Seven months after snapping up Twitch competitor Beam, Microsoft is unveiling a major update to its interactive tools for video game streamers. Called Interactive 2, the new system is "built from the ground up" to improve interactive features for both game streamers and the folks who watch them, starting in March of this year.
Source: Beam
Aquatic RPG Sunless Sea has been a big win for British indie developer Failbetter Games. The well-reviewed game has sold half a million copies since its 2015 PC release, and soon, iPad users will be able to get in on the Victorian Gothic adventure. Not long after sequel Sunless Skies very quickly exceeded its Kickstarter funding goal, Failbetter Games announced that Sunless Sea is headed to iPad on March 23rd.
Given the portability of the Nintendo Switch, owners may be tempted to personalize theirs. The only problem is that according to dbrand, a company that makes covers for devices like phones and laptops, the system and its controllers don't react well to vinyl wraps. As described in a Reddit post and a series of tweets, the company indicates that it tested a few options with a pre-release console and a retail model, and found that its screen-printed coating has peeling issues.
Source: r/NintendoSwitch (Reddit), dbrand (Twitter)
There's really nothing like a console midnight launch. Even the worst-case scenario is a bloodbath where everyone is looking out for themselves. It's not every day you get to experience a real-life low-stakes version of Lord of the Flies! Thankfully, the scene at the Best Buy in West Hollywood last night was upbeat and friendly -- the best-case scenario. I bonded with the people in line pretty quickly, thanks in part to my willingness to bring them back some McDonalds and report on the status of the line at the GameStop just around the corner.
We played an incredibly nerdy version of charades, where anime and superheroes were more common answers than pop-culture blockbusters. For some reason, we started joking about peeing in bushes, and that eventually turned into a communal viewing of the infamous (and completely SFW) Piss Challenge video. There was a guy who brought his guitar, noodling away for a good three-odd hours. I stood my ground as people said the Nintendo 64 had more than like five good games. And I had a tough time figuring out why everyone was standing in line.
When I asked my linemates why they were camping out for a Switch, everyone responded with one word: "Zelda." Even though there was plenty of confusion about launch bundles -- the savvy employees at our Best Buy put out some Twilight Princess Ganondorf statues, that from a distance honestly did kind of look like Breath of the Wild Switch bundles -- as well as accessory pricing and availability, people were still all the way there for a Nintendo Switch.
Are you an owner of an Xbox One who couldn't get a Switch today? Maybe you did, but weren't able to buy Breath of the Wild...although you could just grab it digitally. There is also the third option of you being an Xbox One owner and only wanting that console. Well, if you fall into any of these categories and have an active Xbox Live Gold subscription, you can now play Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 or Battlefield 1 for the entire weekend.
You'll have until the end of Sunday, March 5 to play as much of either (or both) games as you'd like. This includes access to the multiplayer and campaign portions of each title, which could conceivably eat your entire weekend. I'm not sure you'll be able to raise your power level to over 9,000 in only three days, but you can try!
Explore Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 for Free This Weekend With Xbox Live Gold [Xbox Wire]
Play Battlefield 1 Free This Weekend Only With Xbox Live Gold [Xbox Wire]
If you were hoping to deck out your pristine new Nintendo Switch with a vinyl skin or wrap, you're gonna want to pump the breaks on that idea. As relayed by skin maker dbrand, there are issues.
"We're here to make a public service announcement that under no circumstances should you be buying a vinyl skin / wrap for your Nintendo Switch. Seems like a counter-intuitive narrative from the world's leading skin manufacturer, right? Allow us to explain.
Simply put, the coating which exists on the JoyCons (and the console – more on that later) is either cured or designed in a way which doesn't play well with adhesive.
We received the Switch about 96 hours ago and immediately began prototyping. After a couple of prototypes, we saw minor indications of the outer coating beginning to peel off. Nintendo advised that the device we had in-hand was not the final build, although we assumed that pertained more to the software than the hardware.
We continued prototyping and after about 24 hours of applying and removing prototypes, the JoyCons looked like this - image link. At this point, we hit pause on the JoyCons and continued onto the console."
The company also ran into similar problems with final, consumer-grade hardware. That goes for both the Joy-Con controllers and the main handheld Switch unit itself. So, no dice. dbrand won't be selling these skins, and it advises against buying similar products from other manufacturers.
I wouldn't fault anyone for assuming that skins would come on and off without major repercussions. If you have any sticker-obsessed friends, give 'em a shout. At least in the case of this manufacturer, dbrand, full refunds are being issued to folks who pre-ordered skins for their Switch.
WARNING: Do *not* skin your Nintendo Switch! [reddit]
dbrand [Twitter]
Is tactical co-op your style? Then next week's open-worlder from Ubisoft might just float your boat, especially now that there's discounts to be had.
There are deals on all platforms up to 20% off. PC players get no strings attached to the price breaks, but on console you'll need a paid membership (and Deluxe is sold out for console, ick).
For PC gaming there's two retailers in question. GMG was the first to break discount ground offering an 18% price break. It is fully authorized by Ubisoft, so you get the same pre-order bonus Peruvian Connection mission that you would buying directly from Uplay or Steam.
GamersGate is the second authorized PC gaming retailer offering a deal. In this case it's slightly cheaper at 20% off. This makes the Standard Edition only $47.99 or $12 in savings or as much as $20 in savings with a price drop to $79.99 for the Gold Edition.
PC Gaming Deals
GMG Discounts
GamersGate Discounts
On console you have two options for discounts: Amazon and Best Buy. Best Buy will require you to pony up $30 for a two-year membership to its Gamers Club Unlocked program, but then you'll get 20% off new and pre-order games. Amazon has a similar program with a Prime membership, something many already have (but also a $100, one-year purchase, so keep that in mind).
Unfortunately Deluxe is sold out at both Amazon and Best Buy. Gold is still available for the Xbox One at Amazon, but is sold out for the PS4. Digital copies can be had at both retailers, but the GCU/Prime discounts do not apply to digital codes, only to physical boxed copies.
Console Deals
Gold vs. Deluxe vs. Standard
Can't decide which edition to buy? With prices coming down on Deluxe to as low as $56, it's actually cheaper than if you had allotted $60 originally for Wildlands. So what are the differences?
Deluxe is basically a boost of a little bit of everything and extra customization options. You'll be gifted the Wilderness rifle which is a unique shotgun, a dirt bike, a light hunting jacket, the sapper backpack, an Oakley SI straight jacket figure glasses, three unique emblems, three weapon cameos, and and an XP booster.
Gold is everything in the Deluxe plus the Season Pass. There were not a ton of details on the Season Pass until just recently, but here's the skinny. You'll receive one-week early access to two major expansions:
One other mission included is labeled the "Unidad Conspiracy" and then you get packs galore in terms of faction-themed equipment packs. The exclusive vehicle included in the Season Pass (aka Gold) is the Bolivian Minibus, and finally you'll also receive permanent +5% XP booster (so you can grind a wee bit less to unlock), along with some single-use short two-hour XP boosters (+50% XP for the main player and +25% XP for other players in the session).
Hey, game developers: William Gibson called. He wants his dystopian sci-fi future back.
The annual Game Developers Conference showcases the latest projects from studios around the world, offering a first-hand look at the themes and trends driving the industry forward. And this year, it's all about cyberpunk. Walking among the flashy, flickering and noisy booths of the GDC show floor and its surrounding events, the pattern becomes clear -- a significant portion of these games have a strong sci-fi vibe, many of them dealing with the idea of futuristic corporate overreach and gritty technological espionage.
A couple years into Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice and Ninja Theory has hit the alpha milestone.
"Given the complexities of intertwining mythology, backstory, art, and gameplay, it took us longer than we expected to get to this point," says director Tameem Antoniades. "But now all of the story scenes have been captured, all of the VO recorded, and the gameplay is fully playable from start to finish." If you've lost track of Hellblade in recent months, this behind-the-scenes video is a good check-in.
The PC and PS4 action-adventure game should be locked in for a release this year barring any more delays. I'm really into the mythology influences here, and my fingers are firmly crossed that the story, psychosis, and game elements can come together to form something cohesive and memorable.
Hellblade: Two-year Journey Approaches End as Ninja Theory Hits Alpha [PlayStation Blog]
Remember de Blob? Some of you sure will. For everyone else in need of a refresher, THQ Nordic is set to reintroduce the Wii-era paint-the-town platformer with an incoming PC port on April 27, 2017.
Our own Jonathan Holmes had positive things to say about de Blob in his review way back in 2008, including this nugget of kindness: "if you're a fan of Jet Grind Radio, Katamari Damacy, or any stylish, pseudo-sandbox style game, then get de Blob today. You won't be disappointed."
THQ Nordic has been on a roll. Besides this, there's also Sine Mora EX and Lock's Quest coming up.
de Blob [Steam]
Mega Mewtwo in Pokémon Sun and Moon? Sure, why not!
If you've brought Mewtwo into the game using the Pokémon Bank, there's a now-active code for Mewtwonite X and Mewtwonite Y, the Mega Stones needed for it to evolve into Mega Mewtwo X and Mega Mewtwo Y, respectively. That code is "M2DESCENT" and it's the only way to make this happen currently since held items (in this case Mega Stones) are lost in the Bank transportation process.
You and your Mewtwo are now free to run off and terrorize Alola as you please.
If you're interested in some Descent-like shooter action, you could wait for Descent Underground, the crowdfunded game from from a developer behind Star Citizen. However, it's not expected to arrive until next year, and when it does, there are no plans for a console release. There is another option, though: Sublevel Zero: Redux. Based on the well-received original that launched on Steam in 2015, the console version for Xbox One and PS4 brings new content, campaigns and more.
Source: Sony
Anyone eager to play the upcoming Danganronpa V3 and without a console will be happy to know that the game is coming to PC. Spike Chunsoft confirmed, today, that the game will be launching on September 26 for the platform (which is the same day as the PS4 and Vita versions). While NIS America will be publishing the game for Sony's platforms, Spike Chunsoft will be doing it for PC.
What hasn't been confirmed is whether or not the port will be handled by a different company. The previous two games on PC were ported by Abstraction Games (who has a decent portfolio of some pretty big-name console ports), so hopefully it will be tackling this one.
Murder time! Danganronpa V3 PC release confirmed [Rock Paper Shotgun]
In an age where developers seemingly bend over backwards to accommodate fan requests (cough, the Mass Effect 3 ending, cough), Team Ninja decided to buck that for its latest game, Nioh. That's not to say that the developer didn't take feedback to heart for its samurai action title, just not all of it according to a post on the PlayStation Blog.
Source: PlayStation Blog
Not enough people played Sine Mora. A lot of you probably don't even remember it exists.
But this fantastic Digital Reality/Grasshopper Manufacture shoot 'em up from 2012 is getting a new lease on life, in the form of a patented "EX" edition. Yep, there's an enhanced/extended version of the game coming later this summer, and it's set to arrive on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. It'll sport both story and arcade modes, in case you were wondering if anything would be left out -- but not much other than that is known.
Sine Mora EX will be playable at PAX East at THQ Nordic's booth next week. I'm so psyched to replay this again I'm considering booting it up this weekend just for a little bit, haha.
Here it is. This is it. By now, the lucky group of people that were able to grab a Switch will have one in their hands. Everyone will be running around the Great Plateau in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Shovel Knight made its way in at the very last second, with the new expansion to boot.
A large chunk will be blowing friends up thanks to Super Bomberman R coming to a home console after seven years. While it may be no F-Zero, Fast RMX is sure to scratch some itch for fans that are looking for something similar on a Nintendo console. Heck, those last two have online versus capabilities! Who knows how the network will be on launch though...
As the sun sets on Bungie's shooter MMO Destiny, its fans look ahead to a new dawn, when the old game hands its reign (and playerbase) over to its sequel coming sometime this year, currently called Destiny 2. Unfortunately, its loyal constituency had a bit of a rude awakening this morning when Bungie announced that every player character would be reset going into the new game. That's right, folks: All your Gjallarhorns, No Land Beyonds and skill points won't be coming along for the ride.
Source: Bungie
So uh, Square Enix? You probably could have led with this when you were trying to get people to buy a port during the launch of the Switch.
According to the game's developer, Tokyo RPG Factory, I Am Setsuna is getting free DLC that's exclusive to the Switch version of teh game. It's called "Temporal Battle Arena," and it's coming this April.
The gist is that it's an asynchronous PVP arena where players can upload their party's battle data to fight against other players in AI form. You can earn Spritnite from it, and upload up to three different configurations to keep things interesting. It has the potential to be something you only waste your time with for an hour, but it's a nice little bit of free DLC, from Square Enix no less.
It's sort of enticing me to double dip -- especially since the Vita version of the game was canceled in the west. I'd love to take this with me and play it in handheld form.
I Am Setuna [Square Enix via Siliconera]
Ah, the Alt.Ctrl.GDC booth. It's the real reason thousands of people flock to downtown San Francisco every year, under the guise of attending panels, networking and showing off their work at the annual Game Developers Conference. Alt.Ctrl.GDC is a collection of games that use experimental controls. That means no keyboards, no mice and no gamepads. Instead, the booth is filled with things like laser harps, spaceship control panels, giant inflatable dark rooms, DIY bookcases, record players, furry cat hats, cardboard boxes and waist-high, carpeted treadmills.
Bungie has confirmed that for the upcoming sequel to Destiny, most of your player statistics won't transfer over. While you can still continue your guardian's journey, you won't be getting a jump start on leveling. According to Bungie, all "power, possessions, and Eververse-related items and currency will not carry forward." In further clarification that shouldn't even be necessary, the company stated that those items will all remain accessible in the previous game.
Bungie's reasoning for this decision is at least sound. "Sequels represent the start of a new adventure for every player, with new worlds to explore, new stories to tell, new powers to acquire, new loot to earn, and much more," the official blog post reads. I can understand that, even if explaining how your guardian suddenly lost all of their powers will be stupid.
The things that will carry over include all personalization done to your guardian, which I suppose means armor shaders, specific rare pieces of armor, and maybe some unique guns. This will only be available to players who have reached level 20 and completed the "Black Garden" mission in Destiny (so basically everyone).
Bungie is also planning one final live event for Destiny called "Age of Triumph." No further details were shared, just that it should occur toward the end of March. I don't know if I'll be able to muster up enough interest to return to the game, but at least Bungie is trying to please fans instead of totally dropping this in favor of the future.
The Road Ahead [Bungie]
Tim Schafer is smiling and shaking hands with a hovering crowd as I sit down next to him. A college student asks if she can talk with him later about his career. A fan thanks him for his work -- a library of iconic video games that stretches back to the early '90s. He takes the time to respond to each of them, encouraging the student and graciously accepting the fan's gratitude before sitting down to walk me through a demo of Full Throttle Remastered, an HD remake of one of his first games. I ask him if it was strange to revisit a game he created over two decades ago. "It kind of reminds you of the lessons you learned, but forgot," he said. "Like, put a bunch of explosions on the cover of your box. That did really well for this game. I keep forgetting to put more explosions on the covers."
Only 24 games have ever received a perfect 40/40 from Famitsu magazine, which is the sum of four different reviewers' scores from 1-10. 428: Shibuya Scramble is one of them. Until now, most thought it would never leave Japan. However, Spike Chunsoft announced at GDC 2017 that it is localizing the highly rated game for a 2018 western release on PC and PS4. It originally released on December 4, 2008 for the Nintendo Wii with later ports to PlayStation 3, PSP, and mobile (all Japan-only).
428 is a mystery themed visual novel that uses live action stills of real actors and locations around Shibuya, Tokyo. The plot summary describes a kidnapping that "brings together a hot-blooded detective, hard-hitting journalist, former gang leader, the head researcher of a big pharma manufacturer and a part-timer stuck in cat costume for a series of events each more unexpected and outrageous than the last. Can they—or the city itself—make it through the day?"
Today at the HGC Western Clash event for Heroes of the Storm, Blizzard announced an unlikely new character -- Probius -- and it's quite literally a probe from the Starcraft series. Probious is a ranged specialist that summons Pylons and Photon Cannons from Starcraft with a builder playstyle.
He'll hit the PTR in "a few short days" (likely Tuesday). Cho'gall, Arthas, Anub'arak changes are also coming in the same patch.
Indie Megabooth has become something of a haven for gamers looking for fresh experiences and new ideas. It's become a staple event for indie games at shows like PAX, Gamescom and, of course GDC. This year's developer conference is no exception, featuring a dozen games that defy control conventions, make players question their identities and explore possible futures with fun sci-fi settings.
For 30 years now, The Legend of Zelda has served as the preeminent franchise in video gaming. It’s been the bell cow for other creators as the industry has grown and today serves as the inspiration to any number of indie developers who grew up rescuing the princess as the little elf boy in green.
Of course anyone can be inspired by a game. Successfully transforming that inspiration into something worthwhile takes skill, determination, and dedication; three things that are missing from Legend of the Skyfish.
Not all video game movies are terrible. The Mortal Kombat movies were great. Yes, even the second one. Perhaps Mortal Kombat's Chinese elements will flow into Sleeping Dogs and grant it success. Maybe that's a weird connection to draw on but hey video game movies begin with a handicap and need any sort of hope they can get. Donnie Yen will lead while Fast and Furious producer Neal Moritz, well, produces.
Yen is a huge star, especially in China. Personally I have only ever seen him in Star Wars Rogue One, which didn't give me a very good first impression. To be fair, that movie had pathetic writing so there's not much he could have done. A video game adaptation is not likely to be the film that sells me on him, but we'll see!
If you've been waiting to try Sony's VR light gun, or PS VR Aim Controller, then you can now start to get excited. Independent developer Impulse Gear has let slip to RoadToVR that the peripheral will hit store shelves on May 16th, 2017, alongside the VR shooter it created, Farpoint. We've known since E3 last year that Farpoint was designed for the new controller, although details of the bundle are new.
I don't understand The Sexy Brutale. I played for an hour while chitchatting with design director Charles Griffiths. After that hour, I felt like I was almost there, like everything had almost clicked. But then the demo ended and I was left to wonder if my intuition was accurate. There's a lot to process.
The quick pitch on The Sexy Brutale is that it's a Groundhog Day-type approach to an eccentric murder mystery. Over the course of one day (nine real-life minutes), ten guests are offed in increasingly unpredictable ways. The first one was simply shot; the third was killed by a giant spider.
Replaying that fateful day over and over is key to saving them because before you can save them, you have to understand them. So there's a voyeuristic aspect -- staring through keyholes, listening through walls -- to it all. You need to learn their routines in order to intervene. There's a certain amount of tinkering that's necessary because almost everything (objects and interactions) has some eventual use. It just may not be the use you immediately need.
Club Nintendo was pretty much the best.
You'd pop open that new game case, and other than the new game smell, you'd get a cool little Club Nintendo insert to redeem for points. Since then the My Nintendo reward system has been a huge step down, but it exists, and there's now a way to redeem physical copies of games on the Switch (RIP Wii U).
All you have to do is pop open the case in the same way, glare at the lack of instruction manuals and inserts, put the cartridge into your Switch, then press the "+" button on the homescreen to bring up its menu, and select "My Nintendo Rewards program." From there you can redeem it for Gold Points. Any user on the system can get the reward, you just select them at the point of redemption.
Make sure you do it sooner than later as there seems to be a one-year limit on some games. It's easy enough where it shouldn't be an issue! As a note, I earned 12 Gold Points for Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
My Nintendo [Nintendo]
You can make a list of good video game movies on the back of a thumbtack, but that doesn't stop Hollywood from producing them. The latest title to be fed into the sausage machine is Square Enix's popular 2012 title Sleeping Dogs. Deadline Hollywood is reporting that Donnie Yen, star of Ip Man and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story has been signed to play the lead.
Source: Deadline Hollywood
Nintendo told us that you'll be able to reach the final boss in under an hour in Zelda: Breath of the Wild -- it's just not guaranteed that you'll make it out alive. Having played it, I can say that's accurate. A bunch of speedrunners are testing out that theory as well.
Several folks are attempting world records right now, with some teetering within the one and a half hour range for "any %" runs (where no progress is required), to roughly four hours for any number of critical path dungeon clears. There's quite a bit of theorycrafting going on right now in terms of what's the most effective way to get through specific areas of the game -- one of my favorite elements of speedrunning. It's like a tapestry that you can take bits and pieces of and apply to your own runs, while divining new tactics on your own.
I'll tell you this much -- with no glitches needed for a "quick run," it's going to make for some exciting AGDQ material. I mean, we could see some glitches soon (I think someone will figure out some way to get out of the tutorial area faster), but in general, it's looking pretty accessible overall.
