Xbox Store Today: Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast & Furious, Oddworld: New ‘N’ Tasty

Posted on March 27, 2015 by John Scalzo

Two games race their way onto the Xbox Games Store today…

Available for both the Xbox One and Xbox 360, Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast & Furious is a standalone expansion to Forza Horizon 2 that includes racing action based on the Fast and the Furious franchise. Best of all, the game will be free from now until April 10 thanks to Universal Studios, which is using the game to promote Furious 7. After April 10, the game’s price will be $9.99.

Also available this week is Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee – New ‘N’ Tasty for the Xbox One. The New ‘N’ Tasty edition takes the original Oddworld game and adds in “improved, deeper gameplay” to a package that also includes enhanced graphics and audio.

More information about both games can be found after the break.

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Killer Instinct Ultra Edition owners can now download Hisako

Posted on March 27, 2015 by John Scalzo

Iron Galaxy has announced that Hisako, Killer Instinct‘s “ghost girl,” is now available to download for players who own the Season 2 Ultra Edition. Combo Breaker Pack players will have to wait until Thursday, April 2.

The character is heavily based on Japanese horror heavies such as The Ring‘s Samara, so if you’ve ever wanted to watch a ghost fight a dinosaur (Riptor), a cyborg (Fulgore), or a walking skeleton (Spinal), you can in the trailer embedded above.

And be sure to watch all the way to the end to get your first look at Killer Instinct’s next character, Cinder.

Posted in News, Xbox One | Tagged

Pillars of Eternity launches today in three editions… and there’s a launch trailer too

Posted on March 26, 2015 by John Scalzo

After raising nearly $4 million on Kickstarter (and a further $500,000 in additional crowdfunding), Obsidian Entertainment is finally ready to release Pillars of Eternity. A “classic RPG” in the style of Baldur’s Gate, Icewind Dale, and Planescape: Torment, Pillars of Eternity has been a labor of love for the team at Obsidian.

“Moments like these feel surreal when they finally arrive,” said Feargus Urquhart, the CEO of Obsidian Entertainment. “Today is the culmination of two years’ hard work, but there’s even more to it than the usual game release day. Given where we were when we started on Pillars of Eternity, this is the start of a new chapter in the story of Obsidian. We’ll be forever grateful to all of our fans and backers for making this moment possible, and truly hope that we have lived up to the faith you placed in us.”

To further celebrate the launch of Pillars of Eternity, Obsidian has released a pretty great launch day trailer, which has been embedded above. And if you haven’t picked up Pillars of Eternity yet, you might want to know that it’s available in three versions: the Hero Edition ($44.99), the Champion Edition ($59.99), and the Royal Edition ($89.99).

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Liu Kang and Kung Lao are zombies in this new Mortal Kombat X trailer

Posted on March 26, 2015 by John Scalzo

The latest trailer for Mortal Kombat X, which was produced in conjunction with Maxim Russia for some reason, gives us our first look at Liu Kang in action… and he’s a zombie under the thrall of Shinnok! Oh no! Kung Lao is also a member of the walking undead after his resurrection by dark magic. Newcomer Kung Jin, Kung Lao’s descendant, is also featured in this “Shaolin Style” trailer.

I guess now we know how all those previously-dead kombatants will be able to take part in Mortal Kombat X. Though Kung Lao did look to be in complete control of his faculties in his debut trailer, so perhaps they get better.

Mortal Kombat X will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on April 14. The title will also be available for the PS3 and Xbox 360 this Summer.

UPDATE: An English-language version of the trailer has now been posted on the Mortal Kombat Community YouTube Channel.

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Nintendo Download: Dot Arcade, Namco Museum, Lego Ninjago: Shadow of Ronin, more

Posted on March 26, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Six new games were added to the Nintendo eShop today and the two Wii U titles will definitely be of interest to anyone who loves retro gaming.

Dot Arcade is a Wii U compilation of three minimalist games (“Mr. Snake,” “Dodge Club,” and “Rally Driver”) that all take place in 8×8 light cabinets. While “retro” is a fair description, Dot Arcade is almost “pre-retro” in that it evokes the penny arcades of old. Also available for the Wii U is the Virtual Console re-release of Namco Museum, which was originally released for the Game Boy Advance in 2001 and includes Ms. Pac-Man, Galaxian, Galaga, Pole Position, and Dig Dug.

If you’re looking for something a little more modern, WB Games has added Lego Ninjago: Shadow of Ronin to the 3DS eShop. The latest Lego Ninjago game pits the Ninjas against Ronin and his memory-sapping ancient weapon.

More information on all of these games (and a few others) can be found after the break.

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Posted in 3DS, DS, News, Wii U | Tagged

In the Year 20XX: An Interview With Chris King of Batterystaple Games

Posted on March 26, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Back in the day, Sega used to run an advertising campaign that claimed “Genesis Does What Nintendon’t.” Aside from angering my inner nerd (I was an excellent speller in grade school), I could never actually figure out what Sega did that Nintendo didn’t. The same benefit of the doubt does not apply to the people who currently run Capcom. We know exactly what they aren’t doing, and that’s treating Mega Man, one of gaming’s most beloved characters, with the respect he deserves. There hasn’t been a new Mega Man game in nearly five years, and aside from an appearance in last year’s Super Smash Bros. For 3DS/Wii U (a Nintendo production), the character has been completely forgotten.

Enter Chris King, the programmer for Batterystaple Games. He saw the Mega Man-shaped hole in the market and decided to give the people what they wanted. His new game, 20XX, is a loving homage to Mega Man (more specifically, to the Mega Man X series) that adds in a lot of things that Capcom couldn’t do back in the 90s.

What does Capcom think of 20XX? After playing a few rounds of 20XX, we asked the developer that question, and a few more, at this year’s PAX East expo.

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Posted in Features, Interviews, PC, Previews, Top Story | Tagged ,

Daily Scoop: March 26, 2015 – This weather is out of its mind

Posted on March 26, 2015 by Nicole Kline

It’s a rainy spring day today, with temperature in the 60s. But Saturday it’s going to… snow??? Seriously, Spring. Go home. You’re drunk!

The best way to contend with this madness is to buy more games and stay inside playing them. At Steam, the Weekend Deal is Men of War: Assault Squad 2. You can play it for free, and/or pick it up for $7.49. The Daily Deal is one of my personal favorites, Legend of Dungeon! You can get it for just $2.99, and the soundtrack is on sale for $1.49.

There’s a Paradox Midweek Sale happening at Humble Bundle! Pick up Europa Universalis IV for $9.99, Crusader Kings II for $7.99, and the Magicka Collection for $9.99. Not too shabby!

Let’s check out today’s t-shirts!

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F1 2015 will be released for PC, PS4, Xbox One in June

Posted on March 26, 2015 by John Scalzo

F1 2015 logo cmyk

Codemasters announced today they’re bringing their Formula One racing series to the PC, PS4, and Xbox One this June with the release of F1 2015. Distributed by Bandai Namco, the game will set a new bar for realism in Formula One games.

F1 2015 will include “a significant step forward” in the physics-based handling model, which has been designed with new players and veterans in mind. This new model will offer improvements to all parts of the car including “engine and transmission, aerodynamics, fuel tank, force feedback, suspension, and a brand new tire physics model.” A new “broadcast presentation” graphical style will also aid in the game’s attempt at realism and a voice recognition option on both the PS4 and Xbox One will get you talking to your race engineers. Finally, the game will make all of these features come to life through the use of a brand new version of Codemasters’ popular EGO game engine.

Players will get the chance to compete in two FIA Formula One World Championship seasons in F1 2015 including the current 2015 season and the 2014 season (which is being called “bonus game content” right now, so it may be available as DLC).

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