Daily Scoop: May 6, 2014 – Sportsfriends!!

Posted on May 6, 2014 by Nicole Kline

Sportsfriends is out today on PS3 and PS4, everyone! This is cause for celebration! This means you can play BaraBariBall, Hokra, Johann Sebastian Joust, and Super Pole Vaulters all from the comfort of your own couch! Well, except for JS Joust… that’s going to require your whole living room, for sure. I’ll probably go home and buy it right after work, though I won’t be able to put that $14.99 to good use just yet – Anthony Amato and I have a strict no-fun-until-we-get-our-work-done policy right now. I’m going to work my butt off tonight!

Anyway, enough about Sportsfriends (it’s never enough about Sportsfriends!!). There are lots of other games you can buy today as well – the Midweek Madness at Steam is Kerbal Space Program for $16.19, and their Daily Deal is Spacebase DF-9 for $14.99. And at the Humble Store, you can get TowerFall: Ascension on sale for $9.99, Batman: Arkham Origins for $7.49, and South Park: The Stick of Truth for $39.99. This is a great day for deals!

There are lots of shirts you’ll want to buy today, too!

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Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Mortal Kombat creator is secretly counting down to something on Twitter

Posted on May 6, 2014 by John Scalzo

netherrealmstudios-logoEd Boon loves Twitter. The Mortal Kombat maestro has had an account with the microblogging service since November 2008 and he has churned out more than 9,500 tweets in that time. Lately, he’s begun a coded countdown that is set to expire on June 2, just a week before the start of this year’s E3 Expo.

On Sunday, Boon tweeted “Square root of 841” to his followers (which is 29, by the way). Yesterday, he asked the Twitterverse to answer this question: “How many days in (non-leap-year) February?” IGN caught on to Boon’s secret countdown and, unless he’s given up, we’re all eagerly awaiting today’s veiled reference to 27.

According to previous statements made by Boon, multiple executives with WB Games, and 24‘s Kiefer Sutherland, NetherRealm Studios has already begun development on Mortal Kombat 10. Fans are definitely anxious to “Finish Him!” once more as the last game in the series, a total series reboot, was released in 2011.

Here’s hoping that the regularly playful Boon isn’t just toying with us ahead of gaming’s biggest showcase.

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Harmonix turns to Kickstarter to fund Amplitude reboot for PS3, PS4

Posted on May 6, 2014 by John Scalzo

Harmonix is bringing back Amplitude and they’ve turned to Kickstarter to help fund development.

Amplitude was originally released in 2003 for the PS2 and tasked players with piloting a “Beat Blaster” down a track. Musical notes littered the track and players were required to tap buttons in time with the music to capture the section and continue on through the rest of the track. The new Amplitude is in development as a digital download for the PS3 and PS4 and will feature the same “core mechanics and hallmark difficulty” as the original, albeit enhanced with high definition visuals.

The new Amplitude will include a variety of songs composed by Harmonix’s in-house audio team. The tracks will have an “electronic-based feel” and Harmonix wants to include many different types of music “with tones spanning dark and moody to bright and bouncing.” If the crowdfunding campaign is a huge success, the developer plans to use the extra funds to pursue licensed music from popular artists.

Harmonix is seeking $775,000 to make the new Amplitude a reality and, as of this writing, they’re currently sitting on $146,377 in pledges (18% of the total). If all goes well, the game could be released as early as March 2015.

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Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark will transform into a released game on June 24

Posted on May 6, 2014 by John Scalzo

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Activision will release Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark on June 24, three days ahead of the fourth film adaptation, Transformers: Age of Extinction. Rise of the Dark Spark won’t be a traditional tie-in game and will instead merge the movieverse with the High Moon-developed War For Cybertron/Fall of Cybertron games.

Even though Rise of the Dark Spark is just seven weeks away, we still don’t know much about it. But that hasn’t stopped GameStop from beginning to take pre-orders for the game. If you pre-purchase Rise of the Dark Spark, the game retailer will grant you access to the Weathered Warrior Pack, which includes two characters (Skywarp and Thundercracker) and two weapons (the Glass Gas Cannon and the Electro Bolter) for use in the game’s Campaign and Escalation Mode.

The Weathered Warrior Pack will be included with pre-orders of the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One editions of Rise of the Dark Spark. The game will also be available on June 24 for the Wii U and 3DS.

Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged

East Coast Game Conference 2014 Report or, Why I Want to See You There Next Year

Posted on May 5, 2014 by Nicole Kline

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Once again, I headed down to Raleigh, North Carolina to attend the East Coast Game Conference, or ECGC, as it’s more commonly known. The conference took place on Wednesday, April 23 and Thursday, April 24, and was well-attended by academics, students, and professionals, and filled with panels that were informative and exciting. There were some different tracks this year, a larger expo floor, and some additional exciting events surrounding the conference itself.

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Posted in Features, Top Story |

Daily Scoop: May 5, 2014 – Has Spring arrived at last?

Posted on May 5, 2014 by Nicole Kline

It’s a gorgeous day outside – it’s not freezing, or raining, or overcast, or snowing. Does that mean that Spring is, in fact, finally here? I’m not going to hold my breath – or stop wearing layers – but I will bask in the sun for a bit. Just a bit, though – my skin is not used to being outside!

And now that it’s beautiful outside, let’s talk about those things that keep us inside: video games! Video game deals, to be more specific. Amazon has some Microsoft deals right now, including the Xbox 360 E 250GB Spring Value Bundle for $249.99, Dead Rising 3 for $42.11, Forza Motorsport 5 for $40.18, and Ryse: Son of Rome for $40.64.

If it’s digital deals you want, I’ve got those, too. The Humble Store has Meridian: New World for $11.21, The Book of Legends for $5.99, and Sir, You Are Being Hunted for $16.99. And the Daily Deal at Steam is Dream, which is on sale for $8.49. Scoop ’em up!

As always, I’ve got a couple of t-shirts for you as well!

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Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

NHL 15 skates onto current-gen, next-gen consoles this Fall

Posted on May 5, 2014 by John Scalzo

EA Sports has officially announced that NHL 15 will be available for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One this Fall. As in years past, fans will be able to choose the game’s cover athlete at NHL.com/CoverVote. Voting begins today with eight players (Patrice Bergeron, Logan Couture, Drew Doughty, Matt Duchene, Erik Karlsson, Phil Kessel, T.J. Oshie, and P.K. Subban) taking part in the competition.

According to EA, NHL 15’s next-gen leap will feature a slew of additions to the game including enhanced player collision and puck physics, more authentic player models, and a revamped player AI system. A brand new crowd rendering model and the addition of NBC Sports commentators rounds out some of NHL 15’s new features.

You can check out NHL 15’s teaser trailer above and read all about the game’s new features after the break.

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Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged

Telltale releases first Tales From the Borderlands screenshots

Posted on May 5, 2014 by John Scalzo

talesfromtheborderlands-1Today, Telltale Games released the first five screenshots from Tales From the Borderlands, their upcoming collaboration with Gearbox Software. Taking place after Borderlands 2, Tales From the Borderlands isn’t Borderlands 3, but it is considered “official canon” by Gearbox. The episodic series will star two brand new characters who will cross paths with several franchise favorites including Zero, Sir Hammerlock, and, possibly, Handsome Jack himself:

Featuring two playable characters, the story is told from two unique perspectives that will alternate as the story progresses. These characters include Rhys, a scheming, low-level data-miner within Hyperion who’s plotting his own grand ambitions; and Fiona, a clever and classic fast-talking con-artist born and raised on Pandora out to pull off the grift of a lifetime.

Each episode of Tales From the Borderlands will be priced at $4.99, with a Season Pass discount available to those who buy all five episode up front. The game will be available for PlayStation and Xbox platforms, though Telltale hasn’t said if that means PS4 and Xbox One, PS3 and Xbox 360, or both sets of systems. Considering Telltale’s history, a PC and mobile release is also likely.

You can find Tales From the Borderlands’ first five screenshots after the break.

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