Most Recent: PC

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered’s “Operation Shamrock & Awe” event

Posted on March 16, 2017 by John Scalzo

A little taste of the Emerald Isle invaded Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered this week, as Activision officially kicked off a new in-game event. The “Operation Shamrock & Awe” event began this past Tuesday, March 14, and it’ll end on Monday, April 3.

According to the Activision Games Blog, players who participate in “Operation Shamrock & Awe” will receive free Supply Drops, access to the remixed “Daybreak” map, seasonal Camos, and the chance to unlock Darren “Graves” Cosgrave as a playable character:

Free Supply Drops
So that pot of gold we mentioned? It’s actually emerald green, rectangular, and looks like a Supply Drop. That’s right, we’ve got themed Supply Drops throughout “Operation Shamrock & Awe,” and we’re making one available for free each week when you log in starting today through 12:01am PDT on April 3.

“Downpour” Turns Into “Daybreak”
Besides being known for its long sightlines, mounted machine guns, and sneaky peripheral routes, “Downpour” is a map also known for its fierce weather. But a bit of luck has landed on your side as the clouds have parted and shed sunlight on this map. “Daybreak” is a free map, available only during “Operation Shamrock & Awe,” that turns “Downpour” upside down and replaces it with a lush, green countryside filled with St. Paddy’s decor and a rainbow, naturally.

Free Seasonal Camos
“Daybreak” also comes with a nice bonus that you won’t have to catch a leprechaun to unlock. Complete the in-game challenges on the map and you can earn two exclusive St. Paddy’s-themed camos for your weapons: the Shamrockin’ “Folium” and the rainbowtized “Prism.” There are different challenges to unlock the camos for each of the weapon classes, but those challenges disappear when “Operation Shamrock & Awe” is over.

Get Graves
As part of “Operation Shamrock & Awe,” three new themed collections will provide you with St. Patrick’s Day theme reticles, camos, calling cards, and emblems. Each set will also include a bounty for completing the set: assemble the “Luck” collection to earn a new character, “Leprechaun” rewards you with a Shillelagh melee weapon, and “Pot O’ Gold” gives you a unique calling card worth fightin’ for.

But that’s not all. If you craft or unlock all three themed collections, you’ll also unlock Darren “Graves” Cosgrave as a playable character for the first time ever! That’s right, you can put the master of the Depot right into your loadout. However, he’s available for a limited time as part of “Operation Shamrock & Awe” which expires after April 2, so get busy!

A trailer for Modern Warfare Remastered’s “Operation Shamrock & Awe” event has been embedded above.

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One | Tagged ,

Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment Review: Death Takes Over in a Perfect Prequel

Posted on March 15, 2017 by John Scalzo

Yacht Club Games has built a strong reputation over the years for their ability to deconstruct, modernize, and regenerate the side-scrolling platformer. Using Ducktales and Mega Man as a template, the original Shovel Knight was a game that honored the past, while only being able to exist in the present. Meanwhile, its first expansion, Plague of Shadows, brought back the gadget platformer in a unique adventure that felt more like a true sequel than an add-on.

The developer must have had the same thought, as Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment is the first game in the franchise’s rapidly-growing expanded universe to be available as a standalone game as well as a free expansion. Widening their playing field has also lead Yacht Club to tackle the cinematic storytelling and swordplay found in the NES era’s ninja platformers, best exemplified by Ninja Gaiden. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, Mobile, PC, PS3, PS4, Reviews, Switch, Top Story, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One | Tagged ,

Capcom announces Disney Afternoon Collection bundle of six classic NES titles

Posted on March 15, 2017 by Brittney Williams

Were you a huge fan of those quirky Disney cartoons from the 80s and 90s, like say, TaleSpin or DuckTales? Well, if you were, then you’ll probably be happy to hear that Capcom has announced they will be releasing a collection of Disney NES adaptations known as The Disney Afternoon Collection.

The Disney Afternoon Collection will include Chip ‘N Dale Rescue Rangers, Chip ‘N Dale Rescue Rangers 2, Darkwing Duck, DuckTales, DuckTales 2, and TaleSpin. And the bundle will be available to download next month, April 18, for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC in both North America ($19.99) and Europe (£15.99).

What’s extra special about this bundle is that The Disney Afternoon Collection will not only include fan favorite Disney titles, but also those hard-to-find titles, often coveted by retro gaming enthusiasts. As of right now, a loose copy of DuckTales 2 could cost $155 for a collector. And a loose copy of Chip ‘N Dale Rescue Rangers 2 can run you on the average of $220.

The Disney Afternoon Collection has full HD support, with all games running at 1080p resolution. The actual graphics themselves have been upscaled, slapping a fresh face on our old favorites. But for retro purists, The Disney Afternoon Collection also offers various modes that implement filters so that players can enjoy the games with an authentic retro feel, minus all the drawbacks.

Keeping newcomers in mind, Capcom also added in a few other noteworthy options including a Rewind feature which curves the signature difficulty of the original NES titles by allowing players to rewind time and undo costly gameplay mistakes. The Disney Afternoon Collection also includes a Boss Attack Mode where players can consecutively battle difficult bosses and a Time Attack Mode that encourages speedy gameplay. An in-game Disney Museum is also featured, for players interested in learning more about the game’s original releases.

The first trailer for The Disney Afternoon Collection is embedded above, and fans who are planning to attend WonderCon at the end of March will be able to try it out by visiting Capcom’s booth (#1137).

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One | Tagged

Strafe’s release date sidesteps to May 9 on PC and PS4

Posted on March 14, 2017 by John Scalzo

Cheekily citing “an unforeseen polygon shortage,” Pixel Titans has announced that their retro-styled first person shooter, Strafe, won’t be released on March 28 as planned.

“Strafe requires over 150,000 meticulously placed polygons to create its bleeding edge graphics,” Game Director Thom Glunt said. “Through an unexpected legal entanglement and a series of clerical errors, nearly 25,000 of those polygons arrived late to Pixel Titans world headquarters thus delaying the game by a few weeks.”

Glunt’s obsession with polygons is rather understandable when you remember that Strafe is a procedurally-generated first person shooter that’s patterned after the genre’s 1996 heyday.

Believe it or not, but there’s is somewhat of a silver lining to Strafe’s delay. Previously, Pixel Titans expected the PS4 version of the game to launch sometime after the PC version. But now, Strafe will be available for both platforms on May 9.

Posted in News, PC, PS4 | Tagged

PlayStation Now will add PS4 games to its library in 2017

Posted on March 14, 2017 by John Scalzo

PlayStation Now, Sony’s game streaming service that launched in 2014, currently lets subscribers play a wide selection of PS3 games on their PC and PS4. But the service will be expanding in a big way in 2017 with the addition of PS4 games.

Details are still scarce on when PS4 games will be added to the service, but Sony did confirm (via the PlayStation Blog) that all games will be included in a single PlayStation Now subscription:

We’re excited to announce that PS Now’s catalog is set to grow even further, as we’ll be expanding to include a new platform: PlayStation 4 games. All of the games in the service, including PS4 games, will be included with a single PS Now subscription. We’ll share more information as we get closer to launch, so stay tuned.

In the next few weeks we’ll kick off a private test with PS4 games on PS Now. If you’re an active PS Now subscriber, keep an eye on your email in case you get an invitation.

483 PS3 games are currently available through the PlayStation Now catalog, so hopefully its PS4 collection grows just as fast.

Posted in News, PC, PS4 |

Phantom Halls launches on Steam with special appearance by Ash from Evil Dead 2

Posted on March 14, 2017 by Brittney Williams

Yesterday, Incendium debuted their first game for the PC with the Steam Early Access launch of Phantom Halls.

Phantom Halls is a horror-comedy that takes place in a haunted mansion, and follows a group of teens who attempt to survive the night against the evil undead creatures that lurk in the shadows. Players will simultaneously take on the role of multiple characters, with each character’s abilities assigned to a different button.

The Early Access launch of Phantom Halls currently features ten playable characters, 12 enemy types, and six environment types. The mansion setting is procedurally-generated, but Incendium will continuously expand upon the game, adding additional features such as narrative elements, new enemies, and new game types.

And in celebration of the 30th anniversary of Evil Dead 2’s theatrical opening (March 13, 1987), Incendium also teamed up Stuido Canal and the Creative Licensing Corporation to bring Bruce Campbell’s Ash (along with his trusty boomstick and chainsaw) to early Phantom Halls adopters in the Ash Williams Evil Dead 2 Character Pack.

Players who pick up Phantom Halls during its launch week (until March 20) will be able to snag the game for 13% off, and receive the Ash Williams Evil Dead 2 Character Pack for free. Players who download the bonus content will also be treated to a special set of Evil Dead-themed quests.

Posted in News, PC |

Aftercharge announced by Chainsawesome Games at PAX East 2017

Posted on March 13, 2017 by John Scalzo

Chainsawesome Games, the creators of 2015’s Knight Squad, set up shop at PAX East this past weekend to show off their new game, Aftercharge.

Like Knight Squad, Aftercharge is being built from the ground up for multiplayer play. But this time around, Chainsawesome is developing a first person shooter where three invisible robots known as “Workonics” battle a trio of invincible guards known as “Enforcers”:

Six structures called Extractors serve as the main objective for each side with the robots set to destroy them, and the guards tasked with defending them.

The game is set on distant planet Dusk 11 exploited by the Aftercharge corporation for the energy living at its core. The company is in trouble as their line of worker robots called Workonics are defecting because of the planet’s unstable energy. The robotic uprising is putting the company’s Extractors in danger. Initially built to avoid corporate espionage, the stealth Workonics require a very special set of armaments to deal with. Aftercharge has no choice but to send its special Enforcer squad to shut down the robots and protect their operations.

The other team are the Enforcers, they are class-based and rely on an arsenal of weapons and abilities to spot and stop the Workonics. They are invincible as no attack or abilities from the robots can harm them. Their weaponry uses energy rapidly and requires proximity with an Extractor to recharge. To win the match, they need to successfully deactivate all three robots simultaneously.

Aftercharge will be released for the PC and unnamed “Consoles” sometime in 2018.

Posted in News, PC | Tagged ,

Here’s three new trailers for Killer Instinct’s next remix character Shin Hisako

Posted on March 12, 2017 by John Scalzo

Iron Galaxy has released a trio of new trailers featuring Shin Hisako, the next remix character coming to Killer Instinct. Like Jago/Shadow Jago and Fulgore/Kilgore, Shin Hisako will feature a slightly altered playing style, one accessory set, and nine different costume colors.

Shin Hisako will be available to download on March 21 (for $4.99), and you can watch a “purified” version of the ghost girl take on TJ Combo, Thunder, and Aganos after the break. (more…)

Posted in News, PC, Xbox One | Tagged