Monthly Archives: July 2016
Rocket League: Why PS4-Xbox One Cross-Network Play Is ‘Inevitable’
The story behind Rocket League - the sequel/refinement to an under-played PS3 indie title that's since become a multi-platform, 19 million player behemoth - is remarkable, but its biggest achievement may still lie ahead.
After Microsoft announced that it would allow for cross-platform play between Xbox One and potentially any other platform, developer Psyonix stepped up to answer the most obvious question - can Xbox One and PS4 players play together? The answer, it seemed, was yes - but it'd take the go-ahead from the console makers themselves to allow the historic connection to be made.
Nintendo NX Reportedly A Handheld Console With TV Dock
Details appear to have leaked about the upcoming Nintendo NX console, saying that it is a high-powered handheld which can plug into a TV docking station, features two detachable controllers, will use cartridges and is less powerful than current-gen hardware.
Eurogamer (which claims a number of sources) says that Nintendo's pitch is simple - that you can "take your games with you on the go". That's borne out by the reported design, a high-powered handheld. Controls are attached to either side, and can be detached as two smaller controllers for use in local multiplayer. IGN has also verified this information from a separate source.
August’s Free Xbox Games with Gold Revealed
Next month’s Games with Gold have been revealed.
Here's the list, and when you'll be able to grab your free download:
- Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate - August 1-31, Xbox One
- WWE 2K16 - August 16-September 15, Xbox One
- Spelunky - August 1-15, Xbox 360
- Beyond Good and Evil HD - August 16-31, Xbox 360
In our reviews, we gave hack 'n' slash Koei crossover Warriors Orochi 3 an 8.5 in its last-gen incarnation (the Ultimate edition includes more characters and a graphical boost), while WWE 2K16 garnered an 8.8 for being "as close to a fusion of performance and competition as a wrestling game has ever gotten".
The BBC Is Bringing Time Commanders Back
Calling all amateur warlords. The BBC is bringing back Time Commanders for a third season.
For those who’ve not heard of it, Time Commanders was a British TV game show/historical wargame presented by Top Gear's Richard Hammond and played out in the engine used for Creative Assembly's Total War series.
Originally broadcast between 2003 and 2005, it used modified versions of the Rome: Total War's battles to allow for teams of players to stand around a table with an overview of the battlefield built into it, and shout out commands to their virtual troops. Developers then, essentially, play a game of Total War.
Now it's back (although it's not clear if Creative Assembly will be involved once more).
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Ubisoft Details Third Expansion for Rainbow Six Siege
A third expansion, Operation Skull Rain, is coming to Rainbow Six Siege on August 2, 2016.
For those with the Season Pass, you'll have seven days' exclusivity to access two new characters, Caveira and Capitão, from Brazil’s Batalhão de Operações Policiais Especiais (BOPE). Caveira's strength lies in stealthy surveillance, while Capitão wields a crossbow that shoots bolts that asphyxiate opponents.
All players will be able to access a new map set in a Brazillian favela, which Ubisoft states is "Rainbow Six Siege’s most destructible map to date".
Ubisoft has also confirmed other tweaks to the gameplay. A new Tactical Realism custom mode inhibits your HUD and removes enemy marking, allowing only the timer, compass, gadget, and weapon panels to be visible in the HUD, pushing players to "rely even more on their teammates and communication for information on enemy locations and kill counts".
8 Strange, Cool and Surprising Games Coming from Japan
Each year in July, developers and gamers alike descend on the beautiful Japanese city of Kyoto for BitSummit – a laidback expo that showcases games from small teams. It’s the complete opposite of TGS; BitSummit is a show where you can chat directly with devs, where you don’t have to queue for hours to play games, and at which the likes of Shuhei Yoshida and Hironubu Sakaguchi are just hanging out.
Here are eight games from this year's show that particularly caught my eye.
Developer: Onion Games / Platforms: Mac, PC
At first glance, Black Bird may just look like a cool, sepia-toned side scrolling shoot ‘em up in the spirit of old school classics like Gradius, but it’s also a game that is thematically rich. “My story is about the curse of the Black Bird,” says Game Designer and CEO of Onion Games Yoshiro Kimura. “The main character that you’re going to play is a little girl, who becomes the Black Bird.” This happens at the very beginning of the game, when players are introduced to her - collapsed on the ground, dying. She passes away, helped by no one, and a mysterious figure transforms her into an egg; she’s reborn as a vengeful bird.
Doctor Strange Poster Reveals Benjamin Bratt Casting
The new poster for Marvel's Doctor Strange reveals Benjamin Bratt is also in the upcoming flick.
The poster, fresh outta Comic-Con, has the main players listed up the top, with Bratt's name hidden in the credits at the bottom. Kudos to MCU Exchange for picking this up!
Thor: Ragnarok: Karl Urban Reveals His Shaved Head for Skurge the Executioner
New Zealand actor Karl Urban (Dredd, Star Trek) has revealed his freshly-shorn dome to fans as he begins work on the Gold Coast set of Marvel’s next Thor adventure.
Thanks for the haircut !!@TaikaWaititi @thorofficial pic.twitter.com/ArqWG9CSlb
— Karl Urban (@KarlUrban) July 25, 2016
Marvel revealed Urban would be joining the cast as Skurge alongside Cate Blanchett, Jeff Goldblum, and Tessa Thompson back in May.
Moana: Full Cast and Characters Revealed
Walt Disney Animation Studios has revealed the character roster - and the cast behind it - in its upcoming film Moana.
The expanded cast join Auli‘i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson in the flick, which centers on teenage Moana (Cravalho) and her dream of becoming a master wayfinder. Johnson plays Maui, a character described by Disney as "half god, half mortal, all awesome". Check them out in the slideshow below.
The extended character descriptions and voice talent are as follows:
Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords) plays Tamatoa, described as "a self-absorbed 50-foot crab who lives in Lalotai, the realm of monsters. The conceited crustacean wants to be more than a “bottom feeder” and overcompensates for this perceived shortcoming by covering himself in all things shiny."