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Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End named “Best Game” at 2017 BAFTA Games Awards

Posted on April 7, 2017 by John Scalzo

Nathan Drake is going to ride off into the sunset with one last “Game of the Year” award. The British Academy of Film and Television Arts hosted the ceremony for the 2017 BAFTA Games Awards last night, and Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End was selected as the year’s “Best Game.”

Playdead’s Inside didn’t win the big prize, but the indie game scooped up four BAFTAs including “Artistic Achievement,” “Game Design,” “Narrative,” and “Original Property.” Ghost Town’s Overcooked (“Best British Game” and “Family”) and Campo Santo’s Firewatch (“Debut Game” and “Performer” for Cissy Jones) also managed to collect multiple awards as part of the festivities.

A whole slew of titles were able to pull out a win in one category last night, and they include That Dragon Cancer (“Game Innovation”), Rocket League (“Evolving Game”), Overwatch (“Multiplayer”), Pokemon Go (“Mobile & Handheld”), The Last Guardian (“Audio Achievement”), and Virginia (“Music”).

A complete list of winners and nominees from the 2017 BAFTA Games Awards is available at Video Game Canon.

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Activision is working on at least three movies in a connected Call of Duty Cinematic Universe

Posted on April 6, 2017 by John Scalzo

Activision first began discussing the possibility of a “Call of Duty Cinematic Universe” shortly after opening their film division, Activision Blizzard Studios, a few years ago. Earlier this week, a new profile in The Guardian has revealed that the studio is already working on three separate films:

“We have plotted out many years,” [Co-President Stacey] Sher tells the Guardian. “We put together this group of writers to talk about where we were going. There’ll be a film that feels more like Black Ops, the story behind the story. The Modern Warfare series looks at what it’s like to fight a war with the eyes of the world on you. And then maybe something that is more of a hybrid, where you are looking at private, covert operations, while a public operation is going on.”

According to The Guardian, Activision would like to start filming the first entry in the “Call of Duty Cinematic Universe” sometime next year, with a theatrical premiere planned for “a couple of years after” that.

Sher and her Co-President, Nick Van Dyk, also have ambitions beyond traditional motion pictures. The pair has already partnered with Netflix to produce Skylanders Academy, and they’re also envisioning a Call of Duty-branded series that focuses on historical conflicts such as World War II and the Vietnam War.

Sher also wants fans to know that, above all else, Activision Blizzard Studios wants to make good movies: “If you just chase the empty blockbuster, and have nothing to say in the genre, forget about it.”

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This News Is On Fire… NBA Playgrounds will be available for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One in May

Posted on April 5, 2017 by John Scalzo

IGN is reporting that Saber Interactive will team up with the National Basketball Assocation to release NBA Playgrounds for the PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One this May.

NBA Playgrounds is following in the footsteps of the wild antics and insane dunks that NBA Jam and NBA Street pioneered more than a decade ago. Midway and EA Big may both be defunct, but their love of an over-the-top arcade basketball experience definitely lives on in 2017.

The game will feature 2-on-2 matchups with players from all 30 NBA teams, as well as a deep bench of retired legends such as Shaquille O’Neal, Allen Iverson, Patrick Ewing, and more. And as you might expect, players can pick up and play NBA Playgrounds in single-player or multiplayer (local and online) modes.

NBA Playgrounds will be available next month exclusively as a digital download, but do not miss the game’s debut trailer, which has been embedded above.

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Slash the Roller Queen brings back the 90s in the latest Quake Champions trailer

Posted on April 5, 2017 by John Scalzo

You might have to be one of those crazy “90s Kids” to understand, but rollerblading was an extremely popular pastime during Quake III Arena‘s heyday. So it makes perfect sense that id Software decided to make Slash the Roller Queen a prominent playable character in the game.

With Quake Champions set to launch later this year, Slash will return for an encore performance in the Arena. And as part of their latest weekly reveal, the developer has given us a sneak peek at the “X-TREME” character:

Slash (Roller Queen)
It was her grandmother’s music box. Its tiny ice-skater twirled to Swan Lake. She loved it. She couldn’t sleep without hearing its tune. Then she heard it in her dreams. Then always. She would become a skater herself. She would twirl and twirl until the music stopped. But it never stopped. She began to see dark, spidery things. When the clozapine didn’t help, she turned to heroin. In the shooting gallery she met Anarki. He saw things, too. They became inseparable… until the things they saw became real.

Active Ability – Plasma Trail: Activating Slash’s Active Ability leaves a bright trail of destruction in her wake, inflicting damage on enemies careless enough to pass through the wall of pain. Players can also choose to hit their ability button again, causing the trail to explode, inflicting massive damage to Champions in the area. Cut off key paths or encircle enemies or power-ups in a crushing barrier of suffering.

Passive Ability – Crouch Slide: Slash is already super mobile, but by crouching while running, she’ll use her skates to go into Crouch Slide, allowing her to move full speed while crouching and whip around corners smoother and faster than other Champions.

Access to Quake Champions’s Closed Beta will be available for the first batch of selected participants beginning tomorrow. If you’d like a chance to receive an invitation sometime in the future, be sure to sign up for the game’s Closed Beta at Quake.com.

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Xbox Store Today: Enter the Gungeon, Lego City Undercover, Use Your Words, more

Posted on April 5, 2017 by John Scalzo

Today’s Xbox Games Store update features guns, bricks, and words. Are you ready?

After launching exclusively for the PS4 last year, Dodge Roll’s Enter the Gungeon makes its Xbox One debut today. The twin-stick shooter asks players to delve deeper and deeper into a procedurally-generated “Gungeon” in search of the Gun That Can Kill the Past. Featuring hundreds of guns and dozens of bosses, Xbox One owners who purchase Enter the Gungeon will also receive access to the game on Windows 10 thanks to the Xbox Play Anywhere program.

Xbox One owners looking for some action might also want to explore the open world of Lego City in Lego City Undercover. Now available to download, Lego City Undercover stars Chase McCain, a police officer who’s been tasked with going undercover to hunt down the notorious criminal Rex Fury.

Finally today, Smiling Buddha Games will launch Use Your Words for the Xbox One. Use Your Words is a party game that asks players to respond to a variety of mini-games and prompts with “the funniest answers they can think of.”

More information on all of today’s additions to the Xbox Games Store can be found after the break. (more…)

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Square Enix has shipped more than one million copies of Nier: Automata

Posted on April 4, 2017 by John Scalzo

The original Nier has gathered together a rather dedicated cult following since its release in 2010, and this built-in audience has helped propel the recently-released sequel to new heights. Nier: Automata was released for the PC and PS4 last month, and Square Enix announced today that worldwide shipments and digital sales of the game have surpassed one million copies.

Square Enix also turned the Square Enix Blog over to Character Modeler Hito Matsudaira, who went over the process he used to create Nier: Automata’s 2B:

Does anyone famous in particular come to mind when you think of a character modeler? No one comes to my mind – character modelers rarely come out in public these days! Fortunately for me, I was given this opportunity so I would like to explain what kind of thoughts I had, and how I modeled the character 2B using some in-progress images of the character.

I would like to show you that the process isn’t as simple as changing an illustration into 3D.

If you’re still on the fence about Nier: Automata, a demo is now available to download for the PS4 through the PlayStation Store.

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CoD: Infinite Warfare’s Continuum DLC Pack goes back to the 70s on April 18 with “Shaolin Shuffle” and four new multiplayer maps

Posted on April 4, 2017 by John Scalzo

Activision has delivered our first look at “Shaolin Shuffle,” the 1970s-set Zombies Mode chapter set to launch as part of the next downloadable expansion for Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare. The trailer also introduces players to Pam Grier’s “Shaolin Sister,” who will help players fight back against the undead with four new kung fu fighting styles:

“Shaolin Shuffle,” the next thrilling chapter of the Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare zombies experience, features the return of Willard Wyler, the mysterious movie director villain portrayed with voice and likeness by Paul Reubens (Pee-Wee’s Big Holiday, Gotham). This time, Wyler has trapped the four protagonists inside a new horror film, set in the unforgettable 1970s. Players will face all-new zombie enemies across a variety of disco-era New York locations, including subways, flashy nightclubs and a martial arts dojo headed up by the Shaolin Sister, played with voice and likeness by Pam Grier (Jackie Brown, Foxy Brown). In addition to hallmark Call of Duty action, “Shaolin Shuffle” introduces four unlockable kung fu fighting styles, each with its own set of unique combat moves.

The Continuum DLC Pack will also include four new multiplayer maps that favor close-quartered combat and unique architectural design:

Multiplayer Maps in Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare’s Continuum DLC Pack

  • Turista – A plush spa and resort, “Turista” is nestled in the middle of a giant skeleton of an ancient creature. With sniper spots scattered across a majestic, central waterfall, Turista also boasts tight interiors for fans of close-quartered combat and a three-lane design that caters to a variety of play styles.
  • Scrap – Set in an abandoned junkyard on the Moon, “Scrap” features a combination of extended sightlines and tactical pathways that reward players who engage in both long and short range combat.
  • Archive – Fast, frenetic engagements set the pace in “Archive,” a post-futurist art gallery where tight engagements contrast with open exterior battlegrounds in this wide three-lane style map.
  • Excess – Perched atop a gilded penthouse in a sprawling future metropolis, “Excess” is a small, circular map re-imagined from the classic Modern Warfare 2 map, “Rust,” that retains the intense, fast-paced combat from the original.

The Continuum DLC Pack will be available to download for the PS4 on April 18, while PC and Xbox One owners will receive access to the expansion sometime in May.

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Batman: Arkham VR will swoop down on the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive on April 25

Posted on April 4, 2017 by John Scalzo

Batman: Arkham VR was one of the higher-profile titles available during the PlayStation VR’s launch period last Fall, and now WB Games has announced it’ll be available for the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive on April 25. A new “Announcement Trailer” for the game’s PC debut has been embedded above.

“Bringing Batman to VR was a very rewarding experience for us here at Rocksteady. The Dark Knight has always been an incredible character to work with due to his psychological depth, so it’s really exciting to use this immersive medium to delve deeper into his psyche than ever before,” said Sefton Hill, the Creative Director of Rocksteady Studios. “We’re thrilled that PC players can finally wear the cowl for themselves and take on the role of the World’s Greatest Detective with the addition of the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift versions.”

Batman: Arkham VR will support both the Oculus Touch and Vive Controller, as well as the PS4 DualShock 4, Xbox One Controller, and Steam Controller.

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