After disappearing from PlayStation Stores in other regions overnight, the playable teaser for Silent Hills, PT, is now gone from PSN in North America. Despite this, the game remains playable for those who downloaded it in time and, just as importantly, it can be deleted and re-downloaded if need be.
I just ran through the process myself, deleting the game while worrying that it would be gone for good. The deletion screen is accompanied by the standard text explaining that it can be downloaded again from the Library section. It's possible that would prove to be untrue given the unusual circumstances at work here, but after going through with the deletion, I was able to find PT listed in my Library and begin downloading it again like anything else.
PT arrived on the PlayStation Store last August as a surprise during Gamescom. It was believed to be a demo of a new horror game, but playing it through to completion (no easy feat at the time) revealed it to be a teaser for a new Silent Hill game called Silent Hills. It was to be a collaboration between Kojima and film director Guillermo del Toro, and would star Norman Reedus of Walking Dead fame.
Today is April 30, the last day of the month, and that means Xbox Live Gold members have just hours left to claim their Games With Gold freebies for April.
You don't need to own either system in order to add the games to your account. You can claim them through the SmartGlass app, Xbox.com, or on the systems themselves--Xbox One games can even be claimed from a 360 as of last month.
As with all Games With Gold games, the 360 titles are yours to keep forever, while the One games will remain playable as long as you have an Xbox Live Gold subscription.
The Internet Archive has more than 2,000 classic MS-DOS games preserved on its website, and it appears that every one of them can be embedded into a tweet so that they're playable right on Twitter.
It's unclear when this feature was added, but Wired has discovered that it not only works, but you can then embed tweets (as I've done below) so that these games are playable on other websites.
These games are presented just as they were when they were released. That includes the draconian DRM that a game called Stunt Driver included where you're presented with a "Course Quiz" that asks you to look up information in its paper manual. That's something that proved to be a problem for me when I loaned someone the manual as a kid and never got it back. Fortunately, as pointed out in the comments on the Internet Archive, that manual is now available online (PDF), and I can get back to playing after two-plus decades.
Due to violent protests in Baltimore, Orioles games earlier this week were forced to be postponed. Rather than continue to push a game against the Chicago White Sox back, the teams instead made Major League Baseball history on Wednesday by playing in an empty stadium--something that MLB 15: The Show recreates when playing that particular game.
Image credit: PastapadreImage credit: USATSI
As noted on Reddit and Pastapadre, choosing to play the April 29 game between the Orioles and White Sox causes the entire 45,000-seat stadium to be emptied (save for a few small areas that presumably can't be tweaked on the fly). The game ordinarily offers crowds of different sizes depending on various factors, but the pendulum never swings so far as to have no one in attendance.
Aside from the size of the crowd, the MLB 15 game plays out as any other would. The same was largely true of the real-life version, which still saw "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" played and the official attendance of zero announced to the nonexistent audience, according to the New York Times. You can see what the scene looked like in the image to the right.
By Anonymous on Apr 30, 2015 09:30 pm Greg Miller and Colin Moriarty join Danny and Chris to announce GameSpot and Kinda Funny's hot E3 collaboration. Warning: Contains strong opinions about Fallout 4.
By Anonymous on Apr 30, 2015 09:30 pm (Produced In Partnership With Activision) Lord have mercy, Black Ops is back and so is Aim Down Sights, with a mega opening episode packed with delicious insight into the latest incarnation of everyone's favourite FPS.
Some games are just likable. Take The Weaponographist, for instance. This top-down dungeon crawler doesn't do anything in an obviously outstanding way. At a glance, you've got a standard, forgettable, dumb Gauntlet clone: nothing more, and nothing less. But the game's speedy pace, stiff challenges, wide variety of monsters and weapons, weapon and skill gimmicks, and loads of old-school cartoon charm hook you. I started off the game yawning. I wrapped things up many hours later with aching wrists (you absolutely need a gamepad here, so don't even bother trying the keyboard option) and a smile on my face.
A big part of the game's appeal is its refusal to take anything seriously. In the solo campaign (there are no multiplayer options other than the ability to check your timed scores online against other players), you play Doug McGrave, a demon-slaying stud in shining armor. As he's wandering around the countryside in the opening cutscene looking for new challenges and new sources of filthy lucre, he encounters a witch who pleads for help stamping out a demon infestation. She's broke, though, so Dougie isn't interested--at least, not until she whips out a vitality- and weapon-withering curse that soon convinces him that he should try slaying evildoers for charity.
Even the deadliest boss battles have a distinctly Hanna-Barbera flavor to them.
All of this is played as a send-up of the traditional role-playing epic, with Doug looking like a cartoon superhero right down to his big, bumper-like chin. The visuals have been taken straight from an old-time cartoon. Both the cutscenes and the in-game graphics come off like lost clips from the Hanna-Barbera shows that aired on Saturday mornings in the 70s. The audio is just a shade smoother than the bleeps and bloops of the 16-bit era, giving the game even more retro allure. Visuals and sound combine to set a light, carefree mood that adds a lot to the overall experience of exploring underground dungeons and murdering all the inhabitants. The writers don't try too hard, either, so you don't have to deal with groan-worthy puns or the obnoxious, unfunny joking too common in games.
Gameplay isn't quite as enjoyable as the setting and story, but it's close. The Weaponographist sticks to the traditional hack-and-slash RPG formula. Doug ventures into multiple dungeon levels (called depths), each loaded with numerous close-quarter rooms that serve as battle arenas. A couple of save points can be found in each depth, letting you save progress midway through and then again before the concluding boss battle. Rooms generally work as follows: You walk in, the door closes, you don't get out until you kill dozens of creeps.
A big part of the game's appeal is its refusal to take anything seriously.
Monsters are played for laughs, as with the overall cartoonish visuals. The wide-ranging rogues gallery consists of demons in all manner of weird forms. There are lions with whips dressed as circus lion trainers, leprechauns with deadly yo-yos, dark elf archers, Ents with slingshots, and more. Each depth features a handful of new creatures with new weapons. All the weapons can be picked up and used against the bad guys, which livens things up as you proceed deeper and deeper into the underground labyrinth of evil. It's all more than a bit surreal, but the creatures are too broadly drawn and colorful to be outright creepy. Art direction that was slightly more adult would have made this a disturbing, nightmarish experience.
As noted above, the witch's curse decreased the durability of Doug's weapons and his skills as a warrior. So every sword, whip, machine gun, spear, and so forth comes with a lifespan that ticks down on a meter on the lower left side of the screen. When your weapon crumbles, you're stuck duking it out with your armored fists, making it imperative to scrounge something else as soon as possible. Magic weapons can be equipped to launch powerhouse attacks. Rings of fire can be summoned up with the magic staves left behind by slain wizards, for example, and the tubas dropped by marching-band goons can be used to fire Death Star-like laser blasts.
Getting stuck with the wrong weapon for the current gang of monsters can get hero Doug McGrave killed in a hurry.
Speed is of the essence as well. Doug's curse makes him get weaker whenever he isn't killing monsters, with his strength shown on a combo bar. Slack off on the murderousness, and the bar quickly starts to empty. When it completely runs out, Doug starts losing experience. So it is imperative to get on and stay on a roll where you are constantly killing foes. Do this, and Doug gets into a rhythm where he is regularly leveling up and staying just ahead of the increasingly tougher mobs of bad guys that stock each new dungeon chamber. Fall behind on the slaying, and everything quickly gets tougher and tougher, with the end result being that you become overwhelmed by the sheer number of enemies.
Both elements have a big effect on combat, turning it into a fitting blend of speed and strategy. Constantly running and killing is key to everything, although you must also be careful about what weapon you pick up. Some just don't work very well against certain foes, and others are wildly underpowered or a poor fit when dealing with numbers of enemies. The chainsaw, for instance, is practically worthless in swarms of monsters due to how slowly you maneuver it. On the other hand, weapons like the zippy whip are almost too powerful given how fast you can deal out damage while racing around.
A bit of luck is involved here, too, because you can get stuck in some rooms without a good weapon for so long that you might as well just lie down and die. Enemy buffs that speed up monsters or cause balls of death-dealing slime to bounce around rooms can also pop up, making life even tougher. A combination of these apparently random special effects and crap weapons can end Doug's dungeon delving in a hurry, even if you keep up your combo meter.
When your weapon crumbles, you're stuck duking it out with your armored fists.
The action gets repetitive, however. Combat involves doing the same thing over and over again while slightly adjusting your approach to deal with different types of enemies. Depths are tough in the early going, meaning that you have to replay rooms on a regular basis. I found that I had to die a number of times in the first rooms of each depth to trigger a respawn back in the village hub, where I could spend the demon goo acquired from vanquished foes on buffs for weapons, magic gear, and so forth. I had to build Doug up in this way in pretty much every depth, having to die on at least three or four occasions before I was tough enough to start overwhelming the opposition. Be prepared for a fair amount of grinding.
Despite its reliance on a familiar formula and some repetition, The Weaponographist is a dumb, fun arcade romp due to its quick pace and interesting concepts governing weapon use and skills. This is one of those friendly games that just about anyone would enjoy picking up for short play sessions every now and again, especially those who like their dungeon crawlers tinged with a sense of humor and a retro flavor.
By Anonymous on Apr 30, 2015 04:30 am PlayStation 4's with P.T. are popping up on eBay, Steam is publishing its first Adults Only-rated game in June, and Final Fantasy XV complaints answered!
Some games are just likable. Take The Weaponographist, for instance. This top-down dungeon crawler doesn't do anything in an obviously outstanding way. At a glance, you've got a standard, forgettable, dumb Gauntlet clone: nothing more, and nothing less. But the game's speedy pace, stiff challenges, wide variety of monsters and weapons, weapon and skill gimmicks, and loads of old-school cartoon charm hook you. I started off the game yawning. I wrapped things up many hours later with aching wrists (you absolutely need a gamepad here, so don't even bother trying the keyboard option) and a smile on my face.
A big part of the game's appeal is its refusal to take anything seriously. In the solo campaign (there are no multiplayer options other than the ability to check your timed scores online against other players), you play Doug McGrave, a demon-slaying stud in shining armor. As he's wandering around the countryside in the opening cutscene looking for new challenges and new sources of filthy lucre, he encounters a witch who pleads for help stamping out a demon infestation. She's broke, though, so Dougie isn't interested--at least, not until she whips out a vitality- and weapon-withering curse that soon convinces him that he should try slaying evildoers for charity.
Even the deadliest boss battles have a distinctly Hanna-Barbera flavor to them.
All of this is played as a send-up of the traditional role-playing epic, with Doug looking like a cartoon superhero right down to his big, bumper-like chin. The visuals have been taken straight from an old-time cartoon. Both the cutscenes and the in-game graphics come off like lost clips from the Hanna-Barbera shows that aired on Saturday mornings in the 70s. The audio is just a shade smoother than the bleeps and bloops of the 16-bit era, giving the game even more retro allure. Visuals and sound combine to set a light, carefree mood that adds a lot to the overall experience of exploring underground dungeons and murdering all the inhabitants. The writers don't try too hard, either, so you don't have to deal with groan-worthy puns or the obnoxious, unfunny joking too common in games.
Gameplay isn't quite as enjoyable as the setting and story, but it's close. The Weaponographist sticks to the traditional hack-and-slash RPG formula. Doug ventures into multiple dungeon levels (called depths), each loaded with numerous close-quarter rooms that serve as battle arenas. A couple of save points can be found in each depth, letting you save progress midway through and then again before the concluding boss battle. Rooms generally work as follows: You walk in, the door closes, you don't get out until you kill dozens of creeps.
A big part of the game's appeal is its refusal to take anything seriously.
Monsters are played for laughs, as with the overall cartoonish visuals. The wide-ranging rogues gallery consists of demons in all manner of weird forms. There are lions with whips dressed as circus lion trainers, leprechauns with deadly yo-yos, dark elf archers, Ents with slingshots, and more. Each depth features a handful of new creatures with new weapons. All the weapons can be picked up and used against the bad guys, which livens things up as you proceed deeper and deeper into the underground labyrinth of evil. It's all more than a bit surreal, but the creatures are too broadly drawn and colorful to be outright creepy. Art direction that was slightly more adult would have made this a disturbing, nightmarish experience.
As noted above, the witch's curse decreased the durability of Doug's weapons and his skills as a warrior. So every sword, whip, machine gun, spear, and so forth comes with a lifespan that ticks down on a meter on the lower left side of the screen. When your weapon crumbles, you're stuck duking it out with your armored fists, making it imperative to scrounge something else as soon as possible. Magic weapons can be equipped to launch powerhouse attacks. Rings of fire can be summoned up with the magic staves left behind by slain wizards, for example, and the tubas dropped by marching-band goons can be used to fire Death Star-like laser blasts.
Getting stuck with the wrong weapon for the current gang of monsters can get hero Doug McGrave killed in a hurry.
Speed is of the essence as well. Doug's curse makes him get weaker whenever he isn't killing monsters, with his strength shown on a combo bar. Slack off on the murderousness, and the bar quickly starts to empty. When it completely runs out, Doug starts losing experience. So it is imperative to get on and stay on a roll where you are constantly killing foes. Do this, and Doug gets into a rhythm where he is regularly leveling up and staying just ahead of the increasingly tougher mobs of bad guys that stock each new dungeon chamber. Fall behind on the slaying, and everything quickly gets tougher and tougher, with the end result being that you become overwhelmed by the sheer number of enemies.
Both elements have a big effect on combat, turning it into a fitting blend of speed and strategy. Constantly running and killing is key to everything, although you must also be careful about what weapon you pick up. Some just don't work very well against certain foes, and others are wildly underpowered or a poor fit when dealing with numbers of enemies. The chainsaw, for instance, is practically worthless in swarms of monsters due to how slowly you maneuver it. On the other hand, weapons like the zippy whip are almost too powerful given how fast you can deal out damage while racing around.
A bit of luck is involved here, too, because you can get stuck in some rooms without a good weapon for so long that you might as well just lie down and die. Enemy buffs that speed up monsters or cause balls of death-dealing slime to bounce around rooms can also pop up, making life even tougher. A combination of these apparently random special effects and crap weapons can end Doug's dungeon delving in a hurry, even if you keep up your combo meter.
When your weapon crumbles, you're stuck duking it out with your armored fists.
The action gets repetitive, however. Combat involves doing the same thing over and over again while slightly adjusting your approach to deal with different types of enemies. Depths are tough in the early going, meaning that you have to replay rooms on a regular basis. I found that I had to die a number of times in the first rooms of each depth to trigger a respawn back in the village hub, where I could spend the demon goo acquired from vanquished foes on buffs for weapons, magic gear, and so forth. I had to build Doug up in this way in pretty much every depth, having to die on at least three or four occasions before I was tough enough to start overwhelming the opposition. Be prepared for a fair amount of grinding.
Despite its reliance on a familiar formula and some repetition, The Weaponographist is a dumb, fun arcade romp due to its quick pace and interesting concepts governing weapon use and skills. This is one of those friendly games that just about anyone would enjoy picking up for short play sessions every now and again, especially those who like their dungeon crawlers tinged with a sense of humor and a retro flavor.
One big point of contention for House of Wolves when it was announced was the lack of a new raid. But one thing that Bungie will be adding to help ease the pain of that omission will be The Trials of Osiris. This new end-game PvP activity will run every week from Friday to Tuesday. Trials of Osiris will be based on a new 3v3 mode called Elimination where two teams of three face off in a deathmatch. You'll be able to revive your teammates in this mode, and the first team to win five rounds wins the match. In order to help players focus their strategies, there will only be one map available per week.
In order to enter the Trials of Osiris you will need a Trials Passage. You'll be able to earn some by accepting quests that involve talking to NPCs on the Reef. But after that's completed, Trials Passages will cost 100 Glimmer each. In addition to earning you admittance into Osiris, the Trials Passage tracks your wins and losses. Once you lose three times, that specific Trials Passage is done and you can turn it in. Your package rewards are based on the total number of wins you accumulate.
Here are the rewards in Trials of Osiris:
Two to three wins -- A blue package that can contain Motes of Light, Passage Coins, and other items
Five wins -- Ability to purchase the weekly armor
Six wins -- A legendary package
Seven wins -- Ability to purchase the weekly weapon
Eight wins -- Ability to buy a legendary package (Bungie did not disclose the packages rewards, but they did mention that it will not contain Exotics or Trials of Osiris armor)
The rewards are cumulative. So, for example, if you garner seven wins, you'll be able to purchase the weekly weapon and you'll also earn every lesser reward.
If you start off poorly or if you just want to begin a fresh card with a new team, you can discard your Trials Passage at any time. Brother Vance sells consumables that will help you get more wins and negate some losses. These items cost Passage Coins that you will receive as rewards from the Crucible and other places. Passage Coins are a new currency coming to the game that can be used to buy consumables from Trials of Osiris NPC Brother Vance.
Trials of Osiris will contain two sets of armor. The better set will be gated through Crucible wins, whereas the other set will be randomly dropped after matches.
As a sidenote, you'll want to make sure to do Iron Banner when its available, because at Rank 3 and Rank 5 you can earn an Etheric Light to Ascend your gear.
The Dark Below Crucible maps will become free for everyone once House of Wolves releases on May 19. A Bungie representative at the preview event said, "All the Dark Below maps are going into the regular playlist for everybody. If you just have Destiny with no expansion packs, you'll be able to play."
The four new Crucible maps coming to the expansion are all small- to medium-sized maps with no vehicles. However, only three of the maps will come to both Xbox One and PlayStation 4.
Thieves Den -- Fallen hideout located on Venus. It has a broken down walker, a docked ship, and multiple caves to run through.
Widow's Court -- An asymmetrical map with both long lines of sight and tight interiors. Set in a European Dead Zone on Earth.
Black Shield -- A decommissioned Firebase believed to be used by the Cabal on Mars as a war base.
The only PlayStation exclusive for House of Wolves will be a Crucible map called Time Keeper. Focused around a mysterious, clockwork-like structure on Mars built by the Vex, this map has the most verticality and the most open space to run around in.
To encourage all players to spend more time in the Crucible on Xbox One and PS4, Bungie is going to increase the rewards you get for participating in the mode:
Earn double Marks
Earn double reputation
Increased number of Engrams rewarded after each match
Completing the daily Crucible missions will net you a reward pack containing Motes of Light, Passage Coins, or other items
On May 6 we'll have more information about the upcoming PvE additions for House of Wolves when Bungie hosts its final livestream prior to the expansion's release. House of Wolves will cost $20 as standalone content, but it's also included with Destiny's $35 Expansion Pass.
Far Cry 4 developer Ubisoft Montreal has launched a new campaign to help support the ongoing relief effort in Nepal. Earlier this week, a 7.8 magnitude earth struck in the country, killing thousands of people and leaving many more injured or facing other types of hardships as a result of the natural disaster.
Ubisoft is currently asking for donations as part of the Nepal Region Earthquake Fund, which is managed by the Canadian Red Cross.
The company has a close connection to Nepal, as the developer researched the country, its people, and its culture as part of the work that went into Far Cry 4. The game is set in the fictional Himalayan region of Kyrat.
"Having spent the last few years working on Far Cry 4, a game heavily inspired by Nepal and its people, it is with heavy hearts that the Far Cry family pulls together to raise money for the Canadian Red Cross, who are mobilizing their traveling hospital team to Kathmandu to offer support and medical assistance," Ubisoft writes on the campaign's website.
So far, people have donated more than $4,600 to the initiative. Ubisoft Montreal will match donations up to the first $100,000.
During a special Destiny livetsream on Twitch today, Bungie will share new information and show off a live gameplay demo for the new Trials of Osiris multiplayer event, which is part of the new House of Wolves expansion. The video broadcast begins today at 11 AM PDT / 2 PM EDT / 7 PM UK, and you'll be able to watch the entire event through the Twitch video played embedded below.
Ahead of the event, Bungie community manager David "Deej" Dague spoke out on Reddit to let viewers know what to expect from the stream.
"This show will be less inquisition and more competitive event," he explained. "Our aim is to showcase the special breed of action and suspense that Trials of Osiris delivers. Our goal is to introduce you to this new activity and let you know how it will change your game. Should be fun."
Dague will host the event live from Bungie's headquarters, while design leads Larks Bakken and Derek Carroll will also speak during it. Community member tripleWRECK is also going to appear.
House of Wolves launches May 19 for all platforms. It's included with Destiny's $35 Expansion Pass--which also comes with the previously released Dark Below add-on--or can be purchased by itself for $20.
Microsoft today announced the free games that will be available to Xbox Live Gold members on Xbox 360 and Xbox One in May.
After a month in which it offered twice as many free games as usual, May takes us back to the usual arrangement: two Xbox One games (one of which, Pool Nation FX, is a carryover from April) and two new Xbox 360 games.
As usual, the Xbox One games will be free all month, while the Xbox 360 games will each be available for half the month. The new One game, CastleStorm: Definitive Edition, and the first 360 game, Mafia II, should be available starting this Friday, May 1.
Sony on Wednesday announced the list of games that PlayStation Plus members can download free in May 2015. PlayStation 4 owners get a total of five free games, while four freebies are up for grabs on PlayStation Vita, followed by three for PlayStation 3.
The games listed below will be available for subscribers when the PlayStation Store refreshes next week on May 5. If you haven't already done so, now is a good time to download April's free games.
16 Materials, 4 Objects, 25 Decorations, 81 Stickers to design with
2 Original Music tracks ("A Blip and a Bubble," "Manlorette Party"), 1 Interactive Music track ("Zombie Loop"). and 3 Cinematic Stingers ("Tragedy of Jake," "Level 1,″ and "Distortion Dirge") by original Adventure Time composer, Tim Kiefer.
Land of Ooo Level Background
A Bonus Fionna Costume
In addition, Sony has released five new Adventure Time costumes for Sackboy: Finn, Jake, Ice King, Gunter, and The Cosmic Owl. You can buy all five together for $6, or individually for $2 each.
The Adventure Time Level Kit, meanwhile, costs $5.
Finally, Sony has released new LittleBigPlanet 3 Adventure Time PlayStation Network avatars for the five characters mentioned above. Head to the PlayStation Blog for a full set of instructions for how to download them an apply them to your profile.
When GameSpot named P.T. as its Game of the Month in August, the most frequent response in the comments section went along the lines of: Seriously? It's not even a game.
"Demo" turned out to be the prevalent description for P.T., among others such as "marketing ploy" and (per the acronym) "Playable Teaser," because people appeared unwilling to bestow Kojima Productions' grand experiment with that four-letter word that draws us all together here.
There's an irony to this, because P.T. would not have been a dazzlingly inventive, bold, and haunting creation had it been bound by the conventions of a modern "game." It is a journey of overbearing anxiety and overbearing paranoia, and uniquely so, because it doesn't follow the trajectory that its peers take.
P.T. would not have been a dazzlingly inventive, bold, and haunting creation had it been bound by the conventions of a modern game
While many established developers seem obliged, for example, to stretch a game's landmass out as far as possible, P.T. goes the other way, confining itself to two corridors running through an archetypal suburban home. Aside from the bathroom joined at the intersection, there is little else to explore, a point made abundantly clear when players exit through the door at the furthest end only to find they have curiously entered back to the spot they started at.
Mild claustrophobia is one outcome of this, but what really begins to build as you loop around this L-shaped limbo is a familiarity with your surroundings--a sense that you are becoming as acquainted with this place as much as you would with, say, your own home. Kojima Productions seizes on this, making subtle changes each time you emerge back at the start, and on other occasions, less so subtle changes. On one trip, the corridor's lights dim to the extent that the furthest end is shrouded in darkness. On another, a looping news report on the radio will break from its routine to tell you something that you'll not likely forget in a while. On some occasions when you expect a major alteration, nothing will happen, and at times when you aren't sure what's changed, the difference will be standing behind you.
Click on the thumbnails below to view these images in full-screen
Nothing I've encountered before replicates with such accuracy the distinct anxiety of hearing a strange noise from somewhere inside your own home; that distressing confusion where what you recall bleeds into what you fear. P.T.'s floor plan will show little more than a narrow hallway, but the world it creates from your own imagination has acres of story and possibility. Shadows dance at the periphery of your view, footsteps echo twice, and figures flash across the dark void between a door and its frame. It is your own fears, not Kojima Productions', that fills into these gaps.
(An aside: It's also purposefully constructed so that the first corridor is the longest, maximising the tension as you approach the intersection. Meanwhile, the second corridor is flanked by several entry points--a balcony above, a front door to your left, a bathroom to your right--to ensure you cannot keep everything in your field of view, and thus feel more exposed.)
GIF: Digital Spy
It's worth noting that, had his been a "game" that stretched across twenty hours and three DLC packs, P.T.'s expertly crafted horror chamber would gradually lose its grip on the player (a fate, it hurts to say, that Alien: Isolationcould not avoid). P.T.'s moments of piercing, blood-rushing dread can be counted on one hand, and the total screen-time for Lisa (the ghoul who lives with you, whose gritted smile and guttural sobs will linger in the memory for years) is perhaps less than a hundred seconds. You will have seen most of it within an hour or two. By contrast, a triple-A game is duty-bound to offer at least several hours of content, in a crude-yet-understandable way of justifying its price tag. P.T. is available for free, however, and thus it is free to do things how it wants.
While many games offer glorious fantasies of empowerment, P.T. is a nightmare of disempowerment.
Or perhaps the better description is that it's free to not do things. Many games, by habit, introduce opportunities to upgrade arsenals, collect perks and forge alliances to ultimately overcome the core challenge. These are glorious fantasies of empowerment. P.T. is a nightmare of disempowerment; its sole commands are move and look with the analogue sticks, and gaze at a specific object with the R3 button (pro-tip: never press the R3 button). The stark absence of inputs and actions leaves you with dreadful sense of vulnerability--a kind of nakedness--which jolts into raw terror once the game is ready to pounce on you.
Never, ever, look into a door left ajar.
Some will say the jump scares are a little basic, a little unsophisticated, and that's absolutely true. Although P.T. toys with our imaginations with refined cruelty, it also demonstrates that nothing sends thunderbolts through the nervous system quite as effectively as the word "boo." Basic isn't the right word; these are primal scares. It is no coincidence that the first lingering shot of Lisa depicts her so freakishly tall that she towers above a door frame. It's a fascinating tactic that taps into our inherited evolutionary fear of predators who outsize us.
The argument of whether this pure distillation of unbearable horror is a game or not is, by now, purely academic. Today, Konami will remove it from the PlayStation Store and it will be neither game nor demo nor teaser nor advert. It will be nothing--a haunted space in a digital library, its memory slowly fading like an awful dream.
Initially released for PC in 2013 through Steam Early Access, M2H Game Studio and Blackmill Games this week launched the final version of their World War 1 multiplayer first-person shooter, Verdun.
The game is billed as the "first multiplayer FPS set in a realistic First World War setting." You can buy it now on Steam for $20.69, a 10 percent markdown from the game's normal price--that's good through May 5.
Since the game's initial debut more than a year ago, developers have been able to improve the game's visuals (see the image embedded here) and implement some features fans asked for.
"Over the course of the year, many good suggestions were made and put into the game," the developer said. "Whilst not every good suggestion made it in, we intend to add a few more in the near future."
M2H and Blackmill also announced that Verdun will come with a free bonus map called Aisne. This map takes players to a location in Northern France that saw heavy fighting at on the onset of the war.
The developers also explained that they will add free expansions to Verdun over time, including Belgian and American troops for the Allies, as well as German troops for the other side. A full roadmap for future content releases is available here.
Verdun aims to offer "realistic" and "gritty" gameplay, featuring weapons authentic to the period and a bullet physics system that requires players to lead their targets to hit them. You play as part of a squad, fighting through trenches, and the developers say teamplay is "at the heart" of the overall experience.
Verdun has even enlisted the help of historians to ensure that the game is "as historically accurate" as possible. Player uniforms, gun models, and maps were all designed to be authentic and accurate to the time period, while the game also includes "realistic sounds and accurate native voices."
For more on Verdun, check out the new trailer below.
Konami's P.T., a "playable teaser" for the now-canceled horror game Silent Hills, is scheduled to be removed from the PlayStation Store later today. That means the free PlayStation 4 game is soon to become something of a rarity. Not surprisingly, then, some gamers have turned to eBay in an attempt to cash in.
As reported by VG247, multiple eBay auctions for systems with P.T. on their hard drives have popped up this week. Two are from users in the United Kingdom, who have each specified a £1,000 ($1,500) buy-it-now price (see the listings here and here).
A third listing, from a seller in the United States, comes with a pre-installed copy of P.T. (and five other games) with a current high bid of $319.
Yet another listing offers a PS4 with a pre-installed copy of P.T. with a starting bid price of $1,000. Pay $1,800, however, and it's yours right now.
It's not too late to get P.T. for free, as you can still head to the PlayStation Store here to queue up your download. Konami hasn't specified exactly when it will be removed today, but if you're interested, you may want to download it right away.
Silent Hills was originally revealed at Gamescom 2014 as horror game P.T., which was launched as a free PS4 demo on the PlayStation Store with almost no explanation as to what it was. Developer Hideo Kojima later said he wanted to make Silent Hills so scary that it will "make you sh*t your pants." He was working on the game with The Walking Dead actor Norman Reedus and Pan's Labyrinth director Guillermo delo Toro.
The forthcoming removal of P.T. from the PlayStation Store is just one of many storylines surrounding Konami. The Japanese publisher is reportedly in the midst of a power struggle with Kojima, who is expected to leave the company later this year after work on Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain wraps up. For everything you need to know about the recent news around Konami/Metal Gear Solid/Kojima/Silent Hills, check out GameSpot's timeline of events.
Modder Ruppertle has brought an AT-AT and some Stormtroppers to the military shooter by way of the "ATAT Madness" mod.
Check out the video below to see the impressive mod in action, and watch out for a special entrance by Miley Cyrus about halfway through (no really).
Ruppertle writes in the video's description that he actually made this mod about a year ago but never finished it, only just now publishing a video of it. The developer also says the Imperial Walker animations are "very poor" and that they used the O2 Engine to make the mod.
"I don't think I will ever finish so enjoy the video hope you guys like it," Ruppertle said.
Warner Bros. on Wednesday announced a Game of the Year edition for its Lord of the Rings action-adventure game, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor. The new version launches on May 5 for $50.
It will be available for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. There was no mention of last-generation consoles.
The Shadow of Mordor Game of the Year Edition comes with the main game (of course), along with all previously released expansion packs (see below).
After a submission and expert voting process, the New York-based Strong National Museum of Play this week announced the finalists for the first wave of inductees to its World Video Game Hall of Fame.
Games were evaluated by experts based on "icon-status, longevity, geographical reach, and the influence it has had on the design of other games, entertainment, popular culture, and society in general."
Inductees will be announced during a presentation at The Strong Museum in Rochester, NY on Thursday, June 4, at 10:30 AM. They will then be put on display at the museum's eGameRevolution exhibit.
"The 15 finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame span decades, gaming platforms, and geographies--but what they all have in common is their undeniable impact on popular culture and society in general," The Strong Museum's Jon-Paul Dyson said in a statement. "Whether it's the groundbreaking game Pong or a more recent viral sensation like Minecraft, all of these games have helped shape the way that people across the globe play and relate to one another."
Do you agree with The Strong's finalists? Let us know in the comments below!
Back in February, GameSpot editors revealed their own picks for games that should be included in the Hall of Fame. My selection, GoldenEye 007, didn't make the cut.
A newly discovered Bloodborne glitch shows off the challenging RPG like we've never seen it before.
YouTube user PaiNz encountered a strange camera bug that locked the game into a top-down view. Bloodborne, of course, is normally played from a third-person perspective.
It's reminiscent of older Grand Theft Auto games or the Diablo series. And it's quite fun to watch.
What do you think? Would you like to play Bloodborne from this perspective? No doubt this new bug would make an already challenging game even tougher. Let us know in the comments.
Warner Bros. has released what it's calling the "final" trailer for upcoming Mad Max movie Fury Road, which hits theaters in just a couple more weeks on May 15. While previous Fury Road trailers focused almost exclusively on the film's incredible action sequences, this one--though it still has those--uncovers more story and plot details. We also get a closer look at the Charlize Theron's character's bionic arm.
Eurogamer compiled the developers' responses, which cover all manner of topics, including lock-on mechanics, camera positioning, frame rate and resolution, and more.
Addressing the complaint that the camera is too close to the character, Tabata said, "We may consider allowing the player to choose from different camera distances." On the subject of the camera feeling "heavy or sluggish," Tabata had a clear answer: "We'll make sure the camera is smoother. Simple as that."
Responding to complaints about Final Fantasy XV's reported frame rate drop issues, Tabata said this is a "serious matter" that Square Enix considers to be a "high priority issue." The issue right now is related to the game's visual effects and UI, but Tabata said he's hopeful it can be improved before launch.
"We are working towards full HD," he said. "But frame rate is more important than resolution."
Also during the presentation, Tabata and Ofuji responded to a complaint that the game's Cindy character (above) was "too sexy."
"She's actually not meant to be an erotic character," Tabata explained. "Her character is very energetic and outgoing, a very active character. With those traits paired with her appearance, we feel it wouldn't be too problematic even if, say, she shows up on screen while your parents are in the living room."
Ofuji added that the concerns might stem from the "amount of skin" she shows being too much for someone whose line of work is fixing cars. "Oh, I see," Tabata replied. "But she is a very cheerful and active character, I don't think we want to change the current concept."
Head to Eurogamer for tons more, including Tabata's response to fans calling for a female party member, concerns about the game's dash system, and issues with battles being too difficult to or too easy, among other things. You can also watch the lengthy video broadcast below.
Controversial shooter Hatred will be released for PC via Steam this June, which developer Destructive Creations claims makes it the first game with the Adults Only rating to appear on the digital distribution service. Speaking to Eurogamer, the developer said that the game's release date of June 1 was chosen so that it would "not interfere with the launch of the biggest game coming out from its native Poland at that time."
Creative director Jaroslaw Zielinski explained, "Initially we were planning to announce the release date for Hatred on May 19th, but... well honestly speaking we will be playing The Witcher 3 then."
Hatred was rated Adults Only in North America by the Entertainment Software Rating Board, meaning that it won't be coming to consoles without the developer making some changes. All three major console manufacturers—Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo—have a policy that forbids the publishing of Adults Only-rated games on their platforms.
The PC version of Call of Duty: Black Ops III will get dedicated servers, developer Treyarch has confirmed. Posting on Twitter, Treyarch director of development Cesar 'pcdev' Stastny said that the PC version of the game will "use 100% dedicated servers for all ranked matches."
Black Ops 3 will feature a playable female lead character, a first for the core series. The campaign will support up to four players co-operatively. For lots more on the game, check out GameSpot's in-depth hands-on preview from our recent visit to Treyarch's office in Santa Monica. You can also see some images in the gallery below.
A major new sale to celebrate Golden Week in Japan has kicked off on the North American PlayStation Store, discounting dozens of games for PS4, PS3, Vita, and PSP.
Sale prices are available for everyone, but steeper discounts are offered to PlayStation Plus members. With some games that's a difference of just a dollar, while in other cases being a Plus subscriber will save you as much as $6.
Read on for the full list of deals, as divided by platform, or check them out on the PlayStation Store.
The first downloadable content for Wii U RPG Xenoblade Chronicles X has been detailed, and there's quite a bit of it to be had.
Seven DLC packs in all have been revealed on the official website for the game, which released today in Japan (where it's already April 29). This includes four bundles that each consist of a character, three quests, two combat abilities (Arts, in the game's parlance), and either a weapon or mech blueprint. You can see photos of each of these--which will cost 500 yen (about $4 USD)--in the gallery below.
The other three packs are referred to as "support DLC" and provide you with additional quests where you can earn more money, resources, or experience (depending on which of the three you're playing) than you otherwise would in the main game. Each of these three packs is priced at 300 yen (about $2.50).
Players interested in all of this can save 900 yen by picking up a bundle that includes all seven packs for 2,000 yen (about $17).
This first wave of DLC will be available in Japan on May 8. There's no word yet on whether it will also be available in North America and Europe, though that's hardly a surprise considered we don't know when the game is coming outside the vague release window of "2015."
Xenoblade is being published by Nintendo, which also owns developer Monolith Soft. The company is still feeling its way out in the DLC market, which it's still fairly new to (and which some of its employees--like Masahiro Sakurai--have strong opinions about). This represents one of its first attempts at DLC alongside games like Super Smash Bros. and Mario Kart 8.
Nintendo recently showcased the game during a livestream event. You can catch a replay of that here, and check out our latest preview in the video above.
Microsoft on Tuesday published the final cover art for this October's Xbox One shooter Halo 5: Guardians. The company released pieces of the art you see below last week through its social channels, but revealed the full image today. And it's quite striking and different from the art we've seen in the past.
While Master Chief enjoyed the spotlight alone for the Halo 4 and Halo 3 cover art (among others), things are different for his latest outing. As you can see in the image embedded in this post, Chief is joined by newcomer Spartan Locke, who will play a major role in the game; he's even a playable character for some portions.
What's more, we also see mysterious Spartan fireteams supporting both Chief and Locke. Microsoft says in a post on the Xbox Wire that these Spartan soldiers will "play a crucial role in the showdown between the Master Chief and Spartan Locke."
But who are they? Microsoft didn't reveal any details today. Instead, the company says fans can expect information about these new characters to be revealed during Microsoft's E3 presentation in June.
Below is a timeline of major events that have transpired in the past few months.
March 19:
Kojima Expected to Leave Konami After Metal Gear Solid 5
An inside source at Konami told GameSpot last month that esteemed developer Hideo Kojima would be exiting the company after Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain ships in September. The decision comes in the midst of a reported power struggle between Kojima and Konami. [Full story]
March 20:
Konami Wants New Staff for Next Metal Gear Game
Just hours after we reported on Kojima's strained relationship with Konami, the publisher announced that it had started early production on the next Metal Gear Solid game. The company also said it was looking for fresh talent to work on this early-in-development game, a follow-up to The Phantom Pain. [Full story]
March 20:
Kojima: I Am 100 Percent Involved in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
In a bid to quell concerns that unrest at Kojima Productions would affect The Phantom Pain, Konami released a statement quoting Hideo Kojima as saying: "I want to reassure fans that I am 100 percent involved and will continue working on Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain; I'm determined to make it the greatest game I've directed to date. Don't miss it!" [Full story]
March 25:
Kojima Station Suspended Indefinitely
As many suspected, the broadcast event Kojima Station was put on hiatus. Given Kojima's uncertain future with Konami, it's not surprising that the series was suspended. What remains to be seen is if the broadcast will ever return, with or without Kojima. [Full story]
March 31:
Silent Hills/PT Website Removes Kojima Productions Logo
Konami wiped clean the Kojima Productions logo from the Silent Hills/PT website, leading some to believe the project might be in trouble (more on that later). Konami did the same for the Metal Gear Solid V websites earlier in the month. [Full story]
April 22:
"Meet The Head Transplant Surgeon at the Center of a Metal Gear Solid Conspiracy"
Kotaku UK reporter Gabriel Galliani dove into the very bizarre story of a head transplant neurosurgeon named Sergio Canavero who looks a lot like the doctor from The Phantom Pain's first teaser trailer. It's all very strange, and some have even suggested it's an extensive marketing ploy for the game. [Full story]
April 26:
PS4's PT, a Teaser for Silent Hills, Being Removed Soon
On this day, Konami announced that the "playable teaser" for Silent Hills will officially be removed from the PlayStation Store on Wednesday, April 29. It remains to be seen if the game will remain playable for people who already downloaded the free game, and if its removal is tied to the news that would be announced the next day. [Full story]
April 27:
Silent Hills Canceled, Konami Confirms
Konami made it official on April 27, confirming that the horror game is no longer in development. It was supposed to feature The Walking Dead actor Norman Reedus and was to be directed by Hideo Kojima along with Pan's Labyrinth director Guillermo del Toro, but it was not to be. Though Silent Hills may be canned, Konami stressed that it will "continue to develop the Silent Hill series." [Full story]
April 27:
Konami Voluntarily Delists Itself From the New York Stock Exchange
On the same day that Konami announced the cancellation of Silent Hills, the publisher also revealed that it was removing its shares from the New York Stock Exchange. But this seems like a practical, cost-saving move more than anything tied to that project. After all, over the past year, 99.71 percent of the company's common stock was traded in Japan and the United Kingdom. [Full story]
May 8:
Konami Will Report Earnings for the Latest Financial Quarter
If Konami has news to share regarding the future of the company, this could be a venue where it might do so. We'll be keeping a close eye, as usual, on this earnings report next week.
September 1:
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain Releases
After years of development, The Phantom Pain will launch worldwide on this date for consoles, while the PC version will be released two weeks later. This will be a telling time: Will Hideo Kojima officially announce his departure from Konami? What will he do next? Check back in a few months to find out.
Ouya, the company behind the gaming microconsole of the same name, is seeking a buyer amidst debt issues, according to a new report by Fortune.
The site was able to obtain an email sent by CEO Julie Uhrman to investors and advisors earlier this month. She notes, "Given our debtholder's timeline, the process will be quick. We are looking for expressions of interest by the end of this month."
This move comes in the wake of failed attempts to restructure debt, as well as reports last year that it was seeking a buyer.
"Our focus now is trying to recover as much investor capital as possible," Uhrman said in the email. "We believe we've built something real and valuable. I continue to read the tweets and emails of our fans who play Ouya every day, and our catalog is now over 1,000 apps and 40,000 developers. We have the largest library of Android content for the TV (still more than Amazon)--hells ya!"
It was only three months ago, back in January, that Ouya received a $10 million investment from Chinese company Alibaba.
Zen Studios has released an image teasing some kind of partnership with Valve, presumably entailing either a new pinball game or content for one of its existing games.
The image below is all we have to go on at this point. There don't appear to be any Easter eggs lurking in it, waiting to reveal the details of what the project entails.
Zen has released numerous licensed standalone pinball games in the past, as well as DLC tables for its latest pinball games, Pinball FX 2 and Zen Pinball 2. These collaborations include the likes of South Park, Star Wars, and Marvel.
EA has rotated in a new game to Origin's free On the House promotion, and it's another isometric game from the early '90s: Ultima VIII: Pagan.
Specifically, you'll be getting the Gold Edition of Ultima VIII, which usually sells for $5, for free. It was originally released back in 1994 by Origin Systems, the now-defunct developer co-founded by Richard Garriott and best known for its work on the Ultima and Wing Commander series. Ultima VIII is the second-to-last game in the main Ultima series.
Greg Miller and Colin Moriarty join Danny and Chris to announce GameSpot and Kinda Funny's hot E3 collaboration. Warning: Contains strong opinions about Fallout 4.
(Produced In Partnership With Activision) Lord have mercy, Black Ops is back and so is Aim Down Sights, with a mega opening episode packed with delicious insight into the latest incarnation of everyone's favourite FPS.
PlayStation 4's with P.T. are popping up on eBay, Steam is publishing its first Adults Only-rated game in June, and Final Fantasy XV complaints answered!
