Thursday, January 19, 2017

News:: NPD estimates video game industry raked in $30.4 billion in 2016

The video game industry tracker NPD Group has occasional releases throughout the year, tallying up things from the month's top-selling games to console vs. console sales to how many NES Classic Editions flew off the shelves back in November. But it's the annual revenue generation that draws real attention as a loose report card for the industry, and last year's has just come out. In 2016, NPD estimates that consumers spent $30.4 billion on games and accessories, which is a modest $200 million more than in 2015.

Source: NPD Group



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News:: Google Daydream View VR Headset on sale for $50

Remember when Verizon Wireless was selling the Samsung Gear VR for cheap last month? A similar deal now exist for another VR headset with the Google Daydream VR headset on sale for only $50. At 38% off, the unit comes in three color choices as of writing. Shipping is of course free.

Given this is a manufacturer sale, we suspect you'll see similar discount over at other retailers that also carries the Google Daydream units (Best Buy and others).

The headset from Google's latest VR platform will work on the Google Pixel and Pixel XL; ZTE Axon 7; Lenovo Moto Z and Moto Z Force; along with the Asus ZenFone AR.

The unit of course includes the Daydream controller which allows you to navigate through virtual world via button presses and gesture control. While game content and title choices are few compared to other gaming platforms, we suspect you'll see more excellent titles such as The Arcslinger as other mobile VR headset based on the Android platform becomes more mainstream.

Google Daydream View VR Headset on sale for $50 screenshot



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News:: Google's VR art app is open source and ready to get weird

Google's Tilt Brush is capable of some pretty impressive results. But what if those 3D paintings and projects you made while strapped into virtual reality could escape into the real world? That's the idea behind the open-source Tilt Brush Toolkit, available now on GitHub.

Via: UploadVR

Source: GitHub, The Keyword blog



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News:: Big Ten Network adds 'League of Legends' to its tournament lineup

The Big Ten Network announced on Thursday that it's adding a less conventional sport to its conference title coverage. Now, in addition to everything from baseball and basketball to football and field hockey, subscribers will be able to see their favorite schools compete against one another in League of Legends. Yeah, the video game.

Source: Big Ten Networks



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News:: Be the boss and kill all the heroes in Nefarious

Maybe the most traditional video game trope is "You are the hero, you have to thwart evil." It's a well-tread angle, and one that's still plenty popular. Nefarious flips all that on its head.

In Nefarious, you are the bad guy and you're the one who's out to kidnap the princesses. Then when the hero comes to save the day, you're the guy in the giant robot suit who seems invincible. This story seems like it'll have a different ending than what we're used to. The past is told by those who win, my darling.

This isn't the first time we've heard of Nefarious. Steven wrote about it in 2014 when it was in the middle off an eventually-successful Kickstarter campaign. The reason it's back in our sites is because it's releasing soon. Nefarious launches January 23 on Steam. We're keeping an eye on Nefarious and its reverse boss fights.

Be the boss and kill all the heroes in Nefarious screenshot



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News:: 'Injustice 2' beta registration opens for future brawls

Developer NetherRealm Studios' games are as well known for their over-the-top action as much as their shaky online multiplayer. It looks like the team has taken the latter to heart because its upcoming DC Comics fighter Injustice 2 will have a beta test prior to releasing on May 16th. A registration form is live right this moment and will be available on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

Via: Injustice 2 (Twitter)

Source: Injustice



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News:: Nicalis is making some Switch ports, but seems shy about it

Nicalis is best known for their work on 2D sprite based titles on the 3DS and Wii U, and it looks like they'll be working with Nintendo, porting some of their previous work to the Switch. The company may have revealed more than intended when it tweeted a picture of the Switch's user interface earlier today though, as the tweet was quickly made private.

Fortunately, community member Kaleido Ruby caught a screenshot of the tweet before it was pulled. You can see icons for Nicalis' Cave Story and Aban Hawkins and the 1001 Spikes in addition to Team Meat's Binding of Isaac. But the icon on the far right may be the reason the whole thing was pulled.

Community member ScionVyse believes that this rightmost icon could be a port of Hydra Castle Labyrinth, a Japanese indie title that first released in 2011. The icon seems to match the game's logo, seen below. Since Hydra Castle Labyrinth and the other two games hadn't been officially announced for the switch yet, there's a good chance they're the reason the tweet was pulled. 

Nicalis [Twitter]

Nicalis is making some Switch ports, but seems shy about it screenshot

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News:: There's going to be an Injustice 2 beta, sign up for it now

Fighting crime and fighting crime fighters -- that's pretty much what Injustice 2 boils down to. The DC Comics fighter bursts into the room on May 16, but you have the opportunity to engage in fisticuffs before then.

Today, a registration page went up for an Injustice 2 beta. It'll take place on both PS4 and Xbox One. There's no mention of how many people will be given access, when it takes place, or how long it'll run. All we know is that it'll eventually happen and you can throw your name in the hat right now.

We've already had a chance to brawl when Zack and I squared off in Injustice 2 at E3. It was a lot of silly mis-maneuvering, the kind that happens when you have 15 minutes to act like you can learn the nuances of a fighting game. Then we settled on watching each stage's scene transitions. I can't be sure who won, but, let's face it, there's absolutely no way I lost. 

Online Beta Registration [Injustice]

There's going to be an Injustice 2 beta, sign up for it now screenshot



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News:: If looks could kill: Hitman's getting HDR support on all platforms

Hitman came out of nowhere to be one of the best games of 2016. A good assassin will always surprise you. Agent 47 has no problem impressing with his skill, but he's soon upping his style.

Developer IO Interactive announced today that Hitman will support HDR come January 31. That upgrade is coming to all of Hitman's platforms that are capable of HDR output: PC, PS4, PS4 Pro, and Xbox One S. The date is timed to the retail release of the physical edition.

Hitman, an already good game, will be just a bit better for people with capable monitors. That sheen is always appreciated, especially since the technology is in its relative infancy. But, it's extra appreciated here because Hitman is the type of experience people find themselves spending a lot of time with. Everyone likes something that's easy on the eyes.

@Hitman [Twitter]

If looks could kill: Hitman's getting HDR support on all platforms screenshot



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News:: Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 hits Xbox One and PC on March 7

Did any of you end up buying the PlayStation 4 re-release of Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3? Excitement from the Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite announcement had me considering it, but in the end I came to my senses once I remembered how very bad I am at these games. I'll stick to watching the pros.

Next up, Capcom is bringing the fighter to Xbox One and PC on March 7, 2017 with a $25 digital release. We already knew the month, so that's not exactly surprising, but this is: there's also going to be a physical PS4 and Xbox One release of Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 on the same day.

Priced at $30, these physical editions will see a "limited release" at GameStop and EB Games, and they'll include an exclusive 10-page comic with original art from Marvel's Sean Chen and Gerardo Sandoval. I feel bad for folks who jumped on the digital version not knowing this would happen.

Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 Physical Version Coming March 7th! [Capcom-Unity]

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 hits Xbox One and PC on March 7 screenshot

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News:: The Division's last DLC adds traditional competitive multiplayer

It doesn't take a background in sociology or psychology to understand that there's something fascinating about The Division's Dark Zone. That's the area in the game where people can play against the environment to find high-end gear. But, there are also real people running around, and they might try to kill each other to take that gear for themselves. Every encounter is a tense and uneasy affair, just waiting to see if the other person's going to be a dick about things.

For its final add-on, The Division's going to sidestep all of that. Last Stand introduces a more traditional competitive multiplayer component: Teams of eight just trying to off each other over and over again. It's a control-based mode, as players are tasked with holding terminals and uploading data. The environment is still a factor though because the control points are guarded by non-playable enemies.

This technically takes place in the Dark Zone but those rules don't necessarily apply. For instance, shooting another player won't turn you rogue. Also, nothing is lost (like experience, loot, keys, etc.) from dying.  It's just in the Dark Zone because that's where players are a threat to one another.

Those who are interested in the nuance of Last Stand would do well to check out Ubisoft's detailed reveal. It deals in the granular, like how to earn tactical boosts. It should also be noted that players must be level 30 to play Last Stand; it's probably a safe bet that most people who still play The Division have reached that threshold.

Ubisoft neglected to mention a price for Last Stand, but the other two expansions were both priced at $15. Also, there isn't a release date yet, but Microsoft's timed-exclusivity has seemingly expired as it'll launch on PC, PS4, and Xbox One simultaneously. 

Intelligence Annex #13: Taking a Stand [The Division]

The Division's last DLC adds traditional competitive multiplayer screenshot



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News:: Rocket League's fourth season starts in April, competitive tiers are getting restructured

Rocket League's third season has run longer than expected and it still has some legs. Psyonix has announced the window when season four will start, and it's toward the beginning of April. That means we have almost three more months of season three.

The reason for the wait is because Psyonix says that some changes for season four are tied to a game update. All of the changes aren't detailed, but a restructuring of the competitive tiers is mentioned. This infographic breaks down the new tiers:

Rocket League's fourth season starts in April, competitive tiers are getting restructured screenshot

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News:: A single image of the Nintendo Switch tells us three things

Nintendo has shown precious little of the Switch's user interface so far -- just a few seconds teasing the console's menu during last week's live stream and a fleeting glance during a Treehouse livestream. Apart from showing off the general layout and confirming the presence of the Nintendo eShop, Nintendo's tease didn't tell us much. Now, an image Tweeted out by indie developer Nicalis tell us a lot more: The Switch my have multiple users, menu themes and a couple of unannounced games.



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News:: Did Nintendo sell us a ROM of Super Mario Bros.?

The Virtual Console on the Wii and Wii U has been pretty crappy. While there are definitely a bunch of classic titles available, Nintendo's treatment of the service comes off as an afterthought. This is a company with one of the richest back catalogues of games available, yet it only ever manages to release one or two games per month. That is just plain lazy, no matter how you slice it.

What may make the service seem even lazier is some evidence that Nintendo possibly sold us a ROM of the original Super Mario Bros. on the Wii. If one does some digging through the actual data files of the Virtual Console's port of the perennial classic, you'll find a line of code that is only present in dumped ROM files online. As a matter of fact, this extra line of code matches some of the ROMs one can find from various sites.

Eurogamer has a nice write-up that details more of the actual process used to determine if we've all been duped. We're more than likely never going to get a definitive answer from Nintendo, but all of this evidence is pointing to the big N being a bit more sleazy then we all realized.

Did Nintendo sell us a ROM of Super Mario Bros.? screenshot

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News:: The new Call of Cthulhu trailer is a descent into madness

I forgot that there was a new Call of Cthulhu game in the works. The Cyanide-developed title was announced early last year, but news of the Lovecraftian "RPG Investigation" game has been infrequent as of late.

Luckily, publisher Focus Home Interactive have released a trailer for Call of Cthulhu that scratches a specific, spooky itch.

The new Call of Cthulhu trailer is a descent into madness screenshot

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News:: Game and console sales drop as Japan braces for Switch impact

Before a tsunami comes ashore, water recedes back into the ocean to feed the coming wave. If Japanese consumers are shoreline water, then they are pulling back as all console sales have dropped a significant amount from last week, many having dropped to less than half what they sold last week. The likely cause? Nintendo Switch pre-orders go live on January 21. 

Not just consoles, but games have also had a significant drop this week. Pokémon Sun & Moon, which has sold above or near 100,000 every week since release, has dropped to just over 31,000 sales this week. Super Mario Maker for 3DS, last weeks top seller, went from 100k to 23.8k. Such drops are the same across the board, ignoring the new releases.

Kingdom Hearts 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue opens up at number one, but sold only 137,797 copies. Part of the low number could also be attributed to the fact that it's just a movie, port, and a new piece of content that is only a few hours long. New Danganronpa V3 is second and third place for PS Vita and PS4, respectively, selling a combined 116,172 units.

Game and console sales drop as Japan braces for Switch impact screenshot

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News:: 'Breath of the Wild' will be Nintendo's last Wii U game

The Wii U has had a difficult life cycle, and Nintendo is ready to leave it behind. Speaking with Polygon, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime confirmed that The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will be the last internally developed game for the system. "From a first-party standpoint, there's no new development coming after the launch of Breath of the Wild," he said. "We really are at the end of life for Wii U." While understandable, some may be surprised at how quickly Nintendo is ceasing software development. The 3DS, for comparison, still has a handful of games coming out in 2017, including Pikmin and Fire Emblem Echoes.

Source: Polygon



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News:: Everyone gets a giant chicken in this Heroes of the Storm event

In addition to Valeera and the Tassadar/Rexxar changes, Heroes of the Storm will kick off a new Lunar Festival event on January 24. It'll run until February 14, and instead of just rewarding players with a typical portrait, it'll also provide a rooster mount upon completion.

Basically, you have three weeks to complete 25 "Rooster Races," which are like mini scavenger hunts that take place before the match starts. Just like every other event you get the quest once per day, but you can participate in a race as long as one person in the game has the quest active. So it should take you anywhere from 25-30 games to finish it.

Beyond that there's a few bundles on offer (2016 and 2017 Lunar heroes, skins, and mounts), which introduce Monkey King Samuro, Lunar Li-Ming, and the Nimbus Cloud mount into the Nexus. If you're so inclined, you can also buy the Golden Rooster for 10,000 gold.

Out of everything I'm most stoked to try out Valeera on live servers. She's not as exciting out of the gate as a lot of other new heroes, but her skill ceiling is already giving way to some cool plays in the pro scene.

Lunar Festival [Battle.net]

Everyone gets a giant chicken in this Heroes of the Storm event screenshot



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News:: 20 minutes with Breath of the Wild left me wanting more

I didn't have to get up at 6:00am on a Saturday morning to go out in the freezing cold, sit on a train for two hours and spend 2000 yen each way to get my hands on the Nintendo Switch. But I did. I wanted to see what Nintendo's new toy had to offer, even if Mario Odyssey was not playable, and I just had to try out The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

The demo they had available is the same one that was at E3 and the one you've likely seen in videos where Link wakes up in some chamber then runs out to meet a cliff. So its not new. Whatever. I wanted to play it even if it meant having to get a time reservation ticket and come back four hours later. As I like to play games myself, I hadn't watched very much gameplay video including of this demo, so considering its open world nature there are likely things in the demo I did not encounter or experience and thus can not comment on.

20 minutes with Breath of the Wild left me wanting more screenshot

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News:: Ubisoft swipes Guitar Hero developer FreeStyleGames from Activision

Guitar Hero Live was a fantastic rhyhtm game that breathed new life into the genre for me after nearly a decade of safe plays from developers like Harmonix. But a lot of things were going against it -- the "live" gimmick was off-putting for some, you had to buy all new hardware (something Harmonix is still dealing with), it had microtransactions, and the Guitar Hero name had already been dragged so far through the mud it was tough to come back.

But come back the developer shall, as they've been pulled into an all new publisher. Ubisoft has announced that they've acquired developer FreeStyleGames, and they don't even have to move house, as the Leamington, UK based studio is now "Ubisoft Leamington." My guess? Guitar Hero is gone for good, but Ubisoft's own Rocksmith IP has a long life ahead of it.

Richard Blenkinsop heads up Reflections and new Leamington Studio [Ubisoft]

Ubisoft swipes Guitar Hero developer FreeStyleGames from Activision screenshot



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News:: Local multiplayer mayhem comes to Xbox One with 'TowerFall Ascension'

Xbox One owners, it's time to invest in another controller because local-multiplayer mainstay TowerFall Ascension is finally coming to Xbox Live. From January 25th, Xbox One gamers will be able to get their hands on all the same content PS4 players have, with the game's Dark World expansion also arriving on Xbox the same day.

Source: Eurogamer



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News:: Path of Exile is gearing up for an Xbox One version

Grinding Gear Games' well-liked action-RPG Path of Exile is making the move to Xbox One later this year and, wait, really? Huh. What a nice surprise! The port won't be an exact duplicate given the new gamepad controls, as you'd expect, but it will retain the free-to-play system and also "contain all the content from the PC version, including the upcoming 3.0.0 expansion that includes Act Five."

"Xbox One players will play on their own realm, separate to the PC realm," wrote the studio. "This is due to small gameplay differences between the two versions, such as the number of Flask slots and how some skills are targeted. We intend to follow the same content and league release schedule on both the Xbox One and PC versions of Path of Exile."

Also worth noting: the port "represents over a year of work from a small strike team within our studio -- the guys who also created our DirectX 11 version." I'm curious to see how this all feels on a gamepad, but just generally speaking, it's great to have console representation for the action-RPG genre.

Path of Exile is Coming to Xbox One [Path of Exile]

Path of Exile is gearing up for an Xbox One version screenshot



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News:: Buy a copy of 'Resident Evil 7' on Xbox One, get it free on PC

The latest game getting the Xbox Play Anywhere treatment is Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. That's right, Capcom's upcoming horror jaunt will support cloud saves, and buying the digital Xbox One version will net you a gratis copy of the game on PC. While it isn't the first non-Microsoft produced game with the feature (indies Ark: Survival Evolved, Astroneer and We Happy Few will have it as well) it's certainly the highest profile occurrence thus far.

Source: Phil Spencer (Twitter)



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News:: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is going to be the last first-party release for Wii U

We all kind of assumed this, but now we have rock-hard information straight from Nintendo that it's the case -- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will be the last first-party Wii U release.

Speaking to Polygon, Nintendo of America boss Reggie Fils-Aime stated it rather plainly, saying, "From a first-party standpoint, there's no new development coming after the launch of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. We really are at the end of life for Wii U." Online services like Mario Kart and Splatoon will still be supported, but are expected to "sunset" after "quite some time in the future." The fate of Project Giant Robot is still unknown -- maybe it became Arms for the Switch?

Given that third parties have been revoking their Wii U ports left and right in favor of the Switch, and now Nintendo themselves have confirmed to be pulling out, expect the occasional indie eShop release a few times a month from March onward.

Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will be the last Nintendo game for Wii U [Polygon]

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is going to be the last first-party release for Wii U screenshot



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News:: Review: Yakuza 0

Japan in the '80s was a wonderful time for business owners. The yen was exploding in value and money was flowing like water. If you were involved in any kind of business, legit or not, you were basically so wealthy that you could blow your nose with money. Most people were having a blast and living a carefree lifestyle.

Set during this period of Japan’s history (called the Bubble Economy), the story begins in Tokyo with a young and inexperienced Kiryu Kazuma doing grunt work for the Dojima family of the Tojo Clan. He soon gets mixed up in a false murder accusation and is on the run for his life.

Review: Yakuza 0 screenshot

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News:: Stardew Valley won't make the Nintendo Switch launch

Stardew Valley on handheld systems sounds alluring to the point where I might conceivably triple-dip for the upcoming Nintendo Switch version. Unfortunately but understandably, creator Eric Barone has confirmed that the game won't be a launch title for the system on March 3, 2017 (reminder: the Wii U port was dropped), but he is "still planning on bringing it to [Switch] later this year."

What's more, Stardew Valley might also one day make it over to PlayStation Vita. Might. "We are currently investigating the possibility of a PS Vita port," Barone said in a blog post. So while it's far too early to get excited about that prospect, dang, that sure would be sweet to see.

As for the existing console versions, an update to address "the issue where saved games become unload-able" and "several other issues" is expected to go out in early February. Additional localization (into languages like Spanish, German, and Japanese) will be beta tested on Steam in early February as well, and the long-awaited cooperative multiplayer is still "going to be a while yet."

Lastly, Barone says he intends to better incorporate gamepad controls on PC and consoles "in a future patch." I don't mind the cursor-based navigation all that much, but it can be tedious at times.

Stardew Valley Progress Update — Second console patch, localization, and more [Stardew Valley]

Stardew Valley won't make the Nintendo Switch launch screenshot



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News:: Nintendo Download: Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King

We have liftoff!

The eShop is a little more exciting this week with Dragon Quest VIII for 3DS, which is also joined by Punch Club, Color Cubes, and a Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World demo. Not bad given the past month's lull period. Wii U isn't looking too shabby either with a Star Fox 64 Virtual Console release, on top of Koi DX, Mega Maze, Snowball, and Toby: The Secret Mine.

The 3DS will continue its momentum a bit with Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World in a few weeks, and Nintendo is releasing its third mobile experience in Fire Emblem Heroes around the same timeframe.

Nintendo Download: Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King screenshot

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News:: Whoa! Micro Machines are making a comeback on PC, PS4, and Xbox One

We're officially at the point where if a Switch port isn't announced, we question it. But that's not really what's on my mind right now as I read the announcement that Codemasters was bringing back the Micro Machines gaming franchise -- it's crazy to think that they've had access to this IP since the '90s.

Yes, Micro Machines World Series is a thing, and it's coming on April 21 on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. It'll sport 12 player online or four-player split-screen support, with 12 vehicles and direct support from Hasbro for brands like G.I. Joe, NERF, and Hungry Hungry Hippos.

Talk about a blast from the past. What's next, Monster in My Pocket?

Whoa! Micro Machines are making a comeback on PC, PS4, and Xbox One screenshot

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