Author - Jerry Paxton

Portalarium Expands its Crowd Funding Campaign for Shroud of the Avatar to Include PayPal

2013/03/28
Jerry Paxton
News, Windows PC News

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AUSTIN, Texas, March 28, 2013 — Portalarium announced today that it is now accepting PayPal as a method of payment for the Shroud of the Avatar: Forsaken Virtues crowd funding campaign. The PayPal option is available on the Shroud of the Avatar site located at http://www.ShroudoftheAvatar.com. Shroud of the Avatar is the fantasy role-playing game (RPG) currently under development by the Austin-based studio led by legendary computer game developer, Richard Garriott. Garriott is best-known for his top-selling Ultima series of computer RPGs.

Portalarium launched its crowd funding campaign for Shroud of the Avatar March 8 on Kickstarter. The program reached its announced funding goal of one million dollars in 10 days. To date the Shroud of the Avatar Kickstarter has more than $1,209,000 raised by nearly 17-thousand backers.

“Providing a PayPal option for our fans opens up our crowd funding to a broader audience,” said Garriott. “Kickstarter is not as familiar to people outside the United States, but with this addition our fans in places like Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Japan now have a more convenient option to back our project. And on our Shroud of the Avatar site, we have the same funding tiers as the Kickstarter site plus a few additional items.”

In recent days the Shroud of the Avatar team has made several exciting announcements including news that New York Times best-selling author Tracy Hickman is joining the team as lead story designer. In addition the team has announced its first stretch goals including an animal taming system, seasonal weather and interactive music instruments in the game.

Shroud of the Avatar is expected to launch in 2014. For more information on the game and to become a backer of the project go to www.ShroudoftheAvatar.com (PayPal accepted) or visit the official Kickstarter page athttp://www.kickstarter.com/projects/portalarium/shroud-of-the-avatar-forsaken-virtues-0.

Divinity: Original Sin Now on Kickstarter

2013/03/27
Jerry Paxton
News, Windows PC News, Xbox 360 News

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Gent,  March 27, 2013 – Larian Studios announces the launch of a Kickstarter campaign to enhance the development of Divinity: Original Sin; a turn-based, open-world RPG featuring single-player and cooperative gameplay in which the actions and choices of players have true significance and consequences.

The Divinity: Original Sin Kickstarter campaign is live at:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/larianstudios/divinity-original-sin

“Turning to Kickstarter is all about making our game as good as possible for our fans and allowing us to create the experience that we’ve always imagined,” says Larian Studios founder, Swen Vincke. “There’s a lot of potential in the game systems we’ve created so far, so we want to invest everything we can into pushing them further and unlocking their full potential. If we get the extra support from our fans now, I’m very confident that we’ll be able to make something truly exceptional. ”

With the funds raised through Kickstarter, Larian Studios wishes to expand its team to create more depth and diversity in Divinity: Original Sin. This includes more areas to explore, more character interactions, more quests with consequences, and increased options for character-building. In addition to releases of the final game, backers have opportunities to receive everything from special in-game items to roles within the game.

Key Features

  • Class-free Progression – Choose skills, abilities, and gear to create ‘your’ character.
  • Cooperative – Drop-in/drop-out cooperative multiplayer with full-featured gameplay for both players. From questing to making important choices in dialogue, each player guides the course of the game.
  • Skill and Spell Combos – A block of ice can be melted with fire, turned into a lethal pool of electricity, and refrozen into a slippery trap. This is one example of the many interactions possible.
  • Meaningful Dialogue – For better or worse, your conversations have actual and noticeable impacts in the game-world. When playing cooperatively, both players have a say in the outcome.
  • Open-world Gameplay – No artificial constraints to keep players from exploring the world or level-scaling to coddle you. If you are too weak for an area, you will quickly learn your lesson.
  • Editor – Full suite of editing tools – the same used by the developers – to create completely new environments and adventures.

Paradox Announces Paradox Books Initiative

2013/03/27
Jerry Paxton
GDC, Geek News, News, Windows PC News

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NEW YORK – March 27th –  Paradox Interactive, the global PC strategy games publisher behind critically acclaimed games Crusader Kings II, War of the Roses and Magicka, today announced they are branching out to book publishing with a new e-book initiative called “Paradox Books”.

“We’ve spent more than a decade creating and telling compelling stories through our computer games, stories that have engaged and captivated people from all parts of the globe, and books are just another medium to get those stories out there and engage with our audience,” said Fredrik Wester, CEO of Paradox Interactive. “Add to that the fact that our company was founded on pen and paper role-playing games and books, and that we have several published authors amongst our ranks here at Paradox, so this felt like a very natural progression for us.”

Three books will be available under Paradox Books initially, and several more have been signed and will be distributed later in the year. The books will broach everything from biographical behind the scenes books to game strategy guides to fiction and novels. The inaugural round of books to be made available will include:

mojang“A Year with Mojang: Behind the Scenes of Minecraft”
Author: Tomas Arnroth
Type: Behind the scenes, Biography

With over 20 million copies of Minecraft sold, the book that brings you behind the scenes with Markus “Notch” Persson, the creator behind the wildly successful game, and his studio Mojang is finally out.
Seasoned Swedish gaming journalist, Thomas Arnroth, spent 2012 following Markus Persson, Jens Bergensten, Carl Manneh and the others at Mojang and the result is a personal and entertaining account of the phenomenon Minecraft, its creators and the games that are changing the world.

hoi3“The Communist Campaign in Karelia – A Hearts of Iron III Strategy Guide”
Author: Jason Pitruzzello
Type: Narrative Strategy Guide

This Narrative Strategy Guide for Hearts of Iron III follows the tradition of Paradox’s community of fans and teaches gameplay while telling a story, rather than a dry recitation of facts and figures. Instead of just lightly touching upon all topics, the guide has focused on the most important aspect of the game: land combat. Since land combat is so critical to the national survival of France, Germany, the Soviet Union, China, and Japan, this is the most crucial skill to master in the game. World War II is not very forgiving to any nation that cannot find victory on land. This Narrative Strategy Guide is the perfect complement to new and seasoned armchair generals alike.

coriolis“Coriolis”
Author: Mattias Lilja
Type:Hard-boiled Crime Noir

The orbital station Coriolis is at the crossroads of space and everything good, bad and ugly in the Third Horizon sooner or later ends up here. It’s here that a young pathfinder comes to seek the father she’s never meet. It’s where a courtesan realizes he cannot escape the sins of his past, and where a crooked guardsman finds out how hard it is to get dirt off his fingers by washing them in blood. The fates of these three get intertwined as old enemies seek new ways to hurt each other. And, as so often before on Coriolis, it all starts with a corpse.

Final Fantasy XI: Seekers of Adoulin Launch Trailer

2013/03/27
Jerry Paxton
News, Trailers / Videos, Windows PC News, Xbox 360 News

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LOS ANGELES (March 27, 2013) – Square Enix, Inc., the publisher of SQUARE ENIX® interactive entertainment products in the Americas, today announced that FINAL FANTASY® XI: Seekers of Adoulin™ is now available for purchase on the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and Windows PC platforms. Online servers will go live later this evening. The latest addition to the decade-strong online game features new areas to explore and develop, along with two new jobs to master and a horde of new beasts and monsters to defeat.

A new adventure awaits players in “Seekers of Adoulin.” As the eighth century came to a close, the Royal Family, in partnership with the Eleven Knightly Orders, has agreed to abolish imperial rule—from which arose the Sacred City of Adoulin on the Ulbuka Continent. In the blink of an eye, Adoulin had grown to be a maritime metropolis, with a mercantile prowess rivaling that of Jeuno. It is in this booming city state that the players will find themselves as they work to explore and unlock the secrets hidden in the nearby jungles.

With the new expansion, players can now become geomancers or rune fencers. Geomancers harness the elemental energies of Vana’diel® to aid their comrades and attack enemies alike. Rune fencers are versatile duelists, quick with a blade as well as incantations, and employ the power of arcane runes to sway battles.

The expansion also introduces new gameplay systems, including player-built outposts, new contract work, and the introduction of special “power spots” that are hidden throughout the environment for powerful character enhancements.

FINAL FANTASY XI: Seekers of Adoulin is available for $29.99 for Xbox 360 and for Windows PC platforms. The FINAL FANTASY XI: Ultimate Collection Seekers Edition is available for $39.99, and includes the full compilation of the stand-alone game with all four previously released expansion packs, add-on scenarios, and three battle area add-ons. More information is available at http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/adoulin.

FINAL FANTASY XI “Seekers of Adoulin” is rated T for Teen by the ESRB. Please visit the ESRB website for more information about ratings: http://www.esrb.org.

Launch Trailer

New Grand Theft Auto V Screens from GDC

2013/03/27
Jerry Paxton
GDC, News, Screenshots / Photos

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Rockstar Games gas released a slew of new GTA V screenshots from this week’s GDC expo in San Francisco.

Screenshots

YAIBA: NINJA GAIDEN Z to Use Unreal Engine 3

2013/03/27
Jerry Paxton
GDC, News, Screenshots / Photos

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BURLINGAME, CA and CARY, N.C. (March 27, 2013) – Epic Games, Inc. announces an agreement with Tecmo Koei Games to license Epic’s award-winning Unreal Engine 3 technology for the development of “YAIBA: NINJA GAIDEN Z,” a bold new take on the renowned “NINJA GAIDEN” franchise. The agreement was brokered by Epic Games Japan, which supports the company’s licensees locally.

As announced previously, Team NINJA, the world-famous development team from Tecmo Koei Games, is working on this title in collaboration with Keiji Inafune, founder and chief executive officer of comcept, and developer Spark Unlimited.

“We couldn’t be happier to develop ‘YAIBA: NINJA GAIDEN Z’ on Unreal Engine 3,” said Inafune. “In the past I have been involved with numerous projects built upon Unreal Engine 3, so I understand its benefits and reliability. Unreal allows us to focus on making the game fun, and to push the boundaries of visuals and gameplay in the shortest time possible.”

“‘YAIBA: NINJA GAIDEN Z’ is not a sequel. It is a new experience for gamers,” said Yosuke Hayashi, studio head of Team NINJA. “As with any new title, there are many new challenges, from the game design to art style and even development team structure. Unreal Engine 3 is a great ally to have when taking on those challenges. Unreal Engine allows us to quickly and efficiently iterate on countless ideas, and ‘YAIBA’ is now taking on a life of its own. We can’t wait until gamers everywhere get their hands on the ultimate ninja zombie experience.”

“Gamers around the world are awaiting ‘YAIBA: NINJA GAIDEN Z’ with great anticipation,” said Taka Kawasaki, territory manager of Epic Games Japan. “I’m really excited to see what the great talent at Team NINJA, comcept and Spark come up with, as they comprise some of the best creative minds in Japan and the United States. I’m honored to see how Unreal Engine 3 technology helps the team as they reinvent this beloved franchise.”

‘YAIBA: NINJA GAIDEN Z’ is currently in development. Tecmo Koei will reveal more information in the coming months.

Screenshots

Official Battlefield 4 Announcement

2013/03/26
Jerry Paxton
GDC, News, Windows PC News

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REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – March 26, 2013 – Only in Battlefield™ can players go through a building instead of around it or eject from a jet and take out the enemy mid-free fall. Those incredible gameplay moments that blur the line between game and glory can only be created by players, and occur only in Battlefield. DICE, a studio of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA), today announced Battlefield 4™, a genre-defining action blockbuster launching in Fall 2013. Powered by the advanced technology of DICE’s proprietary Frostbite™ 3 engine, Battlefield 4 offers players a glimpse into the future of interactive entertainment – a future that is more human, dramatic and believable than anything before it. With more than 65 million players worldwide, theBattlefield series has consistently been praised by critics for its world-class multiplayer gameplay, and is recognized as the only game that allows players to own land, sea and air.

Battlefield 4 is a seminal moment for the Battlefield series as more award-winning, multiplayer game design elements are incorporated into the single-player campaign. In single-player, gamers will experience huge environments, a playground of destruction, access to an arsenal of vehicles and the ability to direct squad mates. Taking a page from the social aspect of multiplayer gaming, the single-player mode will now track players’ progress, adding an element of persistence and friendly competition to the campaign.

The game made its world debut today with a staggering 17-minute gameplay demo, available for view at Battlefield.com. The demo begins as the player – Recker – opens his eyes to discover that he is trapped in a rapidly sinking car with three of his squad mates. Shooting the window is the only way out. Panic and fear are pushed aside as Recker makes a difficult decision – take the shot and recover the intel but risk that not everyone will survive. The emotional demo features a cast of characters unrivaled in interactive entertainment. Players will learn how to work together in both the Campaign and Multiplayer, issuing squad orders and comparing achievements in both experiences. Adventure and Competition will unfold through a series of beautifully crafted locations constructed with some of the best art and sound design in modern shooters. All of this is only possible with Frostbite 3 – a new standard for interactive entertainment in 2013.

“We are so humbled and proud to debut Battlefield 4 on a global stage with simultaneous events in San Francisco and Stockholm. To be this early in development, and to already be so polished is a huge achievement for the DICE team and reflection of their passion and commitment to driving the franchise forward. Today’s demo was just the beginning — we have so much more in store,” said Patrick Soderlund, Executive Vice President, EA Games Label. “It is thrilling to witness peoples’ reaction when seeing the game for the first time. It really makes you realize that we are at the beginning of a whole new era for gaming. As artists and craftspeople, we are focused on creating a dynamic, open design that brings people together with amazing, surprising unscripted moments that they’ll talk about for days. That’s the beauty of Battlefield.”

By pre-ordering Battlefield 4 at any participating retail outlet, gamers will receive a Premium expansion pack at no additional cost*. DICE also announced today Battlefield 4 Digital Deluxe, an Origin™ exclusive special edition that includes the base game and bonus in-game digital items. Players that pre-order Battlefield 4 Digital Deluxe* on Origin will also receive the Premiumexpansion pack as well as access to the exclusive Battlefield 4 multiplayer beta.

To view the first Battlefield 4 single player gameplay footage, please visit www.battlefield.com. To join the conversation onBattlefield 4, please visit http://www.facebook.com/battlefield, follow us on Twitter® at www.twitter.com/battlefield and #BF4, or sign up for the official Battlefield newsletter at www.battlefield.com. Press assets for Battlefield 4 are available athttp://info.ea.com.

* Conditions and restrictions apply. See http://store.origin.com/promo?promoID=88022500&linkid=BF4_CLP for details.