Gaming - Page 939

Much to the approval of gamers everywhere, Sony's PlayStation 4 console has been the home for traditional Japanese games for quite some time. As the region leaves consoles behind in favor of mobile games, Sony says that Japanese console games are "coming back," and re-affirms its commitment to hosting these experiences on its PlayStation platform.

Freemium mobile games reign supreme in the Land of the Rising Sun, and the region makes up less than 10% of the PS4's near 60-million global salesbase. However, Japanese console games are quite popular in the West, and Sony has done its part to keep these unique experiences alive by hosting titles like Resident Evil 7, NiOh, NieR: Automata, Final Fantasy XV and Persona 5 on its PlayStation 4 ecosystem. Due to strong growth and widespread appeal Sony has no plans to change this trend any time soon--Japanese games have always had a home on PlayStation.

"Japanese publishers are coming back, and that's super important for us," Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Shawn Layden said in a recent interview with TIME. Layden goes on to tease some major Japanese game reveals for E3 2017, igniting hope for the fabled Bloodborne 2. "I think a lot of Japanese developers lost their way chasing the mobile games yen, if you will, but they're coming back to console in a major way. And speaking of, we'll have some big announcements at E3 in that precise vein."

Nintendo today announced some surprising news: Pokken Tournament DX is coming to the Nintendo Switch handheld-console hybrid, not the rumored Pokemon Sun & Moon HD remaster.

The rumors were wrong: The Pokemon Company is bringing Pokken Tournament DX to the system, not the anticipated "Pokemon Stars" remaster of Pokemon Sun & Moon.

Pokken Tournament DX is slated to arrive on Nintendo Switch this September, bringing with it the myriad of form factor playstyles the Switch offers. Pokken Tournament Deluxe offers the 16 playable Pokemon from the original Wii U release and adds in five extra characters like Darkrai, Scizor, Empoleon, Croagunk, and Decidueye from Pokemon Sun & Moon. The fighter also features 3v3 battles, ranked matches online, and friends-only group matches. Also remember that Nintendo Switch's online service will be free up until its launch in 2018.

Sony has initiated its new smartphone gaming push in Japan with preparations for the release of its first mobile game Everybody's Golf.

Sony's PlayStation 4 console is not popular in Japan. Console gaming has significantly dropped in the past decade, and mobile gaming now reigns supreme, with big-hitting free-to-play freemium games conquering the region. Sony's PS4 has won big in the West, but mobile gaming is king in Japan. Sony has a plan, however, to penetrate Japan's lucrative smartphone market by converting its key IPs into mobile titles.

To facilitate this smartphone push, SIE created ForwardWorks, a development studio that's tasked in created key mobile versions of the company's popular IPs. Sony's first free-to-play Japanese smartphone game, Everybody's Golf, is about to roll out on the market with in-app purchases to ensure long-term revenue. Like Nintendo's recent Super Mario Run release, Everybody's Golf can be played with one hand, but unlike Mario on mobile, Sony's new golf game is available on both Android and Apple iPhone mobile phones at launch.

Microsoft is set to reveal the exact name and price point of its high-end 4K-ready Project Scorpio console at E3 2017, but first we get a better glimpse at the system's development kit.

Xbox spokesman Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb recently sat down with Kevin Gammill from the Xbox engineering team to discuss Project Scorpio's devkit, and how it'll arm developers with the most powerful console ever made. We've already seen the devs at Turn10 hit native 4K 60FPS in Ultra PC settings with 88% of Project Scorpio's GPU utilized, and other developers like Monolith Productions are aiming for native 4K resolution in games like Middle-earth Shadow of War.

As we reported weeks ago, Project Scorpio's devkit is beefier than the retail model so that developers can "come in high and tune down," as Gammill says. The devkit features 12GB more RAM than the Project Scorpio's base 12GB GDDR5 RAM, or 24GB of GDDR5 unified RAM total. The devkit also features four more Compute Units, for a total of 44 customized Polaris-derived GPU Compute Units, and the GPU itself is clocked at 6.6 TFLOPS versus the retail model's 6TFLOPs of power.

Electronic Arts today confirmed that FIFA 18 is the publisher's FIFA game coming to the Nintendo Switch, but the handheld's version will be missing key features.

FIFA 18's Nintendo Switch, PS3 and Xbox 360 versions aren't powered by DICE's Frostbite 3 engine, and won't have the Journey: Hunter Returns story mode. This is quite significant: not only is the Switch being technically lumped in with other legacy hardware in terms of features and content, but FIFA 18 not being powered by Frostbite 3 on the platform sends a clear message that EA may not be willing to re-tool the engine to work on the Switch, or Nintendo's new handheld-console hybrid doesn't support it very well.

"Frostbite game engine technology and the Journey: Hunter Returns mode are available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC platform versions only. Not all features available on all platforms," fine print reads at the bottom of FIFA 18's trailer reveal. It's also worth adding that EA has teamed up with Sony to market FIFA 18 after years and years with Microsoft.

Gamevice, the creator of innovative controllers that snap-on to sides of Apple devices for mobile gaming, has just secured a substantial $12.5 million Series A funding round to expand the development of its product line. With proper support and content curation, this device could prove a major interrupting force for Nintendo's new Switch console-handheld.

Due to its accessibility and comparative low-cost, mobile gaming is the most lucrative segment to the games industry, especially in regions like China and Japan. According to Newzoo's predictions, mobile gaming will rake in $46.1 billion or 42% of 2017's total games industry revenues. By 2020, mobile gaming is expected to pull in half of the industry's revenues with $64.9 billion.

Gamevice aims to tap this booming market with its controller peripheral, which snaps onto compatible Apple handsets and tablets to transform them into a fully-fledged on-the-go handheld. This transforming nature is not unlike the Nintendo Switch, which features attachable JoyCon controllers that slide onto a tablet-like screen to facilitate on-the-go play.

Nintendo has officially announced a new Pokemon-themed Nintendo Direct showcase planned for tomorrow at 7AM PST / 10AM EST.

Nintendo may finally be ready to unveil the much-anticipated Pokemon Stars game on Nintendo's new Switch handheld-console hybrid. Rumor has it that Pokemon Stars will be a "director's cut" of the original Pokemon Sun and Moon games released on 3DS, with remastered 1080p graphics while docked and 720p in handheld mode, as well as other content specifically tailor-made for the Switch handheld.

If Nintendo does announce Pokemon Stars tomorrow, it'll assuredly showcase the game during its main E3 2017 reel slated for Tuesday, June 13 at 9AM PST / 12PM EST.

Xbox division head Phil Spencer expresses interest in making a Game Pass service for Windows 10 PCs.

Microsoft recently launched its game-changing Xbox Game Pass subscription service, which offers subscribers unlimited access to a rotating catalog of Xbox One and Xbox 360 games. At its core, Xbox Game Pass takes the best from Sony's failed PlayStation Now venture with its catalog of backward-compatible Xbox 360 games and EA's EA Access model, which offers newer and older titles from the publisher's lineup. Xbox Game Pass games are downloaded, not streamed, and new content rotates in on a monthly basis somewhat like Netflix and Hulu. Gamers always know what's rotating out, and get the opportunity to buy leaving titles with a discount.

In a bid to revolutionize its content offering and reinforce its new focus on digital content, Microsoft may bring a PC version of $10 a month Xbox Game Pass service to Windows 10 PCs. While Game Pass subscribers can already stream Play Anywhere games from their Xbox One console to Windows 10 PCs, not every PC gamer has an Xbox One.

Exclusive: In the hustle and bustle of Computex, I had an interesting conversation with someone who will remain anonymous, about Sony's next-gen PlayStation console.

After I had found out what this person did, I had a few questions to ask about the PS5 and what it will arrive as - especially when we look at Microsoft's upcoming Project Scorpio console. The first question I had was "will it feature a discrete GPU" to which I received a smile and a "I can't say exactly", and then I said would it feature an APU like Project Scorpio, and then there was a "no".

This is all I heard, and this person is deep in the industry and would know a fair amount of what to expect, and while they might not know exactly which GPU will be inside of the PlayStation 5, the sheer possibility that PS5 might feature a proper GPU instead of a watered down and power constrained APU, is exciting.

Monolith delays Middle-earth: Shadow of War by two months to ensure the game lives up to expectations.

Middle-earth: Shadow of War, the sequel to 2014's popular Middle-earth Shadow of Mordor, has been delayed past its original August release date and is launching on October 10, 2017 on PS4, Xbox One, PS4 Pro, Project Scorpio and PC. As Shadow of War is a massive undertaking with tons of new content, overhauls, and native 4K support on consoles, the developers at Monolith will use the extra two months to apply polish and optimizations to deliver the "highest quality experience."

"Middle-earth: Shadow of War expands gameplay in every dimension, including the massive open world, the story, the RPG systems, and personal player stories of the Nemesis System," Monolith said in a recent blog post. "As with Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, Monolith is committed to delivering the highest quality experience. In order to do this, we have made the difficult decision to move our launch date to ensure that Middle-earth: Shadow of War will deliver on that promise."

Nintendo has added tremendous value to its new Switch Online subscription service, but delays the service into 2018.

Nintendo recently announced key features of its new Switch online subscription service, now called Switch Online. The subscription's price tag attractive at just $20 a year, which is 300% cheaper than Sony's and Microsoft's $59.99 PlayStation Plus and Xbox LIVE subscriptions. Secondly, the online service will no longer rotate its selection of free classic NES titles, referred to as the Classic Game Collection, on a month-by-month basis.

Under the revised policy, users can now play a "wide variety of free classic games" as much as they like with an active subscription. Like competing services, the Switch online service will revoke access to the Classic Game Selection if a subscription lapses. Right now Nintendo has only confirmed NES games will be part of the Classic Game Collection as of late, and SNES games are under consideration but not confirmed.

Square Enix announces a partnership with the third-party developer behind Bulletstorm and Gears of War: Judgement.

Note: Above image is concept art from Gears of War Judgement, and does not represent the new game.

Although Japanese publisher Square Enix has made strong efforts to internalize the development of key franchises and titles to its in-house studios, the publisher has re-affirmed its commitment with third-party alliances with a new partnership deal. Square Enix will team up with Polish developer People Can Fly to developer a "new high-end original title for console and PC."

EA has announced Ghost Games' new Need for Speed game for a release this November.

Need for Speed Payback has a very Fast & Furious vibe to it, and its singleplayer campaign is focused on a story of "betrayal and revenge." EA promises that Ghost Games' new racer is an "explosive adventure is filled with intense heist missions, high stakes car battles, epic cop pursuits and jaw dropping set pieces," and describes Need for Speed Payback as an action driving fantasy.

Update: It's possible that what EA meant by "in-game purchases" is actual purchased made by players within the game, not actual microtransactions. We've adjusted the headline and content to reflect this.

Ghost Games' new Need for Speed Payback game may have microtransactions.

EA may monetize its latest Need for Speed game with in-game purchases, presumably to fund new free content updates from developer Ghost Games. While neither the developer nor the publisher specifically discuss monetization plans for Need for Speed Payback, the publisher hinted at microtransactions with a chart that compares the game's $59.99 standard version and the more expensive $79.99 deluxe version.

Ubisoft will give Rainbow Six: Siege's engagement tactics a shot in the arm by adding loot boxes.

Rainbow Six: Siege is getting loot boxes quite soon, but you won't be able to buy them with R6 premium currency--you'll have to earn them by playing the game. The game's loot boxes are called Alpha Packs, and contain randomized cosmetic items and weapon skins to add flair to a player's operator character.

Alpha Packs can be unlocked in two ways: players can earn them randomly at the end of matches, with every successive match boosting the chance of an Alpha Pack drop, or buying them outright with Renown, the game's experience point currency used to unlock in-game content. Alpha Packs cannot be purchased directly with the game's digital premium R6 Points currency, which cost real money. However, players can buy Renown with R6 Points.

Take-Two Interactive, the parent company for major games like Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead Redemption, and the NBA 2K series, says it will support Nintendo's new Switch handheld-console hybrid with games as long as the install base is there. Just don't expect its biggest franchised hits to cross over.

Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick believes in Nintendo's new Switch console, and affirms the company will support the system in its formative years with one of its most lucrative sport titles, NBA 2K18. "We're there, front and center. We have basketball coming for the platform, and we consider ourselves in a very important partnership with Nintendo. We believe in it, and we see it the way they do: we think it's going to be a successful launch," Zelnick said at Cowen and Company's 45th Annual Technology, Media & Telecom Conference.

But Zelnick also highlights the business elements of supporting the Switch, iterating that it's still too early to call the Switch a bona-fide success, despite strong initial sales, massive demand, and snowballing momentum. Whether or not Take-Two continues to bring key games to the Switch depends on the system's install base--and even then the company will be very selective in which games it brings to the console (so don't expect GTA V or Red Dead Redemption 2).

The Pokemon Company, who's responsible for major video game hits such as the Pokemon games on Nintendo 3DS, has reported massive profit earnings for its nineteenth fiscal year.

Major games-maker The Pokemon Company just recorded a huge boost in year-over-year profits, Japanese games analyst Dr. Serkan Toto reports. The company raked in $143.4 million (15.921 billion yen) in profits in the fiscal year ended February 28, up 2460% from last year's $5.6 million.

Dr. Toto notes that big releases such as Pokemon GO and Pokemon Sun and Moon were major contributors to the company's earnings. Nintendo affirms that 14.69 million copies of Pokemon Sun and Moon were sold within a 44 day period alone. As Nintendo owns a 32% stake in The Pokemon Company, the performance of these major titles directly affected Nintendo's recent 521% surge in year-over-year profits.

UPDATE: We've been informed that Take-Two Interactive didn't actually buy Kerbal Space Program's independent development team, Squad, and instead only acquired the IP itself.

"Take-Two acquired Kerbal Space Program, but not the development team. Squad remains an independent developer," Take-Two Interactive's Senior Manager of Communications Brian Roundy told TweakTown in a recent statement.

Original story is as follows.

Nintendo could hike the price of its new Switch system past $299 to offset increasing parts costs, and the company may have troubles keeping up with massive consumer demand.

Nintendo is fighting other tech titans like Apple for critical mobile components to power its new Switch handheld-console hybrid, which could trigger a price hike for the new machine. Nintendo's Switch system uses many parts and components that are currently in high demand by smartphone makers, including its LPDDR4 RAM, NAND flash memory, and LCD panels--all of which are crucial to make mobile devices like Apple's popular iPhones tick.

Demand for traditional 2D NAND flash memory, which is used in mobile devices and Nintendo's Switch system, has steadily risen as more companies push out new notebooks, tablets, smartphones and the new Internet of Things sphere of devices, and as semiconductor fabrication facilities owned by key companies such as Toshiba transition over to new premium high-end 3D NAND storage.

In today's games market, whole titles are built with microtransactions and live services in mind, and games seem to be built around these services instead of being supplementary to triple-A gaming experiences. But GTA V publisher Take-Two Interactive says that it's in-game monetization approach is different and that it leaves money on the table so that it doesn't have to "nickle and dime" gamers.

"I have to emphasize that our approach to monetization is different than our competitors. We focus first and foremost on delighting the consumer and giving the consumer more than they bargained for," Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick said at the Cowen and Company 45th Annual Technology, Media & Telecom Conference in New York.

"It's sort of axiomatic, but the better the product, the more people will be willing to spend on it. Recurrent consumer spending is not a panacea; if we put out something that doesn't work, we can't get people to buy more of it. And they don't even want more of it for free if it really doesn't work."