Tag Archive

Ori: Willow of the Wisps Launches In 2019

Posted on June 11, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Indie platforming darling Ori and The Blind Forest is getting a sequel, subtitled Willow of the Wisps, and it will launch in 2019 as revealed at the Microsoft E3 press conference. We got just under two minutes of gameplay footage from Willow of the Wisps and what was shown was very impressive. Featuring a bright. colorful and whimsical style that stays true to the 2D art style of the original it looks like OATBF: WOW is going to be a platforming title that many will be talking about before it comes out.

The original Ori and the Blind Forest was developed by Moon Studios and took over 4 years to complete. It was released for Windows and Xbox One in 2015 and was met with critical acclaim. Check out the trailer for Willow of the Wisps below, although a word of warning for those with Arachnophobia that there is at least one spider featured in this gameplay footage.

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E3 2018: Crackdown 3 Is Basically Terry Crews: The Video Game

Posted on June 11, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Crackdown 3 has been on the radar for a while now, originally revealed in 2014, it is not stranger to long periods of silence before new information comes to light. At their E3 press conference Microsoft showed off a brand new trailer featuring narration of none other than comedian Terry Crews.

Watch as Terry shows us how you can scale buildings, collect those ever present orbs, become more powerful and even summon a mother $#*@ing tank out of thin air!

Despite a long development cycle spanning nearly 5 years, Crackdown 3 will release in February 2018 for Windows PC and Xbox One.

The Crackdown series has been a staple on the Xbox line of consoles for over a decade now, the original Crackdown released all the way back in Feb 2007 and at the time promised players a chance to take part in the then upcoming Halo 3 beta. Crackdown 2 had a whole “zombies but not zombies” horde thing going on and was a bit of a departure from the first.

Perhaps the injection of Terry Crew’s humor is just what this long in-development game needs to stay fresh.

Trailer

Screenshots

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E3 2018: First Gameplay Demo of Battlefield V Shown

Posted on June 11, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

EA kicked things off yesterday afternoon with the first gameplay demo of the upcoming Battlefield V. We already knew that BFV wold set during World War II and will feature playable female soldiers both in the campaign mode and online. While no gameplay of the rumored Battle Royale mode was shown during the conference, nor were concrete details divulged, developers from DICE did confirm that BFV will ship with a Battle Royale mode when the game arrives this fall.

DICE’s Frostbite Engine once again provides the near photo-realistic graphics and physics for Battlefield V. Improvements made to the engine for this year’s title include the ability to vault your soldier through pane of glass and now larger vehicles like tanks can also destroy entire buildings – which admittedly does look really freaking cool.

The Battlefield franchise has never really been my shooter of choice, I much prefer arcadey and up-close titles like Quake and older Call of Duty titles but for those looking for large scale, 64 player mayhem, BFV should have them covered. It will be released on PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. An Origin Access Trial Version is set to be released on October 11th, one week before BFV’s general release on October 19th.

Trailer


Screenshots

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E3 2018: Shadow of the Tomb Raider Gets First Gameplay Trailer and Screenshots

Posted on June 11, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Square Enix revealed the first in-engine gameplay trailer for the upcoming third entry in the Tomb Raider reboot franchise, Shadow of the Tomb Raider. This 3 minute long cut of sequences seems to be taken from the same “first hour” demo that I got to play at the Shadow of the Tomb Raider reveal event back in April.

Demo stations featuring a slice of Shadow of the Tomb Raider will be playable at both Square Enix’s E3 booth and Microsoft’s Xbox Experience Theatre. E3 is also the first place that the public will get a look at SOTR running on PC hardware.

Here’s Square Enix’s official description of the demo that’s available on the show floor:

E3 attendees will have the opportunity to experience Shadow of the Tomb Raider firsthand with playable demos at the Square Enix booth and the Xbox Experience at the Microsoft Theater. Meanwhile, the NVIDIA booth will host a behind closed doors, first time playable demo of Shadow of the Tomb Raider on PC.

In the demo I got to play a massive tidal wave destroys an entire city during the climax. Here is how I described it back in April:

“This is where things went from standard action movie fare – as seen in the previous two titles – to nearly world shattering. A ginormous tidal wave quickly engulfs the cavernous tomb and sweeps Lara out and onto the city streets. What follows is an almost indescribable amount of devastation as the large wave carries Lara, innocent pedestrians, cars and anything not firmly cemented into a foundation along with it.”

Alongside the gameplay trailer Square Enix also released several brand new screenshots, which you can check out below:

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Community Developed Halo Online Eldewrito 0.6 Confirmed To Release This Friday

Posted on April 16, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Microsoft has long since abandoned their attempts to bring Halo 3’s multiplayer experience to PC via the Russian only free to play title Halo Online. Although almost two years have passed since the game’s official closure in August of 2016, a dedicated group of community developers have kept the game going with semi-regular updates thanks to a leaked Russian build of the Halo Online client.

Here are just some of the improvements and highlights that the Eldewrito team is promising for the upcoming 0.6 release:

  • The original Halo experience brought to PC (for free).
  • Dual wielding and deployable equipment implemented (from Halo 3).
  • Improvements to the Forge Mode which include new material types, new tools and new items.
  • Advanced map control: Weather, skyboxes and lighting.
  • Inclusion of an auto-updater to keep everyone on the same version. (not in the trailer but confirmed on the game’s reddit.)

I’ve had a lot of fun with Halo Online in the past couple of years and have blogged about it a handful of times. Version 0.6 is a longtime coming and brings a lot of requested features that fans have been hoping for – dual wielding and workable equipment. It is even more impressive when you consider that these passionate community devs don’t have access to the game’s source code or development tools. All of these improvements and features have been fixed or implemented with only an outdated leaked build of the client.

Once the full patch notes and download are made available on April 20th I’ll be sure to make another post.

[Source]

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Spike Chunsoft Announces 2018 Line-Up

Posted on April 2, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Spike Chunsoft has revealed their full 2018 slate of games coming out for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Windows PC. New entries in the Fire Pro Wrestling franchise, Pixeljunk Monsters series and the acclaimed visual novel 428: Shibuya scramble are all coming soon.

First up is a new entry in the Pixel Junk Monsters series:

Pixeljunk Monsters 2
Platform  PlayStation 4
Release Summer 2018

Features:

  • Local & Online Play – Maximize the fun by playing with your friends on the couch or online!
  • Close Encounters – Multiply the suspense by toggling your POV from top-down to an in-your-face view!
  • 3D Stop Motion Graphics – Immerse yourself in Gati Gati Island like never before as the animation takes full advantage of the power of the PS4™!

 428: Shibuya Scramble
Platform PS4 | Windows PC
Release 2008 (originally), Summer 2018 (N.A / Europe localization)
Originally released in 2008 this murder mystery is finally being localized for North America & Europe. Tasking players with investigating the lives of 5 unique protagonists during a 10 hour time-frame this intriguing title boasts over 5 different endings a weird mix of live-action video, text and still image narration.

Features

  • A Mosaic of Mediums – Unlike traditional visual novels, the narrative is presented with a palette of different mediums, combining text, live action stills, and video sequences.
  • Non-linear Storytelling – Five Protagonists. 10 Hours. Decisions made in one character’s story can affect the story of another character in unforeseen ways, culminating in a total of up to 50 different endings!
  • Famitsu Fresh – One of the very few titles to ever receive a perfect score (40/40) from Japanese video game magazine Famitsu Weekly!

Fire Pro Wrestling World
Platform PlayStation 4
Release Summer 2018

Last on our tour of Spike Chunsoft’s 2018 line-up is another entry in the decades old Fire Pro Wrestling series of games. Fire Pro Wrestling World is set to feature a story mode that will allow players to customize every facet of their matches. Different sets of rules will also be available ranging from deathmatch, to steel cage matches to even a set based upon the popular MMA style of fighting.

Features:

  • Play Online – Organize exhibition matches, tournaments, leagues, championship bouts and battle royals with players from around the world.
  • Mix Up the Rules – Modes include Deathmatch (steel cage, barbed wire or landmines), MMA rules and no-holds barred Gruesome Fighting.
  • Unlimited Customization – Create your dream wrestler from over a thousand devastating moves and even more body parts to battle for custom championship belts. Personalize the ring, mat logos and even the referee!
  • Realistic Simulation – Give your creations personalities with a robust CPU logic system that defines their every action. Does your wrestler play to the crowd, or play dirty? You provide actors for the ringside drama.

[Source: Spike Chunsoft PR]

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Here’s A Look At All of The Elaborate Booths of GDC 2018

Posted on March 28, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

The 2018 edition of the Games Developer Conference has come to a close but there is still a lot more for us to show including gameplay videos, developer interviews and exclusive hands-on with several AAA and indie titles.

In this post I’d like to take a quick jaunt through some of the cooler booths on display at this year’s show. By “cooler” I don’t necessarily mean “elaborate” or “expensive” but visually impressive or booths that offered attendees a unique experience.

Epic Games Booth

A booth with a ride-able Fortnite llama in place of the traditional riding bull is a win in my book. This tough looking llama was a draw for the entire conference, sadly I didn’t get a chance to go for a ride.

Above said conquerable llama was a large screen that showcased the Fortnite live-stream that Epic had going during the entirety of show-floor hour.

Folks check out the PlayStation 4 Pro version of Fortnite Battle Royale.

Not to be left out, the mobile version of Fortnite was fully playable on a large TV.

Day of the Devs

Double Fine’s indie focused Day of the Devs event took place off-site as per usual but this elaborate skull themed display greeted attendees when taking the escalator down from the South Hall. In addition to playable demo stations you could also catch some of the developers behind featured games like Exo One, Minit and Knights & Bikes.

IGF Pavilion

The 2018 Independent Games Festival awards took place alongside the Game Developer Choice Awards on the Wednesday of GDC week. Throughout the show-floor days (Wednesday – Friday) all of the nominees could be played at a single station in this circular configuration. Games like Night in The Woods, Baba is You, Cuphead and Shenzen I/O were playable by attendees. In years past it wasn’t uncommon to actually meet the developers behind these games while playing them at the IGF booth – sadly I didn’t get to meet anyone from the excellent Night In The Woods team this year ☹.

Train Jam 2018 Booth

Over 80 independently created games & experiments were playable over at the Train Jam booth. I was lucky enough to take part in this year’s 52 hour game jam and our game Emotional Support Cat Girl was also playable at this booth as well. Creators from the Train Jam are also GDC Attendees for the most part so it wasn’t uncommon for creators to hang out at the booth and walk folks through their creations.

I didn’t have much time to go  1 on 1 with folks to show them Emotional Support Catgirl in person but I will have an exhaustive blog post outlining our amazing cross-America journey later on in the week.

Microsoft Azure Services Booth

A large Azure Services booth greeted attendees when taking one of the two main elevators down to the expo show-floor. Microsoft had a large floor presence this year aimed squarely at game developers and the cloud based development services that can help devs collaborate, test and deploy their upcoming projects.

Services like Azure Application Monitoring– which gives developers real-time reports on the use of their games and applications, Visual Studio Enterprise – Microsoft’s premium integrated development environment and the Xbox Live Creators program – which allows independent developers to publish on the Xbox One platform – were all on display.

By visiting four of the available demo stations developers were able to score both $2500 USD worth of Azure Credits for virtual machine testing and a free Xbox One controller. Disclosure: as a member of the Microsoft Developer Network and Bizspark Program I was not the intended audience for these workshops, I already have access to all of these services. The free controller will definitely be useful for my development work, however.

Google Booth

Google uses its presence in the mobile space with Android and its real-world presence in Silicon Valley to attract Android developers to GDC.  Not only do they host a keynote focused on the future of their mobile platform but also full day workshops for developers on pre-launch and post-launch support of their mobile games.

Aside from the giant G logo and familiar Google Employees in blue shirts there wasn’t much on display at their booth to speak of. At GDC Google did announce the interesting “instant app” addition to the Play Store which allows customers to download a small 10MB trial version of a game and play it within seconds without needing to install anything on their device. Given the size of some Android Games 10MB could be as small as a 30 second sample of the gameplay, while other smaller games have the chance to offer players a much more feature complete experience within those confines.

PlayStation Booth

Sony always has a huge display at conventions like PAX East, E3 and PAX West but did the development focus of GDC stop them from bringing some of the latest creation on their platform? Of course not!

Playable games at the PlayStation Booth included the recently released Shadow of the Colossus remake, Monster Hunter: World, Gran Turismo Sport and Ni No Kuni: Revenant Kingdom.

Sony also held a number of developer talks and workshops across the five days of GDC focusing on the visual arts achievements that Sony has made on the PlayStation 4, how devs can help fight fraud in an online gaming space and a Final Fantasy Collaboration focused workshop.

Unity

Unity has quickly become the darling of indie creators and the engine that powers some of the most notable AAA releases as well.  Upcoming titles like Escape From Tarkov, In the Valley of the Gods, Praey For the Gods and Hollow Knight all use the suite of tools made available for free by Unity Technologies.

While Unity might not offer the complete beginner friendly experience of something like Game Maker or Clickteam Fusion but it does offer a great gateway to full fledged game development. Alongside a whole range of professional grade 3D, 2D and lighting tools – developers also get access to some of the most exhaustive documentation systems around. Also the Unity community has probably answered almost every question asked about the engine at this point.

I’m not trying to come off as a paid Unity shill or that this section of the post is an advertisement – it’s not. But I’ve been personally making games in Unity for the past 2 years as my full time gig and it has been such a rewarding experience. What you lose in easy prototype-ability you gain in coding experience, game making fundamentals and probably the most beneficial to me personally – learning how to properly debug a game from conception through to post launch support.

In terms of what was on offer for newly budding developers and experienced veterans – Unity offered a quiet lounge space for Unity devs to hang out, grab a coke and just relax from the high stress environment. This space wasn’t entirely ultrisitic however – staffers from the engine developer were also on hand to inform visitors about upcoming Unity focused events like their Rendering Bootcamp, Keynote, Work Flow workshop and also to recruit for Unity Europe. Also on the floor of the West Hall (where most GDC panels take place) was a large “Made With Unity 3D” booth which gave folks the chance to check out multiple games made in Unity 5.

Ark: Survival Evolved Mobile

Lastly I’d like to highlight something I spotted at Unreal’s massive booth. Sandwiched in-between all of the Fortnite chaos, live engine demonstrations and AAA games was the mobile version of ARK Survival Evolved that had just been announced days prior. I didn’t get a chance to snag any off-screen video of the game running (tho I wish I had) but I did manage to snag a few interesting stills that I’ll post in the coming days. Suffice to say that the upcoming mobile conversion for ARK looks and plays rather faithful to the original – oh and there’s also the upcoming Nintendo Switch port of ARK, which was not on the show floor.

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March’s Games With Gold Title Announced

Posted on February 20, 2018 by Joshua Rust

It’s that time of the month like clockwork, where Microsoft announces their Games With Gold title for the upcoming month. As always, the lineup consists of two Xbox One games and two Xbox 360 games. We will see Trials of the Blood Dragon, SUPERHOT, Brave: The Video Game, and Quantum Conundrum as March’s Games With Gold titles.

 

Here is the list of when you can download these free games:

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A Eulogy To The Future That Kinect Promised But Never Delivered

Posted on October 25, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Kinect version 1.0 arrived hot off the heels of the motion control craze sparked by the Nintendo Wii with the marketing tagline “You Are The Controller”. Promising players a mixture of easy to understand motion based controls using their own bodies and a dash of science fiction, with almost Minority Report-like gesture control – it seemed like Microsoft had stumbled upon an easily understandable control scheme for those with the mobility to enjoy it. As Kinect is thrown into the technology wastebasket of products past their prime, where did things go wrong? This is a Eulogy for the future that Kinect promised but never delivered upon. 

A Less Than Spectacular Launch Line-Up 

On November 4th, 2010 Microsoft released the Kinect Sensor add-on for the Xbox 360 for $149.99 USD alongside 15 launch titles not only from first party studios like Rare but also major 3rd parties like Harmonix, Konami and SEGA. Smaller publishers & developers were also included in the opening volley for the motion-sensing technology with names like Hudson and Majesco rounding out the pack.  

With both large and small publishers on board in addition to Microsoft’s own efforts what could possibly go wrong with the launch line-up? Well, none of the 3rd party stuff really pushed the envelope in terms of using this newly released technical wonder. Instead of inventive games that used the strength of Kinect to deliver gameplay experiences built around the device players were greeted a number of “me too” cash-in Sports compilations, mini-game collections, fitness games and DDR knockoffs. 

[Image Source: YouTube]

Tell me do you remember any of these masterpieces? 

  • Motion Sports (Ubisoft) 
  • Zumba Fitness (Majesco) 
  • Game Party: In Motion (Warner Bros) 
  • Adrenalin Misfits (Konami) 

Quality software would be few and far between for Kinect during its 7 years of life but even on day one, there were red flags that 3rd party offerings would be hit or miss. At this time Sonic was still a name no one really uttered with excitement and his Kinect game (Sonic Free Riders) was so unplayable that some reviewers attempted to return it after eviscerating it or poor player detection and an unworkable control scheme.  

Dance Central and Microsoft’s Own “Wii Sports” 

Kinect did shine thanks to the release of Rare’s Kinect Sports and Harmonix’s Dance Central. Both games provided players with easy to understand concepts that for the most part worked given the technical limitations of the first generation of Kinect Sensors.  

Taking a page from Nintendo’s 2006 playbook, Bowling allowed players to throw their arm forward and strike virtual pins. Boxing would let contenders weave left and right in physical space, something that couldn’t be replicated with Nintendo’s Wii Remote at the time. Featuring compatibility with Rare’s New Xbox Experience (NXE) dashboard avatars, comparisons to Wii Sports were inevitable but Kinect Sports delivered on the promise of an easy to understand and immersive sports experience in the living room. 

[Image Source: Youtube]

Harmonix’s Dance Central also lured players to Kinect with an easy to understand concept that most folks can get behind: dance to catchy pop songs to flashy and colorful visuals. Featuring gameplay that tracks the player’s movements that challenge players to perform a number of different dance moves based on 90 different dance routines. It had robust offerings (for a Kinect title) such as a single player mode, 2 player head to head mode and an extensive training mode. Dance Central was the essential Xbox 360 party game and it was so successful that it spawned a number of add-on DLC tracks and two retail sequels (Dance Central 2 & Dance Central 3) 

Accessibility Concerns That Went Unaddressed  

With motion being so prevalent to the use of Microsoft Kinect, accessibility concerns should have been on the forefront of the engineers, programmers, and designers who would build the large glossy sensor. After launch it became apparent that potential players with mobility concerns or certain physical disabilities may have trouble with some Kinect games. Unless the game was specifically designed for a seated experience users could have trouble with body tracking in some circumstances if: 

  • They had an amputation above the elbow and didn’t wear a realistic prosthesis. 
  • Used an arm or leg prosthesis that was made of reflective metal – this could cause the Kinect to consider the limb part of the background (e.g. the furniture) and not register it as part of the user’s body. 
  • Reflective surfaces on larger wheelchairs and armrests on larger wheelchairs also caused detection issues. 

[Image Source: Youtube]

The biggest potential problem with the Kinect arose just days before launch – it was widely reported by the press who had access to review units that Kinect may have problems detecting people of color. Several tech publications at the time reported varying degrees of failure and success with Kinect V.1 recognizing the faces of people of color.  

This particular detection problem, and the use of IR sensors, in particular, isn’t limited to the Kinect. Two years ago a soap dispenser manufacturer faced criticism after it was found the sensors in their product also had problems detecting people of color. Clearly, these are representations of a systemic problem within Tech, where engineers and other designers fail to test their designs and prototypes for different user experiences. When is the majority of your development staff made out of white folks, does this lead to a lack of diversity in user testing? 

Goodbye Kinect

Today Microsoft announced that the Xbox One version of the Kinect will no longer be manufactured. It is a long time coming for a piece of hardware that never really found its footing either in this console generation or the last. After the initial rush of “holy crap it tracks how I move!” Nothing particularly noteworthy came exclusively to the Kinect although a number of large RPGS like Skyrim & Mass Effect 3 did support voice commands when making important choices which is a bit of a cool inclusions, but probably not worth $150 USD. 

When the Xbox One’s initial vision of a constantly connected entertainment hub that would also replace your cable box imploded in on itself all hope that was left for the Kinect was lost. As soon as Microsoft unbundled the once absolutely required Kinect from the console’s retail package, the writing was on the wall.

I also want to clarify that when I say that accessibility concerns were “unaddressed”, I do not mean that Microsoft didn’t put up a exhuastive accessibility FAQ on their site because it exists right here. What I mean is that it feels like a lot of the stuff in this FAQ and issues that arose during the Kinect’s life could have been addressed during the initial product development rather than afterward. 

This is my eulogy to the full body motion control future that the Kinect never fully delivered on. What are your memories of the Microsoft Kinect? Let me know in the comments! 

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First Major Update For Halo Online In Years– ElDewrito 0.60 – Due Out For Halo 3’s 10th Anniversary

Posted on August 26, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Microsoft may have no public plans to mark the upcoming 10th anniversary of Halo 3 on the Xbox 360 but that hasn’t stopped a group of dedicated fans from working on a project that Microsoft themselves abandoned. For the first time in several years, the first major update to Halo Online will be made available before the end of September 2017. 

Halo Online was short lived free to play adaptation of Halo 3’s multiplayer component ported to modern x64 Windows operating systems and updated with original content and Sabre Interactive’s own proprietary online technology. The game was never publicly available and Microsoft only ever tested the game in a limited alpha state and beta tests in Russia between Spring 2015 and August 2016. 

Fans got their hands on a leaked build of the Halo Online game client shortly after one of the initial Alpha tests in Spring 2015and quickly built the Eldewrito client/server that provided Halo 3 veterans a chance to relive the iconic multiplayer from 2007 on a brand new platform. While development slowed down and eventually splintered into two separate teams: Eldewrito and Project Anvil, things seem to have culminated behind the scenes in the first major update to the game just in time to commemorate a decade since Master Chief’s initial jump to the Xbox 360. 

Eldewrito 0.60 can be expected to have three major pillars of new content and adjustments with this new patch. Dual Wielding was missing from the leaked alpha build that Eldewrito was based upon but it looks like the development team has added their own take on this Halo 3 mainstay. Another addition new to the Halo franchise that debuted in Halo 3 but has been missing from Halo Online is deployable equipment and now that alongside brand-new server settings, server browser adjustments and customization options are coming. The other two major categories for version 0.6.0 are Forge Additions and Quality of Life updates. 

It would be disingenuous to write about Halo Online without acknowledging that Microsoft eventually ported Halo 5’s Forge and Multiplayer mode to Windows 10 and even eventually added a Custom Games Browser allowing players to the latest multiplayer suite and create new maps with Forge for free on PC. Despite the official backing of Microsoft and the marketing muscle that is implied – Halo Online has at least six games that are public and near full during the writing of this post. Halo 5: Forge returned just five open game sessions during the same period. 

Halo Online has quite a bit of staying power, especially considering that the whole thing is community run and developed by a group of volunteers. Check out some dedicated highlights of Eldewrito 0.6 features taken from a recent Reddit post. You can also check out a preview of 0.6’s updated menu in the embedded video below. Sabre Interactive wouldn’t be shy away from the F2P online shooter genre – as they’re currently working alongside id Software on the recently launched Quake Champions. 

 

Feature/Content Additions  

  • Dual Wielding 
  • Equipment Yes, we’ve completely fixed equipment (Bubble Shield, Trip Mine, ect.) and even have a couple new ones that were not in Halo 3. 
  • Multi-Team 
  • Automated Dedicated Servers 
  • Configurable Voting Systems 
  • Halo 3 Veto style 
  • Halo Reach style 
  • UI Improvements/Additions 
  • Player Customization 
  • Game/Server Settings 
  • In-Game Server Browsers – ScooterPSU – Halostats 
  • Lots of HUD fixups – Voice Chat indicator – Binoculars – Dual Wielding hud 

Massive Forge Improvements 

  •  New Forge Pieces – Another Creation 
  • Increased Object Limit 
  • Object Grouping and Cloning/Duplication 
  • Quick Search 
  • Magnets (snap objects by refined points/magnets) 
  • Rotation Snap 
  • WIP forge improvements (materials, phase toggle) – subject to change 

Quality Of Life Improvements & Major Bug Fixes 

  •  Completely Removed Scaleform (Saber’s UI)  This results in about a 5 fps increase from 0.5.1.1 
  • Audio lag/delay has been fixed. 
  • Broken spawn system has been fixed. 
  • Physics have been Fixed. (You no longer drop like a rock off of ledges) 
  • Micro stutters have been fixed. 
  • Global memory expansion. Allows Forging on Edge 
  • Password-protected Rcon 

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Four New State of Decay 2 Screenshots Released At GamesCom 2017

Posted on August 22, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Microsoft alongside State of Decay 2 developer Undead Labs released four new screenshots and a brand new trailer for the 2018 survival title at GamesCom in Cologne, Germany.

State of Decay 2 is, of course, a direct sequel to the 2012 Xbox 360 original that was ported to Windows PC a year later. Like its predecessor, SoD2 will allow players to immerse themselves in a single-player experience where they must team up with other survivors and build settlers to keep themselves safe from the oncoming hordes of the head.

New features and changes from the original game are to be expected: new to State of Decay 2 is the ability for up to three friends to join your game for some co-op survival fun. Unlike the previous game there is no single player character – instead, every survivor in your game world will have their own unique appearance and stats. Other noteworthy additions include Xbox One X enhancements for Microsoft’s upcoming beefed up Xbox One Console. State of Decay 2 will also be a “Xbox Play Anywhere” title meaning that if you purchase it for the home console or through the Windows 10 Store you’ll get it on all supported platforms.

Wanna see it in motion? Check out our gallery of new screenshots and a trailer below.

State of Decay 2 Bridge

State of Decay 2 Drive-In

State of Decay 2 Field

State of Decay 2 Fight

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The Wins & Fails of E3 2017

Posted on June 17, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Another E3 has come and gone and now all of the developers and publishers have packed up from the LA Convention Centre for another year. After a week of impressions, live streaming videos and major announcements – what games & announcements can we can put in the ‘win’ column and which left a sour taste in viewers’ mouths?  Here are three of the biggest wins and fails of E3 2017. Let us know your pick the for win and fail of E3 in the comments section!

Win

Michel Ancel Finally Gets To Debut Beyond Good & Evil 2

BG&2 has become somewhat of a running vaporware joke at this point, with 13 years separating us from the original’s release it is no surprise fans have let this one go. Ubisoft shocked everyone when Michel Ancel took the stage after a CG trailer that introduced us to a brand new rag-tag group of bounty hunters. Instead of the sequel, starring Jade, that everyone was expecting – we’re getting an expansive game with a diverse cast of characters like Knox the chimpanzee. In the most tear jerking moment of E3 2017 – Ancel was joined by the entire BG&E 2 team who were at E3 after the trailer rolled, for an on-stage embrace that will be remembered for some time to come.

Samus Returns, Not Once But Twice

Metroid fans have waited a long time for their heroin to return to her space bounty hunting ways on a Nintendo platform. After missing the Wii U generation entirely, Samas Aran is coming back to Nintendo’s consoles in two big ways: The unexpected announcement of a Metroid II: The Return of Samus remake for 3DS due out this Fall and the news that development of Metroid Prime 4 has begun with the help of an unnamed development studio that is not Retro Studios. Here’s hoping that Prime 4 brings the excellent atmospheric First Person Adventuring that we’ve come to expect from the series. With more than a decade of anticipation behind it, Prime 4 is going to have some big boots to fill when it arrives sometime in the future.

The Force Is Strong With Battlefront II

A gameplay reveal for Star Wars Battlefront II could have been a by the numbers amalgamation of pre-recorded gameplay footage combined with fake e-sports commentators but EA went all on one of this Fall’s biggest shooters. By bringing together 32 of e-sports most talented players and live commentators EA created a sense of authenticity and excitement for Star Wars Battlefront II’s first time in the spotlight.  Sure there were some cheesy moments like a commentator announcing “this is why people play Star Wars games” as two ships circle each other in a dogfight that contained absolutely zeros shooting but the smiles on player’s faces and the on-screen action told a different story: that Star Wars BattleFront 2 is a blast to play and even as a pre-alpha early E3 build.

Fail

We’ve Seen Sony’s E3 2017 Line-up Before

Sony’s E3 2017 press conference almost felt like the greatest hits of games they’ve already revealed in years past. Sure the Shadow of the Colossus complete remake is pretty cool, but that game has been available on two generations of Sony hardware already. God of War and Detroit both got new gameplay demos, but those titles won’t be out until at least the 1st quarter of next year if not later. The only true surprise was the extended gameplay demo of Spider-Man but that doesn’t have a release date except for a vague ‘2018’. It wasn’t so much that Sony put on a bad show, it’s just that outside of a few smaller reveals and the wow of Spider-Man we’ve seen these titles before in extended on-stage demos. They do get a number of points from me for putting PlayStation VR up and center in a concise and easy to understand way. Shame they didn’t speak the word, PS Vita, even once, perhaps the time has passed for the 5-year-old handheld.

Destiny 2 Was Missing In Action

I’ve already shared most of my thoughts on Bungie’s next FPS being absent from major coverage despite being playable on the show floor. It seems that the content that Bungie brought to E3 this year was the same sing-player mission and strike that we saw raw gameplay of during last month’s reveal. The only new pieces of Destiny 2 information we got through the course of this year’s show was a month and a half delay for the PC version and the expected reveal of PlayStation exclusive content. Sony and Bungie could have done so much more here.

X Doesn’t Mark The Spot For The Xbox One X

Microsoft’s job at their E3 2017 press conference was to convince both existing Xbox One owners and those of us who haven’t picked one up that the Xbox One X (formerly Project Scorpio) would be worth the cash. Thankfully they spent a good amount of time prior to E3 2017 detailing the hardware specs and capabilities of Xbox One X with Digital Foundry. Rather than dedicate a good chunk of time going over numbers that didn’t mean anything (6 tera-flops anyone?) – Microsoft had to focus on games that would convince viewers that Xbox One was worth the wait. What they delivered was… well… I doubt Forza 7 and the promise of Bioware’s Anthem in 2018 are going to convince people that they should pick up an Xbox one right now.  Microsoft showed a lot of games, but nothing really screamed “you MUST play this in 4K” – and considering the Xbox One X is $100 USD more than the comparable PS4 Pro without demonstrable difference between the two – it feels like Microsoft kinda blew it with the Xbox One X reveal.

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Sea of Thieves Gets 9 Minute Demo @ E3 2017, Coming Out Spring 2018

Posted on June 11, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

We’ve known about Rare’s Sea of Thieves for quite some time now but now we know approximately when it will come out – Spring 2017. Rare’s colorful pirate world comes to life in an 8-minute gameplay trailer showcasing a team of four searching an island for an epic treasure. Players will collect cryptic riddle maps that will the player & their friends find epic loot, should they be able to survive the encounter. Perhaps my favorite moment in the E3 2017 Sea of Thieves demonstration was when the player shot themselves out of a canon and absolutely wrecked another crew’s ship.

Sea of Thieves will be available in Spring 2018 for Windows 10 PC and Xbox One and supports the cross-play cross-buy Play Anywhere initiative.

Watch the full game play demonstration in the embedded player below:

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Assassin’s Creed Origins Coming October 27th

Posted on June 11, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Rumors about the Assassin’s Creed franchise making the trip to ancient Egypt with a pair of Assassin’s Creed: Origins videos unveiled at Microsoft’s E3 press conference this morning.  Players will witness the birth of the order of Assassins featuring the first person to ever don the hood of the order who oppose the Templars. The game’s protagonist is an “Egyptian Sheriff” of sorts according to the game’s Creative Director.

It will be out on October 27th, check out both the cinematic trailer and five-minute gameplay demo below.

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