News::Westerado and Risk of Rain are 2014 IGF student winners

The Student Showcase winners have been announced for the 2014 Independent Games Festival and a few of the names are surprising to see. I had no idea Westerado , for instance, was a student project. Wow. Risk of Rain similarly caught me off guard.

All eight winners are receiving $1,000 in prize money and passes to attend the 2014 Game Developers Conference in San Francisco this March, which is where the IGF's Main Competition winners as well as the Best Student Game will be named. One of the following titles will receive that title as well as an extra $2,000 prize:

• Museum of Simulation Technology (Albert Shih - Carnegie Mellon University, Entertainment Technology Center)


• Engare (Mahdi Bahrami & Moslem Rasouli - NHTV University of Applied Science)


• Risk of Rain (Hopoo Games - University of Washington)


• Symmetrain (Philipp Beau & Daniel Goffin - University of Amsterdam / University Kassel)


• Westerado (Ostrich Banditos - HKU)


• Rhythm Doctor (Hafiz Azman& Winston Lee - University of Cambridge)


• Foiled (Unblanched Peanuts - NYU)


• Cyber Heist (Hack n' Hide - University of Utah)

Something tells me Museum of Simulation Technology is going to take top honors. You saw the demonstration, right? Powerful stuff. Honorable mentions for the Student Showcase include: Ladylike , UN EP , Rabbit Rush , Flying Fish , and Bokida .

via destructoid http://ift.tt/1joe81m

News::Jimmy Fallon Makes Fun Of Nintendo's Money Troubles

News::Insurgency Review | Pixelvolt

Insurgency is a hardcore shooter for hardcore fans of times gone by--those more accustomed to modern accommodations should avoid this one.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/LVnpAh

News::6 things publishers should spend their money on instead of positive YouTube videos

GameZone writes, "The big story right now is that Microsoft and Machinima has been paying YouTubers for positive Xbox One coverage, and that EA paid YouTube video producers to promote its next-gen games. Surprise surprise. That's probably the worst-kept secret in the world. To me, it seems like a horrible waste of money. Video producers will want to cover your game or console if it's trending, hot, new, good -- you name it. These paid promotions that are supposed to come off as sincere are deceptive. Gamers just want honesty. Despite a joint response from Machinima and Microsoft, here's some honesty for you publishers out there; take the money you were paying off YouTubers with and spend it on these things instead."



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/LVnmEF

News::Respawn: Titanfall Will Have "No Microtransactions"

Respawn: Titanfall Will Have "No Microtransactions"



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KHFyR2

News::Kingdom Come: Deliverance Has Procedural Combat, "Impossible on 360/PS3"

Dan Vávra, Creative Director of Kingdom Come Deliverance, explains that the game's procedural combat would have been impossible on current gen.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/LHiFxx

News::How Will Clouds Revolutionize Gaming?

HardwarePal : Video games and consoles are evolving, they move with the technology and customer demand, so its no big surprise that as processing equipment gets increasingly more compact and powerful people are expecting the same from their entertainment systems. Though the size difference between the new consoles from Microsoft and Sony is noticeable, both systems are making abundant use of the cloud technology that each company offers, something that we could see getting expanded upon as downloadable content and streaming become the norm.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/LHiCll

News::Esoterica: Hollow Earth - Review | AACG

Esoterica: Hollow Earth might not be a mind-blowing game with top productions values and all the bells and whistles but it is extremely well-executed and can certainly offer you long hours of pure entertainment.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KHFxfX

News::DayZs combat logging soon to be a thing of the past

Rocket is hard at work again, and among the upcoming changes to DayZ, we can look forward to a fix for combat logging, as well as private hive support!



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KHFwJ6

News::Starpoint Gemini 2 some PC screenshots

Video game publisher Iceberg Interactive and developer Little Green Men Games unveiled today theyre implementing virtual reality headset Oculus Rift into their highly anticipated, upcoming space sim-RPG Starpoint Gemini 2. Currently in Alpha on Steams Early Access program, Starpoint Gemini 2 will offer gamers the opportunity to launch fighter wings on unsuspecting enemies during space combat while utilizing Oculus Rifts 3D, next-generation capabilities to provide unadulterated immersion.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/LHiBOa

News::The Semi-Often Greenman Gaming Spotlight 21/01

Greenman Gaming are back yet again with another list of cheap games. Take a look to see what you could pick up.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/LHiDpp

News::Beat and shoot-em-up in former Titanfall, God of War devs' To The Death

Indie developers Scary Mostro and Section Studios launched their Kickstarter campaign for To The Death today. The game combines beat-em-up and arcade shooter elements together, as players control one of two warriors that are dashing towards one another, hacking away at everything in their path.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KHFvF8

News::Respawn: Titanfall's Level Cap Will Be Much Higher Than It Was In The Alpha

Respawn: Titanfall's Level Cap Will Be Much Higher Than It Was In The Alpha



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/LHiAKh

News::Indie Game News Resogun gets DLC, Sportsfriends delayed, and Incognita is now Invisible Inc.

- Resogun gets DLC - Sportsfriends delayed - Incognita is now Invisible Inc.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/LHiAd8

News::GamesBeat: Insurgency remedies Battlefields Hollywood take on competitive warfare (review)

GamesBeat's Mike Minotti: Ultimately, Insurgency is going to win fans for its gameplay. The action is highly competitive and focused. It brings me about as close to a real gunfight as Ill likely ever want to get. Sure, it doesnt have the flash that most shooters proudly throw at your face these days, but Insurgencys quieter, more realistic, and tenser take on modern warfare deserves a look, especially if youre tired of instant knife kills and exploding buildings.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1eBdBES

News::Quadrant takes survival horror to a NASA lab in 1979

I quite like the premise of Quadrant, a survival horror title in which something has come back from a manned mission to the moon in 1979. You're a member of a biohazard waste removal and clean-up crew at a NASA facility that's gone into lockdown with you stuck inside. *Cue a blurry creature running around in the background*

Quadrant is planned for release in August and it's in development at HKFiftyOne Games, whose prior releases include Cold Fusion and Imbalance, the sorts of free PC horror games that YouTube personalities like to record themselves playing. I can't say I'm expecting a whole lot here, but again, I'm a fan of the setup. The teaser trailer is embedded above.

[Via Polygon]

via destructoid http://ift.tt/1aLSQ5u

News::Star Trek: Voyagers Tim Russ Joins Star Trek Online

Since the announcement of Star Trek Onlines Season 8.5, the developers have teased the upcoming reveal of yet another Trek alumni who would be joining the games story. Tim Russ, who portrayed Tuvok on Star Trek: Voyager from 1995 to 2001, will be the latest addition to the Star Trek Online voice-acting cast.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1c49jq2

News::Hitman: Contracts Sneaks onto Steam

For years Steam users have been unable to round out their catalogue of Hitman games due to Hitman: Contracts, a title that was never ported to digital marketplaces due to licensing issues with a single music track. Today, with no announcement, Hitman: Contracts silently appeared in the Steam catalogue for the price of $6.99.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1aLQ4ND

News::Origin Of A Name: The Slugcat In Rain World

The thing that fascinated me about Rain World, a game by Swedish developer Joar Jakobsson, wasnt the unique 16-bit style that is infused with a gentle color palette or the awesome Chiptune audio skills of Joars partner James Primate, but instead it was the protagonist of the game itself. The slugcat!



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1c49hyl

News::2014 Adrenaline-pumping Korean MMOGs Test Schedule

2P writes: January shows no sign of drawing an end. I would like to present a test schedule of Korean masterpieces that will enter alpha test/ closed beta test/ open beta test phase in 2014. Even in the first half of 2014, a host of tests of adrenaline-pumping masterpieces springed up like mushrooms after rain. Let's see what are they.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1fcDI3Y

News::No Mans Sky: 17 exclusive concept artworks

Concept art from Hello Games forthcoming space exploration game revealed.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1fcDF8o

News::Corsual's Metal Gear Rising PC Release Review

Corsual's EXP writes: "Too few are the games available that offer a chance at sliding along the tail of an enormous mechanical robot atop a high-frequency katana screaming 'RULES OF NATURE' at the top of your lungs. Fewer still are those ported to Steam from console platforms with nary a game-breaking issue in sight. And yet, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (MGR:R), first launched on Xbox 360 and PS3 globally during the final weeks of February 2013 is one that has done exactly that. On January 9th, 2014, the Platinum-Konami lovechild launched near-flawlessly on Steam at a massively reduced price (somewhere in the vicinity of twenty bucks, dependant on your territory and time of purchase) including all 3 DLC sets alongside a host of new graphical options including resolution up to 1080p, 60FPS, gamepad support, anti-aliasing, texture filtering and even the ability to adjust 'ZANGEKI' the amount of cuts allowed on an object, potentially preventing game crashes or frame rate drops...



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1mH1JFJ

News::The Undine to be Revamped in Star Trek Onlines Season 8.5

First introduced as Species 8472 in Star Trek: Voyagers third season, they have come to be known as the Undine in Star Trek Online. In the earlier seasons, they functioned as a nuisance and eventually as one of the games primary enemies. Cryptic has revealed that they will be receiving a revamp in the upcoming Season 8.5.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1mH1Jpd

News::KingsRoad Preview - Expansive DLC

KingsRoad is essentially an extremely simplified and highly polished Diablo-ish hack and slash ARPG for the Facebook generation. It adopts long-established genre standards; a trio of classes for players to choose from and switch between, a simple but addictive mix of basic click-to-kill gameplay and more intricate character planning and an epic plotline in which you and you alone can save the kingdom and so on, whilst tailoring these towards shorter gameplay sessions, a less complicated interface with somewhat simpler stats and a more streamlined approach to character building than its more fully featured brethren. The tech under-pinning the game is quite impressive. Thanks to a system in which assets are streamed to the client on the fly rather than downloaded well in advance the game offers surprisingly high quality visuals and audio with an impressively short loading time. For a browser-based game, the whole thing is quite stunning, with beautifully detailed 1080p fullscreen i...



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1kYDR1S

News::MMO-based Dragon Nest Movie Reveals New Pictures and Stills

3D Movie Dragon Nest: Rise of the Black Dragon is an adaption of the popular Action MMORPG Dragon Nest from Shanda Games in collaboration with Mili Pictures. It is the first part of "Dragon Nest" trilogy and scheduled to launch in June this year globally.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1hjROBX

News::Hardline: Candy Crush drama, Xbox One ads, Nintendo

My regular crew has abandoned me for this week's Hardline, but no matter -- I've got Max and Conrad filling in while everyone else is traveling. A few stories have blown up over the past several days and we'll be discussing those live on Twitch.tv at 11:00am Pacific. We'd love to have you stop by and participate in this little podcast of ours.

Most notably, there's the Xbox One promotion with Machinima that's really gone over poorly; Candy Crush maker King.com trademarking the word "Candy," which, again, people sure aren't happy about; and Nintendo's lower-than-expected sales forecast causing lots of speculation about how the company might change its business structure. Let's do this thing.

Read more...



via destructoid http://ift.tt/1mGLJn3

News::Stream About Upcoming Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Patch This Saturday

Square Enix has announced that they will be broadcasting a live sneak peak of the upcoming patch 2.2 on January 25th. The stream will also include a Q&A with producer/director Naoki Yoshida.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1aLCLwP

News::PopCap China: what you dont get to see (PICS)

Games in Asia: "We went behind closed doors last week to the PopCap office in Shanghai, China, and boy do we have loads of interesting photos for you!"



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1c3S1cu

News::The SSD Your PS4 Deserves, PSN Update, Cheap Speakers [Deals]

News::The Witcher 3 to get "extremely special" collector's edition | MCV India

MCV India had a chance to chat with CD Projekt co-founder Marcin Iwinski at length about The Witcher 3, including what we can expect from the game's collector's edition, and what lies ahead for the series.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1dPsxl2

News::Nuclear Throne Preview | Gamereactor UK

GR-UK writes: "Nuclear Throne is emerging from a crowd of games that are all offering something fairly similar; permadeath, procedurally generated levels, and frantic gameplay. What, if anything, sets Nuclear Throne apart, and is it enough to warrant an investment considering it's not even finished yet?"



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1mt4Eiq

News::Playfire Rewards Beta Offers Store Credit For Green Man Gaming

Green Man Gaming is giving away GMG store credit to gamers for playing games with the Playfire client active! The games are specific and there are certain restrictions. You can get ten cents from booting a game up for the first time, or ten to fifty cents for earning specific achievements. This can only be done during a certain period of time when GMG announces it.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/LUpwo2

News::8 Most Disappointing Games of 2013

Gamnesia "I know Microsoft has had a couple of bad years in gaming, but this was one of the worst. I mean, no one can deny they pretty much messed up in 2013."



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1mt4E1N

News::Gone Home Interview: Steve Gaynor On Making 2013's Most Talked About Indie Game - IBTimes UK

An interview with Gone Home designer and The Fullbright Company co-founder Steve Gaynor. I (Ben Skipper) ask him for IBTimes UK about the reaction to the game, what he learned from making it, what he thinks of similar games like Dear Esther and The Stanley Parable and his thoughts of the future of narrative exploration games.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1aLnlZn

News::Tomb Raider hits Mac tomorrow

In a press release issued today, Mac publisher Feral Interactive confirmed that Tomb Raider will hit the Mac App Store tomorrow, January 23.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1aLnlJ4

News::Love candy but hate trademark trolling? Here's Candy Jam

Just the other day we heard that King, developer of the why-are-all-of-my-friends-playing-this behemoth Candy Crush Saga, successfully trademarked the word "candy" as it relates to games. In an effort to fight trademark trolling, the Candy Jam has surfaced, encouraging the creation of games involving candy as a central theme.

Bonus points may be awarded for use of other common words that have been trademarked, including scroll, saga, and edge. The deadline for candy themed games is February 3.

via destructoid http://ift.tt/LUbgvr

News::The 30 greatest video games that time forgot

From lost adventures to forgotten puzzlers, here are the classic titles that games history has cruelly overlooked.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KG0HLC

News::TGH Reviews,"Nidhogg"

Youve either heard the buzz, saw the release on Steam, or youre still in the dark on the odd but elegant Nidhogg. It might not look like it has much going for it graphically, its not even as rich as other low-res pixel-art games like Superbrothers: Sword and Sorcery EP. The environments and avatars arent enough for promotional materials to grab the eye. Once in motion, however, the games speedy action serves to entice, and once you get behind the controls, youll find that Nidhogg is a quick and rewarding competitive experience that will hook some players and alienate others.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1msQhut

News::Survival Horror Has Entered A New Golden Age

Horror fanatic Mark Butler argues that an exciting new wave of indie chillers are revolutionizing and rejuvenating the previously decaying genre and leading big-budget console publishers to get back on board too.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1cVgn3T

News::GameStop ad (1/22 - 1/28)

This week's GameStop ad has gone live.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KFVIKP

News::A Story About My Uncle coming to Steam

Coffee Stain Studios is helping Gone North Games to finish their game, A Story About My Uncle, in time for a 2014 release.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KFVK5u

News::Play Double Fines Broken Age With A Wiimote

MonsterVine: "I spent a good chunk of time digging around the Internet to find a solution to play Broken Age from my couch, and the best way to do that is with a Wiimote. Check out my guide!"



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1cVgmwU

News::The Elder Scrolls Online Group Gameplay Preview

The latest preview from Zenimax Studios gives fans an overview and first-hand experience of what The Elder Scrolls Online will feature for group gameplay and taking on challenges that are specifically designed to be conquered by allied players working alongside with each other to complete.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KFVJyg

News::New 'Call of Duty: Ghosts' Trailer Questions Real Life Responsibilities

New Call of Duty: Ghosts trailer doesn't have a single female gamer in it and assumes that all responsibilities are not important.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KFVHGM

News::4 Killer 'RUST' Alpha Updates Needed

An opinion piece on the 4 things really needed in Rust to make it more valuable to new players.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1cVglJo

News::No Man’s Sky: 17 exclusive concept artworks

The post No Man’s Sky: 17 exclusive concept artworks appeared first on Edge Online.

via Edge Online http://ift.tt/KFNMJC

News::A Nice Assassin's Creed IV Moment That I Didn't Expect

News::The Witcher 3 Dev Comment On PC vs PS4/XOne Port Differences: "Won't Be Huge, They're Brand New PCs"

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, the next installment in popular The Witcher franchise and the final chapter Geralt saga is all set to launch on PC, PS4 and Xbox One in 2014. For the first time CD Projekt RED is working on a game across platforms simultaneously.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/1c3hdQv

News::Kingdom Come: Deliverance Will be Episodic, First Chapter Includes 30+ Hours of Gameplay

OnlySP: New details on Kingdom Come: Deliverance were revealed today.



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KFFQbi

News::Retrobooster Gets a Release Date

Hardcore Gamer: Indie cave-shooter Retrobooster has been hanging out on Greenlight for over a year, but as of yesterday its got a new weapon in its arsenal to help it complete the journey to Steam- a release date of February 21. Currently Retrobooster is only available by the Humble widget on its web page, but a full Steam release would be awfully nice. So why would you care? Well now, thats a question that can be answered in all sorts of ways!



via N4G: pc news feed http://ift.tt/KGO0Q9