Psyonix’s surprise summer hit from 2015 recieves a brand new “rumble mode” that provides players with a whole new set of power-ups. 11 new randomized power-up give players new abilities that drastically changes how the rocket powered soccer title is played.
If you’re getting flashback to older racing titles from the 90s that included outrageous power-ups, like Extreme-G for the Nintendo 64, don’t worry you’re not alone. Here is a list of all of the power-ups available to players in the new “rumble mode”.
The Boot (Kicks an opponent’s car)
Disruptor (Forces the opponent to drive uncontrollably)
Freezer (Freezes the ball in-place)
Grappling Hook (Pulls you toward the ball)
Haymaker (Punches the ball)
Magnetizer (Attracts the ball to your car)
Plunger (Snaps the ball to your position)
Power Hitter (Hit everything harder)
Spike (Attach the ball to your car when you bump into it)
Swapper (Change positions on the field with your opponent)
Tornado (Sweep up the ball and cars into a giant funnel cloud)
Today’s update also introduces the “Crates & Keys” system that will allow players to unlock new skins and cosmetics through keys that are purchasable through optional micro-transaction. “Crate & Keys” is a similar micro-transaction model as popularized by Valve’s Counter Strike: Global Offensive and does not affect the core gameplay experience of Rocket League. Keys will be sold for $1.49 USD for 1 or in bundles of 5, 10 or 20. Profits from the “Crate & Keys” system will be used to fund future e-sports prize pools for the Rocket League community.
WayForward issued an update on the progress of their HD Shantae game, Shantae: Half-Genie Hero, and the news wasn’t happy news. The update is by no means dire, but the game is going to be delayed up to six weeks or more.
Developers have stated that the delay is for bug fixing and adding additional polish, which is definitely a good thing. With the rush to get many games out these days, many games are released relatively unfinished. Day one patches aren’t at all uncommon.
The release date has been pushed back from September 27th to sometime in mid-November. Still plenty of time before the height of the holiday shopping season. And while it’s certainly not great news, if it means a more polished and better game. It’ll be worth the wait.
Square Enix posted thirty minutes of new direct-feed footage from the Japanese version of Final Fantasy XV to YouTube. To say that this footage is “new” might be a little subjective given that a large sections of this gameplay video were covered in Square’s 60 minute gamescom presentation a few weeks back.
So what makes this footage interesting to analyze? The GamesCom footage was taken from the English dub and this new footage comes from the Japanese version, allowing fans to analyze script differences. Portions of both demonstration videos were taken from a mixture of PlayStation 4 and Xbox One builds.
What differences have fans pointed out between the two? Here is a partial list of some of the main criticisms that some observers have pointed out:
Different dialogue and motion capture for some characters.
A dialogue wheel appears in the Japanese footage but does not appear in the English GamesCom build. (has this feature been cut?)
The Xbox One build runs at 752p in some of this footage.
Foliage does not appear to be completely implemented in some of the footage.
Object draw distance appears to be slightly less in the Xbox One build.
Number of objects on the Xbox One title screen is considerably less when compared to the PS4 version.
(Old footage vs new footage) – Chocobo area appears to be brighter and contain more foliage.
Want to see some of the differences in action? Here are some pictures comparing the various pieces of footage we’ve got from Square Enix between GamesCom and now. Keep in mind that these pieces of gameplay might be taken from a variety of different builds & platforms (PS4/Xbox One).
Pushing Car Gameplay
Status Screen Comparison
Title Screen Comparison
Chocobo Area
What do you think of the differences between these two gameplay videos? Did anything strike you as particularly noticeable? Let us know in the comments section. You can watch the original videos in the embedded players below.
Could some of our favorite Overwatch agents be retired? After an initial comment to Game Informer by Jeff Kaplan regards to the possibility of removing existing heroes the game director has taken to the official forums to expand upon his comments.
Originally Kaplan stated to GI that the dev team had “left the door open” on the retirement on heroes in the future. He cited the game’s business model of providing all players new content for free as one of the reasons he might not feel bad for removing an existing hero.
“We would leave the door open to that. I think the fact that we chose the business model we did – that the game comes with all the heroes and we’re giving you everything [extra] for free so far – allows us to retire a hero without feeling bad about it. But I think we have a long way to go before heroes will need to be. “
Don’t Panic! Because now Kaplan has posted on the official forums to say that the dev team has no plans to retire heroes and that the internet is making “a mountain out of a molehill”.
“We don’t have any plans to retire any heroes. The interviewer asked if there was a possibility that this could ever happen and I “left the door open”. The original poster in this thread did not even link to the original article but rather to an article quoting the article in question.
We’re not even remotely thinking about retiring heroes right now or anytime in the foreseeable future.
I think this thread is making a mountain out of a molehill.
So all of those players (myself included) who have for their most play of the games as Bastion don’t have to worry about the mobile turret being removed from the game anytime soon! Blizzard has spent a lot of time since the game shipped in May teasing new heroes. Ana, the medical sniper was released this past June and the elusive spy master Sombra has not yet been revealed.
Console players of Overwatch have brought up an issue regarding the game’s auto-aim feature on consoles. According to several forum posts submitted by players the game’s aim system will actually move away from enemies such as Genji during the middle of a jump.
“‘I’m moving the control stick horizontally the whole time. All Vertical movement is due to Blizzard’s built in Aim Assist. Every time Genji jumps, the Aim Assist moves away from him. To hit Genji, you have to fight against the Aim Assist. Any other character spamming the jump button will show similar results.”
They even included video evidence of this glitch occurring:
Members of Blizzard’s development team where quick to respond, including the game’s director Jeff Kaplan.
Here is what technical lead Tim Ford had to say about the auto-aim snafu, apparently Blizzard has found the issue and a fix will be included in the next console patch:
“Thank you all for gathering data on this issue. We’ve identified the defect and a fix will be available with the next console patch.”
Are you playing Overwatch on consoles? Let us know about your experience in the comment section!
Bungie’s Destiny is about to celebrate its second birthday in just a little under a month and with the Rise of Iron expansion pack coming out shortly after publisher Activision has decided to bundle everything together in one nice tidy collection.
Destiny: The Collection will include the 2014 base title as well as the first year expansions: The Dark Below and House of Wolves. The collection also includes last year’s revamp The Taken King and a pre-order for the upcoming Rise of Iron expansion.
Players of Rise of Iron on PlayStation 4 will get exclusive access to a multiplayer map called Icarus and an exclusive quest called “Show of Strength” according to the PlayStation Blog. Here is how they described the 6 Vs 6 Map:
“This Golden Age solar farm on Mercury has remained untouched by the Vex for reasons unknown. The Vanguard has denied petitions from various weapon foundries to research it until the Warlock orders have finished their surveys first. An exemption has been granted to Lord Shaxx and his Crucible: the Guardians are free to utilize Icarus as a live-fire training zone.”
Here is the official PS4 pack-shot courtesy of Activision:
Destiny: The Collection will carry a recommended MSRP of $59.99 USD. What do you think of this new collection aimed at players who might not have picked up Destiny? Let us know in the comments section!
The console port of Firaxis Games’ sequel to their popular X Com reboot, X Com 2, has been delayed until September according to the game’s official twitter account.
@DavidWonKenobi We need just a little more time to put the finishing touches on the game. Rest assured it will be worth the wait.
X Com 2 will bring a new generation of strategy to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on Sept 27th in North America and the rest of the world will fight off the invasion on September 30th.
The latest official trailer for the game is embedded below.
Free to play MMORPG TERA could be heading to the Xbox One & PlayStation 4 if a new survey that has been emailed to players from developer Bluehole is accurate. We don’t have images of the actual questions from the survey but we do have what appears to be an image from the initial survey invite email taken from a mobile phone.
Here is a copy of the survey invite as posted on Reddit:
A job posting published this past May by Bluehole Studios requested applicants for a Technical Lead to assist with porting the game to both consoles. Duties listed in the job adverts included coming up with short term and long term plans for the two ports as well exploring the possibility of developing the TERA property for “other markets”.
TERA originally launched during the tail endz of the 2000s MMORPG boom back in 2011 and was originally required a monthly subscription fee. What sets TERA apart from other late 2000s MMORPG titles that emerged in the wake of World of Warcraft’s success is its closer third person camera and real-time action focused combat. Like another console bound MMORPG, Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XIV, TERA can be played with either a mouse & keyboard or Xbox controller. TERA completed its transition to free to play with the TERA RISING update in February 2013.
Here is how Bluehole describes TERA on its Steam Page:
TERA is at the forefront of a new breed of MMO. With True Action Combat – aim, dodge, and time your attacks for intense and rewarding tactical combat. Add the deep social experience of a MMO to best-in-class action combat mechanics for a unique blend of both genres. Play now for free!
If you can’t wait for the eventual PS4 and Xbox One version of TERA, here are the PC minimum requirements:
The latest update to the Xbox One dashboard software has now rolled out for everyone and like its Windows 10 counterpart the ‘anniversary update’ brings a lot of changes to the software running under the hood of your Xbox console. We’ve documented all of the major changes so that you can get an informed taste of all of the improvements Microsoft has to offer.
Background Music
One of the coolest dashboard features from the Xbox 360s’ old “blade UI” was the built in ability to replace any in-game music with ripped CDs or tracks from an attached iPod. The Xbox One gets similar functionality but for streaming services – Microsoft’s Groove music will allow subscribers to stream tracks from MS’ catalogue or MP3s from a users’ One Drive account in the background. Pandora Radio (in the United States at least) also supports multi-tasking background streaming. Unfortunately unlike the similar feature from Microsoft’s previous console, streaming background music will not replace in-game music automatically.
Cortana
Microsoft’s virtual assistant technology that powers the search box in Windows 10 makes it way to the home console in this August update. The Cortana A.I technology supplements the ‘Hey Xbox’ commands that launched with the console back in 2013 with more robust voice commands. Voice commands can be used either through an Xbox One Kinect or Wired Headset.
Here’s a brief list of some of the commands that Cortana will accept:
“Hey Cortana, Xbox On”
“Hey Cortana, Take A Screenshot”
“Hey Cortana, Record That”
“Hey Cortana, Launch [Game Name]”
“Hey Cortana Show My Friends List”
“Hey Cortana Launch App [App Name]”
“Hey Cortana Go Home” [Launches the system home menu]
Brand New ‘Xbox One Store’ App
Prior to the Xbox One Anniversary App the Xbox One Store was built right into the dashboard. Now when you select the Store tab on the dashboard homepage a new stand-alone application will be launched. This is entirely due to the fact that Microsoft has begun integrating both the Windows 10 Store & Xbox One Store into one unified application– meaning alongside Xbox games 1000s of PC titles will also show up on the Xbox.
Xbox Live users in The United States, Norway, Italy, Germany, Finland, Switzerland and China can use mobile payment methods to purchase digital goods.
Universal Windows Applications [Eventually]
The UWP platform allows developers to roll out their games & applications to three different platforms – Windows Phone, Windows 10 and Xbox One with only one submission. UWP apps scale with the device that they are installed on – meaning their resolution and input method (controller, keyboard, pen) will change depending on the devices form factor.
Here is how Microsoft’s UWP developers page describes how the platform is able to scale in-game/in-app graphics for everything from small 5 inch phones to large Surface Hub screens:
“When your app runs on a device, the system uses an algorithm to normalize the way UI elements display on the screen. This scaling algorithm takes into account viewing distance and screen density (pixels per inch) to optimize for perceived size (rather than physical size). The scaling algorithm ensures that a 24 px font on Surface Hub 10 feet away is just as legible to the user as a 24 px font on 5′ phone that’s a few inches away.”
UWP Support isn’t activated on the Xbox One just yet for consumers, but developers have been able to enroll their consoles and test their UWP builds since GDC this past march.
That about wraps up the major features available in the Xbox One Anniversary Update. More information on the update is available on Microsoft’s official Update site, also make sure to let us know your thoughts on this latest OS update in the comments section!
Creating a video game can be daunting for seasoned pros and possibly completely overwhelming for the absolute beginner. I’ve written a few times about Clickteam Fusion 2.5 and why I believe that it is probably the #1 most user friendly way to make your first game. Now, the folks at Clickteam have given users of their scripting free system the ability to bring their creations to both Xbox One and the Windows Store via Windows Universal Apps (or UWP).
What is UWP? It is Microsoft’s framework for universal programs that can run on any device that runs a Windows 10 operating system. Whether your target platform is Windows Phone, Xbox One or Windows 10 desktop – UWP ensures that once your application or game has been compiled it will scale onto the different form factors of hardware. All of this means that testing and deployment are a lot easier than before!
So why am I advocating the use of Clickteam Fusion 2.5 over an established engine like Unity? The powerful event editor in Fusion 2.5 allows budding developers to code their game’s logic without having to know C# or other scripting languages. Instead, Fusion 2.5 uses a combination of the grid like Event Editor and what’s called a “frame editor” to allow developers to visually map out their game or application.
I asked Clickteam USA‘s Chris Carson about what the release of the UWP exporter means for Fusion 2.5 developers. Here is what he had to say:
“The most powerful feature I think UWP will bring to the table, once Microsoft migrates support for UWP to Xbox One, is direct export capability to a console. UWP is super easy to use, export your Visual Studio project with Fusion, Open it in Visual Studio and the compile to test on device. Besides Xbox One, the exporter allows projects to be built for Windows 10 PC’s, Windows 10 tablets and phones. The UWP platform is what is supported by the Windows 10 App store.”
If you own an Xbox One retail console you can already start testing UWP apps or games on the console thanks to the Developer Mode that is available in the most recent software update. It does require a $20 Microsoft Developer account in order to get working, but that is a lot less than the many thousands of dollars that AAA developers have to pay for their debug console access.
Clickteam’s UWP exporter is available either through their official website or it can also be purchased directly from their Steam Store page. The UWP exporter does require at least the Standard version of Fusion 2.5 in order to compile UWP projects.
If you happen to make something really cool with Clickteam Fusion please let us know in the comments!
Great news for photo journalists who happen to have a knack for taking selfies with the undead, Capcom has announced that the original Dead Rising will be slashing its way onto Windows PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 later this year. Alongside the release of the original Capcom will also bring Dead Rising 2 and it’s spin-off Dead Rising 2: Off The Record to PS4 and Xbox One as well.
Here is a brief statement that Capcom issued to Eurogamer about the upcoming ports:
“Capcom will be bringing Dead Rising to Xbox One, PS4 and PC. In addition, Dead Rising 2 and Dead Rising 2: Off the Record will make their way onto Xbox One and PS4. We will have more news to share soon.”
All of these announcements were made ahead of the upcoming Christmas release for Dead Rising 4, which for a full year will be an Xbox One + Windows 10 exclusive following its release. We got the chance to check out over six minutes of extended gameplay at E3 with a developer walkthrough. If you want to see what we saw, head on over to our video preview from last month.
The original Dead Rising was released for the Xbox 360 in the summer of 2006 and pretty much stayed an exclusive on that platform save for a down-scaled motion controlled port released for the Wii in February 2009.
Dead Rising 2 marked a shift in development from an in-house Japanese Capcom team to the Vancouver, BC based Capcom Vancouver (formally Blue Castle Games) in 2010. Dead Rising 2: Off the Record a retelling of the events of Dead Rising 2 but staring Frank West from the original title was released a year later on PS3/360 and PC. Dead Rising 3 was an Xbox One / PC exclusive and never made the jump to the PlayStation 4.
It sounds like Capcom has some big plans for its undead series in 2016. Speaking of the undead, this year also marked the release of several ports of Resident Evil games on Xbox One and PS4 a head of the surprise reveal of Resident Evil 7.
Ty Taylor‘s unique take on the match 3 puzzle formula, Tumblestone, is now available for free to all Xbox Live Gold subscribers on Xbox One and we got a chance to ask him a few questions. In our brief discussion we talked about what it was like to work with Microsoft on Games With Gold, the local Seattle indie games scene and what Ty’s plans are for the game post launch.
Ty Taylor of The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild with his game, The Bridge.
Broken Joysticks: How does it feel to have Tumblestone finally complete and about to be in the hands of potentially millions of players?
Ty Taylor: It’s certainly nearing complete! We’re still working 20-hour days to put as much into the game as we can, fix any last bugs, and just generally polish the game. I’ve been so busy it seems I haven’t really had time to stop and reflect on the project’s soon completion. In terms of number of players, that’s always an interesting and surreal experience. I remember with The Bridge, on our first Steam sale with a front-page feature, we sold nearly 90,000 copies in one day. I opened up a picture of the Seattle soccer stadium that was at full capacity with around 70,000 people, and I ended up starring at that for about an hour. More people had bought my game in one day than people in that picture, and that visualization was literally paralyzing. I try not to think about it at that scale. I try to think about it at an individual level. If my games can make a single person feel smarter, smile, laugh, grow a friendship…then it’s worthwhile. Having that effect on millions of individuals is just millions of times more rewarding.
Broken Joysticks: What was the experience of collaborating with Microsoft like? Did you ever expect Tumblestone to be chosen for Games With Gold?
Ty Taylor: Microsoft has been pretty excited about Tumblestone since early on. It helps considerably that I live and work 10 minutes away from the Xbox (and Nintendo, and Valve) headquarters, so I somewhat regularly see these people at local Seattle game developer events and can talk to them and show them updates on Tumblestone, but more importantly, they can watch other people play Tumblestone. The game has this magic to it that is hard to describe, but when we take it to events like PAX, it gets huge crowds and so much enthusiasm that is contagious. Microsoft themselves has sponsored the game at six different shows, even though there is a soft rule where they usually only sponsor an ID@Xbox game at a show one time. When I started having conversations with them about Games with Gold, I definitely got the feeling that Microsoft was already extremely interested in the prospect.
Four player competitive mode of Tumblestone.
Broken Joysticks: What can players expect in terms of post launch support and release on other platforms?
Ty Taylor: No software is ever free of bugs or issues, and we’ll fix them as they come in on all platforms. Updating Steam is something we can do in a matter of hours. Updating the game on consoles is a bit more of a hassle, but we will likely patch each game with some minor touch-ups and bug fixing/usability fixing/balancing a handful of times after launch as needed. And we’re still going to be working on it. My philosophy is to release on as many platforms as I possibly can, and while that is unfortunately not happening at the first launch, platforms such as mobile and micro-consoles are on our radar within the next year. If the game is well-received, we might even consider some sort of DLC packages for it down the line.
If you own an Xbox One make sure to grab the game on the Xbox Store, if you’re playing on PC the game is available on the Steam Store. Congratulations to Ty and his team on completing the game!
Completely reinventing the Match-3 genre, containing fast-paced action-puzzle multiplayer gameplay as well as a deep and cerebral single-player mode, Tumblestone arrives in the Wii U eShop today.
Tumblestone is being billed as the first original action-puzzle game of the past fifteen years. The game has the standard online and local multiplayer but also has a single player story mode. The story mode is said to boast a 40+ hour campaign that will test your puzzle-solving prowess. The game also features more than ten gameplay modifiers, challenge puzzles, and boss battles.
Check out a trailer for the game below, as well as some screens from the puzzler. In addition to the Wii U eShop, the game is also being released on the Xbox Live and on Steam today. Some last minute technical issues has delayted the PS4 digital release. While there is no price listed on Steam or PlayStation, the game is set to retail for $24.99 USD / $27.99 CAD in the Wii U eShop. The game will also be released in stores at a future date.
The first of three expansions for Tom Clancy’s The Division – Underground – is now available on the Xbox One, PlayStation and Windows PC. Massive Entertainment’s first paid add-on for the game adds a number of new additions that will hopefully please high-level players who have worked their way up to level 30 and conquered even the most challenging Incursions.
Agents who deploy into the Underground will be tasked to investigate a secret war that is happening below the streets of Manhattan. With our to three friends players can take on randomly generated missions filled with new hazards and traps. A new level 30 incursion is also available in Hell’s Kitchen regarding a weapon that the Cleaners faction might be able to use to shift the balance of power in the Big Apple. Four new gear sets and one new weapon is also added in Underground for high-level agents.
The Underground expansion ships alongside game update 1.3 which is available for free to all players on all platforms. Below are the official notes and trailer for Tony Clancy’s: The Division Underground.
EXPANSION 1: UNDERGROUND
Please note that you must own the Underground DLC to gain access to this content. This is available on June 28 for Xbox One and PC, and August 2 for PlayStation 4.
Underground
There is a secret war going on in the uncharted and claustrophobic depths of Manhattan. Root out the threat and earn unique rewards.
Explore the Underground of New York in solo play or up to four player co-op.
Operations: Experience randomly generated levels with all new environmental hazards and traps.
Directives: Add a unique twist to your gameplay experience by changing the rules of engagement for both your enemies and your own team and combine more Directives to unlock better rewards.
Underground Rank: Earn Underground experience and climb in Rank to unlock new Directives, Operation types, and exclusive Vanity Items.
New Incursion: Dragon’s Nest
Travel to Hell’s Kitchen and investigate rumors of a new Cleaner weapon that can wreak havoc throughout Manhattan.
You must be level 30 and have completed the mission “General Assembly” to access the incursion.
The encounter is balanced for a team of four players outfitted with high-level gear.
Heroic Mode will be available one week after release.
New Gear Sets and Weapons
Added four new Gear Sets:
B.L.I.N.D. – Control the battlefield with an improved Pulse skill and flashbangs with this hybrid gear set.
DeadEYE – Dictate long-range engagements with powerful critical strikes or accurate headshots.
FireCrest – Set your enemies ablaze with this offensive gear set.
Reclaimer – Boost your entire group with the ultimate support set.
Added one new Weapon:
B.L.I.N.D. System MDR Rifle: Please note that while it will be implemented in the game, you will not be able to acquire it until a future update.
Major Nelson has updated the list of weekly deals available to Canadian and American gamers before everyone goes on holiday this weekend to celebrate Independence Day & Canada Day. If you’re going to be home for the holidays perhaps some of these deals will keep you entertained.
The games featured in this week’s deals include NBA 2k16, DLC for NBA 2k16, a discount on the recently released 8th gen port of Resident Evil 6 and a large cut on the original Titanfall from Respawn Entertainment.
Here is the list of full games (and some DLC) for the Xbox One:
