| Some of the best Xbox Live Indies bundled for PC Posted: 24 Jul 2013 04:00 PM PDT In collaboration with Indie Gamer Chick, Indie Royale has put out a new bundle that's essentially a "greatest hits" compilation of the Xbox Live Indie Games channel. There are gems to be found for those who take the time to really dig and these titles -- Dead Pixels, Chester, Antipole, LaserCat, Smooth Operators, Little Racers STREET, Spyleaks, and Orbitron: Revolution -- are up there among the best of them. All eight games are playable on Windows via digital distributor Desura, while Dead Pixels can additionally be redeemed for Steam. The bundle is sitting at a price point of around $4 at the time of writing. Paying $8 or more will get you extras in the form of three albums from Gavin Harrison (Gunslugs, Neoteria, and INC).  |
| Boom! EA loses $11 million Madden lawsuit Posted: 24 Jul 2013 03:00 PM PDT In 2011, we reported that Electronic Arts was being sued by Robin Antonick, designer of the original John Madden Football, who was claiming unpaid royalties for derivatives of his work after realizing subsequent early Madden games were similar to his original design. EA responded, "The complaint and its 20 year-old claim are utterly without merit." Well, EA lost the suit today after a three day jury deliberation. Looks like that one had a little too much mustard on it. "The jury found that several of EA's games, published between 1990-1996, were virtually identical to the original version of Madden NFL Football, developed by Antonick, and used substantially similar plays and formations," according to a press release issued by Hagens Berman, the law firm representing Antonick. "With mandatory prejudgment interest, the verdict should entitle Antonick to more than $11 million." That's a lot of turducken. What's more, Antonick's claim that his work was recycled in the series spans beyond the 16-bit, 1990-1996 time frame considered in this initial decision, which the law firm called "a good omen for the next phase of the litigation." That next phase is set to decide if EA owes Antonick for games published after 1996 and into the present, "where revenues exceed $3 billion." Yikes. Looks like an all-out blitz.  |
| SimCity feedback led to an offline The Sims 4 Posted: 24 Jul 2013 02:00 PM PDT The disastrous launch of SimCity is over and done with. Emerging from the wreckage with two million sales and counting, Electronic Arts is considering allowing the game to be played offline like many of us originally wanted. Speaking to GamesBeat, EA Labels president Frank Gibeau said what we were thinking: that the backlash resulted, at least partially, in The Sims 4 being announced as a "single-player, offline experience." "In the last few months, we have started making changes to the business practices that gamers clearly don't like," said Gibeau. "In the spring, we dropped our online pass program for consoles -- both next-generation and current-generation. We listened to the feedback on SimCity and decided that The Sims 4 would be built as a single-player, offline experience. We announced some new intellectual properties at E3 and will unveil more new games in the months ahead." Asked about lessons learned from the game's launch, Gibeau explained that "In retrospect, our biggest takeaway is that we are lucky that SimCity has an enormous number of loyal fans. That first week after launch was really rough -- an experience nobody wants to live through again. Since then, we've sold more than two million units, and the number of people logging in and playing is holding steady. SimCity is a success. However, underestimating demand in the first month was a major miss. We hope that the game and the service we’ve provided since then meets the fans' high standards." Have you bothered to go back in? How ... how is it? EA exec Frank Gibeau: Betting on next-gen consoles, mobile, and doing right by consumers (interview) [GamesBeat]  |
| Shadowrun dev builds board/videogame hybrid Golem Arcana Posted: 24 Jul 2013 01:00 PM PDT Jordan Weisman has a pretty impressive résumé, not only for the quality of games he has been behind, but for the fact that they have been in both the board game and videogame arenas. With titles such as Shadowrun, HeroClix, and Crimson Skies under his belt, he has some solid experience making games. Now that Shadowrun Returns has almost released, his development studio has set its sights on its next project, a board game called Golem Arcana that integrates mobile or tablet technology in order to augment the tabletop gameplay. By tapping the board or figures with a special code-reading stylus, information about the chosen element is shown on the screen.  Read more... |
| Nintendo says 'no' to Japanese indie developers Posted: 24 Jul 2013 12:30 PM PDT Nintendo has spent much of this year reversing its previous, nose-upturned stance on independent developers. You may remember a couple years ago that Nintendo of America's Reggie Fils-Aime stated, "we are not looking to do business today with the garage developer. In our view, that’s not a business we want to pursue." Things have changed, however, with Nintendo removing some of WiiWare's logistical nightmares -- development office building requirements, payments that are withheld until certain sales thresholds are met -- for a more inclusive and streamlined system. Unity's licensing fees have been waived for Wii U developers and all you need to become a Wii U developer in the US is a $200 business license, which is better than needing expensive office space. However, things are not so easy for indie developers in Japan. As found by Kotaku, Nintendo is currently refusing developer applications from Japan 'at this time.' According to a Nintendo spokesman, via Eurogamer, "The policy in question is the decision of Nintendo's department responsible for licensing activities in each region. The licensing department of Nintendo Co., Ltd is currently not accepting subject applications from individuals in Japan." So, Nintendo's Japanese licensing department is not accepting Japanese indie developers. Well, that's stupid. Given how Nintendo has reversed its opinion on indie development, I can't imagine this will be the case forever. Maybe we'll hear of an immediate reversal like when Nintendo tried to kill Super Smash Bros. Melee at EVO. If not, Sony, and now maybe even Microsoft, are as inviting as ever. And my Vita could use some cool Japanese stuff. Nintendo is not accepting submissions from Japanese indie devs [Eurogamer]
Apparently, Nintendo Is Refusing Japanese Indie Developers [Kotaku]  |
| Survival horror title Outlast locked in for September Posted: 24 Jul 2013 12:00 PM PDT Outlast was first announced for PC and although it's now also coming to PlayStation 4, Steam is indeed where it will release first. Developer Red Barrels has confirmed a September 4, 2013 launch for the survival horror game and sent out a few new screenshots. Put a shirt on, dude! Apparently the game was scary enough that a player at E3 fainted during their demo. And Outlast made Peter Molyneux jump a bit! As someone who enjoys being scared, I'm eager to try it out for myself -- especially knowing that you play as a camera-wielding reporter, not someone with extensive combat experience. The asylum's inhabitants look suitably creepy.  Read more... |
| Gearbox reveals details of its Homeworld acquisition Posted: 24 Jul 2013 11:00 AM PDT We've already heard that Gearbox will be working on an HD remake of both Homeworld games, an IP it snagged during the breakup of publisher THQ. Chief creative officer Brian Martel was the driving force behind the studio bidding for the rights to the space RTS series, beating other bids by Paradox and Aspyr Media. It was Martel's passion for the series that convinced the company to pony up $1.3 million for the rights. Gearbox plans to release the HD remakes of Homeworld 1 and 2 along with releasing the unaltered original versions on PC digital distribution platforms as well. This is a smart move as it's always good to have the original versions to compare the newer HD remakes to, especially after all this time has passed since the original releases. Martel revealed Gearbox's plans are to "upgrade all the ships, make it look amazing for current-gen. At this point it needs a fresh coat of paint." He also told Polygon that Alex Garden, who founded developer Relic, thanked them for their interest and offered his help in any future Homeworld projects. I suppose that's where my interest mainly lies, in a new Homeworld game built for modern PCs. Here's hoping those HD remakes convince a publisher to take the risk. Gearbox candidly shares story of Homeworld acquisition [Polygon] [Image]  |
| Live show: Aliens: Colonial Marines multiplayer Posted: 24 Jul 2013 10:30 AM PDT [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.] Before you start to question my sanity, allow me to explain. When Aliens: Colonial Marines was first released, I did a live show where I slogged through the entire single-player campaign, and damn near wanted to rip my eyes from their sockets after completing it. Afterwards, I figured since I had already put myself through what I considered to be gaming hell, that I may as well showcase a bit of the mulitiplayer, before sending the game to it's fiery grave. But to my surprise, the multiplayer wasn't that bad, in fact, it was quite a bit of fun with a group of friends.
At the end of the show, I opened my big mouth, and announced that if the game was ever on sale for less than fifteen dollars on Steam, that I would pick it up purely for the multiplayer portion. Well, guess what happened? That's right, the Steam summer sale happened. So here we are, about to play a game that I had condemned to the void forever, again tonight on Mash Tactics. Feel free to join in on the action with us if you somehow managed to keep this on your hard drive for this long, or just come by and hang out as we play one of the most controversial titles of this generation over at Dtoid.TV! QotD: Speaking of lack of self control and impulse buys, what game or games did you get during the Steam summer sale, that you would have never picked up otherwise?  |
| Mario & Luigi: Dream Team debuts atop Japanese charts Posted: 24 Jul 2013 10:00 AM PDT Mario & Luigi: Dream Team sold nearly 100,000 copies in its opening week, according to data obtained by market research firm Media Create. The Nintendo 3DS role-playing game topped Japanese software charts, dethroning last week's best-seller, Pikmin 3, which came in at number three. The Wii U strategy title followed up its 92,000 unit debut by finding its way to an additional 28,000 homes. On the hardware side of things, as if there were any doubt, the 3DS is still king in Japan. Nintendo shifted over 57,000 portables on the week. In comparison, the PlayStation Vita and Wii U each moved around 14,000 devices. Trailing in last was the Xbox 360, selling exactly 420 units. There's a joke in there somewhere. マリオ＆ルイージRPG4 ドリームアドベンチャー 10万本，ダンボール戦機W 超カスタム 2万7000本の ゲームソフト週間販売ランキング [4Gamer]  |
| MGM tried to snuff out No One Lives Forever Posted: 24 Jul 2013 09:30 AM PDT We've been hearing little snippets of information concerning No One Lives Forever recently, like how no one actually knows who has the rights to the IP. A new interview on the Jace Hall Show reveals how the original game may never have seen the light of day in the first place. MGM studios sent the developer Monolith a cease-and-desist letter, claiming Cate Archer's adventures infringed on their own James Bond IP. No One Lives Forever lead designer Craig Hubbard revealed that the letter from one of MGM's senior vice-presidents gave the studio 10 days to confirm they would cease production of the game. Monolith's solution? Just ignore the letter and keeping making NOLF. The cease and desist was sent a full 18 months before the game shipped so it's possible that the studio forgot about it in the gap before release. Craig reveals some interesting things about NOLF's development, like how the gender of the main protagonist changed because of Monolith's initial fears of infringing on James Bond or how publisher Fox Interactive pushed the game to be set in the '60s rather than a '60s-inspired universe. Hopefully someone can get their act together and let Cate Archer have one last adventure; just not like that Bond movie Never Say Never Again, that was pish. Turns Out NO ONE LIVES FOREVER…Almost Didn’t Live At All [The Jace Hall Show]  |
| Microsoft confirms self-publishing for Xbox One Posted: 24 Jul 2013 09:00 AM PDT Following reports this morning that Microsoft would revise its stance on independent development for Xbox One, the company has confirmed that, yes, self-publishing will be an option on the platform. Either they're listening, or they just plain don't have this messaging thing down. A statement from Xbox corporate VP Marc Whitten provided to Engadget breaks the good news: "Our vision is that every person can be a creator. That every Xbox One can be used for development. That every game and experience can take advantage of all of the features of Xbox One and Xbox LIVE. This means self-publishing. This means Kinect, the cloud, achievements. This means great discoverability on Xbox LIVE. We'll have more details on the program and the timeline at gamescom in August." Fantastic to hear. I'm still anxious about the specifics, but this needed to happen. Don't let anyone tell you that competition between the console makers is a bad thing. And surely there have been some significant lessons learned from the Xbox Live Indie Games marketplace. Xbox One retail consoles double as debug units, Microsoft to allow indie self-publishing [Engadget]  |
| Gran Turismo movie reportedly in the works Posted: 24 Jul 2013 08:30 AM PDT Sony is developing a film adaptation of Polyphony Digital's long-running Gran Turismo series, reports TheWrap. Let that sink in, because there's not much else to go on at this point in time other than the involvement of producers Michael De Luca and Dana Brunetti (The Social Network) I can see the Need for Speed movie working if for no other reason than I've always just pretended that the Fast and the Furious series was based on those games, but Gran Turismo requires slightly more imagination on my part. That said, it's cars. It's a known franchise. We're done here, right? No wonder this project is (reportedly) happening. Sony Fires Up 'Gran Turismo' Movie With 'Fifty Shades' Producers (Exclusive) [TheWrap]  |
| Saints Row IV Season Pass includes that anal probe weapon Posted: 24 Jul 2013 08:00 AM PDT Well, yeah -- of course Saints Row IV has a Season Pass. And, as expected, it'll include access to Enter the Dominatrix, which is now being described as "a tongue-in-cheek version of what this content was originally going to be like." There's some potential there, I think. The $9.99 pass also throws in another mission pack due out in late 2013 and the infamous "Rectifier" anal probe weapon that the Australian Classification Board wasn't too fond of. Even though I've enjoyed every installment in the series so far and will likely dig Saints Row IV, I don't know. The pass is said to cover content worth "more than $15," but at the same time, I'm not convinced I'll even want all of this post-release DLC. I suppose that's always the dilemma.  |
| Sixteen new titles have been Greenlit on Steam Posted: 24 Jul 2013 07:30 AM PDT Recently, Valve admitted that the Greenlight process is "not perfect by any stretch of the imagination," but the company is still going forward with it, announcing fourteen games and two pieces of software for the service. Most of the titles are particularly notable indie projects, including A Hat in Time, Among the Sleep, Chasm, Deadly Premonition: the Director's Cut, and Divekick. Now that these titles have met Valve's slightly vague set of criteria, we can expect to see them up on Steam in the coming weeks and months, as each developer sees fit. Presumably, we will be able to get these titles for a good price during this year's winter Steam sale, but for some, I'm not sure I can wait that long.  Read more... |
| Review: Dota 2 Posted: 24 Jul 2013 07:00 AM PDT The original Defense of the Ancients, a custom map for Warcraft III, became a hit almost instantly. Chances are, if you were playing Warcraft around that time, you've played a round or two of DotA. Since then standalone games like League of Legends or Heroes of Newerth have risen up, following the basic idea that DotA popularized way back when. Finally, after some legal issues and a very long beta phase, Dota 2 has been officially released. Less of a sequel and more of an enhanced edition, Dota 2 is still very much a work in progress as all of the original Heroes have yet to be ported over to Valve's Source engine edition of the game. Even so, one of the original creators, "Icefrog," is on board with Valve and has continually worked to improve the game in order to create one of the best in the genre -- one that has even become its own sport. Best of all, it's free-to-play with no hoops to jump through.  Read more... |
| PlanetSide 2 for PS4 will be PC version on max settings Posted: 24 Jul 2013 06:30 AM PDT PlanetSide 2 is notorious for being one of most visually impressive games on PC right now. Of course, that means it's incredibly tasking to run, even for top-tier rigs. That won't stop Sony Online Entertainment from aiming for the stars when it comes to the PS4 version. Matt Higby, the creative director on PlanetSide 2, told NowGamer that the studio's plan is to "basically take the PC game with maximum settings and have that be running on the PS4." He elaborated that "there won’t be any limitations in terms of number of players, there won’t be any limitations on the maps – so you aren’t going to get any dumbed down maps or anything like that." The one alteration that SOE intends to make is to the interface, as PlanetSide 2 was developed with the intention of the player using a mouse. Higby promises that there will be changes to ensure that the game works better with a console controller. We knew that the PS4 would be a powerful machine, but I don't think anyone thought that it'd be able to replicate the performance of high-end computers. If Sony Online Entertainment can make good on its word, the gap between consoles and PCs might be narrowing faster than we expected. PlanetSide 2 On PS4 Is 'Basically PC Version On Max Settings' [NowGamer]  |
| Microsoft to reportedly change stance on Xbox One indies Posted: 24 Jul 2013 06:00 AM PDT [Update: It's official. Microsoft will allow self-publishing and "every Xbox One can be used for development," according to Xbox corporate VP Marc Whitten.] If Microsoft can be pressured into reversing its always-online policies for Xbox One, is there any chance that the company will allow independent developers to self-publish their games on the platform? That's been my sincere hope. Game Informer reports that this is the case -- that Microsoft will have a system where devs can set pricing and release dates for titles and expect a 14-day turnaround for certification approvals. A huge step in the right direction, in other words. The outlet's sources also suggest that any Xbox One can become a debug console through a process where Microsoft authorizes the specific unit to play pre-release code. That would be remarkable if true. I want to believe Microsoft has come around and won't be the odd man out for indies this console generation, but there are a lot of unknowns here. We'll see. Microsoft To Announce Indie Self-Publishing, New Certification Process [Game Informer] [Image]  |
| The first 10 hours of Dragon's Crown are action packed Posted: 24 Jul 2013 05:30 AM PDT All things considered, Dragon's Crown is one of my most anticipated games of the year, if not the most. As many of you know, I'm a massive fan of action games as well as brawlers, old-school games, and of course, Vanillaware. Everything about Dragon's Crown looked great, but as we know, there's nothing quite like actually playing something to really judge whether or not what sounds good on paper holds up in practice. If the first 10 hours are any indication, I don't think I have anything to worry about.  Read more... |
| Enjoy The Mighty Quest for Epic Loot's story trailer Posted: 24 Jul 2013 05:00 AM PDT The Mighty Quest for Epic Loot really caught my eye at E3 this year, being one of the few games with a splash of color and a sense of humor. The same silliness we saw at E3 is prevalent in this brand new story trailer. Here we get a better look at the world and the characters, with some nice gameplay thrown in. I'm really looking forward to giving this one a go. I just hope they handle all the free-to-play stuff correctly.  |
| Digging deeper into Lords of Shadow 2 with Dave Cox Posted: 24 Jul 2013 04:30 AM PDT We learned a lot about Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 from our time at San Diego Comic-Con last week. We saw a demo showcasing the game's emphasis on exploration and combat, experienced it on PC, and have also delved into the music.
Now we have further details about the combat system, sense of balance, characters (including the roles that Alucard and Simon Belmont play), and the lessons learned from previous games. Oh, and we find out what happened to Igarashi.
All of this and more, below with producer Dave Cox.  Read more... |
| Rhymedown Spectacular: Pipes of Passion Posted: 24 Jul 2013 04:00 AM PDT This week, both poems get pretty damn dark. Yahtzee talks of animals and crossings, while your ol' pal here tells a tale of passion and revenge. There is a lot of emotion in these poems, and I think we all can learn a little bit about ourselves and the human condition, for God's sake.  |
| Disgaea D2 is still looking suitably wacky Posted: 24 Jul 2013 03:30 AM PDT NIS has a new English trailer for Disgaea D2: A Brighter Darkness, and it shows off a fair bit of gameplay, art, and even voice acting. You'll get an introduction to the game's cast and their personalities, as well as some of their combat abilities. As I've said before, I hope this upholds the Disgaea legacy, and rekindles the magic of the very first game in a way the sequels haven't to date. Although I'm a huge fan of the franchise in general, there's something the original Disgaea that drew so many people in, and I'd love it to return to its former glory in the general gaming community.  |
| Goaty Posted: 24 Jul 2013 03:00 AM PDT |
| Nvidia's Project Logan GPU brings PC graphics to mobile Posted: 24 Jul 2013 02:14 AM PDT At SIGGRAPH this week, NVIDIA and Epic Games teamed up to unveil their next-gen mobile processor, Project Logan. This GPU is based on the Kepler architecture that powers what NVIDIA has been putting in desktops and notebooks this past year or so. In short, the guts that power your fancy GTX 780 have been reworked to now power mobile devices. We're talking a huge jump in performance for mobile devices with this. This means that mobile devices will get full support of OpenGL 4.4 and ES 3.0 as well as DX11. It comes with all the goodies we'd see in our desktop machines, including tessellation, physics, and anti-aliasing. This CUDA-capable processor is going to change things. They've essentially scaled down desktop GPU power requirements for mobile devices -- they say this new chip uses less than one-third the power of GPUs in tablets out today. At SIGGRAPH, Epic showed Unreal Engine 4 running on this fingertip-sized chip. You can get an idea of what to expect in the two videos we have here. Seeing "Ira" run on a tablet is very impressive.  Read more... |
| Chaos Rings now available on PS Vita, PS Mobile Posted: 24 Jul 2013 01:00 AM PDT The rather excellent, if originally pricey, phone/tablet RPG Chaos Rings has snuck its way onto the PlayStation Store, available for purchase on PS Mobile and PS Vita devices. Though only announced for Japan, it's already on the US store, with an English language option. Available for $7.99, it's more or less a straight port, optimized for PlayStation devices and including a setting for standard physical controls as well as touchscreen swipin'. If you've not played it before, it's a fun game that's worth checking out, and it'll give your Vita something to do -- always a plus!  |
| Aliens: Colonial Marines 'Stasis Interrupted' out now Posted: 23 Jul 2013 11:00 PM PDT One of the dumbest elements of Aliens: Colonial Marines was the sudden appearance of Corporal Hicks, a move that undid the canon of the movies for no real reason other than the desperate need for a recognizable character. Hicks handwaved his nonsensical appearance with "that's another story," which I figured at the time was an excuse to sell us an explanation separately at a later date. Well, what do you know? Stasis Interrupted, a quietly released downloadable chapter, indeed sells us an explanation as to why Hicks appears in Colonial Marines when he was supposed to be hurtling toward his sleepy death. It'll cost you $10, or will automatically be obtainable by any poor soul who stumped up the green for a season pass.  Read more... |
| The Daily Hotness: Don't say I never did nothing for you Posted: 23 Jul 2013 04:59 PM PDT Kentucky Route Zero is 50% off for another day. You can get all five episodes, two of which are currently available, for a paltry $12.49. It's one of the best games of the year. You should buy it. Either DRM free here (plus Steam key) or directly through Steam. Don't say I never did nothing for you. Today, we had more Communitoid for you to put in your ears, Dale took a look at Assassin's Creed IV: Hey Look, There's Pirates Now, we collectively recovered from the Steam sale (well, I didn't buy anything, actually; abstinence, yay!), Chris Carter reviewed a worthwhile mobile game called Tiny Thief, and more.
Destructoid Original:
What did you get during the Steam summer sale?
The DTOID Show: Wasteland 2, Borderlands 2, & Square Enix
Impressions: Sonic & Mega Man: Worlds Collide #7-9
Live show: Civilization V multiplayer
Community:
Community blogs of 7/23
Forum thread of the day: Mercenary Kings
Communitoid episodes 015, 016 and 017: Because we care
Reviews:
Review: Tiny Thief
Previews:
Assassin's Creed IV: Welcome to the Golden Age of Pirates  Read more... |
