EL Gaming Are The Asian Champions Of WGL APAC Season II 2015-2016
EL Gaming takes home $60,000USD and the trophy
March 07, 2016 — Wargaming proudly presents EL Gaming as champions of the Wargaming.net League’s (“WGL”) APAC Season II Finals 2015-2016, that spanned the weekend of March 05 and 06 at the Yongsan eSports Stadium in Seoul, Korea. They took on runners-up RefornGaming with a score of 7:4 and went home with $60,000USD from the $104,000USD prize pool.
The top two performing teams from the whole WGL APAC Season II, EL Gaming and GoldBass, currently have the highest rating points and will prepare to head to the WGL Grand Finals 2016.
“The finals of this WGL APAC Season II have let us bear witness to hotly contested battles this weekend in Seoul! The inspiring gameplay displayed by every team really is a testament to the prowess of players in the game of World of Tanks. Congratulations toEL Gaming on achieving supremacy on the battlefield and taking the championship title! There’s so much potential for the future of World of Tanks and Wargaming in eSports and we cannot wait to push forward with even more of such intense displays of gaming might for our fans.” said Deon Pek, Head of Customer Relations, Asia, Wargaming.
The season finals saw over 300 viewers at the live event, and close to 34,820 viewers watching the final matches on the livestream channels hosted by Twitch.tv and NicoNico.
To learn more about the Wargaming.net League APAC, please visit:
The Wargaming.net League is Wargaming’s professional eSports league established in 2013. It showcases the company’s products in an eSports capacity; runs all-year-round world-class events giving professional and aspiring gamers a platform to compete and excel, and provides its ever-growing, global audience with instant access to premier competitive gaming content.
The League promotes eSports through large scale events and premium content fostering its popularity among gamers and spectators. Massive prize pools and world-class competitive gaming tournaments with live broadcasts to millions of viewers along with the League’s accessibility attract new teams and contribute to the growth of the audience with the ultimate goal of turning it into a professional sport.
Having grown from a player-encouraged initiative into a global organization, the League puts its community first and evolves based on needs of pro-gamers and viewers. Format and rule sets for matches are continually improved in close cooperation with professional players.
The Wargaming.net League infrastructure gives aspiring players a clear ladder of progression for them to transition to the pro scene. Split into three divisions—Gold, Silver, and Bronze leagues—it allows for skilled players to tap into the world of pro-gaming and provides them with a clear path onward to the top echelon.
AboutWargaming
Wargaming is an award-winning online game developer and publisher and one of the leaders in the free-to-play MMO market. Founded as a privately held company in 1998, Wargaming has shipped more than 15 titles. Currently, Wargaming is focused on its team-based MMO war series dedicated to the mid-20th century warfare that include the armored World of Tanks, the flight combat World of Warplanes, and the naval World of Warships. The three intertwined titles form a common gaming universe integrated within the portal www.wargaming.net.
As part of its multiplatform line-up, the company has introduced World of Tanks on Xbox and World of Tanks Blitz on mobiles, tablets and Windows 10 PCs. Launched in 2014 and 2015, World of Tanks on Xbox introduced epic tank-on-tank battles to console gamers and offers the first cross-platform gaming experience between Xbox 360 and Xbox One. In 2016, Wargaming released World of Tanks for Sony’s PlayStation®4, continuing its console campaign.
A new trailer for the new Ghostbusters movies was released by Sony a couple of days ago. Starring Melissa McCarthy (Spy), Kristen Wiig (Zoolander 2), Kate McKinnon (Saturday Night Live), and Leslie Jones (Top Five) as the eponymous Ghostbusters. The trailer introduces each of their characters and the role they’ll serve in the new team. Alongside this, we get tidbits of the various complications that will occur throughout the film including an antagonist who is attracting ghosts to New York city.
The original film, released in 1984, starred Dan Akroyd, Billy Murray, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Remis, and Rick Moranis as supernatural pest control. It is considered a classic of 80s comedy and is much beloved. The new film, coming out this year, features an all new cast with exclusively female ghostbusters.
The trailer so far has been polarising… in fact, the dislike bar is significantly larger than the like bar on the video itself on youtube. There are some who decry the fact that there are so many women protagonists (if you’re one of them; promptly sod off), others are disgruntled that the one character played by a person of colour is not a scientist like the rest of the team (which is a fair criticism judging from what little we’ve seen), and some which just didn’t like the editing (hell, someone already re-cut it).
I, for one, am interested in seeing what the movie brings to the franchise. As a fan of the original film, I wish to see what fresh talent (and more powerful CGI) can bring to the popular formula. Tell us what you think of the trailer (and any cool re-cuts you find online) in the comments below.
I look forward to seeing it later this year, when it is released on the 15th of July.
Lamborghini Centenario is cover car for next Forza game on Xbox.
The Lamborghini Centenario will feature on the front cover and within the next Forza racing game on Xbox. Lamborghini and Microsoft’s Turn 10 Studios announced their latest collaboration at Geneva Motor Show in March 2016, with the new Xbox game to be revealed at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in June 2016. The Centenario will be available “First in Forza,” giving millions of fans around the world the exclusive opportunity to experience the virtual version of the car on Xbox before its road debut.
Thus, players will be the first to enjoy the aspects of the car celebrating the 100 year anniversary of founder Ferruccio Lamborghini’s birth, starting from the naturally aspirated V12 Centenario which produces 770 hp and powers from 0- 100 km/h in 2.8 seconds ( 0-300 km/h in 23.5 seconds) with a top speed of more than 350 km/h. Lamborghini will produce only 20 coupes and 20 roasdster versions of the car, which are all sold, at a start price of €1.75 million euro plus tax.
“Working with Microsoft and Turn 10 Studios allows a global audience the chance to share in the emotion of driving the Centenario, the most powerful Lamborghini produced to date,” said Mr. Reggiani, board member for research and development of Automobili Lamborghini.
“We’re excited to continue our long history of working with Lamborghini and to be part of their 100-year anniversary by celebrating the Centenario as the featured cover car of the next Forza game,” said Phil Spencer, Head of Xbox.
Lamborghini’s legendary cars are among the most popular in Forza’s stable with more than five million players spending nearly 60 million hours racing in Lamborghinis. The Lamborghini Centenario will join another 14 Lamborghini models featured in the award-winning Forza franchise on the Xbox One.
Every Lamborghini is showcased in ForzavistaTM detail, meaning that each features working doors and headlights as well as fully drivable cockpits. Forza remains the best-selling racing franchise of the current video game console generation, and more than 10 million unique fans have played Forza games on Xbox One, making it the most played racing franchise on Xbox One.
About Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A.
Founded in 1963, Automobili Lamborghini is headquartered in Sant’Agata Bolognese, in North Italy. The Lamborghini Huracán LP 610-4, which made its world debut at the Geneva International Motor Show in 2014, the Huracán Spyder and the rear-wheel-drive version LP 580-2 of 2015 are the successors to the iconic Gallardo, and with their innovative technology and exceptional performance, they redefine the driving experience of luxury super sports cars. The Coupé and Roadster versions of the Aventador LP 700- 4, along with the Aventador LP 750-4 Superveloce represent a new benchmark in the world of V12 luxury super sports cars. With 135 dealerships throughout the world, in half a century Automobili Lamborghini has created a continuous series of dream cars, including the 350 GT, Miura, Espada, Countach, Diablo, Murciélago, as well as limited editions including the Reventón, Sesto Elemento and Aventador J. The Veneno Coupé, Egoista and Veneno Roadster were produced to celebrate the company’s 50th anniversary in 2013.
For other photos and video material, please visit our websites: media.lamborghini.com and www.thenewsmarket.com/lamborghini. For more information on Automobili Lamborghini, please visit the website at: www.lamborghini.com.
More information on the Forza franchise and Lamborghini Centenario can be found at news.xbox.com and media.lamborghini.com, respectively. Media assets for Forza can be found at news.xbox.com/media and forzamotorsport.net.
About “Forza Motorsport”
Welcoming racing gamers of all types, Forza Motorsport games combine unprecedented visuals with the industry’s leading simulation engine, giving everyone the opportunity to truly feel what it’s like to own, race and customize the cars of their dreams.
Forza Motorsport is developed by Microsoft’s award-winning game developer Turn 10 Studios. “Forza Motorsport 6” and “Forza Horizon 2” are available now for Xbox One.
More information about the Forza Motorsport franchise is available at forzamotorsport.net.
About Xbox
Xbox is Microsoft’s premier gaming and entertainment brand created by gamers for gamers on Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Windows 10 devices. Xbox delivers the best games and greatest social gaming network with Xbox Live. More information about Xbox can be found online at news.xbox.com.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.
The information contained in this fact sheet relates to a pre-release product that may be substantially modified before its first commercial release. Accordingly, the information may not accurately describe or reflect the product when first commercially released. This fact sheet is provided for informational purposes only, and Microsoft Corp. makes no warranties, express or implied, with respect to the fact sheet or the information contained in it.
The AC1 Sentinel will soon be unveiled to the public
March 7, 2016 — Wargaming is proud to announce that it has transported the Australian Cruiser tank Mark 1 (AC1) from Texas, USA, to the Australian Armor & Artillery Museum in Cairns. Acquired from the private collection of the late Jacques Littlefield, a well-known tank enthusiast and founder of the Military Vehicle Technology Foundation, the Sentinel is now waiting to undergo minor renovations and will soon make its public debut back in its homeland.
The Australian Cruiser tank Mark 1 (AC1), also known as the “Sentinel”, was the only tank to be designed and mass-produced in Australia during World War II. Just seven Australian Cruiser tanks remain in the world, making it a rarity amongst historic military vehicles. World of Tanks (PC) and World of Tanks Blitz players will be able to get their hands on this vehicle in the near future.
“Wargaming is passionate about history,” said Tracy Spaight, Director of Special Projects at Wargaming. “We work with museums and nonprofits around the world to make sure that the vehicles of World War II are preserved for future generations. We are thus excited to bring the Sentinel tank back to Australia, where she was built, so that Australians can rediscover this piece of their country’s WWII heritage.”
Wargaming is committed to bringing history to life, having been involved in such projects as the Dornier Do 17 salvation and the Alaskan-Siberian Air Route commemorative re-creation. In 2015, Wargaming released its tank battle re-enactment video in 360-degree format, putting the viewer right in the middle of a 1941 tank battle with tanks, infantry, artillery and even warplanes.
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About Wargaming
Wargaming is an award-winning online game developer and publisher and one of the leaders in the free-to-play MMO market. Founded as a privately held company in 1998, Wargaming has shipped more than 15 titles. Currently, Wargaming is focused on its team-based MMO war series dedicated to the mid-20th century warfare that include the armored World of Tanks, the flight combat World of Warplanes, and the naval World of Warships. The three intertwined titles form a common gaming universe integrated within the portal www.wargaming.net.
As part of its multiplatform line-up, the company has introduced World of Tanks on Xbox and World of Tanks Blitz on mobiles, tablets and Windows 10 PCs. Launched in 2014 and 2015, World of Tanks on Xbox introduced epic tank-on-tank battles to console gamers and offers the first cross-platform gaming experience between Xbox 360 and Xbox One. In 2016, Wargaming released World of Tanks for Sony’s PlayStation®4, continuing its console campaign.
Overview Few would have thought that back when NIS America licensed the first season of an idol anime that that series would have blown up to such a size that it has three years later. Although the Love Live! scene had been growing outside of anime since 2010, this was a fairly big risk at the time primarily due to barely any idol-oriented anime being released in the West.
Since then not only has Love Live! turned out to be quite the success, spawning a second season, a movie, and even a continuation with a new group, but NIS America has chosen to re-release the first season featuring an English dub for those who may have missed out on the original set. With this new English dub, has anything been lost in translation or does it shine a fresh light on the series?
Story For those who haven’t seen the series before the story begins with Honoka Kosaka, a girl in her second year of high school but it seems that her new year won’t be all sunshine and roses. At the start of the year, Otonokizaka Academy students are informed that the school will be closing down due to the low number of students and the lack of applicants. Although this initially causes Honoka to panic, she relaxes slightly when she hears that the school will be shut down only after the entire attending class graduates, allowing her to not have to worry about taking other entrance exams.
She soon realizes however that this means that the freshmen will be left with no underclassman and that the legacy of her mother’s time at the school will be lost. Vowing to do anything to save the school from being shut down, she learns from her younger sister that many of the most popular schools in Japan have small groups of students that have become school idols that hold performances and act similar to professional idols.
With the help of her best friends Umi and Kotori, Honoka puts into motion her plans to start a school idol group and try to save the school by becoming popular and increasing the amount of student applications. Unfortunately this task isn’t as easy as it sounds. Not only are these three amateurs unfamiliar with the idol scene, only one of them has been taking part in physical activities and none of them have experience writing lyrics or singing.
To make matters worse, the student council rejects their idea of creating an idol group as a way to save the school, refusing to give them any assistance. With the help of some fellow classmates, Honoko, Umi, and Kotori still continue to practice in an effort to save the school with their now named idol group μ’s. With a song, dance choreography, new costumes, and renewed vigor, these three face utter disappointment with their first performance.
Despite this, the optimistic trio continues to work towards their dream of saving the school while gaining new members in what turns out to be a light-hearted series filled with touching moments, great comedy, a varied cast of characters that mesh together to create a lovable, albeit underdeveloped cast, and a somewhat realistic approach to the trials of becoming an idol.
While many idol series tend to focus on an already established group or simply gloss over the amount of effort the girls need to put in and possibility of failure, most of the emotional moments within Love Live! happen because of these failures. When the original three debut only to fail right out of the gate we see just how determined they are to keep going, even if it means that they might never succeed. That being said, there is some forced drama near the end of the series to cause a disruption in the group but this is so easily resolved, albeit across a span of two episodes, that it doesn’t detract much from the experience. Thanks to that Love Live! School Idol Project’s first season is a series that will make you smile more often than not and a lot of the enjoyment comes from the characters.
It is a bit disappointing however that, at times, a few girls join as a group and it feels like a few characters end up getting sidelined because of this. While we see Umi, Eli, and even Hanayo develop over time as they overcome some of their fears and take a step towards completing their goal, we learn only a little bit about a few of the other girls. Both Rin and Nozomi are included in a group that joins all at once and although they are given enough screen time to establish themselves, we learn very little about them other than the fact that Rin is the enthusiastic athletic one and that Nozomi uses tarot cards to predict things and punish the other girls for misbehaving, making her appear to be the most responsible member of the group.
That being said, although many of the nine girls that form μ’s are simply variations of character types, these girls happen to be so likable and their interactions with one another so fun that it doesn’t become an issue even if they happen to be underdeveloped. With as much charm that flows out of Love Live!, the optimistic nature of Honoka, and some amazing character-based humor mixed in with plenty of well-handled musical numbers, it is easy to see why Love Live! has managed to succeed as well as it has.
Visuals There are two separate aspects of Love Live!’s design and that is standard animation as well as 3D models. This split only appears during the colorful and vibrant performances. These are a real treat for the eyes that place every girl in a new outfit, often varied for each girl. The transition between the two styles is noticeable but not too much is lost in this shift. It is worth noting that the 3D animation can be a bit stilted at times but it does little to bring down the overall quality present throughout the dances when it shifts between close-up standard animation and group-model animation.
As for the basics, the characters are amazing and the humor can be golden, a large amount of this success is thanks to the amount of effort put into designing these girls. Each girl has her own unique look and style, which is essential for a series that focuses heavily on performances and features as many costume changes that appear throughout Love Live! From their school uniforms to their exercise gear and eventually to all of the outfits they wear throughout performances, each girl is charming. As for the humor, a decent amount of the humor comes from character expressions and once again, since each girl has her own personality, they tend to react differently to each situation.
Audio The main difference between this release and the original from NIS America is that this time around the company has provided an English dub for Love Live! School Idol Project’s first season. For those who simply want the original experience at a cheaper price they will be happy to hear that this release does still contain the original Japanese voice track as well. The English voice actors that NIS America have cast do handle the characters well enough and they have chosen wisely by transitioning the English voice work into the original Japanese dub when it comes to the singing. Character nick-names remain unchanged in the English voice work though it is worth noting that a few characters’ verbal tics and smaller tendencies are thinned out which may be disappointing for fans of Rin and Eli specifically.
As for the quality of the songs used for the performances and all of the background music throughout the first season, they are simply superb. While the background music tends to be a little bit forgettable at times, there are numerous times that the beats for μ’s songs are used which is a nice touch. The songs used in these performances are varied and will be a real treat to anyone who is a fan of J-Pop music. As for the opening theme, “Bokura wa Ima no Kanu de” is a suitable, albeit somewhat spoiler filled opening performed by μ’s while the ending theme is “Kitto Seishun ga Kikoeru and while it is generally performed by all of μ’s, a few episodes feature a specific character taking the lead vocals.
Extras The other main difference found in NIS America’s English dub release of the first season of Love Live! School Idol Project is the fact that it is only available as a standard edition. This means that the only real bonuses offered in this release come in the form of on-disc extras that include a clean version of the opening and ending themes, original trailers, and original TV spots from Japan.
Overall Love Live! School Idol Project may have been a risk at first but there is a reason that the series and the characters reached such a level of popularity and this first season is a great example of that. While there might be a few problems with character development throughout this first season it is overshadowed by the fact that this is such a fun and charming series that you cannot help but smile as you watch it.
With a fresh English dub that manages to portray the characters well without thinning out too much of their original personalities, these endearing characters that mesh well together to create a great source of humor and colorful artwork and performances top off an idol series that is very accessible to those willing to give it a chance, especially now that newcomers can check it out in English. Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Although Nintendo announced plenty of news for fans of the company around the world, there was a certain little something that they kept exclusive to their Japanese fans which is some unfortunate news for fans of their older game systems. The company announced during the Japanese Nintendo Direct that they will be releasing a New Nintendo 3DS XL system that will feature the Super Famicom/SNES design in mid-April in Japan where it will sell for 21,600 yen.
This is quite fitting since the company also announced that SNES games will be available for the first time through the New Nintendo 3DS, though owners of the normal 3DS will have to upgrade if they want to play them as they are not available on older versions of the handheld.
As was announced yesterday, Square Enix has released the first English trailer for Star Ocean: Integrity And Faithlessness and while it may not be a brand new trailer for those that have been following the Japanese videos for the game, this one does offer us a look at how the game’s English voice work will sound as every main character is shown off here and given a few voiced-over lines set against the game’s theme song “Astra Nova” by Androp.
You can check out the video below and as for the game itself, it is currently set to be released in North America and Europe sometime in 2016 for the PlayStation 4 and in Japan on March 31st for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4.
Whether the tail end of winter is bogging you down or you’re desperately hanging onto the dying days of summer, Capsule Computers and Indie Gala’sFriday Special Bundle #29 might just make you feel better. Priced at a paltry $2.49 in the first 24 hours of the sale, the bundle contains 12 great indie titles.
For only $1.00, buyers will get:
Sugar Cube: Bittersweet Factory – An adorable puzzle platformer starring a little sugar cube trying to escape a cookie factory.
Quest of Dungeons – A retro 16-bit dungeon crawler featuring rogue-like gameplay.
Wooden Floor – A first person horror adventure set in a mansion that is constantly rearranging itself as you travel.
For a minimum price of $2.49 in the first 24 hours of the sale, buyers will also get:
Fermi’s Path – You are a sub-atomic particle barreling down subatomic space that is crammed full of obstacles and other particles. The levels are generated based on the music, allowing players to select from the preset soundtrack or music they provide.
Angvik – A cartoony puzzle platformer with only a single life.
Lost World Zero – An open world survival game set in a futuristic planet where two factions are battling it out. Will you pick a side or will you try to eke out a survival alone?
Drift Streets Japan – Join illegal street racing scene in Japan, with its famous drifts through the roads that curve around the mountains.
Wooden Floor 2 – Resurrection – The prequel to Wooden Floor, Wooden Floor 2 stars Andrew Winter, an alcoholic with nightmares of the creepy mansion at Blackdust Field.
A.I. Invasion – A top down shooter that will have players leading a crack team of commandos against the relentless A.I. machines that have taken over the universe.
A.I. Space Corps – The battle continues in space against the A.I. machines.
Quantum Rush Champions – An adrenaline pumping high speed race through giant tracks in space ships armed to the teeth with cannons and other weapons.
The Tape – A slow first-person horror focusing on heavy atmosphere about a detective searching for a missing girl.
The $2.49 price will only stick around for the first 24 hours of the sale, so head on over to Indie Gala and pick up your copy before the price goes up.
Io-Interactive today invites all PlayStation Plus members to try the original HITMAN beta this weekend.
EUROPE Start: March 4th 2016, at 11:00 AM CET / End: March 7th, 2016 at 11:00 AM CET NORTH AMERICA Start: March 4th, 2016 at 8:00 AM Pacific / End: March 7th, 2016 at 8:00 AM Pacific
Labeled “The Prologue”, the Beta takes place twenty years before the Paris Showstopper mission. Set in a secret ICA training facility, the Prologue features a pivotal moment in Agent 47’s life – his introduction to the ICA and very first meeting with his future handler Diana Burnwood.
The Prologue features two free-form training hits, which will introduce players to the features and mechanics of the upcoming HITMAN game. The Prologue will also be available as part of the first episode of HITMAN.
Earlier this week Io-Interactive also released the Season Premiere trailer, which showcases the Prologue and Paris locations from the first episode as well as the Italian coastal town of Sapienza dropping in April and a first glimpse at several areas from the Moroccan imperial city of Marrakesh arriving in May.
HITMAN will launch on March 11th for the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, and Windows PC.
Those who have been eager to play a fresh all-ages visual novel from Japan will be delighted to hear that MangaGamer has one coming down the pipe at the end of the month. They have announced that they plan on releasing propeller’s Tokyo Babel on PC on March 31st for $34.95 through Steamas well as their own website. If you choose to pre-order the title through the official website you’ll net yourself a 10% discount bringing the price down to $29.70.
Tokyo Babel begins its tale on the eve of the apocalypse: parallel worlds crumble in succession as the gates of Heaven are closed shut and Hell is irrevocably submerged in water. In a final, desperate attempt to set things right, the surviving angels and demons flock to the soaring purgatory of Tokyo Babel, intent on climbing Jacob’s Ladder to reopen the gates of Heaven and earn divine forgiveness.
In the midst of this world-rending calamity, a young man called Tendou Setsuna travels to Tokyo Babel in order to lend his aid in the quest for Heaven – joining him are the angel Raziel, the demon Lilith, as well as the amnesia-stricken, yet relentlessly optimistic high schooler, Kugutsu Sorami. Theirs is a journey laden with love, hate, passion and betrayal – one that, at its conclusion, may very well alter the fate of the universe as we know it over a fifty hour long visual novel.
