Author - Jerry Paxton

Economic Crimes Unit Raids Funcom Offices

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Looks like the folks at Funcom have hit some rough water as Norway’s National Authority for Investigation and Prosecution of Economic and Environmental Crime agents raided the game developer’s offices this morning. The trouble doesn’t end their as Funcom’s stock ceased trading on the Oslo stock exchange as well. All of this went down because Funcom is accused of breaching the Securities Trading Act. Allegedly, Funcom did not follow official and legal disclosure requirements related to their Lovecraftian MMORPG, The Secret World, from August 2011 until two months after the game’s release in July 2012.

What does this mean for gamers who play Funcom MMOs? Well, the developers offices are officially shutdown for now and we have reached out to our Funcom press contact for official comments. Until then, stay tuned!

Razer Announces Warranty Functions in Synapse 2.0

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January 28, 2014 — CARLSBAD, Calif. – Razer™, the world leader in high-performance gaming hardware, software and systems, today announced the addition of a warranty function to Razer Synapse 2.0, allowing gamers to quickly register and monitor their warranty period in a single convenient location through Razer’s cloud-based hardware configurator.

The new opt-in Warranty function allows for quick registration of Razer’s Synapse 2.0-supported products, and also allows users to register other Razer gear, such as analog headsets and mouse mats.

Specific to North America, Razer is also removing proof-of-purchase requirements in its product return policy, if the guarantee can be verified automatically with the serial number.

“Razer offers the very best and most innovative gaming equipment in the world; now, we offer the most functional and easily accessible warranty system of its kind,” says Min-Liang Tan, Razer co-founder, CEO and creative director. “One of the biggest reasons why we integrated a cloud-based software into our line of hardware was to continue to add value to products after purchase. Synapse 2.0’s new warranty utility is the latest example of that, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to showing what our software is truly capable of.”

As with all aspects of Razer Synapse 2.0, the warranty function only requires a connection at the time of registration and is fully functional in offline mode. Warranty registration through the website will also be available for non-Synapse 2.0 users.

More About Razer Synapse 2.0:

Set up instantly from anywhere with the world’s first cloud-based settings network for gamers. With Razer Synapse 2.0, gaming preferences for all your Razer devices are locked and loaded any time you need them from any location in the world.

Instantly store your custom settings and Razer add-ons with Razer Synapse 2.0 to completely eliminate the painstaking process of reconfiguring your peripherals each time you log into a new computer. Spend less time in a pause menu and more time dominating the competition with Razer Synapse 2.0.

Price: Free to download

Availability:

Windows – Now

PC – Now

For more information about Razer Synapse 2.0, please visit www.razerzone.com/synapse2/.

Shadowrun: Dragonfall Now Available for Pre-Order

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Kirkland, WA (January 28, 2014) Harebrained Schemes’ Shadowrun: Dragonfall, a major expansion for the magic-meets-cyberpunk tactical RPG mashup Shadowrun Returns, is just weeks away but the time to take action is now! Fans can pre-order the expansion for $14.99 (requires the original game to play) at http://store.steampowered.com/app/272030. Harebrained Schemes has also released new screenshots and a trailer on its website (http://harebrained-schemes.com/shadowrun/dragonfall/) today in anticipation of the game’s February 27, 2014 launch date.

The Shadowrun: Dragonfall expansion features a robust full-length campaign set in the city of Berlin and contains a multitude of new features and enhancements. The title will be available for purchase on Steam and a DRM-free version will be available on GOG.com. Shadowrun: Dragonfall will debut on Windows, OSX and Linux, with iPad and Android tablet versions to follow.

Shadowrun Returns debuted in 2013 to much acclaim. The game was the first $1m+ Kickstarter-funded videogame to be released and premiered as a #1 seller on Steam. It appeared on 5 “Most Anticipated Games of 2013” lists, and was a featured Game of the Week on the Apple and Google Play App Stores. The accolades for the game have continued with Shadowrun Returns winning numerous “Best of 2013” awards including:

  • Diehard GameFAN – 2013 Game of the Year
  • Diehard GameFAN – Best PC Exclusive Game
  • Diehard GameFAN – Best Digital/Downloadable Game
  • Diehard GameFAN – Best Strategy Role Playing Game
  • Gamasutra – Best of 2013, Gamasutra’s Top Games of the Year
  • Giant Bomb – Best of 2013 list (by Xavier Woods)
  • The Escapist – Best of 2013 list (by Justin Clouse)
  • IGN – Recommended Games Holiday Gift Guide
  • Board Game Geek – Recommended Games Holiday Gift Guide

“The response to Shadowrun Returns has been the highlight our year, from our audience posting their wonderful reviews, to the gaming media who awarded us all of these 2013 honors, to the amazing community of content creators using our editor to create their own awesome stories,” said Jordan Weisman, founder of Harebrained Schemes. “Shadowrun: Dragonfall continues the high standards set by Shadowrun Returns, while adding in new features for the game and the editor that we hope will help draw fans even deeper into the Shadowrun Universe.”

SHADOWRUN: DRAGONFALL STORY

MAN MEETS MAGIC & MACHINE. The year is 2054. Magic has returned to the world, awakening powerful creatures of myth and legend. Unchecked advances in technology have blurred the line between man and machine. Great dragons play humanity for pawns, while ruthless corporations bleed the world dry. In this new reality of elves and trolls, corporate arcologies and terrifying new magics, anything is possible… for a price. And when the powerful and the desperate need a job done, they turn to shadowrunners: mercenaries, living on the fringes of society, surviving day-by-day on skill and instinct alone.

BERLIN. The Flux-State: a stable anarchy enforced by an ever-shifting coalition of megacorps, political factions, and savvy power players. A place where almost anything goes, and the right connections can be the difference between success and starvation. Dangerous jobs abound and there’s no better place to earn a quick payday – provided you live long enough to spend it. For you and your team of battle-scarred runners, it’s just another day in the Free City of Berlin.

But a new threat is rising, one that could mean untold chaos and devastation. The only clue: whispers of the DRAGONFALL, a long-forgotten event from the earliest days of the Awakened world. As you find yourself drawn into a maze of veiled dangers and strange machinations, you will come face-to-face with a grim spectre of the past… and alter the course of Berlin’s future.

SHADOWRUN: DRAGONFALL FEATURES

Experience a New Full-Length Campaign: Return to the “Tech meets Magic” future of Shadowrun as you and your team of runners get drawn into a treacherous conspiracy. Operating out of an offbeat central hub neighborhood, you’ll choose which missions to accept and how you’ll approach them while navigating the dark underbelly of “the Flux”.

An Exciting New Locale: Shadowrun: Dragonfall transports runners to the Free City of Berlin, a thrilling Shadowrun setting full of gorgeous new hi-res environments, a diverse new cast of characters, and a new soundtrack by Sam Powell, the composer of the original Sega Genesis Shadowrun game.

Command Your Team: Lead a small team of shadowrunners, each with their own outlook and backstory. Each member of your team is designed to play an interesting role during missions and has a unique set of skills, abilities, strengths, and weaknesses.

New Weapons, Cyberware, Enemies & More: Try your hand at the long-range sniper rifle, devastating grenade launcher, or stun-inducing taser. Chrome yourself out in the latest cyberware, and take on deadly new enemies – including new magical creatures like gargoyles and fire drakes. Dragonfall brings a host of new items, characters, portraits, and improvements to the Shadowrun Returns experience.

Save Anywhere: You can save your progress at any time during the game. In addition to being in Shadowrun: Dragonfall, this save feature will be available in new downloads of Shadowrun Returns and through a patch for already purchased versions.

New Game Editor Features: A wide range of enhancements to the game editor for community content creators – including a scripting system to better control lighting, tracking mission objectives in the main game UI, placing exploding barrels, and allowing players to input keypad passwords and custom text strings in conversations. In addition, content creators will be able to use all of the new Berlin environment art, items and characters in their own stories along with assets from the original Shadowrun Returns campaign.

Kill the Bad Guy Gets Gameplay Trailer

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Marseille, France – January 28, 2014 – Independent game developer, Exkee invites you to discover, in just a few minutes, the myriad of ways that vigilante justice can be dispensed upon the wicked in their blood-soaked puzzler, Kill the Bad Guy, available for Windows, Mac, and Linux in May 2014.

Kill The Bad Guy is a puzzle-based game with a seemingly calm, utopian atmosphere, but in actuality, it is a veritable playground for which to serve vile evil doers their just deserts! So players, pull up a seat and tuck in your bibs because it is about to get messy!

In Kill the Bad Guy, players will act as a shadowy justice, manipulating the tangible world from afar as the unsuspecting Bad Guy goes about his day. The player will have to first dirty up the streets in order to keep them clean and safe in the long run. Purge the city of dirty criminals, seedy mafioso, low-life drug lords, and other Bad Guys who think that they are safe hiding as wolves in sheep’s clothing.

In order for the mission to be a complete success, the player must not raise suspicion, or let the Bad Guy know that they have them marked and are out for blood! The player must remain undetected, minimalism collateral damage, and above all, make it look like an accident!

Use intelligence and trickery to find the best way to lure the Bad Guy into your trap. Once the Bad Guy is zeroed in on, players can choose an accessible tool best suited for the job: a runaway car barreling straight towards him, a razor-sharp propeller from a defective air-conditioner unit, or how about a wrecking ball which happened to “accidentally” detached itself from the body of the excavator. What will it be?

Every level provides the possibility to splatter and destroy the Bad Guy using various weapons and traps. Simply put, it is up to the player to put the Bad Guy in the wrong place at the right time!

Trailer

Madden NFL 25 Calls Super Bowl XLVIII for Denver Broncos

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REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – Jan. 27, 2014 – The Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) Madden NFL 25 Super Bowl Prediction is calling for Peyton Manning to be the first ever quarterback to lead two different franchises to Super Bowl victories, with the Broncos defeating the Seahawks 31-28 in overtime. A video of the matchup can be found here. The Madden NFL Super Bowl prediction has correctly forecast 8 of the past 10 Lombardi Trophy winners, and last year accurately called Baltimore’s large lead and San Francisco’s furious comeback with the Ravens hanging on for the win.

The defenses of both the Broncos and Seahawks asserted themselves early, as the offenses struggled to score points. Richard Sherman further bolstered his case as the best cornerback in the game, returning an interception for a touchdown just before the half and sending the Seahawks to the locker room with the momentum and a 10-7 lead.

The Denver offense shook off the cold New Jersey air and got hot in the second half, with Peyton Manning attacking Richard Sherman and connecting with Demaryius Thomas for a 17-yard TD in the 3rd quarter. Later in the quarter Knowshon Moreno added a goal line run to give Denver a 21-10 lead. Even though Steven Hauschka managed a field goal as the period ended, the pendulum had clearly swung in the Broncos’ direction.

Manning added a 24-yard touchdown to Wes Welker early in the 4th quarter, and Denver appeared ready to roll to their first Super Bowl victory since 1998. Russell Wilson and the Seahawks weren’t willing to crown the Broncos just yet, as a touchdown pass from Wilson to Golden Tate and a last-second 27-yard touchdown run by Marshawn Lynch pulled the Seahawks to within two points, and the successful conversion knotted things up to send the contest to overtime.

Denver’s defense, shell-shocked from their 4th quarter collapse and Lynch’s bruising TD run, steeled their resolve and stopped the Seahawks on the first overtime possession, forcing a punt. The Broncos managed to advance the ball to the Seahawks’ 30-yard line, but their drive stalled there and John Fox called in the kicking unit. Matt Prater, the record-holder for the longest ever field goal in an NFL game, stepped in for his first attempt of the game and drilled a 48-yarder to seal the victory and send Broncos fans around the world out of their seats with elation.

In addition to winning his second Super Bowl ring Peyton Manning also earned MVP honors on the strength of his 322-yard, three touchdown performance. Demaryius Thomas also had a monster game, hauling in 11 passes for 168 yards and a touchdown. The Seahawks’ Marshawn Lynch was the game’s top rusher, gashing the Denver defense for 109 yards and a touchdown.

The Madden NFL 25 Super Bowl prediction is created by simulating the Super Bowl matchup with updated rosters on Xbox One®, the official game console of the NFL. The Madden NFL 25 Super Bowl prediction is engineered by GMC®.

Madden NFL 25 is developed in Orlando, Florida by EA Tiburon and is now available for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system, Xbox One, the all-in-one entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 entertainment system and the PlayStation®4, as well as on iPhone®, iPad® and Google Play. To learn more about Madden NFL 25, visit http://www.easports.com/madden-nfl.

All player participation has been facilitated by NFL Players Inc., the licensing and marketing subsidiary of the NFL Players Association (NFLPA).

EA SPORTS is one of the leading sports entertainment brands in the world, with top-selling videogame franchises, award-winning interactive technology, fan programs and cross-platform digital experiences. EA SPORTS creates connected experiences that ignite the emotion of sports through industry-leading sports videogames, including Madden NFL football, EA SPORTS FIFA, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, NCAA® Football, PGA TOUR® golf, SSX™ and EA SPORTS UFC®.

For more information about EA SPORTS, including news, video, blogs, forums and game apps, please visit www.easports.com to connect, share and compete.

Video

Square Enix Launches the Square Enix Collective

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JANUARY 27th, 2014 — Square Enix today launches the pilot phase of its new community platform, Square Enix Collective™.

Collective™ will showcase independently developed game concepts direct to the gaming community, allowing the community to decide which concepts should become a reality. The platform is initially launching with a pilot phase which starts today and will run for 28 days, showcasing three projects from Ruffian Games (based in Dundee, working on Game of Glens), Kitfox Games (based in Montreal, working on Moon Hunters) and Tuque Games (also based in Montreal, working on World War Machine).

“There are lots of really talented small teams around the world with great game ideas. For those teams, getting visibility, momentum, funding and distribution can be very tricky and that’s where we hope Collective can help,” said Phil Elliott, project lead on Collective.

The community will choose which projects they want to see go through to a crowdfunding process via a partnership with world-leading crowdfunding platform Indiegogo. Projects which successfully raise funds may also find support from Square Enix through the development process, and assistance in distributing the final project across leading digital channels once completed.

“It’s up to the teams how much or little help they want from Square Enix and it’s our opportunity to help some fantastic games become a reality and uncover the development stars of the future,” continued Elliott.

The three teams taking part in the pilot phase of Collective will showcase three very different game concepts; Ruffian Games was established in 2008 and has shipped a number of titles in the past, including Crackdown 2 with Microsoft. Kitfox Games is a new developer, with its first game Shattered Planet set for release this March, while Tuque Games – also a new developer – is hoping to launch its first title via Collective.

“We see Collective as an opportunity to get Moon Hunters more coverage than we can get on our lonesome,” commented Tanya X Short, designer at Kitfox Games, “and really connect with potential fans that otherwise wouldn’t hear us.”

“Quite simply I think that Square Collective has the potential to make players happy. The initiative gives players a voice to let Square Enix know which games they want to see get made and the power to influence the raw, early-stage development process. That’s new, powerful and bold,” said Jeff Hattem, founder of Tuque Games.  “I’m both excited and terrified to see how players will react and what they have in store for game devs like us.”

“Ruffian Games is really excited to be involved with Collective from launch, we think it’s a great idea that lowers the boundaries for smaller and more independent developers to get new ideas in front of an experienced audience,” said James Cope, producer at Ruffian Games. “The benefits of being able to grow a following ahead of a crowd funded campaign are clear but Collective gives an extra level of confidence and the options open to us for distribution in the future are incredibly helpful.”

The platform has been created by web development agency Contra. More details on how the platform works are available on the Collective website.

Stronghold Crusader 2 to Launch this Summer

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London, UK – 27th January 2014 – Firefly Studios is pleased to announce that its upcoming medieval strategy sim will see release on PC this summer. With an exact release date to follow closer to launch, the development team is currently hard at work, with the aim of releasing Stronghold Crusader 2 only when it is ready.

In a new post on the game’s official website the independent developer provides a short update on development:

“Releasing in the summer is a little later than we had initially hoped, but once again our intention is to release a game that lives up to the Crusader name. Whenever we meet someone who played and enjoyed the original they always have a story to tell about the time they finally beat that hard as nails Crusader Trail mission or when they took on seven AI opponents at once! When people have such fond memories you can’t rush a sequel out the door, which is why we have chosen to take our time when it comes to feature implementation and play testing. We’re at a point now where we can dip into skirmish mode or a multiplayer game during lunch and have fun, which is a fantastic feeling for the team.

With the game in its current state we can spend extra time tuning and tweaking the various new units and siege equipment that will soon be storming other players online. It will also mean we have enough time to reduce the number of bugs and crashes right down before launch and refine the core gameplay loops that make it fun. We know players are eager to get their hands on the game, but Crusader 2 must be fun, stable and complete at launch.”

Also released today is the game’s final cover art, which reveals Crusader 1 protagonist Richard the Lionheart will once again be returning to the desert. The full news post can be found at www.strongholdcrusader2.com.

Cover Art