Gaming - Page 1034

We know that Nintendo will reveal its mysterious next-generation NX console this year, but an analyst firm claims the NX will also launch in 2016 as well.

According to claims made by analyst firm Technavio, the Nintendo NX will release this year so Nintendo can position a tactical stride in 2017. As for an exact reveal date, insiders claim the Nintendo NX could be unveiled as soon as April 27 with a major showcase at E3 2016.

"The market is predicted to grow with the launch of various next-generation consoles. Nintendo is set to launch their next-generation gaming consoles in 2016, which will drive the growth of the market in 2017. Post 2019, Xbox and PS4 are also predicted to launch their next-generation gaming consoles over the next four years," said Soumya Mutsuddi, one of Technavio's lead research analysts for gaming.

It looks like Microsoft's next-generation Xbox console might be called "Xbox NeXt", and it could beat the capabilities of Sony's rumored PlayStation 4K.

The news was found on the LinkedIn profile of Microsoft's Visual Design Lead David Gardner, who lists the "Xbox NeXt" as a major project in his portfolio. The mysterious Xbox NeXt is listed among previous consoles like the Xbox 360, Xbox One and Smartglass, so there's reason to believe it's an actual console. As for concrete details, there aren't any, but we do have reason to believe it's the next-gen Xbox rather than an upgraded Xbox One.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer recently said that Microsoft doesn't want to do an "Xbox One.5", and that console upgrades should be substantial instead of minimal. Based on this, we can assume that the Xbox NeXt is not a console iteration, but a brand new generation of consoles. Spencer has also teased that the next Xbox would be modular and feature upgrade-able hardware like a PC, so we might even see the Xbox NeXt hit native 4K gaming by leveraging the power of an ecosystem of external AMD Polaris GPUs tethered to a traditional console APU system.

With the rumors that Sony will be releasing a more powerful version of its PlayStation 4 console, and our sources saying it'll happen later this year, Xbox boss Phil Spencer has now talked about a hardware upgrade for the Xbox One. But, it won't be happening.

Spencer says that Microsoft doesn't want to offer smaller, incremental upgrades to their console, but instead, they want to give gamers "substantial" upgrades. During Microsoft's Build Conference, Spencer said: "I don't know anything about any of the PS4K rumours that are out there,but I can understand other teams' motivations to do that. For us, our box is doing well. It performs, it's reliable, the servers are doing well. If we're going to go forward with anything, like I said, I want it to be a really substantial change for people - an upgrade".

Maybe we can expect a next-gen Xbox sooner, rather than later, eh?

Mozilla has been pioneering different browser related technologies just as much as other competing companies and organizations have been, too, and one their focuses is on gaming. It might seem a bit strange to associate browser gaming to anything more than just the casual adventure we might partake of on an intermittent basis, but the underlying technologies can actually give us access to more powerful and interactive Internet experiences, and Mozilla is excited about being able to bring that to life as they continue to expand and grow the WebGL extentions in FireFox as well as allowing access to even lower-levels of functionality.

There's a lot that's going on right now, and it's exciting to think that those simple web-games we used as escapes are becoming much more than that, even full blown-VR experiences. In fact, 3D games in a browser have already come a long way from where they once were. Turbulenz is a good example of a custom engine running over WebGL. Quake4 has been recreated with the engine, and it looks nearly as good as on PC. This is really only the beginning, with more advanced and better looking games and even full 3D modeling programs available in-browser. The possibilities are endless.

We got the chance to talk with Martin Best, Mozilla's Director of Platform Product Management, about what the future holds, and he's excited about what the future holds.

Even though it only had a small amount of on-screen time, HoloChess has had a long lasting effect on Star Wars fans and even those that have never heard of it. Those minuscule holographic monsters are iconic, and certainly with the advent of VR and AR coming more to bear that we might see something like this in real life. And your wish has been granted by the original creator of HoloChess.

Phil Tippett was the person that brought the concept of holographic chess to life in the original Star Wars in 1977 and he's returned to consult with a number of game designers to bring his original idea to fruition as a modern game. Even though we don't have holograms that we can share, at the moment, we do have the ability to play multiplayer with our friends while in a VR environment.

You'll be able to play against people locally or via remotely. They're also going to work in an AI so that offline play is possible. HoloGrid: Monster Battle is going to come to the PC soon, and we're hoping that it's VR/AR platform agnostic. This could potentially be the next natural evolution of chess, bringing it into parity with modern games. No more playing Chessmaster 3000. Oh, and just in case you come across a Wookie, be sure to let them win. It won't workout too well for you if you don't.

Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness is indeed coming to the west with a confirmed release date of June 28th, much sooner than we might think for such large localization project (in language translation alone), but we in the west definitely aren't being left out. It's also available for pre-order with both a collectors edition and a day one edition with various benefits if you buy now.

In an almost time-honored tradition, the collectors edition will actually contain quite a few interesting things to make it more valuable. Included inside the collector's edition box is a steelbook with the full game inside of that. They're also including an exclusive set of art cards that show off some of the original art that's been translated into the digital game we've seen. There's also an Art of Star Ocean book, a Pangalactic Federation ID Card as well as the original soundtrack on CD, meaning a lossless format that can potentially sound better than the normal MP3's. In-game you'll even get six different background battle themes from previous games to help motivate you not to die. Also included are some interesting, yet exclusive items to help you in-game, such as The Ring of the Valkyries, Gold Bunny Statue, Bushybrume Cincture, Wristlet of the Stars and Secret Sthalian Tome. The collectors edition is only available through the Square Enix online store for $109.99.

The Day One Edition obviously doesn't contain quite as much swag, but you will get a few things to help make it worth your while. Choose this and you'll get two extra background battle themes from Valkyrie Profile and Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria, that you can listen to as well as a download code for those unique items; The Ring of the Valkyries, Gold Bunny Statue, Bushybrume Cincture, Wristlet of the Stars and Secret Sthalian Tome. This version is available at any retailer for $59.99.

Some people think of some insanely interesting ways to play games, because why not. Rudeism is one such person who is on a quest to control games with non-natural interfaces, and potentially beat them. He's already gotten to level cap in World of Warcraft by using only his dance mat. His list of conditions that he followed make it even more of a surprise.

You can check him out dancing right here.

For his entire journey, he played only on a PvP server and didn't take up a specific profession. He also only ran through each dungeon once, and no more. With those parameters in mind, he set off on his DanceCraft to be the first person to do so. And just yesterday he met his goal, completing one of his strange controller challenges. In other words, he danced his way to 100, a feat that some can only say in relation to a character emote.

The achievement hunter in all of us will be glad to know that a spoiler free achievement list has already been outed for Quantum Break. Thankfully it doesn't contain any information about the more secretive achievements that might spoil the rest of the game, should you know them. And it's nice to have a surprise or two.

The list itself is full of mostly non-challenging achievements that are earned through literally playing through portions of the game that you can't skip. Or, at least, it would appear that way at first glance. Most of them can be done through the normal course of play and don't seem to require any extra effort, except perhaps beating the game on a more difficult setting. It seems that there is a certain amount of making theses things easier to have, whether to more easily encourage people to continue playing or not. We tend to repeat, or continue, a behavior when there's some sort of reward for even mundane or normal tasks. Check out the full list below.

Dark Souls III has just been released in the US and seems to be getting fairly decent reviews, not to mention the long and difficult road that you get to embark on. Someone, however, has proven that it might not be as challenging as some make it out to be, by beating it within two hours. One hour and 45 minutes, to be more exact.

Granted, the individual in question didn't exactly use the tactic that's most often thought of in these types of games, nor did they go and completely collect everything within, but they were able to defeat every boss and go through every part that was mandatory to the completion in under the amount of time it might take someone like me to get a handle on how to properly play it. That's fairly impressive. Now we just need a video showing someone beating, and 100%-ing the game in under two hours. It has to be possible, right?

This individual has had a bit more time with the game than we have, of course, with Dark Souls III having been released in Japan on the 24th of March. That isn't to devalue the speedrun, because it's no less impressive of a feat. In a game where enemies are ruthless, sometimes running doesn't always give you the desired effect of surviving like you'd think.

Remedy Games have been in hot water over the release of Quantum Break, which was once an Xbox One exclusive - and then announced for the PC.

The Xbox One version was promised to be running at 1080p, but has been delivered at 720p - and now we're finding out some more information on game directly from Remedy's Creative Director (and the face of Max Payne), Sam Lake.

During an interview with MCVUK, Lake said: "We were pushing for the PC version. Remedy has a strong heritage on PC and have a lot of fans on the PC side. From a developer's perspective, it's always good news to make our creations available for a potentially wider audience. That to me was what it was. I'm really happy that there's a PC version and everyone at Remedy is really happy".

After months and months of waiting, we finally have our first in-game look at Mass Effect: Andromeda thanks to a leaked graphics presentation.

The leaked gameplay footage is part of BioWare's presentation on Mass Effect: Andromeda's technical details, and shows off a nice range of different things including jetpacks, cinematic scenes, graphical fidelity, lighting effects, and much more.

While the presentation is short and only clocks in at less than a minute, it's still a satisfying glance at actual in-game scenes and content. That jetpack looks incredibly satisfying, and I can't wait to give it a whirl when BioWare's ships the game.

The Doom closed beta is out and so PC players have weighed in how it fares port-wise. Unfortunately, not so good: user reports state the game features a 60 FPS lock, motion blur and mouse acceleration that can't be turned off, and aim assist when using the mouse if you simply plug in a controller. As well, there's no FOV slider, server browser, or pre-game lobby text chat, rebinding keys doesn't work, and multi-GPU optimization doesn't seem to be present at all.

This is just a beta build and some things will change (FOV is said to be in the final version and some say the launch command +set g_fov X works in the meantime), but regardless, it's not encouraging, particularly given how little betas tend to change for launch these days and how little time there is between now and launch (Doom releases May 13).

Despite it being April First, the time-honored day in which we trick our fellow humans into believing ridiculous tales of unimaginable and phenomenal things, Cloud Imperium Games has released a video that, while in that spirit, will likely turn into a real in-game career; Food Service Deliver.

That video is only in jest, but can you imagine the kind of attention it received and how the many people in the 'verse are now going to want that as a legitimate job or even as a secondary occupation in the game? It could be fun, a mini-game in its own right. Deliver the space pizza as fast as possible, within that 30-minute window when on a planet, and within 12 hours when delivering with that 20-parsec radius. It could even evolve into a racing event that could potentially be more entertaining than the already stimulating Murray Cup.

Or it could even evolve into an in-game series that follows the life of Fry as he tries to make sense of the 31st Century that he suddenly finds himself in, working from the ground up to create his own delivery company in the midst of a chaotic and changed world.

Weapon modding is a mechanism that helps to differentiate different MMO's and adds a level of interactivity and fun to the game. Escape from Tarkov has an incredibly deep weapon customization mechanism, one that lets you take thousands, and possibly even millions of different combinations and put it all together for a truly unique amalgamations of destructive power.

The new video that Battlestate games has released shows off just a tiny fraction of the possibilities that'll be available when it's finally available for us to dive into. From the looks of it, you'll be able to change nearly anything, from the muzzle, the barrel, stock, sites, magazines and the paint job. Check it out above, and see how it's done. If other games and their player-made economies are anything to go by, then the vast array of things that you can swap out to change your weapons might make for a very fun and lucrative way to make money in-game.

Escape from Tarkov is a hardcore story-driven MMO that combines elements of FPS' and RPG's for a unique expereince. The events take place in the Russian city of Tarkov, which has been sealed of by roadblocks and sunk into the chaos of local warfare between private military companies. Escape from Tarkov's Hazardous Environment Combat Simulator employs a number of custom system modules to create incredibly immersive gameplay and make you feel more connected to the events that are happening in the game.

If it weren't for the exclusive carbuncle unlock, the new Final Fantasy 15 demo would be completely pointless.

After Square Enix revealed the new Final Fantasy 15 Platinum Demo, I was super excited to try it out. After all, the demo represents a chunk of the finalized game, mirroring the combat scheme and optimized graphics we'll see in the finished product this September. My excited quickly evaporated when I started playing the demo, which is essentially a lackluster attempt at catering to casual gamers, totally betraying the very essence of the enthralling action-packed adventure we'd seen in the trailers.

Instead of the rip-roaring mayhem and carnage, we're given a cutesy adventure that depicts Noctis' dreams. The idea sounds neat enough, but the execution was so lackadaisical and underwhelming that I earnestly wanted to quit mid-game. Luckily the demo isn't long--but isn't that a bad thing? It's a bad sign that you want the entire experience to be over as soon as possible, right?

Ubisoft will be unleashing the first free DLC for The Division on April 12, which will hit all three platforms at once: PS4, Xbox One and PC. It'll include two announced free Incursions, endgame activities that were designed with squad play in mind, and new features such as loot trading.

The first Incursion is called "Falcon Lost", which will see Division members visiting a new location: an underground water treatment facility that acts as a stronghold for a faction called The Last Man Battalion. Ubisoft explains it as: "Falcon Lost has two difficulties: Hard mode, which is recommended for players whose gear score is equivalent to level 31; and challenge mode, which is even tougher. Also, there aren't any checkpoints in Falcon Lost; if your team goes down, you'll have to restart from the beginning. Additionally, you can replay Falcon Lost and other upcoming Incursions as many times as you want and still be rewarded with new loot".

There'll also be four new gear sets: Sentry's Call, Striker's Battle Gear, Path of the Nomad and Technician's Authority - which are designed for specific play styles, according to Ubisoft. Once you've completed a set, the new gear will unlock a new talent for your character. Your agent's abilities will also sail past the current level cap of 30, which is another nice change.

There had already been ruminations of a BioShock compilation coming out courtesy of game rating organizations from other parts of the world, but now the US's own ESRB has rated the BioShock: The Collection game in anticipation of its release. Even though 2K hasn't said anything about it quite yet.

The rating simply describes the upcoming compendium as "...a collection of three first-person shooters in which players assume the role of characters uncovering the mysteries behind the dystopian societies of Rapture and Columbia." Due to the "large bloods-splatter effects" and other depictions of violence therein it receives Mature rating form the ESRB to reflect the more mature way that the three games seem to depict this fantastical 1912 setting.

We heard of the impending release, or announcement, of the collection in September when it was outed on a South African site, which published a listing for it. Then some more details popped up on a Taiwanese game rating site a little later on, though we've had no mention or comment from 2K about any new collection, remastered or not, of the BioShock games. This might be April 1st, but the ESRB rarely plays jokes at all, even if they mistakingly release info before they should.

The next generation wave-riding extravaganza has just been announced by Vector Unit. Riptide GP: Renegade has a completely retuned graphics engine underneath, retuned mechanics, and promises to let us pull off some very crazy stunts in mid-air on just about every gaming platform imaginable.

The newest Riptide will let you show off to your friends with death-defying stunts over massive waterfalls in beautifully rendered scenes, outrun cops, and speed off at nearly reckless speeds across increasingly surging waves. If you're daring enough, you'll get the chance to evade police boats and drones while blasting through some rather vast and interactive race environments. Just like the previous Riptide games, there'll be no shortage of secret shortcuts, and animated obstacles to race around.

You'll also get a chance to battle your way through a variety of different race types and even boss fights to reach the top of the underground hydro jet racing circuit, which is totally a thing. Racing earns you XP and cash so you can upgrade and customize your hydro jet, unlock new stunts, and increase your rider's performance. There'll be online multiplayer plus local split screen multiplayer on consoles. And the best part is that it's supposed to run at 1080P and 60FPS on the consoles (much higher on the PC of course). It'll be available on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Android, iOS and through the Amazon app store.

EVE: Online has a spectacularly intricate political structure that's not unlike a sprawling sci-fi epic. Instead of a regal Padishah Emperor or Galactic Empire, the dreaded Imperium sits upon the throne of the EVE: Online universe, reigning over all other coalitions and clans. Thanks to the donations from an online casino, thousands of players have formed the Moneybadget Coalition to dethrone the space titan once and for all.

So why are EVE: Online players fed up with the Imperium? The Imperium apparently extorts players with the Viceroy System that has players paying cash for protection. Space is dangerous, after all, and it'd be a shame to see your hard-earned dollars wasted when your ship is utterly demolished. The Imperium also delights in earning the ire of its foes and stirring up other players: "We thrive on having our enemies be completely unhinged and hating us," Alex "The Mittani" Gianturco, one of the Imperium's leaders, said to Polygon. "We figured out a scalable way to conquer the galaxy without taking any territory."

The rebellion--in this case the Moneybadger Coalition--is now striking out against the nefarious Imperium. Online gambling site I Want ISK is funding the rebel's fleets, which measure in the thousands of dollars. Armed with its new fleet, Moneybadger swarmed Imperium space in an attack now known as the battle of M-0EE8, which actually broke the previous record for most PVP kills in a single battle.

The scope of the entire media project that is Final Fantasy XV is massive, with a full-length CGI movie, anime series and of course, the game itself. All of which cost a lot of money to make, increasing the amount that Square Enix has to sell in order for it to be considered a financial success.

The director for Final Fantasy XV, Hajime Tabata, explained to Kotaku that for it to be considered a commercial success, they'd have to sell 10 million units, or copies of the game, worldwide over the life of the game. 10 million is quite a bit, but needed if they want to recoup any losses. Kotaku notes that that number is more than any single Final Fantasy game has ever sold. Final Fantasy VII has sold 9.72 million copies since it was released, coming the closest. The Division has only sold 2.72 million copies since it was released, so while it's technically possible to sell that many, the number is rather large and the task somewhat daunting.

Final Fantasy XV is going to be released on the PS4 and Xbox One on September 30th 2016, with a PC version only being considered after the console launch and they can fully concentrate on porting it properly.