League of Legends: A New Dawn cinematic is a thing of beauty
There are things we’d change about League of Legends but it’s not their cinematics.
Riot don’t often have call to release a cinematic trailer, they don’t exactly release sequels, expansions, or new campaigns for their one map MOBA. Instead they release cinematics whenever they damn please.
It’s good thing, too, because when they do release them they’re bloody gorgeous.
Nvidia’s Ultimate Quest contest promises to give winners “something big”
Nvidia are ushering something in, we can’t tell what it is because there’s a big black tarpaulin over it. It could be a whole stack of Titan cards, it could be a white rhino in a tutu. Whatever the case we can’t get at it until we’ve solved their Ultimate Quest, a tweet-based text adventure. It's one of them ARGs.
Project CARS' screenshots show a storm’s coming
There are a couple of news pieces that we can’t escape repeating. Star Citizen’s made x amount of money, for instance. Or, World of Warcraft’s lost x subscribers. The one I’m happiest to write about it ‘Project CARS screenshots continue to be awesome’. Every time I write about this game I’m reminded by how damn good it looks.
I’ve never played it, and for years it’s seemed like it’s always on the cusp of release, but these are apparently all in game screens taken by players.
Those lucky bastards.
Dragon Age 3: Inquisition delayed into November
The Dragon Age demo at E3 already had us thinking October was too far away now we have to wait a whole other month for Inquisition. “This last bit of time is about polishing the experience we want you to see,” writes executive producer Mark Darrah. “Ensuring that our open spaces are as engaging as possible. Strengthening the emotional impact of the Hero's choices. And ensuring the experience you get is the best it can be in the platform you choose to play on.”
Gods will be Watching trailer shows thrilling point’n’clicking
Hostage situations, deadly viruses, and torture scenes; Gods will be Watching’s action isn’t your usual point’n’click fare.
The game is coming out tomorrow and you should see the launch trailer to get a grip on why this is so exciting.
Wildstar Sabotage update adds 30 player PvP battleground
Daggerstone Pass is a 15 v 15 battleground that will be added to Carbine’s MMO, Wildstar, in the Sabotage update. The battleground is unique in that it lets you use mounts to get across the map quickly.
Down but not out: West Games attempts to get funding for Areal after Kickstarter suspension
Post-apocalyptic survival shooter, Areal, has been plagued with problems since its Kickstarter began. This culminated in Areal's suspension on Kickstarter yesterday afternoon.
Developer West Games released a statement explaining the situation last night, and it looks like the suspension is not temporary. The crowd-funding drive begins anew, this time on the Areal website.
Eugh, bloody scamers
TrainFever’s simulations have me hot under the collar
Few things stoke my coals more than a good civil management sim, SimCity, Prison Architect, and Banished have all sucked up my team recently but nothing’s scratched my municipal transport itch. That’s where TrainFever comes in.
The game kicks off in the 1840s and runs up to the modern day, letting you build networks for horse drawn carriages, steam trains, and electric overhead rails of today.
God Squad: Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris due out in December
Options are lovely. Both the brand of hot chocolate and choices. Sometimes you want to fall down cliffs and then climb back up them again while wolves chase you and men with guns shoot said guns right at your face. Other times you want to befriend ancient deities and solve puzzles with them.
So it’s rather nice that, with Lara Croft, we can enjoy both. Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris was a pleasant surprise at E3 this year, and now we’ve got a release date for it. Crystal Dynamics’ second foray into the world of co-operative puzzle solving will launch on December 9th.
The nine best Kerbal Space Program mods
Kerbal Space Program is rapidly becoming a more expansive and complex rocket simulator. The recent First Contract update added a more fully featured career mode, with currency and science and missions and reputation and explosions. But as well as Squad's own stellar work, there's also an enthusiastic community of modders constantly pumping out their own brand of features and enhancements.
New clouds, better physics, catalogues of new rocket parts. You name it, and within reason, it probably exists somewhere in the Kerbal SpacePort add-on repository. But without a guiding hand it's difficult to know where to begin. So I offer you mine. My guiding hand, that is. Take it, hold tight, and let's fly, like a cosmic Peter Pan, through the magical world of Kerbal Space Program mods.
The Humble Square Enix Bundle throws Hitman, Thief and even Anachronox at you
With the Humble 2K Bundle only just behind us, Square Enix is now getting in on the cheap games and charity action with the Humble Square Enix Bundle. Some cracking games, like Thief and the woefully under appreciated Anachronox - which is, incidentally, one of the titles in our 15 best RPGs on PC - are up for grabs.
The charities being supported by this bundle are GameAid and Make a Wish. Though I’m not sure anyone would want Daikatana, even if it is for charity.
Get back in The Room when it comes to PC on July 28th
Tactile puzzle game, The Room, is leaving Android and iOS devices this month and making its way onto PC. If, for some reason, you know nothing about one of the most successful mobile games out there, you should still be excited, because it’s great.
The Room’s central conceit is that you’re stuck in the titular room, which contains a box you must open. No, you can’t just leave and hire a locksmith. Instead, you’ve got to go through a series of lovingly crafted, tactile puzzles, leading you to fondle many a gear and fiddle with lots of locks. And come July 28th, you’ll be able to do all of that on your PC.
Tim Schafer on Double Fine publishing and not being told what to do
Double Fine has, in the last five years, has gone through quite the transformation. The studio was treading water after Brutal Legend in 2009, but now it has complete control over its IPs, has successfully experimented with emerging business models - in many ways setting a trend - and is now assisting other developers with the Double Fine Presents label.
Speaking with Games Industry International, Tim Schafer chalked the big shift up to not liking being told what to do. And now he wants to help new indie developers chart their own course.
Cliff Bleszinski's Project BlueStreak snatches up AAA shooter designers and staff
Cliff Bleszinski’s new studio, Boss Key Productions, have moved into their base and started hiring. So Project BlueStreak has formally begun. While the ex-Gear of War developer has left AAA console development behind, the new studio has snatched up a fair few employees from that world.
Designers from Epic Games, Bleszinski’s old stomping grounds; Ubisoft Montreal; and Irrational Games number among them. Between them, there’s a lot of experience in designing successful shooters, so BlueStreak is off to a strong start.
Meet IL-2: Battle of Stalingrad —the high flying return of the PC's best combat flight-sim
IL-2 Sturmovik ruled the World War Two flight-sim roost like few games ever have. Not only did it expose sim audiences to the often-overlooked Eastern Front air war, but it proved to be a gift that kept on giving: its lengthy series of expansions covered everything from early jet-fighter combat to the Pacific air war.
But from such a height came a similarly precipitous fall with the with the disastrous (and awkwardly-named) IL-2 Sturmovik: Cliffs of Dover, an ill-fated take on the Battle of Britain that led to the departure of series creator Oleg Maddox and a terrible, buggy release that left many fans feeling burned.
Now, with IL-2: Battle of Stalingrad and a new development team, 1C are trying to get the king of WW2 aviation back in the air.
@TheVoxelman on twitter
Essay Pro