PS Store Today: Axiom Verge, MLB 15: The Show, RBI Baseball 15, more

Posted on March 31, 2015 by John Scalzo

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It’s another big week for the PlayStation Store as Sony’s Spring Fever promotion continues to roll on with Axiom Verge, a “Metroidvania” that was created by a single developer (Tom Happ) over the course of the last five years.

The side-scrolling adventure game is joined this week by a pair of baseball games: Sony’s more modern MLB 15: The Show (PS4, PS4, Vita) and MLB Advanced Media’s retro-styled RBI Baseball 15 (PS4).

Also available today is Toukiden: Kiwami, a new monster-hunting game for the PS4 and Vita. It’s developed by Omega Force (the Dynasty Warriors people) and it’s published by Koei Tecmo. Toukiden: Kiwami is actually an enhanced re-release of Toukiden: The Age of Demons, which was released for the Vita last year.

More information on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. And, as always, a complete rundown of this week’s new game add-ons and discounts can be found at the PlayStation Blog.

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Daily Scoop: March 31, 2015 – Last day of March

Posted on March 31, 2015 by Nicole Kline

Tomorrow is April Fool’s Day, when you cannot trust a single thing on the Internet. I can’t wait to avoid it all day long!

The Humble Indie Bundle 14 is brand new over at Humble! Pay what you want for Pixel Piracy, UnEpic, and Super Splatters. Beat the average to unlock Outlast, Torchlight II, and La-Mulana. Pay $10 or more to unlock Shadow Warrior Special Edition. And finally, pay $40 or more to get the Travelin’ Pack, which includes a t-shirt, a custom patch, and a handkerchief.

Over at Steam, the Midweek Madness is indie darling Octodad: Dadliest Catch. For just $4.94, you can get the game, or you can pay $6.59 for the game and soundtrack. The Daily Deal is early access to Gang Beasts. If you’re into local multiplayer, this is a steal for $13.39.

Again, there are just a few shirts today. But they’re good ones!

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Google adds playable Pac-Man Street View to Google Maps

Posted on March 31, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Google loves April Fool’s Day. But I think today’s early April Fool’s prank even tops the time Google Maps added a Dragon Warrior-inspired Quest Filter.

Going to Google Maps today (and for “a little while” longer) will give users the option to load up a playable Pac-Man Street View. Not every street can be transformed into a Pac-Man playground, but once you find one that does, you can duck down boulevards and avenues to collect dots while avoiding the ghosts on real streets. Here’s Times Square, that’s a good one to start with. Other locales recommended by Google include the company’s headquarters in Mountain View, Niagara Falls, the Batu Caves of Kuala Lumpur, and a few others.

The streets around the Bandai Namco offices in the the Shinagawa neighborhood of Tokyo, better known as the birthplace of Pac-Man, also work quite well.

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Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China will launch April 21; India and Russia will follow in Fall

Posted on March 31, 2015 by John Scalzo

Ubisoft has announced the Climax Studios-developed Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China, a side-scrolling spinoff in the Assassin’s Creed series, will be released on April 21. Now only that, but Ubisoft also plans to release two additional Chronicles games. Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India and Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: Russia will both be released by this Fall.

Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China will star Shao Jun, who was first seen in the Assassin’s Creed: Embers short film, as she fights for vengeance in her homeland. For Chronicles: China, Ubisoft and Climax will use Chinese brush paintings as the basis for the game’s look. In fact, each entry in the Chronicles trilogy will feature its own unique art style that evokes it’s setting.

The artistic signature of Chronicles: India will be based on the bright colors that bathe India during the Holi celebration. The game will star Arbaaz Mir, who must steal a mysterious item from a Master Templar. Mir previously appeared in the Assassin’s Creed: Brahman graphic novel.

Finally, Chronicles: Russia will take place just after the Russian Revolution, basing its look on the propaganda posters that were common in the USSR. Nikolai Orelov (of Assassin’s Creed: The Fall and The Chain) has been asked to break into the tsar’s palace, where he eventually crosses paths with Anastasia.

Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China will be available for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One by itself (priced at $9.99) or as part of the Assassin’s Creed: Unity Season Pass. Future Chronicles installments will be sold separately. An in-depth overview of Chronicles: China can be found at the UbiBlog. Ubisoft’s official site also has an early look at Chronicles: India and Chronicles: Russia.

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Evolve: Behemoth and four new Hunters now available to download

Posted on March 31, 2015 by John Scalzo

A new Monster (Behemoth) and four new Hunters are now available to download in Turtle Rock’s 4v1 shooter, Evolve.

Behemoth is a massive rock beast that can also turn into a rolling ball of death to crush any Hunters that remain in his path. But the four new Hunters aren’t just going to lie down and die. The tattooed Torvald (Assault), enigmatic Crow (Trapper), psychotic Sunny (Support), and extraterrestrial Slim (Medic) all bring new weapons and abilities to the battle:

Torvald (Assault)
Punch through your enemies with the Assault character Torvald. His loadout includes a Mortar Cannon, Autofire Shotgun, and Shrapnel Grenades.

Crow (Trapper)
Ensnare your enemies with the Trapper character Crow. His loadout includes a Kinetic Long Rifle, Stasis Gun, and a Pet Batray.

Sunny (Support)
Give your teammates a boost with the Support character Sunny. Her loadout includes a Mininuke Grenade Launcher, Jetpack Booster, and a Shield Drone.

Slim (Medic)
Protect your fellow Hunters with the Medic character Slim. His loadout includes a Leech Gun, Spore Cloud Launcher, and Healing Drone.

Players looking to expand Evolve will find that these add-on characters don’t come cheap. Each Hunter has been priced at $7.49 apiece, while Behemoth carries a $14.99 price tag. A new trailer showcasing all five new additions to the game has been embedded above.

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Batman: Arkham Knight PS4 system bundles announced; All DLC coming to PS4 first

Posted on March 31, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Sony Computer Entertainment and WB Games have teamed up to produce two Batman: Arkham Knight system bundles to be available alongside the PS4 game’s June 23 launch.

The Limited Edition Bundle (pictured above) includes a Steel Grey PS4 system emblazoned with a special Batman: Arkham Knight faceplate. A matching Steel Grey DualShock 4 controller and a copy of Batman: Arkham Knight will round out the package, which has been priced at $449.99.

A standard Batman: Arkham Knight PS4 Bundle will also be available in the PS4’s regular Jet Black color configuration. There’s no fancy faceplate, but the bundle will come packaged with a copy of Batman: Arkham Knight. The standard Batman: Arkham Knight PS4 Bundle will set you back $399.99.

Sony also announced that all of Batman: Arkham Knight’s downloadable content, including any additional in-game missions or custom skins, will be available for the PS4 first.

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Gears of War 4’s motion capture shoot is complete… here’s a teaser picture

Posted on March 31, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Jack Felling, a developer at Black Tusk Studios, has given us our first look at the upcoming Gears of War 4. Apparently, the motion capture shoot for the Xbox One game just wrapped up, so Felling tweeted out a picture of an actor holding the game’s signature weapon, the chainsaw-tipped Lancer:

Development on Gears of War 4 (which is currently a working title for the game) began in January 2014. With all the motion capture work done, Black Tusk has clearly made some decent progress on the game over the last 15 months, but it’s likely still a ways from completion. Who knows, maybe we’ll hear more about Gears of War 4 at this year’s E3 Expo…

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Lichdom: Battlemage will be released for consoles in Fall 2015

Posted on March 30, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Maximum Games has announced they will bring Xaviant’s spell-casting first person shooter Lichdom: Battlemage to consoles this Fall. It’s currently unknown where Lichdome will be landing, but the PS4 and/or the Xbox One is probably a safe bet.

Lichdom: Battlemage is centered around characters known as Dragons, whose genders are based on the player’s selections at the beginning of the game. Magic is the only weapon that Dragons use throughout the game – no punching, no daggers…just pure, raw magical power. Unlike other spell-casting games, Lichdom: Battlemage has no limit to the amount of magic that can be used – no mana bars, no cooldowns.

“Everything about Lichdom: Battlemage is powerful… the combat, the magic, the enemies, the bosses…” said Michael McMain, the CEO and Creative Director at Xaviant. “We’re pleased to see the game will be available to more players looking for a unique spell-casting game on console.”

Lichdom: Battlemage was originally released last August for the PC exclusively through Steam.

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