Riot on bringing back Featured Gameplay Modes: "No mode is off the table"
Riot spend most of their time chiseling away at a five-year-old sculpture. Featured Gameplay Modes are their chance to just hack at a piece of rock and see what emerges. First implemented last year, the system has seen extreme and absurd variations on League of Legends introduced to the game for short stretches.
It’s worked rather well: in fact, Riot might yet succumb to players clamouring for the return of their favourites.
The Crew is a playground, promises new trailer: "If you can see it, you can drive there"
To understand why The Crew is probably going to be a bit brilliant, you need to know where it’s come from. First, Ubisoft hooked the Test Drive team up to a money-drip capable of feeding their sandbox ambition without compromise. Then, they chucked in the Driver team from Newcastle - men and women who understand the art of careening and collision.
The result looks like a standout of the “action-driving” genre, as Ubisoft have coined it - a fantasy US open world where metal meets metal as often as pedals do. Take a look.
System Shock 2's SHODAN voice actress on board for Dota 2 announcer pack
Irrational Games are gone. But SHODAN voice actress Terri Brosius is still about, and so is husband Eric - the sound engineer who distorted her voice into the terrifying monotone of the mother of all malevolent AIs.
Both are down for the idea of a SHODAN announcer pack for Dota 2 - and Night Dive Studios, the outfit who ported System Shock 2 to Steam, have convinced Valve. But they have one reservation.
Minecraft 1.8 dubbed the Bountiful Update, dated for September 2
Mojang have pre-released Minecraft’s 1.8 patch today. It represents more than 300 days of work - the longest amount of time its dev team have spent on a single update. And it’ll be officially published in the launcher on Tuesday, September 2.
This clever album promo is a Proteus style, low-fi adventure
Rustie is some sort of cool guy musician man from Glasgow, who Wikipedia reliably informs me belongs to a sub-genre of music called "lazer hip hop". I don't quite know what lazer hip hop is, but having strolled and bounced around the browser-based virtual world promoting the guy's latest album, I think I quite like it.
You might too! And if not, you'll probably still enjoy poking about the beautiful, pixelated and Proteus-esque cubeworld that houses his music.
Why World of Warcraft subscriptions are still dropping, according to its lead designer
The rush of new sign-ups for Mists of Pandaria was a blip; World of Warcraft player numbers are now at their lowest point since 2006. Even with the release of Warlords of Draenor on the horizon, Blizzard don’t expect subscriptions of the world’s biggest subscription MMO to grow again, ever.
WoW lead designer Tom Chilton told us why.
Molyneux: 22cans "have done everything we possibly can" to ensure Godus ends up "great"
When Godus was released in Early Access last year, it was not good. We took another look in March, after 22cans had implemented an update they claimed would hugely improve the game. And lo, it was still not good.
Now it’s August, and Peter Molyneux believes the studio couldn't have done more to fulfil Godus’ initial promise.
“We must be up to about 12 versions on Steam Early Access by now,” he pointed out. “You look how building a house has changed, and how making settlements has changed, and how the world itself has changed. We have done everything we possibly can in the name of making a great game.”
How I fell in love with QuakeCon
There are two network parties at the Hilton Anatole this weekend. The first is for KPMG, the giant accountancy firm. They are suited and booted, ready to talk. You can spot them a mile off, smart little white badges, free (expensive) coffee and a rare confidence. This is their summer event, and they are here to work.
On the other side of the lobby is the early arrivals for the other party. It’s a Quake team. They only get together at QuakeCon. But they play together every night. They hug, smile, laugh and joke. They trail PCs and monitors and network cables in little carts. They are so happy to be here.
The KPMG lot spot the gamers. You can see them trying to mask their curiosity. Unfailing politeness, but with eyebrows raised.
“Some gaming convention.”
Punch mechs for free with Titanfall's 48 hour Game Time promotion
EA is really making the most out of Origin’s Game Time program. This month we’ve seen Battlefield 4, Kingdoms of Amalur and Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare all up for grabs, and now they are joined by Titanfall.
Last chance to make the finals: Red Bull Battle Grounds Detroit has begun
Red Bull Battle Grounds Detroit kicks off today after last month’s event in Atlanta. Once again, 128 StarCraft II players will send their forces against each other in hopes of making it to the final in Washington DC this September.
Seven players have already secured their slots from the previous Battle Grounds, including last month’s Atlanta winner, Choi “Bomber” Ji Sung. You can watch this weekend’s fights below.
Now you can hack your buddies in Watch Dogs
Only a truly awful person would hack a mate. But Watch Dogs protagonist Aiden Pearce is a terrible person. Gone are the days where you can only pester complete strangers and faceless players. Now you can take your brand of vigilante justice to your friends’ games.
A Windows 9 preview build could come out as early as next month
It’s taken a while for folk to get used to Windows 8, and some of us are still holding onto 7 with grim determination. But reports suggest that Microsoft will be showcasing its next OS, codenamed Threshold, as soon as next month at a press event on September 30th. A preview build will be released to developers at the same time or soon after.
This date could change, however.
ESA finds that more women play games than teenage boys
In an industry where so many games are marketed almost exclusively at teenage boys, it’s been harder for some than others to accept that, actually, quite a lot of women play games. A lot more than you might expect given some unpleasant attitudes.
A study from the Entertainment Software Association reveals that, in the US, more adult women play games than teen males.
Build a civ: Firaxis shows you how to create a faction in Beyond Earth
In Civilization, when picking a faction to play, you’re getting a whole package of bonuses and traits based on the history of that culture. But Civilization: Beyond Earth has left history, and those factions, far behind. So that means you have to build your own.
The latest Beyond Earth livestream, which has been uploaded to YouTube, details exactly how future rulers will construct their infant factions, building them with different bonuses, selecting the special citizens, even choosing the spaceship they land on.
Belle of the brawl: Cannon Brawl launches in September
Artillery RTS Cannon Brawl hasn’t been in beta for long, but it’s already gearing up for a full release next month. Developer Turtle Sandbox announced the September 19th launch date a couple of days ago. While beta went by quickly, the game has been on Steam Early Access for a bit over a year.
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