Final Fantasy 15 Cuts Versus XIII Character and Scene
Final Fantasy XV director Hajime Tabata has once again appeared in an episode of Square Enix's Active Time Report, revealing some very interesting information about the title.
Alongside confirming the updated version of the Episode Duscae demo will be released on June 9 at 8am PT / 11 am ET / 4pm GMT, he also revealed a series of big changes have hit the title as part of the transition from Final Fantasy Versus XIII to Final Fantasy XV.
Tabata explained the narrative has changed in three major ways since it was originally penned by Final Fantasy veteran Kazushige Nojima for Versus XIII. One of the biggest involves the character of Stella, who was initially set up as Noctis' female counterpart and the heroine of the story. She has now been cut and will not appear in the story.
New Diablo-like Game Takes Place After Star Wars: Episode VI
Daniel Erickson is the developer of a brand new Star Wars game, but when he talks to me about working on his project with Lucasfilm, he sounds more like a secret agent.
“For some of the story stuff, literally, I have to go into a room by myself and carry nothing, and read a script or a piece of paper, or a description, in a white room under guard, and then walk out with nothing.”
Erickson is the senior design director on Star Wars: Uprising, an upcoming mobile game that takes place directly after Return of the Jedi. Its storyline is canon – official Star Wars lore – and to ensure Uprising doesn’t contradict the stories told in other properties, like The Force Awakens, Erickson is occasionally treated to very, very private bits of story.
3 New Official Star Wars Characters Revealed
Star Wars: Uprising, the just-announced action-RPG that takes place after the events of Return of the Jedi, adds at least three official new characters to Star Wars canon.
The game is set in the region of space containing Hoth and Cloud City, and centers on an Imperial leader bent on covering up Emperor Palpatine's death. The story was written in coordination with Lucasfilm to ensure the plot lines up with The Force Awakens and other canon.
The three new characters are:
Adelhard is in charge of the Anoat sector of space. When he receives word the Emperor was killed, he shuts down all travel and communications in and out of his system. Those who oppose the status quo or speak anti-Imperial “rumors” are killed. His enforcer and right-hand man is Commander Bragh.
New Star Wars Game Reveals the Story After Return of the Jedi
Star Wars: Uprising, an upcoming action-RPG for mobile, includes official story details about what happens after Return of the Jedi.
Speaking with IGN, Daniel Erickson, the Senior Director of Design at Kabam, shared an overview of Uprising’s plot. The story was written in tandem with Lucasfilm to ensure its canon is consistent with other official Star Wars stories, like the upcoming film, The Force Awakens, as well as the Aftermath novel.
Here’s the overview:
After Return of the Jedi, word of the Emperor’s death quickly spreads throughout the galaxy.When the news reaches the Anoat sector – which contains classic Star Wars movie locations like Hoth and Cloud City – local Imperial Governor Adelhard locks down the entire region. This “Iron Blockade” stops all incoming and outgoing space traffic and communications, trapping the people within. Adelhard denies all “rumors” of the Emperor’s death and kills anyone who speaks otherwise.
Hatoful Boyfriend: Holiday Star Coming This Year
Mediatonic and Devolver Digital have announced that Hatoful Boyfriend: Holiday Star will be coming during the second half of 2015.
The remastered holiday-themed sequel to last year's bird dating simulator will be coming to PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and PC.
According to the press release, we can expect old friends and new faces, improved visuals, side stories, and of course, plenty of bird puns.
The original Hatoful Boyfriend will also be getting a release on PS4 and Vita this summer.
IGN reviewed Hatoful Boyfriend last year, saying that it "hatches surprisingly deep characters with an equally charming story."
Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection Confirmed
Sony has announced Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection will be available on October 7 in Europe and October 9 in North America.
The bundle, which brings together Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves and Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception in one collection on PS4, has been created in order to prep people for the release of Uncharted 4: A Thief's End next year. Only the single-player campaigns of the titles will be available.
Sony has also confirmed anyone who buys The Nathan Drake Collection will get access to the Uncharted 4 multiplayer beta later this year.
Remastered by Bluepoint Games, expect new achievements along with 1080p graphics at 60 fps, and better lighting, textures, and models. Gameplay improvements are also on the way, with an announcement on that front coming soon.
New Studio PIXYUL Releases Racing First-Person Shooter BIOS
Former Far Cry 2 developers have banded together to launch new studio PIXYUL and release a racing first-person shooter, BIOS.
Debuting on Steam Early Access today, BIOS aims to put "a refreshing twist on the FPS genre" by integrating a shooter with elements more traditionally found in racing games.
The independent studio - founded by Julien Cuny and Louis-Pierre Pharand - has chosen to feature the game on Steam as it "values the involvement of players at an early stage to build lasting relationships and to make better games."
Comic Book Reviews for June 3, 2015
What. A. Week. Of. Comics!
DC's two-month hiatus is over and they are back in full force with the first wave of post-New 52 titles. There's some huge returning titles like Action Comics and Justice League as well as some intriguing new books like Midnighter #1 and Bizarro #1.
Marvel was no slouch, however, putting out an onslaught of Secret Wars comics headed up by Secret Wars #3 and Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows, and then three Star Wars comics on top of that.
It was a huge week for the other publishers, too, as we got Archie #666, a new Rob Liefeld book called The Covenant, and the finale to the gone-too-soon Samurai Jack comic series.
Take a look at our reviews, then let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Marvel EiC Teases New Wolverine and Hulk
During our chat with Marvel Editor-In-Chief Axel Alonso about All-New All-Different Marvel, he revealed that Marvel will be unveiling a new Wolverine and a new Hulk on Friday (tomorrow!).
All-New All-Different Marvel will be the branding of Marvel’s comics after their big Secret Wars event has ended this Fall. It will feature a new wave of comics all starting at issue #1, and that is where we will see new versions of these two iconic characters.
Before we get to the juicy details, here's our infographic of the teaser image for Marvel's relaunch:
Marvel EiC Reveals (Some) Secrets of That Teaser Image
With Marvel releasing a teaser image for All-New All-Different Marvel -- the relaunch of all their comic books this Fall after Secret Wars -- we hopped on the phone with Editor-In-Chief Axel Alonso to discuss the notable characters, big surprises, and suspicious absences. Plus, he drops a bomb about two iconic characters not pictured here.
The image in question is below, which we've annotated with each character's identity and abilities. Note that Iron Man has been confirmed as Tony Stark, but we still don't know the details on Red Wolf.
