2K are working with Blind Squirrel Games to fully remaster the critically acclaimed trilogy. Bioshock’s DLC offerings include the Museum of Orphaned Concepts, a virtual museum you can walk around to gain a behind the scenes look at ideas that never made it into the final game, in addition to an all new video series, Director’s Commentary: Imagining BioShock, with Ken Levine and Shawn Robertson. Bioshock 2 DLC sees the return of the lauded Minerva's Den expansion, which hands you an experimental Ion Laser and the Gravity Well Plasmid - unique to Minerva's Den - as you face off against the Lancer Big Daddy. Protector Trials puts you in the stompy shoes of an Alpha Series Big Daddy, woken from hibernation just before the events of Bioshock 2. Bioshock Infinite DLC, Burial at Sea - Episodes 1 and 2, takes you back to Rapture, just before the events of the first game, whilst Clash in the Clouds adds 60 waves of challenges over 4 new maps. Somewhat less excitingly, Columbia's Finest combines the contents of the Industrial Revolution and Upgrade Packs to provide 500 Silver Eagles, five lock picks, six unique gear items and two weapon upgrades. You can set eyes on the announce trailer below: Bioshock: The Collection releases 16 September for Xbox One, PS4 and PC.
Are you excited to revisit Rapture and Columbia? New to the series? Would you kindly share your thoughts with us in the forums, or comment below? At a recent shareholder meeting in Japan, Shigeru Miyamoto, Creative Fellow at Nintendo, admitted that the NX wasn't shown at E3 because the company were worried about imitators.
Despite that, it appears that he wasn't overly impressed with the VR tech that was on show at E3, adding:
"Long play sessions are an issue. We want to release something that can be played for long periods, carries value, and is affordable. We want parents to feel at ease." A VR equipped NX would certainly make the console more competitive, especially if they can hit those targets. The NX isn't due out until March 2017, but it could have been released earlier according to Nintendo CEO, Tatsumi Kimishima, who, in a Q & A with investors last month, stated: "We believe that when launching hardware, the amount of quality software for consumers to play at launch is important, and that we ought to determine our launch dates based on this." Does the possible inclusion of VR make you more likely to buy the NX? Or are you waiting to see if Nintendo have something more up their sleeve? Let us know in the forums or comment below. There's a wealth of new content on the way, whether you own the base game or have an active ESO Plus subscription, including the addition of text chat for console users. The dungeons can played on either normal or veteran and each one features three new item sets, challenging new achievements with an appearance reward, plus a new monster mask set.
Those without an active ESO subscription will be able to purchase the Shadows of the Hist DLC for 1,500 Crowns in the ESO Crown Store. The new Style Parlour allows you to buy Appearance Change, Race Change and Name Change tokens from the Crown Store, while new hairstyles, adornments and markings are also available to buy with crowns. ESO Plus members will be able to dye their equipped costumes (and hats) using costume dyes that are unlocked via achievements. Alternatively, one time use dye stamps can be purchased with crowns. Anyone who owns The Elder Scrolls Online will receive the base game patch, which includes the following features:
The update will hit PC and Mac on 1 August, and consoles on 16 August. Are you looking forward to the update? Let us know in the forums or comment below. Batman: Return to Arkham delayed28/6/2016 Originally planned for a release next month on Xbox One and PS4, the bundle featuring remastered editions of Rocksteady’s first two Arkham games - Asylum and City - now looks to be on hold for the time being. “After reviewing the progress of the project, the team at WB Games has decided to delay the release of Batman: Return to Arkham to give the team at Virtuous Games additional time to deliver a polished Batman Arkham game experience,” he wrote.
“We do not have a release date yet and will be sure to communicate that once we are sure the game will be ready. We know this is disappointing news, but we feel the extra time will allow the team to create the best gaming experience for our fans.” Officially announced last month, Return to Arkham is the first time any game from the Arkham series will be rendered using Unreal Engine 4, and includes all DLC and Game of the Year content from both titles. Disappointed by the delay? Let us know in the forums or leave a comment below. The title is set to be announced on 22 July, the date the iconic SEGA mascot turns 25.
"We want to release good titles to all the players, and that is the challenge for us moving forward - making sure our games are great."
Ivo Gerscovih, Sonic Chief Brand Officer stated that SEGA are putting a "huge emphasis" on quality, adding: "One of the things about Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice is that we held the title for a year, which is not something SEGA has traditionally done, but this focus on quality is really about trying to take Sonic back to where it used to be. We want to go across all platforms and elevate his status even further, which explains why we are doing so much." No doubt welcome words for fans who were disappointed with the original Sonic Boom. If you want to keep up to date on all things Sonic, he has his very own Twitter account. Are you looking forward to see what the future holds for Mr. Hedgehog? Let us know in the forums or comment below. NeocoreGames have announced that the second part in their Van Helsing trilogy will be arriving on Xbox One next week. Like any self respecting RPG, it won’t be long before your pockets are overflowing. Loot is obtained mainly from slaying enemies and you'll find yourself regularly changing your loadout as you acquire better equipment. You do have the option of buying improved weapons and armour, but everyone knows that the best gear is found covered in the blood of your foes. The developers have promised overhauled classes with new skills, an expanded world to roam and brand new gameplay mechanics. The Che Domovoy MiniPet DLC and the Expurgator Set DLC will also be available, with the former granting you a rare pet, gear and perk, whilst the latter gives you a full set of unique and powerful items. Take a look at the trailer below: Did you download the first Van Helsing title as part of the Games With Gold program? Looking forward to the second? Let us know in the forums or comment below.
The series will fill in the blanks between the original trilogy and the upcoming Mass Effect: Andromeda. The front cover of the first book in the series shows the title to be Mass Effect: Andromeda Initiation. However, the listing, which can be found in Titan Books' Fiction Rights Guide(pdf) bears the title Mass Effect: Andromeda Initiative.
The release date for Initiation is August 2016, with the other books to follow in March 2017, September 2017 and March 2018. From the Fiction Rights Guide: "The novels will act as prequel and sequels to the events in the games and will become part of the overarching Mass Effect saga." It would make sense that some of the books would be sequels, given Andromeda's planned release window of Q1 2017. It's not yet known who will be penning books two and three but the last entry will be authored by Mass Effect creative director, Mac Walters. Are you eager to learn what transpired after Shepard's story came to a close? Will you be picking up the books? Let us know in forums or comment below. UK games industry react to Brexit vote24/6/2016 Image credit: DecalGirl.com How will Britain’s decision to leave the European Union affect the nation’s gaming market? “The UK video games development sector is an export focused industry that sells content all over the globe. We have a highly skilled workforce, a creative and growing studio population, and a heritage of 30 years of success. While uncertainty is unwelcome for business, the UK video games industry will remain strong, resilient, and competitive.”
UKIE executive Jo Twist also weighed in on the subject: “… it is important to remember that we are already a globally successful sector and a leading exporter in digital economy. UKIE will continue to work hard with colleagues in government to ensure we continue to have the best possible business environment and we will be following developments closely, as well as advising members as they unfold.” Meanwhile, TIGA chief executive Richard Wilson spoke of the need to make sure the UK gaming industry will not be neglected once Britain officially leaves the EU: “Following the referendum in favour of Brexit, it will be more vital than ever to strengthen (and avoid harming) those sectors where the UK has a comparative competitive advantage… including the video games sector," he said. "For the video games industry, it is particularly important that policy makers ensure games companies have access to sufficient finance, benefit from Video Games Tax Relief and R&D Tax Relief, have clear and stable IP rights, and can access highly skilled people from outside of the UK. Any new points based migration system must not be onerous or complicated, otherwise the industry's growth could be held back.” No doubt some welcome words of encouragement as Britain looks to begin the venture into life away from the European Union. Let us know your thoughts on how Brexit may or may not affect the UK’s gaming industry in the forum, or leave a comment below. 343 Industries’ own take on a horde mode will be playable from Wednesday 29 June as part of Halo 5’s next free update, arriving alongside three new multiplayer maps, a campaign score attack mode and the usual medley of armour and REQs.
The new and improved Warzone Firefight will be available for Gold Members to try for free for a short while as part of Xbox Live’s ‘Free Play Days’ program. Halo 5: Guardians will be available to download in its entirety from 29 June - 5 July, during which time it will also see a 50% discount for anyone purchasing the game digitally. The new maps being added to the multiplayer include two for Warzone modes and one for Arena. Attack on Sanctum takes players back to the Elite home world of Sanghelios for Warzone matches, while Prospect features "rocky roads" and is available for Warzone Assault. Molten will go into rotation for Arena game modes, and seems to have a heavy presence of magma for players to inevitably power boost into. Halo 5’s single player campaign will be getting a score-attack mode as part of the latest update, allowing players to compete with friends for points and medals by racking up numerous and inventive kills in the game’s missions. Ever since its return to Halo, Forge has also seen a number of additions thanks to the new updates, a trend 343 continues with Tidal adding a fan-requested oceanic theme to the map building mode. Amongst the new REQs are a couple of rather slick looking weapon skins based on some of the Halo Championship Pro Teams’ colours. Check out the image below for a look at the Assault Rifle skin inspired by the Counter Logic Gaming team: Are you looking forward the return of Firefight? Will you be taking advantage of Free Play Days to give Halo 5 a try? Let us know in the forums or leave a comment below.
Fable Fortune, the collectible card game that Microsoft allowed former Lionhead employees to continue working on, will be entering closed beta now that the developers have secured funding from an unknown source. If you aren’t a backer and have an interest in taking part, you can sign up here to be in with a chance. A pretty decent one, it seems; Flaming Fowl are seeking the highest possible volume of players to participate and help improve the final product.
It wasn't looking good for Fable Fortune, the project only managing to raise £58,852 out of the £250,000 goal with just a few days of the campaign remaining. Fable and the folks behind the franchise have been subject to their fair share of misfortune, so it’s nice to see things looking up for them. Did you back Fable Fortune? Are you signing up for the beta? Let us know in the forums or comment below. |
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