Author - Jerry Paxton

Mad Catz Announces E.S. PRO1 Earbuds

2015/12/10

San Diego – December 10, 2015 – Mad Catz Interactive, Inc. (“Mad Catz”) (NYSE MKT/TSX: MCZ) announced today the E.S.^{PRO 1}, a new and unique way to enjoy tournament-grade audio quality without the bulk and weight of traditional over-ear headphones.

Specially designed for eSports gamers, the E.S.^{PRO 1} differs from traditional earbuds, using enlarged 13.5mm speakers to deliver a powerful audio experience with increased bass response and crystal clear highs, revealing every detail of the gaming environment.

Fully equipped for competitive play, the E.S.^{PRO 1} features a removable, omni-directional boom microphone, ideal when chat is of primary importance. When not gaming, users can also access theE.S.^{PRO 1} in-line microphone, complete with automatic noise and echo suppression. To make every second count, the E.S.^{PRO 1} boasts easy to reach audio controls, allowing gamers to adjust the volume, mute chat, and control track selection.

Addressing a further issue common with regular earbuds, the E.S.^{PRO 1} features innovative soft-rubber support arms, designed to gently fit inside the ear and prevent the earbuds from falling out during heated gaming sessions. In addition, to aid with comfort and acoustic isolation, the E.S.^{PRO 1} comes complete with optional earbud attachments designed to fit virtually any size ear.

“Complementing our new R.A.T^.^PRO Series™ of gaming mice, the E.S.^{PRO 1} provide eSports enthusiasts with an innovative earbud option – combining tournament-grade gaming audio quality, with features and comfort that rival traditional over-the-ear headsets,” said Darren Richardson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catz. “The E.S.^{PRO 1} further illustrates Mad Catz’ commitment to designing high-performance products that enhance the experience of competitive gamers, enabling us to expand our audio business throughout 2016.”

Expected to ship in January 2016, the E.S.^{PRO 1} comes complete with a standard 3.5mm cable and PC audio adapter, allowing connection with virtually any audio source including PC, Mobile and current generation consoles.

For more information, please visit: http://madcatz.com/e-s-pro-1-earbuds/

XCOM 2 Retaliation Trailer and Pre-Order Info

2015/12/10

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News

New York, NY – December 10, 2015 – 2K and Firaxis Games today announced that the XCOM® 2 Digital Deluxe Edition is now available for pre-purchase for $74.99. Launching globally on February 5, 2016 for Windows PC and coming to Mac and Linux via Feral Interactive, the XCOM 2 Digital Deluxe Edition includes the sequel to the Game of the Year* award-winning strategy title XCOM: Enemy Unknown, the XCOM 2 Reinforcement Pack** and the digital soundtrack. XCOM 2 takes place 20 years into the future, where humanity has surrendered to the alien threat and XCOM is largely forgotten, forcing them to reclaim Earth and free mankind from the aliens’ rule.

The Reinforcement Pack** can be purchased separately for $19.99 and bundles three downloadable add-on packs. Each add-on pack will offer a unique twist to the core game experience by adding new missions, aliens, weapons, more extreme soldier customizations and other items.

The Reinforcement Pack** includes the following:

Anarchy’s Children: featuring rebellion-themed content with more dramatic soldier customizations (releasing spring 2016);
Alien Hunters: introducing new gameplay surrounding XCOM as an elite alien hunting unit tracking down “Ruler” aliens, along with a new mission, soldier customization options and more powerful weapons and armor (releasing summer 2016);
Shen’s Last Gift: offering a brand new soldier class with unique upgradeable weapons, armor and customization features, as well as an additional narrative-driven mission and map (releasing summer 2016).

Players who pre-order or pre-purchase XCOM 2 or the XCOM 2 Digital Deluxe Edition will also receive the Resistance Warrior Pack, offering additional soldier customization options such as bonus outfits, headgear, and custom facial war paint. The Resistance Warrior Pack also includes a “Survivor of the Old War,” a new XCOM recruit who will appear in the Avenger’s barracks.

Trailer

BenQ Announces ZOWIE eSports Brand

2015/12/10

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, Industry News, News

COSTA MESA, Calif. — Dec. 10, 2015 — BenQ America Corp., the internationally renowned pioneer in monitors designed for eSports, today announced that the ZOWIE brand will represent the company’s future releases in this market.

Following the recent announcement of its investment in ZOWIE GEAR, BenQ has further demonstrated its dedication to this segment by adopting ZOWIE as the new brand for its gaming-related line. BenQ will continue to show its commitment to gamers by providing eSports athletes with premium, professional gaming products via the ZOWIE identity.

All future BenQ gaming-related merchandise will be introduced under the ZOWIE name. Combining the core competences of BenQ and ZOWIE, new ZOWIE-branded eSports devices will focus on ergonomics and personalization to provide innovations that truly enhance player performance and enjoyment.

More information on the ZOWIE line by BenQ is available at http://info.benq.us/zowie.

Roto VR Secures $300K in Funding for May 2016 Launch

2015/12/10

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, Tech News, Trailers / Videos

London – 10th December, 2015 – Elliot Myers and the team behind Roto VR can today officially announce they have successfully raised $300,000 [in a round led by Jensons Solutions] of equity investment to launch their hotly anticipated ‘Roto’ VR chair with a target for launch of May, 2016.

Roto, which has been designed for VR from the ground up, physically rotates players in the real world, to match their movements in the virtual – adding a greater sense of immersion to all VR experiences.

By matching physical movements to those experienced in the virtual world, players’ eyes and inner-ear balance detectors are in sync – making VR feel much more real while addressing many of the inherent challenges associated with VR headsets – tangling cables, motion sickness, comfort and safety.

“We’re so excited to see our vision for Roto become a reality and to offer developers and consumers our vision of what the seated VR experience should be” commented Elliott Myers, CEO at Roto VR. “It’s particularly exciting to launch alongside 1st party HMDs from May, 2016. Roto provides the ultimate in seated VR experiences, just kick back and let Roto do all the hard work.”

7 reasons why Roto VR will be an essential purchase for developers and consumers alike:

The ideal VR companion for retail, event and home use.
Combining motor rotation with headtracking – users are auto-turned to wherever they are looking, making 360 viewing immersive, comfortable and safe.
Roto’s bi-directional motor allows developers to create scripted 360 journeys; great for games, movies, guided tours and more.
No more tangled cables! Plug your USB and HDMI cables into Roto itself – the connector rotates with you, meaning you can turn through a full 360 degrees, again and again, and never get caught up… all while charging your battery!
Tactile feedback through Roto’s rumble feature.
An optional Roto Table attachment lets you take your accessories with you into 360 VR – just put your joystick, steering wheel, keyboard, mouse on the Roto Table and they’ll be right in front of you, no matter how much you spin around!
Works with all headsets, games, movies and peripherals out of the box.

If you want to be first in line for Roto, please subscribe to our website for news and pre-order registration – coming soon!

Oculus Rift Will Ship with EVE Valkyrie

2015/12/10

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, Tech News, Windows PC News

Oculus has announced via its social media platforms that, when the Rift ships in early 2016, it will come with a free copy of CCP Games’ EVE Valkyrie. If you would like to read some of my very initial thoughts on Valkyrie (from an early build when it was named EVE-VR), click here! As far as when Oculus Rift pre-orders will go on sale? No word… But the 2015 countdown is ticking, people! Look sharp!

Knott’s Merry Farm 2015

2015/12/09

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News

Knott’s Berry Farm’s annual ‘Merry Farm’ event is now in season at the Buena Park theme park. Knott’s Merry Farm offers guests a number of holiday experiences, from an entire Christmas Craft Village erected in the park’s Ghost Town area to Santa’s Christmas Cabin, loaded with goodies as well as the big guy himself. Knott’s Merry Farm runs until January 3, 2016 and is included with a park admission ticket. The Bird Cage Theatre is in full entertainment mode as it presents two different holiday favorites: The Gift of the Magi and A Christmas Carol. Christmas carolers roam the streets of Ghost Town – not only using their voices but also bells to entertain. The group is very talented and well worth standing by to watch them perform.

The food at this year’s Merry Farm event has jumped up some notches from last year. Of note is that Knott’s Berry Farm has brought back its Beef Stew Breadbowls to the Ghost Town Grill. I highly recommend them as well as eating out on the patio so you can watch the goings-on of the theme park while you dine. Also returning this year are caramel apples using real caramel – not caramel sauce! Be sure to purchase one at Santa’s Christmas Cabin. They cool down quick but, while hot, are amazing.

Of course, a visit to Knott’s Merry Farm wouldn’t be complete without the Snoopy Ice Show. This year’s show is, once again, great and the skaters are simply terrific. The one caveat to this is the wardrobe choice of male skaters during a particular number mid-show. These male skaters look kind of like Don Johnson in Miami Vice. But, I digress – one weird costume choice doesn’t detract from the show’s spirit. Linus’ rendition of the true meaning of Christmas pulled straight from the cartoon always brings rousing applause.

Finally, we would like to thank Knott’s Merry Farm for allowing us access to their holiday event. We had a blast and highly recommend it to you and your loved ones.

Images from Our Visit

Bethesda Opens Montreal Studio

2015/12/09

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, Industry News, News

December 9, 2015 (Rockville, MD) – Bethesda Game Studios®, a ZeniMax® Media company, today announced that it has opened a new development studio in Montreal, Quebec to expand its development capabilities in console, PC, and mobile gaming.

“We’ve worked with some very talented developers in Montreal for a long time, and decided it was time to open a studio there,” said Todd Howard, Game Director and Executive Producer at Bethesda Game Studios. “It’s exciting to think about the new games we’ll be building together.”

Bethesda Game Studios Montreal has already established a core team of more than 40 developers, spanning both console and mobile development. The studio will be managed by industry veteran Yves Lachance as Studio Director.

“Our collaboration with Bethesda Game Studios has been an exhilarating and memorable journey already,” said Lachance. “We are thrilled to be launching the studio in Montreal and contributing our city’s great game-making talent to the kind of games that Bethesda Game Studios is known for.”

Bethesda Game Studios is currently hiring for both its Maryland and Montreal locations. For more information about available jobs, visit http://jobs.zenimax.com.

Elite Dangerous: Horizons Launch Date Revealed

2015/12/09

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, Windows PC News

In this letter from Frontier Developments PR and Communications Manager, Michael Gapper, the company announces that its upcoming Elite Dangerous: Horizons will launch on Tuseday, December 15, 2015!

The Letter

Hello, folks

Mike from Frontier here, tumbling down your inbox’s chimney and leaving you the gift of NEWS. As always, you can unsubscribe at the bottom of this mail if you don’t want any more alerts like these, but please stick around because I always try to bring good news.

Today’s good news is our new Elite Dangerous: Horizons trailer, announcing the game’s release date next week on December 15, 2015.

I’m also pleased to announce that anyone who preorders now from FrontierStore.net will receive immediate access to Elite Dangerous, and can start playing right away. Elite Dangerous: Horizons will be available on Steam soon, and all FrontierStore.net customers will have the option of exporting a personal Steam key to add Elite Dangerous: Horizons to their library.

You’ll find the trailer below, showing planetary landing gameplay across a variety of worlds. Planetary Landings is just the start of Horizons’ season of expansions, all for the one-off price. Following Planetary Landings, additional expansions will come online in 2016, including:

Loot and Crafting, unlocking a world of customization options and adding new value and meaning to every action.
Multicrew, allowing teams of players to assume roles aboard the same ship.
Commander Creation, giving a unique appearance to players’ in-game avatars.
Ship-Launched Fighters, allowing larger spacecraft to carry their own short-range fighter ships for attack and defense.
New Missions and Ships, expanding the already massive amount of playable content.
New Close Quarter Combat (CQC) Arenas, providing additional challenges to prove multiplayer superiority.

And one more thing – we’re keeping the Elite Dangerous community together in the same galaxy, and we’ll continue full support for Elite Dangerous.

Thanks for sticking around. I’ll be back in your inbox next week when we launch. Don’t forget to leave me a mince pie. Until then, please enjoy the trailer.

Michael Gapper
PR and Communications Manager, Frontier Developments

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Blood and Wine DLC Gets First Screenshots

2015/12/08

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, PlayStation 4 News, Screenshots / Photos, Windows PC News, Xbox One News

December 8, 2015 – CD PROJEKT RED, creators of The Witcher series of games, have just released the first two screenshots from the upcoming expansion to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Blood and Wine. The expansion is slated for release in the first half of 2016. The studio has also announced that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has collectively garnered over 300 awards, including a Golden Joystick for Ultimate Game of the Year, and The Game Award for Game of the Year.

“2015 is almost behind us. It’s a great year for open world games and a fantastic time for The Witcher. A year of intense work for the team and a time filled with many personal victories for everyone involved in a project that received more than 300 awards so far (wow!). We overcame so many obstacles to get to this point, and we’ve always done it with gamers rooting for us. It’s your year, too!” said Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, Game Director, CD PROJEKT RED. “Blood and Wine, the second expansion for The Witcher 3, is on the horizon. It’s a massive new land to explore, visually unlike anything you saw in Wild Hunt or Hearts of Stone, and it too is brimming with stories we want you to discover,” adds Tomaszkiewicz.

Blood and Wine is a 20-hour tale that will introduce the all-new in-game region of Toussaint, and will take Geralt to a land untainted by war, where an atmosphere of carefree indulgence and knightly ritual masks an ancient, bloody secret. Currently, Blood and Wine is available for purchase as part of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Expansion Pass — more information available here.

Screenshots

System Shock 3 Teased

2015/12/08

Jerry Paxton

Geek News, News, PlayStation 4 News, Windows PC News, Xbox One News

OtherSide Entertainment’s website featured a countdown timer page that went off early, revealing their teaser of System Shock 3, the next in the series of horror/FPS titles made famous by Looking Glass Studios and Irrational Games back in the 1990s. This teaser doesn’t mention anything save for the name “System Shock 3” – details such as any involvement by current System Shock license holder Night Dive Studios, or where the crowdfunding campaign will be hosted are missing. OtherSide Entertainment is most recently famous for running an extremely successful Kickstarter campaign for their upcoming Ultima Underworld, which gained $860,356 in funding.