Yearly Archives: 2018
The Best Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Deals in October
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Samsung unveiled their latest flagship phone at Unpacked 2018, the Galaxy Note 9. was released on the 24th of August and the newest edition of the Note generally has favourable reviews and boasts a range of incredible specs. Leading on from last years Samsung Galaxy Note 8, the CPU, GPU, and battery have been given a boost. Samsung have also created a Bluetooth-enabled S Pen you can use as a remote control which is shipped with every order.
3D Realms Boss Sheds Light on Duke Nukem Forever’s Tortured Development
Scott Miller is psychologically done with Duke Nukem Forever...forever. The founder of 3D Realms, which helped bring classic action games like Max Payne and Wolfenstein 3D to life, says he has never and probably will never play the ill-fated shooter to completion, which released in 2011 after more than a decade in development hell.
When asked when he started to worry about Duke Nukem Forever’s development being in trouble, Miller said it was 2003.
“My argument to
was we need to almost double the size of our studio to get this thing up,” Miller said. “What happens is that a new game will come out that blows the doors off of what we're doing, like Half-Life or Half-Life 2. Therefore, OK, let's go back to the drawing board and add more features to the engine. We were just always playing catch-up because our team is too small to ever really get ahead and maintain the lead we want.”
Shenmue: Cancelled Remake Would Have Completely Revamped Visuals
New reports suggest that Shenmue I & II could have received a much more "comprehensive remake with completely revamped artwork," if Sega's plans had been successful.
As reported by Eurogamer, Digital Foundry recently published a video that gives us a look at what the Shenmue I & II remasters could have looked like, had the development on these more ambitious version not been cancelled due to "budget constraints and development delays."
Egos and Immersion: Why Rockstar Won’t Hire Famous Actors Anymore
Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser says the developer has moved away from using name actors in recent games, citing egos and player immersion.
Speaking to Vulture, Houser explained: "We don’t bring in name actors anymore because of their egos and, most important of all, because we believe we get a better sense of immersion using talented actors whose voices you don’t recognize.”
Houser specifically brings up his experience directing Burt Reynolds in GTA: Vice City, who apparently shouted "get the limey out of here" after an argument. Houser also had to ask another director to take over following disagreements with Public Enemy's Chuck D while making GTA: San Andreas.
Special Edition Diablo 3 Nintendo Switch Bundle Announced
Nintendo has announced the Nintendo Switch Diablo III: Eternal Collection Bundle that includes an exclusive Diablo III-themed Nintendo Switch console and dock, carrying case, and a download code for the upcoming title.
Available on November 2, 2018, the Diablo III: Eternal Collection bundle will cost $359.99 USD and comes packaged with standard gray Joy-Cons and the console and dock adorned with Diablo artwork.
In the US, the Nintendo Switch Diablo III Eternal Collection Bundle is only available at Gamestop.
The Diablo III: Eternal Collection on Switch includes the original version of the game, both the Reaper of Souls expansion and Rise of the Necromancer pack, and all content updates.
Pokemon: Let’s Go Is Relaxing and Approachable by Design
For anyone unfamiliar, Pokemon is an easy series to underestimate. On the surface, it’s bright, cute, and basically the opposite of what a lot of people think when they hear “competitive multiplayer” or “deep RPG.” But as any experienced player will tell you, the core Pokemon series is full of elements like breeding, hidden abilities, and a ton of other factors that require meticulous stat tracking and battle strategies.
For that reason, Pokemon: Let’s Go is designed as an entry point for kids and new players. Normally, those people might pick up a traditional Pokemon game expecting something simple and find themselves intimidated by the many facets of battling and training. But after playing a bit of Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee, it’s clear that Game Freak has succeeded in making a much simpler, more friendly Pokemon experience.
Get Six Months Xbox Live Gold for the Price of Three, PS4 Pro Red Dead Redemption 2 Bundle under £349
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Red Dead Redemption 2’s Campaign Is Around 60 Hours Long
You'll be spending a long time with Arthur Morgan it seems, as a new report says the game's story will be roughly 60 hours long.
Vulture, following an interview with Rockstar's Dan Houser, reports that 5 hours of content were recently cut from Red Dead Redemption 2, which stood at 65 hours long.
The report also includes the detail that protagonist Arthur will have a love interest in the course of the game. The dropped content included a second romantic plot, but Houser explains that “we decided one of them didn’t work”.
Other missions were also subject to cuts, including "a mission on a train where you had to deal with bounty hunters". Thankfully, you can recreate that particular experience organically, as we found out in one of our hands-on sessions with the game.
How Fan-Based Projects Are Helping Preserve Video Games History
Video games history is in danger of disappearing. There are many reasons for this, from cartridge rot and optical disc degradation through to a lack of consideration of the future on the part of developers or publishers.
Rather than a concerted, industry-wide effort to tackle this, however, preservation efforts are largely piecemeal; taken on by a variety of passionate groups and organisations. Some of my favourite examples have even been spearheaded by the gaming community - by fans.
The Lay of the Land
These efforts have often been at odds with archaic and rigid copyright law, meaning that many of the third parties and fan teams looking to save - or recompile - data before it disappears have essentially been working illegally or at best in legal grey areas.
My Hero Academia Offers More Relatable Superheroes with Refreshing Motivations
When I think of superheroes, the general idea of their origins tend to lean towards a higher calling, a greater purpose that shifts their path in life from that of a normal citizen to that of a protector who uses their power to help others. There is often some force — a tragedy like with Batman and Spider-Man, some kind of larger destiny as with Green Lantern, the greater good as seen with the X-Men, etc. — that pushes a person to become a hero, effectively moving them away from a normal life and instilling them with an unrelenting desire to help others. These stories have been revisited quite often over the past few years in movies, games, and comic reboots, and though enjoyable, I’ve been wanting a different kind of superhero story. I found that change of pace in the world of Kohei Horikoshi’s My Hero Academia, where the usual character motivations of superhero narratives are subverted to make the path of a hero a choice, and a very personal one at that.