Saturday, February 18, 2017

News:: Atlas and P-body from Portal 2 get the Figma treatment

Portal 2 had a great single-player mode, but the most fun I had with the title was playing through the devious puzzles in the cooperative two-player section. Instead of controlling a human, your Portal gun in this mode was carried by one of two cyclopean robots named Atlas and P-body. The pair never say a word, but they have tons of personality that comes out through their movements and gestures in the game.

Earlier today, the Good Smile company revealed at the New York Toy Fair that two new Figma models of the robots will soon be available. While toys depicting the pair have been obtainable in the past, the Figmas look to have a lot more points of articulation. You can see a photo of the prototype as well as the presumptive box art below.

Good Smile Company [FaceBook]

Atlas and P-body from Portal 2 get the Figma treatment screenshot

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News:: It's not looking good for the missing $10,000 SNES package

Earlier this week, we reported on a missing shipment of 100 classic Super Nintendo (SNES) games that went missing on their way to an archivist in New Jersey. There's been some movement in the case since then, but unfortunately, the news isn't good.

The original tracking information for the missing package. Byuu says the first shipment took just ten days to reach him.

To briefly recap the earlier story, game historian Byuu was working with a collector in Frankfurt, Germany, borrowing games to create pristine ROM files for games that were released in Europe's PAL format. He'd already done the same for the US and Japanese SNES libraries. A package containing 100 of these PAL cartridges made it overseas, but went missing after being transferred to the United States Postal Service (USPS).

I've been in contact with Byuu since the last article went up, and he let me know more about what's happened since Tuesday. Byuu received a letter from the USPS and a torn piece of the original shipment, photos of which are below. The letter refers to damage by "normal machine processing." But there's hardly anything left of the package, and understandably, Byuu was outraged. He took to Reddit to vent his frustration.

"They shipped me the mother fucking box label and nothing else, claiming the machine ate it. BULLSHIT. If the label came off, it'd belong to the box right next to it without a label.

The USPS employees in Jersey City just stole a $10,000 package of games. This is felony theft."


The torn scrap with with the addresses, along with the apology letter from the USPS.

I reached out to Byuu and tried to ask him some questions about what had happened. He had taken some time to cool down after the initial post, and had this to say: 

"Basically, the letter claims that the USPS' machine ate my package and tore off the label, which they sent back in an envelope without the package or the games.
Seeing this, last night I rather angrily posted about this and presumed it to be blatant theft. While I do still have a very bad feeling, the truth is I can't know for certainty what actually happened. But the circumstances are intensely suspicious. The top and bottom of the label is cut cleanly, which doesn't seem likely for a package being ripped open by a machine."
Even though it looks bad, there is a ray of hope. Byuu says that the media attention the story received led someone at the USPS consumer affairs department to get in contact with him. 
"He has opened an investigation case for me, and I've provided him with all of the information that I have. So now I am waiting for the results of the investigation. I do not know how long it will take. They have many possible places the package could have gone that will need to be searched.
My pessimism is rather significant, so my hopes are not high. But, there is at least a possibility that they can locate the package. So, fingers crossed."


The apology letter sent by the USPS.

I looked into some of the common suggestions that were made in the comments in the last article, and Byuu has addressed almost all of them. Several people suggested that he could have shipped ROM creation equipment to the collector instead of borrowing the games. Byuu says that his ROM dumping setup is custom, unique, and wouldn't travel well. Additionally, he anticipated spending over 600 hours to dump the ROMs, time the collector he was borrowing from doesn't have. This is also the reason he couldn't go to Germany to dump the ROMs in person. It's far more cost-effective to send a box than a person, and a box doesn't need to stay in a hotel while the work is being done.

While Byuu is hopeful that the package will be returned, he's taking steps to make sure that the collector he borrowed the games from is reimbursed for the loss. The parcel wasn't insured for the full value of the games, so Byuu has set up a Patreon to raise funds to buy replacement cartridges if necessary. Byuu wrote on Reddit that "If the package ultimately arrives, I will be refunding all donations."

It's not looking good for the missing $10,000 SNES package screenshot

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News:: Review: Sniper Elite 4

I love sniping in games, but I never do it. That’s because I’m terrible at sniping in video games. Give me a sniper rifle during a multiplayer match and you may as well have pulled the plug on my session, for that’s about how useful I become when armed with that type of weapon. I never had the combination of twitch skills and patience great game sniping requires, nor did I have the temperament to “get good”.

Sniper Elite 4 makes me feel like a good sniper. I still wouldn’t trust myself around a scope in any other game, but the folks at Rebellion have managed this feat in theirs. Ironically, they did it not by making sniping simple enough for someone of my level (what’s the level below “decomposing monkey”?) but by making it harder, more complex, and altogether a rarer activity than one would expect from a game called Sniper Elite.

Review: Sniper Elite 4 screenshot

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News:: Weekend Deals: the cheapest PS4's and Xbox One's for 2017

It's Presidents Day weekend and so many retailers are discounting appliances, TVs, and of course gaming equipment. If you're in the market for an Xbox One S, now is the best time to buy in 2017 with Microsoft authorizing a $50 price drop at participating retailers. At the Microsoft Store they're even extending this drop on the brand new Halo Wars 2 1TB console bundle, also tossing in a free Ubisoft game of your choice in the mix as a solid bonus. Deals valid through Presidents Day only (Feb 20).

A similar $50 discount exists on PlayStation 4 Slim consoles since last week, but over the weekend there is a killer $30 off coupon making them only $219 after a total $80 discount. The offer is at Jet.com where both the Uncharted 4 and Call of Duty: Infinite Wafare Legacy bundles have dropped to their lowest prices of the year. This is especially hot for the Infinite Warfare bundle since it did not partake in last year's $250 holiday price and since its late December launch has always been $300.

In upcoming game news, Halo Wars 2 and Mass Effect Andromeda are soon to grace their presence, with discounts. GMG has cut the price on Halo Wars 2 to $48.99, and since it's a Microsoft 'Play Anywhere key' the same game will work on either your Xbox One console or a Windows 10 PC. As for Mass Effect Andromeda, the game is a whopping 23% off this weekend, making it the best savings to date as a pre-order.

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Weekend Deals: the cheapest PS4's and Xbox One's for 2017 screenshot



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News:: Remember when Cam'ron rapped over 'One-Winged Angel'?

It'd be easy to assume that hip-hop and Japanese role-playing games share nothing in common. Both are acquired tastes within their respective industries that rarely intersect outside of the suburban bedrooms of nerdy white kids. But like hot sauce and mac 'n' cheese, hip-hop and JRPGs secretly work well together.

Don't believe me? That's fine, just listen to Cam'ron rapping over Final Fantasy VII's "One-Winged Angel" on "Troublemakers."

Remember when Cam'ron rapped over 'One-Winged Angel'? screenshot

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News:: New video details Kolin's ice capades in Street Fighter V

I've been enamored with Kolin, the first of five brand new characters in Street Fighter V's second season of DLC, ever since her reveal trailer. Judging by this new introductory video released by Capcom, the hype may have been warranted. 

Her V-Skill is essentially a counter, her V-Trigger disables stun recovery if you're hit by it, and I believe she has six or so target combos, which is huge in a game like Street Fighter since it gives her a wider variety of options to deal damage. She's got a rekka-type fighting style which allows her to quickly chain moves together, but the caveat seems to be that she does less damage per hit. 

Kolin's going to take nimble fingers to master, and I'm definitely going to try my best to do kick some ice with her when she's available to download February 28th. 

New video details Kolin's ice capades in Street Fighter V screenshot



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News:: Finally some new screenshots of Kingdom Hearts III and Final Fantasy VII Remake

It's been a good while since we've heard or seen anything regarding these titles, but Tetsuya Nomura, who is directing both games, is determined to show what he can. While he was not given permission to show video, he brought a couple screenshots to the Monaco Anime Game International Conference (MAGIC) 2017.

The Kingdom Hearts III image shows Sora battling a new Heartless in the Olympus Coliseum using the Keyblade in "Power Form" in which it has transformed into a shield. It can also be turned into a chariot.

Finally some new screenshots of Kingdom Hearts III and Final Fantasy VII Remake screenshot

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News:: Samurai Warriors: Spirit of Sanada coming West this May

Koei Tecmo's games fulfill a very particular need. If you ever need to let off some steam and just clear through waves and waves of nameless jerks, there's no better outlet than the Warriors series. The latest addition, Samurai Warriors: Spirit of Sanada follows the Sanada clan through the Sengoku era Japan setting Samurai Warriors has become known for. 

The announcement trailer reveals the first two characters, but there will be other characters announced in the next few weeks as well as pre-order DLC bonus costumes (you can view these below in the gallery). I'm just excited to play another Samurai Warriors title, honestly. Gotta get my Musou fix. Also Sanada reminds me sandia, which is "watermelon" in Spanish, and now I want some water fruit.

Samurai Warriors: Spirit of Sanada releases for PlayStation 4 and PC via Steam May 23rd. 

Samurai Warriors: Spirit of Sanada coming West this May screenshot

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News:: Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood's opening movie reveals new Samurai class

During the Final Fantasy XIV Fan Fest 2017 in Frankfurt, Square Enix revealed quite a bit of new details for Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood and has thankfully rounded up the info on their Twitter page.

Along with the opening movie teasing the new Samurai class addition (which will use STR gear), there's a new Eastern region inspired area called Shirogane, a new player hub in the port town of Kugane, a new Beast Tribe (the Kojin) and Primal (Susano), new dungeons including Yanxia and The Azim Steppe, and Akihiko Yoshida's gorgeous boxart for the Japanese release of the title. 

I've never played Final Fantasy XIV, but all of this cool looking stuff just might pull me in. It's going to be tough squeezing in an MMO during a busy Summer. The Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood expansion will release for PlayStation 4 and PC June 20th. 

Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood's opening movie reveals new Samurai class screenshot

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News:: The Morning After: Weekend Edition

Letter from the Editor

We live in a time when what previously would have been surreal is now reality. And I'm not even referring to the fact that our president fails to see the need to secure his smartphone, nor that the new head of the Environmental Protection Agency is probably less concerned with the environmental than with serving the oil industry -- though these and other governmental actions would have been appropriately Kafkaesque fever dreams in an earlier decade.



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