With the release of Halo 5: Guardians closing in, Microsoft is ramping up its promotional efforts for the sci-fi shooter. Part of that drive is the game's "launch TV commercial," which will air this weekend during Sunday Night Football on NBC, Microsoft has announced.
Millions of people are expected to tune into this week's matchup between the the Denver Broncos and Detroit Lions on September 27. In 2014, 30-second ad prices for Sunday Night Football cost more than $600,000, the priciest ad buy in all of television, according to this Variety report.
The fact that Microsoft referred to its Halo 5 football ad as a "launch TV commercial" suggests it's not the game's full launch trailer, but an asset created specifically for primetime TV. Presumably, the official launch trailer will come later, sometime closer to Halo 5's release on October 27.
GameSpot recently played a portion of Halo 5's campaign. Watch some videos and get our thoughts here. You can also check out some new multiplayer footage in the video above.
Today during the the keynote address at the first-ever TwitchCon conference, Twitch CEO Emmett Shear announced that a Twitch app is coming soon to PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation Vita.
The app is due out this fall. Twitch functionality is already baked into PS4 through built-in streaming that's available by pressing the DualShock 4's "Share" button. But the new app will let users watch livestreams (those from PS4, PC, and all other platforms) and use full chat functionality (including emotes).
The app was shown off during the TwitchCon keynote today and it looks a lot like the Xbox One version, which has been available since 2014. It will launch first for PS4 in October, followed by PS3, PS Vita, and PlayStation TV.
The prospect of the Xbox One offering support for the Oculus Rift has been discussed, but it's not something that is close to happening, Oculus product VP Nate Mitchell has revealed.
"It has been a conversation, but I can say we're not so close," he told Polygon when asked about an Xbox One-compatible Rift, reiterating previous statements. This is due in part to the difficulty in "deliver[ing] a great experience reliably on Windows." Adding Xbox One (or any other platform, including OS X or Linux) would complicate things before the Rift has had a chance to become established on Windows PCs.
"No one is really thinking right now about bringing the Rift to a console, especially when the spec is so different from what we're targeting right now," Mitchell said.
The idea of an Xbox One Rift headset isn't so crazy, as Microsoft and Oculus have been working together. Oculus announced earlier this year that every Rift will ship with an Xbox One controller. (There will also be a separate, Rift-specific controller called the Oculus Touch.) Additionally, Rift owners will be able to stream Xbox One games through a PC to a Rift headset, but only so that they can be viewed in a sort of virtual theater--you won't be playing the games themselves in actual VR.
Mitchell went on to explain that it isn't a matter of the Xbox One not having enough horsepower to support VR--Gear VR runs off a Samsung phone--it's just a different set of challenges.
"That's the thing, you can absolutely deliver a great VR experience on Xbox One; what I should say is with the hardware that's in the Xbox One," Mitchell said in response to a question about the Xbox One being powerful enough. "We're not really focused on it right now. It really depends on the content you want to put there."
You can now play Batman: Arkham Knight with a head roughly the size of Batman's torso, thanks to the addition of a new Big Head mode.
An update this week bringing the console version of the game up to version 1.07 added support for the feature, which has also been present in past Batman: Arkham games. As demonstrated in the video below from director Sefton Hill, this is activated in a similar manner: hold both triggers while spinning the right analog stick clockwise ten times.
This causes your character's head to immediately become huge. The best part of this is that it isn't limited to Batman; Catwoman and other characters can have giant heads, too.
The 1.07 patch is a compatibility patch for the upcoming DLC, set for release this coming Tuesday, September 29. That includes the second Crime Fighter Challenge Pack and GCPD Lockdown, the latter of which sees Nightwing trying to prevent Penguin's escape attempt.
Before you start playing Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection next month, you'll need to download a day-one patch, Sony has announced. This patch, 1.00, will include various fixes, optimizations, and tweaks.
A rundown of the patch is available below the video, though it's more of a high-level overview than a specific list of changes.
The latest Steam free weekend event has begun, and this time it features Relic Entertainment's Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War series. The whole series.
All seven games in the franchise--technically, two main entries and their various standalone expansions--can be played for free from now until Sunday, September 27, at 1 PM PDT. There are no restrictions on this; these are the full games you have access to, and you can play as much as you want.
Coinciding with this, each of the games is 75 percent off, allowing you to pick them up for anywhere from $2.49 to $5. Alternatively, you can pick up the Dawn of War franchise pack--which consists of the games, expansions, and DLC--for $35, rather than the usual $140. These sale prices are available until Monday, September 28, at 10 AM PDT.
You can jump right to the Steam pages for the free games through the links below.
Naughty Dog has shed more light on its decision to delayUncharted 4: A Thief's End from fall 2015 to March 2016. Co-director Neil Druckmann says in a new interview the decision to push the PlayStation 4 game out a few months was not an easy one, but was required to make sure the team nailed the ending.
"It was a very hard decision," Druckmann said in the latest issue of OPM (via GamesRadar). Uncharted 4 is the final game in the series to star Nathan Drake, and Druckmann teases that the studio has something special in mind for the very last scene. Getting this right took more time than previously anticipated.
"Even when I'm describing the ending, it's a pretty... Well, I guess this is a little bit of a spoil... Nah, I'm not going to say it! But there is something that happens that requires quite a bit of work for what we want it to do," Druckmann said. "And again, we would have had to reduce that scope and reduce that ambition to meet that [original] deadline."
Druckmann said he knew the decision to move the game back would frustrate some fans, but it was ultimately decided that a delay was in the best interest of the overall experience.
"It was going to disappoint [fans] to push this thing back," he said. "But this is the last chapter for Nathan Drake, so let's give ourselves as much time as possible and go all-out for this series."
New Amazon Prime users can sign up today for a one-year membership for $67. Along with free two-day shipping and a number of other perks, Prime members get discounts on some games and game accessories (though you'll typically need to add the item in question to your cart to see the lower price).
Below you'll find the rest of today's best deals divided by platform.
Amazon Prime members can get a 3.5mm jack-equipped Xbox One controller with a Play & Charge Kit for $58. Just add the bundle to your cart (make sure it's the one sold by Amazon, not a third party) and proceed to checkout to see the discount.
Green Man Gaming has a sale on Rockstar games, offering GTA V for $48, Bully for $3.74, Max Payne 3 for $5, and more. You can save a further 20 percent on select games with promo code 20PERC-AUTUMN-SAVING.
The newest Humble Bundle features Total War games. Paying any price gets you a few games and beta access to Total War: Arena. Beating the average sale price gets you a couple more games, while paying $15 or more adds in Total War: Rome II and four DLC packs.
The latest Humble Weekly Bundle is the Fantastic Arcade bundle. You can get a handful of games no matter how much you spend, while ponying up $8 or more gets you everything, including Fez, Luftrausers, Hotline Miami, and Fract OSC.
Amazon prices are accurate as of publishing, but can fluctuate occasionally throughout the day.
GameSpot's gaming deals posts always highlight the best deals we can find regardless of retailer. We also occasionally use retailer affiliate links, which means that purchasing goods through those links helps support all the great content (including the deals posts) you find for free here on the site.
The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of Call of Duty: Black Ops III will not come with the game's campaign mode. Instead, last-generation players are only getting multiplayer and Zombies. Activision made the announcement Friday, saying the game was designed from the ground up to "harness the full power" of PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. As such, the game's campaign isn't making the cut on last-gen systems.
"The ambitious scope of the 1-4 player co-op campaign design of the PS4, Xbox One, and PC versions could not be faithfully recreated on old generation hardware," Activision said.
The last-generation version of Black Ops III is being developed by Beenox and Mercenary Technology, not principal developer Treyarch Studios.
The multiplayer mode featured in the PS3/Xbox 360 version of Black Ops III includes the game's new movement abilities and new characters, just as it does on current-generation platforms and PC. In addition, the zombies mode, "Shadows of Evil," will be playable in its entirety. However, Activision did not say if multiplayer or Zombies were in any way dialed back for last-generation systems (outside of graphics).
In addition, Black Ops III's new Weapon Paint Shop and its new esports-focused tools will only be present on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. These changes will be noted on the game's box.
Finally, Activision announced today that Black Ops III for PS3/Xbox 360 won't be full-price game, as it will sell for $50 instead of $60. The company also revealed that it will come with a free copy of the original Call of Duty: Black Ops.
The Black Ops III release date is set for November 6 across all platforms. How do you feel about Black Ops III losing these features for last-gen systems? Let us know in the comments below.
[UPDATE] Microsoft has confirmed that it will announce a Xbox One bundle every day next week, starting on September 28 and running through October 2. These will be Xbox One holiday bundles.
The original story is below.
Microsoft will announce new Xbox One bundles this coming Monday, September 28, the company has announced. This was revealed through a banner posted on the official Xbox website.
It looks like Microsoft may announce as many as four new bundles. "Which will you choose?" Microsoft asks. There is no further information available regarding what these bundles might be. Rise of the Tomb Raider, however, seems a likely candidate to gets its own system bundle given Microsoft's heavy involvement with the game's development and publishing. This of course is not confirmed.
There has been so much talk lately about the DC Extended Universe--Warner's slate of connected films drawn from their superhero roster--that it's easy to forget that so far only one such movie has been released. Unlike rivals Marvel, who are seven years and many movies into their Cinematic Universe, DC's sole offering to date is 2013's Man of Steel.
Now screenwriter Jason Fuchs has spoken about what will set DC's superhero films apart from those of Marvel. Fuchs is strongly rumoured to be the screenwriter of the forthcoming Woman Woman. While he has not officially confirmed this, in an interview with Collider to promote his new film Pan, he did speak about working for DC.
"When you work for DC, it's sort of like working for the CIA," he said. "You have a vow of silence. I think, as we speak, [Man of Steel director] Zack Snyder's gonna come in here and put a muzzle on me. The trouble with these things is that you really can't say much. So I'm excited about everything that's going on in that universe.
"I've certainly read the same reports you've read about my involvement and what that might be, but I can only speak to it as a fan. I don't think it's any secret that people who have seen the Batman v Superman trailer, the Suicide Squad trailer, can see that this is a very different cinematic universe than the one that Marvel has constructed over at Disney.
"It's a really specific, grand, slightly darker, slightly grittier place. As a fan of those comic books, a fan of those movies, I'm excited to see where it goes next."
Wonder Woman is scheduled for a June 23, 2017 release, directed by Patty Jenkins and starring Gal Gadot. Prior to this, Gadot will appear in Snyder's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which hits screens on March 25, 2016.
Ahead of Oculus Rift's consumer launch in 2016, Oculus VR has announced an "Oculus Ready" program for PCs. Essentially, this is a line of Oculus-branded PCs from big-name companies like Dell, Alienware, and Asus that are specifically designed to work right out of the box with the Oculus Rift VR headset.
These systems, described by Oculus as "high-performances PC optimized for the Rift," cover the headset's recommended system requirements. The cheapest model announced so far is from Asus, and starts at $949. The other systems, from Dell and Alienware, are offered at starting prices of $999.
The full system specifications for these Oculus Ready PCs have not been announced. As announced previously, Oculus Rift's recommended PC specifications are as follows:
NVIDIA GTX 970 / AMD 290 equivalent or greater
Intel i5-4590 equivalent or greater
8GB+ RAM
Compatible HDMI 1.3 video output (required)
2x USB 3.0 ports (required)
Windows 7 SP1 or newer (required)
Oculus has not yet confirmed a price for the Rift headset, but the company has said you should expect to pay $1,500 for an "all-in" setup that includes a capable PC and the device itself. If $949-$999 is the baseline for Rift-compatible PCs, that would put the price of the headset itself (which comes with an Xbox One controller) at around $500, though of course this is not confirmed.
Dell has rolled out a nice new Xbox One deal where you can get the 500 GB Gears of War Ultimate Edition bundle with a free copy of Rare Replay and an extra controller. This costs $350, the same price that the bundle normally costs.
This deal, which is good in the United States only through Dell's website, is described as a limited time offer. No end-date was announced, but if you're interested, you may want to act quickly.
To recap, here's what you get for $350.
500 GB Xbox One (which comes with one controller)
Gears of War Ultimate Edition
Rare Replay
Extra Xbox One controller
For more on the games included in the package, read GameSpot's Gears of War Ultimate Edition and Rare Replay reviews. Looking for more gaming deals? Check back later today for GameSpot's complete roundup of the day's best offers.
Microsoft is doing "serious, real planning" for the sequel to Halo 5: Guardians, and, on a longer timeline, knows how Master Chief's story will end. This is according to Halo franchise development director Frank O'Connor, who talked about Halo 6--or whatever the sequel to Halo 5 will be called--in a new interview.
"We do kind of know what's going to happen in the next game pretty well at this point," O'Connor told GamesRadar. "We're doing serious, real planning and even some writing on the next game already, and that's a luxury--we've never been in that position before."
Microsoft revealed during PAX Prime in 2011 that Halo 4 was the beginning of The Reclaimer Trilogy, which would span Halo 5 and Halo 6. But this story has since been expanded to become a "saga."
"While we originally said trilogy, we've actually expanded this to more of a saga, so we don't want to limit the Reclaimer story within a trilogy," Microsoft confirmed back in 2013.
She said that the work done on the Halo franchise by Bungie with Halo 3: ODST and Halo: Reach laid "the fictional foundation for the next 20 years" of Halo.
"You can look at the ending of Halo 4--and where Master Chief is, and obviously we had to know where we were going to take Halo 5 and Halo 6 with that," she said. "You have an epic sci-fi universe and we have multiple ways that we can go with this story, but all the pieces are laying there. The canvas is there for us to paint."
O'Connor wasn't ready to commit to any specifics about Halo 6 or other future games, saying, "If you start making those stepping stones too rigid, then you're not being realistic about the game development process."
But O'Connor, who has worked on the Halo franchise for more than a decade, first at Bungie and now with Microsoft, said the story planning team already has a good idea where Master Chief's story will end.
"We know what's going to happen in the next game, and we kind of know what's going to happen to the Master Chief ultimately," he explained.
That Microsoft would be planning more Halo games should come as no surprise. After all, with more than 65 million copies sold, Halo is Microsoft's crown jewel. "It's our biggest exclusive franchise," Spencer recently said. "There's no doubt about that."
The Halo 5 release date is set for October 27 on Xbox One. For more on the shooter, check out some recent stories through the links below.
Electronic Arts has announced more details about the upcoming multiplayer beta for DICE's much-anticipated shooter, Star Wars Battlefront, including the beta's file size, level cap, and pre-loading.
First, the Battlefront beta will be about 7 GB on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One; the PC edition, meanwhile, will be closer to 11 GB. Pre-loading will be supported, but only on PC. Computer players can pre-load the Battlefront beta through Origin starting at 1 AM PDT / 4 AM EDT / 9 AM UK on Wednesday, October 7.
In addition, EA has confirmed that the Battlefront beta will let you advance your character up to level five. Once players hit the cap, they can't progress to higher levels, but can still unlock additional items. EA has not announced the level cap for the full Battlefront game.
The Battlefront beta will run October 8-12. You do not need to preorder the game to play, as the pre-release play period is open to everyone. EA also stresses that the beta is being held in part to allow DICE to test aspects of the game's online infrastructure. As such, players may run into "interruptions" during gameplay. What's more, progress earned during the beta will not carry forward to the full game.
In addition, EA shared some new descriptions for the three modes that will be playable in the Battlefront beta.
Battlefront Beta Modes:
Descriptions courtesy of EA
Walker Assault on Hoth: Fight in epic 40-player battles as a Rebel to destroy the Empire's onslaught of AT-ATs by calling in Y-wing bombers. Or, side with the Empire and protect your walkers while utilizing their mighty weaponry to crush the Rebel objective.
Drop Zone on Sullust: Escape pods are crashing down and you and your team must fight to control them. With its frantic 8v8 matches, Drop Zone is sure to put your combat and strategy skills to the test.
Survival Mission on Tatooine: Play alone or with a friend via co-op or split-screen as you battle to hold off waves of Imperial forces including AT-ST's, TIE fighters, elite Stormtroopers, and more.
Players can also check out the new Battlefront "Companion" experience at the game's website during the beta period. One part of this is a strategic card game called Base Command that lets players earn in-game credits that they can then use to unlock weapons and Star Cards in the full Battlefront game.
Battlefront launches on November 17, about a month before Disney's Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens hits theaters in December. EA is also releasing tie-in DLC for Battlefront based on the movie.
Xbox One owners with an EA Access membership will get to play Battlefront first, as it will be available through the subscription program a full five days early.
Comedian/late night TV host Conan O'Brien has posted his latest "Clueless Gamer" video segment, and this one's a doozy. Watch as O'Brien, Tony Hawk, and rapper Lil Wayne play Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5, which launches next week for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One--but that's not all.
There's a good amount of gameplay here. But as you'd expect, it's also stuffed with "that's what she said" jokes and a segment where O'Brien quizzes Hawk and Wayne (a playable character) about "skateboard trick or sex position?" Oh, and O'Brien gets a (temporary) tattoo at the end of the video, so there's that.
Wolverine star Hugh Jackman has spoken about preparing for his final big screen appearance as the iconic member of the X-Men. The third standalone Wolverine film is currently scheduled for a 2017 release, but in an interview with Collider, Jackman revealed that the film was still being written.
"I'll be really honest with you, the actual script in its full form we're up to about page 60. Obviously there's a treatment, so it's not fully done yet, we're not fully there," he said. "I'm sounding a little cagey because this is the last time I'm playing him, and I have just made the commitment to myself, really, and told everyone that until that script is perfect, until it is that perfect way to sign out, I'm not gonna start shooting."
Jackman also stated that Patrick Stewart's Professor X character would play a part in the new movie, something Stewart himself confirmed in August.
"Patrick does figure in it, that's for sure," Jackman said. "I think it's a really important relationship but I want to see signs of that quasi-father/son sort of relationship that has not been seen before, and sides of particularly Professor X that have not been seen before. So we have some really, really cool ideas.
"I really have known for quite a long time how I want to finish this sort of odyssey that I've been on, this amazing journey. And I won't let it fall anywhere in between. I won't fall short of it."
According to Jackman, the plan is to start shooting next year, although the production location was currently "one of the things that is up in the air."
The third Wolverine will be directed by James Mangold, who previously helmed 2013's The Wolverine, which went on to make more than $400 million worldwide. At San Diego Comic-Con in July, Jackman hinted strongly that the film would draw from the Old Man Logan line of comic books, a futuristic storyline which sees Wolverine as the world's last remaining mutant.
The film is one of four upcoming films that form part of Fox's X-Men universe, with Deadpool due in February 2016, X-Men: Apocalypse following in July, and the currently directorlessGambit scheduled for next October.
Just days after DraftKings announced it was getting into gaming, the fantasy sports company's chief rival FanDuel has announced that it, too, is adding competitive gaming to its lineup of available sports. The news comes as part of FanDuel's acquisition of esports platform, AlphaDraft, for an undisclosed sum.
In a statement, FanDuel said bringing the AlphaDraft team in-house will allow the company to create a "one of its kind daily fantasy product specifically for esports."
Like DraftKings, FanDuel offers fantasy contests for traditional professional sports such as baseball, basketball, football, and golf. But, with "over 200 million" people watching esports, FanDuel CEO Nigel Eccles said the competitive gaming scene was too big to ignore.
"This is sports for a new demographic, with very little crossover with what are considered traditional sports fans," he said in a statement. "And this acquisition gives us the ability to leverage the expertise of AlphaDraft's team, while helping their efforts in customer acquisition and building awareness of this new industry. It's a win-win."
Also in FanDuel's announcement, the company said it expects the number of esports fans to "come close" to that of American football by the year 2017. No specific numbers were cited, however.
2K's upcoming pro basketball sim NBA 2K16 isn't slated to launch until September 29, but you can play it starting today, provided you're willing to preorder. Everyone who preorders the game can start playing right now, September 25, as part of 2K's previously announced "Early Tip-Off Weekend" promotion.
This promo is good only on physical copies of the game reserved at brick and mortar retailers like GameStop. That retailer opened 3,000 stores across the United States last night to support the release.
In addition to early access, other Early Tip-Off Weekend bonuses include the following:
10,000 Virtual Currency (VC);
MyTEAM VIP Package:
New-Gen & PC - 3 MyTEAM Emerald Packs each with a guaranteed Emerald player;
Prior-Gen - MyTEAM Gold Booster Pack with Guaranteed Gold Player and 4 additional Gold items.
Online retail behemoth Amazon is currently offering 12-month Amazon Prime subscriptions for just $67, a nice markdown from its normal $100 price. Current subscribers looking to re-up their subscription at the lower rate are out of luck, as this deal--good today, September 25, only--is offered exclusively to new users.
The offer expires tonight at 11:59 PM EDT. You can get started at the Amazon Prime sign-up page. After the first year, your Prime membership will jump back up to $100, though you can cancel anytime.
Amazon is cutting the price to celebrate the success that Amazon's new show Transparent enjoyed at the Emmys this weekend. Transparent received 11 Emmy nominations this year and won 5. Actor Jeffrey Tambor took home the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his portrayal of Maura Pfefferman. The $67 subscription price comes from this year being the 67th Emmy Awards.
Amazon Prime comes with a number of perks, including free two-day shipping, access to streaming music and video content, as well as free unlimited photo storage and Kindle ebook borrowing. Subscribers can also save around $10 on new video games from time to time.
Is this deal sweet enough to get you to sign up? Let us know in the comments below.
The American Registry for Internet Numbers has issued its last IPv4 number for North America. That means that anyone looking to get a number will now be entered onto a waiting list.
The transition from IPv4 to the newer IPv6 has already begun, but it still could cause headaches for some service providers going forward. In 2011, when several large companies got together to test IPv6 capabilities for 24 hours, only 0.25% of the web was compatible with IPv6, according to Wired.
IPv4 addresses are how most internet traffic is routed today. You've probably seen 198.168.1.1 or some variation listed as the IP address of your router. The 32-bit number limits the possible addresses to just over 4.2 billion, which probably seemed like a number that could never possibly be exhausted when the protocol went into use in the early 1980s.
Every internet-connected device has an IP number attached to it. The newer protocol, IPv6, uses 128-bit numbers, meaning there are a possible 340 undecillion addresses. Undecillion, despite not appearing as a valid option in spell-checkers, is a real, ridiculously huge, number: a one followed by 36 zeros.
However, with the end of unassigned IPv4 addresses comes changes in ARIN's transfer policies, meaning "there is no longer a restriction on how often organizations may request transfers to specified recipients."
Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of The Legend of Zelda and Mario, has discussed potential casting for a Zelda movie.
Joined by Takashi Tezuka, designer and director of numerous Zelda and Mario games, the duo told MTV said they'd like someone "completely new" and indicated a Japanese person may not be the best fit for the character.
"With Japanese TV drama and film they always use the same actors so I actually think we should have someone completely new," said Miyamoto, before inviting the more pop culture savvy Tezuka to offer his opinion.
"I can't think of any," Tezuka replied. "This is just personally, it would very fun and awesome if Link was played by a female actress, a boyish female actress."
Miyamoto added: "This is something I never imagined because Link is very different to how a Japanese person looks. At the Japanese Expo I attended, there were so many people in cosplay who looked very good. They would be good!"
Elsewhere in the interview, Miyamoto addressed the possibility of movies based on Nintendo properties.
"As Nintendo is an entertainment company we think about ways of expanding outside of video games and not being limited," he said. So we do not have anything in the immediate works but we are definitely interested and open to it."
He continued: "A feature length film? It's definitely a secret! I can't make any comments right now but we will see."
Leaked emails also stated Sony and Nintendo were discussing a new Mario movie. Spider-Man producer Avi Arad is reportedly brokering a deal with Nintendo to obtain the Mario film rights. According to Arad, the negotiations with Nintendo are not finalised, but rather "just the beginning."
Bethesda has released a new video providing an in-depth look at Fallout 4's character development system.
The video, which is narrated by executive producer Todd Howard, goes through the various S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes and also the Perks. We're also given a look at the rather impressive Perk tree, which you can see in full below.
The chart is organised by the seven S.P.E.C.I.A.L. options and, according to Howard, "there is a Perk for each S.P.E.C.I.A.L. and each rank from one to ten."
"If you have the value, you can choose it. So if you come out of the Vault with ten charisma, you can pick the intimidation perk that let's you manipulate and control other people."
A total of 70 base perks will be available in Fallout 4, each with multiple ranks that alter the functionality of the perk. Bethesda goes into depth about the character upgrading mechanics on its official website.
Todd Howard previously said the game's mod tools will be available in "early 2016," but a more specific date could not be provided as the timetable was still "fuzzy."
The new James Bond theme song has been released. The theme to the forthcoming Spectre, called "The Writing's On The Wall" and performed by British singer Sam Smith, can be heard below:
Earlier this month, Smith explained that the track, written with regular musical partner Jimmy Napes, had been recorded way back in January. "I got called into the office with Barbara Broccoli and Sam Mendes and they gave me the script," he said. "I read the script. They said, 'Have a go at the song.' It's the quickest I've ever written a song--it took 20 minutes and they loved it!"
The 23-year-old is the first British male solo artist to record a Bond song since Tom Jones sang the theme to Thunderball way back in 1965. To date, Smith has sold more than eight million albums worldwide.
Sound packs replace the default sounds for guns, reloads, and player actions.
News of the Sandstorm pack was announced on the CS:GO Reddit, where Counter-Strike and Sandstorm fans from all corners of the world gather. The official and verified Darude account revealed the custom sound pack was made to celebrate the release of his new album, Moments.
It is unclear as of yet whether his 90s smash hit Sandstorm will be part of the Darude Counter-Strike: Global Offensive sound pack. The DJ has been very noticeably dodging questions regarding the inclusion of the track.
The track, which goes "Duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun, dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dundun dun dundundun dun dun dun dun dun dun dundun dundun," has become something of a meme on the internet as of late.
Responses to any YouTube comment asking "what song is that in the video" more often than not get the reply "Darude - Sandstorm," regardless of if it is Sandstorm or not. But before that, it was the Counter-Strike player's anthem.
Why? We're not quite sure. Maybe because Europeans really loved CS back before it became the global competitive shooter sensation it is now. But, thankfully, the community has matured to the point where we can all enjoy Darude's Santstorm.
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is one of the most popular games on all of Steam. It is the top overall game on the platform with more than 614,000 people playing the game, outpacing even DOTA 2.
GameSpot Australia has teamed up with Blizzard ANZ to bring you the opportunity to attend the StarCraft 2: Legacy of the Void event taking place in Sydney.
Five lucky GameSpot readers will receive a pass for themselves and a friend that grants entry to the event which takes place on the evening of October 15 in the Sydney CBD. Attendees can be amongst the first to get hands on with the expansion's new Archon mode at the event, and participate in a Q&A session with pro players and casters. Food and drinks will be provided, and giveaways with prizes will also take place on the night!
To enter this competition, simply answer in 25 words or less the following question: "What is your favourite Protoss unit from any StarCraft game, and why!"
The GameSpot AU team will choose our five favourite answers based on their creativity. Each winner will receive two tickets to the Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void event. Competition closes October 2, so get your entries in fast using the form below!
This competition is only open to residents of Australia. All entrants must be over 18 years of age. Flights and accommodation for the event are not included in this prize package.
The Rhode Island Superior Court on Thursday released thousands of documents and deposition transcription excerpts pertaining to the controversial loan agreement that brought former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling's video game company 38 Studios (Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning) to Rhode Island in 2010.
These documents were previously sealed, but have now been released, and will be viewable to the public through the end of the year. Take a look at them here in this DropBox folder. The page is slammed with traffic at the moment, so you may not be able to view the documents right away, but keep trying.
GameSpot is currently looking over the documents and will report back with what we find. One document contains the memo that was sent to then-Rhode Island governor Donald Carcieri with some revenue projections for Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning and the PC MMO Copernicus. Check it out below.
The collapse began when Schilling was unable to keep up on debt payments to the state of Rhode Island for a $75 million dollar loan to the developer. After that, the government assumed ownership of the company and shut it down. The government then filed a lawsuit against Schilling and other architects of the state's loan to the studio.
At an auction in December 2013, 38 Studios properties Rise of Nations and Rise of Legends were purchased, but Kingdoms of Amalur and Copernicus were not picked up. Subsidiary Big Huge Games, closed amid the 38 Studios bankruptcy, has since been resurrected by co-founder Brian Reynolds.
Sony is moving forward with new Men in Black movies, but they may not feature lead actor Will Smith. That's according to Walker Parkes and Laurie MacDonald, who talked about the project in a new interview.
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Parkes confirmed that the MiB revival is "very active" within Sony right now. "We're in the middle of it," he explained.
Asked directly if Smith--who played Agent J in all three MiB films--would have a role in it, Parkes replied, "Most likely no." It's unclear, too, if Tommy Lee Jones--who also starred in all three movies so far--will appear in the forthcoming films.
Whatever the case, McDonald added that Sony is planning to revive the series as a trilogy.
It's still early days for the new MiB trilogy, so there are no casting or plot details yet for the film, which also does not have a release date. In 2014, leaked Sony Pictures emails suggested that Sony was working on a MiB/21 Jump Street crossover film. However, neither Parkes nor McDonald made any mention of that in the new interview.
The most recent MiB movie was 2012's MiB 3, which was a box office smash with more than $624 million in global ticket sales. Altogether, the three-movie franchise has generated more than $1.6 billion at the box office.
What would you like to see from the MiB franchise in the future? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Gears of War: Ultimate Edition has received a new patch, doing away with the randomness that the Gnasher (the game's shotgun) previously had.
More specifically, the gun's spread is now consistent, rather than being random. This should help to alleviate some of the frustration that could stem from firing the gun, which couldn't be depended on to do a specific amount of damage each time.
"We wanted to improve the Gnasher by focusing on producing a consistent shot, so players can better predict and estimate the damage they are doing to opponents," the patch notes explain. "We've done this by changing the Gnasher from a randomized pellet spread to the same shape spread. This will help reduce occurrences where you do less or more damage than expected, and also help players calculate their damage expectations during gunfights more accurately and consistently."
Also related to the Gnasher, the multiplayer idle state has now been removed, which could cause your first shot to be off the mark if you went for a certain amount of time without aiming or firing.
Other changes in this update include adjustments to spawn locations in Blitz and King of the Hill matches on four maps (War Machine, Gridlock, Process, and Old Bones) and tweaks to the requirements for a pair of Achievements. The full patch notes, along with explanations from the developers at The Coalition for some of them, follow below.
General improvements to the consistency of the Gnasher.
Gnasher pellets now always shoot in a consistent pattern.
Removed "Idle State" from MP which could cause shooting trajectory to be more random.
Fixed a bug where some Gnasher shots were reporting as headshots incorrectly
The Coalition Commentary: "We wanted to improve the Gnasher by focusing on producing a consistent shot, so players can better predict and estimate the damage they are doing to opponents. We've done this by changing the Gnasher from a randomized pellet spread to the same shape spread. This will help reduce occurrences where you do less or more damage than expected, and also help players calculate their damage expectations during gunfights more accurately and consistently.
Additionally, we've also removed the "Idle State" from Multiplayer, which could result in your first shot landing off center if you hadn't aimed or fired your weapon after a small period of time"
THIS! IS! ANNEX! and Nub Pwn3r Achievements can now be earned in any ring based game mode such as King of the Hill, Blitz, and Annex
THIS! IS! ANNEX!--Complete 100 matches in ring-based game types on Xbox Live and capture 3 objectives in each match.
NUB PWN3R--Win 20 rounds in ring-based game types on Xbox Live by shutting out the opposing team
Achievement descriptions have been updated to reflect these new unlock conditions.
The Coalition Commentary: "We heard our fans loud and clear to spread these achievements across all ring game types--and we've also modified the achievement to work in one round scenarios which is how most of our ring types are available in public. For players looking to get some more playing time with others in on Annex, we're currently looking at potential ways to incorporate Annex in future playlists or community events."
Improvements to player spawn locations for Blitz and King of the Hill on the following maps:
War Machine
Old Bones
Gridlock
Process
The Coalition Commentary: "We've made further improvements to Blitz and King of the Hill spawns based on the feedback from the community as well as our ESL Pre-Season cup series. We've adjusted some of the spawn locations on the four maps listed to provide a more competitive, fair experience--such as removing the front door spawn when the frags are the active hill on Mansion, or the top-side spawn on War Machine."
Fixes for invisible collision on some Multiplayer maps including-
Mansion: Area around Boomshot
Clocktower: Debris at top middle of map
The Coalition Commentary: "The two Mansion changes were made to restore some of the legacy Lancer angles around Boomshot, allowing for more variety in the way teams can challenge and pressure teams for power weapon control. The Clocktower fix also restores some angles in the top side over the debris that were previously available in Gears of War 1".
Reduced flinching (camera shake) when taking damage in Multiplayer to be consistent with Gears 1
Changed Re-Up system to retain unlocked characters when "re-upping" (Player Level in Multiplayer)
Spectator Mode now displays match score in the HUD
Audio improvements for footstep and movement sounds behind the player
Improvements to server stability
Fixed a crash when muting players with a spectator in the game
Fixed a bug where dead bodies could sometimes cause players to roll instead of move into cover
Diehard Grand Theft Auto fans have long believed Bigfoot to be present in some of the series' recent games. That includes GTA V, and now, following its latest update, we know the Sasquatch is not only in the game, but it (he?) is a sort of playable character.
Among other things, the most recent update brought the PC version's replay editor to Xbox One and PS4 and added a new Achievement/Trophy called Cryptozoologist. This tasks players with collecting all animals for use in Director mode, which is done by discovering peyote plants scattered throughout the game world. Reddit user YourAdultFriend noticed that the description for the Achievement/Trophy seemed to tease there were more animals, as it reads, "You unlocked all animals for use in Director Mode... or did you?"
Since the update came out, another Reddit user, rkRusty, set out to investigate information datamined from the the game. This included coordinates for a certain location in the Chiliad State Wilderness, and it's here that a golden peyote is located that unlocks Bigfoot.
If you're wondering why someone hadn't happened upon the special peyote before now, that's because of the extremely specific requirements that need to be met for it to show up. In order to find it, you need to have completed the game, the weather needs to be foggy, and it needs to be sometime between roughly 5:30 AM and 8 AM on a Tuesday (in-game). There are other qualifications, too, like collecting all of the other peyote and sparing the Sasquatch during a mission where you help to hunt it (or someone dressed like one) down.
YouTube channel 2H2K ran through this process and was able to play as Bigfoot, as you can see in the video above. You can still drive vehicles and fire weapons, but there is reportedly no first-person mode available. This is all deemed a hallucination, allowing you to leave it at anytime.
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