solace ). The science behind the game is all real (in fact, there is actual video footage from the European Space Agency), it is only the story that is fictional. By gathering data (over 150 pieces of evidence), applying logic, and crowd-sourcing both in-game and on external sites such as Wikipedia, you can help solve the mystery of what happened to Ingrid, and why Gustav is so intent on hiding the source and power of the unknown signal. Those players with the highest-rated discussion points will receive badges in-game, and those leaderboards will be the most influential toward forwarding the story.
Cloud Chamber will be available on Steamin July. The game’s websiteis still under construction, but should be live, soon. For information about Investigate North, please visit their website. Look for a game preview early next week, right here on IGM!
TGS 2011: More Luigi's Mansion 2 footage materializes
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Double Fine's unique prototyping process puts itself to the vote
We've written about Double Fine's "Amnesia Fortnight" process several times now, but in summary, it goes something like this:
Every year, developers at the studio stop working on their current projects, split into four teams, and spend two weeks prototyping new games.
Every year, developers at the studio stop working on their current projects, split into four teams, and spend two weeks prototyping new games. The results are threefold: Double Fine experiments with new gameplay ideas, tests potential new project leads, and has playable prototypes to pitch with.
At first the process was mostly a creative exercise, but when a sequel to its ambitious Brutal Legend was unexpectedly canceledthree years ago, those prototypes ended up saving the company, and transforming Double Fine into an independent studio capable of cranking out quick, original games that could be funded just fine on their own, thank you very much.
Watch: Double Fine's Amnesia Fortnight postmortem from GDC
Now, in what is rapidly becoming the new norm for independent game projects, Double Fine is involving its fans in the Amnesia Fortnight development process. The new versionworks much the same as before -- the projects are still small, the ideas still fresh -- but this time around, the decision-making for which projects get greenlit and which get shelved are open up to a public vote. Oh, and the whole thing is raising money for charity, too.
Learn more at the project hub.
Alan Wake Humble Bundle comes with sequel regrets
Alan Wake is the subject of the latest Weekly Humble Bundle . But along with pay-as-you-like savings on the first game, Alan Wake's American Nightmare , and previously unreleased materials including videos and comics, series developer Remedy offers its condolences. Remedy's Quantum Break was one of only a few new games showcased at Microsoft's Xbox One reveal on May 21; it's an exciting new project
Pokemon X and Y Weekly - Comfy and easy to wear
Pokemon X and Y is now out in the wild for the world to enjoy, as you've no doubt noticed when we posted our Pokemon X and Y review along with our complete Pokedex , and guides to Mega Stone locations and Pokemon-amie . But X and Y have so many more secrets to share beyond those, including a number of Easter Eggs fans have only begun to find. In this week's episode we detail one of our favorite references
Video: Media Molecule's 5 tips for being a better producer
Producers fail if the game doesn't live up to its potential, says Media Molecule studio director Siobhan Reddy in her GDC 2013 talk about the 'highs and lows' of making games from new ideas.
Producers must juggle the goals of maintaining the game's creative vision and delivering a finished product; achieving both requires understanding what a team needs from a producer at all stages of development. As Reddy looks back on the iterations of upcoming PS Vita title Tearaway , she explains why her studio eventually scrapped a procedurally-generated world with GPS features, in this free lecture courtesy of GDC Vault.
Session Name: Glitter and Doom: The Highs and Lows of Making New Things
Speaker(s): Siobhan Reddy
Company Name(s): Media Molecule
Track / Format: Production
Description: Learn the true highs and lows of producing games with Siobhan Reddy, GDC Advisory Board member and Studio Director at Media Molecule.
About the GDC VaultIn addition to this presentation, the GDC Vault offers numerous other free videos, audio recordings, and slides from many of the recent GDC events, and the service offers even more members-only content for GDC Vault subscribers. Those who purchased All Access passes to events like GDC, GDC Europe, and GDC China already have full access to GDC Vault, and interested parties can apply for the individual subscriptions via a GDC Vault inquiry form.
Group subscriptions are also available: game-related schools and development studios who sign up for GDC Vault Studio Subscriptions can receive access for their entire office or company. More information on this option is available via an online demonstration, and interested parties can find out more here. In addition, current subscribers with access issues can contact GDC Vault admins.
Be sure to keep an eye on GDC Vault for even more new content, as GDC organizers will also archive videos, audio, and slides from other events like GDC China and GDC 2013. To stay abreast of all the latest updates to GDC Vault, be sure to check out the news feed on the official GDC website, or subscribe to updates via Twitter, Facebook, or RSS.
Gamasutra and GDC are sibling organizations under parent UBM Tech.
Alan Wake sells 2 million copies
When Max Payne studio Remedy Entertainment moved on from the adventures of a hardboiled cop to insomniac author Alan Wake (who also shoots stuff), gamers let forth a collective "hm." But almost three years later, the unique horror shooter has carved out a comfortable niche. "We've moved over two million copies--that's including PC," Oskari Häkkinen, Remedy's head of franchise development, told CVG
Murdered: Soul Suspect ghost stories guide
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PokeRadar podcast 005 Mewthree attacks?
The most exciting Pokemon podcast is back to discuss the most recent events in the Poke world, including our first new monster in weeks! We talk about the unnamed Pokemon's possible lineage, plus we breakdown the limited supply of Pikachu 3DS XLs, reviews of the most recent Pokemon releases, and a closer look at our favorite psychic legendary. You can listen to it below, or subscribe to our main podcast, RadioRadar, on iTunes. Hosts: Henry Gilbert, Hollander Cooper, Ryan Taljonick, and Greg Henninger April 10, 2013 Pokémon spotlight: Mewtwo (Share your memories of this Pokémon in the comments below and we might read it next episode!)
Maybe it's just me, but it feels like there's an abundance of stealth-based games going around at the
moment. Monaco, SpyParty, Mark of the Ninja, Deus Ex, Stealth Bastard ... ducking and dodging definitely appears to be "in" right now. Thomas Was Alone creator Mike Bithell added to that list earlier today, when he announced Volume , a stealth game that's focused around sound and distractions, and the ability for players to easily create their own levels and share them with other players.
Thomas was Alone dev brings his own twist to stealth game design
, a stealth game that's focused around sound and distractions, and the ability for players to easily create their own levels and share them with other players. And Bithell is well aware of the surge of stealth games going around.
"In Monaco 's case, I've banned myself from playing it," he tells me. "I'm scared it'd be too big an influence. There's definitely an element of replication to stealth mechanics, especially environmental interactions."
In Volume , for example, you can walk on noisy floors that will attract enemy attention, then proceed to hide in a locker, or just generally take cover. "That's a genre expectation, and I felt that was needed," he says.
But Bithell isn't worried about entering a genre currently brimming with titles, as he notes that a stealth game felt like a natural progression for his work after Thomas Was Alone .
"What are stealth games, if not puzzle games with heightened risk and the feel of an action game?" he adds. "I wonder if indies see it as similar to the popular puzzle platformer genre - a cool existing framework to subvert, or add a cool twist to. That's definitely how I view it."
Sounds like...As mentioned previously, Volume is a game all about using sound to your advantage (and disadvantage).
"The game's treatment of sound, and AI's reactions to it, is where things get interested," Bithell says. "It's a crowd control game, so you use noises to interrupt enemy actions and change things to your liking."
"I can do that because of the stylized nature of the game," he adds. "The fact that the player can see sound ranges means they become as important a tool as eagle vision in Assassin's Creed , or shadows in Splinter Cell . That's where the game becomes its own thing, and offers its own specific challenge."
You can't kill anyone in Volume -- it's not that sort of stealth game. The focus is well and truly on staying hidden, and sneaking past without a Plan B.
"The best you can do is stun them for a few seconds, and when they wake up, they'll be suitably agitated," he explains. "This pushes the focus from room clearing to true evasion. You never have the upper hand, and it becomes a very fast crowd control game. The puzzle becomes one of disruption, which was always the stuff I enjoyed most in stealth games."
"I want to see exactly what they're thinking, I want to know what they can see," he reasons. "I played Metal Gear Solid through the little soliton radar in the bottom of the screen, and I wanted to scale up that situational awareness to the whole screen - that's why vision cones were always going to be so prominent."
"I want to feel clever, and make informed choices while playing," he adds. "To do that, it all comes down to the information I'm being made aware of."
Resident Evil Revelations coming to consoles, PC
Capcom has confirmed plans to release home console and PC versions of Resident Evil Revelations in the US on May 21 and in the UK on May 24. The update of 2012’s Nintendo 3DS game will launch on Xbox 360, PS3, Wii U and PC with HD visuals, enhanced lighting effects and improved audio. In addition to a retail release, a digital version will be available upon release on PS3 and PC priced at $49.99, and
Game Connection Europe 2014 Impressions: Virtual Reality
As some of you may know, Game Connection Europe was held over the weekend, and yours truly was invited to attend the event.
was held over the weekend, and yours truly was invited to attend the event. I got some hands on time with a lot of interesting indie titles in the works, so I’ll be posting an impressions series all week long. But before getting into the software side of things, I wanted to first tackle the latest iteration of the Oculus technology, both in the form of the Oculus Rift, currently using development kit 2.0, and the Samsung Gear. The Oculus has been getting a lot of support from the indie space, with a number of experimental titles currently in development. As such, I thought it would be a good idea to check out the latest virtual reality has to offer. Long story short, things are shaping up better than I had anticipated. Here’s a breakdown of what I saw:
Oculus Rift (DK 2.0)
The main draw of the latest iteration in Rift technology is that the device can now track you in 6DoF (degrees of freedom). That basically means, thanks to a handy camera and tracking sensors now placed all around the device (images below, click to enlarge.), users can experience a full 360 degrees of virtual reality. The tech demo on displayed was called Crescent Bay, and showcased not only the ability to move about a scenario while looking in all 360 degrees, but also the power of Unreal Engine 4. Standing on a mat as a reference point – to keep from walking into walls – I passively observed several non-interactive scenes, while occasionally being able to sidestep incoming obstacles. One scenario was of an Alien on a desolate planet that tracked my movements with his eyes, turning his head as I moved from side to side. As far as the visuals go, I will say that the combination of graphical fidelity with UE4 combined with the motion tracking DK 2.0 offers was enough to make me legitimately feel a sense of vertigo in one metropolis scene, as I stood at the top of a high building and peered over the edge. The power behind this tech could lead to some really amazing gaming applications.
Vanguard Valkyrie
Onto the gaming portion of my Oculus Rift impressions, I did get a chance to play Vanguard Valkyrie running on DK 2.0, and the end result was a really smooth gameplay experience. You know, it’s funny. As hardcore gamers, we’re used to playing games with our eyes fixed on the screen, never having to look down at our controllers. We’re masters of the quick time event, never needing to glance down to know exactly where all the buttons on our controllers are with rapid reflex taps. But the second I put on the Rift headset and had to be handed a controller to play Vanguard V , I felt a moment of unease, like I was lost in the forest. It took an extra moment to feel secure in my button presses while playing, simply because I no longer had the luxury of looking down and seeing my controller. Lucky for me, Vanguard V is pretty simplistic in its gameplay approach, while remaining quite a bit of fun. It’s a flight shooter where players must look at oncoming enemies to lock-on to them, with the controller really only needed to pause the experience. It’s set in space, and has you dodging meteor and ship debris while avoiding incoming enemy fire as well. It’s a great demonstration of how well the eye-tracking works.
Samsung Gear
The Samsung Gearis an optional VR peripheral currently compatible with the Galaxy Note 4. Oculus partnered with Samsung on the project, allowing them to use their VR technology to help bring the Gear up to par with any other potential competitors in the mobile VR market. All you have to do to set it up is gently snap the Note 4 into place at the front of the device, as the phone’s screen serves as the VR display. While there are non-gaming applications for the Gear as well – such as a trailer for the Penguins of Madagascar movie that you can watch while sitting with the penguins, who stare at you when you turn your head to look at them instead of the trailer – there is also a wireless controller that can be synced, to allow for some quality mobile gaming.
VR Quest
On the subject of Gear gaming, VR Quest is a Zelda-esque action game currently in development. (Sorry, I don’t have any pictures for you on this one. But you can take my word that it plays like the 2D Zelda adventures we all remember fondly.) This one was less reliant on eye tracking, and far more heavily leaned on using the controller to play the game as a traditional action game. In this case, the VR serves to give the player a better sense of depth, allowing our head to serve as a second analog stick of sorts, physically looking around to adjust the camera and survey each room. The game began with a tutorial of the controls, showing a virtual controller on-screen to help players learn where the buttons on the controller were without looking at their actual hands. After that, there’s some basic combat, and a bit of exploration, as the player searches for a key to get past a previously encountered locked door, leading to some mild backtracking. It’s nothing groundbreaking in terms of mechanics, but it does prove that familiar experiences can potentially be enhanced thanks to the use of VR technology.
I went into Game Connection Europe 2014thinking that VR tech probably wouldn’t hold my interest much. I’m much more of a traditional gamer; heck, I still don’t even want to use the Wii U gamepad, I’d rather just play with the Pro controller. But Oculus Rift’s DK 2.0 and the Samsung Gear have some promising applications in the pipeline, and prove that VR isn’t just some gimmick. It’s a whole new way to experience entertainment.
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Jump to Section: Best Price Comments Pros Charming storyline Pleasant visuals and soundtrack Lots of quest to do if you can tolerate the gameplay Cons Starts off very slowly Dungeon crawling is monotonous Incompetent partner AI Despite their RPG underpinnings, roguelikes and Pokémon don’t exactly make the best of bedfellows. But that didn’t seem to stop Nintendo and Chunsoft from pairing the two up
Resident Evil Revelations coming to Xbox 360 and PS3 (according to Korean ratings board)
Capcom’s 3DS exclusive Resident Evil Revelations could be coming to Xbox 360 and PS3, if an update to the Korean Game Rating Board site turns out to be accurate. The post, spotted by the ever vigilant NeoGaf , clearly shows Biohazard Revelations listed for PS3 and 360: No official word from Capcom, but as soon as we hear anything we’ll update to let you know. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Matt Cundy I don't have the energy to really hate anything properly. Most things I think are OK or inoffensively average. I do love quite a lot of stuff as well, though. Topics Resident Evil Revelations We recommend By Zergnet Load Comments
Average Giants Episode 30 Pt 1 – Artisan: Going Home Again
IGM Presents… The Average Giants!
IGM Presents… The Average Giants! A weekly webseries where we play indie games while chatting with their developers. Come watch (and “follow”) the show live on our hitbox channelevery Monday night at 9:00pm EDT.
Or you can just sit back and watch all our live streams right here on our new IGMLive page.
Original Air Date: October 6, 2014
Pokemon X and Y Weekly - Breaking news on Mega Evolutions
Surprise! Yes, one day after posting our regularly scheduled episode of our Pokemon X and Y video series, some major news broke from Nintendo that we simply had to cover. We got our first information on the inclusion of the Red and Blue starters, along with their flashy Mega Evolutions. We got an explanation on just how Mega Evolutions work. And we found the solution for transferring our old Pokemon
Resident Evil Revelations Erasable saves and other lessons learned from Mercenaries 3D
Resident Evil Revelations was Capcom’s second RE game for Nintendo’s 3D system in less than a year and if you played RER and its predecessor The Mercenaries 3D, you’ll notice a big change in content and style. At GDC this week Masachika Kawata, a producer on both games, spoke about how Revelations benefited from being developed in the shadow of Mercenaries. One big lesson: Listen to player feedback
Dinofarm Games and ‘Auro’ Hit Kickstarter
It truly is rare on the mobile gaming scene, whether indie or otherwise, to find a game that you can count among your favorites and “enjoy for many years”.
It truly is rare on the mobile gaming scene, whether indie or otherwise, to find a game that you can count among your favorites and “enjoy for many years”. In fact, for some people, it may never happen at all. However, this is exactly what Dinofarm Games is promising with their upcoming title Auro .
Auro will be a turn-based dungeon crawler, described by the developers as comfortable for fans of both Final Fantasy Tactics and Diablo . The story is centered on Auro, a spoiled young prince who has never worked a day in his life. When the king, at the behest of the royal scholar Quillsh, finally stands up to his son, Auro is sent on a journey into the kingdom’s sewers. In true heroic fashion, he ignores Quillsh’s many warnings and unleashes an “ancient evil that may spell the end for his people”.
As the player, you will be tasked with combating this evil across three different modes of play: Normal Game, Story Mode and Puzzle Mode. Each mode will feature quick, pick-up-and-play action designed for quick bursts of play and endless replayability. You will be able to develop Auro’s combat abilities however you see fit, with the ability to pursue multiple skill trees including destructive fire abilities and sneaky evasion tactics.
Auro is being developed for the iOS, Android operating system, Window, Mac and Linux, and will feature cross-platform play between them all.
The game has been in development for more than a year, but the creators have turned to Kickstarter in order to fund the rest of the project and make their deadline of “late 2012”. As is usual for Kickstarter, different tiers of contribution will be rewarded with various rewards, ranging from a t-shirt for a $100 pledge to a personalized, playable class based on you for $500. At the moment, Dinofarm Games is halfway to their $7,500 goal, which must be reached by June 29.
Auro talks a big talk, but if it can back up its words with solid results, every contribution will be worth it. So what are you waiting for? Head over to Kickstarterand give them some, anything!
You can learn more about Dinofarm Games , including their previous game 100 Rogues , by visiting their official website.
PokeRadar podcast 004 Charizard returns
GamesRadar’s greatest lovers of pocket monsters gather around the microphones once again for our regular Pokemon podcast. This week we talked about upcoming Poke-spin-offs like Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Gates of Infinity and HarmoKnight . We also get nostalgic thanks to the return of a classic character to the anime. Listen and enjoy Pokémon fans, and remember, you can download the show below, or subscribe
Final Fantasy XIII to get resolution options
How's that for timing?
Final Fantasy XIII-2's PC release date announcementcaused me to wonder if it would be as bad a port job as FFXIII. Now, Square Enix has revealed that they're also improving the previous port. Final Fantasy XIII will soon be updated with resolution options and graphics settings.
"The FINAL FANTASY XIII team have been working hard to improve your experience on Steam and we're happy to announce the following changes will be rolled out at the beginning of December," the team wrote in a community announcement.
"Custom resolutions (720p, 1080p...) and graphic options will be added."The update is due out at the start of December.
Video Editing Game ‘Loop Raccord’ Unique And On Sale Now
Coming up with a new idea in the games market can be a difficult process indeed, but for Nicolai Troshinsky’s Loop Raccord, being unique isn’t all that difficult at all.
Coming up with a new idea in the games market can be a difficult process indeed, but for Nicolai Troshinsky’s Loop Raccord, being unique isn’t all that difficult at all. It’s been a year since the game turns heads, and Nicolai wants to celebrate the mark with some new content and a 48 hour discount sale.
The aim of the game is to edit and cut together a string of video clips together in order to make a seamless result, just like an actual video editor. You’ll interact with with the touch screen to move around each clip, learning a little about the real deal while attempting to get the best result possible.
Loop Raccord mainly uses public domain film, including a lot of footage from educational institutions from 1950’s USA, but also includes a few classic moments from America’s TV show past. Being an Aussie myself, it would be some what of an educational ride through history along with a great way to learn about editing techniques. Its creation was inspired by the cinematic work of Peter Greenaway, and its mix of traditional video editing techniques with a game playing experience caught the attention of the Independent Games Festival and IndieCade, having been an award finalist in both events among many others.
The coolest new feature added to the game is a new developer commentary, which acts like a found footage video that describes the process and development of the game. You’ll also get adjustable difficulty settings, a few bug fixes and a new gallery mode to check out the videos at your leisure, but any game that includes a commentary track is worth checking out to get some unique insight into the developer’s mind.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dW3RzM1ysh8&w=560&h=315]There’s a two player mode included that allows two people to share one iPad system and compete against each other, among a few other features such as an endless mode and randomly generated levels. There’s also GameCenter support with leaderboards and achievements, as you do.
Loop Raccord is available via the App Store for iPad and for the next few hours it’s available for the special price of just $0.99!If you’re looking for a bargain and something to really get your mind flowing, or you’re tired of the usual platform/puzzle games of today, Loop Raccord might just be up your ally. Be sure to visit the official websitefor more information and a look at Nicolai’s other work.
PokeRadar podcast 003 Rumor mongering
It's another audio adventure for the Pokémon lovers at GamesRadar. Though there wasn't much new info to go around, there were at least enough baseless rumors worth talking about. Plus, confirmation on the English name of the newest Eeveelution. Listen and enjoy Pokémon fans, and remember, you can download the show below, or subscribe to our prime podcast, RadioRadar, on iTunes to automatically download each new PokeRadar! Hosts: Henry Gilbert, Hollander Cooper, Ryan Taljonick, and Greg Henninger February 26, 2013 Pokémon spotlight: Squirtle (Share your memories of this Pokémon in the comments below and we might read it next episode!)
Jump to Section:Best Price
Comments
Our Verdict
Parts of Final Fantasy XIII are worth the absurd amount of time it takes to properly open up, but this port is a big letdown.
need to know
What is it? 2010 console RPG finally arrives on PC with no panache.
Reviewed on: AMD FX-6200 CPU, 16GB RAM, AMD Radeon HD 7870
Price: $16/£11
Release: Out now
Publisher: Square Enix
Developer: In-house
Website: Official site
Multiplayer: None
Final Fantasy XIII is, by some accounts, the most hated of the long-running Square Enix RPG series. On some level, I understand why. It takes the usually open-structured world of a Final Fantasy game and swaps that with journeys in mostly shiny corridor worlds, removing the sense of exploration that’s been intrinsic to the series since the start.
Upon its original release on PS3, the reaction to this direction was so extreme that Square Enix attempted to repair the damage with two wildly different, open-ended sequels. FFXIII has serious merit in its inventive combat system, but it’s an absolute slog to find that potential—this belated port is so shoddy, too, that it’s tough to recommend picking it up on PC if you haven’t played it elsewhere already.
Taking place in a mostly linear world that straddles both sci-fi and fantasy, FFXIII is primarily about turn-based, real-time battles and delivering a giant, baffling narrative. Enemies wander around in the field, and if they detect your character, they charge and the screen cuts away to a battle. If I sneak up on an enemy, my character gets first strike at the start of the encounter.
In-battle, only one character can be controlled at a time—the others in my party will fight automatically based on the roles I assign them. Let’s say my default party contains two ravagers (mages) and a commando (warrior). My party will attack based on each class’s set of moves. If I’m damaged by my enemy and need to redo my strategy mid-battle, I can instantly use the Paradigm Shift system to load a different set of preset classes for my characters.
Instead of two mages and a commando, I tell my team to become two medics (white mages) and a sentinel (a high-defensive unit who absorbs damage), and the characters then automatically start throwing spells and abilities out based on the new roles I’ve assigned them. At first it seems like the combat’s been oversimplified when you select Auto Battle and all the moves are chosen for you, but it’s more an attempt to move to higher-level strategy that becomes very successful as the classes and abilities begin to open up. Trouble is, that takes fucking ages.
One of the better parts of this is being able to create new paradigms in the menu outside of battle, to mix and match classes to my preference—so if I want three characters to focus on ravager abilities, I can set that up and load it next time I’m in a fight. Setting up pre-loaded sets of strategies and using them to control the flow of battles is a brilliant bit of in-depth and systems-driven design ingenuity, the sort of idea Final Fantasy has always been very good at. The eventual goal is to stagger the enemy by mixing up attacks until the bar on the right hand corner of the HUD reaches full—after which, you get a brief window to perform more damage. Every battle gives you a rating out of five based on speed and efficiency, so there’s a sense of racing against yourself to throw the right tactics together.
This is underlined by a somewhat freeform progression system called the Crystarium. It’s a little like a board game in the way you unlock new skills and stat boosts based on how you spend experience points. Enjoy it, though, because it’s the only real freedom that Final Fantasy XIII offers, and even in the case of Paradigm Shifts and the Crystarium, they put a ceiling on progression throughout the story so it’s hard to ever overpower the party members. This controlled levelling is highlighted by the frequent difficulty spikes in boss battles.
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The first 20 hours of Final Fantasy XIII are like a long tutorial, just walking in a straight line between battles and cutscenes. The story, set in the two warring states of sci-fi city Coccoon and the wildlands of Gran Pulse, follows a mostly irritating group of characters who are cursed by gods known as the Fal’cie into fulfilling their destiny—which I think, feeling my way through the impenetrable terminology, is saving the world. The core group of characters is led by the much-despised Lightning, who I actually like, since she’s a functionally identical protagonist to FFVII’s Cloud and FFVIII’s Squall in being a grumpy, spiky-haired warrior with a cool yet utterly impractical sword. Your six character party and the extended cast is mostly made up of people I wouldn’t cross the road to save, and with so many cutscenes in the game you’ll have plentiful opportunities to build up a seething resentment towards them and their lovely hair.
With only this noisy but sometimes enjoyably melodramatic narrative and a stream of samey battles to occupy players until it finally opens up after around 20 hours, Final Fantasy XIII is undeniably a nightmare for most people to get into. Eventually, you reach Gran Pulse, a lovely open environment with impressive giant-sized enemies and even some sidequests—just more battles, really, in the form of bounties—to complete. I love Final Fantasy, generally speaking, but XIII is so difficult to defend. This has one of the series’ best combat systems, a quick-paced affair that relies on reconfiguring your characters’ strategy on the fly in meaningful, customisable ways, but I could not reasonably ask you to wait 20 hours until that becomes totally clear. Your time on this earth is simply too short.
Final Fantasy XIII is undeniably a nightmare for most people to get into.
Final Fantasy XIII has forgotten it’s on PC, too. When I hit the settings menu to change resolutions from the automated 720p to 1080p, there is no way to do so. When I want to fiddle with the settings to sort out the crosshatching hair effects, there’s no option of that nature. Final Fantasy XIII has no graphics options, locking itself at 720p. In the field—and by field, I mean a shiny corridor with three guys in it—FFXIII can even drop to below 20fps on my mid-range Radeon card. It’s not an unplayable port or anything, it’s just so far off the ideal and closer to the flawed 360 version in performance. Very occasionally it’ll hit 60fps in environments and cutscenes but the port seems to be locked at 30 during combat, minus the Paradigm Shift animations. The exotic character designs and frequently inventive art direction represent a peak for the series—they’re just not at their best on PC.
I’d be looking at a score in the high sixties if these basic options made it into the game, but Final Fantasy XIII is far from essential in this form. I’d be remiss not to mention Durante’s fix, which solves most of the issues in this port and makes the character models in particular look extraordinary, but that’s not the version Square Enix is selling to you. It’s not Durante’s responsibility to fix crap ports from major publishers. Final Fantasy XIII’s collective trilogy (all of which is coming to PC—the sequel is a lot better) has sold over 10 million copies, and yet Square Enix didn’t manage to add a raft of visual options that one person managed overnight upon the game’s release. I think Square Enix should take a bit more pride in Final Fantasy’s laudable heritage.
This is a weak version of an already contentious RPG, then. Players that find themselves won over by the combat system of Final Fantasy XIII and are patient enough to deal with the structural problems will eventually be rewarded for sticking around, but it never lives up to the still superior journeys of VII and VIII.
The Verdict
Final Fantasy XIII
Parts of Final Fantasy XIII are worth the absurd amount of time it takes to properly open up, but this port is a big letdown.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Samuel has been PC gaming since 1993, beginning with the questionable Mario Is Missing on DOS. He knows that Red Alert has the best skirmish mode of all the C&C games, and if you disagree, he’ll attach a tiny balloon to you and send you back to mother base.
We recommend By Zergnet
Can anyone explain how the hell THIS happens in Resident Evil Revelations? *SPOILERS*
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Jump to Section: Best Price Comments Pros Interesting dynamic between Ronan and his sidekick An immense amount of backstory revealed through collectibles Impressive visual effects on PS4 and Xbox One Cons You can't fail at solving the case most solutions are simple and combat is tacked-on Bugs and a lack of polish permeate the game Very easy to get lost without a true in-game map A good mystery should
PokeRadar podcast 002 You say you want Eeveelution
In our sophomore outing of GamesRadar's newest podcast, we cover the biggest new Pokémon info out there. This week we discuss the newly revealed Ninfia, the new Pokémon game announced for Wii U, and much more about the upcoming X and Y. And we still find time to discuss our cherished Pokémon memories and strange trivia, as well as introduce GR's newest, Poké-loving staff member. Remember, you can download the show below, or subscribe to our prime podcast, RadioRadar, on iTunes to automatically download each new PokeRadar! Hosts: Henry Gilbert, Hollander Cooper, Ryan Taljonick, and Greg Henninger February 12, 2013 Pokémon spotlight: Eeevee (Share your memories of this Pokémon in the comments below and we might read it next episode!)
Final Fantasy XIII-2 Steam release date announced
Final Fantasy XIII-2 PC has a release date.
Final Fantasy XIII-2 PC has a release date. It was announced in a new trailer for the game's Steam version—a trailer that, soon after, was made private by Square Enix. If they do stand by the information the trailer contained, the game will reach PC on 11 December.
If not, who knows?
The internet being the internet, the trailer has already been mirrored elsewhere. You can see it below.
The official version is available once again. You can now find that below.
You'll note, at the end, a claim of "new features and enhancements". With luck, it'll arrive in better shape than Final Fantasy XIII—the port of which was, as Sam notes in his review, something of a travesty. Whatever people's thoughts on XIII specifically, Final Fantasy is a massive series that deserves a little love.
Final Fantasy XIII-2 will be available for £13.
Plus Alpha: Strawberry brains at Shinjuku's Capcom Bar
Plus Alpha is a weekly column that explores life in Japan from the perspective of American expatriate and game-industry veteran Jarik Sikat. Having worked in numerous areas of the game industry since 1994, Sikat relocated to Japan in 2010. When Capcom and Japan’s Pasela Resorts first announced their plans to launch a Capcom-themed eatery in downtown Tokyo, I was already clutching my stomach in pain
I've never played Fire Emblem, where's the best place to start?
Video games have their share of long and storied franchises. But around the seventh or eighth sequel, it can be difficult for newcomers to know where to start. These guides will point you in the right direction. Maybe you'll find a new favorite. You're expecting Fire Emblem: Awakening , the series' 2012 breakout hit for the Nintendo DS, aren't you? It's true that Awakening is a fantastic game with
Fan fixes Metal Gear Rising Revengeance 24hz at 1080p issue
As our review of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance pointed out, we welcome games and franchises previously known as console exclusives to the PC with open arms.
pointed out, we welcome games and franchises previously known as console exclusives to the PC with open arms. Bring us more Metal Gear Solid, please, and have Platinum port Bayonetta while you're at it. Just please, don't ruin it over a stupid technical issue.
For example, many players reported that Revengeance's framerate drops to an unplayable level when the resolution was set to 1920x1080. Luckily, one enterprising fan has created a fix for the issue.
The bug, according to reports, is that at the 1920x1080 resolution, Revengeance automatically sets your display refresh rate to 24hz if you're using a monitor that's connected via HDMI. Kudos to Steam user xuthan, who issued a fix, which you can find on the game's Steam community page.
“I've created something that reconfigures the default system and reverts it back after use for full screen at 60Hz. It should work with windows 7 32bit/64bit but I'm unsure of 32bit or anything other than W7,” xuthan explains. The link above also includes an FAQ about the fix and details the ideal conditions that will make it work.
SPONSORED: Resident Evil Revelations Part 2: The Truth Will Surface
Resident Evil: Revelations comes out today, and so does the second part of our Resident Evil: Revelations video. If you missed Part 1: Evil Creeping in Every Shadow , then you should check it out first, but once it's finished you'll undoubtedly want to swing back here to see how it ends. Who is the doctor? Why is he experimenting on the random guy? What was in the needle? Will you actually get the answers to any of these questions? No, actually, we doubt it. But you will see a cool video that might scare your pants off, so there's that to look forward to! Check it out, and let us know what you think.
Sylvio Developer Releases New Ghost Recording Trailer
The EVP recording of Niklas Swanberg’s Sylvio is what drew me to it to begin with.
to begin with. Now, during the final few days of its already-successful Kickstarter campaign, he’s released a new trailer with some commentary to better explain how the recording will work, and what its uses are to players. Seeing it in action has me even more excited for this unique horror game.
The video shows the player using a special scanner that shows the direction the phenomena is in. Players will have to check this tool often to home in on the location of the sounds, watching as the bar vibrates harder depending on the player’s distance from the phenomena. Once there, there will be some sort of audio clue that the phenomena is close (in the trailer, it is a clapping sound), and you can then record it. It gets interesting from here, as you can play around with the sound you’ve recorded, adjusting the playback speed to clear up the audio to the point where you can make out what is being said. Once you can hear it clearly, your character will record the note, which adds something new to the environment for you to collect.
Swanberg mentions that this can be optional if you don’t want to spend much time on it, but this mechanic is what makes the game interesting for me. I’m hoping it has multiple important uses in the game as it moves forward in development, as listening to the creepy voices of ghosts could really heighten the tension of this horror game. What hints will you get about the Henson family cult when you listen closely? With the campaign having paid off, I guess we’ll all find out soon.
You can still donate to Sylvio’s Kickstarter campaignuntil it concludes. If you want to learn more about it, you can read the developer’s site, or follow him on Facebookand Twitter. The game is still looking for votes on Steam Greenlightas well.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance always-online bug fixed
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is now available for downloadance on PC.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is now available for downloadance on PC. As is a worryingly frequent occurranceance for after-the-fact ports, things aren't quite as silky smooth as you'd want a Platinum action brawler to be. A few hours after its release, Steam user reviews surfaced, claiming that the game was using always-online DRM. Their reports suggested that the game not only wouldn't activate in Offline Mode, but also that it would crash if you dropped connection while playing.
Fortunately, Konami publicly confirmed that, rather than an intentional 'feature', the offline errors were the result of a bug. Now, Konami's European brand manager Steve Key has tweeted to say that the issues have been fixed, and offline play has been restored.
"MGR PC Update - offline problems *should* now be fixed," Key tweeted. "All new downloads will be fine - those who already downloaded, files should just be replaced. Please let me know how you get on and thanks so much for your patience and support."
That's not entirely the end of MGR:R's issues, though. The heroic PCGamingWikihave put the port through its paces, concluding that while its performanceance is solid, there are some questionable aspects. The most notable is a resolution cap, locking the maximum possible setting at 1920 x 1080. They also note that cutscene quality is significantly lower than the regular game, and that FOV options are non-existent. You can see the full report here.
SPONSORED: Resident Evil Revelations Part 1: Evil Creeping in Every Shadow
We've always seen Resident Evil from the perspective of the heroes. Leon, Rebecca, Chris... they're always on the winning side. Fighting the good fight. What's it like from the other side? The side of fear? The side of horror? The side of darkness? Take a look as we peek behind the curtain and discover what lurks in the shadows as we prepare for Resident Evil: Revelations' launch. Part two will post next week, so be sure to come back to see what happens in the frightening conclusion.
IGM Interviews — Aaron Reed and Jacob Garde (Ice-Bound)
Ice-Bound is a new game from Down to the Wire, the two man writing/dev team of Aaron Reed and Jacob Garde, who you might already know from previous games.
is a new game from Down to the Wire, the two man writing/dev team of Aaron Reed and Jacob Garde, who you might already know from previous games. I had a chance to talk with both of them about their upcoming game, its Kickstarter(which is already live), the decision to use a physical Augmented Reality book as a part of their game, and game-making in general. So then, let’s get to it!
Okay, so first things first: Can you tell us what Ice-Bound is about?
Jacob : Okay, so I’m going to try not to go into script mode here… so essentially Ice-Bound is an interactive fiction project that is composed of two parts: One part is using a thing that we call combinatorial narrative that lets people kind of sculpt the stories that they want out of a series of possibilities by activating or deactivating little elements of story. And the second part of it is a printed book that interacts with that system, using Augmented Reality. It’s concerned with this author who dies under suspicious circumstances, who had an unfinished work, Ice-Bound.
A publishing house commissioned the creation of an AI from a brain scan to finish the book. But they ran into some problems, and without giving away anything, essentially the AI is not able to finish the story. So Tethys House, being frustrated is like “Listen man, we’ve gotta get this thing finished, we’ve got deadlines,” and is saying that we’re going to let you work with humans, and maybe, if you work with a reader, you can maybe get this finished up. And so this is how you interact with Ice-Bound, by interacting with Kris and building these stories, but he has his own agenda. He knows the printed book, which is called the Ice-Bound Compendium is out there in the world, and it has very strange sort of transmissions from memories that he doesn’t have anymore, and he doesn’t understand why he doesn’t have these memories. He starts getting really obsessed and interested with trying to find out what’s in this book.
And so in the future we sort of used this idea that if you want information to be really secure, the first thing you do to keep AIs from getting hold of it is to make it physical, not digital. And so the Compendium is actually like, “Oh we’ll just have this as a printed thing, so at least it’s harder for AIs to get ahold of.” There are a couple of warnings in there that it’s actually technically illegal to show KRIS this book, since there are UN injunctions against constructed sentiences, and everything else. So the reader is definitely entering nebulously legal territory by interacting with KRIS like this.
But what we’re going for is, in addition to making choices about what is made, what the story is, and in addition to making choices about how you end the story, using the Compendium for material, we wanted to also introduce the idea of making people choose between “Hey, I could show this to KRIS and prove to him that this is how the story should end,” and this is cool, because that’s how you want the story to end, but you might show him something on that page and it shows him that his daughter sold him out, and all of a sudden he’s incredibly depressed and outraged. And you’re suddenly like whoa, wait, maybe now I need to start thinking: “Man, I really want the story to be like this, but I really don’t want to upset KRIS,” and so that’s one of the kinds of tensions that we’re doing.
It was sort of an odd decision to go with a printed, Augmented Reality book. Was this done purely for story reasons, or was this done because of some other consideration?
Aaron : I think it was some of each. I think we’re at a really weird time right now, where so many things are shifting to digital. And so the rise of e-readers in the last ten years has just been this astronomically fast changeover compared to, you know, how we’ve changed modes of engaging with stories in the past. And so I think there’s a lot of uncertainty in the consciousness about like, what is the future of books going to be, what is the future of games going to be, how are those things going to be intertwined, if at all.
So, definitely a lot of the ideas for the project came out of our thinking as writers about those concepts. From a perspective of Ice-Bound as a game that we’re releasing, I think it’s kind of nice because it makes it unique compared to most other games, because it does have this kind of mandatory physical component, so I’m hoping that will help more people find out about it and get interested in it. But I think it definitely came from the kind of kernel of the question of “What is the future of books?”
You talk about the future of books and of games, was there anything specific that inspired Ice-Bound? I know you talked about Borges and Nabokov, and House of Leaves, but was there anything else?
Aaron : Yeah, definitely Borges, Nabokov and House of Leaves — we were both a huge fan of that book, and just books in general that tried to make you feel like you’re necessary somehow for the story to be told. And there’s a tradition of that that stretches back even hundreds of years. There’s a book from the 1700’s, Tristram Shandy, that is actively engaging in a conversation with you as the reader, and encouraging you to like, rip pages out of the book, and, you know, do all of these things that [cross the boundary] between the reader and the author. So I think we’ve both always been big fans of books like that.
While there have definitely been a lot of literary games, they tend to be engaging with the more descriptiive kinds of aspects of literature, but not the sort of playful stuff that you can do with language that you can’t do as well when you have to visualily represent everything, or audio that represents everything. When you can just use language, there are a lot of really fascinating things you can do that’s unique to language. For me at least, that’s one of the things that I’m really interested in exploring. Jacob?
Jacob : Yeah, I think too, I mean I would echo what Aaron said for inspirations, but I think maybe building off of that a little bit, it’s been a natural extension of the previous work we’ve done, because we’ve both done Augmented Reality pieces that are attempting to work with Augmented Reality in a way that is trying to push at the boundaries of it. And then we had both done extensive interactive text works, and so I feel like with Ice-Bound , we came to all of these different inspirations from everywhere else, but… it’d sort of come together, you know, [and] with this project we get to do both: the Augmented Reality, we get to try to push that in a new direction, and we also get to push this interactive narrative system in the new direction as well.
I’ve always loved this kind of thing — I’m a sucker for narrative heavy games. And I’ve always dreamt of having this kind of flexibility in a story, but there were always barriers: For one, you need an absolutely enormous amount of content, and you also need some kind of way to make it feel like the players are making a difference in the story, rather than just running along rails. Obviously you’ve been working on overcoming these boundaries for Ice-Bound , but do you think there might be a way to put this kind of narrative into a more mainstream kind of game? Or do you think it’s more relegated to projects like Ice-Bound ?
Aaron : Yeah, it’s a good question. I think it really requires new fundamental design ideas, which I think is really scary for any team that has a bigger budget, a lot of people, on the line. But if you are going to make the narrative the core mechanic of the game, there are only a couple of models for interactive narrative that are seen as well as understood, and branching paths is one of those, [along with] conversation trees [that are mainly] understood in the RPG domains, right?
But moving beyond those things, there are a lot fewer games that have done that successfully, so there aren’t as many existing models for people to base things on. So I think you do have to be in an environment where you’re able to take risks and try something new — an indie game will do that — [and] we’re all academics at UC Santa Cruz, and that’s another environment where you’re encouraged to take risks and try things that may or may not work out. But, yeah, it just takes people trying stuff until enough things work that a new model becomes apparent.
Gotcha. And I know you guys mentioned that the book draws people in, but are you also worried that it might be a barrier to entry? Because it’s fairly easy to get the app, but getting the book is going to be a little bit more difficult, even with the Kickstarter.
Aaron : Yeah, for sure.
Jacob : Yeah, I think the way we’re looking at approaching it is: You can play, and as you may have found by now, you can play the first part of the app, you can kind of get introduced to the first part of the system, and we’re hoping that offering it as an introductory experience in that way can draw people in. But it’s an interesting thing… we’re hoping to be increasing audiences from people who just play games but aren’t familiar with these really cool kinds of books, like Dictionary of the Khazars, stuff like that, and so we’re hoping to broaden those kinds of people’s minds, but we’re also hoping that people who are like: “Oh yeah, I’ll buy a book,” but are like “Oh, an app? Well I don’t know about this.” We’re hoping to hit both of these audiences, to make something that can kind of bridge the two. ‘Cause it’s a space that Aaron and I are both really interested in.
Yeah, that sounds really cool. I know one of the hard things is always trying to convince people to come to games if they haven’t before, and it’s always hard to get people to read if they don’t normally, of course.
Aaron : Yeah. From some of the places we’ve shown it so far, I would say almost every time, the person who ends up getting the most into it and spending the most time with is someone who doesn’t necessarily consider themselves a gamer. So you know, we see sometimes older people, or sometimes people who don’t think of themselves as primarily game players just get totally fascinated with it, and just spend 45 minutes with them, and eventually we just have to politely ask, you know, for someone else to have a chance. [laughs] So I think we do have that potential of it being something that feels accessible enough that you don’t have to have a lot of that pre-existing knowledge about operating a game. We’re hoping we can pull some of those people who would really enjoy it.
That’s it for part one — don’t want to overload anyone — but Part 2 will be around next Friday, and those of you who just can’t wait can look at our preview of the game’s first two chapters, as well as consider supporting the team’s Kickstarterto bring Ice-Bound’s physical book to everyone.
Fire Emblem: Awakening's surprising sales saved it from being the last in the series
It's a good thing that Fire Emblem: Awakening was the best-selling Fire Emblem game outside of Japan, because its surprising figures may have saved the series. In a recent Iwata Asks column, the team behind Awakening revealed that the game was intended to be the final chapter of the series. Ironically, this is what led to the implementation of many features that earned the game critical praise and
The THQ aftermath: Why did no-one buy Vigil?
Darksiders 2 may not have had the care and attention we like to see of a PC port, but that didn't hold back the game's tough, rewarding combat from making the game an overall enjoyable experience .
. So when the details of THQ's auction were revealed, it was a surprise to see that no-one had bid for Vigil. What gives?
As it turns out, the lack of interest shown in Vigil may have had nothing to do with the quality of the studio, as much as the timing of the sale. Speaking to Game Informer, THQ's president Jason Rubin touched on the difficulties with finding a home for Vigil. "Having just finished a product, Vigil was farthest from release of their next game, and we were not able to garner any interest from buyers, despite a herculean effort. Additionally, they were working on a new IP, which meant even more risk for a buyer."
Essentially, many of the bidders weren't just buying up a development studio, but also their games which, for the most part, were well into development. Relic were preparing for Company of Heroes 2's launch and Volition were well into development on the next Saints Row. Darksiders 2 released at the end of last August, giving the team less time to gear up and launch into development of their next project.
That project was codenamed Crawler, and it sounds like the team were extremely excited about the direction it was heading. In an emotional post to NeoGAF, made from an empty studio, Vigil's lead combat designer Ben Cureton wrote, "I knew, without a shadow of the doubt, that the project we were working on (Codenamed: Crawler) was going to blow people away. In fact, it DID blow people away. We did, in TWO months, what many companies haven't done in a year. The pride of knowing that no one was doing anything like us was so satisfying, it kept us coming to work and giving 100% every single day, even through the dark times."
Unfortunately funding a studio's development, marketing and staff costs for an untested new IP appears to be a risk that bidders involved in the THQ auction found too great. The situation likely wasn't helped by Darksider's 2 financial performance, which THQ's sales projections, taken from the first day motions, put at a loss.
The studio may have closed, but the Darksiders property, along with Vigil's staff, have attracted some interest. Platinum Games' JP Kellams tweeted atDearksiders 2's lead designer, asking him, and other staff members, to get in touch if they were interested in working with the Bayonetta developer. And Platinum's head Atsushi Inaba also tweeted his interest in picking up the franchise at the upcoming auction, saying (translated by Kotaku), "In THQ's studio and IP selling off auction, Darksiders is unsold? [We] wanna buy it...on the cheap..."
Here's hoping that both Darksiders and the studio's staff quickly find a home.
Thanks to Eurogamerfor the Platinum Games info, and to Distressed Debt Investing'sHunter for the analysis of THQ's first day motions.
Watch the cheesiest moments from Resident Evil Revelations
Ever since the cringeworthy dialogue of the first Resident Evil ("master of unlocking", anyone?), the series has been struggling to deliver a script worth taking seriously. Despite the production values and obvious time spent on the story, Resident Evil Revelations does not manage that feat. It's still utterly, wonderfully ludicrous, as our video montage is about to show you. Note: There aren't any
App Store Update: December 3 – ‘Jelly All Stars’, ‘Piyo Blocks’, ‘Tilt To Live’, + More
With hundreds of new apps making their debut, being updated, or dropping in price on the App Store everyday, it can be hard to keep up with the latest mobile indie games.
With hundreds of new apps making their debut, being updated, or dropping in price on the App Store everyday, it can be hard to keep up with the latest mobile indie games. We’ve sorted through them so you don’t have to. Here’s the latest in mobile indie games on iOS.
New Releases
Spaceteam – ( Free)
Do you like pushing buttons and shouting at your friends? Do you like discharging Clip-jawed Fluxtrunions? If you answered yes, or no, then you might have what it takes to be on a Spaceteam. You’ll be assigned a random control panel with buttons, switches, sliders, and dials. You need to follow time-sensitive instructions. However, the instructions are being sent to your teammates, so you have to coordinate before the time runs out. Also, the ship is falling apart. And you’re trying to outrun an exploding star.
Jelly All Stars – ()
Jelly All Stars presents puzzle action at its finest: put your reactions to the test and keep your eyes on the wonderfully jellied-colored prize! Your task is simple, yet challenging: In Jelly All Stars gamers have to sort the falling jellies by color and combine them to create six different super-sized Jellies. Special star jellies will destroy any other jellies of the same color that are adjacent to one another.
Price Drops
ARC Squadron – ()
An evil race known as the Guardians is taking over the universe, ravaging planets, and killing all peaceful life forms. You are the galaxy’s only hope for salvation. As an elite pilot serving in the ARC Squadron, you are tasked to take on the Guardians in head-to-head combat and bring down their empire.
Piyo Blocks – ( Free)
Your task is simple – swap adjacent Piyo Blocks to match 3 or more of the same kind to capture them. To level up you will need to capture a target number of each kind of Piyo. The real skill comes into play when creating combos, which multiplies your score for capturing the Piyos. The bigger the combo you create, the greater score you’ll get!
Tilt To Live – ( Free)
Would you enjoy unleashing a screaming flock of heat-seeking cluster missiles? A flash-freezing blast of glacial ice? Or transforming into a buzz saw of razor-sharp spikes? Then you’re in luck. That stuff is in this game. Help yourself to a variety of unique gametypes, unlockable weapons, and diabolical award challenges. No buttons or thumbsticks to fumble around with, just tilt. Tilt for your life.
Shin Megami Tensei IV cross-promotion with Fire Emblem: Awakening
If you like JRPGs, there's a good chance you plan on buying Shin Megami Tensei IV on July 16. There's also a good chance you already own Fire Emblem: Awakening . There's also a good chance you wouldn't mind $30 in eShop credit just for registering both of them with Club Nintendo . It's a unique cross-promotion between the Atlus and Nintendo series, and an appealing way to make sure fans of either series
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance coming to PC/Steam "any day now"
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is not just a candidate for the best/worst-named game of all time - it's also a curious, OTT offshoot of Konami's famous sneak-'em-up series, made by the masters of fast-paced action titles, Platinum Games.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is not just a candidate for the best/worst-named game of all time - it's also a curious, OTT offshoot of Konami's famous sneak-'em-up series, made by the masters of fast-paced action titles, Platinum Games. A PC version was announced several months ago, but since then things have been unusually quiet for ridiculously outfitted cyborg ninja Raiden. UNTIL NOW. Konami have revealed on their official podcast, KP Alert!, that the port is in its "final stages" and coming "sooner than you might imagine". More than that, "you'll be seeing it pop up on Steam any day now". To paraphrase one of Metal Gear's stupid guards, "!"
I've played a bit of the game on 360, and I can't say I got to grips with its lightning-fast combat and trickily precise swordfighting mechanic. In fact, I was better at the sublimely ridiculous Bayonetta, for which I've abandoned all hope of a PC port. Despite being a little more divisive than many of their titles, Revengeance (I love typing that) is a Platinum game through and through - i.e. completely, robo-batshit crazy.
Here's a rather exciting trailer for the console versions of the game:
(Thanks to Metal Gear Informer)
Watch us get eaten by wolves in this Resident Evil Revelations GR Gameplay video
Resident Evil Revelations has been out in the UK for a few days, but American fans have to wait until next Tuesday to enjoy the portable, survival horror goodness . For those curious about what they’re missing in the new game, editors Henry Gilbert and Lorenzo Veloria played through the second episode of the 3DS game which features Chris Redfield and the leggy Jessica battle both the snow and monstrous wolves. We hope you enjoy the stage, but please note that Henry’s gaming skills were severely impacted by playing on a far-off computer monitor and talking at the same time. Don’t judge his performance too harshly…
Apple brings 'Metal' graphics optimization tech to iOS 8
Today in San Francisco at its annual WWDC conference, Apple has unveiled a new graphics technology to better power game graphics on its iOS devices.
Today in San Francisco at its annual WWDC conference, Apple has unveiled a new graphics technology to better power game graphics on its iOS devices. Called Metal, it's a proprietary technology that, according to Apple, drastically reduces processing overhead as compared to systems like OpenGL, offering vastly better performance.
Metal will launch alongside iOS 8, which is due this fall. It is designed to work with the Apple A7 chip, which powers the iPhone 5S, and current iPad Air and iPad Mini tablets.
The tech has reportedly been developed in cooperation with engine and game companies such as Unity, Crytek, EA, and Epic Games, Re/code reports. Epic Games' Tim Sweeney took the stage at WWDC to demonstrate an Unreal Engine 4 "Zen Garden" demo created using Metal, which will be distributed on the App Store alongside the upcoming iOS 8.
Metal has also been incorporated in the mobile version of Crytek's CryEngine and EA's Frostbite, reports MacRumors. Unity is also supporting Metal. Here's the reaction from its official Twitter:
We're so excited about bringing Metal to our developers with iOS 8! #WWDC14 #unity3d
— Unity Technologies (@unity3d) June 2, 2014Appleits official site with a tidbit on Metal, which reads in part: "Metal is a new technology that will allow [developers] to squeeze maximum performance from the A7 chip. It’s optimized to allow the CPU and GPU to work together to achieve optimal performance. It’s designed for multithreading, and there are great tools for putting it all together in Xcode."
Shin Megami Tensei meets Fire Emblem in new Wii U mashup
Nintendo has announced a new collaboration with Atlus to bring a new game to Wii U combining the universes of Fire Emblem and Shin Megami Tensei. The announcement was made during a Nintendo Direct broadcast which also announced a new 3D Mario adventure and an HD remake of The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker , among others. No other details about the game were given, although there was a brief video showing