Most Recent: PC

Kickstart This! Eliosi’s Hunt

Posted on August 10, 2016 by Andrew Rainnie

Top-down shooters are like buses… you wait for ages, and then two come at once. The first one I found when looking for this week’s Kickstart This! candidate was When It Hits The Fan, which evoked memories of Smash TV with its 32-bit arcade style. Its simple style leads to some fast-paced mayhem, and had I not found Eliosi’s Hunt, I may have delved a bit deeper into its campaign. The latter game has a harder sci-fi slant, but its visuals are mind-blowingly beautiful. So let’s find out what Brazilian-based TDZ Games is hoping to achieve with this project. (more…)

Posted in Features, PC, Top Story |

Rive will be released for PC, PS4 on September 13; Xbox One edition will be coming later

Posted on August 10, 2016 by John Scalzo

Two Tribes has announced that Rive, their upcoming side-scrolling shooter, will be available for the PC and PS4 on September 13. In case you’re unfamiliar with Rive, you can introduce yourself to the game’s many colorful characters in the new trailer embedded above, and bask in the retro simplicity of this plot description from the developer:

Blast your way through a mysterious starship as space scavenger Roughshot, who suddenly finds himself trapped with only his badass canons and hacking skills to help him escape.

With 360 degrees of pixel-pumping destruction, brutal attacks like Falcon and Tesla bursts, voice acting by Mark Dodson (Gremlins, Star Wars), and multiple game modes such as Single-Credit and Speedrun, Rive deserves an explosive spot on any action fan’s radar.

Rive is also in the works for the Xbox One, and it’ll launch on Microsoft’s console at a later date.

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

Pac-Man Championship Edition 2 will be released on September 13

Posted on August 9, 2016 by John Scalzo

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Bandai Namco has announced that Pac-Man Championship Edition 2 will be available to download for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on September 13. It’ll be priced at $12.99 on all platforms and include new features and modes such as “Score Attack Mode, Adventure Mode, big boss battles, and the fastest action in any Pac-Man game to date.”

Believe it or not, it’s been more than five years since the last game in the neon-coated spinoff series was released… Pac-Man Championship Edition DX made its debut on the PS3 and Xbox 360 in November 2010. But if you want a look at Pac-Man Championship Edition 2, you can find a new batch of screenshots after the break. (more…)

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Dead Rising remasters will be available for PC, PS4, Xbox One on September 13

Posted on August 9, 2016 by John Scalzo

Capcom has announced that the first three Dead Rising games will make their way to the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on September 13.

The games (Dead Rising, Dead Rising 2, and Dead Rising 2: Off the Record) will be available to download for $19.99 apiece, or as part of a three-game Triple Pack bundle for $59.49 (those who opt to pre-order can get it for $49.99). The original Dead Rising will also be released for the PS4 and Xbox One as a Blu-ray retail release on September 13. It’ll be followed by a PS4 and Xbox One retail release for Dead Rising 2 on September 27.

All three Dead Rising games will get a graphical overhaul with 1080p visuals running at 60FPS. All previously-released downloadable costumes will also be available. And in case you’re unfamiliar with Frank West and his patented brand of anti-zombie mayhem, Capcom has you covered:

Dead Rising
Re-live the zombie outbreak that started it all and step into the shoes of freelance photojournalist Frank West. On the hunt for the scoop of a lifetime, a tip leads Frank to the small suburban town of Willamette that’s been overrun by zombies. It’s a true struggle to survive the endless stream of enemies, but with full reign of an entire shopping mall, Frank can use any items he can find to fight off the flesh hungry mob and search for the truth behind the nightmarish epidemic. Don’t forget to capture the insanity on film and show off those photo journalist skills along the way!

Dead Rising 2
The sequel to the original Dead Rising introduces Chuck Greene, a professional motorcycle racer. Surrounded by a huge horde of zombies in the casino town of Fortune City, Chuck finds himself in a race against time to obtain Zombrex, a life-saving drug that will keep his daughter Katey alive. Dead Rising 2 also takes the series one step further with the introduction of combo weapons like the “PaddleSaw”, two player co-op and thrilling four player gladiator battles.

Dead Rising 2: Off the Record
Photo journalist and original hero Frank West takes center stage to find his biggest scoop yet, returning in a reimagining of the Fortune City casino town from Dead Rising 2. The added Sandbox Mode allows players to explore the city and participate in deathly challenges, while Frank’s photo skills and upgraded camera features capture all of the violent and hilarious action up close.

A new “Dead Rising: 10th Anniversary” trailer has also been embedded above and it’s a bloody good time.

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

Proletariat and Twitch launch Closed Beta for Steamline

Posted on August 9, 2016 by John Scalzo

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Twitch has announced that the first game from their “Stream First” initiative, Streamline, is now available as a Closed Beta through Steam. Developed by Proletariat, Streamline can best be described as a video game version of “Real-Life Pac-Man”:

Streamline is a multiplayer action game for PC that has pushed boundaries of gameplay in the Stream First genre—games that integrate directly with live streaming platforms like Twitch. Streamline uses the Twitch platform to connect players and live broadcasters with their viewers, creating a completely new entertainment experience.

Streamline also represents this idea thematically. Its bright characters co-opt public spaces to project an augmented reality playspace and collect holographic items, while viewers use a dashboard called “Streamote” to affect the players in real-time, covering the floor with digital lava or adding pixelated concrete shoes to their feet.

“The most exciting part of this project has been working with the passionate communities that are so hungry for the kind of engaging experiences you can only get from Stream First games,“ said Proletariat CEO Seth Sivak. “The feedback from our alpha has been critical to improving Streamline and we can’t wait to see what happens in beta.”

An Early Access launch for Streamline is planned for later this year, and Proletariat is currently distributing Beta keys to their fans and friends. You can check out the latest Streamline Play Test from Proletariat after the break. (more…)

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No Man’s Sky “Day One” patch will radically change the game and add multiple endings

Posted on August 7, 2016 by John Scalzo

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Have you heard that several stores broke the street date for No Man’s Sky, and that a small handful of lucky gamers are playing the highly-anticipated space exploration sim right now? It’s true, but once No Man’s Sky officially launches on August 9, we’ll all be playing a very different game…

In a lengthy post on the game’s official website, Director Sean Murray has detailed the many changes that will be applied to the game as part of a “Day One” patch. Some of these changes include the creation of three distinct “Paths” where “early choices have significant impact on what you see later in the game,” advanced combat techniques, multiple endings, and much, much more:

  • The Three Paths – there are now new, unique “paths” you can follow throughout the game. You must start the game on a fresh save, with the patch, as early choices have significant impact on what you see later in the game, and the overall experience.
  • Combat – Auto Aim and weapon aim has been completely rewritten to feel more gentle in general, but stickier when you need it. Sentinels now alert each other, if they haven’t been dealt with quickly. Quad and Walker AI is now much more challenging, even I struggle with them without a powered up weapon.
  • Space Combat – advanced techniques have been introduced, like brake drifting and critical hits. Bounty missions and larger battles now occur. Pirate frequency has been increased, as well as difficulty depending on your cargo.
  • Writing – The Atlas path has been rewritten by James Swallow (writer on Deus Ex) and me. I think it speaks to the over-arching theme of player freedom more clearly now. Early mission text has been rewritten to allow for multiple endings.

According to Murray, this is just the first of several planned updates to the game. So, after several years in development, No Man’s Sky might be ready for release, but it’s far from finished.

Posted in News, PC, PS4 | Tagged

Bethesda delivers another look at Prey at QuakeCon 2016

Posted on August 7, 2016 by John Scalzo

With no connection to the original game, or the previously-announced Prey 2, I’m still a bit baffled as to why Bethesda chose to resurrect the franchise’s name for the upcoming first-person game now known as Prey. But resurrect it they did, and the publisher even had a new gameplay trailer on display during this weekend’s QuakeCon convention.

Developed by Arkane Studios, the trailer reintroduced fans to Morgan Yu and gave them their first look at life aboard the Talos I space station. Those who made the trip to Dallas were also treated to an extended (and exclusive) gameplay demo that focused on the different types of aliens Morgan will encounter, as well as the extraterrestrial powers and weapons he’ll be able to wield.

Thankfully, Bethesda.net was able to get Co-Creative Director Raphael Colantonio and Lead Designer Ricardo Bare to open up a bit about what’s in store for players of Prey:

Typhon are roaming the halls of Talos I, hunting down the remaining humans. How you choose to deal with these creatures is up to you. You can take a stealthier route, finding secret paths around the station while using your tools and abilities to avoid confrontation. The station itself is a completely contiguous world. The entirety of Talos I is open to you immediately… provided you can find a way to get there.

Whatever path you forge, you’ll face different dangers at every turn. One of the keys to survival are the neuromods you’ll find scattered around the station, as they allow you to enhance yourself with alien-based powers.

Prey will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One in 2017.

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New Retail Releases: No Man’s Sky, OlliOlli Epic Combo Edition

Posted on August 7, 2016 by John Scalzo

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Take me out
To the black tell ’em I ain’t coming back
Burn the land
And boil the sea
You can’t take the sky from me

No Man’s Sky isn’t a video game adaptation of Firefly, but the procedurally-generated space exploration sim from Hello Games will offer the same kind of sense of adventure as players venture out into the black and discover new worlds and alien life. With more than 18 quintillion planets to explore, players on the PC and PS4 will keep flying for a long time (that number has 15 zeroes, in case you were curious).

Also set to be released this week is the OlliOlli: Epic Combo Edition for the PS4. The Epic Combo Edition will collect both of Roll7’s side-scrolling skateboarding sims (OlliOlli and OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood) in a single package, along with three “making-of” documnetaries and a downloadable soundtrack for the sequel.

That’s it for this week’s upcoming retail releases, but we’ll be back soon with a look at this week’s PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop updates.

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