In this 2017 GDC talk, Two Hat Security's Chris Priebe explains the impact that trolling and toxic behavior have on a game's success from a business perspective. ...
It will soon be the most wonderful time of the year in No Straight Roads, thanks to a free Christmas Edition update heading to all platforms.
The post No Straight Roads Will Celebrate Christmas With a Free Update appeared first on Siliconera.
Check out the two new characters coming to the Nintendo Switch and PS4 versions of Corpse Party Blood Covered: Repeated Fear.
The post Corpse Party Blood Covered Repeated Fear Reveals 2 New Characters appeared first on Siliconera.
Prepare for some Fate overload to ring in the new year with, as a new Fate/Grand Order anime project will air on December 31, 2020.
The post A New Fate/Grand Order Anime Will Appear on New Year’s Eve appeared first on Siliconera.
After a lot of time spent staying quiet about her, Sony and Naughty Dog revealed a whole The Last of Us Part 2 trailer dedicated to Abby.
The post The Last of Us Part 2’s Abby Finally Gets Her Own Trailer appeared first on Siliconera.
The Neptunia Virtual Stars trailer introduces the most popular virtual YouTuber.
The post Neptunia Virtual Stars Kizuna AI DLC Introduced in a New Trailer appeared first on Siliconera.
The studio announces a radical change for the movie business
Prison Architect developer Introversion is launching a new monthly YouTube series, titled Chris Delay's Fail Masterclass, showcasing some of its abandoned prototypes - and you'll be able to play each one in return for a one-off donation to charity.
"Behind every great video game comes a plethora of ideas, missteps dead ends and almost-made-its," explains the developer of its new YouTube venture, "Usually these embryonic prototypes get dumped in an archive and left to digitally rot, cursed to never see the light of day or feel the loving caress of a players mouse. Until today....".
Each monthly episode will aim its sights on another of Introversion's failed prototypes, and the studio's Chris Delay and Mark Morris will dissect what worked, what didn't, and explain why it was ultimately abandoned it.
Anyone who's still playing Arkham Knight can now dress Bruce Wayne up in a few new outfits. Rocksteady updated the game with two new skins as a holiday gift for players.
Here's what they look like:
Keiichiro Toyama, the driving force behind Silent Hill, Siren, and Gravity Rush, has left Sony to form an independent studio – Bokeh Game Studio – with Kazunobu Sato (the producer of The Last Guardian and a character designer for Siren) and Junya Okura (the lead game designer on the Gravity Rush series).
At their newly-established Bokeh Game Studio, Toyama hopes to "fulfill our fans' expectations" while enjoying "how fun it is to make games" again with more freedom. "Honestly, I can't forget the atmosphere we used to work in back in the day," he said. "Making things on a whim. Just improvising."
"Many people we've worked with in the past are joining us too," according to Sato.
In the introduction video, there are a few good glimpses of concept art for a decidedly body-horror-looking project. It feels like the end of an era in many respects, but I am so down to be scared again.
Arrowhead Game Studios, the fine folk behind Magicka and cartoony shmup Helldivers, has announced that it is beginning work on a brand new, AAA, third-person shooter. The Stockholm-based studio is currently staffing up for the untitled next-gen release.
"We are incredibly excited to create a new, next-gen, co-op experience for our fans and community," said Arrowhead Game Studios CEO Johan Pilestedt in a press release. "We are looking for talented developers to join us on this journey and are looking forward to sharing more details about the project at a later date."
The new title will boast next-gen graphics (well, obviously), innovative co-op gameplay, and "agency for the community to alter the course of the game." Arrowhead is also quick to note that the new title will feature the satirical and irreverent humor that is the studio's trademark. We will, of course, keep you informed when more information is forthcoming.
Although there are a few big games releasing this week, the original Fire Emblem Switch port is probably the most notable: remember, it's going away on March 31, 2021!
The other heavy-hitters arriving on the Switch eShop are Fitness Boxing 2: Rhythm and Exercise, Immortals Fenyx Rising, and John Wick Hex. Phogs is also coming out today, which features a co-op twist involving a creature that's basically a snake with a dog head on each end.
Variety! You can get in shape, check open world objectives off a checklist, and become a puzzle assassin. Games are great.
Balan Wonderworld feels like one of those games that no matter how much I see it, I still don’t know what to make of it. The opening movie looked good and the mix of Nights Into Dreams meets dress-up gameplay is certainly intriguing. Thankfully, a new trailer puts gameplay first and foremost, convincing me of the game’s whimsical appeal.
The Japanese language trailer shows off the action-platforming across a variety of distinct levels. We get a look at the various costumes (of which there are 80 different types), each of which bestow different abilities. Spin Wolf, for example, lets players create tornados while Pumpkin Puncher throws rocket punches. Using these abilities is key to overcome the wacky obstacles as well as the rogues gallery of bosses, including the humorously clever fire hydra-nt. If you're a fan of platforming as well as the vibes of Nights into Dreams, Balan Wonderworld looks like it could be a ton of fun.
Click here to watch embedded media
Click here to watch embedded media On this week's episode of The Game Informer Show, we discuss a handful of the games we've been playing recently, including Immortals Fenyx Rising, Yakuza: Like A Dragon, Half-Life: Alyx, and Phasmophobia. At the end of the show, we interview Immortals Fenyx Rising's game director Scott Phillips who talks about the challenges of designing puzzles and how his work on the Saints Row series influenced his game creation process. It's a full show, but we make time for another fantastic round of community emails in there somewhere. So please join Brian Shea, Liana Ruppert, Alex Stadnik, and myself for another wild and ever-entertaining episode!
I imagine the first thing most level designers do when firing up a new tool is to try and recreate their own homes. After all, it’s a pretty immediate, familiar space to try and get to grips with. But in what’s sure to already be knowledge to some folk, it seems Doom II shipped with a fairly accurate rendition of developer Sandy Peterson’s home, with the venerable designer this week taking us on a tour through both the real-world and “Hell On Earth” versions of his abode.
Every developer, I reckon, has a dusty folder of abandoned, cancelled or otherwise lost projects. Hell, I’ve even got a few lurking on my desktop myself. While these unfortunate prototypes rarely see the light of day, Prison Architect creators Introversion have begun releasing their doomed prototypes, bringing them out one-by-one as part of a new YouTube series to raise money for conflict charity War Child.
Sony Interactive Entertainment has released an accolades trailer for Demon’s Souls, one of the major titles that launched alongside the PlayStation 5 last month.
The video shows off several positive review scores and quotes from several media outlets. Sitting a current Metacritic score of 92, SIE has no reason not to gloat about this title’s critical reception.
You can view the video down below:
Here’s a quick synopsis of the game from its listing over on the PlayStation store:
In his quest for power, the 12th King of Boletaria, King Allant channeled the ancient Soul Arts, awakening a demon from the dawn of time itself, The Old One. With the summoning of The Old One, a colorless fog swept across the land, unleashing nightmarish creatures that hungered for human souls. Those whose souls were stripped from them, lost their minds – left only with the desire to attack the sane that remained.
Today Idea Factory International reached out with a press release to announce that Go! Go! 5D Game Neptunia ReVerse is coming west simply titled Neptunia ReVerse.
The game will come in 2021 for PS5 with both physical and digital editions.
If you are unfamiliar with Neptunia ReVerse, it’s not exactly a “new” game. It’s basically the is the “definitive version” of Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 + for PS4, which is, in turn, a remaster of Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 for PS Vita, which was a remake of the original game of the series. I know. It’s complicated.
Below you can check out the announcement key art and screenshots.
Due to the ongoing covid-19 pandemic, Warner Bros. has announced that every upcoming major film coming from the studio will premiere in theaters and on HBO Max on the same day. Upcoming blockbuster films such as Dune, In the Heights, and Wonder Woman 1984 will be available for a one-month window on the streaming service at no additional cost to subscribers according to Hollywood Reporter.
Warner Bros. Pictures has even gone out of its way to release a short sizzle reel that shows off some of the major films that will eventually be coming out, even some films that are a ways away such as Matrix 4, Mortal Kombat, and Space Jam.
You can view the video below:
Here’s what Ann Sarnoff, chair and CEO of WarnerMedia Studios, had to say about the significant announcement:
It’s been a while since we heard from developer Pearl Abyss about its anticipated upcoming MMORPG Crimson Desert. The game was first revealed over 12 months ago with a very slick cinematic trailer before a bunch of early screenshots were showcased, but things have gone quiet since.
Today, though, a new animated logo for Crimson Desert has been revealed, with the promise of a full gameplay presentation to be shown during this year’s The Game Awards on Dec. 10.
Developer Pearl Abyss is the team behind the acclaimed MMORPG Black Desert Online, which launched back in 2014 and continues to support a thriving community of players across console and PC platforms.
Little is known about the upcoming Crimson Desert except for the setting and story that was presented in last year’s cinematic trailer. From what we’ve seen so far, it appears to be a European medieval setting somewhat remeniscant of Scotland and northern England.
You can check the new logo out below, and further down the original cinematic trailer from last year can also be viewed.
Wolfenstein: Alt History Collection (PS4) | $30 | Best Buy
Wolfenstein: Alt History Collection (XBO) | $30 | Best Buy
Here’s a significant price cut for you: Wolfenstein: Alt History Collection is now down to $30. That’s a $50 price cut over the game’s usual $80 price tag, which is an incredible deal when you consider…
Just like the PlayStation 3 original, the Demon’s Souls remake on PlayStation 5 is a moody, atmospheric game with very little in the way of brightness or joy. But that wasn’t always the case.
We've got the release date and announcement trailer for the Wattam Steam release. Check out the creator of Katamari Damacy's most recent title.
The post Wattam Steam Release Is Right Around the Corner appeared first on Siliconera.
Neptune is jumping (like a kangaroo) to the PS5! Neptunia ReVerse will show up on the system worldwide next year.
The post Neptunia ReVerse Will Appear Outside Japan in 2021 appeared first on Siliconera.
The new Disney Plus movie takes the fairy-tale-dismantling a step further
Call of Duty: Warzone player Garry2206 was running to pick up a contract in lumberyard when he turned a corner and was blinded by the bright lights that lined the building in front of him. He could barely see the enemy in his peripheral. He was gunned down a few moments later.
"Christmas came early in lumberyard," they wrote on Reddit after getting killed. The lights were actually caused by a rendering bug and not anything related to old Saint Nick, but it's pushed players to imagine what Verdansk would look like during the holidays.
Christmas came early in lumberyard. Has anyone seen these lights? If its normal i never noticed before from r/CODWarzone
Infinity Ward and Raven Software went all out with jump scares, special skins, and a night time mode for Warzone's Halloween event, The Haunting of Verdansk. Players are hoping for something similar in December. They're asking Santa for a new limited-time mode, special Elf cosmetics, and even a candy cane melee weapon.
Continue Reading at GameSpotPhantasy Star Online 2 is getting a significant update next week that will usher in the next chapter of the MMORPG's storyline. Beyond new story content, Episode 6 will include Phantom and Etoile classes to check out and will raise the level cap to 95. All of the Episode 6 content releases on December 9 for free.
Episode 6's story picks up after the alternate dimension Omega was able to get rid of the gigantic black hole. The victory doesn't last long as the ARKS find a new foe in the form of the Goddess of Annihilation Shiva, who declares war upon the entire universe. It's now up to players to go up against her fleets of spaceships in what Sega is calling "the most massive battle in the history of ARKS."
Players will be able to take the battle to Shiva while playing as two new classes. The Phantom class uses rods, katanas, and assault rifles to damage enemies and are able to modify their Photon Arts by using weapon actions. Meanwhile, the Etoile class specializes in support and melee combat. Wielding blades and wands, these defensive-minded characters are able to restore party members' HP and PP during combat.
Continue Reading at GameSpotThe festive season has commenced, and if you're dreading hearing Mariah Carey's annual Christmas jingle again, then perhaps a more gamer-orientated album will be more to your liking. Available right now, A Merry Hyrule Christmas is a Zelda tribute album that blends some of the classic tracks from the Nintendo series with traditional Christmas songs.
Produced by Eric Bucholz and the Seattle-based game music group Materia Collective, the album combines these tracks with orchestral and rock stylings.
"A Merry Hyrule Christmas is the first album to combine music from The Legend of Zelda franchise with classic holiday tunes of various genres," Eric Buchholz said. "My goal was to create an album of videogame music that could blend in seamlessly with classic holiday tunes."
Continue Reading at GameSpotThe latest Call of Duty game, Black Ops Cold War, released a couple of weeks ago on November 13, but if you've yet to pick up the first-person shooter, you can now buy a physical copy for 10 bucks less than its list price at Walmart. The retailer announced a new promo on the game that offers the PS5/Xbox Series X versions for $59.94 (was $70) and PS4/Xbox One versions for $49.94 (was $60). This is a "new everyday low price" with no specific end date, so it's effectively a price drop on the brand-new game.
Though not a huge discount, this Walmart price drop is still notable for the new COD game, as it's full-priced for all versions at many other stores, like Best Buy and GameStop. It appears that Amazon is now price-matching the Xbox prices at Walmart--the Xbox Series X standard edition is on sale for $59.94, while the Xbox One version is down to $49.94, though note that the latter does not ship until January 8, 2021. The PlayStation versions are sold out at Amazon.
Continue Reading at GameSpot2K has released a new update for the current-gen version of NBA 2K21. It's light on content and fixes, but adds a seasonal flavour to the game on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
New seasonal decorations and themed courts are now available as the winter holiday arrives at 2K Beach. In terms of fixes, MyCourt's Limitless free throw drill is now set to use the 2K camera setting in MyCareer. Online VS--the difficulty used in MyTeam Unlimited and Limited--has also been added to Play With Friends Games in MyTeam.
Here are the full patch notes:
Continue Reading at GameSpotIf you weren't able to pick up the Nintendo Switch Mario Kart bundle during Black Friday, there's a new bundle exclusively at Walmart that's definitely worth checking out. Walmart has a Nintendo Switch bundle that comes with an officially licensed carrying case and a 12-month subscription to Nintendo Switch Online for $299, which is typically the price of the console on its own. At this time, the bundle is only available for pickup in store, but it will be available online (and ship to your home) starting tomorrow, December 4.
It seems as if most Walmart stores have this Nintendo Switch bundle in stock right now. Walmart says the bundle will be available "while supplies last," so we'd expect it to sell out fairly quickly. Walmart's website automatically tells you if stores near you have the bundle in stock, but you can also check Brickseek to get a better idea of how many bundles your local stores have available.
Continue Reading at GameSpotRare has announced that its pirate-themed action-adventure Sea of Thieves will be getting a battle pass in 2021. Sea of Thieves: Season One is set to launch in January and will introduce a plethora of new features for the Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC title.
The studio shared the news on its YouTube channel, revealing that the huge new update will feature seasons, a new progression system, live events, and more. Each new season will last for approximately three months, offering a free 100-level battle pass for you to work your way through and earn rewards such as player and ship cosmetics.
Sea of Thieves' current trading company progression system will remain, but the new battle pass will offer another set of goals for players to chase, with Rare saying that it's designed to give players "a tangible sense of progress." In addition to the free battle pass, there's also a premium tier known as the Plunder Pass. This unlocks discounts for existing items in the premium Pirate Emporium store alongside a number of exclusive items.
Continue Reading at GameSpotActivision's Call of Duty-branded military veterans charity, the Call of Duty Endowment, has announced the details for this year's C.O.D.E. Bowl event, which will be expanded from last year.
Held on December 11 and sponsored by USAA, the C.O.D.E. Bowl sees a big change this year in that all five branches of the US military will participate through their own eSports squads, while international military organizations will take part as well.
Continue Reading at GameSpot
Fall Guys looks set to get another major crossover costume, and this time it's one of gaming's biggest heroes. The game's official Twitter account has released a sneak peek, and it looks very familiar. It looks like you'll be doing some ripping and tearing. Or at least, you'll look like you could.
Unless we're very much mistaken, it looks like Doomguy. Publisher Devolver Digital, by the way, seems to agree. The framing of the figure is very close to keyart from 2016's Doom, used as the cover image for some iterations of the game, too.
...time to suit up
— Fall Guys 👑 (@FallGuysGame) December 2, 2020
S O O N pic.twitter.com/XfkOwfpFNq
The tweet suggests that we'll know "soon", so we don't expect a long wait for confirmation and a look at the costume. To add further fuel to the fire, the official Doom Twitter account has more-or-less confirmed that it's a Doom costume.
Continue Reading at GameSpotNHL 21 is making some changes to the matchmaking experience that should result in a better time for players. A new update is coming soon that adds a "Max Average Ping" setting that players can use to restrict the maximum ping for an online match.
In a blog post, EA Sports said one of the loudest pieces of feedback it has received since launch is that players are willing to wait a longer period of time to find a match if that match has a good connection. This is particularly important in competitive modes.
With the new Max Average Ping setting, players should get a better experience because they can define what ping they are OK with. The ping range is between 20 ms and 100 ms. Players can also select "Any" if they don't care about ping.
Continue Reading at GameSpotImmortals Fenyx Rising imbues you with the powers of the gods. To that end, it has a few different kinds of upgrades, each with its own path and method of leveling up.
Under the Abilities menu, you'll find both Skills and Godly Powers. Skills enhance your standard combat and traversal abilities, while Godly Powers are more significant, flashier finishers with cooldowns. Both are purchased at the Hall of the Gods with Coins of Charon, but Godly Powers cost significantly more Coins. Be sure to visit the Hall of the Gods to upgrade your abilities before taking on major new quests, because you can't upgrade your character on the fly--it's only available at that single location.
Another type of upgrade is Blessings, which has its own section on the menu. These unlock as you progress through the story and finish the quests of the four gods: Aphrodite, Ares, Athena, and Hephaistos. Each god has three powers to grant you which will unlock in sequence. The story paths for each get more difficult, so it's probably best to complete each of their first quest phases, then each of the second. But since you can do them in any order, you are able to claim certain Blessings first to help you with the others.
Continue Reading at GameSpot