Archived News:

Monday, May 20, 2013 Global Accessibility Awareness Day - World Bee Day - Victoria Day (Canada)

Penny Arcade Episode 4 Next Month, Episode 3 Free Today

Zeboyd Games is offering Penny Arcade's On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 3 free today only in celebration of the announcement of a June 7th release date for Precipice of Darkness 4. The game is offered as a free Steam code with no catches. Thanks nin.

Strike Suit Zero: New DLC; Workshop; Sale

Steam News announces that a new Strike Suit Zero Workshop is now available to support user-created content for Strike Suit Zero, Born Ready's action game. Speaking of new content, they also offer Strike Suit Zero - Heroes of the Fleet, new DLC for the game adding five new battles and five new heroes. To go along with all this, the game is on sale for the next week for half off. Here's more on the new DLC:
Five battles. Five heroes. The history of the mysterious Black Fleet revealed.

The war is over, but your training is just beginning. Enter the U.N.E. Training simulator and relive five heroic moments from the U.N.E./Colonial War. A new A.I. - Control V2.0 - has been assigned to the simulator and recreated five missions that explore the origins of the Colonial Black Fleet that will push your skills to the limit.

Please be aware that new A.I.'s are prone to malfunction and we cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or safety of the simulations....

Battle Academy: Rommel in Normandy Beta

Matrix Games announces a new Rommel in Normandy add-on is coming to Battle Academy for Windows, OS X, and iOS as an in-app purchase. This is now in beta testing for Windows and OS X, so those interested in checking it out can sign up to test on this page. Here's what this will offer: "The new expansion covers the Normandy Campaign, but this time puts you in control of the Germans and their mighty Tigers. Through ten single player battles you will face Allied troops breaking through from the coast. You must hold them back with your beleaguered forces and their limited supplies. This add-on also features 5 great new multiplayer scenarios where you can try out the brand new Jagdpanther in combat."

Title Bout Championship Boxing 2013 Next Month

P.I.S.D. announces the acquisition of Title Bout Championship Boxing from Out of the Park Developments, saying a new version of the boxing simulation is coming on June 10th, and that anyone who preorders the game can start playing the beta now. P.I.S.D. is the developer of programming libraries used in Out of the Park Baseball, the baseball series which along with Franchise Hockey Manager will be the primary focus of Out of the Park Developments going forward. Here's the deal:
The first edition of Title Bout Championship Boxing (TBCB) was released in 2003 to critical acclaim, including an 8.1/10 score from Gamespot. Versions 2 and 2.5 followed later. The game features thousands of real boxers maintained by dedicated community members, with the ability to re-stage classic bouts or create "What if?" scenarios, such as pitting Sugar Ray Robinson against Marvin Hagler. TBCB can even be used to forecast upcoming fights.

Title Bout Championship Boxing also features Top Ten lists, complete statistics, revised and multiple ranking systems, full editing capabilities, and much more. Trainers, corner men, and referees are all part of the simulation, adding an extra dimension of realism.

Title Bout Championship Boxing 2013 adds many new features, including: enhanced radio-style commentary; more realistic crowd noises; pseudo-animated fighters who throw punches, clinch, and get knocked down; ring girls who parade between rounds; organisational rankings; the ability to import multiple images of each fighter, as well as pictures of famous boxing venues; a revamped auto-scheduling tool; and much more.

Title Bout Championship Boxing 2013 sells for $19.99 for one license containing two serial numbers that can be installed on two computers at the same time. There is a $10 discount if the buyer owns any previous version of the game. The game runs on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux with the same licenses working across all three systems.

On Sale

Evening Previews

etc., etc.

Shadow Warrior Revival Details

We now have an official press release to accompany the new teaser trailer from Flying Hog Studios' upcoming Shadow Warrior reboot, offering new details on the project. They confirm that the game is coming to PCs this fall, adding that a "next-generation" (*hic*) console release will come next year. We also have some screenshots and a fact sheet with new details on the game, saying: "Blending the viciously over-the-top gunplay of its predecessor with the elegant precision of the powerful katana, Shadow Warrior is an imaginative take on the classic arcade-style shooter." Here's word on the story: "Shadow Warrior tells the offbeat tale of Zilla Enterprise’s corporate shogun, Lo Wang, who is ordered by his employer to track down and acquire a legendary blade known as the Nobitsura Kage. Forced into a timeless battle, Lo Wang learns of the blade’s connection to ancient gods from another realm, pushing our world to the brink of destruction. Aided by Hoji, a banished spirit from this mysterious world, Lo Wang must use a masterful combination of gun, blade, magic and wit to discover the truth behind the demonic invasion and banish the encroaching forces back into the darkness." Here's a feature list:

  • Shadow Warrior Reborn– A bold new vision of the cult classic Shadow Warrior, reimagined with a blend of modern design, inventive combat mechanics, and a contemporary retelling of Lo Wang’s comical rise to legend.
  • Brutal Gunplay – Utilize every gun in your formidable arsenal – from flashy revolvers and quad barrel shotguns to explosive-tipped crossbow bolts and laser-guided rocket launchers – to stop the invasion right in its demonic tracks.
  • Elegant Swordplay – Unsheathe your legendary katana to slice enemies apart with precisely targeted swings or unleash fluid combos and special attacks to cut down hordes of enemies with one swift blow.
  • Powerful Magic– Call upon mystical powers to protect yourself or paralyze your enemies and then use their own severed heads and still beating hearts to pluck the life from your foes and bring them to their knees.
  • Variable Upgrade System - Augment weapons, strengthen skills, and power-up magic through an upgrade system that rewards the violent dismantling of foes and cold hard cash found throughout the game.

Syndicate Wars Revival Kickstarter Plans?

Rock, Paper, Shotgun shows the way to this teaser trailer with a mysterious blurred-out figure described like so: "In 1996 this man created a Bullfrog Masterpiece (obey). In 2013 with your help he will redefine the genre (submit). Kickstarter. June 2013." So we don't know who the developer is, what the masterpiece was, or even the genre they will redefine." The description points to a Satellite Reign website with a countdown that will conclude in 35 days, which will indeed be in June. But RPS also seems to connect the dots pretty well for us, suggesting "this man" is Mike Diskett, which would make the Syndicate Wars the "Bullfrog Masterpiece" they mention, and real-time tactics the genre they will redefine.

Zombie Oz to Set Up Us the Baum

An OZombie Facebook page tips off Spicy Horse's plans to create a zombie game set in the merry old land of Oz. The page offers the following equation which makes it seem even more random: "Oz + Steam Punk + Zombies = Fun." A Twitter feed is also online for this, pointing to fan art and their very NOT final ideas for tiers for an OZombie Kickstarter. Thanks Polygon.

Batman Arkham Origins Trailer

Here's a trailer showing off nearly five minutes of footage from Batman Arkham Origins, the next installment in the series of dark knight video games. The clip is all cinematics, showing the bat taking out a crew of henchmen in Jim Aparo-style ski masks before an encounter with a more worthy adversary (or two). Continue here to read the full story.

Shadow Warrior Reboot This Fall; New Trailer

A new teaser trailer on GameTrailers promotes the recently announced "reimagining" of Shadow Warrior coming from Hard Reset developer Flying Hog Studios (thanks VG247 via AGB). The cinematic clip depicts the aftermath of a bloodbath at a Japanese building, showing several dead, including the character from the first teaser image we know to be a yakuza, and another with his head lopped off, which plays into our look at a character (presumably our protagonist) carrying a pistol and a sword. The clip includes no gameplay, but does offer a new tidbit, saying the game is due in Fall 2013. Continue here to read the full story.

Face of Mankind: Fall of the Dominion Kickstarter

A Kickstarter campaign is now underway for Face of Mankind: Fall of the Dominion, as Nexeon Technologies seeks $50,000 for an updated game based on Face of Mankind, the MMORPG that was announced in 2002 and launched as an open beta in 2005. Face of Mankind was developed by German developer Duplex Systems, but the new game is from Houston-based Nexeon Technologies, and the relationship between the old developer and the new one is not clear, but the Face of Mankind website now redirects to a placeholder for the new game. The phrase MMO appears nowhere in the very lengthy description provided, but it seems to be an MMOG like its forebear nonetheless, as they discuss details like a completely player driven economy.

Moon Rising Beta

The Moon Rising website now offers a new playable version 0.7 beta for Moon Rising, an indie turn-based strategy game for Windows, OS X, and Linux, though the accompanying update notes beta is a somewhat loose term for a release that includes "alpha graphics and constantly changing gameplay elements." Here's a trailer showing off the game, and here's an outline of what it's about: "So you want to know what the game's about? Well, it's a turn-based strategy based on the Moon in a numerically satisfying year (2099, most likely), much in the mold of Advanced Wars & Laser Squad and other such seminal works. Except with a few twists we hope you'll like." Moon Rising is the subject of a Steam Greenlight campaign, and they have a handy Steam Greenlight-O-Meter on their site tracking its progress. Continue here to read the full story.

Light Hero Free; Competition

Indievania is offering the Windows edition of Light Hero for free for the coming week, and the OS X and iOS editions of the arcade-style space shooter are also free through May 27th as part of a promotion offering a prize of "up to" $100,000 in prize money for one player who completes the game 100%. The prize goes "up to" $100K, but there's no word on what will raise or lower it, and no indication how low the prize scales.

U.K. Sales Charts

GfK Chart-Track now outlines the top 20 bestselling full-priced PC games in the U.K. for the week ending May 18th. Football Manager 2013 retains the top spot in a list that has reentries at 18 and 19 but is otherwise a shuffling of the same deck. There's also a budget PC sales list where Farming Simulator 2011 is number one. On the all-platform/all-prices top 40 list Metro: Last Light is the new number one (the game's EU release was the 17th, which may explain why it's not on the PC chart). Here's their write-up of the results:
Deep Silver/Koch Media trade one No1 for another this week with ‘Metro Last Light’ replacing Dead Island: Riptide (-25%) at the top.

The 4A Games developed title is the follow up to 2010 title ‘Metro 2033’ and despite being unable to match the week 1 sales of its predecessor which debuted at No5 back in week 11 2010 it goes straight in at No1. Retailer promotions see EA’s ‘FIFA 13’ (+45%) climb back to No3 ahead of Nintendo’s new 3DS offering ‘Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity’. The Pokémon title is the 6th in the Mystery Dungeon franchise and the 3rd best week 1 debut in the series.

Activision slip from No2 to No5 with ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops II’ (-32%) ahead of Square Enix title ‘Tomb Raider’ (-11%) which is down to No6. TellTale Games’ ‘The Walking Dead’ (+28%) improves on its debut week climbing from No9 to No7. ‘Injustice: Gods Among Us’ (-24%) slides to No8 with less than two hundred sales separating it from Ubisoft’s ‘Assassin’s Creed III’ (-6%) at No9. Last week’s No6 ‘Bioshock Infinite’ (-8%) rounds off the Top 10 this week.

Morning Previews

Game Reviews

Hardware Reviews

Out of the Blue

Congrats to the Pacers, who polished off the Knicks this weekend to earn the unenviable chance to take on the Heat in the semis. I wonder how much money free agent J.R. Smith cost himself by reverting to form from sixth man of the year back into "what was he thinking?" guy? Things didn't go any better for the Rangers, so it was a rough weekend in the sports department. But our little spate of rain was not so rough, especially in light of the tornados battering the middle of the country, which sound pretty wicked, so hopefully everybody in tornado alley has their hatches properly battened down and everyone stays safe.

Safe Links: Thanks Ant and Acleacius.
Play: Car Eats Car 2: Mad Dreams.
RocketPets.
Stories: Star Trek Into Darkness Weak $84 Million Domestic Box Office Follows Paramount Video Game Flop.
Science: Human embryonic stem cells created from adult tissue for first time.
By Man or Nature, Places That Will Never Be the Same.
Media: F-111 Belly Landing.
Laser Lit Alcohol Rocket Bottles!.
Reggie Watts - Best Rick Roll EVER.
"The Great Gatsby" 3D Scenes Are A Little Much.
Follow-Up: Measles surges in UK years after vaccine scare.
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