Latest News - Page 2427

Blizzard is teaming up with Facebook to offer integrated livestreaming in its games. Once you connect your Facebook account, you'll be able to stream to your timeline, and friends can subscribe and receive notifications about when you're streaming.

"Blizzard games are best when played with friends, so it's important to us to provide our players with features and services that make it easy and fun to share their experiences with each other," said Gio Hunt, executive vice president of corporate operations at Blizzard Entertainment. "We're working closely with Facebook on this integration for Overwatch, as well as our other games, and we look forward to sharing further details on our plans as development progresses."

The developer and Facebook are working on the functionality now and although no timeline is specified, Facebook Login will be implemented later this month, so possibly it will launch then or near after.

E3 2016 is fast approaching--just next week!--and we've spotted the perfect timetable schedule to ensure you don't miss a single announcement regardless of where you are across the globe.

It's that time of year again--the time of leaks, bullshots, and insane new consoles, and we're here to make sure you get the full E3 2016 schedule. Admittedly I was going to compile a list of all the press conferences, but then I came across this amazing timetable from Twitter's @Cheesemeister3k that puts most of the handmade schedules to shame.

As you can see, the schedule is complete with major timezone conversions of all the major press conference events, from Bethesda to Sony and the PC Gaming Show. We expect to see Sony unveil its new PlayStation 4K console at the show, and Microsoft will show off its new Xbox hardware including the Xbox One Mini and the new Xbox streaming set-top box. Nintendo is expected to have a new 90 minute gameplay demo of the new Legend of Zelda game, with new details and an official name for the game.

EA hints that it'll tease a few games in its distant pipeline at E3 2016, likely the new third-person Star Wars games from Visceral Games and EA Motive.

Electronic Arts has made it clear that future games like Titanfall 2, Battlefield 1 and FIFA 17 will be showcased at its EA Play event, but the publisher also says we'll see games for 2017 and "a few surprises beyond that." Given how EA plans to "release a Star Wars game every year for the next four years," this could only mean one thing: EA will reveal a new Star Wars game at E3.

"Hosted by CEO, Andrew Wilson, in LA and Chief Competition Officer, Peter Moore, in London, the press conference will showcase some of EA's most anticipated games launching later this year and next, with a few surprises from games beyond that," reads the press release. Note the whole "beyond that" section.

AMD released new drivers for the just launched Mirror's Edge: Catalyst today, and NVIDIA is hot on their heels.

Apart from preparing you for DICE's parkour game, the GeForce 368.39 set contains optimizations for the GTX 1070 releasing on Friday and Edge of Nowhere performance improvements for you Oculus Rift owners.

Mirror's Edge has seen performance complaints from some early players across the web, so hopefully between the two sets of drivers, the game is now in good shape.

HTC isn't making Oculus' uphill battle with Rift pre-order fulfillment any easier. The co-creators of the Vive VR headset just dropped us a note saying that the HTC Vive can now be purchased in 24 countries, and all orders ship out to customers within 72 hours of purchase. Compare this to an estimated ship date of August if you were to purchase a Rift today.

"Since beginning pre-orders at the end of February and shipping in early April, we've seen incredible interest in Vive," said Dan O'Brien, VP of VR at HTC. "Working with our retail partners has only enhanced that momentum because more people are able to try the only truly immersive virtual reality offering on the market today."

It looks like any manufacturing delays HTC may have been experiencing are a thing of the past. In addition to the shipping speed upgrade, the Vive will be available to demo in 100 locations throughout North America beginning this June. Currently the Vive is available to try inside 29 Microsoft Store locations; this will expand out to 51. GameStop's Vive presence will increase from 10 to 40. If you're curious to try a Vive (which we wholeheartedly recommend), you can see participating demo locations here.

Ubisoft will add to its already impressive collection of VR games at E3 2016 by debuting two more virtual reality titles, likely during its press conference on Monday, June 13.

The news comes courtesy of UploadVR's Joe Durbin, who received an email from Ubisoft representatives promising that two "previously undisclosed" VR games will be not only announced, but playable on the show floor.

For those not familiar with the virtual reality side of Ubisoft, they've received some early recognition for being pioneers in the space, creating two new IPs with Eagle Flight and Werewolves Within, both fantastic, and both coming to the Oculus Rift.

Stop me if you've heard this one: You're on an exotic island enjoying the not-so-friendly company of deadly dinosaurs and soon discover that scavenging for weapons and relying on your wits are the crucial keys to your survival. That sounds like a recipe for a thrilling -- and potentially scary as hell -- VR experience. That's what CloudGate Studios wants to deliver with Island 359, coming to SteamVR Early Access this summer for the HTC Vive.

Cloudgate is headed up by former Square Enix CEO Mike Fischer, and founded by two game developers who understand how to evoke terror inside VR: Steve Bowler and Jeremy Chapman, creators of The Brookhaven Experiment.

"In our past VR experience, we were very lucky to be able to innovate in a way that really resonated with players," said Bowler. "As CloudGate, we're looking to take it a step further and do things on VR that no one has ever tried or done before."

One of the more celebrated features of MOBA/FPS hybrid Overwatch is 'Play of the Game', which shows everyone the best moment at the end of a given match as determined by an algorithm. At the moment, it's shown from the perspective of whoever made the play, but according to Blizzard, that's going to change to something more cinematic, which in turn will allow for a wider variety of plays to be shown (as is, you mostly just see multi-kills).

"We feel like for your standard play of the game, like a Reaper getting a death blossom kill on four people, they look great and they're really fun to watch," says Overwatch game director Jeff Kaplan. "But some of the other ones like the Torbjörn who's dead and his turret's killing people, or a Widowmaker getting a really impressive shot from across the map: those aren't showing great right now. They're actually really cool moments but we feel like there's a way to show them more cinematically."

"We feel like if we can refine how we're showing play of the games, we'll actually open the door for us to do more things like our saviour play of the games, where you're about to be killed and somebody intervenes. It's actually really cool, but it doesn't show very well because the camera might not be tracking from the best angle."

XCOM 2 will be available on PS4 and Xbox One on September 6, 2016, 2K Games has announced.

The arrival of XCOM 2 on consoles has been rumored for a while now, and the devs at Firaxis has just made it official. The console version of XCOM 2 will be available to pre-order in two different versions: the $59.99 Standard Edition, which includes just the base game, and the $79.99 Digital Deluxe Edition, which includes the Reinforcement Pack and three DLC packs.

"XCOM 2 will be available for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on September 6, 2016. You can pre-purchase XCOM 2, in either standard or Digital Deluxe form, right now through the 2K Store. The game will also be available for pre-purchase through each respective console marketplace soon. Pre-ordering XCOM 2 will unlock the Resistance Warrior Pack, which includes additional soldier customization options like bonus outfits, headgear and custom facial war paint, as well as a "Survivor of the Old War," a new XCOM recruit who will appear in the Avenger's barracks," reads the official update.

It looks like there aren't any surprises left for Bethesda's E3 2016 showcase: the publisher is expected to reveal sequels to three major franchises at the event.

According to Eurogamer, Bethesda's E3 presser may suffer from sequelitis, with new chapters of the following IPs rumored for the event: a sequel to Machine Games' excellent Wolfenstein: The New Order, a continuation to Tango Gameworks' macabre The Evil Within, and the long-awaited Prey 2.

The studio may also reveal a Skyrim HD remaster for PS4 and Xbox One will full console mod support, bringing the huge galaxy of Skyrim mods to consoles for the very first time. Besides the games listed here, Bethesda will also showcase Dishonored 2 and possibly new Fallout 4 and DOOM DLC.

Watch Dogs 2's release date has been confirmed for November 15 across PS4, Xbox One and PC, thanks to a recent ad banner slip-up.

Ubisoft is set to unveil Watch Dogs 2 on the morrow, but an IGN advertisement mishap has accidentally spilled the beans early. The premature leak was first spotted by Eurogamer, and IGN has since pulled the ad, but not before it was immortalized on the web in screenshot form.

By clearly showing the Golden Gate Bridge and Marcus, our new hipster hacker protagonist, the banner ad confirmed that Watch Dogs 2 will take place in San Francisco. Ubisoft promises that Watch Dogs 2 will "surprise players with a new tone and innovative hacking possibilities," and we also know that Aiden Pearce won't star in the sequel and is being replaced by a brand new hipster hacker protagonist.

Persona 5's release has been confirmed, and there's a bit of bad news: it's not coming in 2016.

Atlus today confirmed what every Persona fan already knew inside their hearts: Persona 5 won't release in 2016 and has been pushed back to early 2017. The hotly anticipated RPG Persona 5 will release on February 14, 2017 on PS3 and PS4 to be specific, and Atlus has revealed a premium collector's edition to boot.

A limited Day One Persona 5 SteelBook Launch Edition will be available via pre-order, and check below to see what's included with the PS4-exclusive "Take Your Heart" Premium Edition as well as box art for Persona 5.

Bethesda may have a huge announcement waiting for us at E3--Skyrim HD might be on the horizon.

Rumor has it that Bethesda plans to remaster The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim for PS4 and Xbox One with full console mod support, allowing console users to experience the enchanting magic that is Skyrim's vast galaxy of mods. This is a substantial development that was corroborated by renowned industry insider Shinobi602, and Bethesda is believed to announce the remaster at E3 2016.

Given Shinobi's excellent track record--he was part of the recent Dead Rising 4 leak--I have full faith in the announcement. A remastered Skyrim with full console mod support fits perfectly in with Bethesda's new cross-platform modding initiative hosted by the Bethesda.net platform.

During each of the past five Computex I have attended, GIGABYTE has always had a private suite in Taipei 101 to showcase their prime products. Admittance to this suite is by invitation only, and there was just so much to show I have decided to dedicate an entire article to coverage.

The X99-Designare EX is GIGABYTE's top-of-the-line mainstream model. Moving away from the traditional "Ultra Durable" naming scheme and trying some new words, the X99-Designare EX is one of the first GIGABYTE motherboards you will be able to purchase under this new model name. The motherboard fully supports the 6950X Broadwell-E 10 core CPU, and I used it in our review of the new CPU. The motherboard uses a PEX8747 to expand CPU PCI-E 3.0 lanes to support dual U.2 ports, M.2, and a slew of PCI-E lanes. The board also has dual Intel Gbit LAN and build in Wireless AC/BT. GIGABYTE also make sure to include those RGB LEDs for enthusiasts who might want some extra bling.

The Z170X-Designare is one of GIGABYTE's new motherboard, not seen before Computex. It carries all the latest features such as U.2, USB 3.1, dual Intel Gbit LAN, and can support three Intel 750s in RAID 0 (it's written on the PCB). The motherboard also has a secret power converter for 100W USB Power Delivery 2.0 support on the USB Type-C connector. It also carries multiple RGB LEDs.

With a new Battlefield 1 trailer on the way, and some details on the weapons that EA DICE's new first-person will include, we're now seeing some leaked concept art which looks positively beautiful. Check out some of the shots below, with many more if you want to check them out.

Imgur member 'xjumper' uploaded them, and they're beyond amazing. What do you guys think about the leaked concept art for Battlefield 1?

After a long wait which saw Universal Pictures cancel the cancellation, it looks like the wheels of the much anticipated 'Pacific Rim' sequel are finally churning, as the studio announces who'll lead the production.

Legendary Pictures have announced that 'Force Awakens' star John Boyega has been cast in the lead, playing the son of Idris Elba's character from the first film. Speaking to Deadline, Producer Guillermo del Toro said "I am very proud and happy to welcome John into a fantastic sandbox. The Pacific Rim universe will be reinforced with him as a leading man as it continues to be a multicultural, multi-layered world. 'The World saving the world' was our goal and I couldn't think of a better man for the job."

'Pacific Rim 2' is scheduled to begin filming later this year, for a release some time in 2018.

AMD has just unleashed a new set of Radeon Software Crimson Edition drivers, with the new 16.6.1 set of drivers including some optimizations for both Mirror's Edge Catalyst and Paragon. Not only that, but we have a new CrossFire driver for Dark Souls 3, too. You can download the new RSCE 16.6.1 drivers here.

As for the release notes, here's what to expect from Radeon Software Crimson Edition 16.6.1:

Support for:

With E3 2016 right around the corner, we're finally hearing about Watch Dogs 2, with Ubisoft announcing that the world premiere trailer to Watch Dogs 2 will take place on June 8 at 9AM PDT.

Watch Dogs 2 is reportedly set in San Francisco, with Ubisoft teasing some "radical changes" compared to the first game. There'll also be DirectX 12 support which will be interesting to see, but let's hope we don't get any bullshots, with graphical downgrades post-E3 2016 tease. Ubisoft's Lional Raynaud told CVG last year: "There are flaws, obviously. We absolutely want to tackle these flaws and surprise players, and the way to tackle some of those flaws is going to be quite radical. There are parts of the game that will need to change".

Bethesda officially responds to the big Fallout 4 console mod piracy fiasco that threatens to jeopardize the modding community.

Earlier today we reported on the growing epidemic of Fallout 4 mod thievery and how it's ultimately dismantling the tight-knit modding community across consoles and PC. The good news is that Bethsoft is definitely aware of the situation, and the devs have officially responded to the problem by announcing a new way to report mod theft.

"A number of you have reported instances of users uploading Mod content that allegedly does not belong to the Mod creator. We take these reports seriously and want to protect copyright holders and authors of the Mod content shared on Bethesda.net," reads the recent forum post. Modders will have to file a DMCA claim to a specific email address, enabling a streamlined and direct method to thwart the pandemic. Although this isn't a catch-all solution, is a huge step in the right direction.

Jay Wilson, one of the main Blizzard devs responsible for Diablo 3's awful Real Money Auction House, has left Blizzard (and gaming) for good.

After spending 10 years with Blizzard, key developer Jay Wilson is leaving the games industry. Wilson was one of the main forces behind Diablo 3's Real Money Auction House, a system that almost transformed the Diablo franchise into a money-printing machine. Wilson's work with the RMAH largely alienated him from the core Diablo community, and eventually stepped down as Diablo 3's game director just a year after the game's release so that Blizzard could attempt to undo the damage.

As a Diablo fan that played D3 when it first came out, I can say that the RMAH was the worst kind of microtransaction-style peddling I've ever seen in a game. It not only crushed Diablo's soul into smithereens, but forced Blizzard into an intense damage control mode that ultimately lead to a complete re-working of the game itself. The RMAH ultimately tanked the game's reputation within the gaming sphere, and it wasn't really until Reaper of Souls and the Ultimate Evil Edition that Diablo 3 was able to recover.