Michael John: Games are a great way to explore complex social issues

In his Thursday GDC talk, Michael John observed that video games are fundamentally similar to activism.

observed that video games are fundamentally similar to activism. "Games are about verbs acting on a system," he said. "That's also what it means to be an activist."

John spent 25 years working in the commercial industry on franchises like Spyro and Daxter. He's now program director at the UC Santa Cruz Games & Playable Media program, and has been creating and consulting on serious game projects for the last four years.

At GDC, he described his experience with serious games, and he had a message for developers: you are both needed and wanted.

John says he's met with (and brainstormed with) people from outfits like the Carnegie Corporation, the MacArthur Foundation, N Square, Ploughshares Fund. The caricature in the past is that these companies were willing to fund serious games, but that they were clueless about what games are and what they can do. That's not John's impression. His main takeaway for GDC attendees: "Smart people are learning that who they want to talk to is you ."

John suggested that stories and linear narratives can be a powerful way to highlight social issues, such as the documentary Blackfish. But he points out that An Inconvenient Truth--the book and the documentary--have not had a similar impact. In fact, polling shows that more people don't believe in global warming now than when the book was release.

"Sometimes linear media fails," he says. "It has a fundamental problem--it can only show one aspect of a complex situation, only one of many potential outcomes. Stories are effective but reductive; they're the most efficient form of data compression in world."

John suggests that interactivity may be a better way to convey messages about complex systems. , "Global warming is complicated--maybe a game could do it better,' he says. "The complexity of games is what makes them special. A game with lots of marginal win states...is a good game."

There are lots of other issues out there. For example, the growth in antibiotic resistance, which is worsened by over prescription and people failing to take the full course of antibiotics once they've been prescribed. "The only way you can really understand this problem is if you know how evolution works, and that's a complicated thing," he says.

John pointed out that there are more and more financial incentives to explore serious games--for instance, Games For Change is running $10K challenges for games that encourage savings or educate about climate issues. He invited developers interested in learning more to subscribe to the Level Up Report newsletter, and join the Games Make GoodFacebook group.

Score some swag for F2P shooter Repulse [Giveaway]

If you're going to succeed in the awfully-crowded F2P FPS market, you're going to have to find a way to set yourself apart.

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If you're going to succeed in the awfully-crowded F2P FPS market, you're going to have to find a way to set yourself apart. Aeria Games' latest run-'n'-gun, Repulse, has all the usual modes we've come to expect: Deathmatch, CTF, infection (known here as Invasion), and objective-based maps. But the game's movement abilities are what really stand out. And we're here to help you start playing in style, right from the get-go, without setting foot in the item shop. We're giving away 2,000 codes for a sweet item-bundle, but hurry—these firearms are on a first-come, first-serve basis.

You've got three acrobatic aerial moves at your disposal—wall jumps let you bounce around like the Prince of Persia, dodges feel straight out of Unreal Tournament 2004, and the boost jump simply launches you halfway across the room in the blink of an eye, almost like a fool-proof rocket jump. If stealth is more your thing, the Sniper class can cloak himself, letting you take potshots 'til the cows come home. These are the kind of mobility options we wanted from games like Brink—only this game won't cost you a cent.

GamesRadar has done us the kindness of hosting the codes; hop over to their giveaway pageand log into (or create) a GamesRadar account. Follow the instructions there, then get ready to flaunt your bitchin' Chameleon combat armor and gold-plated railgun.

Monster In My Pocket: The Early History Of Pokémon

Monster In My Pocket: The Early History Of Pokémon One game. Two versions. Eight gyms. 151 monsters. However you crunch the numbers, 1996 was the Year of the Monster as Nintendo unleashed two versions of a game called Pocket Monsters upon the world for the first time, presumably as unaware as we were that it would go on to become one of the greatest gaming phenomena of all time. With support from an

Why I'm so excited for Realm of the Titans

Multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs) are hot right now.

samurai thumb

Multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs) are hot right now. League of Legends, Heroes of Newerth, Dota 2, and Rise of Immortals are just some of the high-quality arena games out or on their way that will be competing for our gaming time. Developers are beginning to notice that when you combine players' natural love for savagely owning their opponents with the free-to-play model, there's a lot of fun and money to be had. But the creep-farming, kill-spreeing craze isn't limited to the US. China's biggest MOBA, known overseas as Tianyijue, is being brought stateside by Aeria Games as Realm of the Titans. And I am completely freaking out about it (in a good way). Let me tell you why you should be too.

I consider myself the resident MOBA nut at PC Gamer. I'm no professional last-hitter, mind you, but I thoroughly enjoy a raucous round of ganking, teamfights and smacktalking/yelling at opponents and teammates alike. DotA facilitated some of my best friendships in both high school and college, through endless trash-talking and forgoing sleep the night before exams to avenge particularly harsh losses. From what I've seen, I'm convinced that the free-to-play MOBA Realm of the Titans (RotT) was designed with these kinds of hardcore-DotA fanatics in mind. Gameplay will feel instantly familiar to any MOBA fan: teams of heroes fight against each other and waves of AI creeps, coordinating themselves across three lanes to snag kills and destroy the enemy base. Each hero has four unique abilities, most of which involve violently killing your adversaries in some gore-rific way.

But my history with DotA isn't the main reason I'm more excited for RotT than a teen girl at a Twilight screening hosted by Justin Beiber. It's actually because RotT reminds me of a different game, which has an even more nostalgic place in my heart: Tides of Blood. This little-known competitor to DotA Allstars was in many ways—GASP!—better than its predecessor. Four lanes. Shops where you could recruit cavalry, repairmen, and siege units. Portals that transport you around the map. Vaults that you could destroy to deny your enemies their passive gold income. Four inhibitors total. Hands down the best hero re-skins I have ever seen in a W3 custom map.I could literally go on for hours about how much I loved this map.

In fact, ToB was so good that even the DotA guys took notice, and (I believe) plagiarized what would become many of DotA's most iconic elements. Lina Inverse, the hot Slayer that shoots huge fiery phoenixes? Ripoff of Jean from ToB. The Admiral's ghost-ship ultimate is a shameless copyof the ultimate belonging to ToB's rendition of Cervantes from Soul Calibur. You may cry foul at what I'm saying (bring it in the comments, suckas!), but if you're a true Warcraft 3 custom-map OG, search your feelings—you know it to be true.

But what does all my pent-up resentment towards ToB's lack of mainstream success have to do with the present day? RotT is willing to tweak the standard DotA formula and try to innovate, making what was old new again (no, HoN doesn't count). Instead of the same old lush forest vs. blighted, demonic base, RotT has fun with the environment: the first team sets up camp in a dense tropical jungle, complete with palm trees, and charge into battle on medieval-style terrain. RotT also takes map control to a new level, letting players commandeer control points scattered around the map to increase their minion count and push through enemy waves. You can even unleash a mega-creep at the opportune moment to wreak havoc on the poor nubs who stand before you. RotT mirrors ToB (probably unbeknownst to Aeria Games) in many of the exact ways that made me fall in love with that fantastic and under-appreciated gem.

I don't think that originally being developed in China will make RotT any less appealing to American audiences. The dev team at Ningbo SG-TY, who designed Realm of the Titans, includes ex-DotA pros, and I always love the artwork and style of Asian games (ask anyone who's seen the Chinese League of Legend splash imagesif they prefer the US or Asian versions).

Let me submit one more piece of evidence for my argument. Presenting, Exhibit E: awesome video that reveals one of the new champions—the Samurai Spirit. A feared but revered leader, General Takeshi was finally taken down on the field of battle—but not before fusing his essence into a nearby suit of armor. Now Takeshi's back in the thick of combat, this time as the Samurai Spirit, and he's pissed.

Now that you've watched it, you have a choice. You can choose to not care about RotT—which I would say is a mistake, but one I have no control over—or you can, like me, look forward to playing another MOBA that attempts to build on DotA, instead of retreading ground that's already been covered. Right now, this is my most anticipated game of 2011. If you're excited about it too, you can sign up for the closed beta at the Realm of the Titans homepage.

Battleborn system requirements revealed, no 4K support at launch

2K Games has dropped a big Battleborn info dump that helpfully collects everything you ever wanted to know about the upcoming FPS/MOBA hybrid but were afraid to ask.

Battleborn Hero art

info dump that helpfully collects everything you ever wanted to know about the upcoming FPS/MOBA hybrid but were afraid to ask. Highlights include a rundown of Hardcore Mode, which ramps up the Story Mode with “extra loot, all new unlockable content, and some really, REALLY tough fights,” as well as a brief overview of the three Competitive Multiplayer modes—Incursion, Capture, and Meltdown—a look at the character progression systems, and most important of all, the system requirements.

OS : Windows 7 x64-Bit or Later CPU : Intel i5-750 / AMD Phenom IIx4 945 RAM : 6 GB Hard Drive : 30 GB free Video Memory : 1 GB Minimum Required Video Card : AMD HD 6870/ NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 or better, PhysX support Sound : DirectX 11 Input : Keyboard or dual-analog gameplay OS : Windows 7 x64-Bit or Later CPU : Intel i5-750 / AMD Phenom IIx4 945 RAM : 6 GB Hard Drive : 50 GB free Video Memory : 2 GB Recommended Video Card : AMD HD 7850/ NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 or better, PhysX support Sound : DirectX 11 Input : Keyboard or dual-analog gamepad

Interestingly, Battleborn will support “general gamepads” and PS4 and Xbox One controllers at launch, but Steam controller support won't be implemented until sometime after it comes out. It also won't support 4K or “off-sized displays,” although Gearbox/2K are “actively investigating both.”

The blog postalso includes a link to the Battleborn “ prequel comic,” a multimedia extravaganza of exposition that sets the stage for the battle for the fate of the star Solus. The first part, Running the Numbers, is viewable now, while the second and third parts are “coming soon.” And that's probably no lie: The Battleborn open beta begins on April 13, and the “series premiere” is set for May 3.

Exclusive: Realm of the Titans' adaptable Skill system unveiled

Hold on to your "I Pwn n00bs" hats, MOBA fans--an onslaught of Realm of the Titans info is just one click away.

Hey who got Finding Nemo in my MOBA game

Aeria Games' entry into the DotA-inspired genreis starting to take shape as Alpha testing kicks off this Thursday. Not only do we have the exclusive first look at the Titan Skills system, an incredibly tactical addition to the genre's 5v5 teamfights, but we'll also give you a look at another of the game's unique heroes.

The Skills system is all about adaptation (real adaptation, not Nicholas Cage's 2002 drama). At the start of each match, every player chooses a Titan Skill ability in addition to their hero's four default abilities. Titan Skills come in both active and passive varieties, and (as is typical of extra abilities) get stronger every 10 minutes, ensuring that they never feel underpowered. "But wait!" you say, "League of Legends' Summoner spells do the exact same thing, and you get two of them!" Settle down there, little buddy--you didn't let me finish.

Instead of offering 13 abilities, as LoL does, ROTT's Titan Skills encompass a whopping 25 external abilities that can be used on any hero. And, more importantly, you can swap your Titan Skill every 3 minutes. This is big. Matches tend to go through phases--laning, ganking teamfights, etc.--and now you can swap out your extra skills to best match the environment or to specifically counter your opponents tactics. The implications that this seemingly small change has on team strategies is colossal.

For a taste of how the Skills System can work, see how Aeria Games explains its value in their press release:

"For example, say I'm playing a melee hero and I choose to start with the life steal Titan skill, Draining Power. Late in the game, I buy an item that gives my hero life steal, so I won't need that skill anymore. What my hero needs now is increased movement speed/attack speed. I could swap out Draining Power for the Frenzy skill, which increases attack and movement speed for a short duration, but also increases the damage my hero takes. Unfortunately for me, Frenzy is getting my hero killed too often because of the increased damage he's taking. After the 3-minute cooldown period, I decide to choose the Teleport skill instead so I can quickly move around the map. The Titan Skills system is specifically designed to reward players for adaptive thinking and inventive game play."

Want a few more examples of the various Titan Skills? Ask, and ye shall receive:

Meditation - Increases Mana Recovery Rate when out of combat. Resets for 5 seconds after entering combat. Frenzy - Increases Attack Speed and Movement, but you take additional Damage from attacks; Lasts 12 seconds. Fire Ball – Launches a fire ball to hurt enemies. Purify - Purifies the target, removing negative status effects from allies and positive ones from enemies. Teleport – Transports you to one of your side's buildings, to an allied stronghold or an enemy control point. Draining Power - Adds life steal to attacks. Power Transfer - Transfers part of Mana consumed to Health.

It's often too easy to feel underpowered in existing MOBA games, due to your extra skill not being ideal for the matchup (which you only see after you pick your skills), ala picking Ignite in LoL against a team full of tanky DPS champions. I love that the Titan Skills system leaves the strategy wide open, and coordinated teams can easily use skill-swapping to gain the advantage. Imagine all five of your team's heroes swapping to Teleport, then warping around the map as a quintet of ganking fury. Or, everybody switching to Fire Ball to insta-gib the enemy's annoying carry before they can do any damage. With 25 Titan Skills to pick from, the possibilities seem limitless. I personally can't wait to see how masterful players use this skill-swapping to constantly keep their opponents on their toes.

Oh, that isn't enough ROTT info for ya? In that case, meet the Tide Walker. This melee/caster hybrid hero is one monster you definitely don't want to encounter in dark water, and his aqua abilities will wash away his enemies as he smacks them with his intimidating sharpened-bone-pitchfork. Here's the breakdown of the Tide Walker's aquatic abilities:

Ocean Blast - Targets a single unit and causes area damage. Decreases Movement. Surging Whirlpool - Transforms into a whirlpool, and dashes into one single point. Sucks enemies into the whirlpool. Wave Attack - 25% chance of creating a wave during attacks, causing damage to enemies. Cooldown period is 0.8 seconds. Tidal Wave (Ultimate) - Creates a wave that appears at range 1000 behind the caster, and travels 2000 ahead in your current direction. It deals damage to any enemy in the way, and repels the enemy backward. Damage and repelling force is based on the distance the wave has already traveled.

With the Tide Walker's ability to single out his target and push their allies away, it sounds like he'll be a great initiator. If you're interested in checking out this game, now's the time to sign up for the Realm of the Titans closed beta, as slots will start opening soon.

Secrets of the Project Trico trailer revealed

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Get a free weekend of Marvel Heroes thanks to Iron Man 3's existence

Since seeing Iron Man 3, I've been plagued by the vaguely disturbing image of Robert Downey Jr.

Since seeing Iron Man 3, I've been plagued by the vaguely disturbing image of Robert Downey Jr. gyrating to funked-up Christmas tunes as Iron Man parts fly at his body. That's nice and all, but I want some badassery again. It's pretty convenient, then, that Marvel Heroes is having a free open beta weekend to celebrate the film's release. Time to experience what superheroism is really about!

Thanks to Iron Man 3 officially being a thing as of May 3, free-to-play, beat-'em-up MMO will be opening its access to anyone who has an account on the Marvel Heroes site. As you might presume, it's a game about beating your foes till candy comes out - our previewof it last year revealed some promising gameplay.

How to join the fisticuffs, you ask? Register an account, get online anytime from 7 PM PDT on Friday May 3 onwards, and commence the super-powered fun. The open beta will last till 10am PDT on the following Monday. If you've already been playing in the closed beta, then you should know the lineup of free starter heroes has been altered—this weekend, you'll be able to choose from Captain America, Black Widow, Thor, Hulk, and (of course) Iron Man himself.

F.E.A.R. Online open beta precedes full launch on Steam in October

In many ways, F.E.A.R.

F E A R Online

is very much like Highlander: I loved the original and remain a fan even though it's well past its 'best before' date, and I try not to think too much about anything that came after. Now, with the announcement that F.E.A.R. Online is just a few weeks out, I once again find myself stretching the analogy to ask if there really can only be one.

F.E.A.R. Online is a free-to-play online shooter that pits the First Encounter Assault Recon team against the elite soldiers of the Armacham Technology Corporation, and both of them against a raft of supernatural horrors. It was announced last summerand entered closed betathis past May, after which it underwent an "extensive redesign" based on player feedback.

Aeria Games didn't get into what exactly was changed in that overhaul, but it did say in the announcement of the looming launch on Steam that the game will feature "several" modes of gameplay (two PvE and five PvP, from what I can tell) across more than ten maps. The action will range from straight-up Team Deathmatch to a cooperative "scenario mode" for up to four players, a "knife mode" that seems fairly self-explanatory, and even the " Soul King" mode from FEAR 3, in which players compete to possess enemies and collect the souls of the fallen.

For those who want a (slightly) advanced look at the game, a brief open beta will begin on October 8 and run until October 17, when the whole thing goes live on Steam. Details and sign-up links are up now at Aeria's F.E.A.R. Online portal.

Firaxis comments on XCOM: Enemy Unknown modding plans

Firaxis hit the deployment hangar for its DLC plans rather fast with its announcement of the Slingshot mission pack yesterday, but it's yet to give a go-ahead for full modding support.

yesterday, but it's yet to give a go-ahead for full modding support. Speaking to Joystiq, Firaxis Producer Garth DeAngelis stated modding wasn't one of their "core pillars" during development.

"It's something that we'd like to resolve going forward, but we still have quite a few things on our plate that have been planned for a while," he said. That predictably entails an established DLC release schedule in the short-term, though the departure in attitude from Firaxis' mod-happy Civilization franchise is still surprising.

Dark0ne of the XCOM Nexus modding networkoffered a terse response, writing, "If you're cynical, like me, that reads as 'We'll maybe talk about mods after we've milked the DLC for all their worth.' Not that you can hold it against Firaxis. After all, they're a business. But for people who care more about mods than they do about lackluster DLC, it's a blow." Meanwhile, savvy INI tweaks such as difficulty adjustments and the re-enabling of Second Wave optionscontinue piling up.

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Our Verdict
Under-delivers on the promise of the licence.

Under-delivers on the promise of the licence. A middling action-RPG that youd have to be a Marvel fan to love.

Comics are a simple combination of ideas that result in something varied and complex. The many possible permutations of image and text provide a huge amount of freedom for creative people to express themselves, and the superhero genre neatly encapsulates this idea. The best superhero comics manipulate the medium to serve their star character, be that a depiction of Spider-Man where the wall-crawler's never quite the right way up, or the world of blind vigilante Daredevil rendered as directional sound.

Action-RPGs like Marvel Heroes are a complex combination of mechanics that result in something deceptively simple: an isometric button-basher where you punch thugs until loot and experience fall out. Unlike comics, the action-RPG doesn't permit much variation on its core formula, and this makes it a singularly poor way to express the personality of characters designed for a more flexible form.

As a realisation of the superhero fantasy – particularly, the fantasy of playing as one of Marvel's iconic characters – Marvel Heroes falls flat. Every character has been boiled down to an essential set of powers, split between ranged nukers, crowd controllers, melee brawlers and so on. Having chosen your first character from a set of second-tier heroes, you proceed to click-click-click your way through twelve or so hours of multiplayer-ish campaign split across eight acts.

The format has a chilling effect on each character's identity. Until you unlock your movement power around level 14, there's no flying, web-slinging, or jetpacking across each area – you'll run like everyone else. Given how crucial the vertical dimension is to the fantasy of being, say, Spider-Man, the mismatch is immediate and obvious.


"Until level 14, there's no flying, web-slinging, or jetpacking."

Marvel Heroes tries to bridge the divide with special abilities that take into account each character's skillset – a web-swinging strike, for example, or Thor's hammer-forward dash – but the sense is always of a three-dimensional peg being rammed into a two-dimensional hole. You're stuck with Horizontal Spider-Man, which turns out to be far less sexy than it sounds.

This is a serious problem for Marvel Heroes because, as a free-to-play game, its payment structure is built around the idea that you'll always be coveting the next new hero. You'll get two for free, and after that you're asked to look to the in-game store – unless you want to wait for an incredibly rare, it-never-happened-to-me drop. Heroes are priced by popularity, the range running from £4 / $6 to an astonishing £14 / $20 for an A-lister like Iron Man.

Marvel Heroes' MMO component manifests as open zones where players can roam in packs dispatching endlessly-respawning enemies ad infinitum. This compounds the deep unsuitability of the Marvel licence: the excitement you feel after you drop a tenner on Thor is likely to last about as long as it takes you to run into another five identical Thors out in the wilderness. Furthermore, character appearance is almost entirely tied to your costume, a premium single-slot item: the equipment you hoover up from your enemies simply provides a stat boost. If you've ever enjoyed showing off your wicked new pauldrons in Diablo, well, you can't do that here.

The game attempts to patch some of these issues with a plot involving Doctor Doom and multiple dimensions and etcetera, and in this regard it's at least true to its comic heritage – but as comics have slowly learned over the years, piling on a load of cosmic wiffle can't transform a bad idea into a good one.

Expect to pay: Free-to-play Release: Out now Developer: Gazillion Entertainment Publisher: In-house Multiplayer MMO-ish Link www.marvelheroes.com

The Verdict

Marvel Heroes

Under-delivers on the promise of the licence. A middling action-RPG that youd have to be a Marvel fan to love.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Chris is the editor of PC Gamer Pro. After many years spent turning beautiful trees into magazines, he now oversees our online coverage of competitive gaming and esports.

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F.E.A.R. Online enters closed beta next week; applications now open

For those of us who like to feel scared when shooting at things, F.E.A.R.

F.E.A.R. Onlinewill enter closed beta on May 26. The free-to-play shooter is in development by Korean studio Inplay Interactive, and several have already had the opportunity to try the game in its alpha stage. Based on feedback from that period, the studio has added new maps, overhauled the crafting system to allow for "one-of-a-kind weapons", fixed a bunch of bugs and added a new scenario.

According to the game's first announcement last year, F.E.A.R. Online will "focus on several team combat modes spanning over ten ominous maps packed with grotesque details such as still-twitching bodies hanging from meat hooks and messages smeared in blood." Which is just charming. I think we can all agree that one thing sorely lacking in modern free-to-play shooters is bodies hanging from meat hooks.

The May 26 beta can be signed up for on the official F.E.A.R. Online website.

Here's last year's teaser trailer to get you in the mood (or scare you away).

XCOM: Enemy Unknown Slingshot DLC heads to China, adds new squad character

Yesterday we let our speculation over XCOM's inevitable DLC run as rampantly as a panicked Sectoid, but 2K and Firaxis have their own vision for XCOM's post-release content.

over XCOM's inevitable DLC run as rampantly as a panicked Sectoid, but 2K and Firaxis have their own vision for XCOM's post-release content. Today they announce the impending deployment of Slingshot, a tri-Council-mission campaign set in a besieged China featuring a new playable squad character, enhanced customization options, and a couple research shortcuts.

While in China, the XCOM organization encounters a lone Triad VIP sporting a unique look and voice for escort in the first mission, after which he dons the bulky armor and rock-and-roll cannons of a Heavy and joins your squad with increased stats. GameSpy's report carries further details on Slingshot's aesthetic—for one, China looks appropriately Asian-themed instead of Urban Ruins Template 12-A. The remaining two missions involve a UFO boarding action in the skies above Asia.

Completing all three of Slingshot's missions unlocks a research shortcut to the almighty Blaster Launcher and Fusion Lance weapons, both normally end-game technologies with significant R&D time for acquisition. Alternative appearances for Titan, Ghost, Archangel, and Psi armors, as well as more hairstyles and helmets round out Slingshot's increased customization options for your soldiers. At the same time, Slingshot misses its 20 percent opportunity for brand new aliens, equipment, and abilities—content many commanders clamored for since XCOM's launch but somehow missing from Firaxis' first DLC offering.

Slingshot lacks a release date yet beyond a cryptic "soon" from Firaxis. In the meantime, the rest of humanity still needs saving. Get to it, commander!

Marvel Heroes zaps onto PCs June 4

Marvel Heroes is set to strap on its spandex and do that cool snikt noise with its adamantium claws on June 4, when the Diablo-inspired MMORPG hits PCs for free.

noise with its adamantium claws on June 4, when the Diablo-inspired MMORPG hits PCs for free. Those who plopped down some dough for one of three Founders pre-order packscan jump in a week early on May 28.

Marvel Heroes boasts some powerful names driving its content at Gazillion, including Diablo designer David Brevik and Marvel comic writer Brian Bendis. Instead of creating a custom hero, you'll step into the boots of an iconic character from the comics and take control of their unique ability sets. At launch, you'll have access to Daredevil, Storm, Thing, Scarlet Witch, and Hawkeye for free, and spending in-game currency unlocks additional do-gooders to, er, do good with such as Wolverine, Thor, and Deadpool.

CCP Games teases VR frisbee combat for the Rift and Vive

EVE Online developer CCP Games is no stranger to virtual reality, having spent the past few years working on EVE: Valkyrie , a space dogfighting sim for the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and PSVR.

That's not all the studio has been working on, however, and, as reported by Road to VR, the team showed off an entirely different experience at this year's EVE Fanfest; Project Arena .

A VR combat simulator for the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, Project Arena transports players to a digital arena, and asks them to hurl luminous frisbees at each other.

If it sounds a bit like Tron's neon-addled duels to the death, that's because it is, with the discs doubling as both an offensive projectile and defensive shield.

CCP hasn't revealed exactly how Arena utilizes Vive or Rift tech, aside from the fact that it makes use of Oculus' Touch controllers, but a newly released demo video does at least give us a chance to see the game in action.

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Marvel Heroes MMO launch window confirmed; starter packs detailed

Marvel Heroes will finally launch in Spring, and for those especially eager there's a few limited-edition starter packs that will grant early access to the free-to-play title.

Marvel Heroes will finally launch in Spring, and for those especially eager there's a few limited-edition starter packs that will grant early access to the free-to-play title. The Windows game, developed by Gazillion Entertainment, boasts Marvel-vet Brian Michael Bendis as a writer, and has risen from the ashes of Marvel Universe Online - a canned Cryptic Studios effort.

Gazillion has detailed three a three-tiered Founders Program, which is detailed below. These comprise a Starter Pack, a Premium Pack and an Ultimate Pack, with the first two containing several options to choose from, and the latter containing everything. There's a lot to digest, so head over to the siteand check it out.

According to the release, Gazillion president David Brevik said the starter packs offer an advantage to those who want to play as a specific character right from the start. "The Founders Program gives players the opportunity to play as their favorite hero from the day we launch in addition to enough in-game currency to buy more heroes and costumes as we release new content."

StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm videos show new multiplayer units in action

Here they are, the new multiplayer units we'll be getting to grips with in StarCraft 2's first expansion, Heart of the Swarm.

Here they are, the new multiplayer units we'll be getting to grips with in StarCraft 2's first expansion, Heart of the Swarm. They're a tricky bunch to be sure. The zerg have a new breed of burrower that churns out malicious slugs FOREVER. Their snake-like fliers can drag distant units away with their tongues. The Protoss Oracle can encase minerals in a glowing forcefield of denial, and the new Battle Hellions can transform into close combat robots. You can get a closer look at how the Protoss and Zerg units will work in a match context with this battle report video spotted by Evil Avatar, shoutcasted by Day9 and Blizzard's Rob Simpson. Those long-range Protoss Tempest ships look strong.

Ubisoft is smart to confirm Assassin's Creed Unity leaks

There was never a question about when the next Assassin's Creed game would be coming out--you knew it would be this year just as much as we did. Rather, the question was where it would take place. We'd speculated about plenty of potential time periods and locations in the past few months: Would it be set in 14th Century Japan? 13th Century Egypt, perhaps? Turns out, the answer is neither. Earlier this

Today's other news: Guild Wars 2 gets patched, War of the Roses releases

It isn't a long list today, but it's a good lookin' list.

It isn't a long list today, but it's a good lookin' list. Guild Wars 2 was patched, War of the Roses was released, and YouTube videos want to be watched.

to all on Steam. Check out some of our recent impressionsof the metal mosh pit while the review cooks. for today's Guild Wars 2 patch. Spoiler: certain music now plays! Free-to-play shooter Guns And Robots got a trailer showing off its garage, where you stick guns on Number 5. in Kerbal Space Program, which is neat. Marvel Heroes closed beta registration has begun. This is the special "write your own joke" section of the list, by the way.

Obviously, the biggest thing happening this week is the MLG Winter Championship tournament, which is

getting started right now in Columbus, Ohio. You can find more on that here , with links to the details about how you can watch it. If you miss the start of the tournament, never fear, this handy schedule will let you find your way to some quality matches tonight. What else has been happening?

What else has been happening? Evil Geniuses took first-place in the joinDota Masters tournamentover Next.kz, but the real story of the tournament was an 86-minute siege against Mousesports. You can watch the entire match above, in which caster Tobi Wan nearly has a series of massive heart-attacks.

The Global StarCraft Team League (GSTL) season took an unexpected turn as the powerhouse Incredible Miracle team and the SlayerS team faltered against upstarts FXOpen and New Star HoSeo. I missed these matches, but you can see a great write-up and analysis over at the invaluable esfiworld.com.

Day[9] had some interesting things to sayto Forbes about the future of eSports and the proliferation of competitive leagues. Plott's big takeaway:

"I think it is a mistake to see IGN as a mere competitor to MLG or to regard one as cannibalizing the audience of the other. The fact of the matter is that we are seeing the emergence of an entire eSports ecosystem in response to audience growth. Right now, we are enjoying a period where there is more appetite for eSports content than any one provider can fulfill."

He also points out something I wonder about, which is whether "seasons" really exist for anyone but the leagues. Plott's response to the MLG's use of "seasons" seems to be on the money: "I think the jury is still out on that. Right now there are so many tournaments being offered that pro gamers are beginning to have to choose between them. Quite frankly, I think the pro gamers are just going to view these as another bunch of tournaments and not see them as a season at all."

I'm not sure how I feel about that. It's great to see more good competition, but is the drama really there if there are four championships each year, in addition to all the other prestigious leagues running their own tournaments?

Of course, none of this is set in stone. MLG CEO Sundance DiGiovanni would be the first to admit they are still figuring out how MLG should coexist with other leagues and championships.

As always, be sure to give shout-outs in the comments about other worthy eSports events happening this weekend, and any highlights we should revisit from the past week.

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Our Verdict
Although its foundation in Civ 5 makes it familiar, Beyond Earth is full of interesting surprises that are pleasantly difficult to master.

need to know

What is it? Classic 4x strategy game and spiritual successor to Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri.
Price: $50 / £30
Release Date: Oct 24, 2014
Publisher: 2K
Developer: Firaxis Games
Multiplayer: Up to 8 players for traditional or hot seat multiplayer
Link: Official site

Beyond Earth begins with the very sci-fi premise of “What if?” What if you took Civilization, the classic turn-based grand strategy game, and made one of its signature endings the beginning of a whole new game?

In Civilization, you can win the game by building a spaceship to launch your civilization into space, in search of a new world. Beyond Earth takes that ending and makes it a beginning. You are now on that new world: Go.

The result is a game that succeeds in almost exactly the same way as it fails; a major case of cognitive dissonance. Beyond Earth, while bearing many attributes of a brand new game, is based in Civilization 5’s engine and mechanics. It is in many ways exactly the same game as Civ 5, just spacier.

Is that a problem? That depends on how much you like Civ 5, and how willing you are to take the ride and give Beyond Earth’s new space look a shot.

For me it was a problem all through my first game. I played as the Brazilian civ, with its bonus to melee combat. Being a Civ veteran, I, without even realizing it, ported over my go-to Civ strategy of focusing on strength in the early age to build the foundation of a strong late-game civilization. And then, turn-by-turn, I played the game almost on auto-pilot.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, I didn’t enjoy the experience. And it took me losing that game and having to step away and reassess how I was approaching it in order to learn how to love it.


New world

Beyond Earth has a lot of new looks: new units, new victories, a completely new tech tree (actually, it’s a web), new leaders, new civilizations and a handful of things under the hood that are also completely new. But the experience of cracking it open, watching my colony ship settle onto a completely dark map and then setting foot onto this alien world felt just like playing Civ 5—at first.

On the one hand, there are many worse 4X strategy games to emulate than Civ 5, and as that game’s expansions have proved, while it redesigned much of the original Civ formula, it left a lot of room on the table for reinventing itself. Beyond Earth brings some of the better reinventions along with it. Trade routes feature prominently in Beyond Earth, for one thing, as does a new strategic component much like Gods & Kings’s religions, called Affinities.

Affinities allow you to evolve your Beyond Earth civ beyond its human origins, focusing research on technologies that will play to how you want to interface with your new world and its inhabitants.

The Harmony affinity is what it sounds like, allowing you to meld with the new planet’s lifeforms and create new alien units. Purity focuses on genetic manipulation of the human genome to build better versions of your civ. Finally, Supremacy lets you make your civ’s humans into cyborgs with giant robot friends.

Each affinity allows for slightly different victories and affinity-only units, and can have a dramatic effect on your overall game. Specializing in Supremacy will unlock robot soldiers, for example. Whereas the Harmony affinity will grant you access to alien-based units and the ability to tolerate the new world’s harsh alien environment. Other civs will respond to you (or not) based on your affinity, and actions you take in the world can impact your affinity score.

Besides, who doesn’t like launching stuff into space?​

on alpha centauri

It’s impossible to play Beyond Earth without comparing it to the 'other' Civ-in-space game, Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri.
One of the first games developed by Firaxis following its founders’ departure from Microprose, Alpha Centauri had the benefit of the expertise of Civilization Creator Sid Meier, but without the Civilization IP. Firaxis has since regained many IPs from now-defunct Microprose, but due to the vagaries of the game business, Alpha Centauri resides with its publisher, EA.
I played Alpha Centauri extensively during a long Late Winter in San Francisco. I was taken in by the living world aspect and the deep narrative with elements pulled from science fiction of the day. I enjoyed the experience greatly.
That said, if I had come to Beyond Earth looking for a direct sequel or a modern update to the 1999 game, I would have been wildly disappointed. Although it does have narrative elements, and certain signature aspects of Alpha Centauri have crept in, Beyond Earth is very much its own game.

This is most noticeable when dealing with the planet’s indigenous creatures. Instead of Civilization’s barbarians, Beyond Earth has a variety of alien lifeforms, some more aggressive than others. On the surface, these seem to be more bug-like versions of the barbarians, but they play and react quite differently from their hairier, Earth-bound cousins. Whereas barbarians will more or less attack whatever is in range at random, the aliens will frequently not attack unless provoked. I was able to send Explorer units carefully into heavily alien-infested territories without earning so much as a scratch. Still, other times, aliens would attack me at random, either provoked by the presence of one of my military units or by the aggressive actions of my civ neighbors. Over-aggressively terraform your new world and your Harmony attributes will be for naught, as aggro aliens force you into conflict. Whereas attempting to clear out the new world’s alien lifeforms (instead of attempting to harmonize with them), can lead to them becoming even more aggressive, eventually luring more powerful aliens toward your cities.

The other big newness is the orbital layer. You can build and launch satellites in Beyond Earth, and these will impart benefits to specific tiles. Some are quest- and victory-based, and others are magnificent weapons. The Planet Carver, for example, shoots a massive beam of weaponized energy from space and it is glorious. You can toggle between the planetary and orbital layer with a button, and you can knock enemy satellites out of orbit with certain ranged units.

The Orbital Layer adds a fun, new twist and an engaging tactical element to Civ 5’s already finely tuned tactical game. I found myself chuckling at the misfortune of civs that crossed my path when I had Planet Carvers at my disposal. And deploying Solar Collectors and Miasma Repulsers (to clear away the alien planet’s harmful, natural vapors) made me feel like I now had a new, more direct tool for improving my cities.

Besides, who doesn’t like launching stuff into space?


Old struggles

Now for the bad news: It’s easy to feel like Beyond Earth is just an expansion to Civ 5, albeit spacier than those that came before. For Civ 5 fans like myself, this is a loaded proposition.

If you like Civ 5, then more Civ 5 equals more Civ 5, which is great! But there’s no denying that even as much as I love Civ 5 (and I do love it, quite a lot), I was expecting something more from Beyond Earth than Civ 5 with a sci-fi skin. And in spite of the dramatic opening cinematic, the rocketing descent of my landing craft and the stirring opening text about how my civilization had traveled the stars to start anew and blah, blah… as soon as that first turn started and my explorer unit stared across the landscape dotted with hex grids and covered with the fog of war, I felt a rush of disappointment.

My newly founded city needed to produce things, and although those things bore new names, they seemed to me the same, old buildings in all but name alone. And although the alien landscape was littered with seemingly-unusual resources, the deadly “miasma” and resource pods containing goodies for home, all that, too, felt “same old,” at first blush.

So I set about methodically slogging through the familiar in search of the new, and without my even realizing it, I found it.


Starting over

Beyond Earth’s many similarities to Civ 5 mask, to its detriment, a game that is remarkably new and different, and once I was able to see past those similarities, the newness and wonder of playing in a future Civ sandbox washed over me like a slow boiling pot of water. I was engrossed before I realized it.

As the Brazilians, I was aiming for a Purity affinity, but fumbled my way through the research web willy-nilly and eventually lost the game without ever realizing one of my enemies had been close to victory. Not great, but that’s when it finally dawned on me that Beyond Earth, in spite of its heavy foundation in Civ 5’s mechanics and rules, is actually a completely different game.

So I started again, this time as the Slavic Federation. I would specialize in Supremacy and after a bit of research on what the new victories actually were (pro tip: read the f-ing manual), I decided to shoot for the Contact victory, but build a strong enough civ that, should all else fail, I could at least take over the world.

Beyond Earth offers five victory conditions, although two are similar, differing only in which affinity will unlock it.

Contact involves discovering an alien signal and unlocking the secret of your new planet’s ‘Progenitor’ species, an ancient alien race that left mysterious ruins behind. It is by far the most narrative of the victories, although its attempts at narrative don’t always mesh well with Civ’s UI.

I invaded their lands to secure my dominance, building a robot empire on the bones of their fallen civilizations.

One specific portion of the road to the Contact victory, for example, called for sending a military unit to a recently discovered alien ruin. I located the ruin and dispatched a rover… and waited. And waited. And waited. The instruction dialogue said the ruin itself had summoned a civilian from one of my cities, then asked me to send a military unit, presumably to escort that civilian. Which I had done, but I wasn’t sure if I had skipped a step. After several turns I finally noticed a new button had appeared in the rover’s action panel. I pressed the button and the quest concluded anti-climactically, with a text box and a ding. Wheres Firaxis’s ‘other’ sci-fi game, XCOM, uses cinematics to impart such momentous advancements, the Beyond Earth solution felt more than a little hollow and frustrating.

Domination is what it sounds like, giving you the win if you capture all of the opposing civ’s capitals. This is the most Civ-like of the victories, although it does require some mastery of Beyond Earth’s new technologies and units.

Emancipation and Promised Land are two sides of the same coin. You must research the technology to eventually open either an Emancipation or Exodus gate back to Earth, bringing those left behind either salvation or dominance. If you are Purity or Supremacy, this is your Affinity-scientific end game.

Transcendence is the Harmony victory. It involves researching alien technologies to create a “mind flower” that will unite your consciousness with that of the alien planet. City buildings can aid in this victory, shortening the amount of time it takes for the mind flower to bloom.

CivBE Virtues

Generate culture to unlock powerful benefits.

In addition to the end game victory, Beyond Earth also brings along smaller quests. Occasionally new technologies or improvements will offer a choice for how they are used, adding additional money or food, for example, or presenting a moral or philosophical choice. Eradicate aliens or domesticate them, for example. It’s a nice new twist and they gave me a stronger connection to the decisions I was making, and gave an aspect of the game that has typically been ho-hum, more drama.

Quests will occasionally also be simply fun things to experience. There is a massive 'siege worm' in Beyond Earth, for example. A late-game Harmony technology will eventually allow you to control these worms, like Paul Atreides in Dune, but an early-game quest with no affinity restriction tasks you with killing one. If you can pull it off, it’s a hoot.

Playing as the Purity Brazilians, I eventually corralled a siege worm and with the help of one air unit, three ranged units, a melee soldier and a satellite buff, I took it. It had already destroyed two settlers, half a dozen military units, countless trade convoys and an entire outpost. The quest reward didn’t nearly repay what I had lost, but it was a glorious struggle.


Ascension

performance and settings

Reviewed on: Core i7-3770k 3.5GHz, 16 GB RAM, AMD R9 290
Recommended: Quad-core CPU, 4 MB RAM, AMD HD500 / Nvidia GT400
Variable framerate: yes
Anti-aliasing: MSAA 2-8x
Misc. gfx options: Vsync, threaded rendering
Beyond Earth ran smoothly at 1080p, hovering at 60 FPS with all settings maxed, occasionally dipping to 45 at the start/end of a turn. There's a noticeable improvement from 2X-8X AA and shadow and texture settings from medium to high. Animations and particle effects need the high-end to shine. Testing briefly on an AMD HD 6900 GPU, my framerate maxed out at 45 FPS and dipped as low as 10 with all visuals set to “medium.”

As the Supremacy Slavs, I slaughtered alien lifeforms with abandon, reaping monetary and technological rewards and tried to focus my research on Supremacy techs to grow my military force. When the ARC civilization landed on a plain I had planned to colonize myself, I decided to go full tactical and take them out.

What followed was an, at times, tedious, but overall successful campaign to take over the ARC land and, in the process, clear an alien infestation from a mountainous jungle that would eventually form the production center of my empire. Using Brawlers, Rovers, and Gunners, I first attacked ARC’s capitol and was repulsed, and then withdrew into the jungle to wage war on the aliens while earning upgrades and improving my equipment with scientific research. Dozens of turns later, I emerged from the jungle with a seasoned army and conquered the ARC one city at a time. They were but the first.

As my neighbors inched toward various victories, I invaded their lands to secure my dominance, building a robot empire on the bones of their fallen civilizations.

For my third playthrough, I wanted to win without firing shot. I almost succeeded.

I picked the Franco-Iberian civ and focused on the Harmony affinity. Instead of clearing the alien miasma, I left it alone and eventually developed immunity to its effects through technology.

Focusing on trade and science, I built a civ on an archipelago-like planet that spanned two large islands. I traded with every other civ, giving both them and me a boost to income and science. I made deals for resources I had in abundance. I made friends. Meanwhile I used my trade vessels to boost my own productivity and growth, and built city and tile improvements that gave me a scientific edge.

When war broke out between the Polystralians and the PAC, I took no sides. When the Brazilians edged closer to their own Transcendence victory, I made trade routes to beef up my science output and closed the gap.

Above: Gameplay footage we captured from an earlier preview build.

When I pulled ahead, and Brasilia began massing troops near my border, I formed alliances elsewhere and quietly poured money at my military and defenses.

Ultimately, war never came. Although I was forced to kill a handful of arbitrarily aggressive aliens, I dominated my fellow civs with science and trade, with my guns silent. And when my mind flower bloomed, I felt like I finally understood everything Beyond Earth had to offer. And, just like for my Harmony civ, with understanding came a deep appreciation for my new world/game’s many complexities.

This is how Beyond Earth succeeds in spite of its similarities to Civ 5. It offers a game steeped in the traditions and mechanics of Civilization, that’s nevertheless surprising and new in often unexpected ways. I’ve conquered countless civilizations on the planet Earths of each various Civilization game, and each time it’s felt like reinventing a fantasy version of the past. In Beyond Earth, victory feels like living in—and forging—humanity’s future, and I can honestly say I’ve never had more fun building a civ “to stand the test of time.”

Image 1 of 14

CivBE Box Out 2 Domination


Last man standing.

Image 2 of 14

CivBE Box Out 2 Transcendance


Become one with the new world.

Image 3 of 14

CivBE Box Out 2 Promised Land


Build an Exodus Gate wonder to welcome Earth pioneers to your new home.

Image 4 of 14

CivBE Box Out 2 Emancipation


Build an Emancipation Gate to return home to Earth, and conquer it.

Image 5 of 14

CivBE Box Out 2 Contact


Build a beacon to summon extraterrestrial life.

Image 6 of 14

CivBE Alien Attack


Live in harmony with your new planet’s native wildlife, or destroy it in the name of progress. The choice is yours.

Image 7 of 14

CivBE Battle Lines


Just as in CivV, carving out territory and defending it is the name of the game. It’s a small world, after all.

Image 8 of 14

CivBE Buildings


CivBE’s new technologies mean you’ll have to go back to school, but building up your cities is still all about managing resources and citizens.

Image 9 of 14

CivBE Jerk Leader


Other leaders will occasionally stop by just to be a jerk.

Image 10 of 14

CivBE Lev


Upgrading your combat rover will eventually grant you the power of levitation, making your rovers all-terrain and able to walk on water.

Image 11 of 14

CivBE Miasma


This fog of death covers the surface of your new world. Deal with it, or remove it.

Image 12 of 14

CivBE Mind Flower


Secure the Transcendence victory by harnessing the disgusting power of the planet’s consciousness.

Image 13 of 14

CivBE Orbital Layer


Guns (and telescopes, weather changers, money makers, miasma reducers, miasma creators and communications hubs) in the sky.

Image 14 of 14

CivBE Siege Worm


The sleeper has awakened.

The Verdict

Civilization: Beyond Earth

Although its foundation in Civ 5 makes it familiar, Beyond Earth is full of interesting surprises that are pleasantly difficult to master.

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Marvel Heroes soars into closed beta in October

Gazillion and Diablo luminary David Brevik's free-to-play MMO Marvel Heroes enters closed beta on October 1, allowing selected players to don the supple spandex of their favorite Marvel characters in the search for foes to vanquish, loot to gather, and role-playing sessions trading "Pow!

Gazillion and Diablo luminary David Brevik's free-to-play MMO Marvel Heroes enters closed beta on October 1, allowing selected players to don the supple spandex of their favorite Marvel characters in the search for foes to vanquish, loot to gather, and role-playing sessions trading "Pow! Biff! Bamf!" over chat.

Anyone registered on the official websiteat October's start earns a chance of ascending into closed-betahood, but you'll need to supply your own pyrotechnics and victory fist-pump if you're chosen. Check out our hands-on previewfrom earlier this summer for more.

PCG US Podcast #280: Not California (+ an interview with Day9!)

This week, Evan, Dan, Josh, and Lucas circle the wagons to address new cyberpunk FPS Hard Reset and 2K's recent comments that "strategy isn't contemporary" in light of its changes to XCOM.

and 2K's recent comments that "strategy isn't contemporary" in light of its changes to XCOM. Josh recalls his pool party-filled time at SOE's Fan Faire and tells us his impressions on PlanetSide 2, and Evan tells us what a great time he's having on our new GoldenEye: Sourceserver, tackles Tribes: Ascend, and more!

At the end of the podcast, Lucas sits down with one of PC gaming's most-loved men, Sean "Day9" Plott, to talk eSports, why attacking in StarCraft 2 is good, and his favorite card game.

Have a question, comment, complaint or observation? Leave a voicemail: 1-877-404-1337 ext 724 or email the mp3 to pcgamerpodcast@gmail.com.

Subscribe to the podcast RSS feed.

@day9tv(Sean "Day[9]" Plott)

@ELahti(Evan)

@jaugustine(Josh)

@DanStapleton(Dan)

@Ljrepresent(Lucas)

XCOM: Enemy Unknown mod enables "Second Wave" advanced campaign options

When helplessly watching your squad of veterans get disemboweled for the umpteenth time feels like a dull affair in XCOM: Enemy Unknown , it's time for a psi-blast of extra variety with Second Wave .

. First scoped by hawk-eyed gamers on the Nexus modding network forums, Second Wave was a planned feature by Firaxis to furnish extra gameplay options and tweaks for commanders starting a new single-player campaign after completing it once. And most of it is recoverable.

Former Community Manager "2K Greg" revealed Firaxis' intent to implement the extra bay of options, but time constraints caused the feature to be scrapped. The majority of Second Wave's files remain intact within XCOM, however, and a salvo of INI and profile tweaks -- all packaged neatly in a handy walkthroughover at XCOM's Nexus hub -- enables (mostly working) toggles for various mutations to weapon performance, soldier stats, and even guaranteeing critical hits while flanking.

Here's the full list of options Second Wave provides:

Damage Roulette: Weapons have a much wider range of damage New Economy: The funding offered by individual council members is randomized Not Created Equally: Rookies will have random starting stats Hidden Potential: As a soldier is promoted, his or her stats increase randomly (Bugged) Red Fog: Any wounds taken in combat will degrade a soldier's stats for that mission Absolutely Critical: A flanking shot guarantees a critical hit The Greater Good: The secret of psionics can only be learned from interrogating a psionic alien (Bugged) Marathon: The game takes considerably longer to complete Results Driven: A country offers less funding as its panic level increases High Stakes: The rewards granted for stopping alien abductions are randomized Diminishing Returns: The cost of satellites increases per construction The Blitz: Aliens target a larger set of cities during abduction attacks More Than Human: The psionic gift is extremely rare

Tremor makes a splash in new Mortal Kombat X gameplay trailer

Tremor has turned up in a couple of prior Mortal Kombat games, but Mortal Kombat X will be his first appearance as a fully playable character.

will be his first appearance as a fully playable character. His outfit has changed a bit, although it's still clearly based on the Sub Zero-style ninja duds. And while I can't say his fatalities are necessarily "the best" of any I've seen, I'm pretty confident they're among the funniest.

The first half of the video is brutal, but otherwise entirely unremarkable and even a bit dull by Mortal Kombat standards. Then Scorpion steps into the ring, there's a spot of ultra-cheesy dialog ("My flame can burn even you!") and the beatdown begins, culminating in a finish that truly made me want to clap my hands. The unexpected capper at the very end was even better. What a way to make a splash! That's right, I said it. Again.

Tremor will be available tomorrow for owners of the Kombat PackDLC bundle, and will go on sale separately on July 28.

As we head into the last weekend before the MLG Winter Championship in Columbus next weekend (and hot

on the heels of the IEM tournament) a small group of players are gathered at Full Sail University in Orlando for the Red Bull LAN . It's one part mini-camp, with high-level StarCraft players working on ways to improve their game and get ready for upcoming competitions, and one part exhibition tournament. Quantic's Kim "SaSe" Hammar and Johan "NaNiwa" Lucchesi will be there, along with Evil Geniuses' Lee "Puma" Ho Joon and Park "JYP" Jin Young and a number of other strong competitors. Sean "Day[9]" Plott and Marcus "DjWHEAT" Graham will be there as well. You can read more about the Red Bull Lan over at Team Liquid , where Day[9] gets into a little more detail. I've never seen one of these, and I'm really interested in the "training camp" aspect of the Red Bull LAN.

I've never seen one of these, and I'm really interested in the "training camp" aspect of the Red Bull LAN. As I've watched more competitive gaming, what I find most impressive is the mental endurance and resilience on display at the highest levels of play. Playing brilliantly in a match is one thing, but having to sustain that over the course of a weekend and dozens of matches is another. I'm hoping the coverage coming out of the Red Bull LAN gets into that a bit.

Oh, and if you have some time to kill, why not watch the SC2 final from IEM last week, between MC and Puma, posted at the top.


NaNiwa Leaves the Penalty Box

Speaking of NaNiwa, the GSL gave him a Code S seed for the start of Season 2. Code S is the highest level of GSL competition, and it represents a second chance for the Protoss player.

NaNiwa was effectively dropped from Code S after throwing a match against one of his rivals, NesTea, at the 2011 Blizzard Cup. With both players eliminated from championship contention, NaNiwa ended the match by rushing his probes into NesTea's base, basically refusing to play. The GSL saw his conduct as disrespectful and contrary to the spirit of the sport, and dropped him from considerationfor a Code 2 spot for Season 1. Now NaNiwa appears once again to be back in the GSL's good gracesfor Season 2.


Tough Love for CS:GO

Earlier this week, Tomi “lurppis” Kovanen, the former captain of the Evil Geniuses Counter-Strike team, had some harsh words about the current state of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Evan interviewed him to find out more about what bothers him about CS:GO.

It's a good write-up, and the whole incident neatly captures the challenge Valve faces as it attempt to reinvent a competitive shooter with a long history.

Kovanen made one remark that explains the stakes for CS:GO and the pro community. “I believe in eSports. And if there are a lot of people who enjoy the game like I have enjoyed CS 1.6 over the years, good for them. I'm sure there were people who disliked 1.6, yet it has played a big part in how the last seven years of my life, so I'd hope other people get to experience something similar in their lives. I hope it will be successful, but with the way the game currently is and how I believe it will end up without listening to us, I don't think it can be successful. I wouldn't be surprised if it got picked up for one or two years at most, and then FPS games got dropped out [from tournaments] as a whole because of lack of CS:GO popularity. The ironic thing is all the pros would wanna help to try to make it a decent game because they all know there would be more money, more tournaments, and so on if it was a good game and everyone switched.”

Speaking of Counter-Strike, this would be a good time to watch the Final between ESC and Na`Vi from the IEM tournament last week.

As always, this is by no means comprehensive, and be sure to call out highlights from the week in the comments below. Any other events happening in the next week that you're excited about?

New Mortal Kombat X trailer unmasks the Predator

The Predator— The Predator—joins the Mortal Kombat X lineup tomorrow, for players who have sprung for the Premium Edition of the game or the Kombat Pack DLC.

DLC. Everyone else will have to wait another week, but you can pass a little bit of that time (roughly 90 seconds of it) watching the intergalactic hunter in action in the new MKX gameplay trailer.

Part of me thinks it's not really fair that the P-Man gets to use wrist blades, a spear, and a shoulder-mounted laser in what is ostensibly a fistfight. It's not that far out of line, I suppose—it's not like everyone else in the game is lacing up the gloves and memorizing the Marquess of Queensbury—but does he really have to use all three at once? That's some serious fatalizing right there. The kill on Jason at the end is a nice nod to the film, though.

The Predator goes on sale for non-Kombat Pack owners on July 14.

PC Gamer UK Podcast 57 – Sean "Day[9]" Plott interview

Day[9] is one of the most charismatic, knowledgeable, and downright likable shoutcasters on the Starcraft II scene.

is one of the most charismatic, knowledgeable, and downright likable shoutcasters on the Starcraft II scene. Rich MCC loves him a little bit more than most. That's why we sent our staff writer to meet Day[9] earlier in the week, armed with a recording studio and pair of microphones.

He returned with bumper, Starcraft II-themed edition of the PC Gamer UK podcast where the pair talk about future expansions, what it's like to live a life laced with Starcraft II, and the current state of e-sports.

Download the MP3, subscribe, or find our other podcasts here. For more Day[9] check out his YouTube channel. For more Rich, click here.

Report: Arkham Knight problems were known months prior to launch

We know now that the PC version of Batman: Arkham Knight is an absolute mess.

Sad Batman Arkham Knight

is an absolute mess. Lest there be any doubt, it's not even possibleto buy it on Steam now, and when a publisher halts sales of one of its biggest releases of the year because of technical issues, hoo boy, you know you've got problems. But the game's shoddy state didn't come as a complete surprise to everyone. In fact, according to a Kotakureport, Warner Bros. knew it was going to be a train wreck long before it came out.

Two separate sources, speaking anonymously, told the site that Warner was well aware of the problems, because nearly all of them had been around for the better part of the year. Unfortunately, the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles turned out to be "not nearly as easy to work with as [Rocksteady] expected," and so the vast majority of the QA team, comprising around 100 people, were focused on console bug hunts. Testing was also conducted at 720p resolutions, well below what most PC gamers expect, and compounding the problem even further, Warner allegedly declined to employ external firms that specialize in testing PC games because it was worried about details of the plot leaking ahead of release.

"We reported literally thousands of bugs that were specific to the PC version relating to the frame rate," one Kotaku source said. "All sorts of fucked up texture issues. The Batmobile in particular has always fucked things up on PC."

The report also claims that developer Rocksteady did not actually work on the PC edition, which was instead handled by Iron Galaxy. Rocksteady focused solely on the console versions of Arkham Knight, and only became involved in the PC release after it went off the rails. "WBGames is working with the PC developer IronGalaxy to address the issues ASAP," Rocksteady Game Director Sefton Hill tweetedlast week, adding that Rocksteady will "provide any support" to get the game working properly.

So why, in light of all that, was it released? The answer is something of a letdown: The sources say that Warner simply thought it was good enough. That's better than a straight-up conspiracy to screw with PC gamers, I guess, but picking between incompetent and indifferent isn't much of a choice.

None of this is really a surprise—I mean, of course Warner knew this was going to happen, because how could it not?—but even so, it's depressing to see it spelled out so starkly, and to know that the whole ugly mess could have been avoided if the PC had been given equal priority during development. The report goes into quite a bit of depth about Warner's checkered history on the PC ( Mortal Kombat X, anyone?) and is well worth reading in full at Kotaku.

PC Gamer community screenshots of the month - January

Alice: Madness Returns
by Nic Clapper
Here's the first of a couple of shots from Nic Clapper that'll be featured in this round-up.

Here's the first of a couple of shots from Nic Clapper that'll be featured in this round-up. Alice: Madness Returns is absurdly colourful most of the time, but this well composed shot captures the darker side of Wonderland rather well. If you like good screenshots I'd heartily recommend having a glance over his Flickr account, which features shots like this one from Mirror's Edge, this one from Rageand this from Chronicles of Riddick. Lovely stuff.

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Our Verdict
A solid expansion addressing the right problems, but still shackled by its core games choices.

Need to know

What is it? The first expansion pack for Beyond Earth, adding new factions, biomes and a few new features like aquatic cities, as well as shaking up the existing diplomacy system.
Expect to pay: £25 / $30
Developer: Firaxis
Publisher: 2K Games
Reviewed on: i7, GTX 970,
8GB RAM
Link: Official site

Even hardcore fans mostly agree, if Beyond Earth taught us anything, it’s that you’ve got to go further than merely another solar system to escape the shadow of Alpha Centauri. With that in mind, Rising Tide is a smartly put together expansion. It doesn’t make Beyond Earth the game that some of us wanted, especially in terms of finding its own groove instead of just being Civ in space, but it does at least put its focus on the biggest criticisms instead of simply bolting on a few more toys and random cool features. It’s closer. Not there, but a good deal closer.

For me, one of the changes I most appreciate is the reworking of Affinities. In the original Beyond Earth, these had your society developing down one of three paths—Purity, Supremacy or Harmony. I personally loathed this system, not for the core mechanical idea, but because it philosophically felt less like charting a future for humanity than signing it up to one of three dogmatic space cults, complete with silly space robes. Rising Tide allows for Hybrid Affinities, mixing and matching them. This opens up new options, but more than that, it feels endlessly more appropriate. Why wouldn’t you combine technology and aliens? It’s just slightly morbid common sense.

This is essentially Rising Tide’s approach across the board: big changes, important changes, but not necessarily dramatic changes that completely overhaul what came before. It’s a more appropriate name than it might sound, and not really referring to its new aquatic cities. They’re fun to play with, both in their new mechanic of acquiring territory by moving around the ocean, and a rare example of something feeling like future tech instead of just modern military equipment with a chrome finish. They’re still one of the least important fundamental changes Rising Tide makes.

Other similar offerings include four new factions (one sea based, totally unlike Alien Crossfire, one spy based, totally unlike Alien Crossfire, and two others focused on diplomacy and production respectively). Worlds are now peppered with Artifacts that can be combined in groups of three to unlock bonuses, and brand new Marvels—huge alien structures that start quests for everyone once discovered. Neither cancels out the basic problem of these worlds usually feeling like Earth if our canyons were randomly full of melted cheese (and despite two new biomes, Frigid and Primeval, Fungal remains the only really alien feeling one), but they’re decent low impact additions to the main game that contribute to the feel of a series finally heading in the right direction.

That direction being Alpha Centauri, it’s no surprise that the diplomacy section has seen the biggest overhaul. The new system has two basic goals, to make things more transparent, and to give the leaders more personality. Sorry, typo. I mean any personality, rather than them being just a load of cardboard cutouts. Unfortunately, while they do have more than they did, Beyond Earth continues being more comfortable with the numbers side of humanity than its humans.

Civ1

The more mechanical side works better. Each faction now has a Fear and Respect bar, the first based on your strength and the latter based on how your actions mesh with their philosophies, such as worrying about your peoples’ health. Everyone also now has Traits that offer direct upgrades, and advantages that others can buy into using the new Diplomatic Capital resource—a stipend each turn in exchange for a boost. You can have up to four in play, and swap them out, as well as spend DC to purchase units and buildings outright. Combined, all this opens up a much more interesting diplomatic metagame of mutual favours and reasons to side with specific leaders, without ruling out making deals with assorted devils if the need arises. It’s also now much easier to read them, and see when you’re clashing with someone or they’re likely to bail on a deal.

Rising Tide doesn’t turn Beyond Earth into a whole new game. Expect that, and you’ll be disappointed. It does however move it closer to what it should have been, with its understanding of some of the big problems helping to at least soften the blow of their lingering disappointment first time around. It’s the expansion it needed to do first, both in terms of building on the game if you are in the mood for more, and showing that the series has the right course in mind.

The Verdict

Civilization: Beyond Earth

A solid expansion addressing the right problems, but still shackled by its core games choices.

We recommend By Zergnet

Warner Bros. settles FTC complaint over Shadow of Mordor "influencers" campaign

Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. Interactive has settled charges filed by the FTC that it “deceived consumers during a marketing campaign” for Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordorby failing to adequately disclose that it paid "hundreds to tens of thousands" of dollars to YouTubers including PewDiePie for positive gameplay videos posted to YouTube and other social networks.

The videos were sponsored content, but WBIE didn't require the “influencers” in question to “clearly and conspicuously” disclose that relationship, as required by the FTC's endorsement guidelines. In fact, it told them to put disclosures in the video description box, which meant that most of them would appear “below the fold,” where they couldn't be seen at all without clicking the “show more” button. The net result, according to the complaint, is that “Warner Bros., through its marketing campaign, misled consumers by suggesting that the gameplay videos of Shadow of Mordor reflected the independent or objective views of the influencers.”

The settlement is especially timely in light of the recent CSGO Loungeand Steamloto/PsiSyndicatetroubles, which turn on similar failures to disclose a financial relationship between influencer and advertiser. There may be a spot of good news in it for the people involved in those cases, however, as the FTC is not actually imposing any financial penalties against Warner. In fact, the pubisher doesn't appear to be facing any penalties at all, beyond a stern warning not to do it again.

“The proposed order settling the FTC’s charges prohibits Warner Bros. from misrepresenting that any gameplay videos disseminated as part of a marketing campaign are independent opinions or the experiences of impartial videogame enthusiasts. Further, it requires the company to clearly and conspicuously disclose any material connection between Warner Bros. and any influencer or endorser promoting its products,” the FTC memosays. "Finally, the order specifies the minimum steps that Warner Bros., or any entity it hires to conduct an influencer campaign, must take to ensure that future campaigns comply with the terms of the order.”

In other words, Warner is now required to do what it was already required to do. As punishments go, that's a pretty good one from the perspective of the transgressor, although now that the FTC has made it official, Warner could be hit with civil penalties if it does it again.

Thanks, GameInformer.

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