Becoming a Dad Brought Me Back to Nintendo
My wife and I welcomed our first son into the world on January 26th, 2014. In the year and a half since his birth, we’ve encountered an endless list of unexpected events - both good and bad - that no one can prepare you for. The avocado that gave him a skin rash, his insane fascination with cars, the first time he flung himself out of his crib, and the day he randomly decided to stand up and walk for the first time. If you’re a parent, the combination of utter joy and pure fear surrounding these moments become oddly normal. Each event is life-changing, but there has been one change to my life that I didn’t see coming at all - after 23 years, I became a Nintendo fan again.
PS Plus: New ‘Vote to Play’ Feature Leaks Prematurely
Sony may be set to introduce a new feature allowing you to vote on games you'd like to see in each month's set of free PlayStation Plus titles.
NeoGAF user El_Cinefilo discovered a video while browsing the "What's New" section of his PS4 in the UK going into detail about a new "Vote to Play" feature.
According to the video, gamers will be given a choice of three games to choose between, and the one that receives the most votes will be offered free as part of PS Plus the following month, while the other two will be discounted.
Rocket League’s First DLC Coming Very Soon
The first downloadable content pack for Rocket League, entitled Supersonic Fury, is coming in early August.
Supersonic Fury includes two new Battle-Cars: The Dominus is an over-the-top American muscle car, and the Takumi is a Japanese street racer.
The DLC also includes two new rocket boosts called Nitrous and Burnout, two new wheel sets called Cristiano and Spinner, and five new paint types.
As well as Supersonic Fury, which costs $4 / €4, Psyonix is also releasing a free game update. This update adds the new map Utopia Coliseum, and more than 70 new country flags. Spectator mode is also being added, allowing you to watch games in real time from any camera angle.
Wasteland 2: Director’s Cut Confirmed for PS4 and Xbox One
A remastered version of Wasteland 2 is coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One from October 13, 2015 in the Americas, and October 16, 2015 worldwide.
This "definitive" Director’s Cut edition of the post-apocalyptic RPG will feature "overhauled graphics, expanded voice-overs, gameplay enhancements & tweaks", including fully "redone character and level art", an enhanced lighting system and improved textures.
All major speaking parts, NPCs and weapon sounds have also been refreshed for the Director's Cut.
If you're at gamescom later this month, you'll be able to try it yourself. A playable demo will be available on the show floor, where you'll be able to sample the new gameplay features, including improved combat encounters, enhanced cutscenes and "all-new “Precision Strike” and “Perk & Traits” systems.
One Upon Light Headed to PS4 in Europe, America
Rising Star Games is bringing One Upon Light to PS4 in North America and Europe in October, 2015.
Up until now, the indie puzzler - developed by SUTD Lab - has only been available in Asia.
The game, inspired visually by classic black and white cartoons, features top-down puzzle gameplay, using "the unique properties of light and shadow to explore and overcome obstacles" and offers a "true test of skill, brains and photophobia". You must explore the ruins of deserted labs to uncover the mystery of who you are, and what happened at Aurora Science Labs.
“Since our exclusive Sony PlayStation 4 Asia release in October 2014, we have been looking for the right partner to bring this game to the West,” said Teo Chor Guan, programme director of SUTD Game Lab.
What You Get in Windows 10
Maybe you've seen the Xbox App in Windows 10 (or in particular, how it lets you stream Xbox One games to a Windows 10 PC), and you're now curious if it's really worth leaving Windows 7 behind. Or maybe you're wondering if Windows 10 is the salvation from Windows 8 you've been long waiting for.
So far, those of us in the office who've spent time with Windows 10 have found it a positive experience—but we'll leave it to our friends at PC Magazine to tell you just what you get if you upgrade. Their concise review should help you figure out if and when you should make the jump.
Final Fantasy Explorers Gets Western Release Date
Square Enix has announced Final Fantasy Explorers will arrive in North America on January 26 and in Europe on January 29.
The action-RPG, which has been described as Crystal Chronicles meets Monster Hunter, originally launched in Japan back in December 2014.
The game tasks players with searching for crystals while fighting Summons, the magical creatures that have appeared in Final Fantasy titles since FF III. Like many other entries in the FF universe, Explorers will allow players to choose from and level up a variety of jobs including Black Mage, White Mage, Knight and Monk. You'll be able to play the game alone, or with up to three friends.
Koei Tecmo Announces Arslan: The Warriors of Legend
Koei Tecmo has announced Arslan: The Warriors of Legend, a tactical action game based on The Heroic Legend of Arslan novellas.
For those who don’t know, The Heroic Legend of Arslan is a Japanese fantasy series written by Yoshiki Tanaka. The first entry into the now 14 novel series was released back in 1986. Since its initial release Arslan has been adapted into anime numerous times, the most well-known of which being the 2013 manga series by Hiromu Arakawa in Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine.
As the story goes, a young prince by the name Arslan is forced out of his kingdom after his father suffers a betrayal, and is soon after defeated. It’s then up to Arslan, and a group of companions, to reforge an army in the hopes of regaining his father’s lost throne.
Here’s When Tropico 5 Is Coming to Xbox One
Tropico 5 is coming to Xbox One in early 2016.
The Tropico 5 Xbox One Edition contains the full version of the game, plus the Waterborne expansion pack and the Bayo del Ofato, Big Cheese, Mad World, Generalissimo and Joint Venture add-ons.
You'll also receive "exclusive Xbox One sandbox maps", a new "controller-optimised" user interface, and Xbox Live Achievements.
We gave Tropico 5 a solid 7.2 score in our review, saying: "there is a lot that I like about Tropico 5, and it will probably hold my interest far longer than Tropico 4 did.
Total War: Warhammer Gameplay Revealed
Creative Assembly has released the first gameplay footage for Total War: Warhammer.
The video, which you can see below, is a developer walkthrough of a set-piece battle called The Battle of Black Fire Pass. It's apparently a Quest Battle - "available specifically to Karl Franz, it represents one of many bespoke, optional encounters players will unlock as they progress through a campaign with their chosen Legendary Lord."
It's safe to say the battle between the Greenskins and the Empire is suitably impressive, from heaps of custom characters and animations to breathtaking spell effects. Be warned - there's also giant spiders.
So check it out below, and remember a cinematic in-engine version of the battle is already available. This is also the demo we saw at E3 2015, so be sure to check out our thoughts.