Torment: Tides of Numenera becomes the most funded game on Kickstrarter ever

Posted on April 7, 2013 by John Scalzo

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Every time I think the Kickstarter train has come to a stop, a different project pulls into a record-breaking station. This time, inXile’s Torment: Tides of Numenera has set a new record for a video game on the site with $4,188,927 in pledges from 74,405 backers. If you missed out on backing the RPG, which was inspired by the well-regarded Planescape: Torment, there’s still time. InXile has set up a PayPal Store for last-minute pledges and pre-orders.

Torment: Tides of Numenera is a massive undertaking and to help with development, inXile has recruited Chris Avellone, the Lead Designer of Planescape: Torment. Here’s what they have planned for Tides of Numenera, which you should be able to play by December 2014:

You are the Last Castoff, the final link in the chain of the lives of the being they call the Changing God. He once was a man who discovered a way to use the relics of the ancients to cheat death and skip across the face of centuries in a succession of bodies. But he never knew that his bodies lived on as his consciousness fled, a new consciousness arising in each. Now he has awakened an age-old enemy, the Angel of Entropy, and his days of change are gone as the Angel hunts him and all his works. That includes… you.

With the ever-present threat of oblivion looming over you, you must find your sire before he—and you—are eradicated by the avenging Angel. You will find allies and enemies among the other castoffs. You might inhabit their minds for a time through the devices called “the Meres,” turning their lives to your advantage. You will travel across the face of the Ninth World, and above and below it, with your companions at your side—or alone, if you wish. Your quest will take you to alternate dimensions and distant worlds under strange suns; particular Meres might afford you even more bizarre experiences, such as folding time itself. And you will build your legacy as you find your answer to the question:

What does one life matter?

You can learn more than you ever wanted to know about Torment: Tides of Numenera by visiting the Kickstarter page and, eventually, the game’s official site.

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Weekly Warp-Up: Post PAX East/Post GDC Edition

Posted on April 7, 2013 by John Scalzo

No, that’s not a typo. Welcome to the Weekly Warp-Up, your weekly wrap-up of the biggest and the best articles posted at Warp Zoned this week…

The two biggest weeks of the Spring calendar are over and we’re still left sorting through the chaos that the back-to-back schedulding of PAX East and GDC has brought about. This week we wrote up our PAX East notes on Ubisoft’s Watch Dogs presentation and Deep Silver’s hands-on demo of Dead Island: Riptide.

We also took a look back at What We Played in March 2013 and a look forward at The Games of April 2013.

Oh, and Disney shut down LucasArts! I’m still in shock over that one. May The Force be with Star Wars 1313, which we now know would have starred Boba Fett.

No disintegrations, but plenty of news, can be found after the break.

Press Start to Continue →

Posted in News |

Game over man… Sega cancels Aliens: Colonial Marines for Wii U

Posted on April 5, 2013 by John Scalzo

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The final chapter of the sad story of Aliens: Colonial Marines has now been written as Sega has officially canceled the Wii U version of the game. The game was originally expected to be released as part of the Wii U’s launch window, but that deadline came and went last week without any word from Sega or developer Gearbox Software.

But that all changed today. Speaking to Joystiq, a Sega representative said: “Sega can confirm that the Wii U SKU of Aliens: Colonial Marines is no longer in development.”

I guess you could say Sega nuked it from orbit… since its mandatory I use that line in any Aliens: Colonial Marines story.

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XBLA Today: Double Dragon II

Posted on April 5, 2013 by John Scalzo

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Double Dragon II: Wander of the Dragons is now available on the Xbox Live Arcade thanks to a special Friday update. But take notice, Xbox gamer! Double Dragon II isn’t a sequel to last year’s WayForward-developed Double Dragon: Neon. Instead, it’s a remake of the 1980s arcade classic from Korean developer Gravity.

If that hasn’t dissuaded you from reaching for the download button, you might also like to know that Double Dragon II has been priced at 800 Microsoft Points ($10). You can also learn more about the game by reading this wonderfully written game description that may or may not be English:

This is a remake “Double Dragon II” a 80s game. The story line takes same as original game story. However, the graphic, character, action, system etc. are change. Also we are including new stage and enemy in the game. The player will be addicted to new version of Double Dragon II. Also, characters are undressed from 80s style, and recreated with modern sexy and beautiful style that amaze you and feel never been experienced world before.

Take notice once again, Xbox gamer! “Undressed from 80s style” doesn’t mean the game is full of naked ninjas. That would be a… very different… type of game.

Posted in News, Xbox 360 |

MS Creative Director shares his opinion of “always-online” consoles: “Deal with it”

Posted on April 5, 2013 by John Scalzo

xbox720logoAdam Orth is the Creative Director at Microsoft Studios. But he might have trouble introducing himself over the next few days as his foot has become firmly lodged in his mouth.

Yesterday, Orth took to Twitter and expounded on the rumors that the Xbox 720/Durango would require a constant Internet connection. Since his gaffe, Orth has switched his account to private, but thankfully, a Reddit user was able to capture the offending tweets (with BioWare’s Manveer Heir playing the part of the pissed-off public):

Orth: Sorry, I don’t get the drama around having an “always on” console. Every device now is “always on”. That’s the world we live in. #dealwithit

Heir: Did you learn nothing from Diablo III or SimCity? You know some people’s internet goes out right? Deal with it is a shitty reason

Orth: Electricity goes out too.

Heir: You’ve lived in LA, SF, Seattle… very connected places. Try living in Janesville, WI or Blacksburg, VA

Orth: Why on earth would I live there?

While Orth was using his personal Twitter account to disseminate his personal opinion, this exchange brings new meaning to the words “tone deaf.” A lot of people do live in those places, Mr. Orth, and not all of them have a steady Internet connection (or any Internet connection at all, for that matter).

Microsoft has yet to make any official announcements about what features the Xbox 720/Durango will or will not include, but Orth’s comments have lent quite a bit of weight to the rumors that the console will require an Internet connection. The Wii U launched in November without any kind of “always-on” requirement and Sony has previously promised one won’t be used in the PS4. So this would put the Xbox 720/Durango in a very bad position.

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Star Wars 1313 would have starred Boba Fett

Posted on April 4, 2013 by John Scalzo

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Star Wars 1313‘s E3 2012 trailer included a placeholder main character that LucasArts planned to replace before the game was released. With this week’s closure of LucasArts, we may never see the game on store shelves, but Kotaku has learned that the main character of 1313 would have been… wait for it… Boba Fett. I’ll give you a minute to catch your breath as this is clearly a development that no one was expecting.

The reason for the placeholder character was due to the fact that Boba Fett wasn’t added to 1313 until just before last year’s E3 Expo. Until that point, the game officially didn’t have a main character and was basically a blank slate being used to tell stories in the Star Wars underworld.

While internal development has ceased at LucasArts, there’s still hope that 1313 (and Star Wars: First Assault) will be completed by a third party. According to Kotaku’s tipster, this scenario is unlikely:

“[LucasArts] ended up with movie tech that wouldn’t fit in a game, and game tech that wouldn’t fit in a movie. 1313 was always in danger of not being made.”

If Star Wars 1313 is truly dead, we should probably start thinking of it as a game frozen in carbonite, forever taunting us with the dream of a “mature” take on the Star Wars saga. Though I’m not sure a game starring a character with as much baggage as Boba Fett could have done it.

Posted in News, Xbox 360 | Tagged ,

Killer Instinct trademark rejection rescinded after Microsoft, Fox reach deal

Posted on April 4, 2013 by John Scalzo

The Killer Instinct trademark is back in the hands of Microsoft after the company’s army of lawyers reached a deal with Fox Television Studios over their claim to the mark.

Microsoft’s agreement with Fox actually states that they’ll share the Killer Instinct trademark and that they “do not believe confusion is likely to result from concurrent use of their respective marks.” Because it’s very easy to confuse an iconic fighting game developed by Rare and starring a cyborg, an ice alien, and a giant eyeball with a short-lived TV show about serial killers that was canceled nine episodes into its first season.

The deal between Fox and Microsoft was required after the United States Patent and Trademark Office rejected Microsoft’s renewal claim in December. But with an agreement between the two companies in place, Microsoft can move forward with… whatever it is they plan to do with the Killer Instinct trademark.

[Source: Polygon]

Posted in News, Xbox 360 |

Activision officially announces April 16 release date for CoD: Black Ops II Uprising DLC

Posted on April 4, 2013 by John Scalzo

After weeks of rumors, Activision has officially announced the second downloadable expansion for Call of Duty: Black Ops II. The Uprising Map Pack will be available to download from the Xbox Live Marketplace on April 16 for 1200 Microsoft Points ($15). The pack is also included as part of the Call of Duty: Black Ops II DLC Season Pass. A PC and PS3 release will likely follow in May. Like the Revolution Pack before it, Uprising will add four new maps to the game’s multiplayer mode:

  • “Magma” is a modern Japanese village with volcanic eruptions carving multiple paths throughout the town.
  • “Encore” takes place in the aftermath of a deserted London music festival and leaves numerous opportunities for run-and-gun, close quarters combat.
  • “Vertigo” is a futuristic high rise in India housing a high-tech lab featuring dizzying vistas and multi-tiered pathways.
  • “Studio” is a Hollywood movie back lot with a variety of cinematic themes that range from Sci-Fi to the Old West. It’s also a contemporary remake of “Firing Range,” a fan-favorite multiplayer map from Call of Duty: Black Ops.

An expansive new Zombies mode, “Mob of the Dead,” will also be included in Uprising. Similar to Black Ops‘ “Call of the Dead,” “Mob of the Dead” will recruit four of Hollywood’s most famous wiseguys: Ray Liotta as Billy Handsome, Joe Pantoliano as Al “The Weasel” Arlington, Chazz Palmentiri as Salvatore “Sal” DeLuca, and Michael Madsen as Michael “Finn” O’Leary. At the start of “Mob of the Dead,” these four made men are residents of Alcatraz. But instead of hanging with the Birdman, they’ll have to take on a zombie horde:

With plans to break out of Alcatraz foiled by the rise of the undead, the quartet of inmates will have to lean on their mob-derived skills with firearms, blunt instruments and improvised weaponry as they battle the zombies infesting and overrunning the island. In order to survive, players must work their way through the steel cells and aging concrete buildings while fighting off a multitude of zombified prisoners and guards trapped on the island with them.

I’ll just say it, welcome to The Rock!

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