Archived News:

Tuesday, Jun 17, 2014 Independence Day (Iceland)

Team Fortress 2 Love and War Update Plans; New Trailer

The countdown timer mentioned this morning hit zero on the Team Fortress 2 website, which now has details on Love and War, an upcoming patch for the teamplay shooter. There's a new video called Expiration Date which runs 15 minutes, making it the longest short Valve has ever produced for the game, along with first details on new taunts the Love and War update will add to the game. Here's the description of the new video:
Engineer and Medic make an unsettling new discovery while experimenting with the teleporter. Meanwhile, Scout stops insulting Spy long enough to ask him an embarrassing favor; the Administrator's clerical assistant/cleaner/murder expert Miss Pauling races to bury some incriminating bodies; and Soldier makes a new metal friend.
Continue here to read the full story.

Flashback Creator's Subject 13 Announced

Microïds announces development of Subject 13, a new adventure game from designer Paul Cuisset, creator of several old school adventures, including the classic Flashback. Details are scant for now, here is a piece of concept art, and here's the announcement:
Microïds, the indie publisher specializing in adventure titles, and noted game designer Paul Cuisset today revealed Cuisset’s new adventure game project, Subject 13. The title marks the return of the Flashback creator to the adventure genre where he first made his mark with acclaimed games such as Future Wars, The Stealth Affair, and Cruise for a Corpse.

Cuisset first rose to prominence when he wrote, directed, designed and co-programmed Flashback, a worldwide hit that was listed in the Guinness World Records as the “best-selling French game of all time.” After experiencing success in other genres, such as motorcycle racing with the Moto Racer saga and Action RPG with Darkstone, Cuisset decided to once again explore the adventure game universe with a title that transports the player to a mysterious and intriguing world.

In Subject 13, players will take on the role of Franklin Fargo, a reclusive physics professor. Fargo leads a solitary and bitter existence following the death of his fiancée, Sophie, during a robbery that should have targeted him. One morning, he wakes up in an abandoned underground scientific facility with no external contact other than a mysterious voice. The voice calls him "Subject 13." As Franklin Fargo, players will interact with the 3D environment around them by collecting, using, and manipulating objects to overcome a multitude of devious barriers to the professor’s escape. Fargo’s goal is to not only set himself free but discover the true reasons for his imprisonment—can he escape from the prison of his past?

Diablo III 2.1.0 "Right Around the Corner"

Battle.net offers a first look at changes in the upcoming version 2.1.0 patch for Diablo III, saying they are "almost there" and that the "first major content patch for Reaper of Souls™ is right around the corner and we're preparing a Public Test Region to give you a hands-on look at the upcoming changes." In the meantime, they preview the patch, noting that everything they say is still subject to change. The new features outlined include Seasons and Conquests, Greater/Tiered Rifts and Legendary Gems, Leaderboards, Combat Changes, and Cesspools. The significant combat change mentioned is that each point of Dexterity will now grant one point of armor (accompanied by a One With Everything nerf), and they also say healing will be reworked to de-emphasize globes. There is also word on a Preparation nerf. Here's word on how Greater Rifts will work:
While Greater Rifts are a type of Nephalem Rift, there are some key differences between the two features. In Greater Rifts:

  • You'll race against a clock to fill a progress bar by accruing monster kills.
  • Most monsters do not drop loot; rewards have been completely shifted to the Rift Guardian.
  • This removes conflicting pressure from attaining a better time versus picking up all your loot.
  • Monsters grant differing amounts of progress for your progress bar; the tougher the monster, the more they fill up your progress bar.
  • You cannot resurrect at your corpse or in town while in a Greater Rift—only at the last checkpoint.
  • Note that, currently, if you die in a Greater Rift on a Hardcore character, that death will be permanent.
  • You cannot use player banners or the Teleport option if the target player is in a Greater Rift.
  • Higher Greater Rifts levels are progressively more difficult.
  • This difficulty is separate from the standard difficulty settings (Master, Torment I-VI, etc.)

If you complete a Greater Rift before time expires you'll advance to the next difficulty level. Should your time be exceptionally good, you might even skip a few levels! If time instead expires, you'll have reached the end of your current Greater Rift journey and your best results will be posted to the appropriate Leaderboards.

GeForce Beta Drivers

The GeForce website now offers new version 340.43 beta drivers for NVIDIA GeForce accelerators. Among several listed improvements and fixes, word is: "This 340.43 Game Ready Beta driver ensures you'll have the best possible gaming experience for GRID: Autosport and the Battlefield: Hardline Beta." Thanks Iggy and Charles.

Free Peggle on Origin

Origin's On the House program now offers Peggle for free. Here's word:
Free?! What's the catch?
There's no catch. Grab full games, expansions and more at absolutely no cost. Just make sure to act fast because On the House specials can appear and disappear at any time.

You mean a trial or demo, right?
Nope. You’re getting a full version of the real game — for free!

How long will I own the game?
Once you’ve claimed your game, it’s yours to keep!

Why is Origin doing this?
Our goal is to provide a great gaming experience and a way to discover awesome new games. Having a game in your library, for free, is a fantastic way to see what Origin is all about.

Ships Ahoy - NA Tropico 5 Discs

Kalypso Media announces the release of the North American retail version of Tropico 5, and reminds potential customers of the free DLC this will include:
Your ticket to sunny beaches and political corruption is now ready! After a delay in the production process, the boxed retail version of Tropico 5 for PC is now available at retailers across North America. Retail purchasers can now take control of the island paradise and become a magnanimous leader of the people, or impose the fierce grip of tyranny amongst the populace. As long as El Presidente’s legacy, and Swiss Bank account, is secure across the multiple eras of Tropico 5, the fate and future of Tropico are up to you!

As a special “thank you” from Kalypso Media and El Presidente, Kalypso Media today announced they are rewarding the North American retail community by providing the first DLC pack - ‘The Big Cheese’ - at no cost to those who have been patiently awaiting the North American retail version. ‘The Big Cheese’ DLC pack will automatically unlock at no charge once it becomes available this summer.

Ships Ahoy - Rush for Glory

Publisher Immanitas Entertainment has launched Rush for Glory, a 3D tower defense game "featuring the fierce resistance of mankind against a violent Alien invasion." Here's a trailer and word on the game, which is available from most digital distribution portals:
A clever strategy is the essence to survive on the battlefields in the extensive singleplayer campaigns of “Rush for Glory”. Over 30 types of fascinating enemies and level bosses are trying to break the players defense regardless of the consequences. Victorious commanders will be rewarded with gold. An extensive tech tree has over 40 troop and special ability upgrades ready for purchase. Additionally there are several Steam achievements and features available that should keep strategy gamers and fans of the Tower Defense genre entertained for a long time.
Continue here to read the full story.

Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Story Trailer

Here's a new trailer from Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare with a behind the scenes look at the story in the upcoming military shooter sequel. As Activision puts it: "Three years of development went into crafting the world of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. Sledgehammer Games Creative Director Bret Robbins discusses how research and technology come together to elevate the storytelling experience." Continue here to read the full story.

GRID Autosport Street Discipline Trailer

This trailer is a new Discipline Focus video, showing the Street Discipline from GRID Autosport, Codemasters' upcoming racing game. Here's the accompanying explanation: "In GRID Autosport’s Street racing discipline, players take the racing to the asphalt in iconic cities across the world as circuits are carved through the streets of Washington D.C., San Francisco, Paris, Barcelona, Dubai and Chicago. Player reactions and the ability to take chances are put to the test in striking urban environments for a huge range of production cars, from hot hatches like the Mini John Cooper Works GP and the Volkswagen Golf R to supercars like the Pagani Huayra and Mazda Furai and hypercars including the McLaren P1™, Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport and more. To bring alive the authentic experience of racing in these events, Codemasters has consulted with real-world professional racing drivers who have put these cars through their paces." Continue here to read the full story.

Evening Crowdfunding Roundup

On Sale

Steam vs. Everyone Else: Who Really Has the Best Gaming Deals? Thanks HARDOCP.

  • Black Mirror on Steam. Save 20%.
  • Gunpoint on Steam. Save 75%.
  • Heroes Rise: The Hero Project on Steam. Save 33%.
  • Strike Vector on Steam. Save 50%.
  • Tiny and Big: Grandpa's Leftovers on Steam. Save 90%.

Xenonauts Released

Here's a Steam Community announcement with word that Xenonauts is now available on Steam after over five years of development and an Early Access period for Goldhawk Interactive's X-COM-inspired strategy game (thanks DocZ). Word is they are turning their attention to adding Steam Workshop support as well as completing the OS X and Linux ports, which should be ready soon. Here's the rundown on the game:
Xenonauts is a strategy game in which you control a multi-national military organisation defending a Cold War-era Earth from alien invasion, using small squads of persistent soldiers to eliminate the extraterrestrials and recover their technology in turn-based ground combat. A detailed strategic layer allows you to co-ordinate the defence of the planet, using your interceptors to shoot down UFOs and researching captured artefacts to learn about your foes and unlock new combat equipment to use on your missions.

Xenonauts is a spiritual successor to the classic X-Com strategy games from the 1990s. We aim to improve the graphics, add new content and streamline the interface whilst still retaining all of the key mechanics of the original games. Devoted fans should love this game, but we're also keen to introduce the joys of old-school grand strategy to a whole new generation of players who might not otherwise experience it!

Team Fortress 2 Countdown

There's a countdown timer on the Team Fortress 2 website ticking off the seconds until 8:00 pm EDT tonight, though there's no hint at what this is all about. Stay tuned.

New Deus Ex Details?

PlaystationTrophies.org claims insider knowledge in presenting allegedly leaked details about Deus Ex: Universe, the upcoming DX project first revealed last October. According to their unidentified source this was originally conceived as a single game, but now will be a trilogy with a Mass Effect-style continuity where the outcome of each game impacting the games that follow. They follow this with the claim that another inside source has shared details about Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, which was trademarked in March, and is likely the other DX game revealed alongside DX Universe. Their source claims to have seen promotional material for the game, showing it will star both Adam Jensen from Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Deus Ex: The Fall's Ben Saxon. They also suggest that it's possible Deus Ex: Mankind Divided will turn out to be the first game in this Deus Ex: Universe trilogy. Thanks NowGamer.

Steamships Ahoy - Ascendant

Ascendant is now available on Steam, offering a hardcore side-scrolling brawler for Windows, Linux, and OS X. Here's word:
At its core, Ascendant is a stunningly beautiful and insanely hard side-scrolling brawler! Created with a passion for beautiful art styles and fluid engaging mechanics, the game introduces players to a brand new world each time they play. Using modern rogue like elements such as permadeath and procedurally generated environments, you play the role of a demigod who invades a plane controlled by your rivals. They will stop at nothing to eliminate you, and only the best of warriors will triumph over their armies of zealots and beasts.

Bot Colony Early Access; Web Demo

The Bot Colony website is now selling Early Access to this adventure game based on interacting with robots. The website also offers a demo for the game that can be played online through a web-browser, though access to this is temporarily suspended for the time being. Word is: "Our initial release on Steam features improved stability, an early version of the main story path, and the introduction of RVM, or Robot Visual Memories. Perceptive players will harness RVM during their investigation to uncover interesting story elements in the form of videos recorded by a robot." Here's more:
Our free browser-based companion experience, 20 Questions with Jimmy, connects you with one of the in-game robots, in a classic guessing game featuring full dialogue. We urge players from around the globe to create a profile and sample this slice of Bot Colony’s fun and engaging NLU technology. You contribute to a database of knowledge about daily life which the robots will later use in conversation. Jimmy will remember you and what you taught him from session to session – like a powerful personal assistant.

The Early Access PC game and browser-based mini-game are now live. To learn more about Bot Colony, try the free conversation demo, and to watch the all-new game trailer, visit www.botcolony.com today!

May NPD Reports

There's a summary of the NPD's game hardware and software sales figures for the month of May in the U.S. on Joystiq, revealing the PS4 leading the Xbox One in sales for the fifth consecutive month. These figures illustrate the dramatic shift from the tail of one console cycle to the head of another in noting overall hardware sales were up 95 percent compared to May 2013, clocking in at $187 million. PC gaming goes unmentioned in the console-centric report, but this provided list of the 10 bestselling games for last month does cover all platforms:

  1. Watch Dogs (PS4, XBO, 360, PS3, PC)**
  2. Mario Kart 8 (NWU)
  3. MLB 14: The Show (PS4, PS3, PSV)
  4. Wolfenstein: The New Order (PS4, XBO, 360, PS3, PC)
  5. Minecraft (360, PS3)
  6. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (360, PS3, PS4, XBO, 3DS, NWU)
  7. NBA 2K14 (360, PS4. PS3, XBO, PC)**
  8. Titanfall (360, XBO, PC)**
  9. Kirby: Triple Deluxe (3DS)
  10. Call Of Duty: Ghosts (360, PS4, PS3, XBO, PC, NWU)**

**No footnote was provided for these asterisks.

Morning Crowdfunding Roundup

Morning Previews

Game Reviews

Hardware Reviews

Out of the Blue

Today I am returning a favor for Walter "2" Costinak, who designed the current logo for this site, as well as the logo that preceded it, large portions of our web design, dozens and dozens of custom logos, and more. Walter is in the process of participating in the sale of the domain HolyCow.com, which is up for auction on eBay. If you know of anyone who could make use of that, please let them know it's available, and maybe we can help them net more out of the sale. Thanks for your indulgence, and thanks again to Walter for all the art.

Artsy Links: Thanks Ant and Acleacius.
Play: Elite on the JavaScript BBC Micro emulator.
Fishdom 3.
Trollface Quest 5.
Link: 12 Video Game Annoyances That Need to Die (Part 2).
Story: Starbucks latest benefit: $30,000 tuition coverage. Thanks Slashdot.
Media: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Stephen Hawking Interview. Thanks JDreyer.
Duffy is One Happy Pup After Regaining His Sight.
The Book Of Mormon Comes To South Park (To the tune of 'Hello').
Star Trek Voyager (Subtitle: Subversion). Thanks Reddit.
Follow-up: Here's Brian Williams "Rapping" "Baby Got Back". Thanks nin.
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