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World of Warships Sharks vs Eagles Event Announced

July 27, 2018 – World of Warships, the massively multiplayer naval battle game from developer and publisher Wargaming, today launched a new in-game event we think your readers would be interested in. The new event, dubbed Sharks vs. Eagles, coincides with Update 0.7.7.

In Sharks vs. Eagles, players choose to fight for either competing team, earning points by winning battles and completing missions. At the end of each day, the points earned will be converted to containers that are delivered to each team. These containers hold extra supplies, cosmetics, coal (in-game currency) and more!

Sharks vs. Eagles also adds a new Loyalty feature to World of Warships, where players can be bribed by the other team to abandon their comrades and fight alongside their foes. By switching sides, players will earn bonuses, but, by staying loyal to their team, players can also earn special event tokens, which they can exchange for team flags, patches, containers and unique camouflage paint jobs for their warships.

Along with the new event, which is part of Update 0.7.7, there are several changes and additions being made to World of Warships.The biggest changes come in operations Narai and Raptor Rescue, both reworked from their original launch to offer more gameplay options and graphical updates. Operation Narai has players battling to secure a coastal landing zone for troops making an amphibious landing, while Operation Raptor Rescue has players taking control of support ships that must escort the Raptor, a massive aircraft carrier, as it attempts to break out of a blockaded Naval base.

Head over to worldofwarships.com now to sign up for World of Warships and choose whether you’ll play for the Sharks or Eagles in the new event!

MOSS Soundtrack Available Now

Seattle – July 27, 2018 – The world of Moss will soon extend beyond the virtual reality headset with the release of the Moss Soundtrack, dropping across major digital retailers August 3, 2018. As a special thank you to fans, Polyarc is gifting the full digital soundtrack to everyone who has purchased or will purchase Moss through PlayStation®Store, Steam, Oculus, Viveport, GameStop or one of the many physical retail locations by August 17, 2018. For all other music enthusiasts, the Moss Soundtrack is now available for pre-order at digital retailers such as Bandcamp, iTunes, Google Play, and Amazon.

Composed by two-time BAFTA award-winning composer Jason Graves, the soundtrack brings to life the melodic and playful adventure in Moss from the hero Quill’s perspective. Graves accomplishes this by employing small and intimate-sounding instruments — flute, oboe, Celtic harp, English hammered dulcimer, acoustic guitar, and classical violin — all composed, arranged, and produced in a pastoral soundscape with enchanting Waltz-esque flair. The soundtrack consists of 11 in-game tracks for more than 57 minutes of music, including the bonus track “Home To Me,” featuring Malukah. Three tracks (“The Clearing,” “Cinder Skies,” and “Home To Me”) can be sampled via Bandcamp.

For soundtrack collectors and fans of physical versions, Polyarc also opened pre-orders for a limited run of premium CD and vinyl albums. The album covers feature a Moss storybook design highlighted with gold foil. Inside the CD digipak, gamers are treated to art from the in-game collectable tapestry and environment. For the vinyl album, which features eight of the tracks, the black record label features a full color tapestry. Both the CD and vinyl albums can be pre-ordered at Materia Collective and Bandcamp.

In addition to the soundtrack, Polyarc is offering a Moss game + Moss Soundtrack bundle on PlayStation®Store for $29.99 starting August 3, 2018. The bundle promotion is available to everyone in North America and PlayStation®Plus subscribers in Europe for two weeks only. Following that, all players can purchase the game + soundtrack bundle for $34.99. The new bundle will also be available on Steam starting August 17, 2018 for $34.99.

Here’s how players who purchase Moss through August 17, 2018 can download the soundtrack for free:

  • Steam: Gamers will find the soundtrack in the DLC section of Moss as part of the game update hitting August 3, 2018. Players have until August 17, 2018 to download the MP3 files before the soundtrack is removed from the DLC section of the single game purchase.
  • PlayStation®VR: Gamers can go to the Moss Soundtrack page in the PlayStation®Store and are eligible to purchase the soundtrack free of charge through August 17, 2018.
  • HTC Vive: HTC will send gamers an email with a code allowing them to redeem and download the soundtrack from Bandcamp after August 17, 2018.
  • Oculus Rift, Amazon, GameStop and Physical Edition: Polyarc will send gamers a code allowing them to redeem and download the soundtrack from Bandcamp after August 17, 2018. Gamers need to send soundtrack@polyarcgames.com proof of purchase by August 18, 2018 to be eligible.

Revered as one of the best VR titles to date because of its intuitive gameplay, creative design, and high degree of artistic polish, Moss brings a unique experience to gamers around the world. In Moss, players guide a young mouse hero named Quill on an epic journey while also manipulating the field of play as their own character and key ally to Quill. Moss brings together classic components of a great game — characters, combat, and exploration — with the exciting, interactive opportunities of virtual reality.

Moss is rated E10+ by the ESRB. For more information, visit www.polyarcgames.com and follow the official Polyarc channels Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

Star Control: Origins Beta Update 3 Brings Fleet Battles

Plymouth, MI. July 26, 2018 – Today, Stardock released the beta 3 of Fleet Battles for the highly anticipated science-fiction adventure game, Star Control®: Origins™. The beta is available to anyone who pre-orders Star Control: Origins and includes the ability for online and local play with others.

In Star Control: Origins, you explore the galaxy, investigate new worlds, contact new civilizations, and battle hostile aliens in Star Control: Origins. You are the captain of Earth’s brand new, state-of-the-art ship, The Vindicator. Your mission is to gather together allies to fight an ancient alien menace that threatens to annihilate the human race.

Fleet Battles is a mode within the main game that allows players to assemble different ships in a fleet and engage in battle with fleets controlled by either the computer, humans via the Internet, or even friends sitting at the same PC. Players are also able to use the integrated ship crafting system in Fleet Battles to create vessels of their own and share them online via Steam Workshop.

Beta 3 sees several new additions to Fleet Battles, including two new ships: the Arilou Observer and the Kzanti Intimidator. Each ship comes with its own loadout of new weapons, like a cloaking device that provides temporarily invisibility, an octomator that fires in eight directions at once, a repulsor that damages enemy ships and propels them away, or proximity mines, which blow up when an enemy ventures too close.

A feature called “scavenging” has also been added in this update. At the start of every battle, wreckage from destroyed ships will be scattered across the arena. Scavenge the wrecks by flying over them and gaining acceleration, health, energy regeneration, and speed bonuses. These bonuses not only apply to the ship currently in battle, but also to every other ship in the fleet waiting to get in on the action.

Each match starts with a random number of wreckages. Every time a ship is destroyed during the match, it leaves behind another wreck for the next match. New end match screens detailing fleet conditions and battle readouts have also been added.

Several other additions accompany the Beta 3 release, including two new maps and improved multiplayer performance. Players can also now press the ‘tab’ key to highlight their ships on screen so that they’re easier to locate when a match begins. An AI v.s. AI mode and updated fonts and UI polish have also been included.

Stardock has also released alien content packs as part of Star Control: Origins. The first of these are available early for anyone who pre-purchases the base game. In addition to concept art and lore, each content pack features new music by Mason Fisher and Riku Nuottajärvi, an original composer for Star Control II. Many packs will also feature the original alien tracks by Star Control II composer Dan Nicholson.

The first sets released include the Arilou™, the Chenjesu™, and the Mowlings™. These are available for download today from the Stardock store and via Steam.

The final version of Star Control: Origins will release on September 20, 2018. Users can pre-order the game now at a discounted price and receive instant access to the Fleet Battles beta.

Star Control: Origins is available for pre-order from Stardock, GOG, or Steam for $34.99.

For Honor Season VII: Storm and Fury Release Date

SAN FRANCISCO — July 26, 2018 — Today, Ubisoft announced that For Honor® Season VII: Storm and Fury, will be released simultaneously on PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, the Xbox One family of devices including Xbox One X and Windows PC on August 2. Launching as a free update, For Honor Season VII: Storm and Fury will continue the development teams’ commitment to implementing community feedback and will bring a brand new map, major Hero reworks, an updated Ranking System, and more. Newcomers on Xbox One who have Xbox Live Gold memberships will also be able to download For Honor for free as part of August’s Games with Gold starting August 16.

New content coming to For Honor in Season VII: Storm and Fury include:

New Map

One new map, Secluded Keep, will expand the battlefield. Once the personal retreat of a pious Lord surrounded by water, it is now a highly disputed outpost. Secluded Keep will be available in Tribute, Skirmish, Elimination, Brawl, and Duel.

Major Hero Reworks

In the wake of the recent Hero updates and feedback from players, For Honor will continue to improve and balance the current roster, as two Heroes – the Warden and Valkyrie – will receive major gameplay updates to improve the versatility and efficiency of their respective move sets.

Ranking System Update

Introducing two new divisions in the Ranking System – Master and Grand Master, reserved for the fiercest warriors. Players will also be able to monitor their progress with the new Ranking Leaderboard. To focus the community on the new leaderboard and Master divisions, players will be able to join Ranked Duel matches outside Tournaments. Tournaments will instead be triggered on rotation, starting on a week-end basis.

Coinciding with the beginning of the new Season, For Honor will apply a permanent 30% discount to all battle outfits. For Honor will also launch a new Hero Trial offer available from August 2-9, which will give players the opportunity to try any Hero they do not own and buy them at discounted Steel cost for a week.

Those looking for more details on For Honor Season VII: Storm and Fury can tune-in to For Honor’s Warrior’s Den livestream on August 2 at 9:00am PT/ 6:00pm CET on twitch.tv/ForHonorGame and participate in Twitch Drops. Players are guaranteed one scavenger crate after a half hour of watching the stream and for every 10 minutes they will be entered for a chance to win 100,000 Steel*.

For newcomers looking to test their might on the battlefield, For Honor will be part of Xbox’s Games with Gold and will be available for free to download for Xbox Live Gold members from August 16 to September 15. Those looking to get a head start on the battlefield can purchase For Honor for up to 80% off on the Microsoft Store through July 30. For more information, check out: https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2018/07/26/new-games-with-gold-for-august-2018/

Following the introduction of dedicated servers and new training modes, For Honor will continue to grow with the release of the Marching Fire expansion on October 16, with the brand new Wu Lin faction joining the fray, a 4v4 castle siege mode “Breach”, unlimited PvE content and more.

Developed by Ubisoft Montreal in collaboration with other Ubisoft studios**, For Honor offers an engaging campaign and thrilling multiplayer modes. Players embody warriors of the three Great Factions – the bold Knights, the brutal Vikings and the deadly Samurai – fighting to the death on intense and believable melee battlefields. The Art of Battle, the game’s innovative combat system that puts players in total control of their warriors, allows them to utilize the unique skills and combat style of each hero to vanquish all enemies who stand in their way.

For more information about For Honor, please visit forhonorgame.com and follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/ForHonorGame and on Twitter at twitter.com/ForHonorGame.

For the latest about For Honor and other Ubisoft games, please visit news.ubisoft.com.

1979 Revolution: Black Friday Xbox One Mixer Trailer

26 July, 2018 – Indie publisher Digerati is delighted to share the news that the Xbox One version of 1979 Revolution: Black Friday, a multi-award winning and BAFTA-nominated story-driven drama, will feature Mixer functionality. The integration of Mixer, a live game streaming service, will allow interactivity on all narrative choices.

Streamers will be able to broadcast the game via Mixer and give their audience the opportunity to participate by choosing how the adventure unfolds. Whenever a narrative choice is presented in the game, the player and viewers are given a time limit to pick from the options available. When the time is up, the choice with the most votes is selected, determining which subsequent branch the story will take.

Watch the 1979 Revolution: Black Friday Xbox One Mixer trailer:

Navid Khonsari, creator of 1979 Revolution: Black Friday and co-founder of developer iNK Stories, said:

“Mixer is the perfect feature to bring a greater sense of real-life stakes and community to the gameplay of 1979 Revolution: Black Friday. People from all over the world will have the opportunity to work together, interacting with the many different groups that made up the Revolution, while making difficult narrative choices on what they value and who they trust in a world on the brink of change.

“We look forward to watching the exciting ways players decide to engage with one another, and how they will value/reckon with the consequences of the choices that they make together.”

The Xbox One version of 1979 Revolution: Black Friday launches 3 August and is available to pre-order now with a 20% discount from the Xbox Store. The game is also coming to PS4 (31 July) and Nintendo Switch (2 August). Please note that the Mixer interactivity is exclusive to the Xbox One version.

Described by Kotaku as “ground-breaking and important”, 1979 Revolution: Black Friday has received widespread acclaim for its gripping narrative and accurate portrayal of a pivotal moment in the history of the Middle East.

1979 Revolution: Black Friday is written and directed by Navid Khonsari, a game development veteran who has worked on a lengthy list of best-sellers, including GTA: Vice City, Alan Wake and Resident Evil 7.

Khonsari grew up in Iran but left with his family after the revolution. Regarded by Iranian officials as ‘pro-American propaganda’, sales of the game have been banned in the country and Khonsari has been accused of being a U.S. spy.

HALO: Fireteam Raven 4-Player Arcade Machine Launches in Australia

Thursday, 26 July, 2018 (Sydney, Macquarie Shopping Centre) – Timezone Australia was excited today to introduce the first arcade edition of the Xbox cult favourite videogame Halo to Australia. Halo: Fireteam Raven blew arcade gamer’s minds when Timezone Macquarie Centre became the first Australian venue to boast this state-of-the-art multiplayer gaming experience. Timezone stores in Melbourne, the Gold Coast and Perth will follow hot on Macquarie’s heels, with the game debuting there next month in August.

Timezone also offered fans the chance to participate in an online social media challenge Halo as part of this Australian first gaming launch. The winner, Trent John Webb (age 23) from NSW’s Central Coast, won a years worth of Timezone Power Play credit for his online entry.

“I am so happy about this incredible experience. I have been a big fan of Halo since i was young and to see if brought to the arcade has been really exciting. My girlfriend and I are ecstatic to come back to Timezone each week to play this game!” – Trent says.

The largest Australian Halo cosplay community 405th Australian Regiment joined in on the celebrations, showcasing unique and realistic costume designs spanning from different chapters in the Halo multiverse.

“Bringing the arcade game version of Halo to Timezone Macquarie Centre gives the game’s dedicated fan base a chance to play like never before. Timezone is thrilled to introduce this first-in-Australia experience to fans as part of Timezone’s 40th birthday celebrations,” says Kane Fong, General Manager of Timezone Australia.

Halo’s console-based playing experience is now brought to life in an immersive multiplayer platform, which enables four players to either play cooperatively, or compete against each other. It’s Halo, but more: this latest instalment’s physical structure boasts a colossal 130-inch widescreen, 4K gameplay and 5.1 surround sound. It adds a tangible element to the much-loved franchise, allowing individuals the opportunity to play right alongside Master Chief in the battle to ward off the enemy forces of the Covenant and the Flood infestation.

Halo: Fireteam Raven was created and fine-tuned by 343 Industries over several years and is set in the timeframe of 2001’s Halo: Combat Evolved game. Players will take on the roles of the Fireteam Raven – an elite group of Orbital Drop Shock Troopers.

You’ll not only able to battle it out with your friends, competing against them for the highest score – you can scan a QRC code with your phone to upload your stats and progress to your Halo Waypoint account. Exactly what you’d expect from a true 2018 arcade game experience!

Star Traders: Frontiers Release Date

July 25, 2018 – The epic space RPG Star Traders: Frontiers is receiving a full Steam release after eight successful months on Early Access. Next Wednesday, August 1, the game will officially leave Steam Early Access with updated builds for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Fun Fact: During the past eight months, Trese Brothers Games updated Star Traders: Frontiers not once, not twice – not even 10 times – but 80+ times … averaging one update every 2.91 days!

Additions include:

  • 24 new types of ships
  • More than 100 new ship components to customize the perfect craft
  • 2 new character Jobs
  • 32 new Talents
  • 52 new mission types
  • 22 new contact types and services
  • 10 new character outfits – with 14 new hats, helmets, and accessories
  • 4 new story eras: Second Founding, Coalition, 3rd Century, and Crimson Pox
  • Customizable difficulty: Play your own way!
  • Prize ship Talents: Capture enemy ships
  • New maximum level cap – raised by 25%
  • New unlockable content through clever play

F1 2018 Expands Career Mode in New Update

Larkspur, Calif.  July 25, 2018  Codemasters® has today released the second part in a series of developer diaries for F1® 2018, the official videogame of the 2018 FIA FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP™, detailing how even greater depth has been added to the Career mode by expanding the player’s research and development options. The changes and additions to the system will now see each F1 team have its own unique technology tree with differing strengths and weaknesses.

The second of the four part series, which is available to watch now at www.youtube.com/formula1game, reveals that F1 2018’s Career will feature significant rule changes between seasons during the Career for the first time. Just like in the real sport, these rule changes can have a great effect on which teams compete for the championship so it is important to react to them as soon as possible.

“We already had an extensive R&D system in last year’s game but wanted to expand this for F1 2018 based both on feedback from our community and where we want to take the Career experience too,” commented Lee Mather, game director, F1 2018. “We have made significant changes to the in-game pricing structure, added ERS upgrades, given each of the Formula 1 Teams their own unique R&D tree, and added a fog of war around the development.

“Probably the most significant addition is the introduction of rule changes, meaning that each season you don’t know where the other teams are going to be performance wise. It makes every year unique and drives you to want to do season after season.” Lee continued. “The player will be notified by their engineer that a rule change could be taking place at the end of the year and they can choose to use R&D points to preserve upgraded items to protect areas that have already been developed. Doing so could see the player starting the following season in a stronger position. However, the other teams will also have to contend with the rules changes, meaning you take to the grid in Melbourne not knowing which teams are the fastest.”

F1 2018 features all the official teams, the drivers and all 21 circuits of the thrilling 2018 season, including Circuit Paul Ricard and the Hockenheimring. As well as the current season’s offerings the game includes 20 iconic cars from the history of the sport allowing you to drive the likes of James Hunt’s legendary 1976 championship winning McLaren M23D and Niki Lauda’s Ferrari 312 T2, both of which featured in the hit movie ‘Rush’ (2013). F1 2018 will release onto PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, the Xbox One family of devices including the Xbox One X and Windows PC on August 24.

Follow Codemasters F1 games blog (http://blog.codemasters.com/f1/) and social channels on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Formula1game) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/formula1game) for future updates.

HITMAN: Sniper Assassin Competition Announced

July 25, 2018 – Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment today announced the HITMAN: Sniper Assassin Competition, an all-new challenge for fans to put their marksman skills to the ultimate test, with top scoring Agents across PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Steam each eligible to win the grand prize of getting their name and likeness included in future HITMAN 2 content. Starting today, players can participate by pre-ordering HITMAN 2 and downloading the new standalone Sniper Assassin mode, which is a free early access bonus that is available to play now. Participants can then officially enter the contest by registering for an IOI account and playing Sniper Assassin in “solo” mode as Agent 47. Throughout the competition period, participants can scope out high scores via in-game leaderboards to track personal improvement or to see where they stand amongst other Agents. Three top scorers, one for each respective gaming platform, will then be determined once the competition concludes on November 6, 2018.

The Official HITMAN: Sniper Assassin Competition Trailer can be viewed and shared via the following link:

PLEASE NOTE: This competition is only open to players in participating countries, including the United States, Canada (excluding Quebec), Mexico, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, Netherlands (excluding the Dutch Caribbean), Belgium, Australia and New Zealand.

To view all terms and conditions for this competition, visit: https://hitman.com/competition

Developed by IO Interactive, HITMAN 2 introduces new ways to play with Sniper Assassin – a standalone mode that brings all the depth one would expect from a Hitman game, through a scope, with incredible replayability, numerous challenges to complete, weapon upgrades, interesting targets, creative opportunities, intelligent A.I. and a beautiful setting in the form of a lush chateau with surrounding gardens in Himmelstein, Austria.

HITMAN 2 is the follow-up to the acclaimed international video game, HITMAN. Featuring entirely new hyper-detailed sandbox locations full of living, breathing environments to explore, HITMAN 2 offers players the freedom to plan the ultimate assassination utilizing an assortment of tools, weapons, disguises and a variety of stealth techniques to creatively trigger their own unique chain of events. HITMAN 2 will be available for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 4 Pro, the Xbox One family of devices including the Xbox One X and PC beginning November 13, 2018.

For the latest information or to join the HITMAN 2 conversation, visit us on Twitter (@Hitman), Facebook (@Hitman.US), Instagram (@Hitman_Official), YouTube (Hitman), Twitch (Hitman) or the official website (www.hitman.com).

Detached Now Available for PSVR and Steam Non-VR

July 24th, Katowice, Poland — Have you ever wondered what NASA’s requirements are for becoming an astronaut? They’re simple really. You need to have a bachelor’s degree in biology, physics, or math. Three years of experience in the field, or at least 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in a jet aircraft. Oh, and excellent vision, obviously. Now, we’re pretty sure neither the first or the second would be a problem for you, but this eagle eye thing… thaaat might be a tiny bit of a problem. Too many night hours spent playing video games had to take its toll on you eventually, eh?

But don’t give up on your dreams just because your eyesight’s not as sharp as it used to be. Simply grab your copy of Detached on PS VR for $24.99 / 24.99 EUR (https://store.playstation.com/pl-pl/product/EP4918-CUSA11492_00-DETACHED000000EU), or the Steam non-VR version for $14.99 (https://store.steampowered.com/app/848410/Detached_NonVR_Edition/), and show those NASA brainiacs it’s not about good eyes in space, but guts of iron. And YOU have those!

Still not sure if the game is for you? Download the free demo available under the above Steam link, to go through several astronaut tests before you make your decision.

Detached, which was first released on Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, now comes to new platforms, and with an action packed cross-platform PvP mode available in two variants:

  • Package Extraction – An exciting battle for cargo in the middle of nowhere. Use all possible means to attack your opponent and gain an advantage. Avoid attacks to get back to the base in one piece.
  • Race – It’s a real roller-coaster ride! Racing between pieces of broken shuttle and large asteroids not only requires agility, but above all the ability to anticipate. One thoughtless move and you’ll crash when you least expect it.

All versions of Detached, on all available platforms, have also been enriched with a content update that expands the gameplay by an additional 30 minutes, adding a brand-new ending.