Gamescom: EA Press Conference

EA’s Gamescom press conference on Wednesday brought us a closer look at some of the publisher’s biggest titles for the next year.

Aaryn Flynn, general manager for Bioware Edmonton and Montreal, took to the stage with a gameplay demo of Bioware’s upcoming title Dragon Age: Inquisition. Set to hit stores on November 18 in North America, the fantasy RPG promises a focus of story and in-depth character customization.

In Inquisition, you can switch between the player character and any of your companions. You can also use the Tactical Camera feature to position your teammates and assign them actions, which can give you a strategic advantage in combat.

The presentation stressed the increased scope of Inquisition. With more than a million words in dialogue and over 150 hours of gameplay, Flynn said the game is “the biggest story we’ve ever told.”

Following a string of teaser videos released last week, the reveal of BioWare’s mysterious new game was one of the most anticipated parts of Gamescom. At the press conference, we finally got a look at Shadow Realms, an online role-playing game where the world of the fantastic and mundane meet.

Developed by BioWare Austin, the game will depict a battle between supernatural forces in a modern setting. Inspired by classic pen-and-paper RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons, the game pits four party members against a fifth player in the role of the villainous Shadowlord.

BioWare has said Shadow Realms will have a focus on storytelling and the game will have an episodic format.

A demo for Battlefield: Hardline’s single-player campaign showed a game that is radically different from previous installments in the series. Dead Space developer Visceral Games has teamed up with EA Digital Illusions for this cops-and-robbers action game.

The gameplay highlighted a stealth mechanic and non-lethal takedowns as an alternative to guns-blazing action. The demo suggested that the game will be less linear than past Battlefield titles, with the option to take different approaches to obstacles.

There were also announcements for updates to EA’s online titles. A new map pack will be added to Titanfall later this year and a digital expansion to Star Wars MMO The Old Republic will give players “guild flagships” and customizable houses.

Gamescom: Sony Press Conference

While largely uneventful, Sony’s press conference at Gamescom offered a look at some promising games.

The press conference took place at Gamescom, the games industry trade show in Cologne, Germany.

In keeping with the PlayStation 4’s “indie-friendly” image, Sony announced a slew of titles from indie developers that will be coming to the console. The lineup included original titles, like The Tomorrow Children and Hellblade, as well as a few PC ports, such as Papers, Please, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter and DayZ.

We got our first look at Rime, an open-world adventure/puzzle game from Tequila Works. Lacking the graphical power of AAA gaming, indie developers often go for a more stylized look. Reminiscent of The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, Rime’s premiere boasted a visually stunning cel-shaded artstyle that helped it to stand out from the pack.

Mike Bithell, creator of Thomas Was Alone, showed off a trailer for Volume, a futuristic stealth game inspired by the legend of Robin Hood.

A new trailer for Far Cry 4 revealed the specifics of co-op system introduced at E3. Each PS4 copy of Fary Cry 4 will come with “10 Keys to Kyrat,” passes that allow another PS4 player without a copy of the game to join you for two hours of co-op gameplay. To me, the revelation that the free co-op feature is so limited comes as a bit of a disappoinment.

Hideo Kojima made his first ever appearance at Gamescom to show off the new capabilities of the cardboard box in the upcoming Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.

During the press conference, it was also announced that Destiny is officially the most pre-ordered new IP of all time at Gamestop. It seems the previous record holder, Watch Dogs, didn’t hold the title for very long.

UPDATE: An “interactive teaser” for new horror title T.P. was announced at the press conference. When the teaser was completed, we learned that the game is actually the latest installment in the Silent Hill series.

Developed by 7780s Studio, Silent Hills is being helmed by Hideo Kojima and Guillermo del Toro. Norman Reedus, best known for his role as Daryl in The Walking Dead, will be playing the protagonist. This reveal is definitely the most interesting thing to come out of the trade show so far.

PlayStation sales three times those of Xbox in last quarter

According to a financial report from Sony, PlayStation consoles outsold Xbox three to one in the first quarter.

From April through June, Sony sold 3.5 million consoles, which includes both PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 sales. Over the same three month period, the combined sales for Xbox 360 and Xbox One units totaled 1.1 million.

Largely in part to the strong PlayStation sales, Sony’s Game and Network Services division reported revenue of $2.5 billion. Their earnings were almost twice as much as those for Q1 last year.

Last quarter’s impressive sales numbers broaden the PlayStation 4’s lead over the Xbox One in overall sales. However, Microsoft’s gaming division is by no means floundering. Revenue generated from Xbox sales increased by $104 million this quarter, a 14 percent increase.

 

 

Cryptic trailer hints at BioWare’s new IP

A trailer full of bizarre, dream-like imagery was released by BioWare for what appears to be a new IP.

We don’t have an official title yet, but Polygon reports that BioWare’s parent company, EA, recently filed for a trademark on the name Shadow Realms. The trailer video that was emailed to various games journalists had Shadow Realms in the file name, so that is likely the name of the game.

The trailer shows a man running down desolate streets as if being chased. He tries desperately to get into a car before discovering his double is already in the driver’s seat. There are also flashes to a man with a face made from smoke and a ring of fire.

The trailer ends with the main character waking up from the nightmare followed by the tagline “What really happens when you sleep?” This seems to suggest that dreams will play a central part in the game, but it’s too early to be sure.

The official website for the video, http://www.youve-been-chosen.com, features text that reads, “The time is near. They are watching. Your power is rising. Cologne, Germany. You’ve Been Chosen.” There’s a very good chance we will learn more about the game at Gamescom Expo, which will be held in Cologne on August 13-17.

Illinois university now offering scholarships for League of Legends

A university in Chicago has added competitive gaming to their athletics program, offering scholarships to promising players.

Robert Morris University is looking to build a team of League of Legends players to compete with more than 100 other universities in the Collegiate Star League. RMU is the first university in the country to offer significant scholarships for competitive gaming, or eSports.

According to a press release from the university, qualified gamers can earn up to half of their tuition and room and board through the new eSports program. Potential candidates for the scholarships would ideally have experience with the League of Legends High School Starleague, which consists of 750 high schools nationwide.

Competitive gaming has enjoyed a great deal of popularity since 2000, with major tournaments springing up exponentially. The League of Legends World Championship Finals held at Los Angele’s Staples Center last October hosted players from around the globe as they battled for a million dollar prize.

 

No Man’s Sky wins Sony’s press conference

For me and many others, No Man’s Sky was the biggest surprise at Sony’s press conference on Monday. Combining a beautiful artsyle with promises of exploration on a massive scale, the trailer seemed almost like a roller coaster ride.

We start out walking through a colorful alien jungle populated by huge dinosaur creatures before hopping into a spaceship. Within seconds, we are in an asteroid field in space where we encounter both allies and an enemy fleet. In pursuit of two fleeing ships, we soon descended to another planet with rocky terrain.

First revealed at VGX 2013, this science fiction title comes to us from UK game studio Hello Games. Players will be able to visit and explore procedurally-generated planets, meaning no two experiences will be the same. If the developers’ ambitious claims prove true, the universe of No Man’s Sky will be virtually infinite.

Though I am a bit skeptical about a game with so much potential being developed by a team that is only known for creating the Danger Joe games, I am still really excited about seeing how No Man’s Sky turns out. Though there is no release date in sight, we know it will come to PS4 before it releases on Xbox.

Sony’s event opened up with a new trailer for Destiny, a futuristic multiplayer-focused shooter from Halo developer Bungie. The trailer was narrated by Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage, who will also be voicing a main character in the game.

It was revealed that Destiny will release on Play Station 4 before it comes out on Xbox One and that the beta will begin on July 7. The game will come bundled with the new white PS4 that will hit store shelves on Sept. 9.

In a trailer for PS4 exclusive 1888: The Order, the player character was pitted against a seemingly invulnerable werewolf. The gothic setting and horror atmosphere of the game struck me as being quite similar to another PS4 exclusive at the show: Bloodborne.

Bloodborne, the new game from Dark Souls developer From Software, takes place in the ancient city of Yharnam, a fabled destination where a cure for sickness can be found. The player character goes to the city in search of the cure and finds the place is infested by undead creatures and other unknown horrors. The demo at the show suggests that the game is close in style to Dark Souls despite the difference in setting.

We got our first look at Far Cry 4 with a cinematic trailer and demo. Far Cry 4 will allow you to play co-op with up to four friends through the Play Station Network even if the other people do not have a copy of the game. Highlights from the demo include long-distance wingsuit gliding and destroying an enemy base with the help of co-op partners and a rampaging elephant.

Standalone DLC continuing the story of Infamous: Second Son was also announced.

Microsoft’s E3 Press Conference – Five games to watch out for

One of the most promising games at Microsoft’s press conference was Sunset Overdrive.  This third-person shooter comes to us from Insomniac Games, who brought us the Ratchet and Clank series.

The trailer for Sunset Overdrive opens with a clever riff on cover-based military shooters. A solider hides behind a crate in a drab, gray warehouse as a group of gunman fire at him. Then, the unnamed hero of the game bursts in, adding some much needed color and cartoony violence to the scene as he takes out the attackers.

“You and your crate are safe now,” quips the protagonist to the soldier. That line got a chuckle out of me, but the main character’s self-aware, fourth wall-breaking humor quickly becomes grating. He goes on to explain a plot involving an energy drink that has turned the local population into vicious mutants.

The gameplay footage showed off the game’s vibrant, comic book artstyle and its kinetic combat. The player character is constantly in motion, grinding rails and leaping through the air. As we’ve come to expect from Insomniac, you’ll be equipped with plenty of zany weapons, such as a gun that shoots fireworks and missiles that freeze enemies.

Another highlight was Assassin’s Creed Unity, the latest installment in Ubisoft’s blockbuster series. It continues the story of the battle between the Templars and Assassins during the French Revolution and it will feature new four player co-op.

Two gameplay demos were on display at E3, the first shown at the Microsoft press conference. The Assassins navigate Parisian streets crowded with armed citizens and makeshift barricades, the chaos of the revolution rendered stunningly on the Xbox One.

Sneaking into the mansion of their target, the four Assassins take down guard after guard with ruthless efficiency. They swoop down on the marquis’ banquet, corner their victim and throw him to the angry mob waiting outside.

The other demo shows more of the open world and has the player taking one several sidequests. It looks like Unity keeps the same simple-but-effective fighting system of previous games with the addition of health bars floating over the heads of your opponents.

I’ve been excited about Project Spark since their original demo at last year’s E3. The idea of a user-friendly game building system sounds like it could be a lot of fun and it has the potential to create some interesting new indie games.

This year, we got a new trailer for Project Spark, which included Conker the squirrel. Conker fans haven’t seen a game starring the the foul-mouthed Rare character since 2005’s Conker: Live and Reloaded. It is unclear whether a new Conker game has been created with Project Spark or if the character can be included in player-built games.

To be honest, the trailer didn’t leave much of an impression on me. I would have liked to have seen more of the in-game design at work.

You should also keep your eyes on Rise of the Tomb Raider. Though there wasn’t any gameplay at E3, they did give us an intriguing trailer and a vague scheduled release for holiday 2015.

In honor of the tenth anniversary of Halo 2, Microsoft also announced the Master Chief Collection, a box set including remastered versions of Halo 1-4 as well as a multiplayer beta for Halo 5. The collection brings all of the main games in the Halo franchise to the Xbox One on Nov. 11.

Batman: Arkham Knight Announced

Batman fans all over rejoice after watching the announcement trailer for Rocksteady’s latest game, Batman: Arkham Knight. It is slated for an October release on Xbox One, Play station 4, and PC.

The developers went into further detail about the new mechanics and story for the game in an interview with Game Informer.

“The Arkham games have always been about providing that power fantasy, of being and feeling like Batman,” Arkham Knight Senior Writer Martin Lancaster said. “Another thing we wanted to explore in this story is what goes on behind the cowel, what effect this journey has on Batman.”

According to Game Informer, the open world for Arkham Knight will consist of three islands with a total area five times the size of the map in Arkham City.

This time around, players will be able to use the Batmobile to get around the massive city. Rocksteady has said that Batman can switch quickly between traveling on foot and piloting the tank-like vechicle through the streets of Gotham.

Rocksteady Games created the first two installments of the series, Arkham Asylum and Arkham City. As they began work on Arkham Knight, the passed on development of the prequel, Arkham Origins, to Warner Brothers Montreal. Origins, which released last fall, was not as well received as the other Arkham games.

One of the biggest complaints with Arkham Origins was the lack of memorable villains. It looks like that won’t be a problem with the new game.

So far, we know the game will have Harley Quinn, The Penguin, Two-Face and fan-favorite Scarecrow. It’s good to see they have brought back Scarecrow after his apparent death in Arkham Asylum as well as Two-Face, who didn’t get enough screen time in Arkham City.

From the trailer, it looks like the main plot focuses on Scarecrow threatening to plunge Gotham City into chaos using his signature fear toxin. Rocksteady has also said that the supervillains will be working together in this installment to kill The Dark Knight.

Rocksteady has revealed that The Arkham Knight will be a new character in the series. Though little is known about the character or its role in the game’s plot at this time, the first image of Arkham Knight has a very Batman-esque design.

The new character may have some connection to Azrael, who appeared in Arkham City. Part of a secret society called The Sacred Order of Saint Dumas, this armor-clad crusader warned Batman that Gotham would burn and it is up to Bruce to “close the gates of hell.” In the comics, Azrael also took on the mantel of Batman for some time.

The announcement trailer confirms that Azrael’s prophecy has been fulfilled, so it’s possible that Arkham Knight is another member of The Order.

As some astute gamers have noticed, one of the henchmen in the announcement trailer has the Hell’s Gate logo on his clothing. Hell’s Gate Disposal is a company owned by Lex Luthor, the main antagonist in the Superman series. This, along with the “gates of hell” line, suggests that the company will feature prominently in the story of Arkham Knight.

“The Last of Us” takes home 10 DICE Awards

The developers and publishers of the game industry came together this week for the annual DICE Summit. The four-day conference focused on discussions about game design and the future of the business.

The DICE Summit is also the venue for the DICE Awards, which celebrates the accomplishments of game makers in the last year. This year, the 17th Annual DICE Awards consisted of 24 categories, covering a variety of genres and game-building elements.

Naughty Dog’s “The Last of Us” dominated the show, winning in 10 of the 12 categories it was nominated for. Those awards included Game of the Year, Outstanding Achievement in Story and Outstanding Character Performance.

“The Last of Us” won by far the most awards of any game at the show. The closest contenders were  Irrational Games’ “Bioshock Infinite” and PopCap’s “Plants Vs. Zombies 2,” which both won 2 awards each.

The DICE summit was created by The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, an organization consisting of prominent professionals in the game industry. The AIAS also determined the winners of the DICE Awards.

“The Last of Us” was one of the most well-received games of 2013, earning scores of over nine out of 10 from both critics and fans on Metacritic. Following the DICE Awards, there was fierce debate on Twitter over whether or not the awards favored the game too strongly.

Hall of Fame and Lifetime Achievement Awards

Another highlight of the awards show was the induction of British developer Rockstar Games into the AIAS Hall of Fame. The Rockstar team was inducted in honor of their substantial contributions to the medium over the years.

Rockstar North President Leslie Benzies and Rockstar Games co-founders Dan Houser and Sam Houser had their names added to the Hall of Fame.

Rockstar is best known for their often controversial “Grand Theft Auto” series. Other popular properties from the developer/publisher include “Max Payne,” the “Red Dead” series and “L.A. Noire.”

Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Phil Harrison recapped the company’s illustrious history before presenting the Hall of Fame award at the ceremony.

“With more than a decade’s worth of extraordinary digital entertainment, Rockstar has, more than any other creator, led our industry into the cultural and entertainment mainstream,” Harrison said.

The Pioneer Award for lifetime achievement was given to Eugene Jarvis, the creator of classic arcade side-scroller “Defender.” He also made Robotron 2084, one of the first games to incorporate the two-stick control scheme we see in console games today.

Though technology has improved greatly since Jarvis began making games, he said in his speech that the core of game design has not changed.

“The dream is the same: to transform a cold, dead, blank screen into a magical universe,” Jarvis said. “The transformation is not complete without the players, to give the game meaning and bring it to life.”

Announcement Trailer for Alien: Isolation

Sega officially announced their upcoming game Alien: Isolation earlier today. They also released an announcement trailer, which says the game is scheduled to hit shelves in late 2014.

Set in the universe of the Alien franchise, this survival horror game  has been under development for three years by studio Creative Assembly. The gameplay revolves around navigating through an abandoned space station while being stalked by a massive Xenomorph alien.

Isolation follows on the heels of last year’s disappointing first-person shooter Aliens: Colonial Marines. Whereas Gearbox’s FPS title drew its influences from the action-filled sequel Aliens, Isolation is more interested in capturing the look and feel of the first Alien movie.

In an interview with Access Gaming, lead programmer Clive Gratton said their goal with the game is “to communicate the classic film experience” of the 1979 sci-fi horror movie.

“We didn’t want a generic sci-fi setting, but something that spoke of the style of Ridley Scott’s original film,” Gratton said.

Isolation takes place fifteen years after Alien and it tells the story of Amanda Ripley, the daughter of the protagonist from the Alien movies. Her search for her missing mother brings her to the space station where she encounters the Xenomorph.

The player will be armed only with a motion tracker and whatever tools and weapons they can scavenge from the environment. Since fighting the deadly creature head-on is out of the question, you’ll have to evade, hide and outsmart the Xenomorph to stay alive.

Creative Assembly seems to be determined to make an authentic and faithful followup to the original Alien film. All of the technology featured in the game will be consistent with what was in the movie, such as the distorted VHS-quality video recording shown in the game’s trailer.

The newest installment in the Alien franchise will be released on PS4, Xbox One, and PC as well as Xbox 360 and PS3 later this year.