By Anonymous on Oct 01, 2015 12:00 am
EA Sports has released the second title update for its professional football game Madden NFL 16. The update, available today, makes more than 100 bug fixes and also implements some refinements and tweaks to the game's Connected Franchise and Ultimate Team modes. Specifically, the patch fixes an issue where if a team called a time out on a safety punt, that team would then get to kick a regular kickoff. The update also addresses a problem in online games where, when the game was paused, the defensive timer would run out, leading the game to auto-choose the play. The full changelog for today's Madden NFL 16 update is available below the video. The first title update for Madden NFL 16 was released earlier this month, while EA Sports pushed out a "player likeness" patch just days later, which changed the in-game looks for more than 180 players. For more on Madden NFL 16, check out GameSpot's 8/10 review. Madden NFL 16 September 30 Title Update:GAMEPLAY - Addressed issue where if a team called a time out on the safety punt, they would then be able to kick a regular kickoff
- Addressed issue where sometimes a defender would have a poor pursuit angle toward the ball carrier if the ball carrier was breaking a tackle during a catch
- Addressed issue where sometimes defensive linemen would freeze for the remainder of the play after being knocked to the ground
- Addressed issue where the defense would not adjust alignment if the CPU controlled offensive team enacted a concept audible
- Updated Individual Coverage adjustments to not only affect the pre-snap shading but also the post play leverage technique
- Addressed issue where adjusting the ZONE shading would have an effect on the defenders drop location instead of just the leverage technique
- Addressed issue where cancelling a PA Fake would allow for a 1-step drop on certain plays
- Addressed issue where the game clock would be restarted of a declined penalty after an incomplete pass
- Addressed issue where safeties in Cover 4 Deep assignments were reacting to run too quickly
CONNECTED FRANCHISE - Addressed issue where defensive holding slider would reset when exiting the screen
- Addressed issue where accelerated clock would not work in H2H CFM games
- Addressed issue where visual feedback settings were pulling from the user's profile instead of league settings
- Addressed issue where some settings would carry back to the FE after playing a CFM game
- Addressed issue where the CPU would retain an empty roster spot when simming to the regular season when there is a player on Injured Reserve (note: changes aren't reflected until after your current season is finished)
- Addressed issue where the user could not sort player while in the Fantasy draft board
- Removed Kick Return as a scoutable trait (note: changes won't be reflected until after your current season is finished)
- CFM Trade tuning
- Addressed issue in CFM H2H where uniforms would change back to default home/away even after changing them in the team select screen
- Addressed a rare issue that caused some Franchise files to be corrupted, preventing players from accessing their CFM (note: this won't repair already corrupted files, and only prevents future occurrences)
MADDEN ULTIMATE TEAM - MUT Play a Friend quarter length boosted to four minutes from two minutes
- In MUT H2H Seasons and Draft Champions H2H Draft, terminating the game during the load screen will give the quitter a loss and the opponent a win. In MUT, Contracts will still be removed.
OTHER - Play Now games were using regular season overtime rules rather than playoff overtime rules (removed possibility for ties)
- Addressed issue in online games where the defensive timer would run out during a pause causing the game to auto pick the defensive play
- Addressed over 100 general bug and stability issues
What do you make of these changes? Let us know in the comments below.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 11:16 pm
 A new patch is coming to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, promising a lot of changes.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 11:12 pm
Activision on Wednesday released the first full-length story trailer for Call of Duty: Black Ops III, which dives into what happens when human augmentation goes wrong. There is a lot to take in. The video starts out with news broadcast-style footage of a world ravaged by natural and what appear to be man-made disasters. "We wanted a perfect future, and f**k, we got it," the narrator says, adding, "I wanted to be a killing machine and they made me one." Watch the video below. "In our quest to create the ultimate soldier, we've pushed for the enhancement of our greatest weapon: our mind," the video's description reads. "But with this new power comes an unimaginable new threat." A crow makes numerous appearances in the video, but only in small flashes. What's more, a character at the end bears an uncanny resemblance to Law & Order actor Christopher Meloni (see below). Black Ops III launches on November 6 for all platforms. The last-generation versions of the shooter do not have a campaign mode, which this video points out at the beginning. This new video follows Call of Duty's viral marketing for the game where it live-tweeted a fake terrorist attack. What do you make of this trailer? Let us know in the comments below. Christopher Meloni?
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 10:49 pm
Actor Michael Madsen (Reservoir Dogs, Free Willy) has joined the cast for the second season of superhero-themed PlayStation TV show Powers, creator Brian Michael Bendis announced today. In a post on the PlayStation Blog, Bendis revealed that Madsen will play the role of "SuperShock," described as "one of the most powerful superheroes in the Powers universe."  "After retiring 40 years ago under mysterious circumstances, SuperShock resurfaces to fill the void left behind by Retro Girl's death," Bendis said. "We're incredibly lucky to have him joining our talented cast." Take a look at some art for SuperShock, as seen in the comics, below. Bendis also confirmed that shooting on the second season of Powers began this week in Atlanta. The show's other cast members include Sharlto Copley (District 9), Eddie Izzard (Ocean's 13), Susan Heyward (The Following), and Noah Taylor (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory). The second season of Powers will debut on PlayStation platforms sometime in 2016. The first season was a big success, and original programming of this nature will be a key area of focus going forward, Sony says. 
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 10:45 pm
Video game retailer GameStop on Wednesday announced that it will hold a "demo day" for Guitar Hero Live this coming Saturday, October 3. As part of this campaign, GameStop stores across the country will have PlayStation 4 kiosks available where shoppers can try out the game to see what it's all about. This sounds like a good opportunity to check out the game and try the new guitar controller. In addition, if you snap a photo of yourself playing the game and use the hashtags #BeAGuitarHero and #Sweepstakes on Twitter and Instagram you'll be entered to win an Uncharted-themed PS4 bundle. Guitar Hero Live--the first entry in the series since 2010's Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock--launches on October 20 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Wii U, and mobile devices. For more, check out the game's soundtrack here, which includes on-disc songs and Guitar Hero TV tracks. Competitor Rock Band 4 arrives a couple weeks earlier on October 6.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 10:35 pm
The free version of PlayStation 4 racing game Driveclub will be removed from the PlayStation Store soon, Sony announced on Wednesday as part of the reveal of October's free PlayStation Plus games. Driveclub's PS Plus edition will be yanked on October 6, Sony said, though the company did not provide any kind of explanation as to why this is happening. The game didn't have a very long life, as it was released only a few months ago in June. The free version was supposed to launch alongside the game in October 2014, but was delayed until Sony could fix the game's initial server issues. Game director Paul Rustchynsky says on Twitter that Sony makes the decisions regarding PS Plus content, not Evolution. Asked if the game is being removed so that something "more substantial" could take its place, the developer said, "I don't know, we're not involved in what is featured on PS+." You can queue up your Driveclub PS Plus edition through this link. Despite getting off to a tough start, Driveclub has now sold more than 2 million copies. In addition free tracks and more updates coming soon, developer Evolution Studios has teased that it has major plans for the game in the coming year, including "big surprises" to be announced later.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 10:16 pm
 This week's S.P.E.C.I.A.L. video focuses on Charisma. Study it carefully to ensure your survival and to discover what makes you S.P.E.C.I.A.L.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 10:05 pm
The Xbox One version of Smite's latest patch arrives today, with the most significant addition being a new character. Xing Tian is a Guardian-class character who is able to build up his health regeneration by using abilities on enemies. He can also reduce the amount of damage enemies can do and grab a group of them with his Ultimate. Xing TianA number of new skins are also introduced in this update, including an excellent-looking samurai one for Odin, the Ragnarok skin for Fenrir, mastery skins for Ratatoskr, and more. The spectator mode added in the previous patch has been improved in today's update, making it so matches can be password-protected. Games also now have match IDs that can be used to directly access replays of them. The new training maps added to the PC version of Smite in August are now available on Xbox One, giving new players some additional assistance in learning the game. Several characters have been modified, too. Khepri, the most recent character added before Xing Tian, has been further nerfed, while Kumbhakarna should now be more effective. Guan Yu has also been slightly improved (his trait now builds up stacks) and the cooldown on his dash has been reduced, while the damage on some of Ao Kuang's abilities has been readjusted to make him easier to play for less experienced players. You can check out the full patch notes on the official Smite website.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 09:44 pm
If you enjoyed the music in DICE's 2008 free-running game Mirror's Edge, you may be happy to learn that the Swedish composer behind that game, Solar Fields, is writing the music for Catalyst. Fields, whose real name is Magnus Birgersson, says the music he wrote for Catalyst will carry forward the "electronic soundscapes" of the original. As you'd expect, he's working closely with DICE on the project.  "I'm in daily contact with DICE," he says in a blog post. "Audio director Magnus Walterstad in particular has been giving me tons of information on Mirror's Edge Catalyst to help with the composing. I'm looking at the script, the biographies on all the characters, and of course the design of the city of Glass." Fields is a hands-on composer. He says he visits DICE regularly to play through portions of the game to get an idea for the kind of musical mood he wants to set. This is also a time to gather feedback from developers. "I get all kinds of feedback, like whether the tempo is right or if the musical themes are too positive, for instance. This input is incredibly valuable to me," he explained. Fields also points out that the original Mirror's Edge was limited somewhat in terms of audio in that it only used one stereo channel. Catalyst, on the other hand, makes use of four different stereo channels, depending on what is happening in the game. This allows the music to be "even deeper and more dynamic." For more on the music in Catalyst, read the full blog post and listen to the soundtrack sample above. Catalyst launches February 23, 2016 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 09:40 pm
 Lucy takes a look at Wargaming's meteoric rise to power in this week's In 2 Minutes.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 09:29 pm
Ever since Daniel Craig suggested in an interview with Esquire last month that the upcoming Spectre might be his last James Bond movie, rumours have been flying about who might play the iconic secret agent next. However, in a new interview for the Mail on Sunday in UK, Craig has explained that his departure might not be as imminent as first thought. Craig mentions that he is "contracted for one more" Bond film, which certainly implies that he is not about to leave the role. This is despite previously stating that "at the moment I can't even conceive [another Bond movie]."  In the new interview, the 47-year-old star does admit that playing Bond is a physically demanding job. "I work myself to death," he says. "It's getting harder. But such is life. I'll keep going as long as I'm physically able." Earlier this week, it was rumoured that Homeland star Damian Lewis was the top choice to replace Craig as 007, with the Sunday Mirror quoting a source as saying that Lewis had the "unofficial nod" from producers. This follows much talk about The Wire's Idris Elba potentially becoming the first black Bond, something that former 007 Pierce Brosnan doesn't think will happen. Last week the Spectre theme song, "The Writing's On The Wall" by Sam Smith, was released. The film arrives in cinemas on November 6, 2015, and co-stars Christoph Waltz, Lea Seydoux, Ben Whishaw, Monica Bellucci, and Ralph Fiennes.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 09:22 pm
Sony has detailed the latest crop of games PlayStation Plus members can download for free in October. In Europe, the list includes Super Meat Boy, which is making its debut on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita. Along with this, there's Double Fine's adventure game, Broken Age. Kung-fu rhythm title Kickbeat and indie action game Kung Fu Rabbit will be available for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3, as will Unmechanical Extended. Finally, physics-based platformer Chariot will be available to play on the PS3. The full list of additions coming to European plus subscribers on October 6 can be found below. In North America, meanwhile, Sony has confirmed Super Meat Boy and Broken Age will be available to subscribers, but has not mentioned any further titles. Also worth noting is that DriveClub PlayStation Plus Edition, the free version of Evolution's racing simulation game, will no longer be available from October 6. Sony has advised users to download the game to keep it in their library, where it can be downloaded again in the future. Here's a list of September's games, which will no longer be available from October 6. Grab them while you can.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 09:10 pm
Today, September 30, marks the last day of September, making this your last chance to claim the month's free Games With Gold titles. Due to the way Microsoft staggers the release of the Xbox One's freebies, only one of the two Games With Gold games leaves today. The Deer God will return to its regular price on October 1; Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition, meanwhile, remains free until October 15.  On Xbox 360, it's Crysis 3 that won't be free for much longer. This month's other free 360 game, Battlestations: Pacific, went away on September 15. To download these games, you only need to be an Xbox Live Gold member. You'll have access to any of the free Xbox One games for as long as you remain a subscriber, while the 360 games are yours to keep forever, regardless of your membership status. The first of October's free games--Valiant Hearts and Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes--will be free beginning October 1. More games will be added on October 16. Follow the links below to grab September's games while you still can.
By Anonymous on Sep 30, 2015 07:30 pm
Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection is a history lesson on a grand scale. It weaves through maps, journals, and diary entries long separated from their ancient authors, in abandoned ruins across the world. But this collection also delves into the series' own dark recesses, highlighting the progress developer Naughty Dog made from the first Uncharted to the third. There is brilliance in this collection. But there are hints of mediocrity as well. It begins with the first entry in the series, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, which shipped in 2007. This marks our first moment with its hero, Nathan Drake. He's since become a video game icon, but eight years ago, he was Naughty Dog's first departure from the affable Jak and Daxter. At the time, Drake had yet to prove his worth. The Uncharted series combines third-person action, cover-based shooting, and cinematic storytelling. Throughout its three installments, we've followed our hero across deserts, between mountains, and underground through ancient tombs. Each title is replete with action-oriented set pieces, from Uncharted 2's perilous train intro to Uncharted 3's premature plane evacuation. By grouping all three PS3 titles together in one place, The Nathan Drake Collection comprises a larger story arc. We can experience the entire original journey, from beginning to end, in 1080p, at 60 fps. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune's story takes a sharp turn in this cavern.But this adventure's early moments are unsettling. Despite its upgrades, the first Uncharted has not aged well. Drake's Fortune used to be an enjoyable, accomplished game--but that was in 2007. This remastered version looks gorgeous now, its lush jungles greener, its shooting controls tighter thanks to Bluepoint Games' refinements. But set against modern standards, its overall quality is middling. Drake's movements are floaty and imprecise. The cover mechanic places me in danger far too often. Climbing sequences leave little room for error, often leading to death for unknown reasons. There are even rare storytelling missteps: the entire middle section of the game is devoid of much meaningful character progression, opting instead for imprecise jetski treks against the jungle's raging rivers. Furthermore, at the perceived death of his closest friend, Drake allows himself a single gasp, before his mourning is displaced by excitement for another adventure. He's smiling ten minutes later, laughing as he looks into the sunset toward the next "X" on the map. Wading through Drake's first outing means suffering constant frustrations. But in the end, it's worth playing, because of what its story leads to: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, a fantastic sequel successfully modernized by improved cosmetics and smoother aiming controls. Naughty Dog's characters show real complexity here, and their relationships shift, align, and resettle as the story takes haphazard turns. Uncharted 2's intro still outshines many other games' endings.Its pacing is masterful as ever, too. Small skirmishes and full-scale battles in the Himalayas perforate a story with real charm. In slower sections where other developers might falter, Naughty Dog uses endearing dialogue and cinematic shots to give the story a sense of gravity. There is, as they say, never a dull moment. Much of the same rings true in Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. Although the pacing stumbles throughout, and the story introduces supernatural elements in a predictable manner, Uncharted's characterization is at its peak here. Drake's bright personality shows some darker shades. Sully tries to anchor things with a warm, comforting presence, and Elena's apprehension toward Drake mirrors our own, as we grow to question his actions. Much has been made about the disconnect between the characters of Uncharted, and the actions they perform. Drake, Sully, and their crews are amicable people. But they have almost no problem killing on a whim. To be clear, this doesn't make any of the three games less fun--they are shooters, after all, and the resulting action is tighter here. The beginning of an era.But the narrative disconnect does pull me out at times. In a series so focused on story, it's odd that the characters collide against the gameplay with such friction. Uncharted 2 and 3 both make self-aware nods to this dichotomy--one of the main villains even points out Drake's murderous streak with a clichéd "You're not so different from me"--but it's hard to get past the speed and ease in which Drake and Sully switch between jovial exposition to mass-murder. This disconnect is more pronounced in 2015, considering Naughty Dog's work on The Last of Us, a game in which its characters, their actions, and the world around them all made sense together. There is violence in The Last of Us--but it belongs there. Despite Uncharted's inherent juxtaposition, these games are still fun shooters with colossal set-pieces. There are also new modes that add variety to the series, such as the punishing Brutal difficulty, the easier Explorer mode, and a Continuous Speed Run mode that keeps track of your time during certain sections of Drake's travels. But as of this writing, we know Uncharted 3 isn't the end. Uncharted 4 is on the way, and with it, the continuation of Drake's story. And in preparing us for the vagabond's encore--likely his final chapter--Bluepoint Games has delivered a polished prelude. The developer has compiled a singular story arc leading into the fourth chapter, and revamped it for modern visual palates. Like the best stories, those of Uncharted and its characters have changed over time. The Nathan Drake Collection smooths out the crinkled pages, clarifies the memories, and buffs all the right details in the retelling of this storied series. In preparing us for Nathan Drake's encore, Bluepoint Games has delivered a polished prelude.
At various times throughout the Uncharted games, our protagonist carries the ring of Francis Drake on a leather band around his neck. The ring's inscription reads: "Sic Parvus Magna," or, "greatness from small beginnings." I can't imagine a better way to encapsulate this collection. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune was a fine game in 2007, but its wrinkles are deeper now, its age more apparent. With Uncharted 2 and 3, though, Naughty Dog transcended Drake's own small beginnings. The Nathan Drake Collection is a firsthand account of Naughty Dog's growth as a storyteller, and this collection is the best way to relive that history, and witness its transformation up close.
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