With a free update set to be released for Helldivers sometime "very soon," developer Arrowhead Game Studios has released a video highlighting some of the new things players will be doing when they're not busy shooting enemies.
The video is the first of several we'll be seeing ahead of the release of the free Turning Up the Heat expansion. This one focuses on three new objective types being added, one of which appears to be much different from those already in the game.
The artillery installation is first. You'll find a piece of artillery somewhere on the map that needs to be repaired and activated. Once that's been done, you'll need to gather three shells located nearby and deliver them to the gun, at which point you'll enter a series of d-pad inputs to fire the gun.
Second is the geological survey, which involves deploying a beacon that calls in a drill. This then becomes a standard defend objective; you'll protect the drill until it completes its work, at which point you'll collect the data it accumulates and move on.
Finally, we have the self-explanatory "search and disarm un-exploded ordnance" objective, which sounds much different from what's already in the game. This requires you to call in a mission-specific strategem, the ME-I Sniffer metal detector. With this equipped, you'll use the right stick to aim the metal detector while moving through an area, looking for bombs to disarm. This is done with the usual d-pad inputs, although whereas making a mistake with these inputs usually means starting over again, here it causes the bomb to explode, killing you.
We don't yet know everything included in Turning Up the Heat, but Arrowhead says the next video will be out "within a couple of days."
Bungie on Friday released a new behind-the-scenes preview video for Destiny's upcoming House of Wolves expansion. Though we already learned a lot about the DLC earlier this week, the nearly six-minute video does have more for Destiny fans to enjoy.
On display in the video are House of Wolves' new bosses, including the final boss, Skolas.
The video also covers basically everything you'd want to know about House of Wolves, with developers talking about the new weapons, gear, and modes like Prison of Elders and Trials of Osiris.
We've also captured a handful of images from the trailer. Check those out in the gallery at the bottom of this post.
Should the project pan out, the TV series based on classic PC adventure game Myst will air on Hulu.
This is according to Deadline, which reports that there were multiple bidders for the series. Hulu--in the midst of a push for more original content--came out on top, but this still doesn't guarantee the series will make it to air. The report notes that Myst has a script-to-series commitment, meaning that, if the script is approved, it will go directly to series (as opposed to a pilot episode being made).
The adaptation of Myst was first announced last year when developer Cyan Worlds and Legendary Entertainment agreed to a deal. At the time, no details were forthcoming regarding what the series would be about.
Now, Deadline says it'll feature a story written by Evan Daugherty (Divergent, 2014's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) that "will explore the origins of the island of Myst from the game where a man wakes up on a mystery island with absolutely no idea who he is, where is, or how he got there." Daugherty is also set to write the screenplay for a new Tomb Raider film.
GameSpot has reached out to Cyan to find out more and will report back with anything we learn.
At least some of the contents of Battlefield Hardline's first expansion have been revealed.
Speaking during the latest Don't Revive Me Bro podcast, multiplayer producer Zach Mumbach said the DLC pack--Criminal Activity--will offer four new mutiplayer maps (no surprise there), two of which will be set during the night.
The setting for the new maps are California and Florida. Mumbach said the new maps will vary in size and offer "a little bit more" destructibility than existing environments.
Even bigger maps are coming later, Mumbach teased.
The developer also explained that Visceral has created the new maps with better visuals cues to let people know what's destructible and what's not.
New vehicles will also be included with Criminal Activity, though planes are not on the list. "No planes," Mumbach said. "I just don't see how to work it into the fiction of what we're doing."
Battlefield Premium ($50) members will be able to play Criminal Activity two weeks before everyone else. However, Mumbach revealed that Visceral is planning to offer bonuses to everyone at launch (since everyone must apply an update for compatibility reasons, he said) in the form of a free gun.
What's more, Mumbach explained that Visceral is currently exploring the possibility of allowing non-Premium members to try out DLC before they buy. However, he made no promises, and stressed that such an offer has various technical and policy-based issues that must be overcome first.
Mumbach was speaking during a fan podcast, so it's not surprising that he didn't divulge specific details about Criminal Activity. We'd expect those to instead come directly from Electronic Arts through an official announcement.
Pricing has not been announced for people who buy Hardline's expansions outside of the Premium offering. However, history suggests that they will go for $15 each.
EA Access members have a new game to play. Electronic Arts on Friday added FIFA 15 to The Vault, bringing the total number of games subscribers can download and play for free up to eleven.
Last month, in conjunction with the start of the NHL playoffs, EA added NHL 15 to The Vault. There is no set schedule for when new games will be introduced.
But one thing is for sure: EA will never remove games from The Vault.
Spring is traditionally one of the driest seasons when it comes to new games, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing. Keeping in line with expectations, there weren't a lot of new games in April, but there were some unexpected gems that rose to the top. These smaller games went toe-to-toe with a widely anticipated big-budget game, but as we've seen plenty of times in the past, multi-million dollar budgets don't always guarantee greatness.
The game I'm referring to is Mortal Kombat X, but even though it's a great fighting game, it's definitely up against stiff competition, including a game that's unusually light on presentation, but big on brain teasers. I'm talking about Box Boy on the 3DS, which admittedly doesn't look like much from the outside, but its simple mechanics and puzzles expand gradually over time, testing your intellect just enough to consistently deliver a strong sense of satisfaction. We also felt really positive about Affordable Space Adventures, which makes great use of the Wii U's gamepad to facilitate teamwork as you explore the beautiful and mysterious far-off reaches of deep space. Crypt of the Necrodancer took dungeon crawling to new depths, melding roguelike elements with mechanics from rhythm games, offering an experience unlike anything that we've played before. It's got great dungeon and character design, making it more than an unusual or gimmicky experience. Lastly, though it technically came out in March, we reviewed Pillars of Eternity in April, so we ultimately decided that the impressive homage to Baldur's Gate belonged on our short list of the best games of April.
There's far more to Mortal Kombat X than just high production values.
The games on our list of candidates are proof that anytime of year can be a good time for games, even if there aren't as many being released as we're used to. As usual, it was difficult to chose the winner for game of the month when there are so many new games with great qualities, but the award ultimately goes to the comical, dark, and deceptively deep fighting game, Mortal Kombat X. Box Boy, Affordable Space Adventures, Crypt of the Necrodancer, and Pillars of Eternity are all great experiences, but none left the same impact on us as Mortal Kombat X did.
The core of the Mortal Kombat experience remains largely the same in Mortal Kombat X: you engage in violent bouts, replete with blood, moans of pain, and over-the-top finishing moves. Alongside some fresh faces, classic characters from the past return, true to form, with an extensive story mode that features over two hours of cutscenes detailing their struggles and that of their offspring. The series' fighting system has never felt so fluid, and the added depth of character variations makes one character feel like three, giving you more to explore and learn, and more for your opponents to worry about. We've also never seen a Mortal Kombat game looks so good. Characters and environments appear more detailed than ever, and the series' characteristic violence is presented in such a captivating and entertaining way, leaning on absurdity wherever possible to great effect. You cringe at the sight and sound of flesh tearing and bones breaking, but you can't help but laugh when the act is punctuated with a timely quip. Mortal Kombat X is big, bad, and ugly, for all the right reasons.
Zelda's ancestral gems are featured on the front, alongside a re-worked Nintendo 64 logo featuring typography similar to what you might see in the game.
In addition, Amka built a weathered-looking N64 controller, complete with the Triforce emblem on the front. It's all very impressive, but I think I'd rather keep this on a shelf than actually use it.
Check out some images of Amka's custom N64 in the gallery below. And be sure to visit his website to see even more of his impressive custom consoles. Amka created this console for a friend.
Following an initial tease earlier this week, video game-themed clothing retailer Insert Coin has officially announced the Metal Gear Solid 1984 Collection. The new line of clothing--which includes a range of retro-themed sweaters, jackets, and t-shirts--is inspired by Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. That upcoming game is set in 1984.
Every piece of clothing in the 1984 Collection features the Diamond Dogs logo, which is based on the fictional private military company--not the David Bowie album of the same name.
T-shirts start at around $30, while jackets cost as much as $85.
You can check out the 1984 Collection designs in the gallery below. Head to Inset Coin's Metal Gear Solid landing page to see everything the retailer has to offer based on Konami's stealth-action series.
Capcom's upcoming fighting game Street Fighter V now has a release window. As part of the company's latest earnings report, Capcom revealed that Street Fighter V will launch during its current fiscal year, which ends March 31, 2016. This matches up with the game's rumored spring 2016 release window.
Street Fighter V is in development for PlayStation 4 and PC, and will feature cross-platform play between both systems.
Also during Capcom's earnings report, the company revealed a sales target for Street Fighter V. The game is expected to sell 2 million copies by the end of Capcom's current fiscal year. This figure includes copies sold digitally and through traditional brick-and-mortar retail outlets, Capcom clarified.
Street Fighter V was announced in December as a PS4 and PC exclusive. Just recently, Capcom announced that it plans to run a public beta test that it claims will be the "largest and most ambitious online beta program in franchise history." A date for when it will begin hasn't been shared, but we do know you can guarantee yourself access by pre-ordering the game.
Instruments for Harmonix Music Systems' Rock Band 4 may be difficult to acquire when the game is released later this year, according to studio CEO Steve Janiak.
Speaking to IGN, Janiak said "the response to our announcement of Rock Band 4 has been incredible" and has indicated a high level of demand for the upcoming rhythm game.
"Demand from both retailers and consumers for product has exceeded out expectations," explained Janiak, who advised fans to sign up to be alerted when pre-orders go live, which you can do here.
"While we'll do everything we can to meet demand, the realities of manufacturing and getting hardware on shelves means that we can't guarantee hardware for everyone on day one without a pre-order," he continued.
"For those looking for new instruments, pre-ordering ahead of launch will guarantee that you'll be able to start a band and rock the world with your family and friends this holiday season."
Rock Band 4's physical peripherals will be provided by Mad Catz, which has recently enjoyed success creating an official line of arcade sticks for Capcom's fighting games. Currently, only guitars, drums, and microphones are planned for release.
Harmonix has said the team is "working their asses off" to include Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 controller support on the new consoles.
"We are actively engaged with Sony and Microsoft to support PS3 controllers on the PS4 and Xbox 360 controllers on the Xbox One," it said.
"It's tough because a lot of the implementation is out of our control. You're dealing with radio chips and technology that fundamentally changed between one console and the next. There is some policy we need to work through as well as some nifty engineering we have to work through, which we are."
Visceral Games has pledged that it won't abandon the PC version of Battlefield Hardline after player figures dropped substantially following the game's launch in March.
Speaking during the latest Don't Revive Me Bro podcast, multiplayer producer Zach Mumbach acknowledged that, although the PC version of Hardline got off to a strong start, player figures are now below where Visceral would like to see them.
But this wasn't entirely unexpected, Mumbach explained. Comparing the number of Battlefield Hardline players on PC against those for Battlefield 4 doesn't tell the whole story. This is because EA never expected Hardline to do as well as Battlefield 4, Mumbach said.
"No one ever said that we were supposed to be a ridiculous juggernaut like BF4," he explained. "This is our first Battlefield game. This is our first big multiplayer shooter. The company is very happy with where our game is at right now. We do a ton of market research and surveys. We knew, going into making this game, that we were cutting off a certain percentage of Battlefield players that are like, 'Hey, look, nothing against you guys, but we're into military. We play the military game.'"
"For whatever reason, that percentage is just higher on PC. The guys that are really into the war simulation and the military stuff, it's just a higher percentage on PC," Mumbach added. "The expectation wasn't to do BF4 numbers. The expectation was to do good numbers. And we had good numbers on PC for a bit there at the start, then it sort of tailed off. Believe me, we think about it every day. The easy answer for us is to abandon that platform. But we're not gonna do that."
So how can Visceral draw people back into the PC version of Battlefield Hardline?
Mumbach explained that a new Battlefield Hardline update in the works will introduce better netcode, and this may inspire some lapsed players to return. Looking beyond that, Mumbach said he hopes Visceral and Origin can team up and add Battlefield Hardline to its free "Game Time" promotion that lets PC players try a game for a set number of hours.
Outside of that, Mumbach also said it will be important for Visceral to listen to PC players' feedback and make changes to the game based on their input.
EA has not announced an official sales number of Battlefield Hardline. However, CEO Andrew Wilson stated this week that the company is "very happy" with how well the game has sold.
"We're very happy with how well the game has sold to date, and more importantly, that we've brought many new fans into the Battlefield universe," Wilson said at the time
Most prominently displayed in the image is a set of brass knuckles, which we also saw in the other Assassin's Creed teaser image released on Thursday. Inscribed on the melee weapon is the phrase "Strength Through Loyalty." The knuckles also feature the familiar Assassin logo in the middle.
There is also a message that reads "God Save The Queen," which lines up with the game's rumored British setting. Another line states, "We Forge The Chains We Wear In Life." This quote is from English author Charles Dickens' "The Cricket on the Hearth," which was originally published in the 1840s.
The teaser image also contains a reference to "Rooks," which may be related to the bird of the same name commonly found in northern Europe. You can also see an image of a bird.
Nintendo's new "integrated membership service" will bridge the Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, PC, smart devices, and its in-development new console, codenamed NX, by implementing a common ID system.
A multi-device membership device was previously teased when Nintendo discussed NX, its successor to the Wii U. However, more information on the service was shared by Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata during a recent meeting with investors. Although Iwata didn't provide details, he gave a brief overview of what Nintendo is aiming for.
"The membership service will encompass multiple devices such as our existing Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, the dedicated game system NX, which is currently under development, smart devices and PCs," he explained.
"Our members will be able to visit Nintendo's website and log in with one ID, and they will receive various services including the ones based on their past purchases and gameplay records as well as services that will be an improved version of the current loyalty program."
According to Iwata, Nintendo plans to "offer advantages to consumers who use one ID across multiple devices."
The senior exec ended by saying the service, as a whole, will "make playing Nintendo games with game pals more fun regardless of which platform they are accessing."
American politician Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House and presidential hopeful in 2012, is a big fan of virtual reality. He recently visited Facebook's headquarters and got to try the device. Then he blogged about his experience on his website, writing that virtual reality could be the elusive next big thing.
"Every so often a technology comes along that makes you realize as soon as you try it that it will change the world," Gingrich wrote. "Email and the web browser were two good examples. Cell phones were another. Last week at Facebook I had the thrill of experiencing one more: virtual reality."
"That may sound ridiculous, but within a minute of putting on the Oculus Rift, you know that millions of people are going to spend hours with these devices strapped to their faces. It's that amazing."
Gingrich writes that he tried multiple Oculus Rift demos, including one where he walked amidst dinosaurs and another where he virtually stood on the edge of a skyscraper and felt as if he was actually there.
"With your toes at the edge of the mat you're actually standing on in real life, your eyes really do fool you," he said.
The politician, like others before him, also says he thinks virtual reality will impact more industries than just gaming. He said he sees virtual reality becoming a new teaching tool.
"Imagine crossing the Delaware with George Washington on Christmas night of 1776," he says. "Imagine watching the debates of the Constitutional Convention as no one but the Founding Fathers did. Imagine being a member of the audience at Ford's theater the night Abraham Lincoln was shot. This will revolutionize what we think of as television programming for everything from news to sports to drama."
Overall, Gingrich says virtual reality is "worth being excited about," even if it's still early days.
Nintendo has announced that shipments of its Amiibo plastic toy line have now reached 10.5 million. This is up from 5.7 million units shipped worldwide by the end of the 2014 calendar year.
Nintendo president Satoru Iwata explained that Amiibo may end up being an evergreen product line.
"Our assessment is that people purchase additional Amiibo figures without any seasonal bias, as they are relatively more affordable than video game titles," he said as part of an earnings presentation.
Iwata also acknowledged that Amiibo supply shortages have led to headaches for many fans. Earlier this week, Nintendo apologized for supply issues, pledging to increase supply. Iwata reiterated this point in his remarks, but admitted that shortages are likely endure for quite a while.
"We are very sorry that we can't promise at what point we will likely be able to resolve the current situation because figures such as these require a considerable amount of time to produce, store shelf space is limited, and it is difficult to precisely predict the exact amount of overall demand," he explained.
Nintendo has also released a new pie graph that speaks to the popularity of Amiibo, based on region. As you can see, the United States & Canada make up the biggest piece of the pie by a wide margin.
Also during the presentation, Iwata revealed that new, less-expensive card-based Amiibo toys will debut later this year with 3DS game Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer. On the same day that the game is released (Nintendo has not yet announced a release date), Nintendo will also launch the long-awaited Amiibo adapter for 3DS. This will finally allow legacy players to sync up their Amiibo toys.
The introduction of this adapter is expected to lead to "further growth in Amiibo sales" due to the toys becoming compatible with the massive install base of 3DS family systems relative to Wii U. The New Nintendo 3DS features a built-in NFC adapter, but older models do not.
Nintendo's Amiibo toy line may be selling well, but it's nowhere near Activision's Skylanders series. The Call of Duty publisher has sold more than 240 million Skylanders toys by its latest count. Of course, Skylanders launched back in 2011, while Amiibo is not even a year old yet.
The current toys-to-life market consists of Skylanders, Disney Infinity, and Amiibo. A newcomer, LEGO Dimensions from Warner Bros., will debut later this year, featuring toys based on properties like Lord of the Rings, Batman, The Wizard of Oz, and many others.
Former Epic Games president Mike Capps--who oversaw the Gears of War and Unreal Engine properties at the studio--is now working for another major game engine company. Unity Technologies, the company behind the popular Unity engine, has announced that Capps has come aboard as its "internal advisor."
Mike Capps
As explained in a blog post by Unity CEO John Riccitiello (the former chief of Electronic Arts), Capps will spend about one week per month working on behalf of Unity. His work will begin early this month with a trip to Copehagan, Riccitiello said.
"He's a very strong supporter of Unity's core principles of solving hard problems so our developers don't have to, and the movement to democratize game development," Riccitiello said about Capps. "He'll be a huge boon to us in Unity continuing down that path."
Capps also provided a statement of his own regarding his move to Unity.
"Unity is in such an enviable position in the industry," he said. "I see so much exciting potential, and opportunities where I might be able to help, that this role was a logical next step. I'll do my best to advise John and the leadership team to keep Unity's tools driving innovation and creative self-expression in ways we can't even imagine."
Capps announced he would be stepping down from Epic Games back in December 2012, ultimately parting ways with the company for good a year later. He's not the only prominent Epic Games figure to have left the company in recent years, as Gears of War creator and producer, Cliff Bleszinski and Rod Fergusson, respectively, also moved on.
In addition to his new role at Unity, Capps currently sits on the board of directors for a range of game industry companies, including the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, the Game Developers Conference, and Alan Wake developer Remedy Entertainment.
In just one week, Bungie has raised more than $400,000 to support the ongoing relief effort in Nepal following the terrible earthquake that hit last month. Bungie announced the new milestone as part of its latest Weekly Update. The developer launched the disaster recovery campaign just a week ago.
Bungie is raising money by way of a special $25 t-shirt (that comes with a free in-game Destiny item) that anyone can buy, with all proceeds going to Direct Relief charity. This group provides medical assistance to people affected by natural disasters.
The earthquake in Nepal has killed more than 7,000 people, and left thousands more injured, according to the latest estimates.
Bungie's relief campaign will continue for at least another week. Now through May 13, the company's Bungie Foundation will match an additional $15 for every shirt sold, up to $50,000, meaning total new funds raises could reach an additional $100,000 before the week is out.
The creator The Sims has released his first ever standalone app, a social media application called Thred.
In an interview with Business Insider, Will Wright revealed the inspiration for its creation, "My phone is how I'm consuming most of my content, but a lot of the content I've noticed wasn't really designed for it."
Thred features a variety of tools that allows users to customize their social media feeds. Wright said his initial interest in communities who shared their creations spawned from games like The Sims and Spore, both of which he's worked on.
"'Sims' also had very rich storytelling, where people would use these little dolls and sets to tell these elaborate stories and share them and you'd get hundreds of thousands of stories--people did whole novels in there. I started thinking about how we can give people more creative content creation, and a lot of it comes down to there really isn't any existing content format that I feel like was designed for the mobile phone, you know the one-handed interstitial, standing in line at Starbucks kind of thing," Wright said.
Wright co-founded Maxis in 1987, where he designed classic city-building simulation game SimCity. Maxis was acquired by Electronic Arts in 1997, after which the studio went on to develop SimCity 3000 and The Sims. Wright departed from Maxis in 2009 to form The Stupid Fun Club, a start-up backed by EA which Wright described as an "entertainment think tank."
Metal Gear Solid publisher Konami has reported a net revenue increase of 0.3 percent over the previous year, as well as an increase in operating income of 87.8 percent.
However, Konami Digital Entertainment, the arm of the business principally associated with game development and publishing, posted a net revenue of ¥96,975 million (around $80,000), a decrease of 7.1 percent over its previous fiscal year. It is likely this decline can be attributed to the fact that it released fewer games and its shift in focus to mobile.
Mobile games were a key topic of analysis in its performance reports, with titles such as Jikkyou Pwafuru Puroyaku, Professional Baseball Dream Nine, the Crows x Worst series, Dragon Collection, and PES Manager highlighted for providing a stable income.
Discussing console games, Pro Evolution Soccer 2015, in particular the myClub mode's online payment system, was said to have performed well. Konami admits that, despite the release of other games, "the number of sold titles decreased" during the fiscal year.
Looking forward, smartphones and tablets are highlighted as an opportunity for the company to diversify and reach greater audiences, which Konami intends to exploit by developing "ways of playing games that match the characteristics of each device."
For console games, it is aiming toward including "sustained operation" modes that "utilize the operational expertise of mobile games." PES 2015's myClub is expected to continue contributing to profits.
Konami's expectations for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain weren't discussed in any detail, it instead opted to simply say the upcoming title has "garnered great response from home and abroad."
As expected, Konami did not address recent high-profile rumours of Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima's departure. Although Konami has not yet outright confirmed he has left, it is believed Kojima will depart following the release of Metal Gear Solid 5.
Konami has removed the Kojima Productions logo from official artwork for The Phantom Pain and Ground Zeroes. It also removed references to titles being "A Hideo Kojima Game" from marketing material. The Kojima Productions logo was also removed from the Silent Hills/P.T. website, before Silent Hills was outright cancelled.
Read GameSpot's The State of Konami feature for a detailed exploration of the current state of the company.
Longtime Mario Kart producer Hideki Konno has been placed in charge of Nintendo's efforts in mobile game development, according to a report from Japanese business outlet Sankei.
Translated by Nintendo Everything, the report states the reveal was made by Nintendo President Satoru Iwata during the announcement of the company's latest financial reports. The information was provided as a brief update on the company's mobile development plans.
Although Konno was not named specifically, he has been producing the Mario Kart games since Mario Kart DS.
During the financial briefing, Nintendo also revealed it plans to release five smartphone titles by March 2017, and it is aiming to give each one significant staying power.
"Regarding the number of the titles, you may want to know that we will release approximately five titles by the end of the next fiscal year, which is the end of March 2017, said Iwata.
"You may think it is a small number, but when we aim to make each title a hit, and because we want to thoroughly operate every one of them for a significant amount of time after their releases, this is not a small number at all and should demonstrate our serious commitment to the smart device business."
Halo: The Master Chief Collection has been described by Franchise Development Director Frank O'Connor as a "black eye" for series stewards 343 Industries.
Speaking to Xbox Achievements, O'Connor addressed the tumultuous launch of Microsoft's ambitious Halo anthology, which brought together improved versions of the first three games in the series into one package, but was unfortunately plagued by various matchmaking and other network issues.
"Halo: The Master Chief Collection is definitely a black eye for us," he said. "We're not going to rest on our laurels or hide from the mistake we made."
O'Connor went on to attribute some of the woes to the complexities of bringing multiple engines together and trying to make them work harmoniously, as well as the multi-studio development effort.
"I will say that the nature of The Master Chief Collection - you've got five different game engines, you've got different studios working on it, you've got 343 working on putting it all together - the footprint and complexity was outrageous."
Continuing, the 343 exec said having the game in the hands of players threw up hurdles that the studio "simply didn't see in a test environment."
O'Connor went on to provide assurances that the issues that contributed to The Master Chief Collection's problems would not be stumbling blocks for Halo 5: Guardians.
"Halo 5 is being made by a completely different team. It's a singular product," he said. "It was built from the ground up for this new technology, rather than being sort of dragged kicking and screaming from 2001 and forced and shoehorned into a 2014 console.
"The problem spaces are still very challenging but they're radically different. I think the beta is already a decent first step, in a retail environment, showing that we don't have the same problems."
Late night talk show host and comedian Conan O'Brien looked like he rather enjoyed his time getting hands-on with upcoming role-playing game, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
The video above shows O'Brien (regretfully) learning about the world of The Witcher, and is amused by the fact that Geralt carries chicken sandwiches and apple juice in the game. He also shows prominent interest in Witcher 3 character Yennefer.
GameSpot recently visited The Witcher developer CD Projekt Red's offices in Poland. Check out our coverage from the trip, which includes exclusive interviews with key developers and even more gameplay footage, among other things.
Cheating in online games can get you banned--we all know that. Worse yet, it might get you (or your characters) humiliated, at least if the game is Guild Wars 2.
A thread (via Massively Overpowered) on the game's official forums recently popped up where players complained about a certain cheater, who appeared to be using hacks in-game. Worse yet, this character hadn't done so to simply get extra money or items they hadn't earned, but to use exploits in the game's competitive multiplayer mode. One person even provided video evidence of the cheater in question.
The discussion went without an official response for the better part of two weeks, but I dare say it was worth the wait. Game security lead Chris Cleary addressed the matter this week, writing, "We don't need to see it in-game, sometimes good video evidence is enough for me to track down who it was. In this case, the video was enough for me to find out who it was and take action. Thanks for the video, and to accompany your video, I give you this video of his account's last moments."
His post linked to the video above, which shows Cleary (or someone else at ArenaNet) logging into the cheater's account, stripping a character of his gear, and then jumping to his death in the middle of Divinity's Reach, a major city in the game. They then log out and proceed to delete the character, as well as one another.
Although the name doesn't indicate as much, Tron Bonne is the second game in the Mega Man Legends series, having been released in 2000. It serves as a prequel to 1998's Mega Man Legends and has become one of the rarest PS1 games--it's not uncommon to see it sold for $250-$300 or more on eBay.
An ESRB rating for the game was recently discovered by Siliconera with its platforms listed as PS3, PSP, and PS Vita--suggesting a PS1 Classics re-release. Sure enough, the game was released not long after as just that, and you can now buy it for a fraction of the price you would have paid just days ago.
Unfortunately, Tron Bonne is the only Legends game currently available on PSN. If this serves as your entry point to the spin-off series, you'll be further disappointed by the news that Capcom canceled Mega Man Legends 3 in 2011.
PS1 Classics still aren't playable on PS4, so you'll be limited to the three aforementioned systems (or PlayStation TV) if you pick this up. Still, it's great news to see more and more rare games made widely available through services like PSN and Virtual Console.
A handful of gaming-specific words have been added in the latest update to the dictionary, including the increasingly popular term "esports."
Dictionary.com has announced its latest wave of additions, which is comprised of "more than a thousand new and modified definitions." Many of these are related to technology, such as haptics, smartwatch, form factor, and blackhat.
As for gaming, there are at least three new words: esports, completionist, and permadeath. Permadeath has become an increasingly common term in recent years thanks to the wave of roguelikes (hey, there's one for next time) that have been released. Esports are increasingly gaining mainstream attention, as best evidenced by a Heroes of the Storm tournament airing on ESPN 2--much to the chagrin of at least one employee.
Keep in mind, this is the online dictionary, which is much more inclined to add new words than the dictionary you'd find in a library.
A blog post briefly explains how new words are added, and how its ultimate goal "is to help people gain a deeper understanding of language," something it can only do by routinely adding new words.
Some of the features currently exclusive to the PC version of Grand Theft Auto V are headed to consoles, Rockstar has revealed.
In a Q&A published on its website, Rockstar addresses a number of fan questions, as well as requests to bring PC features on consoles. These include the Rockstar Editor, the powerful video-editing tool that fans have already used to create some fantastic videos. Rockstar said it's working on a version of the editor for current-gen platforms that we should be seeing in the next few months.
"The Rockstar Editor is an advanced tool requiring additional processing power so it would not be compatible with GTA V on the older systems, but we are currently working on a version tailored for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles--and we hope to release that sometime this summer, or as soon as it is ready," Rockstar said.
Another current PC-exclusive is a radio station called The Lab, which features new music not available on consoles. Rockstar revealed this will be making the transition from PC to not just Xbox One and PS4, but Xbox 360 and PS3 as well. The new station will be added "in a forthcoming title update."
Console owners hoping to listen to their own music collection in-game while playing are out of luck, unfortunately, as technical constraints will keep that a PC-only option.
"The GTA V PC Self Radio experience that plays your personally curated playlist of MP3s in the game as a fully featured and properly integrated radio station just wouldn't technically be possible on the consoles as it requires more than the consoles allow at this time," Rockstar explained.
GTA Online's heists are a great way to make cash, but some players have found themselves running out of things they want to buy. For those people, Rockstar is working on "another update coming soon that will feature some very cool new toys for you to enjoy and flaunt with your ill-gotten gains." The screenshot above is said to be a tease of what's to come.
As for more heists, that's not something we can expect to see in a hurry. "[P]lease understand that Grand Theft Auto Online Heists were a tremendous undertaking so it's not the sort of thing where we can easily create and publish additional heists like other job modes and missions," Rockstar said. "We are, however, working on other cool updates for GTA Online that you can expect over the coming months."
Goat Simulator developer Coffee Stain Studios has revised the wacky game's credits to include Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima under its "Many Special Thanks" section. He's featured there alongside Kojima Productions and Silent Hills, a company and a game, respectively, that are facing challenges of late.
Coffee Stain posted the image you see below to its Facebook page today with a caption referencing the tough times Kojima is currently facing. "We heard that Hideo Kojima was removed from the credits for Metal Gear Solid V so we added him to the credits for Goat Simulator," Coffee Stain wrote.
The studio also invited Kojima to come work with Coffee Stain.
Adding Kojima's name to the Goat Simulator credits is certainly strange, but then again, this is Goat Simulator we're talking about. We've followed up with Coffee Stain, asking for more details.
As for what's going on with Konami, we may have more answers soon. The Japanese publisher is scheduled to hold an earnings briefing tomorrow, May 8, where it may also discuss its future plans for the Metal Gear Solid series and what role Kojima may play.
The PC version of quirky murder-mystery game D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die will arrive on June 5. Director Hidetaka Suehiro, perhaps better known by his nickname, Swery, announced the news today on Twitter.
The new Windows version, which runs at 1080p/60fps, will be available for $15 through Steam, GOG, the Humble Store, and Playism.
D4 for PC features a range of changes from the Xbox One edition. First, Kinect controls have been removed entirely. What's more, it includes all previously released DLC, as well as a variety of bug fixes and PC-only graphics options.
A full list of changes, along with the system requirements, is available here.
Upon D4's release last year, GameSpot gave the title a 7.0. Reviewer Kevin VanOrd praised its ridiculous story and atmosphere, while lamenting its stereotypical characters and several slow stretches that bogged down the pace.
The first Tony Hawk's Pro Skater in more than a decade will cost $20 less on last-gen consoles than it will on current-gen, and it may not feature the same style of multiplayer on all platforms.
An Amazon listing for the recently announcedTony Hawk's Pro Skater 5 has gone online. Alongside a placeholder release date of December 31, Amazon lists a price of $60 for the Xbox One and PS4 versions, and $40 for the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions. Activision confirmed to GameSpot these are indeed the real prices for the game, but it didn't offer any indication as to whether there will be differences (aside from, presumably, the visuals) between the current- and last-gen versions.
One possibility involves the game's online component. Players will be able to jump in and out of online sessions with friends and other players. There are both competitive and cooperative aspects to multiplayer, including the ability to complete missions and level up the character you use online and offline.
In the UK, the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of Pro Skater 5 will be an exclusive to retailer GAME. In a press release announcing that fact today, GAME noted, "For those with PS4 and Xbox One consoles, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5 also comes with the most advanced online multiplayer experience, offering online skate sessions and the ability to challenge other players from around the world."
That would suggest that experience is absent on 360 and PS3. Furthermore, Amazon, GameStop, and GAME's websites list "seamless online multiplayer" as a feature only on the pages for the Xbox One and PS4 versions.
Asked about the distinction, Activision noted it had nothing more to share beyond what GAME had revealed.
Pro Skater 5 is being developed by Robomodo, the developer of Tony Hawk Ride, Shred, and Pro Skater HD, as well as Disruptive Games. A release date has yet to be announced; Activision says that will be "shared in the upcoming weeks."
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