Archived News:
Friday, May 05, 2017 Cinco de Mayo - Happy Birthday Wolfenstein 3D
Darksiders III Footage [7:51 pm ET] – Share – 2 Comments
Things travel fast these days. After going from unconfirmed to
leaked to
officially announced in a single day
earlier this week, Darksiders III now has an extended gameplay video.
This is
available on IGN, offering about 12 minutes of what is described as
pre-alpha gameplay footage. Their almost hype-free caption reads: "See Gunfire
Games' new protagonist Fury in action in this awesome, action packed 12 minute
chunk of gameplay you won't find anywhere else."
DayZ Beta Nears [7:51 pm ET] – Share – 14 Comments
A Status Report on the
DayZ website from earlier this week outlines progress on the open-world
zombie survival game (thanks
PCGamesN). This
seems to indicate that the next patch to update DayZ to version 0.64 will
officially mark the beta stage of development. The alpha version of this was
first released commercially in early access over three years ago, so it feels
like we should finally admit that the terms "alpha" and "beta" for game
development have pretty much jumped the shark by now. They have detailed
progress reports from various departments following this overview:
Hello Survivors! We've got another beefy Status Report for you this week! Brian talks about basic vehicle goals for BETA, Eugen shares a story about one of our development decisions, and Peter and Mirek go more in depth about some of their recent work! Got 10 minutes to read? Sure you do, that's why you're here - let's get to it!
Heroes of the Storm Taunts Disabled [7:51 pm ET] – Share – 2 Comments
A post to the
Heroes of the Storm Forums has word that the Mastery Taunts
introduced in the version 2.0 update for the MOBA are temporarily disabled while
Blizzard investigates desync problems they seem to cause. Here's word:
We’re currently investigating an issue in which Hero Mastery taunts can cause players to experience a “Desync!” error while loading into a match. As a result, we will be temporarily disabling Hero Mastery Taunts in order to prevent these errors from occurring while we look into the root cause.
We are working to fix this issue as soon as possible, and apologize for any inconvenience in the meantime. We’ll let you know as soon as Mastery Taunts are re-enabled.
TERA Turns Five [7:51 pm ET] – Share – 5 Comments
The TERA website
celebrates the fifth anniversary of the launch of TERA, En Masse Entertainment's
MMORPG. They offer a retrospective on the experience, including an infographic
(suitable for framing). They also outline various ways they are celebrating the
occasion, including five year anniversary wings for character, new armor sets on
the way, two new max level dungeons, a Fifth Anniversary gift exchange, and
more. Here's some of what's going on:
Players who log into the game during May receive a free pair of Fifth Anniversary Wings to show off their dedication to TERA. Be sure to log in as these wings will only be available during the event and will not be sold in the game shop!
A brand-new Anniversary Token Shop with a rotating weekly inventory of items not normally available for sale has also been added to the game for the month of May. Anniversary Tokens are earned in-game by participating in PvP battlegrounds and PvE dungeons with different content highlighted each week in the in-game calendar. Players will also have a rare chance to win cosmetic items normally only available in the game’s online store via drops in highlighted PvP battlegrounds and from the final boss in highlighted PvE dungeons.
RiME Video Diary [7:51 pm ET] – Share – Post a Comment
A third video developer
diary from RiME offers a further look at the upcoming puzzle exploration
game in the works at Tequila Works (happy Cinco de Mayo!). The thing of it is
that the developers are all speaking their native Spanish, so those of us who
don't comprende will have to rely on the closed captioning to understand them.
There is also plenty of gameplay footage, which of course, needs no translation.
Oddly, the brief description is English, and it says: "In this third developer
diary, Tequila Works discusses how level designers and animators take ideas and
concept art, and build them into a living, puzzling world." Continue here to read the full story.
Endless Space 2 Trailer [7:51 pm ET] – Share – Post a Comment
Space is big. Really big. This may help explain why Amplitude Studios named
their space strategy series Endless Space. Or maybe it was knowledge that the
series would continue. Either way, we digress from the point, which is that a
new eXplore video from
Endless Space 2 kicks off a new series that will eXplore all four of the Xs in
4X sequel. Here's word on the plan:
As Endless Space 2 is due to release May 19, Amplitude Studios is taking everyone deeper into the Endless universe through a series of four new videos - each aimed at showcasing the individual “X”s in the 4X grand strategy genre (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, eXterminate) core to Endless Space 2. In the first video, released today, Amplitude showcases what it means to eXplore in the Endless Universe as players journey to the stars, meet new alien races, investigate strange ruins and odd signals, and much more.Continue here to read the full story.
Evening Patches [7:51 pm ET] – Share – Post a Comment
On Sale [7:51 pm ET] – Share – 7 Comments
- LIMBO on Steam. Save 75%.
- Star Citizen Subscriber Flash Sale on the Roberts Space Industries website.
Evening Crowdfunding Roundup [7:51 pm ET] – Share – Post a Comment
- Kynseed - A Whimsical Sandbox RPG Adventure by PixelCount Studios — Kickstarter. "Made by a couple of ex-Lionhead Fable devs, Kynseed is a quirky 2D sandbox RPG. It's an adventure of a lifetime - literally." They offer an early "not a demo" prototype.
Evening Consolidation [7:51 pm ET] – Share – Post a Comment
- World to the West Is Now Available For Xbox One.
- Save The Ninja Clan Is Now Available For Xbox One.
- Demon’s Crystals Is Now Available For Digital Pre-order And Pre-download On Xbox One.
- BUTCHER Is Now Available For Digital Pre-order And Pre-download On Xbox One.
- This Week On Xbox- May 05, 2017.
- The Drop: New PlayStation Games for 5-9-2017.
Evening Metaverse [7:51 pm ET] – Share – Post a Comment
Thanks Frans.
- Verizon’s gigabit upgrade pricing still makes almost no sense.
- Apple And Amazon Finally Bury The TV Hatchet.
- YouTube taps creators, celebrities for new original shows on ad-supported site.
- The Cable Industry Can No Longer Deny the Cord Cutting Threat.
- Mozilla Firefox version 53.0.2.
- Mozilla Firefox Extended Support Release version 52.1.1.
Evening Tech Bits [7:51 pm ET] – Share – Post a Comment
Evening Safety Dance [7:51 pm ET] – Share – 5 Comments
- Emails leaked in ‘massive hacking attack’ on French presidential campaign. Ironically, déjà vu is a French term.
- Germany confronts Russia over election hacking.
- Google phishing attack was foretold by researchers—and it may have used their code.
- How to remote hijack computers using Intel's insecure chips- Just use an empty login string.
Evening Legal Briefs [7:51 pm ET] – Share – 1 Comment
etc., etc. [7:51 pm ET] – Share – Post a Comment
- Overwatch, Hearthstone and Heroes loot box odds have been public in China since April - PCGamesN
- Prey glitch breaks the game’s crafting system…
- Former 2K Games GM Joins 505 Games As President…
- Now Available - Fight Songs: The Music Of Team Fortress 2…
- Porno Studio Tycoon is now available on Steam. Your chance to live the dream. Thanks JDreyer…
Into the Black [7:51 pm ET] – Share – 3 Comments
Link of the Day:
BLADE RUNNER 2049 - Trailer Tease.
Happy Birthday Wolfenstein 3D [10:14 am ET] – Share – 29 Comments
Today marks the 25th anniversary of the release of the original Wolfenstein
3D on May 5, 1992. This not actually 3D shooter was a breakthrough at the
time, and there's
an interview on Gamasutra where Tom Hall reflects on some design lessons he
learned while directing development of id's first hit game. He also shares some
development anecdotes such as the following aside about how they put in the
technology to animate wall textures and then forgot to use it:
[FASCINATING SIDE NOTE FROM HALL: "Off-topic, one sad story was this -- Wolfenstein actually had animating wall textures. From early on. The scene is this: we were making a cool FPS in a crazy short time. We had an outside artist helping on art, and the art wasn't turning out very good. A flickering torch wasn't well done. We parted ways. And then, WE FORGOT TO USE ANIMATING WALLS. At all. They could have really added to the atmosphere and been used for interesting things.... but, well, we had so much to do and simply forgot."]
Prey Released [10:14 am ET] – Share – 34 Comments
Steam News announces
the release of Prey, Arkane Studios' new take on this science-fiction shooter series. Here's the recent
official launch trailer,
and here's word on the release:
In Prey, you awaken aboard Talos I, a space station orbiting the moon in the year 2032. You are the key subject of an experiment meant to alter humanity forever – but things have gone terribly wrong. The space station has been overrun by hostile aliens and you are now being hunted. As you dig into the dark secrets of Talos I and your own past, you must survive using the tools found on the station, your wits, weapons, and mind-bending abilities.Continue here to read the full story.
Rocket League Free Weekend [10:14 am ET] – Share – Post a Comment
Steam News announces another free weekend is underway
on Steam
for Rocket League, the motorized sports game that rewards ballsy driving.
For those who enjoy their test drive, the game and its DLC are also currently on
sale. Here's the deal:
It’s time for another Steam Free Weekend!
Starting right now, Rocket League is FREE to play for all Steam users through Sunday morning. You can download the full base game, free of charge, and hop into any Playlist, be it Competitive, Dropshot, Rumble, or otherwise!
But it gets better! Rocket League, Rocket League GOTY Edition, and most DLC are 30% off for anyone who purchases during the free weekend period. If you hop in for free this weekend and enjoy the Battle-Car madness, we hope you stick around!
How Does Prey Run? [10:14 am ET] – Share – 10 Comments
Technical issues with Dishonored 2 raised concerns in advance of today's
release of Prey, the new shooter from Dishonored and Dishonored 2
developer Arkane. Earlier this
week they noted that Steam refunds can be the safety net for those
experiencing issues with the game. As it turns out, it seems the game is running
fine on PC systems, as can be seen in positive technical evaluations on
PC
Gamer, PC
Invasion, and
techPowerUp. Here's the summary from PC Gamer:
I'm confident this isn't a repeat of Dishonored 2. That isn't much of a surprise: despite both games being made by Arkane, Prey is using CryEngine, not VOID, and also has a much more contained focus. There's no huge outdoor environments, and so it's less of a challenge for your PC to run. It's set in a big, contained space station, full of chunky physics objects and annoying menus. Come back next week for our full, scored review.
The International 2017 Battle Pass Adds Dota 2 PvE Content [10:14 am ET] – Share – 1 Comment
The
Dota 2 blog announces this year's version of The International Battle Pass
is now available, offering all sorts of perks for the Dota 2 player that
also helps build the prize pool for the big annual tournament. All the details
are on The International
Battle Pass 2017 website, including word that this will introduce a co-op
PvE element to the PvP MOBA:
ACT I: THE SANDS OF FATE
ARRIVING LATER THIS MONTH
ACT II: A VAULT IN THE DEEP
COMING IN JULY
This summer, all Battle Pass owners are invited to undertake a cooperative adventure into the blackest depths of Dark Reef.
Available to play later this month—and with Act II arriving in July—this all-new campaign calls upon you to party up with three friends or queue-met allies to battle through a diverse landscape of loathsome monsters, cunning traps, and other lethal terrors.
With the fate of Dark Reef and the safety of the free seas hanging by a fish-gut thread, you'll need to work together if you're to find any hope for survival.
Where Does a 12M Member Crew Hang Out? [10:13 am ET] – Share – 4 Comments
We don't know either, but
UbiBlog
announces The Crew has passed the 12 million player mark on consoles
and PCs. They offer personal reflections on the milestone from a dozen members
of the development team. Here's the intro:
Two years after its release, The Crew keeps on welcoming new drivers in its huge open world. Over 12 million players have taken the great American road trip so far, playing more than tens of thousands of years’ worth of in-game hours and taking over 30,000 in-game pictures daily. To help celebrate the game’s ongoing success, 12 members from the Ivory Tower development team have a special message to you all.
Morning Crowdfunding Roundup [10:13 am ET] – Share – Post a Comment
- Age of Heroes VR by Omnigames — Kickstarter. "Age of Heroes” is a multiplayer combat VR game that emphasizes physical and intense boss battles. Pick up your weapons, team up with other players, and banish evil demons to protect the world!"
Morning Consolidation [10:13 am ET] – Share – 4 Comments
- Prey Is Now Available For Xbox One.
- PlayerUnknowns Battlegrounds developer already looking to port the game to Xbox One.
- Bit Dungeon Plus Is Now Available For Xbox One.
- Dreamfall Chapters Is Now Available For Xbox One.
- AFL Evolution Is Now Available For Xbox One.
- Spellspire Is Now Available For Digital Pre-order And Pre-download On Xbox One.
- Hand-painted Adventure Seasons After Fall Leaps to PS4 May 16.
- PlayStation Store- April’s Top Downloads.
Morning Tech Bits [10:13 am ET] – Share – 22 Comments
- Thermal sensor issue i7-7700k: -Intel Communities. Thanks Hypothermia.
- Intel tells Core i7-7700K owners to stop overclocking to avoid high temps. What does the "K" stand for again? Thanks Simon.
- Neural networks can add natural animation to video games. Thanks Kxmode.
- New device can harvest indoor light to power electronics.
- Oculus Announces Closure Of Oculus Story Studio.
Game Reviews [10:13 am ET] – Share – Post a Comment
- Flinthook on PXA Peeks.
- Full Throttle Remastered on Just Adventure.
- Prey (game review) on Angry Centaur Gaming.
Hardware Reviews [10:13 am ET] – Share – Post a Comment
- Ajazz AK60 Keyboard on pcGameware.
- AMD Radeon RX 580 vs. NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 Graphics Cards on TechSpot. - 27 Game Battle.
- Anidees AI Crystal Cube Lite Tempered Glass ATX Case on Benchmark Reviews.
- ASUS Cerberus V2 Headset on Vortez.
- Corsair Carbide Series SPEC-04 on Vortez.
- Corsair Gaming Glaive RGB Mouse on APH Networks.
- ECS LIVA Z Plus on Overclockers Club.
- Gamdias Hebe M1 RGB Surround Sound Gaming Headset on Christ Centered Gamer.
- OZONE Neon M50 Optical Pro Gaming Mouse on Nikk Tech.
- Tesoro Tuned Earbuds on Vortez.
Out of the Blue [10:13 am ET] – Share – 18 Comments
Happy Cinco de Mayo! Usually my attention to the occasion consists of
mentioning it here, but last night we actually went to a Mexican restaurant. Our
little outing was not actually intended to celebrate Cuatro de Mayo, Cinco Eve,
or anything else, but I'm retroactively declaring it relevant. I had some truly excellent
tacos al pastor, too. Anyway, enjoy, and please take care on the roads, since
this will be another of those amateur nights.
| Links: | Thanks Ant and Acleacius. |
| Play: |
Traffic Chaos. Stealth Robot. |
| Story: | Why Hollywood’s Most Thrilling Scenes Are Now Orchestrated Thousands of Miles Away. Thanks Neutronbeam. |
| Science: | Why people don't return shopping carts. Something something assholes? |
| Media: |
The Terminator 2 3D Trailer Has Something Much Cooler Going for It
Than 3D. Smarter Everyday - BIGGER BULLET BEATS Prince Rupert's Drop. If you go to beaches, this is worth a couple minutes. Got caught in one of those as a kid. Not fun. |
| Follow-up: | Congress just blocked Jeff Sessions from messing with medical marijuana. |
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