We've teamed up with TripWire to give away 5,000 closed beta codes for Rising Storm 2: Vietnam on PC to redeem on Steam.
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Rising Storm 2: Vietnam offers intense tactical action for up to 64 players in battles between the US forces and the Vietnamese, with each force having their own unique abilities and tactical advantages such as Napalm Strikes, Artillery Barrages, surface-to-air missiles, traps, ambushes and more.
A number of former PlayStation Plus freebies are also discounted, in case you've missed any of those and want to now pick them up, including Titan Attacks ($2), The Swapper ($3.74), Tower of Guns ($3.74), Galak-Z ($8), and Nova-111 ($2).
Alan Wake won't be available for sale for much longer, giving you only a few more days to pick it up through an official retailer.
As explained in a post on developer Remedy's forums, the music licenses for the game will soon expire, which means it can't continue to be sold in its current form. This applies to both the PC and Xbox 360 versions --it will disappear from the likes of Steam, GOG, and the Xbox Store after this Monday, May 15. The follow-up game, Alan Wake's American Nightmare, is unaffected and will still be sold.
Remedy says it's "looking into relicensing the music," which would allow Alan Wake to return to stores, but it doesn't have an estimate for how soon--or if--that will happen. As such, if you're interested in owning or playing it, you should pick it up before it disappears.
At least one retailer will make doing so relatively pain-free. Starting on Saturday, May 13, at 10 AM PT/1 PM ET, Alan Wake will be 90% off on Steam, dropping it from $30 to just $3. It's unclear at this point if it will also go on sale elsewhere in advance of the game's removal. If you opt to pick up the Xbox 360 version, it can be played on Xbox One through backwards compatibility.
Alan Wake was originally released back in 2010. It's an atmospheric horror game about an author who lives through the events of a novel he has no memory of writing. Twin Peaks fans, in particular, are in for a treat--while not to the same degree as Deadly Premonition, it does draw inspiration from the classic show. For more on what to expect, check out GameSpot's Alan Wake review.
The Humble Store is offering major deals on many PC games, including AAA titles, in its spring sale.
There are some big savings if you're looking to get into the Dark Souls series. Dark Souls III is 50% off at US $43, and the same deal can be had on Dark Souls III Deluxe Edition, and the Dark Souls III Season Pass. Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin is 75% off at US $10.
Dishonored 2 is 50% off at US $30 and Grim Dawn is also 50% off at $13, while Dying Light: The Following is 60% off and costs US $24. For something completely different, Rocket League is 30% off at $14.
Mini-ITX chassis have been around for decades, but in the last few years, we've seen the emergence of slim console-like computer cases and pre-built PCs. Now, there are plenty of svelte chassis from the likes of Fractal Design and SilverStone. There are also a bunch of console-sized PCs from companies like Alienware and Origin PC. We're going to highlight some modern micro towers in the following gallery.
Fractal Design tailor-made its Node 202 gaming case for the living room. The chassis can be stood up or laid down and measures 4.9x15.1x13 inches. With a body offering a volume of 10.2 liters, it's quite small. The Node 202 offers separate component bays, which help keep your hardware cool. The chassis will fit dual-slot video cards that are 12.2 inches or shorter. You will need a small form factor power supply (also known as an SFX PSU) to get it running, however.
SilverStone RVZ01-E
SilverStone is no stranger to Mini-ITX chassis. As a matter of fact, you'll see more than one case from the manufacturer in this roundup. The company's RVZ01-E is one of the few slim form factor chassis that support standard ATX power supplies, though at 15x4.1x13.7 inches with a volumetric 14 liter body, it's slightly on the bigger side. On the bright side, the RVZ01-E can be used vertically or horizontally, and can fit full-size graphics cards.
Sentry
The Sentry chassis started off with a successful Indiegogo campaign and was advertised as a "console-sized gaming PC case" with its 13.3x12.2x2.5 inch frame. It raised $222,388 from 921 backers, which is really impressive when you consider its goal was a modest $19,500. The company says the Sentry is small enough to fit into many 17-inch laptop bags and backpacks. Its drawbacks are that it does require a smaller SFX power supply and won't fit large graphics cards.
SilverStone RVZ02
SilverStone's RVZ02 is a follow-up to the company's RVZ01 model. It introduces two see-through panels and is a bit smaller than its predecessors with 14.9x3.4x14.5-inch dimensions. It supports two 2.5 inch storage drives and a dual-slot graphics card that's up to 13 inches long. Like the RVZ01, it can be used either vertically or horizontally, but requires a smaller SFX power supply.
AZZA CSAZ-103 Black SECC
While AZZA's CSAZ-103 case is a bit bigger than most other Mini-ITX cases in this roundup with its 13.5x4.4x17.3-inch dimensions, it supports standard ATX PSUs and water cooling systems with up to two 120mm fans. It is limited to 11-inch graphics cards, though.
SilverStone ML08B-H
SilverStone's ML08 is a slim form factor chassis that's based on the company's RVZ02 case. It shares the same base 4.9x3.4x14.5-inch dimensions, but its biggest addition is that it offers a removable handle. Like the RVZ02, it supports graphics cards up to 13 inches long and requires an SFX power supply.
Corsair Bulldog 2.0
Corsair's Bulldog 2.0 is actually a barebones PC kit. In this case, it includes a Z270 Mini-ITX motherboard and a 600-watt SFX power supply. Unlike most other chassis in this roundup, the Bulldog is designed to simply lay flat. It's also on the heftier size with dimensions measuring 15X17.6x5.7 inches. On the bright side, it does support watercooled CPUs and GPUs.
Pre-built PCs
The next few slides showcase prebuilt PCs with console-sized chassis from the likes of Alienware, Origin PC, and more.
Syber Vapor Xtreme
CyberPowerPC's Syber Vapor Xtreme PC actually spawned out of Valve's Steam Machine initiative back in 2014. Like most PCs from the vendor, there are a lot of different hardware customization options to choose from. You can get the 13.8x13.5x3.8 inch chassis in black or white, and the case offers LED lighting with seven different color options.
Falcon Northwest Tiki
Falcon Northwest generally caters its PCs to an affluent crowd, and its Tiki micro tower represents a small, but high-end PC that's outfitted with a water-cooled CPU. The chassis measures 4x13.5x13.2 inches and it has a base at the bottom, which relegates it to a standing orientation. The case comes in a wide variety of colors, and you can customize it to have a side window to show off your GPU.
Digital Storm Bolt 3
Digital Storm is another high-end boutique PC vendor. The company's Bolt 3 Mini ITX rig features a case designed by Lian Li. It's one of the larger micro towers in this roundup with its 18.3x15.1x5.8 inch body, but it features a custom loop cooler and internal RGB lighting, which you'll be able to see with its glass side panel. You can also orient the Bolt 3 vertically or horizontally. The PC incorporates a 600-watt SFX power supply and features a couple different hardware configuration options.
Origin PC Chronos
Origin PC's Chronos rig features the only chassis in this roundup that allows you to orient it four different ways. The system comes with a built-in 600-watt PSU and supports up to six SSDs. This is pretty impressive given its 11.7x4x13.7 inch size. You can also outfit it with a variety of modern Intel CPUs coupled with a 10-series Nvidia GPU. The case comes in a wide variety of color options and offers RGB lighting.
Alienware X51 R3
Alienware's X51 was one of the first high profile gaming PCs to ship in a console-shaped form factor. Its R3 model represents the latest revision of the rig with its 13.5x12.5x3.7-inch chassis and introduces liquid cooling as an option. The X51 offers PCIe SSD support and can be outfitted with modern graphics cards from AMD or Nvidia.
Asus ROG G20CB
Asus' ROG G20CB PC sports a very alien-looking design that mixes a matte black aesthetic with glowing red accents topped off with RGB lighting. The case measures 4x13x14 inches, has a 9.5 liter body, and can be equipped with a 6th generation Intel processor coupled with a modern Nvidia GPU.
What's your favorite console-style case?
We plan on updating this story as more console-style cases and PCs release, but for now, what is your favorite chassis design? Let us know in the comments below!
The popular indie platformer Shantae: Half-Genie Hero is coming to Nintendo Switch this summer, developer WayForward has announced via Twitter. The game is releasing in both digital and physical formats, the latter of which is being published by Xseed.
Half-Genie Hero is the fourth installment in the Shantae series and the first to be developed for HD consoles, mixing beautiful hand-drawn character art with 3D environments. The game was released back in December 2016 for Wii U, PS4, Xbox One, PC, and PS Vita. In addition to the Shantae series, WayForward is known for its work on DuckTales Remastered and the Mighty Switch Force titles.
The Switch version of Half-Genie Hero will utilize the console's HD rumble feature with 150 exclusive "HD Rumble events." WayForward didn't explain how these events would be implemented in the gameplay, but the developer promised that more details would be "coming soon."
WayForward has yet to announce a release date for the Switch version of Shantae: Half-Genie Hero. The game received a positive reception when it was initially released; we called the title "a delightful experience" in our review and awarded it 8/10.
It's been a week since Prey was released. Being a long game that wasn't shared with critics long before launch day, it's taken some time to complete, but a variety of Prey reviews now made their way online.
We've collected a handful of these for you to get a sense of Prey's critical reception. The response has been all over the place, with technical issues having a severe effect for some while others have enjoyed its atmosphere and the experimentation it allows for.
You can check out the reviews below and head over to GameSpot sister site Metacritic for a broader look at Prey's reception.
"Prey is a game of uneven pacing and uninteresting characters. It opens with a poignant, thought-provoking premise, but fails to follow through until the end, when it claims a revelation it doesn't quite earn. Its gameplay falters out of the gate, eventually maturing into something worthwhile, if a bit familiar. As an homage to System Shock it's competent and at times even enjoyable. However, Prey fails to distinguish itself, and next to immersive sim contemporaries such as Dishonored, it feels stagnant." -- Tamoor Hussain [Full review]
PC Gamer -- 79/100
"Many of Prey's issues are a consequence of its broad range of options. Attempting to cater to a variety of play styles is laudable, but also means that Prey isn't as good a stealth game as Dishonored, nor as good a combat game as BioShock. But while the individual parts have problems, Prey is nonetheless greater than the sum of them. Prey is worth playing, mostly thanks to the strength of Talos-I as a setting, and the excellent environment design." -- Phil Savage [Full review]
GamesRadar -- 4.5/5
"Talos-I isn't just a location. The space station is a story in itself, with every inch of it marked by the people who used to live and work there. Walking through its corridors and gradually ridding them of the Typhon brings it closer to what it used to be. Weirdly, you wouldn't belong if everything went back to normal. Because over the course of the game it becomes increasingly impossible to stop thinking with your GLOO Gun and Typhon powers. Prey is a playground for creativity where you control the variables. It's time to start experimenting." -- Zoe Delahunty-Light [Full review]
Rock, Paper, Shotgun -- no score
"Prey is a game that's smart about almost every aspect of itself, and yet with that, so crucially modest. It doesn't yank the camera from you, doesn't force you to sit through cutscenes, doesn't demand you sit still and listen to its backstory. It's content to be itself and let you find it, which is a damned rare treat in this hobby. Even more amazingly, for all its array of abilities and powers, you can finish the game without touching them, perhaps even find a narrative rationale for doing so. It lets you improvise, explore, make big decisions without needing to tell you they're big. And yes, it absolutely does let you turn into a cup." -- John Walker [Full review]
Time -- 3.5/5
"If you're in the mood for a corridor crawl modeled after the Dishonored series' 'one problem, multiple solutions' approach, Prey has plenty to offer. Its pedigree is clear, an homage to design DNA you can trace back to Looking Glass Studios 1990s Thief and Shock games. There's no shame in iteration, and Prey does nothing worse than its precursors. The only question, given how familiar most of its ideas feel in 2017, is whether homage is enough." -- Matt Peckham [Full review]
IGN -- 4.0/10 (PC version)
"If the PC version of Prey hadn't become completely unplayable from crashes and save-game corruption just as it was hitting its stride, I'd have called it a very good or perhaps even great game. Its strange alternate-history universe, side-quests, hidden threats, and detailed environmental storytelling make Talos-I a joy to explore, one that's well worth slogging through combat that doesn't feel fresh enough to sustain it throughout a long game. But there's little so frustrating in a game in which you've invested dozens of hours as having your progress wiped out or blocked before the end, and my time with Prey concluded so poorly that I can't in good conscience recommend you risk hitting the same game-breaking bug I did." -- Dan Stapleton [Full review]
Polygon -- 8.5 (PC) / 8.0 (PS4/Xbox One)
"Arkane has the confidence to let Prey end on its own terms, even if it occasionally leans too heavily on its least interesting aspects. When it looks most like a shooter, Prey is merely competent. But as a mystery, a deep-space haunted house with dozens of stories of tragedy and humanity to tell, Prey is a remarkably successful archaeological expedition--and it manages to compellingly ruminate on what it means to be." -- Arthur Gies [Full review]
Koei Tecmo has confirmed a worldwide release for Dynasty Warriors 9, the latest entry in the long-running hack-and-slash series. While the publisher didn't specify on what platforms the game will appear, the most recent issue of Famitsu revealed it'll be launching in Japan for PS4.
Dynasty Warriors 9 is a marked shift from earlier Dynasty Warriors titles. For the first time in the series, the game trades stage-based battles for an open-world setting. The title still features the large-scale "one-versus-thousands" clashes the series is known for, only now battles unfold at different areas of the map depending on the time period.
The game also introduces a number of new mechanics to the gameplay, such as context-sensitive actions that vary depending on your surroundings; for example, players can use a grappling hook to climb when near walls or mountains. Koei Tecmo has confirmed that all 83 playable characters from previous Dynasty Warriors games return in Dynasty Warriors 9, alongside a selection of new fighters.
Koei Tecmo has also updated the official Dynasty Warriors 9 website with a gallery of screenshots that showcase the game's open-world setting, which you can take a look at below:
Koei Tecmo hasn't announced a release date for Dynasty Warriors 9. According to the developers, the game is roughly 40% complete.
Ghostbusters is a comedy classic, and one of the most beloved movies of the 1980s. But as well as being a pop-culture phenomenon, it seems that the film has now made an impact in the scientific community. A newly discovered dinosaur has been named after the movie's demonic villain, Zuul.
As reported by io9, scientists at Royal Ontario Museum recently discovered the 75-million-year-old fossil of a new type of ankylosaur. A joking comment that the horned dinosaur looked a bit like the scary Ghostbusters demon has led the discovery to be officially named the "Zuul crurivastator."
Ghostbusters co-writer, star, and fellow Ontarian Dan Aykroyd subsequently paid a visit to the museum to see the fossils and recorded a short video. Watch it below:
According to a museum statement, "like Zuul, the new species has a short, rounded snout and prominent horns behind the eyes. The shape of the horns and the ornaments on the skull are what identified Zuul as a species new to science.
"Its species name, crurivastator, means 'destroyer of shins', and references the incredible weapon-like tail club found with the skeleton."
Sega Sammy has reported the results of its most recent fiscal year, which came to a close on March 31, 2017.
These reports remain a sore spot for Phantasy Star Online fans, as Sega notes that Phantasy Star Online 2 sales "remained robust" four years after its initial release (and one year after its PS4 launch) in Japan. The company has still not provided further word regarding a release for the game in the West, though Gravity Rush 2 received PSO2-themed DLC earlier this year.
The respective launches of Persona 5 and Total War: Warhammer were also called out as positives in its non-mobile games business, although no new sales figures were revealed. Sega reiterated that Persona 5 shipments hit 1.5 million units in April and said that the company sold 10.28 million packaged games overall during the year.
Net sales for the year were 366.94 billion yen (about $3.24 billion), a year-over-year increase of 5.4%. Operating income jumped 67.6% to 29.53 billion yen (about $261 million). Its Entertainment Contents division--which includes its game businesses--accounted for net sales of 205.7 billion yen (about $1.8 billion, up 8%) and operating income of 11.18 billion yen (about $99 million, up 165.1%).
Looking ahead to the current fiscal year, which runs through March 2018, Sega said it plans to launch more mobile games than last year while continuing to run special events in its major existing games. It expects packaged game sales to see an increase to 11.6 million units on the strength of Persona 5, Dawn of War III, Endless Space 2, and Total War: Warhammer II.
The big-budget action fantasy King Arthur: Legend of the Sword hits theaters next week, and star Charlie Hunnam has now revealed that he was very close to appearing in another high-profile fantasy property--Game of Thrones.
Speaking to GameSpot, Hunnam explained that he was offered a part in HBO's hit show, but production conflicts meant that he had to turn the role down. "I was shooting Lost City of Z at the same time so I wasn't able to do it," he said. "But then I ended up shooting in Belfast, and I was living in a little housing complex. I was living next door to old Dinklage [Peter Dinklage, who plays Tyrion Lannister in the show] and above me was [showrunner] David Benioff.
"I would see them going to work every day, and I thought, 'It could've been me.' Bad timing!"
Hunnam, who also starred in Pacific Rim and Sons of Anarchy, revealed that he was so upset that he couldn't appear in Game of Thrones that he never even asked which part he was being offered.
"I was so devastated I couldn't do it, I said 'You know what? Don't tell me anything about it.' I don't even know what role it was.
"I think it was was quite small--maybe three episodes--but significant. Not the last season, maybe the season before that."
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword hits theaters on May 19. Game of Thrones, meanwhile, returns for Season 7 on Sunday, July 16--check out the latest trailer here.
New England Patriots QB Tom Brady, who led his team to an unprecedented come-from-behind victory in Super Bowl LI, will be on the cover of this year's Madden NFL 18.
With his five Super Bowl victories, four Super Bowl MVP awards, 12 Pro bowl nominations, and his huge passing numbers, he is a lock for the Hall of Fame. But he's never been on a Madden game cover until now. Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski was on the cover of Madden 17, making this the first time ever that teammates have been on the cover of a Madden game in back-to-back years.
In a statement provided by EA, Brady said, "I'm not one to believe in curses, so I'm ready to take the challenge head on like always! It doesn't stand a chance!!!"
You can check out a teaser trailer for Madden 18 above. It shows some glimpses of gameplay and teases what may be a story mode similar to FIFA 17's The Journey.
For the first time ever, this year's Madden runs on the Frostbite engine, which is also used for EA's Battlefield, Star Wars Battlefront, and FIFA franchises, among others. EA says the engine will allow EA to deliver a "significant visual leap" for player models and also crowds, stadiums, and more.
Madden NFL 18 launches on August 25 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. People who preorder will get an Elite-level player for the game's Ultimate Team mode, as well as five Squad Packs.
Additionally, there will be a GOAT Edition of Madden 18, featuring everything in the standard edition as well as one of five GOAT players of their choice for use in Ultimate Team.
The GOAT Edition unlocks three days early, starting on August 23. EA Access members can play the game even sooner, starting on August 17, but only for a total of 10 hours.
More details on Madden 18 will be announced at E3 2017 in June.
Alien: Covenant is about to hit theaters (you can check out our review here). The latest addition to the Alien franchise gets back to its horror roots. In the history of movies featuring extraterrestrials, there haven't been as many that mix the genre with horror. Throughout the decades, there have been a lot of hits--as well as misses--when these genres clash, but here are the best alien horror films, from great to best.
All of the films are ranked by their IMDb rating.
10. Slither (2006)
A parasitic worm, which hitched a ride on a meteorite, infects people in a small town, turning them all into zombies. Director and writer James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) mashes a classic monster movie with zombies for this horror film with a comedic tilt.
A group of astronauts are sent on a mission to investigate a ship--The Event Horizon--which disappeared seven years prior. The crew finds out that the ship went through a black hole and brought something terrifying back with it. The focus of Event Horizon is more on the horror elements rather than alien. It redefines what an alien can be in the science-fiction genre.
Fred Dekker (Monster Squad) directed this 1986 horror comedy about a parasitic alien that crashes on Earth. It infects humans and turns them into zombies. Yes, it's pretty much the same plot as Slither.
The most recent film on this list is 2017's Life. A group of scientists aboard a space station discover signs of extraterrestrial life on Mars. They gets samples of the organism, but they quickly discover this life form is deadly and by no means should it be brought back to Earth.
Vin Diesel plays Riddick, an escaped convict who becomes marooned on a planet with 10 other people after their ship crashes. The survivors discover that the planet is inhabited by dangerous aliens that only come out when it's dark, and there's a month-long eclipse about to hit the planet.
Roddy Piper stars as a drifter looking for work (who recently ran out of bubblegum). He finds a pair of sunglasses that show him the real world, which is filled with hidden propaganda and aliens who secretly live among us.
Predator may not seem like a horror film, but it follows the slasher film trope we've seen time and time again. A team of commandos are on a mission in Central America, and they're being hunted and killed, one by one, by an unseen alien.
The earliest film on this list is over 60 years old, and Don Siegel (Dirty Harry, Escape From Alcatraz) directed this horror classic. A doctor discovers that people in his community are being replaced by alien duplicates. Invasion Of The Body Snatchers has been remade a few times, most notably in 1978 and 2007.
In Antarctica, a research facility finds an alien that can become anything it touches. It's so accurate that it's impossible to tell who is human and who is the alien impersonator. In addition to They Live, The Thing was directed by the legendary John Carpenter.
Finally, the greatest alien horror film is the 1979 film Alien. A spaceship gets a distress call on a moon, and after arriving, the crew is attacked by a mysterious alien. They find out the life cycle for the being has just begun, and the alien hunts down them down one by one in this terrifying film.
In case you're wondering, 1986's Aliens, which is more of an action/adventure film, was rated an 8.4.
Red Dead Redemption never came to PC, and Wild West Online aims to fill that void, it seems.
Join Joey and Jean Luc as they rocket jump their way through Quake Champions.
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