Victorian Government to Boost Local Games Industry
The Victorian Government is seeking to strengthen the state’s reputation as Australia’s games development capital by announcing a new $654,000 investment in nine Victorian games studios.
The studios funded include Melbourne start-up Inn Between Worlds and Ghostbat Games. Two other supported projects – Putty Pals by Harmonious Games and Paperbark by Paper House – were born as university projects at Swinburne and RMIT and led to their creators establishing their own studios.
The Victorian Labor Government is also offering grants to help local developers exhibit their games at the upcoming PAX AUS, during Melbourne International Games Week 2017. Victorian developers accepted into PAX Rising can apply for a grant to help with the cost of registration and stand hire here.
First Look at Bathurst in Gran Turismo Sport
Gran Turismo Sport developer Polyphony Digital revealed the inclusion of Australia’s Mount Panorama circuit in GT Sport earlier this week (via a very brief glimpse of the track in a new trailer Sony debuted prior to its E3 presentation) but we now have a pair of new videos showcasing the track in full.
Mount Panorama, more commonly known as Bathurst, was previously featured in Gran Turismo 6.
Gran Turismo Sport will feature a total of 27 tracks across 15 locations, from real-world circuits to fictional racetracks. A complete list of tracks is not available at this stage but the roster so far includes Brands Hatch, Willow Springs, and the Nürburgring Nordschleife alongside Bathurst, plus several fantasy tracks.
How to Access Final Fantasy XV: Stormblood Early
Call of Cthulhu’s Twist on the Lovecraft RPG is Intriguing
"You have to become mad."
If there is one promise Cyanide Studio has for players interested in picking up their adaptation of Chaosium's pen-and-paper RPG Call of Cthulu, it's that you're not going to get out of this experience with your sanity. I got to sit through a presentation of the upcoming title during E3 2017, and was charmed by the way it brings both an H.P. Lovecraft-inspired world and the pen-and-paper experience to life.
You play as private investigator Edward Pierce in the early 1920s. As Pierce, you're investigating the death of famous artist Sarah Hawkins and her son and husband, after they died in a fire in their home on Darkwater Island. Like all Lovecraft stories, everything in Pierce's investigation is normal... until it's not. The more you investigate and find clues, the more that knowledge will affect your decisions later in the game. But as is promised by lead level designer Romain Wiart, Pierce losing his mind is inevitable by the end of your Call of Cthulu experience.
Nintendo Will Support 3DS Beyond 2018
In an interview with IGN at E3, Nintendo of America President and Chief Officer Reggie Fils-Aime said Nintendo plans to support the Nintendo 3DS past 2018.
"The way we continue to make Nintendo 3DS vibrant as a platform is first we continue to innovate from form factor standpoint," Fils-Aime said. "So the New 2DS XL is just the latest for us in having form factor innovation. We know colors are a key differentiator, consumers love the variety of different colors. And also the larger screen and the different form factor in the 2DS family, we think is a going to drive and continue to drive the 3DS platform."
The other major pillar of Nintendo's support is, of course, supporting its handheld with games.
E3 2018 Dates Announced
The dates for E3 2018 have been revealed.
According to a sign on display in the Los Angeles Convention Center, the Electronic Entertainment Expo will return next year and run from June 12-14.
Sign on display at the Los Angeles Convention Center
E3 2017 featured a number of major announcements. Microsoft pulled back the curtain on Xbox One X, Ubisoft offered an early look at Beyond Good & Evil 2, and Nintendo announced that Metroid Prime 4 is in development. In addition, Electronic Arts unveiled BioWare's new game Anthem and Sony announced a remake of Shadow of the Colossus for PS4.
Super Mario Odyssey Co-op Revealed
Super Mario Odysse will feature a co-op mode, where one of the players will control Mario and the other will control his new magical hat, Cappy.
The co-op mode was demoed today during Nintendo's E3 Treehouse Live stream, giving folks who couldn't make it to the expo a chance to see Mario and Cappy in action for themselves.
In single-player mode, Mario's hat is integral because it can be used to capture objects and enemies. During co-op mode, a prompt appears onscreen to show players how to control Mario and Cappy independently.
Playing as Mario remains roughly the same as it has always been, as he's able to run and jump as usual. Meanwhile, with Cappy, players can fly around, attack enemies, and perform actions that Mario can't otherwise do. Additionally, Cappy is invincible, which means you can play as the magical hat without any concern about getting hurt.
First Arms DLC Character Revealed
Nintendo revealed the first DLC character for Arms during its Treehouse livestream today at E3.
The new character is Max Brass, who's been the top fighter for years, and has the ability to avoid flinching while taking attacks when his arms are charged up. Nintendo shared a few images of the new fighter on Twitter, which you can check out in the gallery below:
Much like Spring Man, Max Brass' arms are permanently charged when his health reaches below 20 percent.
The new fighter won't make it in time for Arms' launch on June 16 and, as a result, Max Brass will be available as a free DLC character sometime next month. Nintendo also revealed that, following Arms' release, the game will receive a Spectator Mode as a free update in June.
Xbox on Sony’s Reasoning for No Minecraft PS4 Cross-Play
Head of Xbox Phil Spencer doesn't agree with Sony's explanation for why there's no PlayStation 4 cross-play for Minecraft.
Sony Interactive Entertainment global sales and marketing head Jim Ryan defended PS4's lack of cross-play support for Minecraft, saying that while Sony has "no philosophical stance against cross-play at all" it's concerned with its players' safety on non-PlayStation platforms. In an interview with Giant Bomb, Spencer disagreed, saying Ryan's comments don't "seem healthy for anyone.”
Why Coco Is Playable in Crash Bandicoot Remakes
Activision and developer Vicarious Visions announced Crash's younger sister Coco as a playable character in the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy during E3 2017. And, for those wondering, the team has an actual, narrative reason, to allow Coco to appear in all three games — even before she was created.
During a demo at E3, Producer Kara Massie told IGN that the team was able to justify Coco's inclusion thanks to Crash Bandicoot: Warped's use of time travel. Showcasing the save/load screen of Warped, with Coco standing next to it, Massie described how the younger Bandicoot can be fully playable in Crash Bandicoot and Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back.