Marvel Heroes is the Marvel MMO that you have been waiting for! Play as Iron Man, Thor, Wolverine, Hulk, Spider-Man, Captain America and many more as they team up to try and stop Doctor Doom from devastating the world with the power of the Cosmic Cube. Marvel Heroes features a deep leveling system unique to each Super Hero, diverse locations set across the expansive Marvel Universe, a robust crafting system, action-packed player-versus-player (PvP) and much more. Marvel Heroes is a free-to-play Massively Multiplayer Action RPG for PC created by David Brevik, the visionary behind Diablo and Diablo 2 with an extensive original story crafted by Marvel super-scribe Brian Michael Bendis.
The newest update for Shadowrun Returns goes into detail about the character customization system, and includes examples of some of the the portraits and outfits you can use.
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At the start of development, we knew we had to capture that independent and rebellious Shadowrunner spirit. From the hard-boiled, coolant-for-blood samurai, to the wild-child decker putting the punk back into cyberpunk, to the young shaman with an old soul in the newly Awakened world, Shadowrun is full of unique, memorable characters that simply don’t exist anywhere else. In order to bring those characters to life we decided to embrace that individuality and specificity, creating each piece of character art with a strong viewpoint and identity in order to give you the tools you need to create your own unique denizen of the Sixth World.
Atlus has released gameplay trailers for the Dwarf and Elf from the upcoming English version of Vanillaware's 2-D action beat-em-up, Dragon's Crown. The game will be available on August 6, 2013 for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita systems for $49.99 and $39.99 respectively.
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Dragon's Crown is a multiplayer hack and slash beat 'em up game with breathtaking visual style, a design built around cooperative play and epic boss fights, and the ability to discover a new adventure in every play session.
With Dragon's Crown, developer Vanillaware deftly marries stunning hand-drawn and animated art work with deep, action-packed hardcore gameplay. Dragon's Crown allows up to four players to team up online to clear out monster-ridden dungeons, discover precious treasure, and destroy awe-inspiring bosses. Its unique, highly replayable design means that every time players can boot up and log on, they can expect a different experience and hours upon hours of satisfying adventuring.
Unparalleled in their unique style, developer Vanillaware painstakingly hand-paints every detail, be it a blade of grass or the scales on the game's impressive dragons. The game becomes a lush, vibrant storybook come to life when everything starts to animate in gorgeous full HD.
According to this article on MCV, both Microsoft and the game publishers will get a cut of used game sales at retail.
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This is how we’ve been told it will all work:
A gamer walks into a retailer and hands over the game they wish to sell. This will only be possible at retailers who have agreed to Microsoft’s T&Cs and more importantly integrated Microsoft’s cloud-based Azure pre-owned system into its own.
The game is then registered as having been traded-in on Microsoft’s system. The consumer who handed it over will subsequently see the game wiped from their account – hence the until now ambiguous claim from Phil Harrison that the Xbox One would have to ‘check in’ to Microsoft’s servers every 24 hours.
The retailer can then sell the pre-owned game at whatever price they like, although as part of the system the publisher of the title in question will automatically receive a percentage cut of the sale. As will Microsoft. The retailer will pocket the rest.
Unconfirmed reports on ConsoleDeals.co.uk suggest that retail’s slice will be as little as ten per cent. That’s a significant cut from what it has become accustomed to from pre-owned sales and more in line with what they would receive from the sale of a new game – hence, the value of the pre-owned market to the retailer is effectively destroyed.
Focus Home Interactive and Compulsion Games have announced the formation of a new publishing partnership for the release of Contrast, a 2D/3D puzzle platformer.
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Focus Home Interactive and Compulsion Games™ are pleased to announce today the formation of a new publishing partnership for the release of CONTRAST™, a breakthrough 2D/3D puzzle platformer, in which the player can shift between the striking 3D fantasy world into the mysterious 2D shadowscape. Originally set to launch on PC, CONTRAST will now also be available on PSN (or PlayStation®Store) and XBLA (or Xbox LIVE® Arcade) end of 2013.
Compulsion Games is an independent game development studio located in the heart of Montréal, Canada and driven by their passion for artistry, gameplay fundamentals and a rare sense of levity.
“CONTRAST is a very special project with its atmosphere, artistic direction and innovative gameplay and we knew that from the moment we saw the game,” said Cédric Lagarrigue, CEO ofFocus Home Interactive. “We are delighted to be partnering with Compulsion Games and believe this project to be one of the biggest indie surprises of the year.”
Click on the image to view the slideshow. Click on the headline for the press release and trailer.
Today, just a week before its worldwide release, a new video presents the spectacular real-time strategy game's innovative campaign mode.
Narrated by Cédric Le Dressay, CEO of Eugen Systems, this video explains in two minutes all there is to know about the fascinating, dynamic campaign of Wargame AirLand Battle. The video lets us discover all the original game mechanics of this innovative game mode, which would-be generals will get to experience for the first time next week, be it solo or in multiplayer against another player!
You will first handle in this campaign your army and your battle groups, on a huge strategic map representing Europe: ordering movements, asking for reinforcements, but also launching support strikes such as intelligence missions, special forces strikes, satellite spying, bombardment, tactical nuclear attacks, etc...
When a zone is under attack and you need to defend it, or when you send your own battle groups to assault, you are thrown at the heart of the spectacular battles happening in real-time. Your army is persistent all along the campaign: your units and battle groups will earn experience, making them perform better with every battle they survive.... but keep in mind losses are definitive as well!
Valve is debuting a new feature for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive that will allow players to take matters into their own hands concerning cheaters. It's called Overwatch and is currently in beta testing. Lone cheat investigators can't ban people at will, however. It sounds like there is jury system where all investigators must agree on a verdict and punishment.
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How does the Overwatch work?
Prospective Overwatch Investigators are presented with an active Overwatch button in the main menu, which indicates that there is a pending case for them to evaluate. The investigators can then choose to participate by watching a replay (eight rounds’ worth or roughly 10 minutes) and selecting a verdict.
If the investigators collectively agree that an offense has occurred, a ban will be issued. The ban duration will depend on the severity of the offense and the suspect’s history of convictions, if any.
How do investigators get selected?
Investigators are selected based on their CS:GO activity (competitive wins, account age, hours played, Skill Group, low report count, etc.) and, if applicable, prior Overwatch participation level and score (a function of their accuracy as an investigator). Community members who maintain both a high level of activity and a high Overwatch score will receive more cases to elect to participate in.
Square Enix's Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is coming to PC and PS3 on August 27th. The PC version will be priced at $29.99, while the PS3 version will be $39.99. The game will also require a monthly subscription of $12.99. IGN has more info about pre-order bonuses and a collector's edition.
GameSpot is reporting a hacker claims to have cracked Microsoft's online network.
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A hacker going by the name Reckz0r today claimed to have cracked Xbox Live, exposing confidential information for around 47 million users.
In a note posted on Pastebin, the hacker claimed to have "brutally owned" Xbox Live a few days ago, but decided to publish the data today.
Writing on Twitter, Reckz0r said Microsoft stores its passwords in a plaintext format. This person described the disbanded hacking group Lulzsec as "friends."
Update: Microsoft has confirmed no breach to security of online service has taken place.
Electronic Arts has announced Need for Speed Rivals, an action/racing game that's headed for PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.
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REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – May 23, 2013 – Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA), today announced Need for Speed™ Rivals, an action/racing game created by an inspired new development team, using a powerful engine and delivering next-generation gameplay. Need for Speed Rivals is being developed by EA’s newest studio Ghost Games, who bring new thinking and innovation to the Need for Speed franchise in partnership with the expert racing team at Criterion Games. Built on the Frostbite™ 3 game engine, Need for Speed Rivals captures the adrenaline and intensity of the street’s ultimate rivalry between cops and racers, in a stunning open road environment. Need for Speed Rivals is coming to Xbox 360® game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and PC on November 19, 2013 and will also be released on Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, and PlayStation 4 later this year.
In Need for Speed Rivals, gamers play as either a cop or racer, where each side of the law has its own set of high stakes challenges, rewards and consequences. As a racer, the goal is to become infamous for taking risks behind the wheel and capturing your most intense escapes on video for the world to see. The more cops players evade, the more Speed Points they collect, enabling them to unlock new cars and items. Keep raising the stakes race after race to become an ever-more valuable target to the cops – but risk losing it all if busted. As a cop, players work together as part of a team in pursuit of racers, earning prominence and rising in the ranks of the Police Force with every bust. Achieving higher ranks unlocks new police only cars and more powerful pursuit tech.
Click on the image for a slideshow. Click on the headline for the press release and teaser trailer.
Microsoft has filed for a Kinect-related patent, and it’s a doozy of an application. The abstract describes a camera-based system that would monitor the number of viewers in a room and check to see if the number of occupants exceeded a certain threshold set by the content provider.
Microsoft has filed for a Kinect-related patent, and it’s a doozy of an application. The abstract describes a camera-based system that would monitor the number of viewers in a room and check to see if the number of occupants exceeded a certain threshold set by the content provider. If there are too many warm bodies present, the device owner would be prompted to purchase a license for a greater number of viewers.
No, really. It’s that blunt. From the abstract: “The users consuming the content on a display device are monitored so that if the number of user-views licensed is exceeded, remedial action may be taken.”
t’s refreshing to see Microsoft eschewing its play-nice-with-everyone approach to business for some old-fashioned, straight-up evil. The patent’s various claims can endow a device with a limited number of performances in a given period of time, a limited number of users allowed to view such performances, and the continuous monitoring of viewers during those performances. It also covers the determination of “when performance of the content to an identified user exceeds a threshold.”
The really interesting thing about this patent is that it suggests that copyright holders are allowed to govern performances in otherwise private dwellings. The application describes how the patent could be applied to head-mounted devices, large screens, gaming and media products, computers, and even mobile phones. Clearly, this isn’t just a method for cracking down on illicit big-screen viewings of movies and television that might plausibly be called a public performance.
I know its not as bad as it sounds, well maybe just the thought of the thing checking in on me. I will never buy an Xbox1.
Activision and Bungie have teamed with director Jon Favreau and actor Giancarlo Esposito to create the "Law of the Jungle" trailer for their upcoming shooter, Destiny.
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As a Guardian of the City sets out on an epic, action-packed adventure to reclaim our Solar System, he recalls the moment when he was first taught the most important lesson of all -- The Law of the Jungle.
Watch this live-action/CG trailer and get a sneak peek at Destiny, the bold, new action game from the creators of Halo® and the company that brought you Call of Duty®.
See the official worldwide Destiny gameplay reveal on June 10th, 2013 during Sony's PlayStation E3 Press Conference.
Tom's Hardware got their grubby benchmark-happy hands on the new Geforce GTX 780! You know what that means, time to stare at graphs and numbers in their full review.
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Conversely, the GeForce GTX 780 is faster in absolute terms, even though you pay more for every drop of extra speed. It’s quieter than 7970, it uses less power, it includes a number of tuner-friendly tools, and Nvidia has a really cool feature in ShadowPlay (too bad it isn’t available to test yet). The 780 is a much better-looking board, too. But an asking price of $650 is only a relief to someone who was about a pay a grand for Titan. By all other accounts, that’s still a big flippin’ number.
This isn’t the generational jump you see when a company updates its architecture on a smaller process node and hits you with more speed at a familiar price point. GeForce GTX 780 is a derivative of existing technology that drops its shoulder and charges its way into a new segment. Is it worth more than GeForce GTX 680 or Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition? Absolutely. But I would have rather seen the 780 at $550 or $600
Exactly as expected, the 780 is a derivative of the Titan for a much better cost to performance ratio. Less expected is the article's final sentence: "But, I’m going to wait a week before deciding what I’d spend my money on in the high-end graphics market. You’d be wise to do the same…" Quite the teaser, perhaps the review of a 770 is en route.
Things were not looking good for Jagged Alliance: Flashback's Kickstarter campaign, members of the development team even gave interviews where they sounded resigned to failure. However funding has greatly picked up over the last two days and now they're $3,000 over their goal with 5 hours left.
Techland and Warner Bros. have a new zombie game in development called Dying Light. Polygon reports that the game takes place in an open world with a dynamic day/night cycle and Mirror's Edge-style free running. Gameplay involves scavenging during the day when zombies are slow and weak, because at night they become stronger and more numerous.
Anandtech not only has stock in pocket protectors but also a highly detailed analysis of what is under the hood of the two upcoming behemoths--Guess who is coming out on top?
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the Xbox One’s SoC integrates an AMD GCN based GPU. Here’s where things start to get a bit controversial. Sony opted for an 18 Compute Unit GCN configuration, totaling 1152 shader processors/cores/ALUs. Microsoft went for a far smaller configuration: 768 (12 CUs).
Microsoft can’t make up the difference in clock speed alone (AMD’s GCN seems to top out around 1GHz on 28nm), and based on current leaks it looks like both MS and Sony are running their GPUs at the same 800MHz clock. The result is a 33% reduction in compute power, from 1.84 TFLOPs in the PS4 to 1.23 TFLOPs in the Xbox One. We’re still talking about over 5x the peak theoretical shader performance of the Xbox 360, likely even more given increases in efficiency thanks to AMD’s scalar GCN architecture (MS quotes up to 8x better GPU performance) - but there’s no escaping the fact that Microsoft has given the Xbox One less GPU hardware than Sony gave the PlayStation 4. Note that unlike the Xbox 360 vs. PS3 era, Sony's hardware advantage here won't need any clever developer work to extract - the architectures are near identical, Sony just has more resources available to use.
The unique design of the PS4's GDDR5 memory subsystem is called into question when matched with the tradional DDR3 employed by the XBoxOne. No clear cut winner there, but otherwise the verdict is made clear: Sony is packing the muscle this generation.
Call of Duty: Ghosts brings lifelike characters and immersive worlds together on a new, next-generation engine. Side-by-side graphical comparisons show the advances made from Infinity Ward's last release, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.
Call of Duty: Ghosts releases globally on November 5, 2013.
While the world and people have begun to recover, foul creatures, bandits and worse have come to dominate the land. The fledgling civilizations of the world must first vanquish the monsters that freely roam the world before their kingdoms will flourish.
Legendary Heroes is a stand-alone expansion pack to Fallen Enchantress, the epic 2011 fantasy strategy game from Stardock. Existing players can upgrade from Fallen Enchantress for $19.99 while newcomers are able to buy new for $39.99. Nearly every aspect of Fallen Enchantress – Legendary Heroes has been improved, reworked and enhanced.
Click on the headline to watch the trailer and read the press release.
May 22, 2013, Ridgewood, NJ - Kalypso Media today announced that a free gameplay update for its gangster-themed simulation game, Omerta – City of Gangsters, will be available on May 23 for Window PC. The update will download automatically for players when they next launch the game.
As well as an overhaul of the game interface and cover mechanics, the free update will add a host of new features including new sandbox game modes, new opposing gangs in single-player, re-balanced multiplayer modes and new multiplayer maps. Kalypso has also released a trailer featuring some of the new additions included in this update.
NeocoreGames has released The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing on Steam. It's currently on sale for $13.49.
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The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing is a real-time Action RPG filled with fierce and demonic battles, memorable characters, and a refreshingly unique story loosely based on Bram Stoker's classic novel Dracula.
Set in a gothic-noir universe resembling a fantastical 19th century Europe filled with monsters, magic, and weird technology, The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing will follow the son of the famed hunter, known in-game as Van Helsing, in a tale wrought with wry humor and snappy dialogue. Van Helsing, a larger-than-life hero possessing a dark yet romantic charm, will follow his path to the dismal land of Borgovia where former supernatural foes have enlisted his help to defeat a new scourge terrorizing the ravaged city.
NetherRealm's Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition will be arriving on PC July 3rd, it includes the original game and all DLC. Click the headline to read the press release.
With all the talk of next generation consoles sometimes it's nice to go back and take a look at some older games and relive those beloved memories we have when we were young gamers. The Game Inquirer take a look at Crazy Taxi and Mario Kart: Double Dash this week, two fantastic racers.
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We kick off the very first episode of Retro Wednesday – a weekly show where the crew at The Game Inquirer sit down and take a look at older games that have left a lasting impression whether it be a good one or a bad one. Every week two of the crew members each pick a game to play and discuss.
Hold on to your butts! Agent Voxine is about to drop some knowledge about Paths and what to expect once you arrive on planet Nexus. Are you ready? This lesson might be a painful one.
Microsoft it attempting to clear up the confusion it created in regards to game installations and used game fees on Xbox One. It looks like games will be tied to your account, not the console. And the used game fees could be as high as full MSRP. More from IGN:
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In a blog post, Major Nelson has some good news. "Should you choose to play your game at your friend’s house, there is no fee to play that game while you are signed in to your profile," Nelson wrote. The blog post also mentioned that customers will be able to trade and sell their used games at retail outlets.
However, Microsoft executive Phil Harrison, in an interview with Kotaku, has some potentially bad news. The aforementioned 'fee' to play games on a second account? Full MSRP. So unless you want to use your account for your entire family, you'll be dishing out an extra $40, $50, $60 for siblings or friends to try out new games. Harrison did tell Kotaku that his company plans to allow gamers to 'trade' their used games online somehow - though declined to get into further details.
Microsoft has confirmed that its upcoming Xbox One console will not require a constant Internet connection to function.
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Microsoft's next-generation Xbox--the Xbox One--will not require a constant Internet connection to function, the company confirmed today following its reveal event.
"No, you don't always have to be connected," Xbox boss Don Mattrick said on Spike TV. "Gamers can calm down; we've got you covered."
Update: According to this article on Kotaku the Xbox One will require an Internet connection.
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"There are many devices in your life that require the Internet to function," he said. "Xbox One is no different in that it requires, at some point in the beginning and at various times through its on state, to connect to our cloud and to our Internet. That is to deliver Xbox Live functionality, that is to deliver download content to you, that is to deliver some of the innovations around TV and entertainment that we showed today. But it doesn’t require it to be online all the time."
So how often does it check your connection? "Depends on the experience," Harrison said.
"For single-player games that don’t require connectivity to Xbox Live, you should be able to play those without interruption should your Internet connection go down. Blu-ray movies and other downloaded entertainment should be accessible when your Internet connection may be interrupted. But the device is fundamentally designed to be expanded and extended by the Internet as many devices are today."
The Verge is reporting that the Xbox One will not be backwards compatible with Xbox 360 game.
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If you were hoping to play your vast collection of Xbox 360 games on Microsoft's latest creation, we've got a spot of bad news. Microsoft Xbox Live VP Marc Whitten confirmed to The Verge that the new Xbox One console will have no backwards compatibility whatsoever.
"No, there's not," said Whitten, when we posed the question. "The system is based on a different core architecture, so back-compat doesn't really work from that perspective."
That means that Xbox 360 discs won't work, but also extends to Xbox Live Arcade downloadable titles. Anything that was designed for the Xbox 360 will have to be rebuilt, and it sounds like Microsoft doesn't plan to do so.
