Most Recent: PS4

Microsoft executive believes the public will buy ONE BILLION next-gen consoles

moneystackYusuf Mehdi has big dreams. Mehdi, who is Microsoft’s Executive Vice President of the Interactive Division, believes that there’s still plenty of life left in the Xbox 360 and he thinks the system can sell 25 million more consoles over the next five years for a total just north of 100 million. Mehdi laid out his plan to OXM UK, and while it’s ambitious, it sounds like Microsoft wants the Xbox 360 and Xbox One to coexist, at least for a little while:

“We believe over the next five years we can break a 100 million unit installed base. That’s something we’re shooting for, it’s not a financial plan as such, it’s just rough numbers if you will. To sell another 25 million, half of those will probably come from replacements, but half will come from new buyers.”

But that’s just phase one of Medhi’s plan for world domination. He also believes that when the sales of every eighth generation platform (that’s the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Wii U) are added together, they will total over a billion consoles sold during their lifetime:

“Most industry experts think the next generation will get upwards of about 400 million units. That’s if it’s a game console, over the next decade. We think you can go broader than a game console, that’s our aim, and you can go from 400 million to potentially upwards of a billion units.”

Collectively, the Xbox 360, PS3, and Wii have managed to sell about 260 million consoles since November 2005, so this would be quite a growth spurt for the industry.

Posted in News, PS4, Wii U, Xbox One |

Jonathan Blow’s The Witness is the latest PS4 game on Conversations With Creators

The latest episode of Sony’s “Conversations With Creators” video series stars Jonathan Blow and his game, The Witness. And like any true artiste, Blow is less concerned with making money than he is with making sure The Witness is good:

“We also have the freedom not to have to make a huge profit if we don’t need to. I would definitely like to make our money back on this game and I would like to make a profit on it, but it’s not actually the number one priority. The number one priority is to make the best possible game we can make that brings the most beneficial experience to the players.”

The Witness is expected to be available to download from the PlayStation Store around the system’s launch, so we shouldn’t have to wait too long to find out if he’s serious.

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Techland does zombies again with Dying Light for PS4, Xbox One, PC, PS3, Xbox 360

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Techland, the development team behind Dead Island and Dead Island: Riptide, will do battle with the undead hordes once again in their next project: Dying Light. The first-person game is set to be published by WB Games on the PC, PS3, Xbox 360, PS4, and Xbox One sometime in 2014.

During the day, players will traverse an expansive urban environment overrun by a vicious outbreak, scavenging the world for supplies and crafting weapons to defend against the growing infected population. At night, the hunter becomes the hunted, as the infected become aggressive and more dangerous. Most frightening are the predators which only appear after sundown. Players must use everything in their power to survive until the morning’s first light.

So Dying Light is basically “I Am Legend: The Game.” I can get behind that.

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Need For Speed Rivals races into stores this November; on PS4, Xbox One later this year

needforspeedrivals-boxCriterion Games is taking the year off, but Electronic Arts will have a new Need For Speed game this Fall when Need For Speed Rivals launches for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on November 19. A PS4 and Xbox One version will also be released before the end of the year.

Rivals is in development at Ghost Games, an internal EA studio in Gothenburg, Sweden that spun off from DICE earlier this year. Using the Frostbite 3 engine, Rivals “captures the adrenaline and intensity of the street’s ultimate rivalry between cops and racers in a stunning open road environment.”

In Need for Speed Rivals, gamers play as either a cop or racer, where each side of the law has its own set of high stakes challenges, rewards and consequences. As a racer, the goal is to become infamous for taking risks behind the wheel and capturing your most intense escapes on video for the world to see. The more cops players evade, the more Speed Points they collect, enabling them to unlock new cars and items. Keep raising the stakes race after race to become an ever-more valuable target to the cops – but risk losing it all if busted. As a cop, players work together as part of a team in pursuit of racers, earning prominence and rising in the ranks of the Police Force with every bust. Achieving higher ranks unlocks new police-only cars and more powerful pursuit tech.

Need For Speed fans will be pleased to know that Ferrari returns to the franchise for the first time since 2006’s Need For Speed Carbon. A hybrid single-player/multiplayer online mode known as AllDrive, which allows players to “seamlessly transition from playing alone to playing with friends.”

EA has also announced that if you pre-order Need For Speed Rivals, you’ll receive the “Ultimate Cop Pack” for free. The pack includes the Nissan GT-R Black Edition police car, “advanced pursuit technology,” and “a custom livery.”

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E3 2013: The Roadmap To Victory for Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony

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Even with the rise of PAX Prime, PAX East, the San Diego Comic-Con, and Gamescom, the annual E3 Expo is still the game industry’s premiere showcase for “what’s next.” And every year, half the fun of the festivities is picking apart the press conferences from Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony and declaring a winner.

I admit, picking press conference winners is more than a little silly. But the three companies are locked in a vicious three-way battle for your video game dollar. Even as the total market has expanded, the opportunities for any individual company have shrunk. So anytime one can wrest control of the headlines away from the other two is a victory. But what can each consolemaker do to ensure a win? Read on and follow our E3 Roadmaps for Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony to find out. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, Opinions, PS3, PS4, Top Story, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged

Giancarlo Esposito narrates Bungie’s first Destiny trailer

Giancarlo Esposito (formerly of Breaking Bad, currently of Revolution, and the man who knows who Keyser Soze is) narrates “The Law of the Jungle,” the first trailer for Bungie’s sci-fi space epic, Destiny.

The trailer, which was actually directed by Jon Favreau, also promises that the first gameplay footage of the game will be revealed during Sony’s E3 Press Conference on Monday, June 10.

Destiny is currently without a release date, but is expected to be released sometime in 2014.

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Infinity Ward confirms Call of Duty: Ghosts is coming to PS4

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It’s not like it was ever in doubt, but Infinity Ward has confirmed that Call of Duty: Ghosts will be coming to the PlayStation 4 as well as the Xbox One:

In a separate tweet, Infinity Ward confirmed that development duties for Ghosts will actually be spread across two additional Activision studios. Raven Software (who helped with Black Ops and Modern Warfare 3) and Neversoft will contribute to the game in a “support” capacity.

Call of Duty: Ghosts will be available for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on November 5. The PS4 and Xbox One edition (which stars the awesomest video game dog ever) will likely launch with the next-generation systems and the Wii U version is still, technically, unannounced.

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Pre-order bonuses for Watch Dogs announced

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Watch Dogs will be available on November 19 for the PC, PS3, Wii U, and Xbox 360 with a PS4 version scheduled for release at the system’s launch. The game is also coming to the Xbox 720/Durango, but Ubisoft continues to stubbornly refer to it as “other next generation consoles” in their press releases. Clearly, you have plenty of options to purchase Watch Dogs this Fall.

To complicate your choice a little bit more, Ubisoft announced a pair of retailer-exclusive pre-order bonuses for Watch Dogs today:

GameStop – Palace Pack: The Palace Pack includes a single player mission, an investigation bonus, and ATM hack boost. The investigation bonus will unlock exclusive investigation opportunities inside of the network and the ATM hack boost will increase cash rewards when hacking into bank accounts. In addition to the single player Palace Pack mission, players who pre-order the game will receive an exclusive poster designed by famed comic-book artist, Alex Ross – while supplies last.

Amazon.com – Signature Shot Pack: The Signature Shot Pack comes with an exclusive single player mission that once completed, unlocks both a unique Biometric Assault Rifle and the Black Viceroy’s Outfit. The biometrics weapon has been smuggled into Chicago for the captain of the Black Viceroy’s gang. The weapon only works for the first person to imprint their palm on the handle. Players will need to breach a stronghold, steal the package and be the first to imprint the weapon and get out of The Wards alive.

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