Civilization VI will be released exclusively for the PC on October 21

Posted on May 12, 2016 by John Scalzo

Firaxis Games is returning to Earth for the next entry in the Civilization series, which will be available exclusively for the PC on October 21. Civilization VI marks a new beginning for the franchise, as players will be able to expand their empire across the map and interact with the world in new ways:

Civilization VI Features

  • Expansive Empires: See the marvels of your empire spread across the map like never before. Each city spans multiple tiles so you can custom build your cities to take full advantage of the local terrain.
  • Active Research: Unlock boosts that speed your civilization’s progress through history. To advance more quickly, use your units to actively explore, develop your environment, and discover new cultures.
  • Dynamic Diplomacy: Interactions with other civilizations change over the course of the game, from primitive first interactions where conflict is a fact of life, to late game alliances and negotiations.
  • Combined Arms: Expanding on the “one unit per tile” design, support units can now be embedded with other units, like anti-tank support with infantry, or a warrior with settlers. Similar units can also be combined to form powerful “Corps” units.
  • Enhanced Multiplayer: In addition to traditional multiplayer modes, cooperate and compete with your friends in a wide variety of situations all designed to be easily completed in a single session.
  • A Civ For All Players: Civilization VI provides veteran players new ways to build and tune their civilization for the greatest chance of success. New tutorial systems are designed to introduce new players to the underlying concepts of Civilization so they can easily get started on a path to victory.

“Sid Meier’s Civilization VI builds on the firm foundation of the Civilization franchise, and we’ve added many exciting new elements,” said Ed Beach, the Lead Designer at Firaxis Games. “The visual presentation of the game is inspired by the maps and tools of the Age of Exploration, and we’ve made several key gameplay changes such as expansive cities and active research that makes Sid Meier’s Civilization VI an entirely unique experience while remaining true to what makes the Civilization series so special.”

In addition a game-only standard edition ($59.99), Civilization VI will also be available as a special Digital Deluxe Edition ($79.99) that includes the 25th Anniversary Digital Soundtrack and access to four post-launch DLC packs with new maps, scenarios, civilizations, and leaders.

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Motiga partners with Perfect World to publish Gigantic later this year

Posted on May 12, 2016 by John Scalzo

Motiga relentlessly crisscrossed the country last year to promote Gigantic, their third-person 5×5 arena fighter. But after some money troubles forced the game to miss its planned Late 2015 launch, the developer went quiet.

But like an ancient god awakening from a lengthy slumber (hey, just like the Guardians at the center of Gigantic), Motiga is back, and they’ve got big plans for Gigantic. Partnering with Perfect World, Motiga will expand Gigantic’s reach beyond its originally-announced platforms. The game is still on track for Windows 10 PCs and the Xbox One, but it’s now also in development for 64-Bit users of Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1. The 64-Bit version of Gigantic will be available as a standalone launcher and through Perfect World’s Arc Games service.

“Our team is thrilled to work with Perfect World Entertainment who shares our vision for our game. This partnership will enable us to focus on creating the best experience possible.” said Chris Chung, the CEO of Motiga. “Motiga has always thrived off of the excitement of our players, and the continued success that Perfect World Entertainment has had in the free-to-play space has solidified our desire to partner with them for our upcoming launch.”

This is all good news, but we still don’t know when Gigantic will be released. Though it is expected to be out sometime this year.

Posted in News, PC, Xbox One | Tagged

Xbox Store Today: Raiden V

Posted on May 11, 2016 by John Scalzo

25 years ago, arcade gamers in Japan got their first look at Raiden, one of the most influential vertically-scrolling shooters of all time. Today, the fifth entry in the franchise, is now available to download through the Xbox Games Store for the Xbox One.

Raiden V will offer two-player simultaneous multiplayer, a huge variety of weapons, three selectable ships, and a screen absolutely bursting with stats. It’s priced at a wallet-busting $49.99, but you can read more about Raiden V right here, and be sure to check out the launch trailer embedded above.

Xbox One Games

Raiden V ($49.99)
A quarter-century after the arcade hit Raiden first left its mark on the shooting genre, the series now comes to the Xbox One in its most modern and advanced form yet! Join the war for Earth’s future, where the tide of battle holds constant surprises, in this game that’s easy to learn, but difficult to master. Using Xbox One cloud functionality to its fullest, now all players can easily access their data, allowing you and your comrades-in-arms to enter the fray side-by-side! With tons of content, a variety of weapons, and a revolutionary new combat system, this is Raiden on a scale you’ve never seen before!

Posted in News, Xbox One |

Nintendo announces North American release dates for Style Savvy: Fashion Forward and Disney Magical World 2

Posted on May 11, 2016 by John Scalzo

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While most of Nintendo’s marketing muscle this Fall will be concentrated on Pokemon Sun/Moon, the consolemaker has other titles in the works for the 3DS. And that includes two with brand spanking new release dates.

First up is Style Savvy: Fashion Forward, which will be released on August 19. The third game in Nintendo’s simulation series, players will be able to tap into their inner fashion guru to create thousands of unique outfits:

Style Savvy: Fashion Forward, the third game in the Style Savvy series, gives players a sense of accomplishment by putting them in charge of one of five exciting professions. Players can immerse themselves in a world of fashion by owning a boutique, designing clothes, styling hair, applying makeup or becoming a model. When players make themselves look good, customers who visit their boutiques might start adopting the player’s style. The game includes over 19,000 different articles of clothing, items and accessories to choose from. Players can also learn real-world fashion tips from the Fashion 101 guide. To access Nintendo character-themed clothing and accessories in the game, players can tap select Amiibo figures to to the handheld to trigger an event. Once the event is completed, players can get the special items.

And on October 14, Nintendo will release Disney Magical World 2, which gives players the chance to explore all their favorite Disney-themed worlds:

Disney Magical World 2, the follow up to the popular franchise, lets players enjoy a variety of new adventures in six Disney-themed worlds, such as exploring the world of Frozen, dancing with Disney princesses or soaring through special Magical Dream events. Players will encounter and interact with well-known characters like Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Goofy, Elsa, Anna, Olaf, Ariel, Donald Duck and Daisy Duck.

If your handheld collection is currently lacking a 3DS, you might want to look into Nintendo’s recent price drop for the 2DS.

Posted in 3DS, News | Tagged

Daily Scoop: May 11, 2016 – So many Pokemon shirts!

Posted on May 11, 2016 by Nicole Kline

Like so many other people last night, I started my final journey with Nathan Drake. Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End is breathtaking so far, and I had to be peeled off the couch to go to bed last night. It’s pure bliss and I am trying to savor it and not play it too quickly!

Not into the Uncharted games? No worries! There are lots of great games on sale, including a big spring sale at the Humble Store. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor Game of the Year Edition is $12.49, Rogue Legacy is $3.74, and Gone Home is $3.99, among many others.

The Midweek Madness at Steam is Jotun, which is on sale for $7.49. You can also add the soundtrack for just $4.99. The Daily Deal is a Playism Publisher Sale, which includes great deals like In Space We Brawl for $2.69, Gunhound EX for $3.74, and Astebreed for $4.49.

Hit the jump to see today’s t-shirts!

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Posted in Daily Scoop |

Enter the Gungeon Review: A Few Steps Forward, More Steps Back

Posted on May 11, 2016 by Sam Sheldon

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Strange though it may seem, in 2016, video games are an old medium. The various genres and mechanics of the medium have, over time, formed a kind of complex language that makes sense to those who are video game literate but is impenetrable to those who aren’t. Good guys are blue, bad guys are red. This is simple if you’ve played a few shooters, but is not immediately obvious. This creates a problem for the critic when describing a game’s mechanics: to some people, Red Dead Redemption is a simulation of the Old West in which you meet with people who need tasks doing; to others, it’s GTA with horses.

Enter the Gungeon is a top-down, twin-stick shooter in which you explore procedurally generated dungeon floors armed with weapons, bombs, keys, and a special item. You fight your way through each floor looking for shops and item rooms to arm yourself for the boss fight that allows you to move down to the next floor of the dungeon. It’s usually best to avoid comparisons, but if this description reminds you of The Binding of Isaac, then you’re on the right track.

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Posted in PC, PS4, Reviews, Top Story | Tagged

Star Wars: Battlefront 2 is officially coming in 2017, alongside a new original title from EA

Posted on May 11, 2016 by John Scalzo

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I think it’s time to dust off your “Evil Empire” jokes, because EA executives delivered an uncanny impression of Emperor Palpatine during their quarterly financial report yesterday. According to CFO Blake Jorgensen, the megapublisher has mapped out their plan for global domination of the video game industry with a massive slate of upcoming titles that’ll take us all the way into 2020.

First, Jorgensen confirmed that Star Wars: Battlefront will be released in 2017, complete with maps based on the new series of films: “Next year we will see Star Wars: Battlefront back with bigger and better worlds, because we now have the new movies to work off of, not just the historical movies that we used before.” He added that EA will also release at least one Star Wars game per year until 2019 or 2020. That includes Visceral’s Star Wars game, which will be released in 2018, and Repawn’s recently announced game, which has no release date but should probably be penciled in for 2019.

The executive then pivoted away from Star Wars to reveal that an internal EA studio is working on an original property for 2017, and the publisher has started development on multiple action games that’ll be released 2018 and 2020:

“We do have a new IP coming next year. We haven’t yet announced it, but it’s something that you’ll see probably coming up soon.”

“We’re making broad investments that fuel the growth of the company well beyond [2017 and 2018]. Really today we’re building an action genre product that’s probably [due in 2019 or 2020]. Most of what we’re investing in that’s incremental now probably comes in [2018 or 2019]. But clearly, some of our investment is to grow out our product base for what we’re going on as well.”

It might be a while before we learn more about some of the more distant games, but there’s a good chance we could hear something about the upcoming original title at this year’s E3 Expo.

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One | Tagged , ,

Nintendo’s 2DS is now just $80 and includes a Mario Kart 7 download in the box

Posted on May 11, 2016 by John Scalzo

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Nintendo’s handheld for the whole family, the 2DS, will become even more affordable next week. Beginning May 20, the 2DS will be available on store shelves for just $79.99, which is a savings of $20 off the current price tag. Best of all, the new 2DS package will also include a full game download of Mario Kart 7.

“Nintendo 2DS is the best value available for a portable dedicated gaming system and is great for gaming on the go,” said Scott Moffitt, Nintendo of America’s Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing. “The system has a library full of high-quality games for purchase, some in our Nintendo Selects category for less than $20 each, featuring Mario, Donkey Kong, Yoshi and Zelda.”

The 2DS is compatible with all 3DS games, and its non-folding design is perfect for smaller hands to hold. The 2DS also features most of the same functionality as its bigger brother, but as its name implies, it doesn’t include the glasses-free 3D display technology of the 3DS.

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