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The second-screen experience was a major selling point at this year’s E3, with developers of current-gen and next-gen games touting their title’s ability to extend past the console. However, when it comes to second-screen experiences, not all of them are created equal. Some take players deeper into the game, while others are purely cosmetic. Battlefield 4’s second-screen experience, for example, is a relatively new creation for endeavor for DICE and is therefore not as deep as something like what Ubisoft is offering with Watch_Dogs....

A cops and criminals themed first person shooter, Battlefield Hardline didn’t have the best of starts. The game is meant to be a change from the usual war gameplay that players are used to – and could be a way for EA to set up another spin-off Battlefield series – as DICE works to get the core Battlefield series back on track following the many issues and controversies of Battlefield 4....

Though Epic Mickey is expanding to more platforms for its second go-around (more on that in a bit) developer Junction Point wants to ensure that the Wii version of the game can still compete. As such, the developer has been toying around with a few prototype Wii controllers for Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two that would be recreations of in-game items. The first, and more obvious Epic Mickey 2 controller prototype is for an updated version of the paintbrush controller that shipped alongside the first iteration of the series....

January proved to be a fruitful month for gamers that are fond of co-operative titles, as Turtle Rock Studios (the studio that originally created the concept and worked on Valve’s Left 4 Dead franchise) finally pulled the curtain off of its long in-development game Evolve. After the studio’s project was picked up by 2K Games following the collapse of THQ, many weren’t sure what to expect from the game. An exposé in Game Informer last month provided gamers with a look into the Evolve universe, but a trailer for the title was sorely lacking....

Though we have heard many details about FIFA 12’s two marquee improvements, the new impact engine and Pro Player Intelligence, not many gamers know just how deep these features’ implementation goes. To correct that, EA Sports has release two behind-the-scenes looks at FIFA 12 that are solely devoted to explaining both the impact engine and Pro Player Intelligence, and boy are they impressive. According to the team at EA Canada, FIFA 12’s Pro Player Intelligence actually got its start with the Personality+ feature that was introduced during last year’s iteration....

France is trying to poach British game studios concerned that Brexit will totally sink their business. France is one of the biggest game capitals in the world. Names like Ubisoft, Quantic Dream, Arkane Studios, Gameloft, Bigben Interactive, and Cyanide all call France their home. Even smaller indie studios, such as Dead Cells’ Motion Twin, are based in France. The French government has long cultivated gaming as one of their primary industries, spending billions on subsidies and tax breaks to encourage game studios to settle in France and grow their business....

Minecraft continues to see success across the many platforms it already inhabits, with its many different versions each receiving updates to keep the fun, creative times going. After Microsoft purchased Mojang last month for a hefty $2.5 billion, many wondered what the company was going to do with the property, to which Xbox head Phil Spencer reassured that things would stay the way they are, Xbox platform or not. On its Xbox Wire news site, Microsoft announces a new way for people to get their hands on Minecraft: Xbox One Edition (as it’s already a digital download), revealing that the in-store, retail version of the game comes to shelves next month, on November 18, 2014....

It’s no secret that Mortal Kombat X is off to a great start on the sales charts. The console release for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One is the fastest selling game in the series. But MK fans who own an iPad or iPhone are likely aware that the mobile release of the title is no slouch either. NetherRealm Studios’ free-to-play card collecting version of Mortal Kombat X released on iOS six days prior to the main game on consoles, and it’s been at or near the top of the App store sales charts almost every day since....

Since Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor was first announced, the developers at Monolith made it clear that the game wouldn’t be the typical brand of J.R.R. Tolkien fantasy. With a darker, more violent tone and story, players wouldn’t be out to save the world and its people - they’d be out for good old-fashioned revenge. The game’s hero Talion isn’t alone in that quest, and the newest trailer offers more details on the powers made possible by The Wraith with whom he now shares his physical form....

Gamers were hoping for some serious surprise announcements from this year’s VGX 2013, and the first certainly didn’t disappoint. The game in question is Tales From The Borderlands, giving award-winning studio Telltale Games the keys to the world of Borderlands. Promising a chance to put Telltale’s talent for developing compelling narratives and story-based adventures to work on one of the most unique and successful game franchises in recent years, the first trailer for Tales From The Borderlands may just have fans of both franchises wondering why it didn’t happen sooner....

As part of the DC FanDome virtual convention, the cast of The Flash on CW came together for a panel to discuss the show as well as give fans an idea of what to expect in the upcoming season 7. Cast members Grant Gustin (Barry Allen/The Flash), Candice Patton (Iris West), Danielle Panabaker (Caitlin Snow/Frost), Carlos Valdes (Cisco), Danielle Nicolet (Cecile), Kayla Compton (Allegra), and Brandon McKnight (recent addition Chester) joined executive producer Eric Wallace for the discussion with Entertainment Weekly’s Chancellor Agard....

After a highly successful first season, fans of Netflix’s The Witcher have been eagerly awaiting more news on the second, which is currently filming. Today, the social media account for The Witcher has announced some of the new cast members joining season two, including familiar faces from The Hobbit and Bridgerton. Recently seen as Lady Danbury on Netflix’s Bridgerton, Adjoa Andoh joins the cast of The Witcher as Nenneke, a mother figure to many lost travelers at the gates of Melitele Temple....

After years of development, CD Projekt Red finally released The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. It’s now the most critically acclaimed game in the series, so hats off to the studio for putting out its best effort yet. And that effort was massive, by the way. To no one’s surprise, developing the critically-acclaimed The Witcher 3 was a huge undertaking, making CD Projekt Red’s accomplishments even more impressive. According to Side (a voice work company that also worked on Alien: Isolation and Dragon Age: Inquisition), the script for The Witcher 3 was 450,000 words long, making it roughly the size of four average novels....

The Super Smash Bros. phenomenon is still spreading Smash fever several games later. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has a more extensive fighter roster, the stages are more detailed, and the series has never played better than on the Nintendo Switch. While many of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s fighters have experience buffing and nerfing, there is still a disparity between characters. There is no correlation between the size and fighting power of a character; however, the larger characters often pack a punch....

Every RPG needs a good antagonist that players want to defeat. Whether it be due to how powerful or how evil they are, the main boss is important to a game’s story. Square Enix has created some of the best RPG franchises of all time by making their villains so impactful. Games like Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Kingdom Hearts, to name a few, not only give players awesome bosses to fight, but also write antagonists so well that fans care about them just as much as the playable characters....

Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled goes above and beyond the call of duty when it comes to remakes. It doesn’t simply throw a new coat of paint on the old kart racer. New details are added to each track, and a robust online component allows for eight players to simultaneously race against each other. Additionally, developer Beenox continuously updates the title with new tracks and characters. The following ten details are some of the more subtle changes from the original game that only fans are likely to notice....

Ken Levine is a name that most people are slowly forgetting in the gaming community, which is quite a shame. After all, this brilliant director used to be one of the biggest names in gaming less than a decade back, but his inactivity has somewhat quietened the buzz around him over time. That being said, there’s no denying the fact that Levine is responsible for some of the biggest games in the gaming industry, with his most notable work being on the BioShock franchise....

Paper Mario: The Origami King is the latest installment in the Paper Mario series, providing an entirely new world to explore. There are plenty of new mechanics introduced, including a puzzle-based battle system where players need to line up enemies correctly in order to deal the most damage. There’s also plenty to do outside of the battles, as players can traverse vast lands and find hidden treasures to collect. Most importantly, players can find and rescue Toads from the torture of being turned into origami themselves....

There’s nothing like the satisfaction of achieving fictional world domination from your living room. Risk, Hasbro’s simple but simultaneously complex strategy board game, has helped players take over the world since 1957. Much like the object of Risk, the board game itself has made its way across the world in the past 63 years. Risk has also had a ton of updates and spin-offs since its initial Parker Brothers release. The game has paid homage to more than 20 movie franchises, games, and even television shows (looking at you, Rick & Morty)....

It’s hard to relate to the antagonist of a story, especially in video games. People often play as a hero or someone who becomes one, facing a great evil threat that could bring about the end of any given world. As heroes, protagonists embody typically good qualities that seek to show how someone can be chivalrous, honorable, or brave. All heroes do this, no matter the setting or context. However, there are a few instances in which people can play as a remarkably evil protagonist....