Recently, Activision announced Call of Duty: Black Ops III Zombies Chronicles, a new map pack that includes remasters of eight old Zombies maps. Today, the company provided a glimpse of the updated visuals of the first ever Zombies map, World at War's Nacht Der Untoten.
On Twitter, the official Call of Duty account shared a short teaser that reveals a bit of what you can expect when the map pack launches. It shows off some of the most recognizable parts of Nacht Der Untoten, including the mystery box and the stairwell graffiti. Although it's only a short look, it still reveals much-improved lighting and visual effects.
Nacht Der Untoten is one of the more memorable Zombies levels, and its cramped, limited playing space is much different than more recent maps which tend to be sprawling and complicated.
Zombies Chronicles also includes Verruckt, Shi No Numa, and Kino der Toten from World at War, Shangri-La, Moon, and Ascension from Black Ops, and Origins from Black Ops II. It launches on May 16 for PS4. No release date for the Xbox One and PC versions has been announced yet, but Call of Duty DLC typically is released a month later for those other platforms.
A new DLC chapter has been released for Dead by Daylight, the multiplayer survival horror game for PC.
Titled Spark of Madness, the expansion introduces a new killer known as the Doctor, a former medical researcher at a secret government black site who used twisted experiments to interrogate detainees. The Doctor relies on electroshock therapy to attack other players and emits a static field that affects their sanity. The Doctor can also use his electrical attacks to damage generators. The setting for the chapter is a maze-like medical facility called Lery's Memorial Institute.
The Spark of Madness expansion also adds a new survivor named Feng Min. A former e-sports professional, Feng Min can repair generators faster than other characters, and her acute senses can reveal a killer's location.
Dead by Daylight is currently only available on PC, though a PS4 and Xbox One release is on the way this June. The game pits one player in the role of a killer against four others who must outlast and escape the killer's attacks. We gave Dead by Daylight a 6/10 in our review. The Spark of Madness DLC is available now and is priced at $7.
Edmund McMillen, founder of Super Meat Boy developer Team Meat, has been working for the past few years on a seemingly endless number of updates and ports for acclaimed roguelike The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth. For instance, the game just launched on Switch, and McMillen recently announced a new patch that adds a bunch of user-created content. But that's not all he's working on: McMillen revealed that he and programmer Tyler Glaiel are close to revealing a completely new game.
Writing on The Binding of Isaac's blog, McMillen teased the new project, saying that he and Glaiel have been working on it for quite a while. "Not many of you know this, but Tyler and I have been in crunch mode for the past 3 months trying to finish this secret project," he wrote. "We are coming close to announcing it and its release date, so keep and eye out for it."
Although McMillen and Glaiel previously announced that they're working on Ouroboros and McMillen is also developing The Legend of Bum-bo, this secret project is most likely something different. In the post, McMillen gave a short description of the game, saying, "It's hard, it's weird, it's personal, it has amazing controls, it's a totally new unannounced IP and it's easily one of the largest games I've ever made, level-wise."
RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch is the latest evolution of the classic park sim series. Launched earlier this year, the mobile game has been a big hit, hitting No. 1 in the free-to-play App Store charts (for a period of time) and subsequently picking up more than 6.2 million downloads and hitting 500,000 daily active users.
GameSpot recently had the opportunity to speak with Atari COO Todd Shallbetter, who told us all about the game's origins, its early days, fan feedback, and a lot more.
Additionally, RollerCoaster Tycoon Touch is getting a number of updates in the coming weeks, including a "full color customization system" that will let players tweak the look of their rides, shops, and restaurants. Another new feature coming is the ability to visit other players' parks, while a "photo booth" mode is on the way that will let you take screenshots of your parks and tweak them further with filters and frames, and then share them on social channels, of course.
GameSpot will have more details on those update soon. For now, you can check out our full interview with Shallbetter below.
GamesSpot: Going back, can you talk about the origins of RCT Touch and what drove your decision to make a game like this? How far back had you been thinking about this?
Todd Shallbetter: RCT Touch has been on our minds for years. It goes back to when we first launched RollerCoaster Tycoon 4 Mobile as a free-to-play game in 2014. That game quickly became popular, achieving the number one ranking in the app store in numerous countries. We knew after releasing RCT4M that we next wanted to offer an advanced, mid-core simulation game that would leverage current mobile tech and modern game design. We partnered with Nvizzio Creations and agreed on a modern vision that would be fully 3D, and utilize a card-based game loop at the heart of the experience. This vision helped us to be laser-focused in our execution.
We now cover a full spectrum of mobile experiences under the RollerCoaster Tycoon brand. We have RCT4M that is a 2D, casual simulation; RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic, a premium app developed by original RCT creator Chris Saywer that brings the nostalgia of the initial PC versions; and now RCT Touch, the more advanced, 3D, F2P simulation which fully leverages the tech available with modern phones and tablets.
What kinds of challenges did you face either technically, operationally, or from a design standpoint with the game at the start of development and how did you overcome those hurdles?
There were many challenges. RCT Touch was Nvizzio's first mobile game, and while the team members had plenty of experience in the mobile space, it was still the first collective endeavor for the team. Luckily, they glued extremely well, understood perfectly what the game would become, and worked relentlessly in cooperation with us at Atari to deliver the game that's been enjoyed by millions worldwide.
From a technical perspective, we've been using Unity, as we believe it's the best game engine for the project. We've been building all game systems on top of Unity, including connections to a backend, payment systems, card delivery stems, localization, connections to social networks, a full coaster builder system leveraging 3D splines, a complete simulation… it's a huge amount of work that started from scratch. Working on top of Unity really helped the developers move fast, notably with display, controls, and UI.
The response has been huge in terms of player figures. But as a free-to-play game, can you speak at all about how the game is performing from a business perspective compared to what your expectations were?
RCT Touch was in soft launch for several months while we refined the player experience to make sure we had a good onboarding phase, and then enough content to progress smoothly for a long time. Players have been responding very well to this progression system and while we can't disclose any financials, we can say that RCT Touch has exceeded the mobile simulation category standard KPIs, notably with an incredible long-term engagement. We're very happy with the way the game is performing and it allows us to continue planning for more content and investing in the game.
"Our design philosophy is that in free-to-play, no player should ever be forced to buy" -- Shallbetter on the game's free-to-play business model
Free-to-play games sometimes create controversy for how they handle microtransactions. Why did you elect to make it a free-to-play game and how did you go about structuring the game in such a way that players would not feel as if they were being nickle and dimed, so to speak?
Our design philosophy is that in free-to-play, no player should ever be forced to buy. We're not gating content behind paywalls, and in-app purchases are only a way to get convenient features or speed up the game progression. These purchases are completely optional. We have received positive feedback from players acknowledging this which has helped improve long-term engagement.
More generally speaking, what's some of the feedback you've heard from players and how are you addressing that?
We pay close attention to player feedback, leveraging user feedback from reviews, forums, and our Facebook fan page, as well as reviewing data analytics to get the full picture of what people are experiencing.
First and foremost, we are focused on the technical aspect of the game, as there is nothing more frustrating than loving a game and not being able to fully enjoy the experience. We've had some challenges since the soft launch period related to speed and memory optimizations, as there are many different devices out there on iOS and Android, and being able to offer an ambitious, full 3D experience for most devices is a big challenge. Our development team spent a considerable amount of time to improve speed and memory management and in our previous update we provided a solution to address many of these issues. Looking at the current user reviews, we are proud of the results, but it will be an ongoing effort to keep players engaged.
Additionally, our players have been asking for more customization options for their parks. We have several updates providing interesting solutions to those players' needs.
The launch of a game these days is often just the start--keeping players engaged is important with all the other games and other competing media forms out there. What's in the pipeline for RCT Touch as it relates to updates and new content?
We have a plethora of ideas, and our goal right now is to deliver more content faster. Our players are expressing the need to further customize their parks as they become very attached to their creations. The last update included a full system of ride and coaster color customization. In our next update, we'll be offering a layout edit system allowing players to completely change their entire park layout with very simple moves. As people want to share more and are curious about what other players are doing, we'll also be offering a feature to visit other people's parks as well as a screenshot capture function to shoot, enhance with stickers, and share pictures of their parks on social networks.
After that, we'll have even more to come! We'll be working on competitive aspects with intriguing player corporations (a bit like clans), but we will share more in the near future.
Atari has evolved the RCT brand in recent years with RTC Classic and now Touch. Those have been generally well-received but the new PC game RCT World has faced some criticism. What is the latest there in terms of new update and ongoing support for that game?
We remain committed to supporting RollerCoaster Tycoon World for the long term. Moving forward our focus will be on additional asset generation and bug fixing. We will also continue to support RCTW's Piece-by-Piece system. We are integrating new assets directly into the game making it easy for players to further customize their parks. In our most recent update, we released an Asia pack which users have been enjoying.
The RCT series has a lot of brand power with some age groups but how are you finding it connecting with the younger crowd? Is it resonating as well with people who are completely new to the series?
Indeed! We have many testimonials from players whose kids absolutely adore the game. The theme park resonates well with the younger audience, and the very intuitive, tactile interface works really well with kids.
Kind of a broader question, but what about the RCT series is it that you think has contributed to the franchise's enduring appeal and success? Some other franchises have faded away, but RCT has seemed to endure.
RollerCoaster Tycoon became one of the best-selling franchises in PC game history because the core gameplay of building and managing your own park allowed players to express their individuality and creativity in engaging and fun ways. By creating immaculately precise money-making parks, or simply finding the most extreme ways to torture their peeps, RCT is a playground for players to live out their theme park dreams. Each iteration of the game since the original RCT has built upon the park management sim foundation while creating new and wild amusement park experiences. By adapting the game to new formats, and making sure we respect the core mechanics that make RCT great, we're keeping RCT modern, relevant, and fun.
And looking ahead, do you see PC and mobile as the main platforms for the RCT series? Or do you have any plans to bring the franchise again to consoles or possibly new systems like VR?
We know firsthand that creating a park management sim can be complex, so picking the right platform is critical. We have enjoyed great success on PC and mobile and each platform offers a different type of RCT experience which is something the franchise benefits from. We are not limiting ourselves to only PC and mobile, however, and continue to evaluate other platforms such as console and VR; stay tuned!
Activision released a new trailer for the upcoming PS4 remaster of Crash Bandicoot, and it shows off the lovable Polar in action.
You can check out the short video for the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy below. In it, you can see Crash hopping on the bear and running through a snow level. The video gives a glimpse of some of the improved visuals and gameplay that you can expect in the game, as well.
The remaster comes with the first three games in the Crash series: Crash Bandicoot, Cortex Strikes Back, and Warped. Polar shows up primarily in Cortex Strikes Back, although he has a short cameo in the third game, as well.
The remaster is in development at Vicarious Visions, although Naughty Dog originally made all three games. The level geometry has been retained from the original games, but that's about it: the remaster features fully overhauled gameplay in addition to better graphics.
Alien: Covenant is now playing in international theaters and hits US screens in a week's time. A scary new clip has been released, and it shows an encounter with one of the franchise's most iconic creatures--the facehugger. Check it out below:
Alien: Covenant stars Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Danny McBride, and Demian Bichir. You can read GameSpot's review here--reviewer Eddie Makuch said it is "a fun movie that has a number of standout scenes. It is a notable improvement over Prometheus, but it runs the risk of feeling too familiar and formulaic overall."
Earlier this week, director Ridley Scott revealed that a sequel to Covenant will start shooting next year. "We're writing [a sequel] now, as we speak," he said. "I'll be filming that within 14 months."
Prey is the latest immersive sim that taps into elements of System Shock while incorporating the feel of BioShock. The retro-futuristic vibe and Art Deco aesthetic make Talos I look striking, but how well do modern graphics cards hold up with Prey rendered at the highest quality settings? Arkane Studios, developer of last year's Dishonored 2, ditched the Void Engine--which had some performance and stability issues--and moved to CryEngine to build Prey.
With eight graphics cards from the current generation--six from Nvidia, two from AMD--we put Prey through our own benchmark test. Since the game does not have a built-in benchmarking tool, we had to create our own repeatable sequence to get consistent results.
Methodology
The benchmark sequence began within the Talos I Lobby near the entrance to the Neuromod Division. From there we walked down the stairs to the center of the hall, all while getting a full view of the decor within the lobby area. Once at the center, we panned the camera around 360 degrees to get a feel for performance within the scenery. Then we walked around the main lift and into the TranStar Exhibit room to fight a Phantom that always spawns there. We shot it up with the GLOO Cannon and hammered it with the wrench, which concluded the sequence. By using the FRAPS program (which records frame data), we tracked the minimum, average, and maximum frames per second (FPS) through this 60 second tour.
We decided to run this test in three resolutions: 1920x1080 (1080p), 2560x1440 (1440p), and 3840x2160 (4K), all with V-Sync off. We also used the highest graphics preset for Prey (Very High) which includes the following settings:
SMAA 2TX (anti-aliasing)
16x anisotropic filtering
Full resolution screen space ambient occlusion
Full resolution screen space reflections
Very High shadow, texture, and object quality
Don't be shy now; if you need a refresher on a few definitions of these terms, check out our PC graphics settings explainer!
Test Bench
We used the same rig from our previous benchmark stories--For Honor, Ghost Recon: Wildlands, and Mass Effect: Andromeda. It's equipped with an Intel Core-i7 6700K clocked at 4.0GHz on a Gigabyte Z170 G1 Gaming motherboard. It also has 16GB of dual-channel HyperX Savage DDR4 RAM at 2133MHz. For storage, we have a 960GB Western Digital Blue solid-state drive. Most importantly, here are all the graphics cards included in our tests:
As with any big release, Nvidia and AMD put out day-one drivers to help optimize in-game performance. We used the version 382.19 driver for Nvidia cards, and the Crimson ReLive 17.5.1 package for AMD Radeon cards.
Benchmark Results
1080p Results
Prey is a breeze to run at 1080p even at maximum settings, if you're using at least a GTX 1050 Ti. This relatively budget priced card put out an average of 63 FPS in our benchmark and only dipped to 48 FPS in when approaching the Phantom in the TranStar exhibit. The GTX 1050 didn't fare as well, but still held up playable frame rates by averaging 44 FPS. We'd recommend turning down a few settings like shadows or anti-aliasing.
Our two AMD cards yielded impressive results considering their price. The RX 570 averaged over 80 FPS and never dropped below 60 FPS. The GTX 1060 slightly outperformed the RX 580, but at this point, anything faster is overkill unless you have a 120/144Hz monitor. Diminishing returns in frame rate settled in with the GTX 1070 and above.
1440p Results
Even at 1440p, mid-range cards like the GTX 1060 and RX 580 averaged above 60 FPS. We start to see a little bit more of a difference in performance between the higher-end cards, though they all stayed above 60 FPS through the entire benchmark sequence. Users of high refresh rate 1440p monitors should be happy to know a GTX 1070 will give them enough juice to enjoy their display's perks.
The RX 570 squeezed out consistently playable frame rates by averaging 52 FPS and never dipping below 40 FPS--impressive for a sub-$200 graphics card. While the GTX 1050 Ti had a decent showing of a 37 FPS on average, it could benefit from lowering a few settings such as anti-aliasing or shadows. Technically, while the GTX 1050 could be enough to make Prey playable at 1440p at lower settings, we'd recommend switching to 1080p.
4K Results
Our 4K test really let the higher-end graphics cards show what they're capable of. The GTX 1080 Ti had no problem staying above 60 FPS, getting an average of 79 FPS. We saw a slight hiccup when the GTX 1080 dropped to 49 FPS, but overall, its 63 FPS average felt smooth.
Things started to slow down with the GTX 1070, but the game was still very much playable. The card was able to hold 50 FPS on average and dipped to a minimum 39 FPS. The RX 580 and GTX 1060 fell behind by performing well under the GTX 1070, we'd recommend turning down anti-aliasing with these cards to get extra FPS boost, otherwise you'll want to use the 1440p resolution. The RX 570 squeaked out a 25 FPS average, so performance was less than ideal. As shown in the results, the GTX 1050 Ti is not meant to run games at 4K, and the GTX 1050 makes it simply unplayable.
Conclusion
Prey doesn't ask much of your system, unless you're at 4K resolution. Its environments are relatively contained within the Talos I space station, but still look clean and expressive. We don't have to worry about crazy draw distances or multitudes of enemies hounding you at once (other than pesky mimics zipping across a room), but eye candy still demands a decent system.
If you're hoping to enjoy Prey at 4K with max settings, you should at least be equipped with a GTX 1070 for playable frame rates. You could also turn down anti-aliasing at 4K to squeeze out extra frames, otherwise you'll want a GTX 1080 or 1080 Ti for no compromises. Users of 1440p displays will be set with the mid-range GTX 1060 or RX 580 to get consistent 60 FPS at max settings. Those on 1080p displays should be thrilled to know that a GTX 1050 Ti is enough to pump out an average around 60 FPS.
The acclaimed city-building simulation Block'hood has finally been released after a year spent in early access. The full version is out now on PC, although it's received a slight price increase.
The serene and beautiful city-builder has received a fairly substantial update alongside its official launch, as well. Its art style has received a moderate overhaul, and the developer has added a story mode. You can check out the game's gorgeous pixel-art neighborhoods in its launch trailer above.
In Block'hood, you build neighborhoods out of specialized building blocks, and you must strategically distribute these blocks to make sure that your neighborhood has enough resources to survive. In addition, the game encourages you to be aware of the ecosystems in which you construct your towers, as you must balance resources to prevent the decay of your blocks as well as the environment.
According to a press release, the game will cost $15 (£11 in the UK) on Steam, up from $10 in early access. However, the bump hasn't gone into effect yet, and the game is on sale for $7.49 right now. Block'hood won a Games For Change award in 2016 for Best Gameplay, due in large part to its focus on ecological sustainability and awareness.
The four Mega Stones were previously unavailable in the games and allow Pidgeot, Heracross, Steelix, and Houndoom to Mega Evolve during battle. To receive the items, select the Mystery Gift option from the menu screen and choose to receive your gift with a code. Input the password "AZUL," and you can pick up the four Mega Stones from the deliveryman inside any of the games' Pokemon Centers.
First introduced in Pokemon X and Y, Mega Evolution allows certain Pokemon to transform during battle after being equipped with the proper Mega Stone. Mega Evolved Pokemon gain a number of dramatic enhancements over their base forms, from increased stats, new abilities, and occasionally different elemental typing. The series' most recent installments, Sun and Moon, largely replaced Mega Evolution with Z-Moves, though players could still acquire certain Mega Stones within the games after clearing the main story. Not every Mega Stone can be obtained in the titles, however, so Nintendo has been distributing the remaining ones at events and through the Mystery Gift feature.
Sun and Moon players also have a chance to add a special Midnight Form Lycanroc to their teams. Beginning May 15, GameStop stores around the US are distributing a serial code for the Pokemon. As with this batch of Mega Stones, players need to enter the code in the games' Mystery Gift option to receive their Lycanroc. UK players, meanwhile, can pick up a code for Lycanroc at GAME stores.
Backwards compatibility has proven to be a popular feature for Xbox One, and whether you've been using it already or or not, next week should be a good time to stock up on supported Xbox 360 games.
Microsoft announced today that a Backwards Compatibility "Super Sale" kicks off next week. Starting on Tuesday, May 16, more than 275 backwards-compatible Xbox 360 games will be discounted by up to 75%.
An end date for the promotion wasn't shared. Given that it's kicking off on a Tuesday, it may simply take the place of the usual weekly Deals With Gold sale, but nothing has been confirmed yet. We'll report back as more details are announced.
You can set aside any hopes of seeing the next main entry in the Halo series at E3 next month--developer 343 Industries says Halo 6 won't be at the show.
Responding to a comment on Reddit, Halo community manager Brian Jarrard shared the news, stating, "[W]e'll have a little something at E3 but it's not related to the next major entry in the franchise," referencing the inevitable Halo 6.
That may not come as a big surprise to you: Microsoft has already said there won't be a new Halo first-person shooter released in 2017 (or a new Gears of War, for that matter). In other words, any announcement at E3 would have to be for a game coming no sooner than 2018. That's not inconceivable by any means, but Microsoft may be inclined to spend more of its team showcasing Project Scorpio and the games you'll be able to play on it (and Xbox One) this year.
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