Xbox Store Today: Madden NFL 18, F1 2017, Mages of Mystralia, more

Posted on August 25, 2017 by John Scalzo

It’s a big day for the Xbox Games Store, as a dozen new releases are now available to download through the digital storefront.

We start things off with EA Sports’s annual football simulation, Madden NFL 18. This year, the publisher gave the Xbox One game a “significant visual leap” thanks to the use of EA’s proprietary Frostbite Engine. A brand new Story Mode, “Longshot,” will also give Madden fans something new to try out.

Sports fans will also get the chance to put the pedal to the metal in Codemasters’s F1 2017. The Xbox One racer will include a revamped Career Mode and other enhancements over previous entries.

The magic of sports gives way to actual magic in Mages of Mystralia, an overhead action RPG from Borealys Games. Players will be able to create their own spellbook to solve the puzzles and overcome obstacles “put in place by people who do not want you to succeed.”

Finally, Bandai Namco will re-release the first three games in the Naruto Shippuden series (Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2, and Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 – Full Burst) for the Xbox One with improved graphics and sound.

You can learn more about all of today’s new releases after the break.

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Super Mario Odyssey takes home “Best of Gamescom” award at 2017 Gamescom expo

Posted on August 25, 2017 by John Scalzo

Hats off to Super Mario Odyssey…

Nintendo’s upcoming platformer took home five Gamescom Awards this year, including 2017’s “Best of Gamescom” title, as well as “Best Nintendo Switch Game,” “Best Action Game,” “Best Family Game,” and the fan-voted “Most Wanted Consumer Award.”

The only other game to capture multiple Gamescom Awards was Destiny 2, which won “Best Social/Online Game” and “Best Multiplayer Game.”

The international jury spread out the remainder of the Gamescom Awards and chose to honor Assassin’s Creed: Origins (“Best PS4 Game”), Middle-Earth: Shadow of War (“Best Xbox One Game”), Kingdom Come: Deliverance (“Best PC Game”), and Metroid: Samus Returns (“Best Mobile Game”) in the platform categories. Another wide variety of titles (including Project CARS 2, Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom, Pro Evolution Soccer 2018, and others) were big winners in the genre categories.

The complete list of nominees and winners for the 2017 Gamescom Awards can be found after the break.

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Blazing Chrome’s opening cutscene introduces its Terminator-like world

Posted on August 25, 2017 by John Scalzo

JoyMasher is continuing to plug away at Blazing Chrome, their homage to Contra: Hard Corps, and the Brazilian developer recently uploaded a brand new look at the game’s opening cutscene.

As you might expect with a story that pits humanity against a robotic uprising, Blazing Chrome makes several references to the Terminator franchise. The pile of skulls is an especially nice touch.

Blazing Chrome is currently in development for the PC, but JoyMasher has yet to announce a release date for their side-scrolling shooter.

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Square Enix will release Secret of Mana remake for PC, PS4, Vita in February

Posted on August 25, 2017 by John Scalzo

Secret of Mana was originally released for the Super NES in 1993, and it quickly became one of the most beloved RPGs of all time. But next year, a whole new generation of players will get the chance to experience Secret of Mana after Square Enix launches a 3D remake of the game for the PC, PS4, and Vita on February 15:

Originally released in 1993, Secret of Mana faithfully tells the story of Randi, Primm and Popoi as they battle a treacherous empire in order to reclaim the power of Mana and bring the world back to order.

The Secret of Mana remake will include “upgraded gameplay for modern platforms,” as well as a newly arranged musical score. And fans who pre-order the game will be able to customize their heroes with the Moogle Suit Costume Pack and the Tiger Suit Costume Pack.

The first trailer for the Secret of Mana remake has been embedded above.

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Battlefield 1’s “Esports Mode” will be known as Incursions… and here’s the first trailer

Posted on August 24, 2017 by John Scalzo

Electronic Arts’s promised “Esports Mode” for Battlefield 1 will be known as Incursions, and the publisher unveiled a trailer for it earlier today. When you’re finished with that, a post on the game’s official website has also given us a peek at what to expect from the new mode:

5-Versus-5 Focused Battles
Battlefield 1: Incursions brings the authenticity of Battlefield 1 to a contained, small-scale battle. With just five team members, every move, every action and every kill matters to the outcome of the match. The scoring system emphasizes teamplay and working together like never before.

Vehicles
From the very start, we knew: It wouldn’t be Battlefield without vehicles. Vehicles can turn the tide of an Incursions match. But they aren’t unstoppable, and destroying an enemy vehicle can be just as decisive as deploying one.

Strategic Depth
In every Battlefield 1: Incursions match, your choice of kit and by extension the team composition is critical to success. Through additions like a lobby-based matchmaker, a draft phase, and per-game progression, we can ensure there are more strategic layers to consider than ever before. Only the sharpest strategic teams will rise to the top of the competition.

Epic Battlefield Moments
The impact of Only in Battlefield moments lands even harder as every point, every move, and every bullet becomes the difference between victory and defeat. Each player has a chance to be the hero that saves the day and wins the match for their team.

A Closed Alpha for Battlefield 1: Incursions will begin in September.

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Nintendo Download: Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle (Tuesday), Forma.8, more

Posted on August 24, 2017 by John Scalzo

Summer’s almost over, but Nintendo has one more big game ready to go for the Switch…

The consolemaker has teamed up with Ubisoft to produce Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, a strategy game that brings those rascally Rabbids to the Mushroom Kingdom for the first time. Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle will be available to download on Tuesday, August 29.

Several other games were added to the Switch eShop today including Forma.8, a minimalist MetroidVania that was originally released for the Wii U; Piczle Lines DX, a puzzle game that combines color-matching and number-crunching; and Puzzled, a Tetris-like puzzle game that was originally released for the NeoGeo in 1990.

You can learn more about all of these games after the break.

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Nintendo will add Lola Pop to Arms in the game’s next update

Posted on August 24, 2017 by John Scalzo

It looks like Nintendo is going to add another colorful combatant to Arms as part of the game’s next update.

Lola Pop is a clown who can inflate her body like a balloon, and this special ability provides her with improved defensive capabilities. She can also wield new types of Arms, including a nunchuk glove. The update, which will be available this Fall, will also include a new stage based on Lola Pop’s freewheeling personality. You can get your first glimpse at the fighter in Arms’s Gamescom 2017 trailer, which has been embedded above.

If you can’t wait that long, Nintendo also revealed plans to bring back the Global Testpunch, and all Switch owners will be able to play Arms’s online multiplayer this weekend. The Global Testpunch begins at 11:00 AM (Eastern Time) on August 25, and goes through 5:00 PM (Eastern Time) on August 27.

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Overview Trailer for Metroid: Samus Returns includes everything you ever wanted to know about the game

Posted on August 24, 2017 by John Scalzo

Nintendo’s famed bounty hunter, Samus Aran, will return this September in the Metroid: Samus Returns, but she’ll have plenty of new tricks up her metallic sleeve.

Metroid: Samus Returns is a remake of 1991’s Metroid II: Return of Samus, the only game in the franchise to be released for the Game Boy. In its leap to the 3DS, Nintendo and developer MercurySteam have added a variety of new Aeion Abilities, a powerful Melee Counter, and Amiibo-exclusive bonuses. The space adventure was also given a beautiful graphical upgrade… so say goodbye to the soupy shades of “Game Boy Green” found in the original game.

But if you want to learn more about all of these enhancements, then Samus Returns’s new Overview Trailer is for you:

Welcome to Planet SR388, a world of subterraneous labyrinths, vicious alien lifeforms, mysterious secrets…and a deadly Metroid infestation. Legendary bounty hunter Samus Aran is the galaxy’s only hope—in this video, learn more about the incredible arsenal at her disposal and the many obstacles she must face.

Metroid: Samus Returns will be released exclusively for the 3DS on September 15.

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