Author - Jerry Paxton

Mercenary Ops Games Modes and Screens

2012/04/25

Ying Pei Games has announced the various game modes to be featured in its upcoming Mercenary Ops as well as released some game screenshots for each. Here is the rundown:

CO-OP MISSIONS

· Assault ( 5 players )

Push forward with a team in objective-based missions to gain access to equipment and upgrades. Fight against ruthless enemies that become more challenging behind every door, drawing the player closer to the epic battle at the end of their assault.

· Survival ( 5 players )
Battle for survival by fending off seemingly endless waves of attacking zombies and other walking dead species. Prepare for the horrors that lie ahead by repairing defenses and earning points to unlock the weapons as well as ammunition needed to survive.

· Invasion ( 8 Players )
Take on waves of the enemy horde as they push forward in a path of destruction. Use time wisely and make shots count against deadly AI-controlled foes and mini-bosses to earn in-game currency.

COMPETITIVE

· Team Deathmatch ( 8 v 8 )
Compete in a kill-based match-up across changing combat zones. In this fast-paced, tactical team battle, triumph over the opposition and earn a place at the top of leader board.

· Demolition ( 8 v 8 )
Engage in an objective-based struggle of destruction by working with a team of conspiring mercenaries to seek and destroy a targeted bomb site. Defend against the opposing force by finding and defusing their bomb, or eliminate the threat altogether to claim victory.

· Elimination ( 8 v 8 )

Take up arms against another team of opposing mercenaries in a tactical bout to determine the victor. When the only thing that matters is obliterating the enemy, even the smallest mistake can be grounds for defeat in this high stakes, elimination-based competition.

Screenshots

KRATER Now in Alpha Testing

2012/04/25

Jerry Paxton

News

STOCKHOLM, Sweden. April 25, 2012. Fatshark today announced that their upcoming squad based RPG KRATER heads into Alpha testing. KRATER will be available on PC computers via Steam on June 12, 2012. A Mac version will be available in July.

“With the alpha build we have the extensive crafting system ready for testing, as well as the system for death and injuries.” says Martin Wahlund, CEO and Executive Producer, Fatshark. “We will continue to invite people to join our testing via Kratergame.com, and listen to all feedback to be able to deliver the best possible gaming experience on June 12, 2012.”

KRATER is a lush post-apocalyptic top down RPG and the base pillars are crafting, exploration and consequence. Consequence brings not only the ability for the characters to level up and improve themselves, but also permanent injuries and death. The grim reaper never been so grim!

If you want to get your KRATER on, and save a few “whatever currency you have” while you’re at it, visit http://store.fatshark.se and pick up the game today and get instant access to the alpha build!

To get the latest info on all Fatshark activities; follow us www.twitter.com/fatsharkgames, like us www.facebook.com/fatsharkgames, contact us press@fatshark.se or visit us www.fatshark.se.

Game of Thrones Screenshots Released

2012/04/25

Jerry Paxton

News

Focus Home Interactive has released some new screenshots from its upcoming Game of Thrones, which will be released in Q2 2012 on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.

Screenshots

The Walking Dead Episode One Review (PC)

2012/04/25

Jerry Paxton

News, Reviews

Telltale Games and Robert Kirkman have launched the first episode of The Walking Dead and I got a chance to checkout the PC version. The game begins in the back of a police car – the main character Lee Everett is being toted off to prison. As fate would have it, the zombie apocalypse erupts and the police cruiser is sent off the road. This is where I will stop from revealing more of the game’s plot as I would hate to ruin anything for you readers. Suffice it to say, I was riveted to my keyboard all the way through. The Walking Dead Episode One features a very cool control system which is part adventure game / part on-rails. Telltale Games has done an excellent job artistically, which also feeds into the game’s control system. There are many times when a particular scene in the game is staged a certain way to provide a more graphic novel-like look. If the game were pure third-person adventure title, it would not be as effective. The game is controlled, on the PC, by way of the mouse and a few simple keyboard strokes. For most interactions, the mouse will allow you to perform actions on objects while, in the areas you are free to move around, the keyboard is used. The controls are simple and intuitive.

Visually, The Walking Dead Episode One features exceptional graphics akin to The Walking Dead comics created by Robert Kirkman. They really capture the overall look of The Walking Dead universe. Get any ideas of the TV series out of your head, this look is pulled directly from the original comic book source material. The game audio is also very well done, with full voice acting that sells the experience. The actors all sound believable, and not one faltered in their portrayal of their characters.

As I am not willing to go into depth on the game’s plot or any potential characters you may or may not meet from the original group of The Walking Dead survivors, I can say that there is a strong possibility you will and that, if this does in fact happen in the game, it will be a cool nod to Kirkman’s original group of characters from the comics. There are plenty of scares and pulse-pounding moments to be found and there are several times in the game that you will have to make decisions with life-affecting (and possible ending) consequences. Another thing to keep in mind: The other characters you are hanging around with remember your actions and have their own opinions (some good, some not-so-good) on them. Your actions will affect how your group of survivors reacts to you!

Telltale Games has the five episodes of The Walking Dead set to be priced at $4.99 each or as a “season pass” for $24.99. This pricing model is way more than fair and I feel that, had I paid for it and not received a review copy, I would have gotten more than my money’s worth in entertainment.

While the game was stable on my PC, it should be noted that I experienced some audio issues while playing. At random times, character voices would dramatically change volume levels, as if the actor quickly stepped away from the microphone while delivering his or her lines. While not occurring enough to be a showstopper, it was noticeable.

Overall, The Walking Dead Episode One is an excellent tale of survival and character interaction in the face of the zombie apocalypse. If this episode is any indication, I am waiting with baited breath for the next one! Bring it on, Telltale Games and Robert Kirkman!

A Couple Screenshots

Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 Announced

2012/04/25

Jerry Paxton

News

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.—April 24, 2012— Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. today revealed that the fan-favorite Pro Evolution Soccer will return to the field this fall. Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 is returning to its roots, with emphasis on the individual skills of the world’s best players, giving the player total freedom to play any style of ball, to any teammate, anywhere on the pitch, including full control over shots, for the first time ever.

Pro Evolution Soccer 2013, which is endorsed by renowned soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, continues to maintain the skill and grace of top level soccer that fans of the sport and the video game desire and expect. This will be the most faithful recreation of modern day soccer, with players modeled to match the running motions, the abilities and playing styles, and the flicks and turns of their real-life counterparts.

“We’re excited to take Pro Evolution Soccer back to its roots, which is all about freedom and control.” said Tomoyuki Tsuboi, President of Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. “Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 is created, in part, by the vocal PES community, and with them, along with some new faces within the development team, we’re bringing in new features and gameplay mechanics that will invigorate the soccer community as a whole.”

Three key elements form the basis of Pro Evolution Soccer 2013’s innovations, with all new additions falling within the fields of Pro Evolution Soccer, which include FullControl, Player ID, and ProActive AI.

The first element, FullControl (PES FC), offers a level of control that has never before been used in a soccer game. The features of PES FC include:

• Total Freedom of Control: Pro Evolution Soccer introduced the concept of freedom of movement. The new ‘PES FC’ in Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 goes further with total freedom over ball control.

• Dynamic First Touch: Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 introduces subtle ways to receive the ball, from traps to gently lifting it past an attacker to run on to or a variety of other moves. First Touch is everything, and players can trap the ball using the R2 button, killing the speed of a well-hit pass and bringing it instantly under control, or using the momentum of the pass to turn a defender.

• Full Manual Shooting and Full Manual Passing: Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 offers fully manual passing and, for the first time ever, manual shooting, allowing users to determine the height and power of each. Long, low passes can be sent skimming across the pitch. While shooting, the user has total control over where the shot is placed. Skill and precision are needed to master these, but passes can be made into open areas, allowing lone strikers to thrive, while offering an unrivalled variety in ways to score.

• Dribbling: The speed with which a player moves with the ball has been slowed in line with real matches, but using R2 allows players to add various styles to their close control. Players can vary the speed of their dribbling and cushion the ball as they move freely within a 360-degree circle. The new system allows players to knock a ball past a player and collect it, nutmeg them, or hold up play by shielding the ball as teammates find space and make runs.

• Full Manual One-Two: Active one-two passes can be made, with the second player being moved in any direction, facilitating various tactical movements.

• Response Defending: Countering the attacking options the new dribbling system offers, is a beautifully-balanced defense system. Players can use R2 and X to slow an attack, with a double-tap of the X button prompting a perfectly-timed challenge. Full 360-degree control means that players can check runs and steal the ball from a parallel position, while the individuality element will see world renowned defenders using aerial dominance of physicality to win the ball.

• Goalkeepers: Even the game’s keepers benefit from more control. Their distribution is more precise thanks to the addition of a power gauge when they throw the ball, creating opportunities for new, quicker counter attacks.

The second key element of Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 is the Player ID, which focuses on the individual characteristics and movements that each player boasts. The components of the Player ID include:

• Player Individuality: The very best players in Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 will be instantly recognizable via signature attributes, skills and tricks that bring them to life. The way they run, turn, trap and move the ball, shape to shoot, and even celebrate will be noticeably different during play.

• Individuality to Goalkeepers: Goalkeeping has been totally invigorated via new animations and play styles. New varieties of saves and reactions have been added to ensure the game’s keepers are in line with the efforts of real shot stoppers. This level of realism also extends to the game’s top-rated goalkeepers, with their moves to close attacks down, fling themselves to tip a shot past the post, and in-goal acrobatics benefiting from all new animations and AI.

The third element is the ProActive AI, which unites the control and realism, with players that will respond and find space as befits those at the top of their games.

• Balance of Play: The development team has worked closely with the Pro Evolution Soccer fan base to eradicate any illogical elements to the way players move and run in Pro Evolution Soccer 2013, with the ‘ProActive AI’ system enhancing the speed and balance, resulting in a more realistic game experience.

• Enhanced Goalkeepers: Improvements to the goalkeepers was voted the key advancement football fans wanted to see in Pro Evolution Soccer 2013, and the team has worked hard with real life goalkeepers to ensure the AI decision process has been vastly improved. Keepers now respond with better reactions, clear their lines more effectively, and push the ball safely out of play rather than into dangerous areas.

Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 will also boast better connectivity and atmosphere. The popular myPES application will extend the connectivity and communication between Facebook-using PES fans, while the game’s audio effects are being tied closer to the on-field action to provide the kind of buzz seen at top-tier matches, with crowds growing in excitement as their team starts to exert pressure.

Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 will be available Fall 2012 on the PlayStation®3, Xbox 360®, Windows PC, PlayStation®2, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable), Nintendo 3DS™, and Nintendo Wii™.

Announcement Screenshots

5 New Line of Defense Screenshots

2012/04/25

Jerry Paxton

News

3000AD has released 5 new screenshots from their upcoming Line of Defense – enjoy!

Screenshots

Auto Club Revolution launches the BMW Experience

2012/04/25

Jerry Paxton

News

24th April 2012, BMW M Sport Studio, Munich. Auto Club Revolution today launched the BMW Experience, allowing players the opportunity to drive BMW’s latest M Sports performance car, the BMW 1 Series M Coupé.

The BMW Experience offers visitors to BMW’s websites and social media channels a unique opportunity to drive the car in a specially built introduction to the Auto Club Revolution game. Players have the chance to customize their very own BMW 1 Series M Coupé which they can race on Victoria Harbour, the brand new race track, specially designed and built in conjunction with the BMW’s designers and designed to put the car through its paces.

Auto Club Revolution is a free-to-play online racing game and car community built in collaboration with the motor industry. Featuring officially licensed cars from BMW and over 50 of the world’s leading motor manufacturers, it delivers a console quality racing experience to the free-to-play market while providing a social platform for owning, customizing and enjoying cars online.

Andreas-Christoph Hofmann, Vice President Brand Communication BMW, Marketing services BMW Group: “Our customers are tech-savvy and love to be able to put their dream car together the way they want. Auto Club Revolution allows us to make our models accessible to a large number of car enthusiasts. It was extremely important to us that our models be portrayed realistically. In Eutechnyx we found a partner who shares our high quality standards – and we worked well together right from the start.”“It is always a real challenge to render a vehicle’s distinctive handling accurately in a game – generating the models from CAD data is just not enough. To reproduce the handling of the BMW 1 Series M Coupé in ACR in an authentic manner, we first took it out on the real racetrack. That is the only way to know exactly how the car corners, for example,” said Doug Wolff, ACR Team Lead.

Auto Club Revolution already features licensed content from over 50 car and over 150 upgrade parts manufacturers plus a raft of licensed race tracks including Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Daytona International Speedway , Silverstone, Infineon Raceway and the game’s range of custom race tracks. Auto Club Revolution’s progression model unlocks free cars at regular player levels and allows them to be upgraded using credits, which are earned during in game activities (such as racing).

From today, players can take part in the BMW Experience from BMW’s websites, or at http://bmw.autoclubrevolution.com

Some Screenshots for Your Enjoyment

Bethesda Softworks and Tango Gameworks Announce ‘Zwei’

2012/04/25

Jerry Paxton

News

Bethesda Softworks has announced that Tango Gameworks and director Shinji Mikami are working on a ‘survival horror’ game under the codename ‘Zwei’.

About “Zwei”

As a master of the ‘survival horror’ genre, Shinji Mikami is committed to making a game that is the realization of *pure* survival horror, an experience which he defines as one that pushes the limits of fear and exhilaration. He and his team at Tango are committed to attaining this vision.

“A true ‘survival horror’ game is one in which the player confronts and overcomes fear,” says Shinji Mikami, president and creative director for Tango Gameworks. “I’ve found my focus and once again I’m striving for pure survival horror. I am being very hands-on in the development of this game to ensure that the quality is there. Rest assured.”

Released Art/Images

New Max Payne 3 PC Screens And System Requirements

2012/04/25

Jerry Paxton

News

Today, we’ve got brand new screenshots from the PC version of Max Payne 3 along with updated details and system specifications. Developed in parallel with the game’s console versions, Max Payne 3 for PC supports DirectX11 including tessellation, as well as a number of additional advanced graphics options and is optimized to run across a wide range of PC setups.

Max Payne 3 PC System Specifications

Operating System:
Windows 7 32/64 Service Pack 1, Windows Vista 32/64 Service Pack 2, Windows XP 32/64 Service Pack 3

Processor:
Intel Dual Core 2.4 GHZ – i7 3930K 6 Core x 3.06 GHZ / AMD Dual Core 2.6 GHZ – FX8150 8 Core x 3.6 GHZ

RAM:
2GB – 16GB

Video Card:
NVIDIA® 8600 GT 512MB VRAM – NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 680 2GB VRAM / Radeon HD 3400 512MB VRAM – Radeon HD 7970 3GB VRAM

Sound Card:
100% Direct X 9.0 compatible – Direct X 9.0 compatible supporting Dolby Digital Live

HDD Space:
35 GB

DVD Drive
Please refer to your hardware manufacturer and www.rockstargames.com/support for current compatibility information. Some system components such as mobile chipsets, integrated, and AGP graphics cards may be incompatible. Unlisted specifications may not be supported by publisher.

Max Payne 3 for PC will be available May 29th in North America and June 1st in Europe, with the Special Edition available in North America exclusively through GameStop and throughout Europe from select retailers. For those who prefer their PC releases served up via digital download, you can pre-purchase Max Payne 3 from select digital retailers and receive pre-order bonus content including some of the bonuses from the Special Edition (The Classic Multiplayer Character Pack & Disorderly Conduct Multiplayer Weapons Pack). Check out what Steam, GameStop Impulse (US only), Amazon Game Downloads (US only), Gamesplanet, Gamesload and Gamersgate have on offer and stay tuned for further updates.

PC Screenshots

Steel Battalion Heavy Armor Pre-Order Details

2012/04/25

Jerry Paxton

News

Capcom has sent over a letter today laying out the pre-order bonuses for its upcoming Steel Battalion Heavy Armor.

From Capcom

Steel Battalion Heavy Armor today shows what it has in store for those who pre-order the game before its launch on June 19 in North America and June 22 across European territories. With a choice of three different pre-order packs, players will receive additional armory to customize their VTs (Vertical Tanks), boosting their defensive power, offensive force, speed in combat and much more.

Using a unique combination of Microsoft’s Kinect and regular Xbox 360 controls, players will experience war like never before without losing the precision demanded of a first-person shooter.

Set in 2082, Steel Battalion Heavy Armor depicts a world devoid of computers, where war is waged with rudimentary weapons as new superpowers struggle for dominance. In this low-tech era there is one weapon class that will determine the course of the war – the Vertical Tank. Players take on the role of VT pilot Sgt. Powers as the battle to regain the United States from Chinese occupation begins.