Right on cue, Activision and Treyarch have unveiled the next Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 map pack, Vengeance, for release on July 2nd. As with all of the previously released Black Ops 2 map packs, Vengeance will include four new multiplayer maps and a new zombie map. What makes Vengeance a little different, however, is the inclusion of a new weapon for the Zombies mode: the Ray Gun Mark II....
When Bungie revealed that the upcoming Destiny expansion, House of Wolves, wouldn’t include a new raid, many players were understandably disappointed. Even though the Destiny DLC comes with other new missions and experiences, it’s safe to say the majority of players were looking forward to the new raid the most. This means those players who thrive on the raids will need to continue finding new ways to enhance their experiences with Destiny’s current two raids, Vault of Glass and Crota’s End....
Dragon Age: Inquisition’s romances have been a white hot topic in the past few months with Lead Writer of the game, David Gaider, conjuring many an opinion with his defence of the series’ longstanding portrayal of non-heterosexual love interests and relationships. More than a fair few fans of EA and BioWare’s fantasy series are curious at just which love interests will be available in the game given that character romances have been such a huge part of Dragon Age gameplay in the past, with romance related decisions affecting storylines and important moral choices through the series’ previous two titles....
Fans of the FIFA franchise have been eagerly awaiting to hear news of this year’s iteration, and will no doubt rejoice that the yearly wait has finally come to a close. EA Sports revealed several new additions to the game, as well as a series of in-game screenshots that are sure to entice those hungry for the usual amendment of physics updates and improved AI. Suffice to say, FIFA 14 is looking to once again refine a winning formula that has garnered them record-breaking sales last year where in four weeks it became the biggest sports launch game of all-time....
Final Fantasy fans have never lacked for quality merchandising. In fact, Square Enix’ marketing department has a long and storied history of securing high-end licensees. From action figures to full-color art books, playing cards to collector’s sets, the series has enjoyed some of the most consistent - if not necessarily the most abundant - merchandising efforts around. The first port of call for any franchise enthusiast is of course the game itself, with special edition sets often offering an early, exclusive batch of collectibles....
With college football season just a few days away and the recent launch of Madden NFL 15 (don’t miss our review), sports fever is likely at its peak for gamers. Although it may be the time of year when football gets the most attention, 2K Sports intends to steal some of that spotlight with the upcoming latest installment in its basketball series, NBA 2K15. With games like Madden and NHL 15 putting a big emphasis on bringing character models and other graphic aesthetics into the new-gen era with this year’s annual releases, 2K made sure not to leave NBA 2K15 out of the party....
Very few games, including major triple-A titles, can hold the attention of gamers for longer than a few months. Game developers and publishers spend millions of dollars promoting their games before launch, as gamer attention can be fleating. It doesn’t seem to take much to steal away a gamer’s attention, so when a game is able to hold that attention for a long time, it usually means there’s something very special about it....
Nearly 150,000 fans packed in the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California this weekend for the 2015 Star Wars Celebration, a massive event that’s packed with news and tributes to the most successful science-fiction franchise of all time. Even after all this time, Star Wars is a media juggernaut, and 2015 may be its biggest year yet. Not only does the seventh film in the series, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, hit theaters on December 18th, but a brand new Star Wars video game is on the way as well....
When Blizzard first explained that StarCraft 2 would be broken into three distinct sections, the division seemed like a good way of giving players something to tide them over until the full adventure was released, rather than waiting for a full game for three times as long. That’s obviously not what happened, since it’s been almost two years since the first game released. Regardless, fans finally have something to look forward to, as Blizzard has announced that StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm will be playable at Gamescom 2012 this August....
There’s no doubt that video games are an immersive experience, through their incorporation of sound, visuals, and now movement, but that experience can only take a gamer so far. But what if there was a game that was so immersive that not only did it track your movements, it actually shot you? That was the goal for a recent episode of The Gadget Show, which sought to take Battlefield 3, and a whole slew of clever pieces of technology, and create the ultimate first person shooter....
Although we aren’t getting to continue Master Chief’s journey until Halo 5 releases in 2015, there is still plenty for Halo fans to look forward to later this year. Halo: The Master Chief Collection is not only 343 Industries ambitious follow-up to their work on Halo: Anniversary, but it’s also one incredible deal. For those who don’t know, The Collection includes all four mainline Halo games (i.e. those starring Master Chief) on a single disc, preserved to play exactly as they did when each game first released....
Not every game developer believes that story and character development are the most important parts of a role-playing experience, especially a massively-multiplayer one. But with Star Wars: The Old Republic the distinction couldn’t have been any clearer. In case some players have already taken their characters to the conclusion of their respective stories, BioWare is promising that even more acts and adventures are being planned at this very moment. Anyone who has been paying attention to The Old Republic knows just how many changes are currently being applied to the existing game....
Digital rights management copy protection, otherwise known as DRM, is often considered the bane of gamers everywhere. While its intention to prevent digital pirates from sharing unauthorized (and usually free) copies of games is a noble cause, it rarely lives up to its intentions. Instead, DRM generally creates a headache for gamers who actually purchased the games, forcing them to prove their game is a valid copy by requiring an always-on internet connection or through other irritating methods, and yet pirates are almost always able to crack the game anyway....
Most free-to-play online games are social apps (i.e. Facebook), MMOs (i.e. Neverwinter, Star Trek Online) or competitive multiplayer titles (MechWarrior Online, Tribes: Ascend), but not many take the form of a full-on co-op game. That’s just one of the many things that makes Warframe special. Warframe is a third-person action game by developer Digital Extremes, that mixes shooter and melee combat, with fantastical powers, RPG elements and even looting. The game hit in open beta last week and after loving the closed beta, we tried out the latest version with Update 7 to share some gameplay footage....
Although Ubisoft games can be hit-and-miss in some respects, the company has still brought characters who remain memorable. Unlike most other developers, Ubisoft manages to have its main protagonists stand out, even if their particular games might not be the highest-rated. The success of popular franchises like Assassin’s Creed, Prince of Persia, and Far Cry’s have just as much to do with the effectiveness of the characters as the gameplay. For this reason, it’s worth ranking which characters are the absolute best....
Star Wars Battlefront 2’s newest update, The Battle of Scarif, is its last. The end of support means many Star Wars fans won’t get to play as their favorite heroes from the series. It’s true that heroes from the original, prequel, and sequel trilogy are playable, but many fan-favorites were left out. Dice included main characters such as Luke Skywalker and Rey while others were surprising albeit welcome choices. Characters like the bounty hunter Bossk and the adorable droid BB-8 are some examples....
The Demon’s Souls Remake is a launch title for the Playstation 5 and a complete overhaul of the 2009 classic action game by renowned Japanese studio FromSoftware. The remake may be done by the studio that is likely now known as the king of remakes Bluepoint Games, this game is still a FromSoft game in essence. FromSoft games are known for their subtlety, depth, and painstaking attention to detail. The original game had so many hidden details only the pros and lore diggers were able to dig up and discover....
Chris Redfield has been an integral part of the Resident Evil franchise sine its early days. He has also gone under numerous redesigns, a source of humor for fans. With the character set to return for Resident Evil: Village, it’s a great time to scour the internet for the funniest memes surrounding the legendary hero. The footage shown so far of his part in the upcoming title is incredibly mysterious, and paints him as an antagonist....
Horror is somewhat of a niche genre across all mediums. Though fans of spooks and scares may disagree, horror titles are all too often simply inaccessible by the wider public because of their terrifying themes and imagery. Put a lid on the fright, however, and players will find tons of awesome experiences in horror titles. Sometimes, these experiences transcend the genre to create a must-play game (even if doing so means getting a bit scared)....
Bethesda’s The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim routinely appears on lists as one of the greatest RPGs of all time. The game’s open-world setting takes place in the province known as Skyrim. It’s a rugged, mountainous region that is also referred to as the Throat of the World. Skyrim has a rich backstory that ties into the events of the game. There have been some great RPGs over the years, but not all of them compare to The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim....
