games news

• Nintendo details Zelda: Twilight Princess HD gameplay improvements

  04-02-2016 22:35 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Nintendo has a number of major changes in store for its upcoming HD revamp of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess , resulting in a streamlined experience that eliminates many of the flaws present in the game’s original 2006 release. Among other tweaks, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD for the Wii U makes in-game transformations less time-consuming, and reduces the number of quest items in specific cases in order to improve the overall pacing of gameplay. Related:  Rumor: T
  
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• This Xbox 360 controller is also a vape, because moms just can't get a break

  04-02-2016 21:20 via news.yahoo.com
  
  The only video game she ever let me play was Guitar Hero, which was so fun and instantly gratifying that I abandoned the guitar lessons I had been administering to myself via some library books published in the 1980s.
  
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• Path of Exile Introduces the Elementalist as New Ascendancy Class

  04-02-2016 21:00
  
  Path of Exile didn't really have a mage class when it first came out — the closest you could really get was The Witch, a sort of River Tam lookalike who tossed out spells with an unmistakable touch of malice. That'll change a bit, though, with the free-to-play action RPG's upcoming Ascendancy expansion. Developer Grinding Gear Games' lead designer Chris Wilson tells me they're introducing the new Elementalist class as a specialization for the Witch, which channels the class' energies into
  
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• Have a look at what it's like to develop Unreal VR games -- in VR

  04-02-2016 20:55
  
  The folks at Epic published an intriguing video to YouTube today in which company chief Tim Sweeney and technical director Mike Fricker demonstrate the Unreal Engine editor being used in VR via an HTC Vive dev kit. ...
  
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• Game Boy Classic Final Fantasy Adventure Out Today On Mobile As Adventures Of Mana

  04-02-2016 20:24
  Way back in the Game Boy era, Square Enix already knew it had something special in the Final Fantasy brand. The publisher opted to localize a number of games for a western audience, but adapted names to connect them to its popular RPG franchise.
  In addition to the Final Fantasy Legend games (actually part of the SaGa series), there was the Zelda-like Final Fantasy Adventure. Today, it’s been re-released under a new name, Adventures of Mana (by way of a 2003 Game Boy Advance re-release cal
  
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• Kardashian game maker cut 50 jobs during 'disappointing' holiday season

  04-02-2016 20:17
  
  Celebrity-focused mobile game maker Glu Mobile axed 50 positions in December in a restructuring effort following a 'disappointing' holiday season that saw the company's revenues and profits drop....
  
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• New developments in audio and music tech for VR

  04-02-2016 19:44
  "We'll look at a brand new audio tech conference that should be particularly interesting to VR folks. We'll also get an overview of a couple of top audio technologies for virtual reality video games."...
  
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• Get into game development for love, not money

  04-02-2016 19:16
  "Today I gave my introductory lecture about the game industry to a new group of students at The Los Angeles Film School. There was only one thing they all wanted to know: how much money they were going to make."...
  
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• Earth’s Mightiest Heroes Go Back To School In Marvel Avengers Academy Today

  04-02-2016 19:10
  Marvel has been loading up mobile devices with games featuring its pantheon of heroes. There’s a fighting game (Contest of Champions), an action-RPG (Future Fight), and now a high school sim.
  Avengers Academy recasts the heroes and villains of the Marvel universe as high school students. You’ll be able to boost the abilities of your characters by training them through combat training, but also by having them join sports teams and attend classes.
  Developer TinyCo rounded up a roster
  
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• Come to VRDC at GDC to see how VR platformer Lucky's Tale was made

  04-02-2016 19:03
  Playful Corp's Dan Hurd and Evan Reidland will be delivering a cutting-edge technical postmortem of 3rd-person VR platformer Lucky's Tale as part of the Virtual Reality Developers Conference at GDC....
  
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• Mother 3 Rumored for Western Release

  04-02-2016 19:00
  
  Nintendo's Mother 3—the successor to EarthBound—could finally see an official English release. Eurogamer reports that anonymous sources suggest Mother 3 will come to Wii U's Virtual Console in the West in celebration of the game's 10th anniversary.
  Back in November, Mother 3 was announced for the Wii U Virtual Console in Japan, but there's been no official word on an English release.
  When asked for comment, a Nintendo representative simply told IGN, "We have nothing to announce
  
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• What do you mean, 'Losing is fun'?

  04-02-2016 18:47
  "A game featuring difficult situations, permanent consequences, and randomized content is seen as something special, something great even."...
  
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• Mirror's Edge Catalyst Closed Beta Sign Ups Are Open

  04-02-2016 18:07
  
  If you’re interested in trying Mirror’s Edge Catalyst before it launches in May, you can sign up for the closed beta now.
  The game’s official site offers the choice of PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4, and you simply need to sign into your EA account to register.
  It should be noted that registration does not guarantee access to the closed beta whenever it launches. EA also points out any gameplay or character progress in the beta will not carry over into the final version of Mir
  
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• Shut Up & Sit Down returns to GDC with a board game smorgasbord

  04-02-2016 18:03
  
  Curated by the clever minds behind Shut Up & Sit Down, this exhibit will once again offer GDC attendees a calm oasis where you can relax and play some of the best tabletop games of 2015....
  
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• Mirror’s Edge Catalyst Closed Beta Set To Run Soon, Sign-Ups Open Now

  04-02-2016 18:02
  EA and DICE have announced that Mirror’s Edge Catalyst will be getting a closed beta on the road to release. Specific timing hasn’t been announced, but sign-ups are open now.
  In addition, a new story trailer reveals more of Faith’s origin story. The first of a new series of videos gives us a look at her motivations and the open city of Glass environment.
  (Please visit the site to view this media)
  You can sign up for the beta, which will run on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, on EA
  
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• Road to the IGF: Night School Studio's Oxenfree

  04-02-2016 18:01
  
  Oxenfree's watercolor art style has earned it a nomination for the IGF Award in Excellence in Visual Art. Lead designer Sean Krankel explains how its visual design impacted gameplay.   ...
  
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• 10 Up-Close Photos of Zelda's Wolf Link Amiibo

  04-02-2016 17:03
  
  The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD is coming on March 4, and with it, Nintendo's Wolf Link amiibo.
  Riding atop Wolf Link is Midna—the "mysterious and mischievous imp" who helps Link save the Twilight Realm and Hyrule.
  The Wolf Link amiibo unlocks an optional challenge dungeon in which players must fight enemies as Link's legendary twilit form. Using the amiibo, players can record their best times in the Cave of Shadows and share it with friends.
  All amiibo in the Zelda family work w
  
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• Nintendo Outlines Twilight Princess HD Tweaks For New And Returning Players

  04-02-2016 16:24
  Chances are, if you're a fan of Nintendo's games you've probably already played through The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Whether you're returning to the game or checking it out for the first time, the upcoming HD version of the game on Wii U has several tweaks and additions designed to pull you into the world.
  Returning players can start their game in hero mode, which adds a few punishing twists. Most notably, Link takes twice as much damage – which hurts even more considering that
  
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• Square Enix sales and profits on the up

  04-02-2016 16:22
  Both sales and profits are up at Square Enix, which posted its financial results for the nine month period ending December 31, 2015, earlier today. ...
  
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• Time To Change The Game: How To Make WWE Video Games As Great As They Used To Be

  04-02-2016 16:15 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Online leagues, roster updates, alternate histories and other ideas that could make WWE games awesome again.
  
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• Doom Release Date Announced by Bethesda

  04-02-2016 16:00
  
  Bethesda revealed Doom's release date is May 13. It will be available on Xbox One, PS4, and PC simultaneously.
  Bethesda also announced the release of a "premium collector's edition," as well as bonuses for players who pre-order the game.
  The collector’s edition includes a 12-inch tall statue of the Revenant demon "modeled from actual in-game 3D files." The statue is mounted on an LED-lit base "with internal, slow-spinning turbine from the UAC facility on Mars." The collector's edition also
  
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• 3 Prototype Maps Coming to Rocket League

  04-02-2016 15:42
  
  Three new prototype maps will be joining a playlist called Rocket Labs in Rocket League this month.
  According to Gamespot, the new maps will have "wildly different layouts" to the existing ones, and will have a "virtual reality-inspired aesthetic."
  Utopia Retro is a circular map which harks back to the days of Rocket League's predecessor, Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars. Underpass has different elevations, opening up the door for more aerial maneuvers. Double Goal looks how it so
  
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• Taylor Swift and Glu Mobile partner up for new game

  04-02-2016 15:25
  
  Bouyed by the success of Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, mobile developer Glu has agreed to make Taylor Swift the star of a new mobile title....
  
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• 505 Games Announces Sandbox 3D RPG Portal Knights

  04-02-2016 15:00
  
  The publisher behind Terraria has announced its newest IP, Portal Knights, comes to Steam Early Access beginning February 25.
  Developed by Frankfurt, Germany's Keen Games, the 3D sandbox RPG features randomly generated worlds, crafting, 3 player classes, and a "lightweight levelling system" 505 Games says allows "unique role-playing," letting players vary their goals and play-style.
  Portal Knights also offers 4-player cooperative play, so players can team up with friends to "build stru
  
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• New Avengers Academy Mobile Game Boasts a Big Cast

  04-02-2016 14:59
  
  Available to download as of today, the new mobile game Marvel Avengers Academy takes a very different look at Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, putting many of Marvel’s iconic heroes and villains in a "What if?" college setting.
  Mixing together elements of action -- including combat training to go along with your regular classes and sports -- and social life (there’s dating as well), the game features a notable voice cast, including Priyanka Chopra (Quantico) as Ms. Marvel, Alexandra D
  
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• Zelda: Twilight Princess HD Looks Better Than You Think

  04-02-2016 14:58
  
  We explored this iconic dungeon in Nintendo's high definition update of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
  Most of my concerns about The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD went out the window the minute I saw it running on Wii U. My demo started smack in the middle of the decaying Sacred Grove, and I was immediately struck by the improved high resolution textures. It’s no secret that Twilight Princess has aged poorly, but that’s a natural consequence for a game designed around Standard De
  
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• Nintendo launches first app

  04-02-2016 14:46 via news.yahoo.com
  
  Nintendo is launching "Miitomo", its first app made exclusively for smart devices. Users will be able to pre-register for Miitomo from February 17 by signing up for the new Nintendo Account service using their existing email, social media accounts or current Nintendo Network IDs, with a special bonus offered to anyone who signs up before the app is released.
  
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• The Unity add-ons we used to build our FPS

  04-02-2016 14:01
  A large list with images that shows what each add-on was used for in the first person shooter project Immortal Redneck -- everything from AI to shaders, effects, and FPS fundamentals. ...
  
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• The ultimate ad format cheat sheet for mobile devs

  04-02-2016 10:00
  "Here's an overview of each format-banner, static interstitial and video interstitial-to help you embrace effective ads in your game." ...
  
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• How one mod helped define the modern XCOM experience

  04-02-2016 10:00
  
  XCOM 2 creative director Jake Solomon explains how his team actually consulted with creators of the popular Long War mod, and shared tools with them so that mod content will be available at launch....
  
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• What Could Be Coming To Bethesda's E3 Conference?

  04-02-2016 03:05
  
  Join Jared, Miranda, Brendan, and Mark as we talk Fallout 4's most despised companions, the Bethesda E3 conference, and new mods. We also take a diversion into Witness territory. Enjoy your apocalypse!
  You can also listen via direct download.
  Subscribe to Vault on iTunes! And while you're at it, please give us a really good review!
  Jared Petty is a Senior Editor at IGN. Chat with him on Twitter @pettycommajared.Continue reading…
  
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• Pokemon Red and Blue Soundtrack Coming to Vinyl

  04-02-2016 02:58
  
  The soundtrack for Pokemon Red and Blue is coming to limited edition vinyl. The pressing includes every track from the original Game Boy game, as composed by Junichi Masuda.
  Photo via Turntable Lab
  Continue reading…
  
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• New Dark Souls 3 Gameplay Footage Leaked

  04-02-2016 02:38
  
  New gameplay footage of From Software's upcoming action-RPG Dark Souls III has surfaced online.
  The leaked footage was pulled from the developer's recent livestream and posted on YouTube, courtesy of Gilmore Mizzi.
  Upon careful inspection, Eurogamer spotted several similarities between Dark Souls III and Bloodborne, as the new footage showcases a more active combat system in which the player is able to sidestep attacks from oncoming enemies—a first for the "Souls" games.
  Additionally,
  
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• Autodesk to lay off 925 in transition to cloud-based tools

  04-02-2016 02:13
  
  The maker of 3ds Max, Maya, Stingray, Scaleform and other popular game-industry tools has announced a 10 percent layoff to its workforce today. ...
  
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• Overwatch Closed Beta Returns February 9

  04-02-2016 01:22
  
  After going into an extended break in December, Overwatch's closed beta re-opens February 9. The break was extended in late January, though it's right on target with the proposed mid-February return.
  Blizzard is introducing an "all-new progression system" to the game, along with two new maps and a new game mode. The team has made hero balance changes, along with a "variety of private game updates," including "full A.I. matches"—all changes the company promised to make when taking
  
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• The designers emerging from South Africa

  04-02-2016 00:17
  
  "Even if I don't sell my games domestically, I still want to make games that are culturally somehow South African." - Raheel Hassim, a student in South Africa's first-ever game design program...
  
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