Multiplayer in Fallout on PC and consoles probably isn't going to happen. So, if you want friends to join you in the wasteland you're going to have to go old school. The folks from Fantasy Flight Games have devised a tabletop board game that's suitable for up to four players. You can apparently play solo too, according to Game Informer. There's a heavy emphasis on decision making (a callback to the older Fallout games on PC), and newer elements like the VATS system for combat are on offer as well.
There's no shortage of projects Valve fans would like to see the company pursue, whether it be a follow-up to Half-Life, another Left 4 Dead, more Team Fortress, or something new altogether. Instead of any of those ideas, we're getting Artifact, "the Dota card game." It's releasing in 2018.
Valve unveiled the news at The International 7 with this bare-bones teaser. Understandably, the reaction has been unkind. I can't say I disagree. It feels like a me-too move and while I believe Valve is entirely capable of making a great digital card game, gosh, that sure isn't what I want. I mean, I might be convinced, eventually, but this video sure isn't doing the much-needed heavy lifting.
Former Double Fine developer Brad Muir (Iron Brigade, Massive Chalice) is working on Artifact, at least. I'm fond of his games and was wondering what he had been up to since his move to Valve.
The indie fighting game Brawlout emerged around EVO 2016 to wow casual fans with Super Smash Bros-like combat while sneaking in more advanced mechanics for competitive players. Fans finally got their hands on it in April when it launched in Early Access on Steam and have toyed with the game's first six characters for a few months. Today, the game scored a double coup: Not only is it set to come out on the Switch later this year, but it's also adding another character -- the titular Hyper Light Drifter from this year's indie instant classic.
Fantasy Flight Games has quite a few video-game-to-board-game adaptations under its belt at this point (there's Gears of War, XCOM, and DOOM, to name a few). It's about to add another one to its repertoire, and this one's a doozy.
Fallout: The Board Game is described as an adventure board game, allowing players to travel around the wasteland, ally with its various factions, and gain experience to build their characters up over time. It employs the series' signature S.P.E.C.I.A.L. system of skill division, though it doesn't look quite as deep as it is in the video games.
It's listed as playing one to four players, but it doesn't sound like a cooperative game. There's shaky alliances, but still ultimately one winner when playing with more than one.
Fallout: The Board Game is set to release during the fourth quarter of this year. Considering the timing on this announcement, there's a decent chance Gen Con attendees will be able to demo it later this month.
It was a sad day when it was announced that the life-sized statue of the original Gundam, located in Odaiba, Tokyo, would be torn down. However, it was announced soon after that the new prized mobile suit of the franchise, Unicorn Gundam, would be taking its place. As this is being written, it's being built in the same spot as the original statue, with the goal of being completed this Fall.
Photos and videos have since surfaced of the statue and what a treat.
Tonight, during Valve's "The International" Dota 2 esports tournament the company announced it's making a spinoff card game associated with its popular MOBA. Other than its name, Artifact, a brief teaser trailer and a release window of 2018, we didn't get any details, but Dota fans have been dreaming up Hearthstone-like card game iterations for years, so it should be well-received by the community when it drops. Former Double Fine developer Brad Muir (Iron Brigade, Massive Chalice) revealed he's been working on the project "for a while now" but that's all we know.
After playing some complete ball-busters on The GTFOMLG Show, we're taking a well needed break from the hardcore. Tonight at 7pm PST, we'll be jumping into the world of Sega CD FMV titles with Time Gal, and Road Avenger. Remember thinking that these games looked like movies back in the day? Well, to no one's surprise I'm sure, they look like absolute shit now. Glorious, compressed, nostalgic shit
Still, these two are my favorite of the bunch, and we'll I'm sure we'll have a blast playing them over at Dtoid.TV this evening as we always do. As well, if time allows, we'll dive further in, with Cobra Command, and Wirehead. Get ready to have any fond memories you may have had of these games to be thoroughly destroyed.
Devolver Digital Films has announced a Call of Duty documentary named CODumentary. The feature-length documentary will detail the origins of the Call of Duty series from its creation in 2003 by Infinity Ward, to dealing with competition within the WWII shooter market at the time, as well as covering the rise and fame of the series and massive mainstream success after the release of Modern Warfare.
No Man's Sky is mostly a distant memory for me at this point, but with an ARG brewing and people getting jazzed about uncovering its secrets, the sci-fi exploration game has been back on my mind. We've known about a possible August launch for the next update, and that's indeed the case.
As revealed in a message from Hello Games' Sean Murray, the update will go live this week and it "focuses on improving the central story of No Man's Sky and adds the ability to quick travel between locations using portals." Naturally, all the other juicy bits will be found in the patch notes.
"When we posted those cassettes we didn't know what to expect," Murray said of the alternate reality game. "In the last eight weeks a quarter of a million players from across the globe (174 countries, to be precise!) have come together - united by a shared love of mystery and science fiction - to form the Citizen Science Division. You've travelled great distances both real and virtual, undertaken complex tasks, and explored the depths of simulation theory. New friendships have been forged, and a tight-knit community has been created. Most importantly a cute hamster has a new home."
As seen in this 1981 commercial, Tempest was one of Atari's flagship coin-operated arcade games. But unlike Space Command or Centipede, Tempest sent players down geometrically fractal tunnels in an advanced -- and vibrantly psychedelic -- semi-3D adventure. Atari thinks it's high time this title was revived for current consoles, and it's tapped celebrated game designer Jeff Minter to do the job.
Brawlout, the Super Smash Bros. inspired fighting game, is coming to the Nintendo Switch and adding the hero of Hyper Light Drifter to its roster.
You'll be able to uppercut and drop kick your opponents on the go in late 2017, and it might be just what the Switch needs since it doesn't look like we'll be getting a proper Super Smash Bros. anytime soon.
Sega Genesis owners were blessed; we got the most badass, coolest cyberpunk Contra game at the time when all of those Nintendo wussies were playing Contra III: The Alien Wars. Contra: Hard Corps was a tough-as-nails heavy metal album cover Contra game where you got to pick one of multiple characters (including a cute robot called Browny) and branching level paths. And today it has been out for 23 years and I feel old as hell.
Truth be told, there really is no debate among most people; Contra III is probably the better game, is probably more fair and evenhanded, and ultimately has far more memorable individual levels and moments than Hard Corps. But what a treat it was as a kid to own a Sega Genesis, and get such a cool, exclusive Contra game.
While Severed eventually made the rounds on PlayStation Vita, Wii U, iOS, and 3DS, I can't help but feel like many of us slept on it. People know, love, and bring up Guacamelee! all the time. But Severed? I don't hear its name come up much. That should change this week as the hack-'n'-slash title comes to Nintendo Switch, though. It's out today for $15 on the eShop in North America and Europe.
Like Voez before it, Severed is a touch-based Switch game. You won't be able to play on your TV. That's to be expected given the swipe-centric gameplay, but it's worth pointing out, all the same.
On that note, in his review for Destructoid, Zack Furniss said Severed "obliterated [his] conceptions of how a touch-based game can play." Also, he scored it a 9.5 out of 10. It's a good 'un.
Drinkbox's critically well-received Severed has been available on a slew of platforms, but the march of time has made it harder to find: the PS Vita and Wii U are clearly on the way out, and not everyone wants to play it on a 3DS or iPhone. You're getting a new choice today, though: Drinkbox has launched Severed on the Nintendo Switch. It's the same game at heart, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. The game's blend of touchscreen slashing, role-playing elements and disconcerting story (complete with a distinctive, surreal art style) go a long way.
Bungie released a new trailer today highlighting Destiny 2's Crucible, Destiny's in-universe name for the arena of competitive multiplayer. Having played the beta last month, my first impression of this trailer is that it seems to be misrepresenting the speed of combat. Not counting power weapons and super abilities, time-to-kill is up from Destiny 1, which was already slow compared to your Calls of Duty or your Battlesfield. It's more in line with the Halo time-to-kill, which would often given enough time for a surprise-attacked player to have a chance to run or fight back.
There are a lot of little hints in the trailer as well, including a whole mess of crests dropping after a multikill at around 0:28, implying the previously unconfirmed Supremacy game type would be returning for Destiny 2. (Modes like Rumble, the Crucible's free-for-all game type, have been confirmed to not be present, at least at launch.)
Other notable bits are related to the exotics shown. The Sweet Business auto rifle and Sunshot hand cannon from the beta make an appearance, as do the pre-order bonus Coldheart trace rifle and the long-rumored Dubious Volley rocket launcher.
Lastly, there are some new emotes on display, and of course the best ones are shown off by a stylish Hunter. One gloats about capturing a point, but the other recalls a memory of one of the greatest Telltale scenes in the studio's history, with the Guardian defeating countless others using only his built-in finger guns.
I've made no secret about my issues with depression and social anxiety in previous blogs and quick posts. Now, I'd like to talk a little about Autism, and how it affects me as a gamer and as a human being.
We knew it was coming, but the return of Overwatch's Summer Games is a welcome change. Like all of the game's seasonal events, this one brings the opportunity to earn skins, poses and other character content. But the second round of this Overwatch mid-summer event brings back another fan favorite from last year's Olympic-themed Summer Games: Lúcioball, the 3v3 soccer mode. Time to put on your skates and hit the field.
I don't know what the demand for scale statues of the Alolan Exeggutor is, but Premium Bandai is meeting it with with 109 centimeter (42.9 inch) statue for 29,800 yen. They suggest decorating your home with it as though it were an actual plant or even "relaxing together." I feel like the faces should light up so it acts as a very tall night-light.
Darkest Dungeon on iPad just makes sense, and soon enough, that'll be an option. The latest port of the hurts-so-good RPG launches August 24 as a premium, pay-once-and-you're-set app.
"Although it's titled the 'Tablet Edition,' this iPad version is jam-packed with all key features found in other platforms," says Red Hook Games. "Better yet, the touch interface fits the game perfectly. We've long maintained that we accidentally made a very touch-friendly game, and now finally we get to exhibit that in the most natural form."
Existing players will be able to export their save data from Windows, Mac, or Linux to Dropbox and then import that on iPad, which is extra thoughtful of Red Hook. The iPad version of Darkest Dungeon doesn't have a price yet, but it'll only be the base game, with The Crimson Court arriving later this year.
As for other ports, like Nintendo Switch? "Always a chance."
Gearbox Software's next revealed project isn't any of the usual suspects. It's not Borderlands and it's not Duke Nukem and it's not Brothers in Arms. Instead, it's a secret something-or-other that's currently codenamed "Project 1v1."
This afternoon, Gearbox started sending out invites to a closed technical test for Project 1v1. The Project 1v1 site gives a broad overview of what this is, calling it a "competitive first-person shooter that combines the action of a fast-paced 1v1 first-person combat with the metagame strategy of a collectible card game."
The upcoming test will feature three modes: Ranked where players are matched with similarly-skilled players, and winning nets experience and new crates with new cards; Challenge which is unranked against a friend; and Arena where the Arena champion takes on challengers until they're defeated and the person who beat them takes their place. As we can probably safely assume from the project's working title, it seems as if the game is solely centered around one-on-one play instead of team action.
Unfortunately, there isn't yet any footage of screenshots to indicate what exactly Project 1v1 looks like or how it plays. The most we have is some artwork that makes up the backdrops on the site (full image included in the gallery below). There's a definite sci-fi bent.
In all actuality, all that we really know about Project 1v1 is its gameplay premise and that it exists. There's still a ton to learn. Anyone who wants to be the first to try it for themselves can sign up for the test here through Gearbox's Shift program.
Ubisoft's family just got a little bit bigger. The French publisher announced that it's opening a new studio in Sweden's capital city. Ubisoft Stockholm joins the ranks of Ubisoft subsidiaries, and it's being led by one of the most experienced people in Swedish game development.
Seemingly headhunted by Ubisoft, former EA DICE general manager Patrick Bach has signed on to serve as Stockholm's studio manager. Bach left EA last November after working at DICE for nearly 15 years. Battlefield 1 was the final game Bach worked on before his departure.
The new studio appears to be positioned to serve a supporting role, at least at first. A press release sent by Ubisoft mentions that Ubisoft Stockholm will collaborate with Massive Entertainment (which is also located in Sweden). Its debut project will be to assist in the upcoming Avatar game that was revealed in February.
This push seems to be a part of a broader effort for Ubisoft to expand its presence in Swedish game development. Ubisoft aims to employ around 100 people in Stockholm within two years. It's also looking to hire 200 more people at Massive over the same two year period. Massive is currently around 400 employees.
But, it's also fair to say that Ubisoft has tried for decades now to expand its presence nearly everywhere. According to this list, Ubisoft Stockholm will be the 34th subsidiary -- all of them wholly owned. Ubisoft's production model necessitates that several studios play a part in nearly every game that's released. Now there's one more to help contribute.
As gamers across the globe dig into the just-released Mega Man Legacy Collection 2, they are beginning to discover a mystery within. In the museum for Mega Man 8, a new piece of artwork was discovered and pointed out by Protodude. It has never been seen before, and it is most certainly not from Mega Man 8 as far as anyone can tell.
So what exactly is the artwork, and where did it come from?
This art is in Mega Man 8's museum in Legacy Collection 2.
It's not from MM8, tho. It's not from any known Mega Man game.
Spelunker World isn't the only free-to-play game getting a NieR: Automata crossover event. This time, one of Square Enix's own games is getting the extra content and it just so happens to be Final Fantasy Brave Exvius...you know, that mobile RPG that has Ariana Grande...yeah, I don't get it either.
With this event, which runs until August 24, you'll be able to unlock sprite versions of 2B and 9S. A2 and Eve will be global exclusive characters, which means they'll only be available for the duration of the event. There is also going to be an exclusive microtransaction for the event, which I'm sure just everyone wanted.
You can check out the sprites in action in the trailer below. It is quite long (roughly 22 minutes), but the beginning of the video focuses more on the crossover content than the rest.
For the last two week we've seen Bethesda put their PC games up for sale at multiple retailers all competing for the best price online. This week it's 2K's turn.
A 2K Summer Sale has emerged PC digital retailers Bundle Stars and GamersGate. Both retailers share the same catalog of titles on sale, but prices are not equal.
Some of the 2K games are cheapest in the Bundle Stars 2017 Summer Sale. This is the newest PC gaming Summer Sale which went live earlier this week and makes use of an additional 10% off stacking coupon code for the best prices. While there many more publishers in Bundle Stars sale (a full list here), most of the best offers are from 2K, and their coupon makes the best current price online for Civilization VI, XCOM 2 (which has a new expansion later this month), and NBA 2K17.
The other sale to pick up cheap 2K titles is GamersGate. There, Mafia III is near its lowest price ever. A few titles like BioShock Infinite along with the Legend and Gold Editions of NBA 2K17 are not available elsewhere, and thus are cheapest at GamersGate - many of which are matching or beating Steam Summer Sale pricing.
The discounts for these 2K titles last through Sunday, August 13. Both sales end around this time with GamersGate going dead at 3PM Pacific on Sunday, and Bundle Stars going for a few more hours. If we spot new batches arriving from the publisher, we'll add them to the list accordingly.
Last week, we left Game of Thrones feeling the episode was "effective and satisfying." Well, HBO heard our applause and answered the call for an encore, delivering us The Spoils of War, which at 50 minutes in running time was short and that didn't matter at all. There were overtures of and to things that I've harked on already from season 7; players continue to jump about the Westerosi map like they're using Roddenbury-like technology, and Danny feels inclined to ask Missandei about her sexual adventures with Greyworm and his worm--let's be honest--let's hope he's not named for that. But otherwise, the episode delivers many satisfying reunions, moments that define what we've been waiting for throughout the GoT run, and plenty of just desserts.
[Editor's Note: This recap will obviously go into detail about last night's episode of Game of Thrones, so there are going to be a ton of spoilers. Final warning! ~ Nick, copied and pasted by Rick]
With how popular split-screen gaming used to be in the retro days, its crazy that Sonic never really had a competitive multiplayer mode outside of Sonic 2. I have a lot of memories of wanting a full on co-op experience like that, tinkering around with the versus mode by myself as a kid (I had a lot of free time). In an effort to fully complete the retro craze that Sonic Mania is riding, Mania will have a similar competitive multiplayer mode.
Overwatch's Summer Games event is live today and I know, I know -- get to the skins already!
Lúcioball is back with a new arena along with 50-plus limited-time cosmetic unlocks. Reaper, Widowmaker, Junkrat, Soldier: 76, McCree, Sombra, and Mercy all have new skins, but we'll also have the chance to earn skins from last year's Summer Games. I've still got my eye on Nihon Genji.
The Summer Games 2017 run until August 29. Plenty of time to stock up (or so I always tell myself).
Square Enix has announced the dates that the closed beta for Dissidia Final Fantasy NT will run for. The beta will begin at 9:00am PT on August 26 and close at the same time on September 4 for folks in Europe and the Americas. Folks in the Americas can try their hand at getting an invite here, while folks in Europe can try for an invite here.
However, while they're being generous with the length, Square's coming off as somewhat cheap and secretive in terms of content for the beta.
