German Tech Tree Prepares to Set Sail in World of Warships

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August 6, 2015

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Assassin’s Creed Syndicate Trailer Released for Gamescom

With Assassin’s Creed Syndicate set to be released worldwide on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on October 23rd Ubisoft is taking every chance they have to help hype up fans for the game’s upcoming release. As such Ubisoft has released a new trailer for Assassin’s Creed Syndicate during Gmescom and you can check it out below as well as a handful of new screenshots.

In the trailer you’ll be introduced to the twin assassins Jacob and Evie Frye, the two protagonists of the game, as they talk about what drove them into their quest to try and take over London.

Mirror’s Edge Catalyst Gamescom Gameplay Trailer Released

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August 6, 2015

Mirror’s Edge Catalyst Gamescom Gameplay Trailer Released

With Gamescom 2015 in full swing Electronic Arts and DICE have released a new five minute gameplay trailer for Mirror’s Edge Catalyst. Since this is the first gameplay trailer the company has decided to show off for Mirror’s Edge Catalyst, they are focusing on showing off the moment where Faith begins her rise from a carefree runner to the hero the city needs. Playing in first person allows players to feel her fluid movement, combat and power.

EA does note that the footage shown off in the trailer is pre-alpha footage from a cut-down mission in the game. Currently Mirror’s Edge Catalyst is set to be released for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC on February 23rd.

Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water European Release Date Announced

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August 6, 2015

Nintendo has announced at Gamescom that they are planning on releasing Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water in Europe, where it is called Project Zero: Maiden of Black Water, on October 30th for the Wii U. Starting on this day a trial version of the game will also be made available for download with the prologue and the first two chapters of the game available in the demo.

The company continued to reveal that there will be a special limited edition retail release that includes a copy of the game, an art book, four spirit photographs, a steelbook case, and a double-sided poster. Currently Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water does not have a a release date in North America but you can check out a new trailer for the game below.

STAR WARS_THE ICONIC MOVIES CELEBRATED WITH NEW LIMITED EDITION INDIVIDUAL BLU-RAY STEELBOOKS

Press Releases

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August 6, 2015

THE ICONIC MOVIES CELEBRATED WITH NEW LIMITED EDITION INDIVIDUAL BLU-RAY™ STEELBOOKS

Each Film Presented in Unique, Collectible Character Steelbook Packaging available 11^th November 2015.

Also Available Newly repackaged Star Wars: The Complete Saga to be released on 11^th November 2015.

Sydney, AUSTRALIA – As the galaxy prepares for the next generation of Star Wars, the six epic films will each release as commemorative Blu-ray steelbooks on Wednesday 11 November. These highly collectible films will be available for a limited time only and can be pre-ordered beginning Friday 7 August. In addition, Star Wars: The Complete Saga will also be released in newly repackaged artwork on Wednesday 11 November. The announcements were made today by The Walt Disney Studios, Lucasfilm Ltd., and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

Each film from the Saga is presented with new character packaging allowing fans to choose their favorite or collect all six for a limited time. Characters include: The Phantom Menace – Darth Maul; Attack of the Clones – Yoda; Revenge of the Sith – General Grievous; A New Hope – Darth Vader; The Empire Strikes Back – Imperial Stormtrooper; and Return of the Jedi – Emperor Palpatine.

In addition to the collectible steelbook packaging, each single disc Blu-ray includes existing audio commentary with George Lucas and the film crew as well as audio commentary from archival interviews with the cast and crew.

The newly repackaged Saga includes all six feature films on Blu-ray, along with three additional discs containing more than 40 hours of previously released extensive special features.

About The Walt Disney Studios

For over 90 years, The Walt Disney Studios has been the foundation on which The Walt Disney Company was built. Today, the Studio brings quality movies, music and stage plays to consumers throughout the world. Feature films are released under the following banners: Disney, including Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios; Disneynature; Marvel Studios; Lucasfilm; and Touchstone Pictures, the banner under which live-action films from DreamWorks Studios are distributed. The Disney Music Group encompasses the Walt Disney Records and Hollywood Records labels, as well as Disney Music Publishing. The Disney Theatrical Group produces and licenses live events, including Disney on Broadway, Disney On Ice and Disney Live!.

About Lucasfim Ltd.

Lucasfilm Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is a global leader in film, television and digital entertainment production. In addition to its motion-picture and television production, the company’s activities include visual effects and audio post-production, cutting-edge digital animation, interactive entertainment software, and the management of the global merchandising activities for its entertainment properties including the legendary STAR WARS and INDIANA JONES franchises. Lucasfilm Ltd. is headquartered in northern California. Lucasfilm, the Lucasfilm logo, STAR WARS and related properties are trademarks and/or copyrights, in the United States and other countries, of Lucasfilm Ltd. and/or its affiliates. © 20 15 & TM Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved.

About Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, LLC (TCFHE) is the industry leading worldwide marketing, sales and distribution company for all Fox produced, acquired and third party partner film and television programing. Each year TCFHE expands its award-winning global product portfolio with the introduction of new entertainment content through established and emerging formats including DVD, Blu-ray™, Digital HD and VOD. Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment is a subsidiary of 20th Century Fox, a 21st Century Fox Company.

German Tech Tree Prepares to Set Sail in World of Warships

Press Releases

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August 6, 2015

German Tech Tree Prepares to Set Sail in World of Warships

German cruisers to hit the high seas

August 6, 2015 — Wargaming today announced that the German Tech Tree is preparing to cast off for World of Warships. This new lineup will set sail in October, with visitors to this year’s gamescom getting exclusive hands-on experience with famed German warships, including the iconic Dresden and Admiral Hipper, far ahead of their release.

The World of Warships zone within the massive Wargaming gamescom booth will be the only place where players can test the versatility of the Dresden and Hermelin cruisers, as well as discover the might of the Bismarck and Tirpitz battleships. Visitors will also get the chance to see how these warships operate while pitting them against other nations already in game for the very first time.

The German cruisers making their in-game debut boast remarkable endurance, especially at higher tiers, making them great for surviving tough encounters. Heavy German cruisers also feature solid armor and devastating weaponry fitting for any battle at sea. The German line has strong penetration, but even better damage per minute and outstanding missile velocity, which makes for an intimidating force in close-range combat.

“The World of Warships team is really excited to be adding the German national line into the game,” said Danila Volkov, World of Warships Development Director. “German shipbuilding has produced truly daunting and diverse warships. These vessels open up a whole new set of tactics for players and add additional depth to gameplay.”

The World of Warships Open Beta saw over two million prospective captains engage in thrilling naval warfare on the high seas with players around the world averaging 190 minutes or 12 battles per day. Of the dozens of ships offered, player favorites included aircraft carrier Langley, battleship Michigan, cruiser St. Louis and destroyer Wakatake.

To stay up-to-date with all the latest developments, visit our official website.

http://worldofwarships.asia

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About World of Warships

The highly anticipated World of Warships is the latest free, historical online combat game to be added to the Wargaming’s catalog. Command a massive naval fleet featuring history’s most iconic war vessels, level up important tech modules and prepare to dominate the oceans in World of Warships.

With four classes of ships, a plethora of upgrades, strategically designed environments the action never ends and every match is a unique experience.

Endless hours of strategy, tactical gameplay and pulse pounding combat await all who take the helm in World of Warships!

Official website:

http://worldofwarships.asia

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 will include the armored World of Tanks, the flight combat World of Warplanes, and the naval World of Warships. The three intertwined titles will 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 mobile and tablet. 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. The mobile MMO game World of Tanks Blitz has opened up Wargaming’s trademark team-based military IP to smartphone and tablet users worldwide.

Official website:

wargaming.com

NEW STARCRAFT® II, HEARTHSTONE®, HEROES OF THE STORM™, AND OVERWATCH™ CONTENT REVEALED AT GAMESCOM 2015

Press Releases

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August 6, 2015

NEW STARCRAFT^® II, HEARTHSTONE^®, HEROES OF THE STORM^™, AND OVERWATCH^™ CONTENT REVEALED AT GAMESCOM 2015

Latest additions to current and upcoming Blizzard Entertainment games playable on show floor; new World of Warcraft^® expansion to be announced tomorrow

SYDNEY, Australia—August 6, 2015—Epic Heroes and knightly cards are just a few of the exciting new things Blizzard Entertainment revealed overnight at gamescom 2015, taking place at the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany from August 5–9. And there’s more to come: the epic new expansion for World of Warcraft^® will be unveiled on the Blizzard stage in Hall 7 tomorrow, August 7, at 2:00 a.m. AEST. Players around the world can tune in to a live stream of the announcement at www.blizzgc.com.

StarCraft^® II: Legacy of the Void^™

Blizzard also revealed the first details for Allied Commanders, a brand-new cooperative game mode in Legacy of the Void, the upcoming final chapter of StarCraft II. In Allied Commanders mode, players take on the roles of legendary StarCraft commanders and team up to defeat a host of enemies in a series of objective-based missions, levelling up their commanders as they progress.

Each commander has a distinct play style and devastating abilities, as well as new cooperative powers exclusive to the Allied Commanders mode. New abilities, units, and upgrades are unlocked as the commanders work together to dominate each mission.

Three commanders have just been revealed and are playable at gamescom:

Jim Raynor represents the heart and fighting spirit of the Terran Dominion, leading an army that focuses on infantry and Terran war machines, including the ability to call down the power of the Hyperion Battlecruiser, the flagship of his fleet
Kerrigan takes to the battlefield alongside her Swarm, which comprises some of the most iconic Zerg units from the StarCraft franchise
Artanis commands the Protoss forces from high above in the Spear of Adun, and can quickly reinforce his allies anywhere on the map, including calling down orbital strikes with deadly precision

Professional StarCraft II players will be demonstrating Allied Commanders at gamescom on the Blizzard stage in Hall 7 from 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, August 8, until 12:30 a.m. AEST on Sunday, August 9, and from 9:00–10:00 p.m. AEST on Sunday, August 9.

Hearthstone^®: Heroes of Warcraft^™

Dashing knights and their trusty steeds join gamescom this year with a preview of The Grand Tournament^™, the exciting new expansion for Hearthstone^®: Heroes of Warcraft^™ due out later this month. Along with 11 new cards revealed overnight, Blizzard showcased a new “jousting” gameplay mechanic, which gives certain cards the ability to reveal a minion in each deck and win a special advantage for the player if their revealed minion has a higher mana cost than that of their opponent.

Heroes of the Storm^™

The influence of Sanctuary within the Nexus continues to expand as part of the ongoing Eternal Conflict^™ in-game event, with the unveiling of a new Diablo^®-themed Hero and Battleground:

Kharazim, Monk of Ivgorod, is a versatile melee support Hero who can be either a healer or a fighter
Infernal Shrines is a three-lane Battleground on which teams compete to call forth a massive Punisher demon that hunts down the opposing team’s Heroes

Two additional Heroes have also been revealed:

Rexxar, the famed half-ogre, half-orc beastmaster from Warcraft^®, is a ranged warrior who fights in tandem with his trusted bear companion, Misha
Artanis, the first StarCraft warrior for Heroes of the Storm, will be made available to those who purchase or pre-purchase StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void

Overwatch^™

The world could use a new hero, and two new maps, and that’s exactly what Blizzard revealed for Overwatch, its highly anticipated team-based shooter:

Lúcio, an acclaimed Brazilian musician, supports his comrades by using his musical talents to heal them and boost their speed

In Numbani, an African city where omnics and humans live together in peace, players escort Doom Fist’s gauntlet to the Numbani Heritage Museum—or prevent their opponents from doing so
In Volskaya Industries, a Russian manufacturing centre near Siberia where the hostility between humans and omnics remains strong, opposing teams battle over control of the map by capturing or defending critical objectives

Lúcio and the two new maps are playable on the show floor at gamescom, along with Zarya, McCree, and Soldier 76, three heroes announced earlier this year.

In addition to tuning in to www.blizzgc.com for tomorrow’s World of Warcraft expansion announcement, be sure to return to the website at 2:00 a.m. AEST on August 8 and 9, and at 1:00 a.m. AEST on August 10, to watch live chats with Blizzard developers about the latest announcements at gamescom and more.

Supporting videos and screenshots for all of the announcements are available on the Blizzard press site: http://blizzard.gamespress.com/en-AU

BANDAI NAMCO ENTERTAINMENT EUROPE ANNOUNCES SWORD ART ONLINE RE: HOLLOW FRAGMENT AVAILABLE NOW ON PLAYSTATION®4

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August 6, 2015

BANDAI NAMCO ENTERTAINMENT EUROPE ANNOUNCES SWORD ART ONLINE RE: HOLLOW FRAGMENT AVAILABLE NOW ON PLAYSTATION^®4

Relive The Adventures in Aincrad on the PlayStation^®4

BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Europe today announces that Sword Art Online Re: Hollow Fragment is now available through PlayStation®Network for the PlayStation^®4.

“Sword Art Online Re: Hollow Fragment and Sword Art Online: Lost Song are both poised to bring the action and rich story of the highly popular Sword Art Online anime to life on the PlayStation family of consoles. The popularity of anime and novel has been growing at an astonishing rate and we’re excited to add the Sword Art Online franchise to our company’s illustrious roster of popular anime games.” said Herve Hoerdt, Vice President of Marketing & Digital at BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Europe.

Both Sword Art Online Re: Hollow Fragment and Sword Art Online: Lost Song feature original stories based on the light novel and anime Sword Art Online. Both games follow the simulated Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (VRMMORPG) gameplay from the Sword Art Online storyline. In Sword Art Online Re: Hollow Fragment, players will play as the main character, Kirito, and fight through all the levels of Aincrad to break free from being locked within the virtual game world. Players with save data from the PlayStation^®Vita version of the game on will be pleased to learn that some items from that game will be transferrable to the PlayStation^®4; additionally DLC from the PlayStation^®Vita title will be unlockable on the PlayStation^®4 at a later date.

Sword Art Online: Lost Song is taking route to Europe, Middle-East and Australasia on PlayStation®4 and PlayStation®Vita with subtitles in English, French, Italian, German and Spanish.

With an original story based on the Alfheim Online realm including new and returning characters and exclusive environments, fans will be more than happy to spend more than 50 hours questing in the ultimate Virtual Reality universe! To make it even more exiting, Lost Song will feature all new Aerial Battles and plenty of customization features.

Sword Art Online Re: Hollow Fragment is available now for the PlayStation^®4 (via PlayStation®Network) in summer 2015. Sword Art Online: Lost Song is slated for a retail release on the PlayStation®4 and PlayStation^®Vita in late 2015.

Discover more about Sword Art Online:

Official video-game website: SwordArtOnline-Games.com
BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment’ Official Website: BandaiNamcoEnt.eu
Official Facebook Page: com/BandaiNamcoGames.Europe
Official Twitter Account: com/BandaiNamcoEU

Click here to view the official trailer for Sword Art Online Re: Hollow Fragment https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Z29SnnIRaY

Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess Review

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August 6, 2015

Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess Review

Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess
Developer: Koei Tecmo
Publisher: Koei Tecmo
Platforms: PS Vita, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 (Reviewed)
Release Date: July 14, 2014
Price: $49.99 US – Available Here $69.95 AU – Available Here

Overview
The Deception series saw quite a bit of success on the original PlayStation and PlayStation 2 consoles due in part to its trap-oriented gameplay that no other title had ever attempted before vanishing for nearly ten years. Then Koei Tecmo revived the franchise with the release of Deception IV: Blood Ties which brought back the type of trap oriented gameplay that fans remembered. Now with Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess offering new content on top of what was already included in Blood Ties, should fans step into the trap filled dungeons once again?

Story
Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess includes not only the original storyline following Laegrinna, the daughter of the devil, as she is assisted by three demons who work with her father in order to revive the devil by collecting Holy Verses that have been passed down for generations by the heroes that originally sealed him but also a hundred new quests that follow another princess named Velguirie.

Unlike Laegrinna, Velguirie has a number of unique powers as she is capable of haunting the nightmares of humanity allowing her to torture them in their dreams. With a sadistic personality, Velguirie is capable of attacking opponents with kicks to set them up for the disastrous traps that lay in wait. She is assisted by an automaton named Ephemera who assists Velguirie in restoring her lost powers as well as reviving the devil, even if it means she must defeat Laegrinna and others from the past to do so.

While this means that there is still an issue with there not being too much of a set-up for the actual storylines in Deception IV, both Blood Ties’ story and The Nightmare Princess’ quests hold up well enough on their own even if it happens to be your second time heading through Laegrinna’s storyline since there are many different ways it can play out while Velguirie feels like a fleshed out story that manages to hold together well despite the odd decision to relegate her storyline to the quest mode.

Gameplay
The real core experience for Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess remains the same as what was found in the original game and you can read all about that in our original review. As a brief summary however, players find themselves facing off against a number of opponents in stages where they must use traps that they have cleverly laid out in order to kill all enemies.

The new twist with The Nightmare Princess is that Velguirie can do something that no protagonist could ever do in a Deception game, she can physically attack enemies. Of course this doesn’t mean that she can simply kick an enemy to pieces but by utilizing a well-timed kick (which is limited by a recharge meter) Velguirie can temporarily stun an enemy and make them stagger backwards into an area that may have a trap waiting to be activated by the player. Of course if you’re feeling extra sadistic you can also stomp on downed foes for a bit of a coup de grâce if they are on the verge of defeat or just got put through the ringer of a ridiculously long trap chain.

While Deception IV already had more traps than you could ever think to try out and combine with the various stage traps, The Nightmare Princess adds even more to that number though it is worth noting that most of these special traps require the player to unlock them via the 100 mission long quest mode. Of course once a number of these traps have been unlocked, the only limitation to what you want to actually do with them is your imagination (and the number of traps that you can use at any given time which must be increased by completing the aforementioned story modes) as your foes’ demise can be as gruesome or hilarious as you want it to be, especially with a new customization option.

As mentioned before, this serves as Velguirie’s storyline and while every quest requires the player to usually defeat every enemy, there are also additional challenges that range from finishing off an enemy with a certain trap, hitting a high trap combo, or at least utilizing a certain trap in said combo. By completing these side-objectives not only are enhanced versions of already unlocked traps unlocked but so are new traps as well as new customization pieces.

Alongside offering the new storyline quest mode, The Nightmare Princess also includes the addition of Studio mode. Studio mode allows players to not only craft their own victims by creating enemies that can be customized using various pieces that can be unlocked in the aforementioned quest mode but also given specific weaknesses and strengths. These opponents can then be placed in pre-existing stages for players to run through any different number of fun scenarios to see how things will play out. These scenarios can then be uploaded for the community to play and it is entirely possible to download other player created stages to see if you can manage to tackle the challenges they have placed before you.

That being said, while the new story following Velguirie is enjoyable and the addition of even more traps to utilize is a great addition, those who have already picked up Blood Ties may find it hard to pick up an entirely new version of the game only for the aforementioned additions. Those who never picked up Deception IV obviously won’t find issue here but those looking for a simple upgrade may not be satisfied with everything on offer in The Nightmare Princess.

Visuals & Audio
By being released on the PlayStation 4 Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess actually hasn’t been given too much of a graphical overhaul. The character models do look a bit better than before (with fan-service breaking clothing still included) but unfortunately most of the already included stages look the same as before. Thankfully a number of modern stages and traps have been added into the game to spice things up a bit and move away from the medieval aesthetic that may have been dragging on players for a bit too long.

This means that characters wearing gym uniforms can be subjected to both medieval traps as well as modern day ones such as toilet geysers, flying soccer balls, out of control playground and exercise equipment, and more especially since their outfits can now be changed to fit whatever theme feels right in the Studio mode.

As with the original release, Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess does not feature an English voice track and has retained the original Japanese dub. This isn’t an issue however as Koei Tecmo has provided proper English subtitles for every bit of spoken text in the game, including the oft hilarious introduction and dying speeches given by your victims while the Japanese voice actresses and actors have done a great job fitting into their sadistic sounding roles.

Overall
Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess serves as a great addition to the franchise by not only upgrading the title to the PlayStation 4 but also offering a bunch of new content to attract newcomers. Unfortunately the move to the PlayStation 4 does very little to upgrade the original graphics found in Blood Ties and those looking to upgrade may find the new content a bit lacking. Nonetheless I found Velguirie a worthy addition to the game and with plenty of new traps to utilize, new modern stages to spice things up, and plenty of content to unlock for the Studio, Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess is definitely worth it for fans looking for more great content with a bit of extra polish.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

DC UNIVERSE ONLINE’s EPISODE 15 FEATURING DC COMICS BOMBSHELLS AND BLACK LANTERNS now available

Press Releases

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August 6, 2015