Gaming - Page 1100

Although Windows 10 is touted as a boon for gaming as a whole, PC gamers worried that Microsoft would eventually break away from Steam integration and force users to the Windows Store. So far that hasn't happened and Microsoft continues to leverage marketplaces like Steam and GOG for the new OS, but what does the future hold?

"We are not intending to compete with Steam," Xbox's senior director of PC gaming Kevin Unangst told PC Gamer. "If anything, we want Steam to be even more successful-they've done great things for PC gamers in terms of having a single store. Over time do we want more developers to come over to our store and offer it in addition to Steam? Absolutely. But our goal right now isn't to do anything else other than support Steam and help it run great on Windows 10."

Unangst goes on to highlight the reasons why Games for Windows LIVE failed and what he learned from the approach. "Games for Windows was a prior approach where it was more, at that time, like 'how do we take things?'" the Xbox exec iterated. "We knew we wanted to help make great multiplayer, we knew we wanted to bring things over... but it wasn't the right approach. It was the approach of 'let's just take those things and transplant them'."

EA's latest interstellar AAA juggernaut Star Wars: Battlefront dominated Gamescom 2015's annual award ceremony with no less than five wins, including the prestigious "Best of Gamescom" category. The live-action reveal of Battlefront's new Fighter Squadron mode, which lets players relive classic space dogfights from the films, likely helped persuade the panel judges.

"Visually, it's extremely exhilarating. The skies are crawling with enemy ships, and you see sparks and explosions from ships about to be taken down," DICE's Associate Designer Peter Forsman said about the new mode. "On top of that, you've got this great music, sound design, and gameplay, making the whole thing feel like an authentic Star Wars dogfight."

Out of the total 18 nomination categories, Star Wars: Battlefront won five of them, which is more than any other game on the ballot. following Gamescom categories: Best of Gamescom 2015, Best PC Game, Best Online Multiplayer Game, Best PlayStation 4 Game and the Most Wanter Consumer Award. Runners up include Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain and Microsoft's Forza Motorsport 6 with two wins apiece.

Treyarch has come out swinging during Gamescom this year, announcing that Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 on the PC will include some great support, with studio boss Mark Lamia teasing earlier in the year: "If you've really invested in your rig, we want it to pay off". During Gamescom, Treyarch provided a breakdown of what to expect on the PC version of the game:

It's great to see "strong GPU scaling" as well as "SLI and Crossfire optimizations" included in Black Ops 3, but one of my favorite additions that Treyarch are putting into the game is the FOV slider. An interesting node is the framerate cap slider, which is a different thing to see these days. Treyarch added: "As we add more optimizations and advanced graphics features, we're re-evaluating our recommended spec, so stay tuned. Rest assured that our goal is to provide the best performance across the widest range of machines possible".

Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 will reach the Xbox One, PS4 and PC on November 3, while the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions will come out at a later date.

Xbox Game Preview is Microsoft's own spin-off of Steam's early access, a program that lets preview members beta test unreleased Xbox One games for a fee. Although the Xbox early access initiative was originally for indie games, Microsoft has since revealed it will use the program's community-driven approach to help develop and test its own first-party exclusives.

"First party will be using Game Preview for our games," Microsoft's head of publishing Shannon Loftis told GameInformer. "It's not 100 percent. It's very much developer choice, but it is definitely an option."

"We are curating that program very much with an eye for making sure that the games are high-quality games. A lot of the issues we've seen with the folks that tried this sort of service earlier are things that we've been able to learn from," Loftis says, nodding toward Steam's cluttered Early Access platform. "There is a little bit of extrapolation that the gamer has to make in order to guess that the end product is good. So far, nothing has backfired as far as gamer reception, but we are being very cautious."

Joining ESWC in the promotion of female-only gaming events, Ninjas in Pyjamas TV has announced a $1,000 online tournament featuring six teams.

Kicking off in a double elimination format, each initial match will be played as a best of three map series, with the finals ramping it up to best of five. With the winner set to take home $650 and second place taking the remaining $350, all six teams have been invited directly by the tournament organizers.

Seeing a wide variety of nations participating, Team Acer (French) and Games4U (multiple nations) are automatically seeded into the second round as they are the top two ranked teams in this competition.

With almost a full decade in development, fans are quite eager to finally get their hands on Final Fantasy 15...but up until now Square Enix has been quiet on any kind of release info. According to game director Hajime Tabata, the wait is almost over, and the devs have some extra goodies to share during the wait.

"At the very least, I can tell you that it isn't going to be released this year," Tabata said in an interview with GameSpot. "We can certainly say to people: it's going to be before 2017. I think we'll be able to tell you when we're making the announcement around PAX Prime, at the end of this month."

Sadly this isn't the fully fledged release date confirmation that gamers had hoped for. Square Enix seemed to be teasing something big for Gamescom 2015 and everyone thought at long last a release date would be announced. Amid this disappointment Tabata affirms that Square Enix has indeed set a release date for Final Fantasy 15, and that a strategic plan is in place.

In an interesting announcement, Bethesda has said that Fallout 4 will not have a level cap at all and that the game doesn't end when the story is over. Players can "keep playing and leveling" once the main story is wrapped up.

Previous Fallout games have all featured level caps, so this is a big departure from previous entries in the franchise. The studio has said that it is also reworking the way enemy difficulty scales with the player's level, which is an obvious move with the lack of a level cap. During E3, Fallout 4's Game Director, Todd Howard, told Game Informer: "We call it rubberbanding; we'll have an area [where enemies scale from] level 5 to 10, and then this area will be level 30 and above".

Gamescom 2015 - As promised, 2K Games has revealed the cinematic trailer to Mafia 3, with the game being set in a beautiful, reimagined New Orleans.

Mafia 3 is filled with era-inspired cars, fashion, music, characters and is a "haven for organized crime". The Italian mob controls illegal gambling, drugs, prostitution and more through corrupt police and politicians. Mafia 3 sees protagonist Lincoln Clay returning home after a stint in Vietnam, with family being the central point of the game.

But, his family was betrayed and killed by the Italian mob, making Lincoln's story all about revenge. As you progress throughout Mafia 3, Lincoln will align himself with other criminals in order to build his own empire and a new family, where it will transform New Orleans in the process.

Shiro Games has announced its Evoland 2: A Slight Case of Spacetime Continuum Disorder game will be released on August 25.

Evoland 2 isn't your traditional video game, as it is designed to help take players "on a truly epic journey through time and across a variety of classic and contemporary video game styles." The standalone gaming experience features a character who learns to "understand events in different timelines," while improving the future.

The initial game launch is for PCs, with Mac and Linux versions scheduled for a later release. It will cost $19.99.

Xbox chief Phil Spencer thinks Microsoft needs to push third-party game developers harder when it comes to creating different style of games for first-party Xbox One titles.

During Gamescom, Microsoft will show off exclusive game titles including the following: Crackdown, Scalebound and Quantum Break - with all three titles providing third-person action play. Unfortunately, Microsoft wants to see different types of game genres:

"More diversity in terms of genre and mechanics, I think it's a great thing for this industry to push," Spencer recently told GameSpot. "So yes, you do find a lot of third-party action games from us, and I do think we should be pushing harder on genre and control."

Xbox chief Phil Spencer is excited about Microsoft's decision to support Xbox One backward compatibility, saying it provides a "valuable" way to keep gamers engaged.

Since Microsoft must emulate each Xbox 360 game to make it playable for the Xbox One, receiving publisher support is critical. It's a great sales and marketing campaign, allowing players the opportunity to catch up on previously-released games if they haven't already played them - and allow those of you with an Xbox 360 game library, the chance to play select titles one more time.

"We're having great conversations with all the publishers about backward compatibility," Spencer recently told GameSpot. "It's really been a good time for something like backwards compatibility to come around, because so many of the publishers have built more service-based games where they're able to find a business opportunity in the longevity of games."

Electronic Arts has shown off the Battlefield 4 Night Operations DLC from DICE playtest sessions, so gamers can enjoy some unique gameplay.

The studio also showed off the night version of Zavod 311, dubbed Zavod: Graveyard Shift, so you can expect to use the night vision and thermal imaging scopes - or a different gadget so you're able to identify enemy locations.

Zavod: Graveyard Shift supports Conquest, Rush, Team Deathmatch, Obliteration, Domination and Gun Master. EA promises Gun Master will play "very differently" at night, and even included a secondary layout.

DICE teased that there was a new game mode coming for Battlefield Hardline, and here it is: Robbery. The new expansion is the second for Battlefield Hardline, with Criminal Activity launching not too long ago.

Battlefield Hardline: Robbery has four new maps, a new 5v5 game mode known as 'Squad Heist', four new weapons, two new gadgets, two new factional vehicles and new vehicle upgrades, new camos and vehicle paints, and 'The Legendary Super Feature'. As for the new Squad Heist game mode, the developer refers to it as "refreshing and familiar". DICE explains that Squad Heist has three distinct stages:

Battlefield Hardline: Robbery will be made available for Early Access for Battlefield Hardline Premium members starting next month.

Gamescom 2015 - If there's a game that should have the attention of Xbox One users, it should be Forza Motorsport 6, which is pumping along at 1080p 60FPS thanks to the optimization Turn 10 Studios has made to the game.

The studio was showing off Forza 6 at Gamescom 2015 which is currently underway in Cologne, Germany, with DualShockers interviewing Creative Director Dan Greenawalt, where he said: "Honestly, it is optimization, optimization, optimization. Forza Motorsport 5, as well as Forza Horizon 2 as well as Forza Motorsports 6 are underpinned by our bespoke graphics engine ForzaTech. And that graphics engine is being worked on by two world-class teams: the Turn 10 team and the PlayGround team".

Greenwalt added: "But also, we're first party, so we work with The Coalition, we work with 343, we're able to learn how to really optimize for the box. So yeah, I think it surprised a lot of people that Forza Motorsport 6 was able to come out with 1080p, 60 frames per second, 24 cars on track, with night, with wet, but it drives great. At the end of the day, that's what all this technology is for. It's for the experience. It's to get people passionate and excited about cars in games.And if it does that, it's all worth it".

One of the big drawcards to living within Microsoft's ecosystem is the ability to stream games from your Xbox One to your PC, but it will be the PC to Xbox One streaming that could be more exciting.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has talked about it in more detail now that the Xbox app for Windows 10 has launched, allowing gamers to stream content from their Xbox One consoles directly to their Windows 10 PCs, and tablets over their Wi-Fi networks. Microsoft is now reportedly working on PC to Xbox One streaming, but it's not something that the company is talking about. Spencer said the company would love to give fans the ability to do so, including mouse and keyboard support on the Xbox One.

During a chat with The Verge, Spencer said: "We understand if you're going to go PC to Xbox, we need to get keyboard and mouse working completely so you could play those games. In terms of where we want to go with our platform, those are absolutely in scope of things that we want to do". But Spencer did note that streaming from Xbox One to the PC is much easier, as the company knows just what hardware you have, instead of the other way around where there are countless combinations of hardware.

Konami has moved up the PC release of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain to September 1, aligning both PC and console platforms for a simultaneous day one launch. There's only one catch--PC owners will have to wait until 2016 until they can access the game's Metal Gear Online multiplayer mode.

"We initially did not think it would be possible to get such an epic game out onto PC in time for launch alongside its console counterparts, but all involved have worked diligently to meet the demands of our consumers, Konami President Tomotada Tashiro said in an official statement. "Now PC users will be able to explore the vibrant and beautifully-realised locations and set-pieces that elevate The Phantom Pain beyond all other action titles. We feel confident that Steam users will be satisfied with the contents we will provide for the Steam version."

The Japanese publisher has also opened up MGSV pre-orders on Steam, and everyone who pre-buys on Steam will get a free copy of the game's short prequel adventure Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes. Apart from the multitude of advantages the PC platform brings, The Phantom Pain will support 4K UHD resolution as seen in Hideo Kojima's Tweet embedded below.

Modders have been quite busy crafting a slew of additions and expansions for GTA V's PC port, leading to some pretty amazing things like playing as Iron Man, wreaking havoc with the game's physics with the car cannon mod, or even adding incredibly realistic visuals with the Project Realism script. Now one modder has made Los Santos into a sandbox for a chaotic RPG adventure.

With GTA: RPG, a modder by the handle of Logic Spawn has injected more RPG mechanics into Rockstar's heist caper by adding "typical RPG features such as leveling, questing, non-linear dialogue, skills, looting and more". Vanilla GTA V already had a light RPG system, but this particular script kicks things up a notch for some high-quality entertainment.

Each of the three main characters have designated classes--Time Master for Michael, Speedster for Tranklin and Berserker for Trevor--and players can create their very own character with a range of different customization options straight out of GTA: Online.

The public image of Japanese games publisher Konami continues to worsen as more news breaks on the company's controversial treatment of its own employees. Nikkei reports on the disdainful conditions that Konami employees are subject to on a regular basis, revealing things like invasive video monitoring and even reassigning key development talent to menial labor tasks.

"Konami's internal culture sounds poisonous. For one, email with outsiders is done with a randomized email address changed regularly," freelance games localizer Thomas James said in a series of translations of the Nikkei article. "It does not stop with emails. Lunchtime leave is regulated with time cards. Those who exceed allotted time are outed within company."

"Employees deemed useless have been known to do assembly line work, security guard detail, cleanup at fitness clubs," James continues. "These are not nobodies being told to do this work either. Producers and other prominent creators have had this hoisted on them."

SUPERHOT is one of the most unique first-person shooters that I've seen, where time in the game only goes forward when you, the player, moves. If you stop, time slows down to a near stand still, similar to 'bullet time' from The Matrix movies, or the Max Payne franchise.

The developers behind the game have released the first gameplay video from the recently released beta of SUPERHOT, which we've embedded above. It shows off the gun play, as well as the melee combat where you can throw whatever is in your hand, including your gun, at your enemies. The slow-motion gunplay looks incredibly fun, but the one instance where SUPERHOT is going to take off is in VR.

We played SUPERHOT on the Oculus Rift back at PAX AU 2014, where it was quite the experience. The developers promise that SUPERHOT is on track for a release later this year where you can purchase it directly from the SUPERHOT website for $14, or $25 if you want the digital artbook in PDF, and the game's official soundtrack in FLAC quality.

At the China Joy 2015 expo, Xbox division boss Phil Spencer lays out his long-term strategy that calls for Microsoft to develop original first-party exclusives rather than having to rely on third-party games.

"My strategy is more around our own first party franchises, and investing in franchises that we own, and probably fewer exclusive deals for third party content. I want to have strong third party relations, but paying for many third party exclusives isn't our long term strategy."

In less than a week we'll see Spencer made good on his words when key Xbox One exclusives like Halo 5, Quantum Break, Crackdown, Gears of War 4 and Scalebound steal the show at this year's Gamescom conference. Microsoft has announced the Xbox Gamescom lineup and will stream the event across Xbox LIVE and the official Xbox website on August 5-6 at 9:00am PDT (12:00pm EST).