New Games |
- How Pokemon would work in our reality
- Maingear's Spark Steam Machine is tiny
- Steam Controller first hands-on impressions
- 2K Sports giving up on major league baseball
- PlayStation Plus freebies: Don't Starve (PS4), DmC (PS3)
- Steam Machine prices range from $499 to $6,000
- Alienware's new Steam Box looks goooooood
- Intel pushing Kinect-like 3D cameras with new computers
- The best joke at Sony's CES conference that no one got
- Valve unveils 14 new Steam Box machines
- Valve's Gabe Newell isn't a hugging person
- CyberPowerPC's customizable Steam Machine starts at $499
- Smash Bros. will have different trophies for Wii U, 3DS
- Chillingo founders have left EA
- Kirby desu. BIG MAN, BIG MAN....
- Live show: Gnomoria with creator Robert West
- Joe Danger Infinity coming to iOS January 9
- Gunman Clive is still pretty kickass on PC
- Control your Dish DVR with new PS3 and PS4 apps
- Podtoid 277: Geralt of Rivia, Slayer of Kissing Teens
- Destructoid's CES coverage starts now
- Starbound has sold over a million copies
- A closer look at Digital Storm's Bolt II Steam Box
- Destructoid's most wanted games of 2014
- Digital Storm reveals Bolt II Steam Box hybrid PC
- Check out these clips from Rambo: The Video Game
- We'll see more Halo in 2014
- Battle.net to disable add-on purchases by default
- Nintendo has to pay royalties for every 3DS sold
- Skywind modders release first developer video
- Steam hardware survey shows Windows 7 is still king
- Review: SteelSeries Stratus iOS controller
- Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes rated Mature
- New Daylight trailer gives a little horror atmosphere
- Hybrid board/videogame Collusion full of lies and deceit
- Original Splinter Cell game director leaves Valve
- Snoop Lion's new video is all about Pokemon
- Square Enix Montreal's Hitman reportedly canned
- Should Bayonetta 2 have competitive or co-op multiplayer?
- Microsoft sold three million Xbox Ones last year
- Violent Serenity, a fighting game with two camera angles
- Greg Martin, the artist who drew your childhood, passes
- Klei Entertainment 'looking' into Don't Starve on Vita
- Huge News: Sexy Babies are Glaad about Seaman
- DayZ standalone has now surpassed 800,000 sold
- Drakengard/Nier director 'going back to unemployment'
- Nvidia's G-SYNC kills screen tearing and stuttering
- Steam Machine: 12 partners are making machines so far
- Nvidia's Tegra K1 GPU has 192 cores, can match Xbox 360
| How Pokemon would work in our reality Posted: 06 Jan 2014 03:00 PM PST Animation Domination's latest Scientifically Accurate series took a look at Pokemon this time, and it's what you'd expect. The cold harsh truth of Pokemon if it was in our reality. And what is up with the ice cream Pokemon anyway? |
| Maingear's Spark Steam Machine is tiny Posted: 06 Jan 2014 01:00 PM PST Maingear's entry to the Steam Machine market is the small form factor Spark. The system weighs less than one pound, and is smaller than a DVD case. Dimension wise, it's 4.5” width, 4.23 depth, and 2.34” in height. Okay, so it's tiny. Big deal. What's under the hood is what's really important. It's got the AMD A8-5557M 3.1GHz processor, AMD Radeon R9 M275X GDDR5 2GB, and offers up to 16GB of 1600MGz memory. There's four USB 3.0 ports, one mSATA slot that supports up to 356GB, and one 2.5"HHD tray supporting SATA III 6GB/s. You can see the full spec breakdown below. As for price, none has been announced yet and the press release never mentioned the inclusion of the Steam controller unlike some of the competitors. |
| Steam Controller first hands-on impressions Posted: 06 Jan 2014 12:34 PM PST Valve had plenty of Steam controllers for press to try following their press conference tonight at CES. I gave it a spin with several games, with varying success. I also played around with the UI a bit. Read on for my first impressions. |
| 2K Sports giving up on major league baseball Posted: 06 Jan 2014 12:30 PM PST Take-Two Interactive has been erasing the MLB 2K series from existence, Pasta Padre reports. The baseball games have been removed from 2K's website, MLB 2K10 through 2K12 have been removed from Steam, MLB 2K13's website is gone, and so on. When Sony teased MLB 14: The Show, it boasted it would be the only major league baseball game available on next-gen consoles. It seems it will be the only MLB game in general (PS3, Vita, PS4). Polygon reached out to 2K and confirmed the series' conclusion: "We have decided not to renew our MLB 2K series for 2014. We are very proud of the achievements made by the MLB 2K team and look forward to their contributions to our future titles, including NBA 2K -- our industry's #1 rated and #1 selling basketball franchise." Given how half-assed and not good MLB 2K is -- the slapdash MLB 2K13 is basically a roster update -- this isn't bad news. Lack of competition for MLB The Show could see that franchise fall into complacency, but Visual Concepts folding more resources into NBA 2K seems like the right move. 2K Sports Scrubs Any Sign of Connection to MLB From Existence [Pasta Padre] |
| PlayStation Plus freebies: Don't Starve (PS4), DmC (PS3) Posted: 06 Jan 2014 12:00 PM PST Engorged on the blood of holiday sacrifice, PlayStation Plus is back tomorrow with free games and assorted discounts. The two you really need to know: Don't Starve will be free for PS4 users and last year's DmC will be free for PS3 users. DmC? More like DmFREE. Assuming your PC can't Run DMC, the PS3 is a great place to give it a shot. Don't believe the hate. Don't Starve is also a goodie. Assuming buying a PS4 at launch hasn't led you to starvation, you can follow this game's advice and save money by downloading it for no money. Except for the money you spend to upkeep your PS+ subscription. |
| Steam Machine prices range from $499 to $6,000 Posted: 06 Jan 2014 11:53 AM PST Valve just revealed the full list of Steam Machine partners at their CES press conference today. All these PCs run the new SteamOS, and we have the prices for 12 of the 14 announced partner PCs along with some basic hardware specs. The full list is below, with prices starting at $499 and going upwards to $6,000. $6,000! Some prices haven't been revealed yet, but this is a nice overview for now. Note that we'll be doing bigger breakout posts once we have more info available to share. |
| Alienware's new Steam Box looks goooooood Posted: 06 Jan 2014 11:35 AM PST They're not talking price or specs yet, but they are showing off the tiny form factor of the Alienware Steam Box. This thing is gorgeous in person with its glossy finish and lighting. It's hand sized, with rubber footing and bottom ventilation. All we know so far is that it will feature an Intel CPU and a Nvidia GPU. Other than HDMI and Ethernet, there's 4 USB ports, an optical port, and a power port. As you can see, this is a prototype box, but we were told that it would look exactly like this. You can see the system from all angles in our gallery below. What's your guess on what this is going to cost? |
| Intel pushing Kinect-like 3D cameras with new computers Posted: 06 Jan 2014 11:30 AM PST Intel is pushing a 3D camera as part of its focus on "perceptual computing," technology like voice recognition, facial recognition, and gesture control, CNET reports. Partnerships with manufacturers like Acer, Asus, Dell, Fujitsu, HP, Lenovo, and NEC will see Intel's RealSense 3D camera built into various notebooks coming out this year. The camera boasts Kinect-like capabilities. It can act as a green screen, separating subjects from their background and make you look like you're surfing at a beach during your business meeting, which will definitely impress your boss. "Tubular!" he will shout. "You deserve a raise for such sick board moves." Scholastic is hoping it will let children interact with books like Clifford and I Spy. Let me ride Clifford, Scholastic, and look down upon the unwashed masses. The Verge also has an older video of an early prototype of the camera where a golden cobra vomits coins into a one-to-one representation of your hand. Sold. 3D camera kicks off Intel's 'Real Sense' perceptual computing [CNET] |
| The best joke at Sony's CES conference that no one got Posted: 06 Jan 2014 11:23 AM PST During Sony's CES press conference, Sony Electronics President and COO Mike Fasulo went on about the newest resolution buzzword, 4K. 4K movies, 4K cameras, 4K Netflix streaming, 401Ks, 4 K9 units ripping apart a violent offender. They were all talked about. Fasulo then casually mentioned that, "Sony is at the forefront of 4K..." The forefront? The fourfront? Four kay! That's advertising synergy. No one else laughed, though. Hamza didn't even get the joke, looking at me like I'm an idiot. 4K Netflix streaming is also a pretty cool joke given America's embarrassing internet infrastructure. How about some fiber? It's an important part of human diet. We will keep you up to date with more Sony news and really good jokes from CES. |
| Valve unveils 14 new Steam Box machines Posted: 06 Jan 2014 11:14 AM PST We're at Valve's CES press conference tonight, where Gabe Newell just unveiled 13 Steam Boxes. They literally ripped the covers off of 13 under-lit pedestals where each of the new boxes are displayed for attending press. Makers like Alienware, Origin, Digital Storm, and Falcon Northwest are in attendance to field questions on their new boxes.
Just beyond these displays are kiosks where the Steam controller is available for testing with games like Portal 2. We have some terrible low-light photos for you to check out while we push our way through the crowd to get a better look. It's an absolute sh*tshow right now. Check out how small that Gigabyte one is! |
| Valve's Gabe Newell isn't a hugging person Posted: 06 Jan 2014 11:00 AM PST Speaking to The Washington Post about Valve's relationship with fans and the blurriness that exists between "customers" and "creators," co-founder Gabe Newell touched on the Internet's obsession with him. From the sound of it, he's got a good outlook about it. "I think what they're really trying to say is that, 'oh, you're on this other side of this divide with us, the customers?' as opposed to the CEO of General Motors who has an army of people around him to keep other people away from them and stuff like that," he explained. "I really think that's not about me personally, or so much about the company so much as a recognition that these companies that are engaged with their communities are going to be really well received in the future by mass audiences." Continuing, he said "[fans] hug me when they run into me. I'm not a hugging person, but that's what they want. I was with my kids the first time that happened in public, and my kids were pretty cool with it. But I wasn't. 'Dad, roll with it.' Even now, I'm learning from our customers." While I find that anecdote to be funny, it wouldn't be a Gabe Newell interview without forward-looking insight. Asked about the future, he said "I really think that probably the most outlandish idea I have is that the Internet will replace portions of functions traditionally performed by corporations -- that it'll be better at those old Coasian concepts of organizing labor and allocating capital: That the Internet will beat corporations over the next 20 years." Gabe Newell on Valve's intimate relationship with its customers [The Washington Post] |
| CyberPowerPC's customizable Steam Machine starts at $499 Posted: 06 Jan 2014 10:30 AM PST Today is Steam Machine reveal day, and our latest look is at CyberPowerPC's line. Revealed at the Consumer Electronic Show 2014, the PC maker is going to have two customizable models available in the second half of 2014. Both models feature a 500GB hard drive, 8GB DDR3 memory, and mITX motherboards. The machines run the Linux-based Steam OS, and come with the Steam controller too. Steam Machine A will be $499, comes with a 3.9 GHz AMD A6-60400K, and feature a 2GB AMD Radeon R9 270. Steam Machine I will run for $699 and features a 3.5 GHz Intel Core i3-4330, and a 2GB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760. Each version is customizable, but with what options remains to be seen. For more on Steam Machines, here's the full list of who's making them, and our impressions with Digital Storm's Bolt II Steam Box. CES: CyberPowerPC Unveils a Customizable $499 Steam Machine [IGN] |
| Smash Bros. will have different trophies for Wii U, 3DS Posted: 06 Jan 2014 10:00 AM PST In an update posted on Miiverse, Super Smash Bros. director Masahiro Sakurai talked a bit about trophies, noting that both versions "will boast different types and models. The 3DS trophies will be mainly from handhelds and the Wii U version will feature trophies from the home-console games." Although I do get into achievement hunting from time to time, there's simply no comparison to the way games used to handle this stuff. And if there's one series that knows how to do unlockables and bonus content well, it's undoubtedly Super Smash Bros. I hadn't given much thought to whether or not I'd also buy Smash Bros. for 3DS. (The Wii U release is a given.) Even if it had the exact same content, just downscaled for handhelds, I'd probably still want that version. So yes, I'll take both, please. Just waiting on the release date. |
| Chillingo founders have left EA Posted: 06 Jan 2014 09:45 AM PST A lot of people are leaving EA. PopCap (Plants vs. Zombies) CEO Dave Roberts and studio co-founder Jason Kapalka left PopCap. Criterion Games' (Burnout) co-founders have departed as well. Now, MCV reports Chillingo founders Chris Byatte and Joe Wee have left EA. EA bought Angry Birds publisher Chillingo in 2010 and its founders stayed on to head the division for EA until now. Hopefully Byatte and Wee are off to do something fun. And hopefully people stop leaving EA as if it was a New Year's resolution. Chillingo founders leave EA [MCV] |
| Kirby desu. BIG MAN, BIG MAN.... Posted: 06 Jan 2014 09:34 AM PST |
| Live show: Gnomoria with creator Robert West Posted: 06 Jan 2014 09:30 AM PST [Mash Tactics airs Monday through Friday at 4p.m. Pacific on Dtoid.TV. Watch Rick 'King Foom' Olson play a variety of games, each day with its own theme. With a heavy focus on community and viewer interaction, you can be as much a part of the show as anything else.] Be sure to come by and check out Mash Tactics this evening, as we kick off what's bound to be an amazing week packed with early access games, special industry guests, giveaways, and more. Tonight's feature is the insanely fun, and highly addictive, village management game Gnomoria. While I'm having a good time with my understanding of the very basics of Gnomoria, the game can get complex. I still have about a million questions to ask. So, I figured who better to help me learn about all the intricate ins and outs than the man who created it, Robert West. Perhaps with his help, my poor band of tired and hungry gnomes might make it through the harsh winter. Join in on the conversation with us, ask some questions, and watch it all go down tonight at Dtoid.TV. QotD: What is your favorite city building simulation game? |
| Joe Danger Infinity coming to iOS January 9 Posted: 06 Jan 2014 09:15 AM PST The affable team behind Joe Danger and the exciting, upcoming No Man's Sky had its offices flooded over the holidays. We're talking, "a biblical amount." In fact, the water is apparently still rising as the team, relocated to a "cramped little upstairs room," has been working to hit its January 9 release date for Joe Danger Infinity. Talk about dedication. In this second iOS release for the series, Joe Danger is a toy, one of a couple dozen different playable characters in an Army Men-style world of small things becoming giant things. There are also a bunch of new vehicles, including a tank and a runaway firework. Infinity is more of an endless runner, in the realm of Canabalt, but there is still some traditional progression in terms of levels and unlocks. Take that, nature. |
| Gunman Clive is still pretty kickass on PC Posted: 06 Jan 2014 09:00 AM PST Gunman Clive launched previously on the 3DS, Android, and iOS marketplaces to high praise and great sales -- now, it's on Steam. I'm a huge fan of it personally, as I think it's a great homage to classic platformers of old -- particularly the Mega Man series. One of the best aspects of Clive is how easy it is to plow through one playthrough -- which takes roughly an hour. Not only does this faithfully replicate the NES era in terms of length, but it also ensures that no portion of the game overstays its welcome -- and with a $1.99 pricetag, it makes perfect sense. I had a chance to play the recently released Steam version, and it's basically the same game people have been enjoying for about a year now. It's a very basic port with no additional content, but it comes with controller support, a higher resolution, and extra achievements. The game natively supports 360 controllers, so if you have something else, just get your PC to emulate one by way of x360ce. Check out the game's Steam listing here if you're interested. |
| Control your Dish DVR with new PS3 and PS4 apps Posted: 06 Jan 2014 08:52 AM PST Dish Network announced today at CES that applications are coming to PS3 and PS4 that will give users control of their Hopper Whole-Whome HD DVR. Set to release this spring, their Virtual Joey will give users the same experience they have on hardware, giving them access to TV and recordings on their PlayStations. Using home networks, Virtual Joey can connect wirelessly to the Hopper, letting users get around wiring completely. This makes your PS3 or PS4 another 'box' in your home. Neat. The PS3 and PS4 apps are expected to launch within the first half of 2014. |
| Podtoid 277: Geralt of Rivia, Slayer of Kissing Teens Posted: 06 Jan 2014 08:45 AM PST Like a disgusting, vulgar Phoenix, Podtoid once again rises from its feculent ashes. This time around, the roster consists of Max Scoville, Conrad Zimmerman, Jonathan Holmes, and Andy Dixon. Join them as they discuss Witchers, big crabs, Molemen, facial hair, and very briefly... videogames. Here's the direct download link and go subscribe on iTunes right here! |
| Destructoid's CES coverage starts now Posted: 06 Jan 2014 08:39 AM PST CES coverage on Destructoid kicks off now. We've already seen a Steam Box or two as well as some crazy 4k monitors, and the show hasn't even started yet. For gamers, the real show starts tonight with Valve's press conference, which is planned to kick off at around 5pm Pacific tonight. We plan to cover any announcements live, so check back then. Also tonight, Sony will host a press conference, which may bring some interesting news for gamers. Also, boss Kaz Hirai will give his keynote speech tomorrow morning. Between the two, WSJ suggests that Sony could announce an online streaming service for PS4. Watch along with us on Sony's livestream. Beyond that, we'll be at all of the pre-show events tonight and tomorrow, looking at the newest gaming tech. Following that, we'll be on the show floor this whole week, wading our way through the almost 160,000 attendees to find the weird sh*t that makes CES so great. Follow along with our coverage this week, and let us know if there's anything we should go seek out while we're here. |
| Starbound has sold over a million copies Posted: 06 Jan 2014 08:30 AM PST Starbound has surpassed one million sales, developer Chucklefish Games announced today. Not that any of us were doubting the popularity of the sandbox title, but it sure is nice to hear confirmation that things are going well for the team. They're destined for greatness. While I would love to dive right in after hearing Darren's thoughts on the game, I'm sticking with my difficult decision to wait until more bugs are addressed and character wipes aren't so problematic. Once the next stage of the beta goes live, I'm clearing my schedule. |
| A closer look at Digital Storm's Bolt II Steam Box Posted: 06 Jan 2014 08:09 AM PST Digital Storm showed us their newly announced Steam Machine this morning in a pre-CES meeting. Their Bolt II is small, sleek, premium option for those wanting to get into what Valve is putting down. This particular offering supports both Steam OS and Windows 8 to give you the best of both worlds. Me likey. |
| Destructoid's most wanted games of 2014 Posted: 06 Jan 2014 08:00 AM PST Ugh. Mondays, am I right? They're a day that people don't like because you have to do stuff and things after (maybe) not having to do those things, you know? Lame. Let's reverse the trend and brighten the day with a positive. A list of some of Destructoid's most anticipated games of this, year 2 of Anno Luigi. That's 2014 for you streets behind Luddites still operating in AD.
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| Digital Storm reveals Bolt II Steam Box hybrid PC Posted: 06 Jan 2014 07:45 AM PST We're going to be seeing a whole lot of Steam Box models over the next several months, I suspect, and here's another option to be considered. Digital Storm has announced today the Bolt II gaming PC, which will sport both Steam OS and Windows 8 out of the box to offer a versatile device which should be able to play just about anything you throw at it. The slim (less than 4.5" wide) tower keeps temperatures low with a liquid cooling system for the CPU and an airflow design featuring more vents than a viewing of Die Hard. You'll pay for the premium, though. The Bolt II will be initially offered in four configurations starting at $1,899. Pre-orders begin later this month. |
| Check out these clips from Rambo: The Video Game Posted: 06 Jan 2014 07:30 AM PST It's been awhile since we last heard of Rambo: The Video Game. After the reveal of the Rambo figurine pre-order bonus, we haven't seen any videos or pictures since. Now, it seems publisher Reef Entertainment is ready to give fans of Sly Stallone another taste of the light-gun game. And yeah, as you can tell it looks pretty rough. Considering how long its been in development, I figured there'd be some room for polish. Though on the bright side, this'll give gamers the chance to finally play as Rambo, via QTE action sequences and scripted gameplay. Awesome! |
| Posted: 06 Jan 2014 07:15 AM PST The Xbox One launched a few months ago with a title bearing the Halo namesake, but Halo: Spartan Assault wasn't the game in the flagship franchise that players necessarily wanted. But, what can you do? Halo 4 just released in 2012, and a full-fledged follow-up within a year isn't a realistic expectation. However, 343 Industries might be able to turn one around in two years. In response to a new Halo game not being listed on Microsoft's site as a title to watch out for in 2014, Rob Semsey, Halo senior PR, tweeted "Rest assured your next Halo journey WILL begin in 2014 #staycalm." He further mentioned that it was only omitted because a title for the project had not yet been finalized. Of course, this somewhat vague statement begs the question "What exactly will this new Halo project be?" Is it Halo 5 which everyone wants? Is it another spin-off game? Maybe it's the Halo television series that was announced at the Xbox One reveal event. Only time will tell, but that time will come sometime in 2014. @RobSemsey [Twitter] |
| Battle.net to disable add-on purchases by default Posted: 06 Jan 2014 07:00 AM PST Starting this week, Blizzard is rolling out an account-wide change for everyone who has parental locks in place -- add-on purchases (read: microtransactions) will be disabled by default. This is most notably for Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, which is built on microtransactions, but also prevents Diablo III Auction House payments until it closes down in March, and World of Warcraft purchases. This is pretty much a standard practice these days, even in the mobile market. The recently released Angry Birds Go! even has warning logos for add-on DLC purchases in its loading screens. Madness! Battle.net Parental Control Changes [Battle.net] |
| Nintendo has to pay royalties for every 3DS sold Posted: 06 Jan 2014 06:45 AM PST As a followup to Tomita Technologies International's patent infringement case against Nintendo for using its camera technology in the 3DS, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff ruled last month that Nintendo would need to pay royalties for each unit sold. This will be represented as a percentage of the handheld's wholesale price as opposed to a flat dollar amount per unit. With this ruling, Nintendo will need to pay Tomita 1.82 percent of the wholesale price of every 3DS sold. "If, as Tomita suggests, the ongoing royalty rate were expressed as a flat dollar amount per unit sold, Tomita would capture an increasingly large proportion of each sale as the price falls, even as the technology's reliance on the infringed patent remains constant," Judge Rakoff wrote. "This would result in an unearned windfall for Tomita, and, accordingly, the court prefers an ongoing royalty rate expressed as a percentage of wholesale price." Rakoff Sets Royalty Rate For Nintendo 3DS Technology [Law360 via NeoGAF] |
| Skywind modders release first developer video Posted: 06 Jan 2014 06:30 AM PST Last month saw the alpha release of Skywind, a Skyrim mod that transports players back to the land of Morrowind. More than just a rehash of old content, the developers have reworked and altered much of the original game's meshes and textures, quests, and gameplay to work with Skyrim's new features and visual prowess. They've gone even further by adding new voice-overs and composing original music. The creators of this mod hope that not only fans of the original Morrowind will be pleased, but also aim to make the creators of The Elder Scrolls series proud. |
| Steam hardware survey shows Windows 7 is still king Posted: 06 Jan 2014 06:15 AM PST The Steam Hardware & Software results make interesting reading whenever they are released as it gives us all an idea about what the average gaming PC is like. Maybe the most telling statistic is that Windows 7 continues to be the dominant OS but Windows 8 has carved itself out a slot as second favorite. Combined versions of Windows 7 are on 65 percent of gamers' PCs, whereas the newer Windows 8 is on almost 20 percent of PCs. Elsewhere, there's no surprises really; Intel and NVIDIA are still the gamer's choice for processors and graphics cards over ATI/AMD. The split between dual core and quad core processors is fairly even and a Windows 7/DX11 graphics option is still the most popular option. There's also a breakdown of Mac gaming as well showing that a Macbook pro with 4 GB of RAM or more is the popular choice. I'm wondering if the new console launches are going to affect sales of PC components; I have no need to upgrade my (admittedly expensive) PC for a while as it will run anything I throw at it. I think we'll have to wait until the first games that are exclusive to the Xbox One and PS4 come out for a true comparison. |
| Review: SteelSeries Stratus iOS controller Posted: 06 Jan 2014 06:00 AM PST MFi controllers really have the ability to be a game changer for iOS devices. But they're in their infancy, and not only are a select amount of games supported, but they also have some limitations. So far, I've reviewed the Logitech Powershell and MOGA Ace Power -- two controllers that are wired, and only work for specific iPhone flavored devices. Out of nowhere comes a new challenger -- the SteelSeries Stratus line for iOS, which allows for the same four trigger, dual analog control system of the Ace Power, but this time, with wireless support. If only it were priced a tad cheaper. |
| Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes rated Mature Posted: 06 Jan 2014 05:45 AM PST Back in the day, we used to regularly post ESRB rating summaries that were humorous in their dry delivery or were otherwise notable. The listing for Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes has sparked discussion for its "Sexual Violence" content descriptor, which is generally described as "Depictions of rape or other violent sexual acts" and normally found in games rated Adult Only. Ground Zeroes is, as one would expect, rated Mature. Here's the relevant section of the summary: "The game includes an audio file in which a female character is sexually assaulted by male characters; while there is no visual depiction, sounds of ripped clothing and struggle can be heard. The words 'f**k' and 'sh*t' are heard in the dialogue." I'll reserve judgment until I'm actually playing the game and have proper context. From everything I've heard of Metal Gear Solid V, though, Kojima is going to explore some rather tough themes, including child soldiers. I think we know what we're getting into here, for the most part. Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes [ESRB] |
| New Daylight trailer gives a little horror atmosphere Posted: 06 Jan 2014 05:30 AM PST Above you'll find a new trailer for Daylight, the upcoming horror title for PS4 from Zombie Studios. It's suitably creepy, moving slowly through the game's ruined hospital environment and filling it with haunting noises and panicked breath. I love the concept of having only a cell phone as usable equipment, but I wish they had chosen another setting. I have grown weary of hospitals as a setting for horror. Sure, we're all afraid of illness, afraid of being in a vulnerable position while people inflict themselves on our health and well-being, but there have to be more places we get scared than in spooky mansions, forests and hospitals. There just have to be. |
| Hybrid board/videogame Collusion full of lies and deceit Posted: 06 Jan 2014 05:15 AM PST As a fan of board games and videogames, my ears perk up when I hear about developers attempting to combine the two in interesting ways. Especially exciting are games focusing on subterfuge, deception, backstabbing, and lies. Collusion sounds like a really great idea in both of those regards. It reminds me a bit of A Game of Thrones: The Board Game, in that some groups have taken to bringing phones to the table in order to send text messages to one another, striking up deals for alliances and support in secret. The fact that Collusion builds upon that by fully interfacing with each player's mobile device for other game mechanics is just rad. However, my heart weighs heavy with this Kickstarter campaign, because it sounds incredibly cool and it also appears doomed to failure. With ten days left in the run, the developers have only made about 15% of their total funding goal of $100,000. It seems that the crowdfunding attempt was done too early in development, but despite the likely Kickstarter failure I sincerely hope that this team continues working Collusion. Hopefully the "We can't do it without you" line at the end of the video turns into "We'll find a way to do this somehow." |
| Original Splinter Cell game director leaves Valve Posted: 06 Jan 2014 05:00 AM PST According to a LinkedIn profile update found by Game Informer, Clint Hocking is no longer with Valve. You may recognize his name from his work on the original Splinter Cell and Far Cry 2, before he moved onto LucasArts (which became defunct), and eventually, Valve. But apparently he left the latter by the time 2014 rolled around -- and while it's clear he's still in the industry, we don't really know what (if any) projects he's working on. Perhaps he's following in the footsteps of many visionaries that have worked for AAA studios and have gone off to create their own development projects. Either way his resume is fairly impressive, so hopefully we haven't seen the last of him. Clint Hocking [LinkedIn via Game Informer] |
| Snoop Lion's new video is all about Pokemon Posted: 06 Jan 2014 04:45 AM PST Snoop Lion's taking the struggle from Compton to Pallet Town, and trading in the corners where fiends are slangin' rock for the streets filled with Rare Candy. They're equally dangerous though; take your pick between everyone carryin' a Glock and everyone packin' a Golem. With Major Lazer along for the ride, the former Doggy Dogg takes to the Pokemon realm in pursuit of his lifelong quest to join the Elite Four. Or chill out with some grass types. Yeah, probably that one. |
| Square Enix Montreal's Hitman reportedly canned Posted: 06 Jan 2014 04:30 AM PST Square Enix Montreal was working on a new Hitman game that was said to be a re-imagining, though we never saw much of anything about the title. It's since been discovered that the project was canceled last year, according to the LinkenIn profile of senior game designer Richard Knight which was noticed by Video Gamer. Okay then. The plan, previously, was to have both Square Enix Montreal and IO Interactive work on the property in a sort of back-and-forth, Treyarch/Infinity Ward fashion. It seems that now Montreal is handling an unannounced Hitman game for iOS and Android, while IO will -- last we heard, anyway -- "focus resolutely on the future vision for the Hitman franchise and is in pre-production on a new AAA Hitman project." As curious as I was to see what Square Enix Montreal could come up with for the IP, I can't say I felt particularly hopeful about the quality of the game. It was a big unknown. Suppose it'll stay that way. Square Enix Montreal's next-gen Hitman title confirmed cancelled [VideoGamer] |
| Should Bayonetta 2 have competitive or co-op multiplayer? Posted: 06 Jan 2014 04:00 AM PST Bayonetta is one of my favorite action games of all time. Not only is it legitimately challenging even on hard mode (who would have thought), but it offers up that frame-perfect technical action you'd expect from a studio like Platinum Games, with a ton of weapon variety to boot. Although we don't know much about Bayonetta 2, I'm still pretty excited given the team's pedigree, and the multiplayer mode has me intrigued. Going into 2014 and the inevitable release of more information on the sequel, I'm starting to wonder what Bayonetta would be like with another person. |
| Microsoft sold three million Xbox Ones last year Posted: 06 Jan 2014 03:30 AM PST According to Microsoft, more than three million Xbox One consoles were sold in 2013 worldwide. The system was available in 13 countries and, as you may remember, sold over a million units within the first 24 hours after launch back in November. Now that the console has been out for a while, how has it been treating you? Same goes for PlayStation 4 owners. Are you finding yourself running out of games to play and if so, does that even matter much at this point? I've still got a couple more Trophies in Resogun to earn. Thank You for an Epic 2013 [Xbox] |
| Violent Serenity, a fighting game with two camera angles Posted: 06 Jan 2014 03:00 AM PST If you're looking for something different, check out this video for the indie Kickstarter Violent Serenity: Battle for Discord. Long story short, it's a fighting game that involves both 2D and 3D camera angles, which switch when you've "edged yourself far away enough towards the edge of the screen." All of this is in "very rough, proof of concept" territory, but the idea is fairly intriguing. I don't know how serious a fighting game can get with an engine like that, but I'd easily give it a shot. Violent Serenity [Kickstarter] |
| Greg Martin, the artist who drew your childhood, passes Posted: 06 Jan 2014 02:00 AM PST Greg Martin, the artist who drew so many iconic box art covers during the retro era, has passed away, according to a forum post from a friend. If you're a retro gamer you may recognize his unmistakable art from Bonk's Adventure, Sonic the Hedgehog, Adventure Island, and many more. Evidently he started his career at Hanna-Barbera, where he developed his talents and signature style. Every cover was done by way of an airbrush and took at least one week to complete. I, for one, feel like these covers defined the era (in a very good way), and his work will live on for years to come. Enjoy his art in the gallery below. RIP Greg Martin - Seminal box artist of flintstones 2 and dozens more [Nintendo Age] |
| Klei Entertainment 'looking' into Don't Starve on Vita Posted: 06 Jan 2014 01:00 AM PST Don't Starve was a pleasant surprise. Not only was the art direction wonderfully macabre, but it also provided one of the best survival experiences of 2013. As it gears up to hit consoles in the form of the PlayStation 4, one fan spoke up on Twitter and asked if a Vita report was possible. To the surprise of many, Klei didn't deny the request, stating that they were "focusing on getting [the] PS4 [version] out first," but they would be "looking at if it's possible to do." I really hope that this idea comes to fruition, because survival games on portable platforms are basically the perfect marriage. As a reminder, Don't Starve will be launching tomorrow on the PS4, and it will be free for PlayStation Plus owners. @klei [Twitter] |
| Huge News: Sexy Babies are Glaad about Seaman Posted: 06 Jan 2014 12:30 AM PST Happy Monday, Huge members! What a whopper of a show we have for you this week. We've got a heated debate about the age and attire changes made to some characters in Bravely Default, some new R&B, a reviews round-up set to the Ramones, a breakthrough on talking dog technology, and as always, a round up of the biggest news stories of the week. I'm a strong man. I never give in to temptation, but when you dingle it girl? It makes me lose control. When you dingle it girl, it really is my whole world. When you dingle it girl, it really is my whole world. When you dingle it girl, it really is my whole world. Your dingle makes me tingle and your dangle makes my wang get chubbed and tough. Thanks for watching! |
| DayZ standalone has now surpassed 800,000 sold Posted: 06 Jan 2014 12:00 AM PST People have been anticipating the standalone version of DayZ for a while now, and it appears as if that excitement has paid off. Last week we reported that the game had sold upwards of 400,000 in its first week, but that number has apparently already risen to 800,000 sold, which was "completely unexpected" according to creator Dean "Rocket" Hall. The "roadmap" for the final version is apparently going to drop in mid-January, but these sales have had a "very positive" effect on the development cycle. I can't wait to see where this game goes, as it's been one exciting ride since it was just a niche mod. DayZ standalone has grossed over $12,000,000 already [Reddit via Games.On.Net] |
| Drakengard/Nier director 'going back to unemployment' Posted: 05 Jan 2014 11:00 PM PST Yoko Taro, director of Nier and Drakengard 3, is not having a good year. Recently, he took to Twitter to dash any hopes of a PS4 version of Drakengard 3, stating, "I hope to make the game for PS4 but I can’t have enough money for development." Drakengard 3 has since opened up to decent (but not great) sales in Japan, and that isn't good news for his 2014 plans. Speaking to 4Gamer, Yoko stated, "next year, I’ll be going back to unemployment, so I don’t have anything as far as a next title goes, but as I sit here and mope, I hope everyone has a great and fun 2014. That is all." It's a sad situation for sure. I wish Yoko the best, and as a fan of the series, I can't wait to see what Drakengard 3 has to offer later this year myself. 今年は総勢 [4Gamer via Siliconera] |
| Nvidia's G-SYNC kills screen tearing and stuttering Posted: 05 Jan 2014 06:00 PM PST Monitor makers will be showing off their new models that support Nvidia's new G-SYNC technology here at CES this week. This tech synchronizes the monitor refresh rate with the GPU's rendering to make problems like tearing and stuttering go away. It is also supposed to minimize lag and make gameplay smoother. At their press conference this evening they said that makers like ASUS, BenQ, ViewSonic, AOC and Philips are a ready to show off their latest at the show, so we'll be checking those out. Pictured above is Philips 27" gaming monitor with G-SYNC. It has a 144HZ refresh rate with 1ms response time. It will be available this spring for $649. |
| Steam Machine: 12 partners are making machines so far Posted: 05 Jan 2014 05:00 PM PST CES 2014 is the big coming out party for Valve's Steam Machines. I'm seeing one bright and early tomorrow morning here in Las Vegas, coming from Digital Storm. Later tomorrow evening I'll be attending Valve's press conference where we expect that Valve will announce other partners. Engadget says that they already know of 12 official Steam Machine hardware partners:
We should expect that other parties will be listed tomorrow beyond these, but this is a pretty good lineup already. We've already heard from other partners, but we'll sit tight on our embargoes. Check back Monday evening around 5pm Pacific for the full news from Valve's press conference. |
| Nvidia's Tegra K1 GPU has 192 cores, can match Xbox 360 Posted: 05 Jan 2014 04:41 PM PST Nvidia kicks off CES with their new mobile processor, dubbed the Tegra K1. This super chip features first 192-core GPU based on the Kepler architecture, powered by DirectX 11, and supporting Unreal Engine 4 and OpenGL 4.4. There are 64- and 32-bit versions to pick from, too. At their CES presentation tonight, the K1 was shown running both Unreal Engine 4 and Android running 64-bit. The chip features architecture for 3D graphics that was originally intended for desktops; now this power is coming to mobile devices. We're talking graphical power that beats the PS3 and Xbox 360, they say. Check that "Reflections" demo in the above video for some idea of what this thing can do. The quad core 32-bit version will star showing up in devices in the first half of 2014, while the 64-bit dual-core one will pop up later in the year. |
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